Kazama Sushi — Restaurant in Claremont

I am completely disheartened from yesterday evening's experience. As we walked inside to place our order, a waiter saw us, but didn't bother to acknowledge our presence. He proceeded to go about his business; which didn't seem like much since we were the only ones in the restaurant at the time. Eventually, a waitress came out from the back to take our order. She seemed a bit short with us and told us to wait outside. She stated that the food would be ready in 15 minutes. As we waited, a number of other guests entered and were greeted right away. Some even lingered inside the restaurant and weren't told to wait outside. I wasn't thinking too much of it because I preferred to be outside since we are in the middle of a pandemic. Well, over 30 minutes had passed, and we realized the waiter, along with the two itamaes, were looking at us through the window. Blatantly staring, but never gesturing us to enter. It actually made me very uncomfortable. We ignored it. Another 15 minutes passed and finally my partner entered to ask for our order. He had to present the receipt, which was odd because we were never out of sight of the restaurant workers since the windows were quite large. The waiter proceeded to gather our order, which had been sitting on the counter for who knows how long. I do not want to make any assumptions about anyone, however the whole experience had me questioning whether we would have received better service if we were not people of color. All other guests during the duration of our wait were white and seemed to be having a completely different, more positive experience than us. We didn't even eat our take-out because the whole experience was very upsetting. I have frequented this restaurant a number of times in the past, but will no longer be a patron of Kazama Sushi. I just hope this was an isolated incident and no other POC have to be treated that way by a POC...

We went to Kazama Sushi to celebrate my son's birthday and were disappointed, mainly due to the price. We ordered a few dishes, as you can see in the receipt photo, and my experience was disappointing for the price we paid.

Let's talk about the ramen: this was the most disappointing dish. Although the menu suggested several types of seafood, what we received was a watery bowl with only two shrimp and a few pieces of squid. There was no trace of the variety we had hoped for. It felt more like noodles in broth than a hearty seafood ramen. Keep in mind that I eat ramen at different restaurants at least twice a month. This isn't a competitive place; don't order ramen here.

For the price we paid, it would have covered a more generous and memorable meal at a well-known sushi restaurant in Las Vegas (a city known for its luxury prices). This speaks volumes about the place's value proposition.

The atmosphere is pleasant, and the presence of expert sushi chefs adds a touch of authenticity. However, for a birthday celebration, the service felt impersonal. I told the staff we were celebrating a birthday, and while I didn't expect anything free, a small touch (like dessert or recognition) would have made the occasion more special. Other places we've visited have done this, even for a fee.

• Ramen quality: Poor, lacking the expected protein. • Price: Expensive for the quantity received. • Service: Friendly, but not personalized or festive for celebrations. • Value for money: Low, especially compared to better experiences in more expensive cities. This was a $196 with tips for tree people.

Kazama Sushi might be a good place for a casual sushi roll with a small group, but I wouldn't recommend it for special occasions. For the price, there are better options nearby or even in more expensive cities.

BTW the photos that you see is the food the we order except the...

I have eaten here for dinner two or three times and have been impressed. Today, after having steered my lunch companion away from her idea of hitting Sushi Oni just up the street, I had hoped that Kazama would really be on top of their game. They generally hit high marks, but there remains room to improve.

All tables were in use when we arrived, so we sat at the sushi bar. I am old and grumpy and pretty much loathe technology, and this loathing has grown recently with the elimination of paper menus. Thanks so much for plastering a sticker for accessing a menu through a QR code (directly in my forward field of vision for the entire meal). Frankly, messing with my phone (something I'd prefer was not part of my lunch experience) did, at least, take my mind off the fact that we weren't offered a drink order for 10 minutes after we'd sat.

Orders taken, good advice given, and food arrived as promised. Our sushi rolls were good, if a little uninspired, and she praised her seafood ramen thing. Big portions and no negatives about taking uneaten food with us.

We only had the house hot sake, and I suspect more sophisticated and better monied drinkers would appreciate the extensive and varied cold sakes available. I admit not to being any sort of sake connoisseur, so we stuck with the basic. Our house sake seemed to epitomize nicely our Kansawa experience today: nothing wrong, perfectly acceptable, but just that last step short of ......