Nobu Del Coronado — Restaurant in Coronado

I have chosen Nobu after reading their seemingly interesting menu online. Although I missed this time (I normally always do it) to check the reviews, I had no specific expectations, except for the fact that a night before I dined with my family at the superb Callie Restaurant: 1195 Island Ave, San Diego, CA 92101. The quality of food and service were absolutely outstanding, and this at very reasonable prices for such first rate quality. Hoping for at least comparable overall quality and seemingly lovely location by the water front, I invited my family of 4 for a lunch at Nobu on October 23d. By the way, the restaurant's website reveals NO prices for ANY dishes or drinks (retrospectively, I understand why). Arriving there around 12 pm, we found the restaurant almost empty. Still, we had to wait until the first waiter brought us water. Then - unusually long wait till a waitress came to us to take the order. Although the explanation of dishes was OK, the waitresses seemed to me forcefully friendly. Looking at the prices in the given to us printed menu, I was taken aback before ordering anything. But... we were there, and there was no way back. Fast forward........evaluating the quality of food and the poor service, I found the prices clearly and decidedly outrageously high. I was extremely upset, but made an effort, not to explode in order not to spoil the entire experience in a presence of my family. Frankly saying, if I were dining along, I would simply call the manager and request the money back. Returning to our hotel, I opened and read the overall evaluation of the restaurant (3.7) and with many reviews echoing my (and my family) impressions. Our global travel experience, including dining in hundreds of restaurants, over decades, allow me to sum up our today's experience at Nobu as not just disappointing, but as outrageously dishonest and on verge of ripping off the customers. It is quite obvious to me, that whoever is in charge of running the place, totally disregards what the customers, some of whom themselves were working in the hospitality industry for many years and really know the business have written after visiting the place. This I can qualify as arrogance and lack of the most basic professional dignity. It is a disgrace. We definitely shall not return and shall advise our friends to stay away from...

I arrived alone, without a reservation, and was told the only seat available was at the sushi bar. That was fine with me. I was the only customer at the sushi bar. It took a long time for a server to acknowledge me-- the sushi chef apologized twice for my wait. I finally placed my order- I got a drink, sushi, a small portion of steak, okra, and black cod. The sushi was fine-- not memorable but it was served quickly. The okra, which tasted incredible, came out fairly quickly as well. I finished my water after the okra and my glass remained empty for most of the rest of the meal. Then the steak came and it tasted good as well. I asked two different people about my drink with no real response. The black cod finally came. I typically love the black cod at Nobu and eat it a few times a year when I'm in a city that has Nobu. I was served a huge portion (like twice as much as I got at the DC location a few months ago), but the sauce was way sweeter than I've experienced at other locations and I didn't love it. I didn't finish the black cod. I asked a third time (after I was mostly done eating) for the drink and finally received it and also a water refill. This was my one splurge meal of my trip, and I kind of wish I had gone elsewhere to spend my money-- the service really detracted from the experience. With that said, as I type this I'm remembering how good the okra was-- I may go get an order to go at some point...

Two things first; I'm a 20 year service industry vet currently the Beverage manger at a 5 star steakhouse in Boston. Second.. the service here was fantastic and the food tasted great. That being said the prices are beyond anything acceptable. No prices available online which I'm feeling is because the Nobu in San Diego, 15 minutes away, is 20-30% cheaper across the board. As a beverage manager i know what every thing costs. $280 for a bottle of Veuve yellow label is borderline insulting, that bottle costs the restaurant $38. Every single wine on the (very limited) list was over priced. $1200 for a bottle of Dom Perignon that costs the restaurant just over $200. Insulting. The same with the food. Their signature Yellowtail Jalapeno in San Diego is $36, at Del Coronado it's $48. Black Miso Cod in San Diego is $48, Del Coronado it's $68. On a personal note, as a manager at a fine dining restaurant, I dress in a full suit and tie every night, without exception. The manager here was wearing white Lacoste sneakers, slacks, unbuttoned shirt.. I'm being petty but that kind of thing bothers me. Dress the part. I also check in on every single table, every night. No manager touched our table the whole night. I'll reiterate: our server was great and support service was on point. Dishes tasted great. I will...