Hoshi Japanese Cafe — Restaurant in Plano

TLDR: Wait time was insane 30-40 minutes, and they didn't tell me that I had ordered an out of stock flavor until I asked which was ~40 minutes after I ordered.

This is the first time I'm giving such a low review, but unfortunately I feel like it necessitates it. I went and got a combo with a drink, onigiri, and obanyaki.

The wait was ridiculously long for the only handful of people that were in the cafe. In total, we waited 30-40 minutes. We got the drink around 20 minutes in, but the other two items weren't done. (Ordered a hojicha latte that was very very sweet. Personally it tasted like a 120% at an average boba place, which is definitely not how it is in Japan.)

In the end, I got up to ask about the other two food items because I needed to leave for an appointment, and the cashier went to inquire about them. When she came back instead of giving me a time frame, she just informed me that they were out of stock for the flavor or obanyaki that I ordered and if I wanted another flavor.... After close to 40 minutes into the waiting time.... I just ended up asking for a refund on the two other items and just paid for the drink.

I understand if things take time to make, or if they are training someone, or if something happened in the back, but the communication was not there. I wish I had known that BOTH the waiting time would be that long and that they were out of the strawberry cheesecake obanyaki near the beginning, and that is what cafes usually do, and how the cafe workers are...

Onigiri and Japanese drinks may not be hard to find in Dallas, but at Hoshi, their menu items truly bring the flavors of Japan to the States, trading the American palate for authentic tastes.

If you’re familiar with the Taiwanese wheel cake, you'll recognize obanyaki. These warm, soft pastries are filled with a variety of fillings (we tried custard and red bean) and are perfectly balanced without being overly sweet. Made fresh to order, be sure to enjoy them while they're warm!

The Texas-sized onigiri in spicy tuna and tuna mayo were phenomenal. The spicy tuna has a kick without being overpowering, and the tuna mayo is the Japanese-style tuna “salad,” free of the chalky dryness often found in American tuna salad. The Japanese rice in the onigiri was cooked to perfection, really showcasing the sincerity in the food they make and present.

Additionally, if you’re a car enthusiast, the owner is active in the local JDM car culture (check out his IG @stevespov). If the place isn't too busy, strike up a conversation with him! He’s fantastic at introducing the menu items and sharing his appreciation for...

I think the rice being used is not the best as it is not sticky like traditional Japanese rice, or the texture is just off, and the ration of rice to filling is off as well, too much rice and not enough fillings. Fillings are not anything worth writing home about. Very basic flavor profile and no farikake used to enhance flavor. The onigiri claim to be texas size, but I think they are average......

The takoyaki is not bad. It is a bit on the sweeter side than I prefer and a bit gooey. Maybe if the batter is tweaked just a bit, also more green onions never hurt.

I saw a lot of tiktok videos and decided to drop by because I love onigiri and the last time I had one was when I was in tokyo but was disappointed when I ate here. The daifuku was okay, 5/10. The onigiri was 3/10. Takoyaki is 4/10. Service was also very slow, like snail slow, we waited close to 30 minutes for our 2 onigiri, takoyaki and yogurt smoothie.

I feel like if you've never had an onigiri, then you wouldn't really care if the food here is good or not. However, if you have had an onigiri you'd know the difference between a good one and...