Masami Japanese Sushi & Cuisine — Restaurant in Richardson

Was terribly disappointed in our experience at Masami.

First, the wait was around 40 minutes, and the sign in system isn’t the best experience as there is no indication of when you would be called (sometimes they call parties of 4 ahead of parties of 2 to fill more space). That wasn’t the reason for the rating, but played into it after, as we were expecting a really delicious dinner since it seemed to be very popular.

Second, and most importantly, the food was just not up to par for what we were expecting, and just confused at some of the other reviews highlighting the quality of the food. We ordered the miso soup, which was good, but it went downhill from there. We ordered the Karrage chicken, which was disappointing. Unlike other places in the area or in Japan, these were more like chic fil a nuggets, and didn’t include any spicy mayo or sauce or spice to add to it, just a lemon. We got the tuna tower which had imitation crab, which seemed a bit odd and catered more to the American palette. We ordered the cucumber salad which was just okay, as well as soba noodles which were okay as well, would not be able to tell the difference from the frozen packs they sell at Asian grocery stores.

Lastly, at least in our experience, which doesn’t seem to be the norm, the fish quality was questionable. We ordered a yellowtail nigiri, yellowtail roll, and tuna nigiri (which we did not get). The yellowtail was off, and we have eaten fresh yellowtail at numerous restaurants in Dallas, around the US, and Japan, so this was an off taste, at least for us. We were left with a bad fishy taste in our mouth, and sadly would not come back.

The staff was nice, but the operation seemed inefficient, although it was packed, so not putting much weight on that. The food quality and taste, especially the fish, is the reason behind the review. It seems that it is more tailored to the American palette and at least in our experience had subpar fish quality, which is not acceptable compared to many other Asian spots in the area, many with lower average reviews...

We happened to be in the area, so based on reviews, we decided to go in (with hubby and teenage son). The place was interestingly decorated, not your typical restaurant but different, Asian inspired. Not particularly elegant, but felt like you could be in Japan. The food was good, I like that they give you a little appetizer to start with. We ordered miso soup, it was delicious! Then some rolls and some sushi. They were very good, but the service was extremely slow. They prioritized people sitting at the sushi bar, and we saw 2 couples coming in after us, eating a meal at the sushi bar and leaving, and we were still waiting for our food. The same chefs were also making the food for the tables. We ordered some more and after 15mn of waiting for 1 order of salmon sushi (really, how long can that take to make?), we said you either provide it in the next couple of mn of cancel the order. Then it came. We won't really go back as it's not in our neighborhood, and the food and service were not elevated enough to justify the drive there. The other big mistake I think they make is that they bring all the sushi order at once. Typically, restaurants bring each roll as they make it so it's a little staggered and they can cover many tables without people getting "hangry". Delaying serving the food until the entire order is ready is not the best idea. It takes much longer and you are so hungry due to the slow service that you just chug things down without properly savoring the sushi. Overall, food was good, service very slow (but staff very kind), and a little bit different pace from typical sushi...

This place is pretty on par with other good sushi restaurants around the metroplex.

Most of the food came out tasty and the sushi came out mostly good. The nigiri we got was tender and delicious, unagi and salmon. The Mackeral was cooked perfectly and wasn't too salty.

I knocked out a star due to 2 issues:

1st issue, the toro (fatty tuna) sashimi was not great considering it was MP (market price) at $30 for a set of around 7ish slices. Other sushi places I've had toro at were usually tender, melt in your mouth, and super tasty. Unfortunately what I got here was none of those descriptors. Could be an off day on the supply.

2nd issue, the amount of time it took for food and service to come around caused a lot of waiting. I didn't come here expecting fast food service, but I was on a time limit of 1.5 hrs to order food, get it, eat it, and then pay out. If you're ordering, order everything the first time because adding anything to your meal takes as long as the first set to come through, which is a good wait. And in the whole time there I only got 1 water refill. Could be understaffed but there were 3 servers and 3 sushi chefs the night I was there.

The place is pretty small so either have reservations or come at none usual times because it...