Happy Maki - Sushi Burritos & Bowls — Restaurant in England

TLDR: Great place, great food, moderately priced, friendly staff, go if not in a rush but be wary of a possible long wait and food being served all at once, (with some maybe being colder than others unless requested otherwise). Food really is great though.

Longer version:

Pros: -Staff very friendly and relaxed. -Clean, and nicely decorated. -Relaxed atmosphere - kinda like a lighter, chilled verison of wagamamas. -Food really is great and this is from a meat loving non-vegan. -Helping yourself to water is such a breath of fresh air rather than constantly badgering wait staff who invariably bring you far too little water after a long wait like in most other restaurants, (not necessarily the fault of the wait staff in those situations).

Cons (with qualifiers and explanations): -Service is far too slow. But this isn't a reflection on the staff as they are constantly working hard. They appear to be short staffed sometimes or some of the preparation process needs to be reviewed internally. Waits of pushing 30 minutes in a moderately busy (but not super busy) period have been expected, and at least 10 to 15 when quiet if ordering a main + side + drink. Everything is served at once (so drinks are not ready beforehand though I suppose this could be asked for and I didn't personally do so).

-If you order sweet potato fries, they are often ready far earlier than the sushi style food and are placed in a cold metal container then left for 10+ minutes on the side while the rest of the food is made ready. This really needs to be timed better and ideally save the cold metal containers for cold drinks rather than food which will cool them far too quickly. This may affect other hot food, not just the sweet potato fries.

-The 'pay what you want' feature has good intention but honestly just made me feel awkward. Perhaps do suggested pricing for students or 'if you consider yourself lower/higher income' or something. The staff do not have to go into detail about the whole principle face to face with a customer who is more concerned with getting some grub rather than seeing it as some sort of 'experience'. Perhaps just a message on the screen briefly explaining the concept would suffice. I do like the candid breakdown of costs and I think more places should do that, but the payment part doesn't necessarily have to marry with it.

-Music cuts in and out and is a little loud.

Neutral: -You have to go up and get your food when ready and your name is called. This doesn't bother me personally but could for some who prefer table service or at least a buzzer system. -A main, side and drink is around the £15 mark. Decide for yourself whether that is good value for you or not. There are certainly cheaper and more expensive places for the type of food being served, though the quality here is good.

All in all, if you aren't in a rush, I'd still highly recommend this place and suggest giving it a go, vegan or non-vegan, it...

What a lovely and delicious take away. They do have seating both upstairs and on the street outside if you don't want to take it home to eat. The sushi rolls are much larger than a typical roll, somewhere between a burrito and sushi roll size. I loved the cod, and rather liked the chicken one as well. The duck one was a bit salty for me. However, these rolls have a downside since they're open ended, making it easy for the filling to spill out. The protein also wasn't very crispy despite being called "crispy chicken" and "crispy cod".

My favorite were actually the sushi bowls. They're very customizable and absolutely delicious. I love the mock salmon and the mock crab. The toppings and sauces come together beautifully.

I wish I could have tried their tofu pocket, but they were out when I was here. The dessert was a bit sweet, but small enough that it wasn't overpowering.

When I went, service was fine - I was worried they'd think I was just coming in to just use their bathroom, but they didn't say anything negative to me. My husband had no problem ordering and bringing food downstairs. You're meant to clean up after yourself I think, so depending on previous guests (and passersby that decide to sit), it might be cleaner or dirtier than usual.

Overall, the meal was delicious and I think well worth the "real cost" plus a tip. I treated this as a true tipping scenario - if you appreciate the food or the concept, give 10-15% above their cost. If you enjoy both, maybe give 20-25%. If you don't, give them enough to cover their cost.

You choose what to pay based on the actual cost of the item, but the statistics they posted on this in the store are quite disheartening. I think this would be a great place to take someone you're trying to get to know better - how much they end up paying can say so much. I wonder if the restaurant would have better results in a community with people who know each other, or if people eating in can choose to add to the base cost after eating the meal (and realizing how yummy it is). Regardless, it's brave of this restaurant to try having a "pay-what-you-can" model and it definitely made my day knowing there are still people who have so much hope in the decency...

It was our first time trying out food on this restaurant. Our first impression was good as we looked at different options on the menue. When we received our food, my husband had ordered rice with different vegetables on it and as he expected food to be served warm, it come slightly cold, and he went to ask if it can be warmed up slightly. The lady behind the counter said that they do not have microwave and in fact she said the food is always kept on the room temperature. This made me slightly worried as restaurant serves rice and seaweed wrap that should not be kept out of fridge. However I did not think of it much at the time and carried on enjoying our meal. Same night after my meal I started to feel unwell and was up all night being nauseas and vomiting. There was noughing else that could have caused it but the food I ate there. It was so unpleasant experience that I promised to myself I would never eat there and be extra cautious when eating...