Arashi Sushi Hibachi & Grill — Restaurant in Fountain

The food is fantastic. However, with the reopening there are some kinks to work out (understandably). I am not a complainer but would like to offer some constructive criticism because I want to see the place succeed.

The wait staff was very nice but it seems they are still learning and have a ways to go. The two primary issues revolve around knowing the menu and communication/organization.

For the issues with knowing the menu, there was confusion with my order. I ordered the ngiri lunch special. The menu said there were 6 pieces of ngiri but didn't say whether they were assorted or if one could choose. I asked about it and the young server went to ask because she didn't know. She came back and said I could choose so I chose salmon. When the order was brought there were two ngiri lunch specials, one with the Philadelphia roll that I ordered, and one with a salmon roll both with assorted ngiri. It was clear that my question confused the server and it wasn't properly articulated when she asked for help and that my order for salmon ngiri was put in as an additional lunch special with a salmon roll. The proper answer to my question was that the ngiri comes assorted. Some training on menu familiarity might help, but also stating that the ngiri is assorted on the menu could have avoided the issue. It was no skin off my back, but that was basically $20 blown for the restaurant. Also, now that I look back at the menu I see that I was supposed to receive miso soup and a salad and my wife was suppose to receive miso soup with her meal but we did not receive these. My sushi plate was also missing wasabi and ginger (not sure if it is suppose to come on the plate or be served on the side separately). Knowing the menu up and down and paying a little attention to detail would go a long way.

As for the communication/organization issues, it seems there are no systems or set processes in place to ensure that orders are taken and served smoothly. After our order was already taken another server came to take our order. Then, another table's order was brought to our table by mistake, and drinks were brought towards our table after he we had drinks and the young lady turned around once she realized it. None of these mishaps were problematic to us, but at busier times they can compound and slow things down. There should be a system in place to avoid such redundancy.

In addition, I would suggest setting the tables before customers arrive and are seated and if one does not order sushi, resetting their place accordingly. I had to wait 5 minutes for chopsticks and a dish for the soy sauce/wasabi before realizing I didn't have ginger and wasabi, then it was another couple minutes before I received those items. It is very easy to forget things when you get overwhelmed, so it is best to have very standardized, repeated processes.

Finally, I want to leave this on a couple positive notes. In addition to the great food, the staff was friendly and mostly attentive. They checked up on us periodically and I observed them doing the same with others. I have confidence they will able to work out all...

Out first time visiting was 9/20/25. You walk in and there is an extremely pungent unpleasant sewage smell (not raw, fresh fish SEWAGE). The servers noticed we were unpleased with is and offered to seat us closer to the registers where the kitchen smells help tone the smell down just a bit and the serves said they believe it was a plumbing issue. The servers were so nice about it that we decided to stay and give it a try. We ordered 4 rolls (over $15 plus each) and we were truly impressed. The presentation was beautiful (on a cool wooden boat), the rolls where delicious, tucked and rolled to perfection, so although the environment and smell was deadly the sushi made it tolerable (for as long as we could, because we couldn't take it for too long and ended up taking the rest to go)! We decided to give it another shot being that it was a plumbing issue we were hoping it would be fixed by now.... we returned on 10/4/25 and the smell Horrendous again, we sat in the back table again and ordered the exact same thing... but it WAS NOT MADE THE SAME. The presentation was trash they were brought in a small platter with not the same topping sauces, and This time it was DISGUSTING. The Rolls were crumbling apart and they did not taste good at all, something was definitely not fresh as my stomach didn't tolerate it (not me or my family 2 adults, a teenager and 3 kids) that sushi had us all in/out of our bathrooms all night... it made our bathrooms smells just as bad as the sewage smell in their restaurant 🤢🤮. In my opinion it had to be a different chef, although the girls (the servers), believed that it was the same one, I just couldn't believe it. The servers by the way are absolutely the sweetest people ever, I feel so bad for them having to smell that sewage smell all shifts! I've never had such nasty sushi in my life. I hope the owners could take this experience and change the sushi chef!!! Also just a recommendation but when people are spending $75-100 on your menu, your chef/owner/manager should come out and say hello to their customers and get feedback and ask how everything was, specially knowing that your restaurant smells like excrement and feces! I'll include pictures of both visits, as the pictures alone show the difference. To the owner: do better! Get your plumbing fixed make it pleasant, get an actual sushi chef Cause the sushi with this last chef was TRASH and give your servers a raise because most of us wouldn't have giving you one chance with such a foul smell, let alone two chances if it wasn't for how kind they...

Really wanted to like this place but both times (lunch and dinner) that me and my wife decided to eat here we were never greeted a “welcome” walking in the doors but everyone that came after us who were “white” and not “brown” were immediately greeted. As a minority, we didn’t feel very welcomed at all dining here on both occasions. The chefs at the sushi bar are also not very welcoming or friendly as they don’t greet customers.

As far as the food, for what you pay (way over price) the portions they give you is ridiculously small. They are VERY stingy with their portions. On one of the two times we ate here I ordered a shrimp yakisoba for dinner and I thought it was a kids meal. They don’t give you anything extra like complimentary miso soup, house salad or tea like most Japanese restaurants. Especially for dinner! Don’t even get me started on the vegetable tempura appetizer on how STINGY the portion for that was.

The food and service is definitely not worth it. Overall the food was average tasting at best especially for the expensive price they charge. Good luck ordering sushi! Way over priced for the portion you get.

Please save your money and go elsewhere if you want “real Japanese food”. You’re better off going to Safeway for sushi where the quality is better and you will spend way less. Highly don’t...