Kyoto 京都 — Restaurant in Greenfield

Diners BEWARE. I know this establishment has a good online presence BUT, you should read the comments of the 1 & 3 star ratings to get a better idea of this restaurant’s business practices & customer service. Please read on, I tried to make my comments specific and fair.

On December 28, 2022, I called Kyoto restaurant in Greenfield, WI to reserve a table for my birthday on Monday, January 2, 2023 at 1 pm. The lady that took my reservation assured me that they were open Jan. 2nd. and the appointment was made for 1 pm.

On December 31, 2022, I called Kyoto’s to confirm my table reservation for Jan. 2, 2023 at 1 pm. The lady who I spoke to confirmed my reservation for the day and time.

Jan. 2, 2023 arrived, we’re in the car, my husband was looking up the address to the restaurant on google to use his cell phone GPS for directions to the restaurant. During the Google search he noticed that the restaurant stated that it was CLOSED, but after further inspection, he noted that it was closed New Year day however, on Kyoto’s website they stated that it was open Jan. 2nd from 11 am-10 pm.

Since we had Kyoto’s website up, we called just to make certain that the restaurant was open for business. This was about 12:15 pm. The business phone just rang and rang. The mailbox stated that it was full.

To say this was a major disappointment would be an understatement. My daughter and her husband were already in route to the restaurant when we called them to give them the disappointing news. Since they were nearby the restaurant they decided to stop by to make sure that it was closed. They called us to confirm that it was closed and not to come.

On Jan. 3, 2023 around 11 am. I called Kyoto to inquire about the failed reservation and to get some answers. I told the man that answered the phone about my experience. He was dismissive to the point of rudeness and only wanted to know if I’d like to place an order. I mean really…? I politely stated, no, that I didn’t want to place an order that I wanted an answer to my question. He stated that he’d have me speak with the mgr.

A lady who identified herself as the mgr. came to the phone, I explained what happened, she noted that yes they did have a reservation for me on 1/2/23 at 1pm, she also noted that there was a message that I called to confirm the reservation on 12/31/22. She stated that they “were open” on 1/2/23 but at 4 pm. She apologized for the mix up and that was it.

I asked her, when you noticed that my reservation was at 1 pm., why didn’t someone contact me to reschedule, isn’t that best business practice? All she did was apologize again. I asked if there was a way for Kyoto to make this right? She grudgingly stated that she would have to talk with the owner to see if they would give me a discount and that she’d call me back.

I received a call back from the mgr. she stated that the “Owner” refused me a discount and any compensation for the inconvenience that they caused.

Reader’s, I was so ready to give this business another chance, take any discount they offered, even after their mistake, rudeness and disregard that their mistake ruined a birthday gathering. It wasn’t about the money or a discount but the principle of doing business with the public. It involves an understanding of an exchange of good services & products w/ money & repeat bus. They had no concern that individuals arranged their schedules to celebrate with me b4 returning to work after the holidays. What should’ve been a wonderful experience with family turned into a disaster.

Beware of this business. B4 you visit this restaurant scroll down and read several reviews, pay close attention to the 1-3 stars.

To be fair I requested this restaurant for my bday celebration b/c I had visited several years ago with friends. I had a great meal & service. This was pre-pandemic. The food was fresh & delicious and the service was good.

However, I will NEVER visit again due to their unprofessional treatment and handling of a situation that could’ve easily been resolved. Five...

I'm usually not the type write a review especially because I am a bartender and server myself. Working in the industry, I know you can't make everyone happy, but I feel like maybe if this is said it can be used as a teachable moment.

I want it to be known the food here is superb. I frequently order from here to go and dined here a lot in college. I dont come as much any more just because my boyfriend isn't the biggest fan of sushi but he does really like the non sushi items on the menu. However, we decided to go tonight as he was feeling Asian cuisine and it was AYCE sushi. The service was fast, server was friendly, and food was great as usual. I've been for AYCE here before without issues too.

Being that I am the only one eating AYCE my eyes are usually bigger than my stomach. We know this before coming here and are prepared to pay for what I don't finish as is their policy. Here is where my gripe is. Tonight I ordered 6 pieces of sushi (raw fish over rice) along with a few other things. I personally don't care for the large thing of rice under my raw fish as I feel it takes over the taste of the fish (I'm kind of picky about my sushi because i used to work in a sushi restaurant myself). So I usually order sashimi style but that unfortunately wasn't an option on the AYCE menu, so I just kicked the rice to the side. Little did I know this would be a big deal.

Our server came over and informed me that just this time it was fine but next time if I didnt eat the rice, I would be charged. I said that was fine I don't mind paying and continued eating. Then the sushi chef came over and questioned me about finishing my rice very aggressively. I told him politely I was still eating and he left. Then our server came back again to inform me it really wasn't a big deal that just for next time to know I'd be charged. I repeated it's fine you can charge me I don't mind. At this point this was 3 separate conversations about the rice and it made things totally awkward. All over some rice that I had already said I would pay for. It really put us off our meal and made the end of the experience super awkward as I felt like people were staring at me while I was eating. I could understand the fuss if I had put up a fight about paying, however like I said I come here usually knowing I'll pay a little extra for things I don't eat or finish. Maybe I'll just stick to getting take out from here because I love their food, but the whole situation really put my boyfriend and I off. The server was great it just was too weird to have a chef come question me about it. We couldn't leave fast enough to escape the awkwardness at the...

Don’t waste your time here, go to Gins across the street. Better service, food and prices.

Kyoto raised their prices for worst service.

My husband came about 5 minutes after the four of us arrived and were seated. I ordered him water. Never came with our drinks, I ordered water again. He got there, water still wasn’t there. My sister ordered him water, never came. My husband finally ordered himself water. We asked our waiter multiple times for water for him and refills of ours. Never came. I attempted to switch my soup out for the ginger salad, they said not allowed. I ordered it separately to be told no and argued with. I finally said, I will pay for it, and that’s when he let me order it. After about an hour of still waiting on appetizers, I got up and went to the manager asking for waters. She apologized, came to the table and apologized again and said she would get our waiter. She stopped two more times to apologize, but never brought the waters herself. Took our waiter another 5 minutes to bring our water, when he did he sighed heavily slamming them on the table. He continued to sigh everytime he visited us. We finally got our appetizers an hour after ordering, which were cold. Took another 45 minutes for the sushi to make its way out. Thankful, this was decent minus one raw roll that just tasted fishy and off. We ordered another round that took about 30 minutes.

The table behind us ordered raw by error when they questioned it for religious reasons the staff came over hoarded around them scolded them that if they don’t eat it it’s $1 a piece. I was both embarrassed/fuming for them. It was not listed as raw on their menu, and when they stated that the manager told them everyone eats raw salmon and salmon is never cooked. No, no it’s not.

Needles to say, don’t waste your time or money. We will never eat...