Sakura Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Columbia

I don't review places very often and if I do it's usually because of an amazingly awesome experience... unfortunately this is the exact opposite. This is for the newly relocated Sakura on Rosewood.

I completely understand that they were very very busy because they open at 5:00pm and there was already several people waiting in line at 4:45pm.

I was the first one in the door but the 3rd person to order and mine was to-go. It's really unfortunate that they don't have hibachi steak, only teriyaki, so I asked for the sauce on the side because I can't have too much salt. This seemed to be a really big problem and she had to go ask the chef if it was possible. Ok weird, but whatever. No broccoli? Comes with weird coleslaw mix and carrots, ok can I get rice instead? Nope. We are too busy to substitute rice for the veggies... Ok uh can I just buy an extra side of rice then? Ok sure. I also ordered a California roll.

So I sit down to wait. The restaurant is at capacity and there are customers who need to put their name on the wait list. I watch all of these people get ignored repeatedly, for approximately 10-15 minutes. Not even a "we'll be right with you" just completely ignored, until the customer says something. No one says anything to me about how long my food is taking, and I'm waiting very patiently because I've been in the service industry for 12 years. I watch more customers come in and get ignored for at least 10 minutes, again, not a single response from anyone who works there. The workers were really lackluster in the personality department. Two of the girls smiled when they could, I guess.

I finally get my food and leave the restaurant at 5:58pm (pretty much an hour later). I live maybe 5 minutes away and I was hungry when I ordered my food, now I am starving! This is probably the worst food I have ever eaten in my life. I tried to eat the slaw and carrots. The slaw was sour and I think they attempted to cook the carrots but they were hard. The steak was 5 thin pieces of tire rubber covered in a puddle of cooking oil. I gave most of the steak to my dog. It apparently came with a "salad", I wasn't informed of that when I was ordering, and it was maybe ten pieces of plain iceberg lettuce and a side of dressing. All I can say is thank God for the California roll because it was great. After that experience, the long wait, $30 (including tip), and horrible food, I...

This place is a hidden gem.

I’ve eaten at “5 star” restaurants that don’t even compare to the level of quality of food as produced here.

The Owner and Probably Chef is a master of his craft. Although we didn’t get to speak to anyone but our server, the food came promptly, every dish warped you into Japan, and the atmosphere made you forget you’re in Columbia, SC. Just for a moment.

If you’re a sushi fan, just order the combination plate A, B, C.

Let the master of his craft woo you.

The Mochi is also out of this world.

This should cost between 40-50 per person.

Eat in, the way it should be. There should be a line around the block...

I’m not normally one to write reviews but my first time here was so great and I was very impressed with the service, food, and cleanliness of this restaurant! It was exceptional!

the menu is a little hard to understand our server answered all of our questions with great detail! The tuna was very fresh and red and the house made teriyaki was delish!! As someone who has worked in restaurants for 10 years this was one of the cleanest ones I’ve ever seen and the dishes were very pretty.

On top of all that it was a very welcoming atmosphere the front of house and back of house were all very friendly to us! Will definitely visit...