Noka — Restaurant in Kansas City

So I’ve been to Noka a couple of times at this point, and here’s the deal. The aesthetic is lovely. The food is decent (although in my opinion, absolutely overpriced, especially when stacking it up to similar KC restaurant concepts). But each time, the service has been lackluster. The first time, a couple of months ago, we were sat at the bar near the kitchen. It was cool to see the kitchen at work, but our server forgot about us multiple times. We ordered food as we went, as we were recommended to do, but our last dish took 45 minutes after ordering to get it, and our server did not check in once. No big deal at the time; they were busy, and we got it to go. But last night had me a little shocked. I work in foodservice, and I have for almost a decade, so this interaction was wildly off putting because I know how out of pocket it was. It’s pretty standard at fine dining restaurants to not promote fast table turnover so that your guests can enjoy their meal. However, if you must have it, it’s not abnormal to tip your table off to the turnover rate verbally. At Noka, it’s 2 hours max at a table (and when food can take a while as we’ve discussed, that can get tricky, but that’s not the exact problem here). It said it in the reservation confirmation, that they ask guests to not go over two hours, but our service staff never made a mention. A member of our party was about an hour late due to a car accident. She was alright, and she sat down and quickly ordered her food. It took some time, but at about the 2 hour mark of being there, our server asked us if we wanted dessert. We all ordered another round of drinks as our “dessert”, which came about 5-10 minutes later (normal timing). But then, with most drinks still half full, the manager came over at about the 2.5 hour mark (again, no one has mentioned at this point that we’ve passed our reservation time. She asked us how we were doing. We said fine, then she noted that our reservation was 2 hours long and we’d passed that, and the next reservation had been “patiently waiting for thirty minutes.” We all promptly got our drinks and got up, ready to chug and go. We totally understood it. My frustration was when the manager doubled down - while we were already all getting up - and she said “You know, because your party was incomplete for so long, so. Your time is up.” I’m pretty anti-Karen as a server myself, in fact I didn’t want to write this review. But she had no idea why our group was incomplete, she didn’t check in once we were complete to alert us of our time left, and she doubled down with a rude comment once we had already agreed to get up without hassle (and after we’d tipped 30%).

TL/DR: Food is fine, but arguably not for full price. Service makes the place not worth it,...

I have been DYING to try this place for quite some time now and my partner took it upon himself to book it as a surprise for my birthday yesterday. I had read the reviews a while ago and it seemed like it would be a wonderful place to experience. Sadly, it left me very unimpressed and I doubt I will return.

I am a sucker for interior design and that alone in this space was beautiful. I had hoped that the food would own up to that as well however it was very disappointing.

We both enjoy sitting at bars when we dine at places so he had seats reserved for us there. We were greeted right away by the bartender and he got us some water while we combed through the menu. We love trying a bit of everything when we go places so we did just that. We landed on the mushroom roll, beef tartare, general tso chicken skewers and chicken wings for small plates as well as the duck and ribeye as our entrees.

Taste wise everything was a miss besides the ribeye. The mushroom roll had no flavor other than the Thai basil that was inside. It was light and refreshing however it literally had no mushroom flavor at all. The general tso chicken skewers tasted watery. I don’t know how that was possible but it’s the best way to describe it. No flavor at all. The tartare was flavorful and delicious but the chips that came with it were so beyond bitter. The only ones that were enjoyable were the lotus chips and we each only had one. We ended up not eating any of the chips at all and just eating the tartare with our forks. Our first round of chicken wings came out very undercooked - still raw. We sent them back and they brought out a second round shortly after. Flavor was good but there was so much 5 spice seasoning on them that it numbed our mouths. Neither of us finished them. Finally, it was time for the entrees. I was so excited for duck. I love duck but once I received it I was so unimpressed. The meat was grey. Clearly overcooked. While the carrots that accompanied the duck were still very raw. I wasn’t sure if that is how the dish was supposed to be or not. I barely ate a third of it before I had the bartender take it away. My partners ribeye was cooked perfectly. I feel bad for stealing so many bites of his. I very much enjoyed the wasabi blue cheese that came with it. I could have licked that off the plate.

Our bartender was very quick to apologize and make things right for us. He knew the kitchen was a miss and didn’t even question us on it. He made the experience better but the point was to enjoy the food and we both were very unimpressed. Lastly, why were the so many mircrogreens on every single dish? It was overkill. It’s a garnish - not a meal.

The wine, cocktails and brownie...

I really wanted to love this place, but unfortunately, I didn't. The decor is visually interesting and beautiful, but the comfort level is lacking. That is the sad but practical truth of this whole experience: Noka is trying hard, but doesn't quite "get there".

My cocktail was great, a custom mix suggested by the bar staff. Unfortunately, when my husband ordered an Old Fashioned, the result was a terrible drink that didn't resemble the cocktail - at all. If the bar doesn't/can't make a drink, they should just say so vs. putting out a bad product. His glass sat untouched except for the two sips we tried, and the wait staff never asked how the drink was - even when he ordered a beer and left the full cocktail sitting.

We had some okay food but the fried rice was bad - greasy and strangely lacking flavor. My best dish at Noka was the Miso Cod until I caught a fish bone in my throat. Roughly the length of my fork tine, there's no way that bone shouldn't have been removed before serving the dish. The menu is ambitious and the concept is exciting, but without execution, Noka is just a pretty idea . . . and that doesn't fill up a plate.

The last comment I'll make about this restaurant atmosphere is that it is NOT for anyone who wants an intimate dining experience. My reservation stated that we were coming in to celebrate our anniversary. When we confirmed, the host said they were pleased we'd chosen their space for our special evening. Arriving, we were shown to our seats - at the counter, facing the kitchen, on stools, with very little space in front of each of us and no way to look at each other. Not ideal for a couple celebrating their anniversary, to say the least. As an alternative, the host asked if we would like to join a "communal table"? Um, no thanks - again missing the point.

I have no issue with a restaurant being "what it is" and not being everything to everyone, but Noka needs to learn what they ARE and they need to tell people what they are NOT. This is not an intimate or quiet space where you can get a well-made "staple" cocktail -- and that's okay, but tell people ahead of time so the experience isn't disappointing.

I hope Noka grows into itself. If it succeeds, it will be a cool place for GNO, Cocktail hour, late night bites, and...