Botejyu SM City General Santos — Restaurant in General Santos

Dec 2023 – it’s been two years since I ate at Botejyu in SM City General Santos and it was a month after it opened. I went here with my friends right after Christmas and we enjoyed the food, and luckily got a discount through a friend’s BPI Signature Card.

Botejyu is a Japanese restaurant that originated in Osaka, Japan and might be the reason why it’s pricier than competition. They have tons of food options in their menu and you would be amiss not to try their wagyu beef, though again, its pricy.

For a table of 6, we spent P4,315, which we were able to discount at 50% using BPI Signature Card, which was a promo at that time.

As of the present, Botejyu has discounts and promotions through various credit cards. An example is for BPI Credit Cardholders: 50% OFF from Mondays to Friday, from September 8 to October 31, 2025, with a minimum spend of P3,000 #BotejyuPH

Botejyu in SM Gensan occupies a very spacious area and can accommodate large crowds of customers. Their open kitchen is reminiscent of traditional Japanese kappo, izakaya or teppanyaki.

I cannot ascertain if this is the real Japanese flavor, but I am sure that there are better Japanese Restaurants than Botejyu. Since it’s positioned in a mall, it seems more like commercial than traditional. The service is quite slow than what we used to in typical restaurants, and we really felt it after the customers seated next to ours went out due to the service delay. Since I have not returned as of late, I am not sure if the service has improved or not, and if the prices has increased or...

My wife and I have always struggled to find something that reminds us of " home " . We moved to the Philippines about a year ago and seldom visit the U.S. and we always crave the dishes we used to eat, particularly sushi. When this place opened up, we were hesitant at first because we had yet to have a decent sushi experience in Pinas. However, after one visit, we quickly became avid customers. I mean driving to gensan from tupi almost daily just to have lunch or dinner.

Service: phenomenonal. They make you feel very welcome and catered to. It's great that they remember guests and all take the time to announce guests (as the tradition for this restaurant chain, regardless, still a nice touch). Everyone always seems to be smiling and are diligent when taking your order. Needless to say, we always leave a tip for the service alone.

Food: I mean.. coming from California, New York, Japan, Europe, my wife and I have a pretty picky Pallete when it comes to food. We aren't "foodies" by any means. However, once we see a familiar item on the menu, the key factor for us is how well it fairs with the best version of that item we've had from previous restaurants. I cannot complain about the timing of orders, the quality of the food, and the overall pricing either!

Extra : they have the cleanest bathroom we have ever seen in a public place. Such a breath of relief especially to foreigners who aren't used to the tabo method yet.

Overall, love this place, the food, and the staff! Will...

SERVICE: if I can rate 0 I will rate 0. No one was at the front desk, I need to look for the person whos supposed to be the receptionist and ask if theres a table available. Then I asked if theres a table for 1 available she said yes and did not even point me to a table, does not know how to handle multiple customers, they seem confused tbh, so I just picked one I like. I then waited 5-10min just for someone to hand me a menu. There was nobody eyeing the serving floor. I also called out for some of the waiters but they did not seem to care and just ignored me. FOOD: My order took about almost 30min to be served and end up being disappointed the meat in the Ramen was so little they were literally skimping on the ingredients. The noodles looks like it was the type of noodles in a pancit canton or batchoy and it costs 475php. Imo, having some batchoy is much more satisfying than having the ramen. It was so disappointing and not worth it. Although I have to say the takoyaki was good but the same as the ramen its mostly just the batter and not much on the inside. Conclusion: I was so disappointed that when I walk out I felt like I wasted my money for nothing. I am never going back to eat here again really not worth it. Theres one other Japanese resto at SM thats more cheaper and more...