Yamato Japanese Steakhouse — Restaurant in Madison

Well, this was an experience to say the least. This is the only Japanese steakhouse/Asian cuisine in about a 45-mile radius. The restaurant is small but quaint and clean, and the menu is extensive. We ordered a sushi roll, hibachi meals, a soda, and waters. The food was served quickly, portions were generous, and everything tasted good.

Unfortunately, the service left a lot to be desired. We weren’t given plates for our sushi and had to ask for a soy sauce dish, extra napkins, and drink refills after glasses sat empty. Dirty dishes piled up on the table and were never cleared, even when we pushed them to the edge of the table. The salad dressing bottles were also left at the table for the entire dining experience. The bill was dropped off before we were finished eating, again without removing the stack of empty dishes.

The most concerning part of the experience was watching our waitress openly fuss at the other waitress in the middle of the dining room. It was uncomfortable and unprofessional, especially in a small restaurant where it was impossible not to notice.

There was also a noticeable difference in service styles: Kyella was warm, attentive, and constantly checking on her tables, while our waitress, Nya, barely engaged beyond repeatedly asking “anything else.”

The food, portions, and overall atmosphere were good, but Nya should not be in the service industry with...

Yamato's is a place I first discovered in college a few years back, and consistently remains one of my favorite local restaurants. The staff and owners have always been very considerate and kind, and the atmosphere of the restaurant is like it's own little pocket world. Music is always calming traditional Japanese inspired instrumental music. The furnishings while worn, are well maintained.

And for the food: For the portions, everything is very well priced, even the filet mignon.

If you're new to this kind of place, I personally recommend the teriyaki shrimp bento box. You recieve miso or onion soup, a salad, pieces of California sushi roll [that you can swap out], a Californian spring roll, and the main portion of teriyaki shrimp with broccoli.

If sushi is more your thing, you can't go wrong with spicy crab, dynamite, or crunch rolls. [Though these are just my favorite aha].

A very charming, quaint...

We asked for an order of calamari, shumai & some sushi for our appetizers. The shumai was horrific looking and tasted so bad i didnt get past the 1st bite, I couldn't understand why they would have let that come out of the kitchen the way it did, it was soggy, falling apart on the plate as water was swooshing around. After the Appetizers, we decided to cancel our order for the sushi. Because honestly we were afraid that it was going to make us sick after tasting the shumai. We had already ordered our meals and I had maybe 2 bites of mine and my husband had less than half. This was the worst food I've ever had in my life. I'm sorry to leave such a poor review but I really hope people take into consideration what it is that they're...