Japonais Restaurant

Claim
marker

111 E 18th St
New York, NY 10003

marker
(212) 260-2020
Incorrect info? Correct your listing
Photos
Japonais Restaurant - New York, NY
Reviews
( 18 )
( 21 )
( 13 )
( 9 )
( 20 )

Best

I went to japonais for a dinner with my gf last saturday. it was packed. Pros: spicy mono, the rock, le quack Cons: foie gras torchon

Worst

As I read reviews of this place, I was reluctant on coming here but i took the chance. The atmostphere here is awesome however; I must agree that the service sucked. I waited ov...

Worst Service EVER. 9/18/2008

We made the mistake of going to Japonais for a friend's birthday and they divided our group into two tables. One table received their food and moved on to desert before the second table even received our dinner. The waiter was never available, the appetizers we did receive were incorrect and underwhelming, it took half an hour to receive our drinks and the server couldn't have cared less about the long wait for our food. Two hours in, since our guest of honor had already finished, we complained that we still hadn't received our food, and the manager's response was ""well, we won't charge you for what you didn't get""...geez, thanks! Overall, cool atmosphere, but they need to get over themselves...it's not nearly as great as they seem to think it is. Pros: Cool atmosphere Cons: AWFUL service, reservations are irrelevant more

Nice scene for dinner 8/18/2008

This restaurant is a nice blend of cuisines. The fusion of the restaurant spreads from the ambience to the menu. It's often empty for the lunch hour, and its easy to find a seat. The proximity to Union Square makes its a lively place night, however, so book it on opentable for sure. The fish is always fresh, with beautifully tasting rice and supreme seaweed. While it is not known to be overly traditional, the sushi is still great. Pros: ambience, good food Cons: busy at night more

AWESOME food and great service 7/27/2008

I've been wanting to eat here for a while and thank good I didn't listen to the negative reviews because none of them were true. The food was amazing (lobster spring rolls!) the drinks were great and our server (Ed) made the whole experience wonderful. Clearly these people writing about the poor service did not have him as their server. We were seated at exactly the time our reservation was for and could not have had a better experience. I highly recommend this place and can't wait to go back for their tasting menu (if you don't want to spend the money for dinner this is a great deal). Pros: ED the server!!!!, Lobster spring rolls, Ambience Cons: portions were a bit small but oh so good more

Poor service 7/23/2008

I took someone here from out of town for business and am sorry i did. We arrived early for the reservation but had to wait 20 minutes to be seated. The waiter brought the appetizer and entree at the same time, forgot our drink order, then brought us the wrong drinks. Another server plopped the deserts that were ordered by the table next to us and left the plates on the table. There are so many great restaurants in Union Square....don't waste your time at Japonais!! more

not impressed 3/2/2008

Japonais looked like a great place but it didnt meet my expectations, especially with so many other great restaurants nearby. The food was decent and the service was subpar. The atmosphere was nice but really crowded and noisy. look elsewhere for a good date, there are a few good places farther down 18th street. Pros: looks nice Cons: subpar service, noisy, crowded more

Great Date 2/17/2008

Came here on a date and had a great time. Our waitress, I think her name was Amanda, was really helpful. She offered suggestions but wasn't pushy. The food she recommended was delicious. We tried the aji tartar, crispy salmon roll, and the rib eye. All were fantastic. Really personal service made for a really fun date. I've been here a couple times before where it was just ok. This time, it was fantastic. Amanda must be one of your bests. Pros: Personal Service, Great food Cons: Woman at door is rude more

Well worth the trip 1/31/2008

Took a chance during restaurant week and it was well worth it. The appetizers, lobster spring roll and crispy shrimp and salmon. Not only was the presentation almost too nice to ruin, but the food lived up to it. We did add another item to our appetizers, the Japonais cocktail (oysters) and they should have been avoided. Small unflavorful oysters that they try to cover up with the various sauces they provide. We both had the Filet and it was excellent. Cooked perfectly, and complimented well by the miso potatoes and asparagus. I was quite full at this point, but managed to give the Kabocha Cheesecake a shot and I am glad I did. Although I only ate a few bites it is something to give a shot. The sorbets were also well done, but that isn't too hard of an item to perfect. more

Great Restaurant Week choice 1/29/2008

Pros: Delicious Cuisine Cons: Dimly lit so hard to read menu more

WORST SERVICE EVER!! 1/24/2008

Lovely space and good food, but both were overshadowed by the worst service ever encountered. Lunch took over an hour to get a first course, with a half empy restauant. The even messed up the food and orders. Pros: Food is good and space is fun Cons: All positives outweighed by TERRIBLE service more

Not For Groups 1/14/2008

Japonais was the restaurant we decided to have my birthday dinner at this year. It looked cool and trendy and the menu was on point, so two months in advance we made the reservation for 20 people. The lady on the phone was very helpful and offered to put us in the loung area and promised we would be able to eat dinner, order drinks and have some privacy, so we were pumped. Over the course of the two months we made 3 different alterations to the reservation which left us with a final number of 17 people. Even better we thought, now we'll be more spread out and have more room- HUH! They stuck us in a courner booth equipped for maximum 10 people to sit and eat, we were sitting on top of each other and I litteraly had to eat off my lap because their was simply no room on the table. The food was excellant, but don't expect water or for the entrees to be served together, I got mine an hour before my friend sitting next to me. Good place, but NOT FOR GROUP PART'IES- VERY DISAPPOINTED! Pros: The Filet Minon Cons: NOT FOR GROUPS - NOT ATTENTIVE more

