Sushi Café — Restaurant in Winter Park

I went here over a week ago and I am still currently dying a little from my gluten allergy. I have recently had colon surgery. I had told the server when I came in, and wrote on my paper (and circled) I have a GLUTEN ALLERGY. Sushi is one of the few “safe” foods that I can eat due to my complicated food allergies, and I went here to try it out since it was local. The menu was very diverse, the atmosphere could’ve been better, but it was a small sushi place and I wasn’t there for the atmosphere. I just wanted to safely be able to enjoy my favorite food without dying. On my second order, the server sent me a fried roll. I asked her when I got the roll “is this gluten-free?” because I know there are gluten free tempuras and wheat ones and she told me yes. I tried to avoid fried rolls altogether, but I missed one..but was very delighted to hear I could eat it. Another point, service is TERRIBLE. I had to wait ~30 minutes to have someone even come by at a time, even when I was having a serious reaction. I guess this was my mistake for trusting a server, who knew I had a gluten allergy, to say no there is no gluten in the food you ordered and eat it like I would be okay. About 5 minutes later my head starts killing me and my stomach starts hurting (I am starting a gluten reaction at this point). I ask the server, can you please tell me what flour they used for the tempura, as I suspected it was the culprit. I end up running to the bathroom, several times, to vomit 🤢 all the food I just ate while I’m there, because I was served straightforward gluten. The server came to me and ARGUED that it was unbleached wheat flour and I should be fine. She kept saying to me “it’s unbleached wheat flour so it doesn’t have gluten”. She said she went to the owner to ask what was in it. The owner never came out, a manager never saw me. No one dared to ask if I was okay. At the end they just threatened to charge me extra for the food left on my plate that I was throwing up and dying from (I am still having reactions from this mishap, as it takes almost a month sometimes for a gluten reaction to clear) and I couldn’t not eat another bite (I actually couldn’t eat for over 24hrs after this). Had I been someone who’s throat would close up when they had gluten, I would’ve been dead. When it came time to pay, as I argued I should not be charged (this was just for the extra 75c a piece leftover, not the entire meal I threw up instead of enjoying) for them knowingly serving gluten the server came out and told me “the owner said you can call your insurance to pay”. When I told the girl that this was a serious issue, she said she spoke to the owner and he told her to say “if I’m unhappy I can go to another restaurant”. I felt very targeted and unsafe there, and like no one cared for my wellbeing. I have never, in my life, had such a bad foodservice experience (having been in food service for years myself I understand mistakes but I also know you NEED to be aware of food allergies because you can KILL someone). I am someone who has really bad anxiety as well, so of course I did not want to start a ruckus while I was there, alone, but hopefully this will say enough. I still can’t believe I had to pay to be knowingly served gluten, to what I feel like, they had a laugh at and cared nothing for it...and they threatened to charge me extra because I could not eat it. It took me awhile to even come to terms write this review as I have absolutely no words to describe how bad my...

Tonight my wife wanted sushi and we live close to Sushi Cafe and they were open so, we went. We both love sushi and I’ve been eating sushi since the 90’s and thoroughly enjoy it.

First thing I look for on any sushi menu is Ikura (salmon roe). Next is the Spider Roll. These are my favorites. I asked if the chef made Ikura Temaki for us but he countered with Mosago (smelt roe) and we accepted. We also ordered a Dragon Roll (shrimp tempura cucumber, cream cheese, eel, spicy shredded krab, with avocado, eel sauce and spicy mayo) , Spider Roll (soft shell crab, cucumber avocado mosago and eel sauce) , Mango Roll (shrimp tempura, krab, cream cheese, topped with mango coconut flakes and mango sauce glaze), Jaguar roll (a tempura roll consisting of eel, avocado and cream cheese topped with eel sauce), and a Tomago Nigiri (sweetened scrambled egg omelette style sliced over rice), and tuna roll (tuna nori which is just rice, tuna, and nori wrap). They also served us miso soup and a sweet cake for dessert.

The first served was the Miso Soup which was wonderful with fresh white mushroom slices and green onions. It was tasty and warm.

First roll served was the Mosago hand roll with rice. Very simple and very nice. The focus was on the roe which is a good start for a salty pallet introduction and an excellent entry point to our meal. Next was the Green Dragon. This is the most expensive roll they have but well worth it (see pics). The portion is generous, the pieces are large without being oversized and the flavors are delicious. Next was the Spider Roll which was delicious and savory with the soft shell crab being the star of the show, which was served with the tuna nori (a wonderful roll focusing solely on the red meat of the tuna which was succulent and juicy in the best ways), and the Tomago (sweetened scrambled egg omelette slice which made me wish I’d doubled my order and was the sleeper hit of the evening).

Simultaneously we were served the Mango, the Jaguar, and the other Tomago. The Mango was sweet, reminiscent of coconut shrimp, and the sweetness of the mango paired well with the saltiness of the shrimp and earthiness of the rice. The Jaguar was crispy and savory and the eel sauce was an excellent compliment. And my wife says her Tomago was delicious, sweet, and tasty as well.

Lastly we had sweet cakes with strawberry frosting for dessert.

The staff was really just two people: the chef who seemed to prefer his artistry be observed on the plate as he hid himself under a black baseball cap which allowed him to focus on his creations. He clearly takes pride in his work because though it seems he almost never looks up, he has astute observation of the entire restaurant and yet still crafts such beauty. And the server, a girl whose charm and enthusiasm add to the atmosphere nicely. She paid attention to all three tables, each booth holding one couple, a young couple on a date (they are anime fans and were an adorable interracial couple), an older married couple (he was bald and his shorts and polo say he enjoys German cars while his wife enjoys her home) and us (40’s, round, quiet, interracial couple).

We went into this small restaurant to enjoy a good meal and were treated to a wonderful meal accompanied by a visual display of humanity and people watching. We will return. If you’re in the area and hungry,...

UPDATE AT BOTTOM

My husband and I had eaten here, and it was once one of our favorite sushi places. Unfortunately, we aren't sure if we will be back after tonight. We walked in and saw they had remodeled the place and redone the menu and pricing. We are now thinking it has new owners. We were greeted by a lovely lady who sat us down. Everything was fine, and we placed our order. We got two rolls and requested a side of eel sauce, spicy mayo, and a hibachi shrimp plate to share because we were not too hungry. We received our sushi from a gentleman a few minutes later. We waited for our sauces, thinking they might be busy. After around 10 minutes of waiting, I had to flag down the lady who initially served us. She quickly got our sauces and left without saying anything. Then, a few minutes later, the gentleman dropped off our hibachi dinner. I knew something was wrong because he had given us two plates, one with the meal and one with just vegetables. The shrimp was burnt and very salty, sitting in a broth from the veggies. We were also given brown rice and noodles, which I thought came with one or the other. We were given no soup or salad either. While the plate with just veggies was sitting in the same broth to the point it was leaking off the plate. We were given only two napkins, so we had to make due. I tried to ask for more, but no one checked up on us, nor did they look our way. After eating the food, we stacked our plates, waiting around 25 minutes for the bill. After no one checked in on us, the food, or a refill for our drinks, My husband had to raise his hand to get the waitress to get our bill. This meal was not a justified 40-dollar meal; I would have probably saved the money. Another note I would like to add, just in case the owners see this, is that two young ladies were leaving as we were sitting, and their dirty dishes were collecting flies and were never cleaned up even after we left. This place was not that busy, with only a few tables. I am very disappointed with tonight's meal.

UPDATE: The same lady who attended us that night gave my husband a full refund for our meal when she didn't have to. We appreciate that. They also gave us their heartfelt apologies, and I thank...