Sushi Sake — Restaurant in Mehlville

So this restaurant is like a lot of other Japanese style restaurants in the St. Louis region. This one is mostly generic in regards to dining room style and food.

To start, the style of the dining room is pretty standard, and is quite comfy to be completely fair and honest. I rated them a 4 in this category because to me it feels like it cannot decide what it wants to be. The entire design right when you walk into the place feels like it's half impressive dining and half fast food. It doesn't really feel like a restaurant completely.

As for their food, it's pretty basic. They don't seem to put much care into their food. I typically get the udon, which Is a pretty traditional Japanese food. It's not ramen, but it still is made in a certain way. In any case, the veggies they used are frozen for sure, the noodles are alright, and to be completely honest, it's not something I would ever get again from this location. Maybe sushi, but even that is bad compared to locations like Sushi Ai, or Blue Ocean, etc. This is more like a discount Japanese restaurant, a knock off really. It's great if you want a taste of Japan, without forking over any money for something close to authentic Japanese cuisine.

Lastly, the server (who I believe was one of the owner/operators as well) became a bit rude when I came in for dinner one day. Now in hindsight, they were having dinner service, getting a bit busy, and most of their customers were 2 people or more, not only individuals coming to eat alone. However, she kept asking me if i was sure I didn't want to "take my food to-go". I reassured her I didn't, and that I would be eating at the restaurant. I'm not one to take things personally all the time, but if I'm a paying customer, I could care less if I was taking up space. I'm paying to eat, giving me (and anyone else) just as much right to eat at the restaurant. I was tired, somewhat sick, just got back from work and wanted something to eat, which just happened to be udon from this location.

Overall, if you want authentic Japanese cuisine, don't come here. If you want sushi, you're better off ordering from Sushi Ai, but in all honesty, their sushi is somewhat good as well, about average. I'm not trying to be condescending or even rude to anyone, but your money can be better spent elsewhere, even if it means driving a bit more to a better restaurant. After all, you get what you pay for.

Note: Again, their sushi might be somewhat good, but that's it. Other businesses that I have mentioned are better options. If you want some really good sushi, order from sushi Ai, as that's the only other viable option in south county as of right now. Still a decent location for some grub, but there are better...

Disappointing and downhill. Was hopeful when we only had to wait in the overcrowded entrance for a couple of minutes before being seated ahead of larger parties. We had stopped in earlier then came back after a couple errand and seeing several cars of people leave. We ended up waiting OVER AN HOUR for our sushi rolls after we finished our TWO ROUNDS of appetizer items. At one point I tried to find out if our order card has gotten lost. Waitress pointed at the chef prep area and said our order was “right there.” It was not. It was at least 15 more minutes before a plate was brought to the table. Waitress apologized with over-the-top excuses and also blamed us. We apparently didn’t order enough rounds of appetizers. I repeat, we had TWO separate app orders! She also said this is what it is like on a Friday during lent because one chef is dedicated to to-go and one chef is dedicated to in house orders. Ok, it’s lent, we get that. But an hour behind on in-house orders?! Waitress went on to tell me every table is a 60 piece order for them to make…and there’s not enough chefs (sounds like too many tables to me)…and if she could jump back there and make sushi she would…and the owner is tending to his sick wife….we could have had hibachi faster...more apps faster. They are seating people on top of each other (I could smell the man at the table an elbow’s length beside me) without enough staff to adequately prepare for the volume of diners. They are not prioritizing in-house orders. The taste and quality of the rolls were disappointing, the sauce was way off (smoky) on the fried Philly Roll. Rice was mushy around another one. I’m not even completely convinced the order was accurate to begin with. By the end the waitress let me box up my 2nd order which was a single roll. We had been there for almost two hours by then. I wish we would have walked out when I realized how long it was starting to be after having those apps. I was too frustrated by then to enjoy the meal. This has been my favorite sushi place since they opened. So many lunch dates, catching up with friends over dinner and special meals to celebrate with my family. This was actually my first time back after an unpleasant encounter with the owner last summer over my last four pieces of food on my plate. I’m totally done...

I didn't dine in, but the restaurant was clean and very nicely kept, even if, as some complain, the decor is a bit common. I hadn't come to order a full meal, but I did want sushi that didn't come from the supermarket or the Chinese buffet up the street (although their sushi is better than most buffets), I was in the area, so I decided to try a couple spicy tuna rolls. Service was quick, and when I had my small lunch, I found the two rolls to be more than filling. They were fantastic, every bit as good as the high quality sushi restaurants you find in Miami. I also decided to try sashimi for the first time, here. Having never eaten it before, I have nothing to really compare it against, but it was delicious. I was a bit nervous about eating a slab of raw fish for the first time (no, sushi is rarely raw--it can be, but sushi refers to chilled fish, not specifically raw and in America, most restaurants that serve sushi don't serve any raw), but I decided to just go for it, and instead of shoving the whole thing in my mouth to get over with, I forced myself to eat it properly and really taste it. Having dipped it, just as the Food Network taught me, I found the flavor and texture to really be excellent. It was nice and tender, and I savored every bit of it, totally getting over the fact that I was eating raw fish. I don't know if this restaurant is the best sushi restaurant around, but I promise that it's just fine for someone trying raw for the first time, as it will provide something that will taste wonderful the moment you put it in your mouth. Prices aren't bad, and there are plenty of restaurants charging more for the same or lower quality food. Granted, I can't afford to be a regular, but it won't hurt my wallet to go once in awhile. For the two spicy tuna rolls and the piece of salmon sashimi, I paid about twelve and a half dollars, so about twice as much as you might pay at the supermarket, but it is oh-so-worth it. It is worlds better than the supermarket sushi. I've got places I can go for some pretty good sushi at low prices, but they're still not quite the quality of this place. There's a wide range of items on the menu. It seems that full meals hover at around 20 dollars. All in all, a good...