Makoto Japanese Buffet — Restaurant in Vancouver

This is remotely located from the Asian communities which is actually a very popular place for AYCE Asian themed foods. Most of the patrons are of all races except Asians. And that explained the food compatibility of Asian authenticity. No Asians, the good Asian taste must be lacking. However, you get pretty much a mocking style of food that is pretty much an imitation of Asian(Japanese and Chinese). Seafood, especially the snow crab legs and cocktail shrimp, are just there for photo attraction: Taste not great, and no feeling. This can also describe the pre-made sushi rolls and much of the hot foods. Cooks are cooking without emotion and waiters are robots just leading tables and carrying drinks(btw, soft drinks are charged separately and not worth it. Just order water). To see how enthusiastic the kitchen is making food for customers, a taste of its fried rice is a simple standard procedure. The verdict: it sucks and Uncle Roger will not approve with big haiya! - making Chinese ancestors cry!) The fried rice looks like a kid doing an experiment on how to mix egg and rice together - and failed. Anyway, the price as of 8-4-2024 at $21.99 weekend + tax and maybe tips barely justified the oysters, clams, battered fried red snapper, and some of the hot foods. The sushi bar and seafood bar are as good as for display only. Food tastes nearly failing the Asian taste buds while the waiters and cooks are probably robots. And don't know why there are even White waitresses working there; perhaps care mostly about tips and balance out the non-discriminatory hiring practices. A lot of MSG is part of hot food preparation, dry mouth beware. When the desert is served with ice cream cups called "vanilla flavored", then you know it is not ice cream, but a true cheap Asian frozen whipped substance that is usually served in Asia! We deserve real ice cream in America, come'on! And Washington has great fruits such as apples, pears, and cherries. But serving the under ripped melons and honey dew chunks are fairly offending to say the least. This restaurant doesn't care what people are eating, so I do not care about going back, in probably 5 years, after a week of backpacking and need a quick place to fill up besides spending the same amount of money...

As a passionate food enthusiast and buffet aficionado, I’ve been to countless buffets across the board, and I can confidently say that this is one of the worst I’ve ever experienced. My wife and I, both long-time buffet lovers, couldn’t bear to stay after just a few pieces of sushi.

First off, the atmosphere was unbearable. Walking in, you’re hit with the stench of dirty carpets and a musty, stale smell that makes you immediately question the cleanliness of the place. It felt like an overcrowded soup kitchen, with screaming kids, rude guests, and a complete lack of any enjoyable dining ambiance. It was chaotic, uncomfortable, and just plain gross.

Now, let’s talk about the sushi—if you can even call it that. We are no strangers to sushi buffets, and when it comes to tuna nigiri, we know what to expect: a deep, rich red or vibrant pink color that indicates freshness. What we got at Makato was a pale, washed-out pink slab of something that barely resembled tuna. In fact, when I first saw it, I didn’t even recognize it as tuna. It looked so low quality that it seemed dangerous to eat. The flavor was even worse—dry, bland, and completely unappetizing.

Every single sushi roll was a joke. They might have looked different on the outside, but inside they were all stuffed with the same cheap crab salad filler. There was no variety, no freshness, and certainly no quality. After choking down four pieces of sushi, my wife and I decided we couldn’t risk more, especially with the fear of food poisoning looming in the back of our minds.

The rest of the buffet was no better. The teriyaki chicken was a rubbery disaster, the gyoza were soggy, and the tempura was cold, greasy, and flavorless. And let’s not forget the trays—most of them were nearly empty, and the staff seemed completely uninterested in keeping them filled.

To sum it up, this place is a complete disaster. For $50, we walked out hungry, frustrated, and genuinely disappointed. As someone who takes food seriously, I would never recommend this place to anyone. If you care about what you’re eating, steer clear of this miserable excuse...

I am done with this place. Every time I go it’s worse than the last time. This will be the last time I dine here. The price is reasonable, that is the only thing good I can say about this place. The crowded entrance with no control. I had to really control my anger at how many people were standing around waiting to be seated. There must have been 30 people standing around the open area just inside the doors. The staff does nothing to manage the traffic in front of the door. People have difficult enough time to move around to get food let alone try and weave through a mass of people waiting to be seated. Because the restaurant only care about making as much as they can they seat every seat possible. I feel for the staff that are struggling to keep up with the demand of the food. They are in such a rush to make the rolls, the rolls fall apart when attempting to pick it up with chopsticks. The sashimi was just cut as small as possible to look like they are filling the serving tray and because the size is so small, people tend to take half the fish from a fresh serving tray. Then the tray is not filled for another 15 minutes. There were so many people in the restaurant, the food being serving trays were more empty than full. I made 5 trips to the serving area to get to try a few pieces of everything they had available. This is not an experience I want to repeat. I don’t recommend this place anymore. I’ve frequented this establishment regularly for the past 6 years, but I will not spend another $ here anymore. I don’t think me ranting about this place will diminish the popularity of the establishment. Bottom line, you get what...