Amami San — Restaurant in South San Francisco

Short story: Good sushi. HORRENDIOUS service. Will NOT be back.

Long story: Searched Google for a good sushi restaurant while in town. Found Amami San accessible, reasonably priced and great reviews. My fiancé and I arrived a little before 7pm and it was packed - a good sign for good sushi, which we were craving and in no particular rush so, we waited patiently close to 20 minutes before it was blatantly obvious the hostess/waitress was ignoring us and another party of four - I'm assuming in hopes that we would tire of waiting and move along to another place. But, as I said before we were in no rush and the packed house solidified this was the place to be for good sushi. The group of four was seated and we watched as 2, 3, then 4 tables became available and still no acknowledgement from the h/w. A woman, a couple, and a trio walk in and within 30 seconds the h/w walks up and addresses the couple first (seriously?!), before finally getting us on the list and sitting us a few minutes later. Trying to give them the benefit of the doubt, we sit down at the sushi bar excited to get some food. The trio is sat beside us almost immediately. We decide on some misos to start and 4 rolls to share. Waitress comes back in 5 minutes or so and we place our order and get our misos relatively quickly. The satisfaction of warm tasty miso quickly evaporates as 10.... 20 minutes go by and the trio next to us starts getting food but no sign of our rolls. 30... 40 minutes have passed and more food gets passed over us at the bar to the waitresses running it out to tables AND more annoyingly to the trio beside us. Sushi chef behind the bar asks if we had ordered as he hands another plate of food to another couple beside us. Yes. Yes we have. (Add insult to injury as my stomach is eating itself) 50... 60 minutes has now gone by and I am one platter away from leaving a $10 on the table and walking out the door. Thankfully next plate up is two of our rolls. We devour them, wait another 10 minutes for our last two rolls and inhale them in 30 seconds. Card out, we try (and fail) to get our waitresses' attention to grab the check. My much nicer and more patient fiancé finally gets her attention and she brings the check but walks off before he can open the black book to put his card into (which he already had out and in his hand). 5 minutes later, we finally stand up to hand them our bill so we can leave. Our waitress comes and grabs our check as we are noticeably standing in the front of this small establishment, but a different waitress brings our check back and rudely drops it (with an audible 'smack') on the counter in front of us without a word. Relieved to leave after taking over 2 hours, we will never be back because of the lack of communication and outright...

The food is delicious, with 4 stars. They were quick, and the vibe was excellent. However, there was a big mistake. My wife and I enjoyed our food when we were given a checkbook for our table. We thought nothing of it because it was a busy lunch hour until I overheard the table next to us say, "how long until they come back with our check." I then realized it was their check and handed it over to them because their card was already in the checkbook.

After we finished eating, we asked for the check. When the workers came to our table, they wondered what had happened to the other bill. I had to explain to them where they messed up for 10 minutes. Mistakes happen. It would have been okay if they had walked away, given us a new check, and rectified the situation. However, I had to spend another 5 minutes explaining how to solve their problem. That's where I lost trust in their business. Last, the manager came over and wanted to know what had happened.

The employees need not make mistakes. However, their problem is a management issue. More importantly, the employees need to know when they make a mistake to go to their manager to help them solve their problem if they're ill-advised to solve it on their own. It is not the customer's job to solve their problems. If they had paid me for counseling services, I would have gladly spent my time doing this. It will be some time before we give this business...

I had an unforgettable experience at Amami San in South SF with their omakase menu. From the moment we arrived, it was clear that this place is a hidden gem. The attention to detail and the quality of the dishes exceeded all my expectations.

The omakase menu was a true highlight. The 10-piece Omakase was a masterpiece, showcasing the chef’s incredible skill and creativity. The freshness of the fish and the artistry in the presentation made every bite a joy. The flavors were perfectly balanced, and the overall experience was both indulgent and satisfying.

What really impressed me was the exceptional pricing. For such high-quality, expertly crafted sushi, the value was outstanding. It's rare to find a place that combines top-notch culinary artistry with such reasonable prices. This made the experience even more enjoyable, knowing I was getting incredible value for my money.

The staff were also fantastic—friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive, making sure that every aspect of our meal was perfect. The cozy, modern ambiance added to the overall charm of the restaurant.

If you're looking for an incredible omakase experience in South SF that offers fantastic value, Amami San is the place to go. I can’t recommend it enough and am already looking forward to...