Attack of the Tatsu — Restaurant in Chattanooga

Disability violations, Health & Safety Concerns, Initially Unacceptable Service. I hope this review will be an opportunity for improvement and hope management reaches out to resolve. Other reviews echo my sentiments. I came with a blind friend whose limitations & accessibility were remarkably violated, aside from not even being acknowledged. We entered around shift change, 4:30/5pm. That is NOT a busy time. We were swiftly walked to the back (server zooming in front of us)-ZERO respect for my friend’s limitations - and then LEFT without being seen that we were properly seated. We found our own way back to the front, sitting directly in front of the bars’ view. The only server responsible for our section at that time was preoccupied in conversation with her colleague(s) ar the bar, as we waited at least TEN MINUTES to be greeted and she was literally 8 feet away. I believe her name is Liz but am unsure.

Upon greeting, not only did she have zero regard for our wait, but was flippant and delivered answers to my questions so poorly that I was unable to order the beverage and food items I desired. I was already frustrated and should have asked for management. BUT IT GETS BETTER! Meanwhile… I gave up and ordered a Katzu Sandwich with Fries and a drink. Orders then are in … saga continues

I went to stand in line for the bathroom, with two other customers also in line. OUR server then exited one of the bathrooms after an excessive time in it. She spent more time in the bathroom than answering my questions about the menu. Then-While I was in line, a different server coming in to his shift passed me having a quite violent coughing fit…I could assume from what it originated and truly don’t care- but you do that before you come to work. He was not covering his mouth and then literally entered the kitchen amidst continued coughing!!!! (Intense. I wondered if I should offer him my inhaler) Regardless of my assumption, you don’t walk into a SMALL kitchen violently coughing! 🤯

At this point, I was so upset that I didn’t want to be there anymore. The food was okay, not impressive. The fries I did quite enjoy. I hated my drink (and would have ordered the Lychee Spritz if Liz? had time to provide any level of adequate service).

Also!!!!!- Not only is my friend a patron of this restaurant several times before, but we both tip our servers well no matter what. I served tables and try to give leniency as a result- if it were not for the vehement disregard for and violation of my friend’s disability/accessibility, in addition to evident food safety/security, I wouldn’t be writing this. I would have simply requested a different server, as well, but these folks ruined it from the moment we stepped in.

**I will say that once other servers came on shift, (they were all on halfway through our meal) things improved and I would like to give special mention to Olivia for her outstanding performance. I wish she had been our server from the start. our meal and evening likely wouldn’t have been ruined otherwise. Another note about our server (Liz?) I found interesting: Her shirt was cut so short that her bra was fully exposed when she raised her arms, as well as her shorts exposing her bottom. I’m all for clothing alterations and women’s empowerment, but no other female servers found it necessary to expose themselves. 🤷‍♀️ This is the service industry but this experience goes beyond “poor service” and moves into violations of accessibility, health codes, and...

Took myself up to Chattanooga for a little mental health field trip to get a change of scenery and look at the changing leaves on the drive. This wound up being my pick for lunch!

Rolled in very late (for lunch, at least) on a Friday - 3ish. Public parking was readily available nearby; I did have to pay but perhaps locals know a better spot than I do. Regardless, it was an easy block or two walk over.

The restaurant has two areas: a front room with mostly countertop dining (reminds me of a little Japanese hole in the wall I visited in England a lot) and a kiosk for quick carryout ordering, and then a pathway to the back to enjoy the sake bar and a more vibey atmosphere. Both had lots of fun signage, decorations, etc, though I wound up sitting in the back, which I thought was especially cool. It is very dimly lit (a small minus if you want a good eyeful or photo of your food) and some of the smoke/aromas from the kitchen come into the space, but the bright neon and the hanging red lanterns just create such a cool atmosphere I hardly noticed those slight detractors. In the gender neutral one person bathrooms, they had a tv hooked up beneath a neon waving cat. On said tv was a dubbed episode of One Piece, for your viewing pleasure. Truly awesome, lol. The bathroom was clean, too. ;)

All the people I interacted with were lovely! A woman greeted me at the front and explained the restaurant concept to me, guiding me to the back room; I initially sat at the bar to not be a burden to tabletop service and the gentleman bartender was warm and friendly. I eventually got the encouragement I needed to move to a two-top table, where my waitress Maya very attentively and promptly got my order and delivered my food, drink, and check. It all ran very smoothly but without me feeling like I was being rushed.

