Formosa — Restaurant in Iowa City

I have never had such a weird experience at a restaurant as I did tonight at Formosa. Right from the moment I walked in, it felt weird. I almost felt like I was in trouble by the way the guy at the front (possibly the owner?) brusquely asked me if I had made a reservation. There were no tables, so we sat at the sushi bar and were promptly greeted by our waiter. He seemed rushed throughout the night because the restaurant was very busy, but overall, he was quite attentive. He was especially good about checking into the ingredients of the meal I ordered. I have a gluten intolerance and needed a minor alteration to my meal because of this. My partner's sushi came out probably 10 minutes before my dish, and I was told by the waiter and one of the sushi chefs that the kitchen was backed up because it was so busy. I was totally fine with this; it was completely understandable. He later brought out my dish but apologized profusely because an error had been made in the kitchen and the dish wasn't gluten free. So, he offered the $20 dish to my partner to eat for free to make up for the mistake and assured me that the correct dish would be out soon. When he later brought it out, he said, "I don't really know what to say anymore," which seemed like an odd thing to say.

Don't get me wrong, the food was delicious, but things got way weirder after I finished my meal. After the check was paid, my waiter came back and told me that he had just been fired because of what happened with my meal. He said, "I was only trying to make you happy." I have no idea what went on behind the scenes, but I will say that I thought that he did everything he possibly could have done in the situation. I told him that I would be happy to speak to the manager on his behalf. Little did I know she was standing right behind me listening to all this. I didn't even get a word out, and she very rudely said to me, "I am not going to talk to you about this." Then, she turned to him and told him to collect his things and leave in a way that sounded as if she were poorly reciting the lines of a script. At this point, I was wondering when Ashton Kutcher was going to jump out and say I had been punk'd, but it didn't happen. As my waiter left to collect his things, you might think that the manager would apologize to me for the whole uncomfortable scene or explain that he had it coming, or SOMETHING. But nope, she said not another word to me, just turned on her heels and promptly left. Wow, I got so many strange looks from all the sushi chefs and hostesses as I walked out.

Let me summarize why I am giving this experience 1 star. It's not because the food arrived late or the fact that they made a mistake with my meal. The restaurant was obviously busy, and as someone who has worked in a restaurant, I know what it's like on a Friday night and how difficult it can be to get food out promptly, and as someone with Celiac Disease, I am quite used to restaurants screwing up my gluten free orders. No big deal. I'm upset because of the way the manager treated me, a customer who had just paid for a $60 meal. If I, the customer, want to ask the manager a few questions about my order, it is her JOB to listen to my concerns and answer my questions.

I now feel terrible because my meal led to someone losing his job, though from what I witnessed, maybe it's not such a great place to work... I am curious to know just what happened, so if my waiter happens to see this, feel free...

Good atmosphere, cheap drinks, decent service. That's about all the good things I can say about our experience here. This place is catered to students: relatively inexpensive food, drink specials, and great location. If you're looking for even remotely decent sushi, look elsewhere. My first impression was "wow" as in they saturate their rolls with too many toppings and sauces that it was almost inedible. I'm not sure if they do this to make it look more appealing, but it takes away the raw factor of art and even the authentic flavor of it. It reminds me of the ones you see at super markets. I was extremely disappointed since I've had better sushi at buffets... and even at Hyvee! This is probably the most "westernized" sushi menu I've tried. The sushi rice was dry and flavorless; the tempura was very dry; the calamari was extremely salty; and the spicy tuna was literally a colifornia roll with tuna and topped with Mexican seasoning - hence "spicy" tuna. We ordered several of their signature rolls so I was expecting something good. I mean cmon! It was literally almost inedible! This might be the first time I didn't eat all my food, especially at a sushi restaurant. I'm glad we didn't get sashimi! The other thing that really worried us was how unsanitary the place was. There was trash everywhere and used toilet paper all over the men's floor bathroom. Given the pandemic and the amount of people eating out, you'd think they'd prioritize cleanliness and quality of their food. I can't recommend this place to anyone that knows what good sushi is. Also, pay attention next time and count how many Asian people eats there.. exactly! You ...

I have been coming here through the last 10-12 years and this is the last time. This is not sushi anymore. Looking at the menu card reveal’s everything. Here are so many roll options and bizarre combo’s that it should have made me go out the door before ordering. Most of the rolls are made with eel sauce or so much mayo that you can’t taste what is in the roll. They could have settled with one roll option because they all turn out to taste the same. The rolls are made without passion, chunks are uneven and either too small or too big everything just gives them away for being too far from the original Japanese kitchen. The kitchen has been deteriorating over the years like a good story being handed over through generations where after being a totally different story.(read: kitchen)

So, if you must go to the restaurant order from the appetizers they were on the other hand extra ordinary as if they were made by a totally different chef(maybe it is).

The waiter was very friendly but shorts and sandals don’t work...