Yakiniku Futago Soho — Restaurant in New York

Great foods, super awful services. If you like their foods, go to their Chelsea location. DO NOT go to their Soho location.

I am a big fan of their Chelsea (17th street) location, much longer before they open this Soho location. My husband and I used to visit that location very frequently and we became their VIP (with the Golden tongs). The services and foods are both fantastic at the 17th street location. So when we found that they open this new location, we were thrilled to try it. But it was a super disappointing experience.

Here are some details of the awful services:

1. The services was super super slow. Looks like their are only 2 servers. It's hard to find them when we need to. Between each dish we ordered, we had to wait about 20 min. And our server seemed to forget one of the dish (Katsu sando), so we waited like half an hour, and still got a cold one.
2. No host to seat the guests. When we arrived at the time of reservation, we waited at the front door. There is a sign asking the guests to ring the bell, we did, but no one answered or showed up, so we walked in ourselves, but still couldn't find anyone. After about 10-15mins, finally someone showed up and gave us a seat.
3. Given above 2 conditions (we were seated late & the dishes are served super slow), they still asked the table back 2 hours after our reservation time.
4. The server's English skill was super awful, and hard to communicate. She had a hard time to understand some of our requests.
5. She refused to change the grill. There was some meats stuck on the grill, so the grill started to smoke a lot, we asked her to change to new one, she insisted that it's not needed.
6. Some non-grill items which were supposed to be served hot were completed cold. Like the Katsu sando - it was completed cold, like it had been made a hour ago before we got it. So we had to reheat it using the grill. If it was at another restaurant, I would ask for a new one, but in here, if I did, I probably had to wait for another 30 mins.
7. The 10 second wagyu comes with an egg yolk. We ordered 2, so we were supposed to have 2 yolks, but she only gave one. I asked her, shouldn't we have 2 yolks? She said, one is enough and refused to give us 2 yolks. So I had to order another...

Loooooong review incoming!

I've been telling everyone about my experience at Nikutei. Seriously, I went to New York to visit, went to Nikutei and loved it so much I took my husband back two weeks later to celebrate our honeymoon. The entire experience was so unique and executed flawlessly both times - once with a party of 3 of us and once with my husband and I.

The setting is comfortable - very nice to enjoy an exquisite meal with the privacy of curtains or private rooms.

The staff was phenomenal. Alfredo and Atsuko went above and beyond for my experiences both times. Alfredo was polite and attentive. He cooked everything to perfection and allowed us time to thoroughly appreciate and savour every moment of deliciousness at our own pace.

Now, the food. It's a $320 per person tasting menu. That's a hefty price so of course anyone would and should have high expectations. It's difficult to mess up when you use the highest quality of ingredients. However, it's even more difficult to elevate already superior ingredients to give them new life and further enhance their flavours. This is exactly what Nikutei did. They kept flavours simple to let the main ingredients shine and the flavours they did impart complimented each other well.

There is nothing I'd go back and change about either of the meals I enjoyed. The first time I went, it was a little warm and I mentioned this in a review that only the restaurant saw. The second time I went, the temperature was borderline cold, which I actually prefer, so I really feel like they listened to the reviews and adjusted to them for their customers.

If your budget has room to drop on this meal, do it. It was such an incredible experience. I wish I lived closer so I could go back again to try their fall menu!

Atsuko, Alfredo and everyone who works at Nikutei, a BIG thank you for everything you do to make the Nikutei experience so seamless and thoroughly enjoyable in every way. We felt so welcome and everything was beyond delicious. The pictures don't do the...

The moment you walk-in with warm, cozy, welcoming atmosphere. As a Wagyu lover, Yakiniku Futago is my destination in New York, truly deliver the flavorful experience of the place in this city 🌃

Omg! I’m still thinking about this meal, high-quality of A5 Wagyu melt in your mouth. Yakiniku Futago transported you to Japan 🇯🇵 Check the menu, there is a great section of meat, especially WAGYU, absolute is EVERYTHING 🔥

A5 Wagyu Hamideru Kalbi TB - Red Cliff Premium Harami Premium Kalbi

I’m so excited to share this stunning menu. Don’t sleep on their SUSHI - Shrimp Tempura 🍤 Uni and Wagyu 🥩 What’s is the most delicious part ? “10 second” Wagyu - absolute delicious, just join every bite.

Matcha Tiramisu 🍵 Watermelon Seasonal Shaved Ice 🍧 I’m absolutely OBSESSED 😍 INSANE.

The staff in Yakiniku Futago was amazing too. Grilled everything perfectly at your table. Never disappointed in any part. Yakiniku Futago is the right place if you looking for the REAL...