They do not seem to have fountain sodas, so a bottled Coke was my only soft drink option. I wound up ordering the katsu curry ramen. No utensils were offered and I was too embarrassed to ask for them, so I very pathetically practiced my chopstick skills. I hope no one was watching me too closely!! I managed to fill my belly despite my incompetence. :)

The ramen was very good! I'm not a particularly experienced ramen connoisseur but I enjoyed this one! I thought some of the leek or scallion pieces were a little too large and I also sort of wished the broth had been a little spicier. But I enjoyed the aromatic curry flavor and the slight bounciness of the noodles.

And man oh man...that katsu was bomb. Juicy, succulent chicken and perfectly crispy and flavorful breading. It even held up valiantly against the curry broth for quite a while!

I had enough leftover to be worthwhile to take home; Maya quickly brought me a very nice carryout bowl. My total for lunch was ~$28 once I tipped, so a good bit higher than I'd probably normally pay for lunch...but the staff certainly earned a tip and I certainly enjoyed my meal, so...worth!

Thanks for being a pleasant diversion and a welcoming spot to land for a bit...

I met up with a friend here in the outdoor dining area recently. The servers seemed incredibly irritated with me for sitting with my friend outside instead of going inside and getting my own seat, even though inside was crowded and I was there to meet up with my friend, but they eventually brought me water and let me order something. My friend had arrived with their family, who were still seated indoors, but my friend had sat outside because it was too full inside. The servers apparently assumed my friend’s family was paying for me. When the family responded with understandable confusion, the server apparently made a comment about how I’m probably not gonna pay but that’s fine because I hadn’t ordered much. I think it’s probably a better idea to ask the customer for payment before saying something like that to their friends. I had really only just arrived shortly before my friend’s family paid for their food, and I had kind of wanted to stick around and get myself something else before leaving, but it’s hard to feel comfortable hanging around, knowing that the staff is already treating me so strangely. I know I probably disrupted their system somehow when I went to sit with my friend, so I didn’t really get mad in the moment when they treated me weirdly when I ordered initially, but to hear that they made a comment about me like that was a bit shocking. I paid for my food of course, but it was so odd feeling. I really felt bad for inconveniencing them. I had been a bit excited to try this place, but I was kind of put off by this weird behavior or misunderstanding. I know you have to watch out for your bottom line, especially in the heart of a proper city, so it’s easy to be wary, but you probably shouldn’t make people feel like you’re moments away from shooing them off with a broom BEFORE you give them their check. This was shortly after I tried and reviewed another restaurant a short distance away, and they treated me quite well, so I don’t think I was accidentally dressed up like an escaped convict or roaming zombie or anything like that, lol. It’s supposed to be LGBTQ+ friendly, so i don’t think it’s necessarily because i’m a gender haver either. Maybe it was just bad luck. I am open to going back next time I’m in town and revising my review, since I still really want to try their late night menu, but I definitely don’t want to go by myself. I feel like I’m missing something from my own experience here, like maybe it was a rough night for the staff for some other reason. Still, I ended up not ordering more than my starter because I didn’t want to linger, and I can’t really pretend it was a good experience.

If I had to give my past self advice to avoid problems here, I’d say this: don’t show up later than the rest of your party, don’t order little by little, and don’t break the script. I hope next time I come here I get to meet these friendly servers I’ve heard...