Hai Noon — Restaurant in Scottsdale

I have been wanting to try an omakase style experience for a while. For christmas my wife booked us a reservation to dine here today, April 10th. The reservation was booked on January 7th and confirmed on January 17th. Well the day finally came and I was super pumped. We got to the restaurant about an hour early to have drinks. I was asked if I had a reservation. I informed him that my reservation was for omakase service at 7pm. He looked confused and said that he would be back. He went to the kitchen and came out a few minutes later. He immediately started blaming a manager "that no longer works there". He said that the old manager was supposed to "email everyone". Email everyone about what you ask. They stopped providing omakase service. My wife checks her email everyday and there has not been a single thing about it. He offered to do a tasting menu service. I asked what it entailed and he basically said i don't know. It might have some of this, and it could have a couple of these but I can't be sure. Overall I am very dissatisfied with the level of customer service that I received. I feel like there should have been more of an effort put forward to notify people with reservations of the change in service type. We even left a phone number in the email chain booking and confirming the reservation. There is no excuse for the lack of communication. I do not believe that the attempt to make things right was to the level of an establishment that is supposedly one of the best in the valley. I hope moving forward that they better communicate their future intentions to...

There are two types of chef-driven creative cooking: memorable and forgettable. Most is the latter, and usually very expensive. Chef Fukuda-san’s Hai Noon is the former (memorable, to be clear), and priced to please. If you subscribe to my YouTube channel you know I do a lot of Japanese and Japanese-ish dishes. That’s exactly what Hai Noon is: Japanese that’s mostly Japanese-ish. Whatever you call it, the well-curated menu is somewhat small but expertly executed. Everything was delicious, mixing Japanese and Western flavors. The small-plate format is good for both sharing and trying several different dishes. I’d say we ordered at least half the menu for four people. But don’t expect sushi, which is a very small part of Japanese cuisine. Be sure to read the photo captions. The restaurant itself is inside the retro-named and retro-themed Papago Motor Hotel. We entered the dining room through the cool, small bar, but I think you can skirt the bar and enter through the lobby too. The dining room is straight out of the 1950s, which was hinted by the vintage airstream RV parked outside. The decor and slightly Polynesian atmosphere and wall of semi-circular booths are really a hoot. We drank sake with our meal, a 720ml of a good Junmai Daiginjo, which was reasonably priced. There was only one other 720, for substantially more Yen. I would like to see a bigger selection of 720s. Even the other sakes on the list, but in bigger bottles, would be great. ...

Creative, thoughtful, layered, beautiful...and most of all...exquisitely delicious food in an amazing Japanese fusion restaurant wedged in a difficult to envision location. But once you get there, it all makes perfect sense.

Menu standouts include meltingly tender pork belly over fried rice, vibrant and flavorful pickles vegetables, a delightful seafood carpaccio, ceviche, and a chocolate mole desert bite that will make you regret everything bad you ever said about cloves. Every dish features a thoughtfully curated combo of locally sourced and internationally imported ingredients, prepped, cooked, and presented with casual precision. Everything hits. If you can, spring for the tasting menu. It's full of surprises and worth every penny.

Service is warm and personable, including dish presentations from the chef. Our waiter was so happy to share and laughed along with us through the meal as a kindred spirit.

Cocktails kick butt, too, in a hip bar enhanced by a backing track from a record collection your geekiest indie vinyl fan wishes he had in his milk crate.

Don't think, just go...and talk about it lovingly from that point forward with anyone who cares about the unifying power of a great meal in...