Sushi Ai

To be very honest, based on what I've seen recently here, I should not even allow 2 stars and I will explain in my review. I have frequented Sushi AI for some time now, bringing in out of town guests, family, friends, and business colleagues. I would guess I've eaten here 20+ times and I have eaten at sushi restaurants all around the country for many years. Within thr past 6 months, this place had gone from a go to sushi spot to a place I will go when I want to over indulge for a very affordable lunch, but will not ever go for dinner again.

In my most recent experience here, we were one of only 3 tables of guests and we sat near the sushi prep area so we could watch preparation of the food. We were greeted within a couple of minutes and served water with no ice and couldn't seem to get any for some reason. The miso soup was barely warm and unappealing, like a leftover cup of coffee from yesterday. Deep fried appetizers were great as always (crab rangoon and veggies) and Shuman. But this is where it started going wrong.

The owner was prepping while a young chef prepared the rolls, sashimi, etc. He was doing dine in ad well as carryout. The orders were filled extremely slowly and carryout absolutely took priority over dine in. We waited probably 45 minutes to an hour after apps came out to get our platter of assorted sushi. The table next to us waited much longer and was missing some things, as were we. When we asked the server, the chef added it to the list and made no attempt to expedite the missing items. This took probably 20-30 additional minutes. Being AYCE, we wanted to order more and were given a new order sheet, which was added to the list, which we expected. We then got treated to an unexpected show where the owner berated and belittled the server in front of the guests until she went into a side room crying. This was upsetting to some guests of course and yet we were still sitting there like everyone else waiting for food, drinks, etc. She came out a few minutes later and service declined for the remainder of our visit due to her recent berating. We eventually ended our dinner feeling full, but more so empty and upset because of what we saw and heard. I also have also seen a steady stream of new faces working here and I think I know why!

It's getting extremely tough to continue to visit Sushi AI because I see this decline in the entire operation, as do others. Look at reviews from a year ago versus the past 6 months and you can paint your own picture. The owner needs to wake up or he is going to lose something that could be wonderful again!