Gaijin Izakaya — Restaurant in Zurich

The experience we had at Gaijin was not pleasant, and to be honest I wouldn’t recommend it, and here’s why: We arrived there and decided to get the 90 CHF Menu each + wagyu 25 CHF + drinks. This is supposed to be the best dishes that the chef recommends and new creations and I’m sorry to say this, but the food was really average…The waitress told us at the beginning that this menu is really for the ones who want to go wild, meaning you eat a lot and well. It turned out we didn’t even get all the courses. The waitress came and said at some point “ok now we’re ready for the dessert” and we were still hungry and confused. The waitress said the menu was supposed to be 12 courses, I assume per person (and it definitely was not). We asked the waitress “The dessert? But did we have all the dishes already?” Her answer “I don’t know guys”. Well, if you are serving you should now, if you don’t, you can ask in the kitchen, I’m not supposed to know…anyway she didn’t get us the answer so we asked another waiter who said “let me ask in the kitchen” and in the meantime we got the desserts. He came back after a bit saying “sorry guys we can give you a discount on the menu and we’ll give you one drink, that’s on us” and we were like “so we were right, there were still missing course?” And reluctantly at the end he said that we were indeed right. So basically if we didn’t ask twice we probably would have paid the full price… It was nice for them to give us the discount and the drinks but it doesn’t repair the average service and food. When we asked about the courses the waiter told us “everything we bring at the same time counts as multiple courses”, so a plate with three different vegetables on it, counted as three courses for two people!??! (Photo included: cucumber, radish, algae in one plate = 3 courses for 2 people, whaaaaaat? Total scam). And funny enough even counting them as multiple courses, we didn’t even get close to the number of courses we were supposed to have, aka 12… On top of that, we pay 90chf each, why do we have to share each plate? Isn’t the menu supposed to be for two people? Why doesn’t everybody get a plate? Furthermore, the dishes…made no sense, for example as the best of the chef I would have expected the fried chicken and something simpler but tasty not something over structured that tastes like nothing. I’m sorry I was super disappointed and talking to some friends I discovered they had the same experience here (they also didn't get all the courses 😓), but I guess they didn’t write a review. If you want an honest review here it is, I hope you can learn from it.

To sum up: bad food bad service (not rude but not professional) bad value for money

There are a lot of places in Zurich where you can spend the same money and eat...

I really didn't want to have to write a review but I think it's important for a food guide awarded restaurant to receive all feedback even when they deliver a relatively poor performance.

We went to this restaurant to experience their Michelin guide Valentine's day set menu. 150 CHF a head is a steep price but we were excited to see what they had in store for us. We were offered three time slots for dinner 18:00, 18:30 and 20:00, we chose 18:30. We were running 15 minutes late so upon arrival we were ushered to our table hurriedly and that's when things began to go downhill. The music was set to a disturbingly high volume - although fun tunes were selected - it was practically impossible to hear my guest or the waiters... There were special cocktails on offer for the occasion but no pairing suggestions for the dishes to come... As our service began we were unpleasantly surprised as most of the courses were overwhelmingly fatty like the deep fried vegetables and the lobster tempura. The lobster was sadly badly overcooked rendering it rubbery and chewy... We were rushed through our meal at times having up to 3 dishes going cold on our table at the same time. Despite speed eating most of our dishes we still had to leave abruptly as the staff began cleaning for the 8 o'clock guests. I don't know how we were supposed to enjoy our 5 course meal in the hour and a half slot given even if we hadn't arrived at 18:45... We were then gifted a surprise box to take home, we thought it was a thoughtful gesture (hoping for a delicate desert or something fine to enjoy together at home) but instead to our dismay we found in the box what seemed to be Chinese food left overs...

It's not all bad though, the man on the telephone was very service oriented and helpful. The service staff brought a bowl of water for our dog. The cevice on a leaf and brussel sprouts with tuna flakes were delicious and the chef personally came to thank us for being there.

Unfortunately the bad outweighs the good for this experience, we felt robbed of our pleasure and would have a hard time finding a reason...

Gaijin Izakaya is the best food in Zürich, and it's worth booking a trip to Switzerland to eat at this restaurant.

I had the good foresight to book a table for two for this restaurant a few weeks in advance, spurred on by the active social media and highly notable Michelin Guide mention. I put this place on a very tall pedestal with some unreasonable expectations. Well, I'm serving up the evidence with photos: the meal, service, and atmosphere was extraordinary.

The food treads a brilliant line between a kaiseki/haute cuisine and traditional tapas-like shareable fare. Standout flavours with everything from the sea: the bluefin tuna, the salmon sashimi, and the hamachi collar immediately halted the flow of conversation while the dishes were on the table. The Wagyu tartare also had a special presentation and complexity that I will not miss on my return trip.

The service was spectacular and expeditious. I couldn't glance in the direction of staff without someone stopping to check-in. Meal/drink suggestions were apt and consequently huge hits. Don't miss the Wagyu Old Fashioned or the Margarita on the drink menu.

Lastly, after our meal and due to my continual harassment of wait staff, I got to see the line during a lull in service. I guess I expected a brigade of ten to fifteen cooks or so, but summarily found three to four immaculate stations, as the head chef showed me around. It's like a mini coop with the power of a Ferrari back there.

Thank you so much Gaijin Izakaya for the attention and the amazing fare. Made our engagement dinner extremely memorable, and we hope to return as soon...