Nori Asian Fusion and Sushi bar on Market st — Restaurant in Castle Hayne

My one star review is based on the service only. I tried to make reservations online for a party of 10 but wasn’t able to do so for more than 6 people. I called the day of and spoke with someone and was able to do “call ahead” seating for our group. I received a text to confirm. Our group arrived five minutes early and was told it’d be a few minutes as they were waiting for a group to leave. About twenty minutes later, we were told “the owners families came in unexpectedly” and it would be a while before we could be sat. We had the option to push together a table for 6 and squeeze or continue to wait. We waited for a bit longer and after being told again, after 40 minutes of waiting, that the “owners families are still eating”, we decided to take our business elsewhere.

This is unfortunate as our entire group was looking to try Nori for the first time and this was a less than pleasant experience. I’m not sure why the owners prioritized their families and taking up a large portion of the dining room for the majority of the evening instead of gaining new customers to grow...

We took a risk this Mother's day and tried Nori for the first time ever and boy was it a happy surprise! Very enjoyable dining experience from the moment we walked in. The hostess was fast & polite and even happily re-seated us on the outdoor patio when Mom changed her mind about the arrangement. Everything pertaining to the staff who took care of us was top notch service! We had 3 different dishes, 2 steak and mine was a Nori roll & the spicy rainbow appetizer. At first I was a little disappointed at the portion but then I took my first bite. That dish wasn't meant to be a food for the tank kind of dish, IT WAS A FLAVOR FUELED EXPERIENCE WOW! I wish I had taken pictures but the over cast on the patio wouldn't have given the right light to do the dishes a level of appreciation they truly deserve. Speaking of the patio, I expected lots of noise from the busy traffic on Market St but nope! This restaurant is nestled just right for a quiet/relaxing thoroughly enjoyable out door dining experience. We were all very impressed and happy to have found a new...

🤮Food and service are not good here (chewy sushi). Annette and Logan are terrible, rude managers with ZERO customer service or communication skills. My husband and I waited 3 hours to get our food when we dined in so the next time we ordered to-go. More problems😡!

It took so long to get our simple order that was placed at 3:45pm on a Tuesday with 3 tables in the restaurant - yet they said they were "backed up." 🤯Then they said my order was not even started until I got there because their online ordering system is broken. I asked for compensation for waiting so long for my order and their internal issues and they said they could give me $2 off😵‍💫. We will NEVER be back and tell all our friends and family of this poor establishment.

I also heard Annette and Logan cursing and bad mouthing the whole time, waiters complaining of bad tips (I wonder why!), and overall lack of professionalism and responsibility. 🙏Owners please do something, you're losing people...