LOOOOOOVED IT! 1/8/2008

Wow I am surprised by the neg. reviews of late! I went here for dinner last night, and went prior to reading any of the reviews here. I am glad I did because I prob would not have gone! I thought it was excellent! Maybe we got lucky and picked the right dishes. Pros: great dishes and services and ambience Cons: nothing bad to say at all more

Very Yummy. 12/19/2007

Went for Lunch, the food and service were excellent. We went to this restaurant because of Rachel Ray saying it was good, and it was. The Crispy shrimp and salmon roll and the ?Le Quack Japonais? were very yummy. Pros: Great Service, food and were made to feel very welcomed. Cons: None that we could find. more

Juice 12/18/2007

I am a bartender in the city and I cannot believe that they charge so much for all of that juice in their drinks. On top of the fact that the bartenders at Japonais do not know guest servicde, conversation or how to make a drink properly, the price tops it off. Where did they find these people. There are many great bars in NYC, but this is definitely not the place to go. Management must be very weak. Hostess seems to have an attitude towards questions and definitely does not smile or speak to guests......I have been to the Chicago location, but this one takes the cake. Did they send the wrong staff to this location? Pros: Thank god it was a slow monday night..... Cons: having to wait over five minutes to get a drink....OUCH more

Not if it was my last breath..... 12/6/2007

I cannot believe I actually went there when all of my friends told me not to go. The service and the food were uncalled for. Pros: cant believe i am in new york and it cost $500.00 Cons: its not texas more

OVER RATED 11/28/2007

I get there 15 minutes early for my reservation and yet still had to wait almost 45 minutes to get seated. i asked for a manager to come to the table and yet no one came. I have dined in many fine restaurants in New York but this takes the cake. Somehow the hostess and the man next to her at the host stand do not communicate. The food is over rated and some dishes are way over priced. They could use someone who knows service. Union Square Cafe should give them lessons on customer service. I will never go there again. Way too much attitude....They care more about their cell phones than they do the guests. THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER PLACES THAT YOU SHOULD SPEND YOUR HARD EARNED MONEY. Pros: Decor Cons: Service and Managers more

Nice trendy place to go with date or group of friends 11/25/2007

I really enjoyed my dinning experience at Japonais even though only half of the food we ordered was good. It is definitely a high design and high class place. I thought the service was extremely good. The service and ambiance made the whole experience truly enjoyable. Now the food ... we had flat bread appetizer which was good. The rolls I thought was completely Americanized. Yes, fusion, but the rolls can be at least be made with sushi rice right? The seafood casserole was very disappointing with one shrimp, one scallop, one clam, etc. Not only was it very sparse, it was tasteless. The duck entree which turned out to be peaking duck was really good. An interesting and enjoyable twist on the Chinese classic. Don't bother with the wine. They were all WAY overpriced. We ended up paying $50 for a $8 bottle of wine. Pros: Wonderful service Cons: Average food more

Despite Bad Reviews, Great innovative menu 11/17/2007

I havent been there in a bit but i went 3 times since it opened and had the exact opposite experience of all the bad reviews. the wagyu ravioli is sublime and the entree was presented with exquisite preciseness. the decor is great but i can imagine why the service may have sucked for some. the management there is a bit top heavy from what i heard and the servers arent compensated well. (i heard from some staff members) i heard the group is from chicago and they probably havent conformed to NYC standards yet. Pros: cool food, cool decor Cons: the stuck up manger with the nice suit more

Nothing Special 8/11/2007

avoid to order ""anna-maria"". it' doesn't have enough to eat and is not tasty at all. i think it should be taken off from the menu long time ago. Cons: anna-maria more

Good food - poor service - poor value 8/7/2007

Trendy and smart decor but the terrible service does not make up for the atmosphere. The wait staff is inexperienced. We asked for water from three staff and never received it. The food is good but overpriced for what is good New York sushi. We also had to wait 15 minutes for the waiter to bring back the credit card and check. Many many more place to get good / trendy sushi in New York... Try Haru across the street. Pros: Atmosphere, music, lounge Cons: Service, price more

Avoid all nights 7/28/2007

The fish came out raw and it was NOT sushi. Don't waste yout time or money by going to this place. Cons: Manager, food not being cooked more
< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 Next >
Menu for Japonais Restaurant


Summer SALE!!!:
15% OFF all yearly plans
Use year15 at checkout. Expires 1/1/2021
Editorial
  • The Scene
    The stylish restaurant's undulating wood ceiling beams mimic the sea and point to the sushi bar. All other elements--deep reds, rich golds, a polished wall of mirrors--indicate...

  • 9/5/2006 Provided by Citysearch
Additional information
  • Hours: Monday To Thursday From 12:00 PM To 03:00 PM Monday To Thursday From 05:00 PM To 11:00 PM Friday From 12:00 PM To 03:00 PM Friday From 05:00 PM To 11:30 PM Saturday From 05:00 PM To 11:30 PM
  • Payments: Discover, Master Card, Diner's Club, American Express, Visa
  • Neighborhoods: Midtown, Union Square, Gramercy Park
badge