Yihi Japan — Restaurant in Maplewood

I am new to Minnesota and this was my first time at Maplewood Mall. I was at the mall with my friends. We did the normal friend gang "walk around and see what's good to eat"...as we were walking we saw one of the employee leaning over the food, talking on the phone with NO MASK!! Covid or not, it was unsanitary and plain disgusting!! At first I was like screw it. But I started seeing people going to purchase their food. I felt bad because I knew something was up and I allowed others to put themselves at risk. So I decided to approach the employee. I told him what my friends and I saw. He refused to talk to me and said "talk to my boss, 2-3 minutes". I waited for about 5 minutes and the "boss" came out. I told him the situation, and he rudely dismissed me! He waved both his hands shooing me away. I looked at him confused. I was upset. I told him I would like to see him change all the food, clean the hot food area, and continue to wear a mask. He said "whatever" and waved me off again! I told him I was going to go back to enjoy my food (that I bought somewhere else of course) and I am going to keep an eye on them until they complete my demands or else I'll talk to the general manager of the mall and possibly call the health department. My friends and I sat in the food court for another 30-40 minutes. During that time I watched em like a hawk! And they obviously kept an eye on me too!! So they knew damn well they did wrong! But over all, I feel they could've spoke to me with much less attitude....

I am incredibly disappointed and concerned about my recent experience here. I’ve driven 25 minutes one way multiple times because your chicken teriyaki reminds me of my favorite restaurant back home in South Carolina—it’s been a reliable comfort meal for me.

However, during my last visit, I ordered chicken teriyaki with extra chicken, as I always do, and was shocked to find shrimp mixed into my dish. Shrimp is not part of this meal and is something I’m severely allergic to. I only realized after eating some in my car, which led to itching and coughing—early signs of an allergic reaction. Thankfully, I caught it before it escalated, but this mistake could have been life-threatening.

I understand that mistakes happen, but this kind of error shows a lack of attention to detail that puts customers at serious risk. I ask that your staff take extra precautions to ensure food is prepared as ordered, especially for those of us with allergies or dietary restrictions.

While I’ve loved your food, I’m hesitant to return unless I’m reassured that steps are being taken to avoid such mistakes in the future. Please take this feedback seriously, as it’s not just about a wrong order—it’s...

The food is great but the customer service is a disaster. They have this deal where you get a free meal if you eat 5/6 times with them. I ate 5 times with them and went to use my free coupon......the staff's first reaction they had never seen that coupon when they were the ones who were signing those for the 5 times I ate there. After a few minutes, they started giving me a weird look as if I was stealing from them. In short, the food is great but the staffs need to improve....every time I'm at the mall I've mixed feeling about eating here because I want to go to this place to eat due to the good food then again I realize I've to deal with the staff. And like some review mentions you definitely get treated differently if you don’t speak Spanish and sometimes it even looks like the staffs are...