Kazu Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Stuart

I recently moved back from Japan after living there for a total of 10 years. I was extremely hesitant about trying any sushi/sashimi because I was afraid I would be disappointed. My daughter and I arrived at the restaurant and were very skeptical because the hostess/waitress was obviously not Japanese. We figured we would give it a shot anyway. We were shown to the bar and were super excited to see that both Itamae (sushi chefs) were Japanese and hard at work. We ordered edamame for an appetizer; they were perfect, not too soggy nor raw. We ordered the sashimi platter dinner that came with miso soup and salad. The miso soup was delicious! We also ordered the "Real California Roll" and the "Spicy Tuna Roll". Both were yummy. Everything was fresh and delicious.

Now for the restaurant. It is a small place with maybe 15 tables (I didn't count) and 7-10 spots at the bar. If you come during a peak time, be ready to wait. Luckily we arrived just in time to slide into spots at the bar. It is very clean and inviting. The restrooms are immaculate.

Now for the staff. The hostess was very friendly. Our waitress was super nice and helpful. The waitstaff IS very station fixated, which means no one else but your server checks on you.. but the staff is so amazing, that you don't need any other servers checking on you. Unlike the sushi places in Japan, where if you sit at the bar the Itamae chat with you, Kazu-san and the other gentleman simply worked at first. Once they found out we had just moved from Japan, Kazu-san chatted with us a bit.

All in all, it was a nice slice of Japanese nostalgia for us. We will...

SAVE yourself! Don't waste your time, money and health by eating at Kazu. Service is forgetful and rude. The salmon on the sushi roll was all fat that made the dish greasy. Honestly the rolls weren't that good for the price period. Cost almost $100 for an appetizer, 3 rolls and 4 glasses of house red wine.

Keep in mind that this is coming from someone who LOVES to give 4 stars! If I could give Kazu a negative score I would of.

The down a dirty... The restaurant was very very small. The table next to you is basically dinning with you. Their menu is limited. Two wines Red and White, that's it. They have very few choices for rolls. Service was horrible. We ordered 3 rolls and got 2. When we got our third roll that had charred salmon on top we ended up with charred fat that saturated the whole roll with grease. When my date said something to the waitress she said Salmon is a fatty fish and we agreed but this was nothing but fat. My fear is that it wasn't even salmon at all. It was pure white through and through. I could only choke down one bite then I got sick and felt like crap for the rest of the night. I was shocked that the waitress didn't offer any assistance she did forget about one of our rolls and we shown her the fat roll and yet she dismissed us. Guess the language barrier works out for her.

I am new to this area and I guess my hunt for rolls is still on. To help you out a little.... as a backup I did checkout Benihana's and really enjoyed their food. I ate at the sushi bar so when you go to the bathroom you have to leave a trail of crumbs to find your why back and the drive is a little farther away but...

The food has gone down hill. Not sure what happened as I had still enjoyed it since the change of ownership which was awhile back. But my latest takeout experience on Saturday wasn't good. What used to be our go to local gem is no more. Took almost 20 mins over the pick up time that was stated. I got there 5 mins after the posted pick up time and waited another 15 mins. The single sushi chef seemed to be lacking any hustle and for a Saturday night at 8 pm only 2 tables were full. The atmosphere just seemed off. What used to be a cozy wonderful sushi spot , always hopping, is no more. The packing for takeout orders also went down hill and caused the containers to shift creating a mess. The salad dressing once the star of the show, lacked all the veggie puree it once had and more vinegar added to stretch it. Miso was OK. The Toni roll is way different than it once was. Personally didn't like and the fish inside the roll tasted old. Salmon bento box was not as fresh as once was and the rolls were not well done. Lastly, what is with all the sesame seeds?! Every dish looks like they just dumped a bunch of seeds all over everything randomly. I still see positive posts so some still like it, but simply not for us anymore who believe what set Kazu apart...