Ninza Sushi East — Restaurant in Wichita

Ive been many times and it pains me to say out last experience was enough to not come back anymore. It WAS our favorite place so we usually order a bit and we've usually spent anywhere from $50-$70 for 2 people. We have spent birthdays here and even brought my parents. I dont know what happened this most recent time but there was one server. I work customer service so I'm always patient and kind. The place was relatively slow and I watched a couple come in wait 10+ minutes without being acknowledged before they left. There was one door dash order and they were taken care of immediately. The people behind us seemed frustrated but still seemed kind even though I over heard them saying they were already there for an hour. My problem isn't with the service but the price and quality of the food in less than a year span. They have happy hour which used to include takoyaki for $5-$6 even though we ordered two other happy hour items we weren't told it was taken off. I didn't bring this up because they don't make the prices but omg we spent like $17 on 8 pcs (2 orders of takoyaki)! The octopus was also chewy so that was disappointing cause that hasn't happened before but I've had octopus many times and it happens unfortunately. My last straw was I've had a hankering for spiny tuna for quite a while. Usually sushi is served shortly after or even before with a soy sauce tray ginger and Wasabi. While I waited to even ask for it I used the soy sauce bottle to pour over the sushi which was sticky and crusty... My Tuna was lacking spice and had a bit of an after taste. After I finally got the ginger/Wasabi no soy sauce tray while most of our meal was over I tried it with ginger and decided this is one of the times I would say something as I ate 3/8 pcs of the Tuna and it just didn't taste right. The sever that was alone and appreciative of our patience the entire time got snippy with me because "it was already eaten" I told her I was sorry I usually dont say anything but it just doesn't taste right. When she went to talk to the chef to see anything could be done I looked at my husband and told him I didn't even eat half and was trying to give it a chance but how else was I supposed to know it didn't taste good if I didn't try it lol? We received the bill and it was $90 for maybe 6 rolls the takoyaki and soft drinks. I can't believe we spent 2 hours and spent $100 feeling disappointed. I really don't fault the server because she was trying her best and the other server that usually is there with short brown hair is amazing. We're just going to have to find another place after this it's not worth giving it...

12/30/22 Delicious and inviting sushi restaurant on a busy street yet worth visiting once in a while. Best to visit during non-rush hours because it appears to be short-staffed. There was only 2 servers on site that evening observed. Our server had to be flagged down a few times for water refill but she was very polite. She checked on us only once.

Price value: Appetizers, sides, and hibachi are averagely priced. Pricey for sashimi, noodles, and other categories.

Ambiance: Inviting with a lounge area by the bar, great decor of Japanese artwork on the walls, warm lighting, with booths on the wall perimeter. Clean.

Food: Everything ordered was seasoned perfectly (if applicable), cooked well, and presented beautifully.

Takoyaki: 4/5 Crispy exterior and umami filling w/eel sauce. Could use a bit for seasoning on the filling but very good. Calamari Rings w/yum yum sauce & sweet soy vinaigrette dip: 4/5 Crispy and moist, perfectly fried. Deluxe Sashimi Platter 5/5 (chef's choice): Very nicely sliced, perfectly portioned on kale & spiral carrots in a sweet soy vinaigrette. Fresh w/O fish aroma! Crispy Salmon Skin Roll: 4/5 Almost very crispy salmon skin, rolled well and good size with eel sauce glaze (just enough). Skin could use more seasoning but not bad. Japanese Tonkatsu Ramen: 3/5 Noodles El dented and bouncy, mild on the miso, not a very rich broth. Good on taste but could use more toppings and seasoning. Spicy Tuna Roll: 3/5 because it wasn't spicy at all. Spicy Korean Ramen: 1/5 Not great not nor chef created. Totally from the package. Exactly Nongshim brand, black version. Korean beef bulgogi bento (California Roll 4pc, mixed salad, rice, 1 shumai, 1 potstickers, beef bulgogi): 5/5 The beef bulgogi was nicely charred and not overpowering with the seasoning, rice was well cooked, California was good, the salad was very tasty. Not bad at all. Cosmo:...

First time to any Ninza, being a long time regular of Kanai when they were still here.

In summary, the food was actually delicious! But the service/kitchen was excruciatingly slow. We received no explanation why our groups' order took around an hour and a half to get to the table. During that time, we were checked on probably 2-3 times for a hopeful refill.

Our party of 7 ppl arrived at 6:30 on a Friday night, it was busy but not a huge wait actually and were seated pretty quickly. It then took about 20 min before being asked for drink orders. 20 min later we ordered food. From the time we ordered to when our sushi was brought was an hour and a half timeframe with poor service during the wait. They HAD to be missing several staff members (servers, and likely sushi chefs) because the wait and lack of service was the worst I've had in some time.

We had overheard other customers leaving and at surrounding tables having similar experiences, but we were celebrating a birthday with friends and at least had good company and conversation so we stuck it out.

I ordered 2 rolls for myself, never received 1 of them at all so my wife and I split the 3 that did arrive. We were not checked on until given our checks (when I asked to remove the roll I didn't receive). The checks also had 20% gratuity added! Look, I have served and I understand group gratuity. But this was the worst food service I've experienced in Wichita and feel there should have been some serious discounts applied to the tickets out of common sense and good management to make things right.

Again, our table mutually agreed the food that came out was delicious. But the unapologetically awful wait times and inattentive service made this a 1 star experience overall. I plan to try Ninza sushi again in hopes this was a one-off. But it'll take some time to forget that...