Shimogamo Sushi and Grill — Restaurant in Gilbert

I had the distinct displeasure of dining at Shimogamo recently, and I must say, few experiences have adequately answered the question: “How bad can a ‘highly rated’ restaurant really be?” I had an 8:15 reservation for three. Upon walking into what could best be described as a half-lit fish tank with chairs, I noticed something odd — there was barely anyone inside. At first, I assumed we’d be getting prompt service given the emptiness. How naïve of me.

Two of us arrived and were seated. Our third joined moments later. We sat, made eye contact with our waiter multiple times, and still, ten solid minutes passed before he managed to muster the energy to walk over. This might’ve made sense if the restaurant were bustling — alas, there were only two other parties. Unfortunately, the staff seemed to have already mentally clocked out for the evening, more interested in scrubbing countertops than serving paying customers. It was clear from the get-go: our presence was not exactly welcome. Once the waiter finally came over (dragging his feet and dripping what I can only hope was water from his bottom lip), we were promptly informed that five menu items were out of stock. Not sold out — just unavailable, with no alternatives offered. Curious that the only thing the staff seemed willing to offer was a ticking clock and a gentle push out the door. Speaking of which — he kindly let us know that “the kitchen closes in 20 minutes,” which was a lovely way to let us know our reservation time was, apparently, a formality. Why accept an 8:15 reservation if your kitchen is already halfway through its nightly shutdown ritual?

The ambiance, if you can call it that, had that kind of apathetic energy usually reserved for DMV waiting rooms. Our water glasses sat empty, just like the dining room. Within 20 more minutes, it became abundantly clear — the staff didn’t want us there, and frankly, neither did the restaurant itself. So, we left. We walked across the street to Cooper’s Hawk, which, unlike Shimogamo, was full of life, guests, and staff who cared whether or not you existed.

The most comedic part of this experience? Shimogamo has the balls to charge $30 for a single sushi roll — a price point that might be forgivable if they offered even a fraction of the service or hospitality that their marketing promises. If you’re still reading, let this be your takeaway: Shimogamo proves that with the right influencer partnerships, inflated pricing, and a few carefully lit Instagram posts, you too can sell disinterest...

Wow! What a great place. The outside design was what first caught my eye when we were in the area the day before. When we walked in, it was much more inviting, simple, and less pretentious than what you'd expect from the outside. The service was great. It almost felt like we had 3 servers as they all worked as a team and made sure the customers were well taken care of. For the drinks, I ordered the blossom in gyoen, which was suggested by the server when asked to recommend a sweet drink. Unique flavor profile. It starts off as slightly bitter, and then it ends as sweet. It was delicious. Later on, I ordered the autumn in kinkaku. Although it was not bad, I do not prefer the flavor. The vanilla in the whiskey is very strong. The foam was sweet and tasty, but the drink itself was bitter; I would not order this cocktail again. For the appetizer, we ordered the hamachi chile lime crudo. Spectacular! It was so fresh. The fish itself had great texture, and the flavor, although subtle, wanted you coming back for more. The fish was hearty. The sauce it came with was slightly tangy but not spicy at all. At the end of the dinner, this was our preferred dish. From the signature rolls, we ordered the citrus roll and aburi salmon roll. We also ordered the caterpillar roll from the classics. Of the 3, the aburi was my favorite, and the caterpillar was boyfriends favorite. The aburi had different textures, and the flavors would change from citrus/sour to savory. The citrus roll was simple but tasty. I can't personally say anything special about the caterpillar roll. Boyfriend says it could've used more eel sauce. Everything was again very fresh. We also ordered the pork belly from the kitchen. I wouldn't order this again. I felt it was overcooked and lacked much flavor other than being salty. We asked for more of the pickled onion it came with to be able to enjoy it. At this point, I would've given the food 4 stars, but the dessert brought it up to 5 stars. We ordered the saikyo miso pudding. I would say the texture and some of the flavors were similar to creme brulee (minus the hardened sugar). Try this dish! We were contemplating on ordering another one, it was amazing. I hope the restaurant keeps up the current standards. We would highly recommend! This is our new go-to sushi spot,...

We were greeted being told that they would seat us but they “are doing last call in 15 minutes.” We had a reservation at 8:30 and the restaurant says is open until 9:30PM. The first waiter that came up to us was talking so fast and loud and even dropped plates accidentally on our table used a dirty pencil to point out items “He would get”. At one point the manager came up and told the waiter to give them “a few extra minutes to order, because they had a reservation”. The second waitress we had (not the first one who was sweaty and used a dirty pencil to point out his favorites) was OUTSTANDING. I hope she gets away from this company and finds a real place to work.

What they didn’t know, my wife has been in the food service industry her entire life and was the GM of some of the valleys premier dining establishments. So her perspective has always been one of “let’s give them the benefit of the doubt…” but not this time. We will never return and we are both sure if the owner doesn’t do something quickly and replace management at this location it won’t matter because there won’t be a place to go back to.

Final thoughts . Arrived at 8:30 dinner done paid for and rushed out the door by the smell of a cooktop cleaning smoke filling the air while we watched the staff of the restaurant have cocktails at the bar (even though we were not allowed to order a second cocktail because they were trying hard to complete all the side work and cleanups so the staff can make sure to lock the doors at 9:30.)

DONE AT 9:12. Not another person in the building assuming they were rushed out of there as well. Total bill $193.00

ALMOST 200.00 For this… HARD PASS!

Great sushi truly great… HORRIBLE HORRIBLE FRONT OF HOUSE! Pretty sure the owners intend for the place to produce income for all the hours they are open, the staff should not determine that for them.

Don’t bother going here… they won’t...