Sushi Samba park

the bar is such a freindly place. you can always find good food and fun company more

fun night out more

Maybe the worst dining experience I ever had & horrible customer service. This is the first review I ever wrote due to huge disappointment. I was just getting out of work with out eating all day. Myself & coworker decided to take a coworker here for her 50th birthday. Upon arrival the group before us was arguing with the hostess that lost their reservation. Luckily we were seated in a minute. As soon as we are seated they asked us to order & we had to ask them for a minute. We ordered a couple of appetizers & 3 meals with drinks. We were rushed thru the entire meal. Half way thru my stomach was not feeling well. Before leaving I excused myself for the bathroom. Upon arriving back to the table I seen my co worker standing saying we have to leave, they are waitng for the table, so we grabbed our stuff and the staff also helped us grab our stuff and rush out. I had to put my coat on outside. Yes outside. As i reached my train station I noticed I left a tote bag filled with my personal items at the restaurant. I left the restaurant at 9:00 and called them by 9:40 regarding my bag. at this time my stomach was a mess. the girl on the phone said they are busy but hold and i will check briefly. i told her where I was seated before she put me on hold. 10 minutes later she said she does not see anything & to call back later b/c it was crowded. I called back 2 hours later and she checked said she didn't see anything but she will call me back and asked for my number. I never got a call. I called back the next day at 2:30 & again she asked for my phone number and was going to call me back if they found it or not. At 8:00 (24 hours & 4 calls later) I call again. THis time I get the manager. I tell him the blue tote bag I left there and that I called 4 times and i really need what is in there for work he says he is in the office and will check if its there. he put me on hold for less than a minute & He rudely tells me the girl told me last night it was not there. I explained to him nicely no she said she was busy and looked quickly & was going to check the office when she gets time. He then tells me i am sure none of my employees took it and are you sure you left it here. I replied ,"" I never said any of them took it "". (I am sure no one can fit into my uniform since i am 107 lbs. and size 5 sneakers, i use for the gym. lol ) The manager then said its not here so dont say they took it. I never said that because if he knew what was in it and the size I am not sure anyone would want it. I have never seen such rude and bad service in my life. To top it off I was sick from the food the rest night. I eat at the one by my miami apt all the time & love it but this location has a horrible staff , bad service and food that made me sick to my stomach. not even worthy of a star!! I WILL NEVER EAT AT ANY LOCATION NOW.... I have never been so turned off that it forced me to write this. I never even wrote a review before, SO BEWARE OF BAD SERVICE AND FOOD more

We arrived at around 7:30pm with no reservations but was promptly seated. The place was pretty swanky with, of course, samba playing in the background. We ordered the Pan Seared Scallops - which is highly recommended!! The dish was so flavorful from the scallops down to the vegetables it was cooked with. If you like a fruity cocktail like me, the Samba Juice is great! You don't taste the alcohol at all. (It might get you into trouble later...) Now on to the rolls... Samba Park roll made with some really delish spicy lobster. I am lobster obssessed... if you read my other reviews, you'd know my ultimate epicurean weakness. Also, great on the list, Pacific rolls with king crab meat, topped off with the BoBo Brazil's seared Kobe beef bites. Now that is how you do sushi Japanese-Samba (Brazilian) style :) Ended the night of that gastronomical meal, we ordered the Vairhona Chocolate Fondue. The minimum is 2 people to order this plate of goodness. It is served on a huge plate with assorted fruit and pastries. I sure know how to indulge.. :) more

I had dinner on a weeknight for the second time at this location and feel compelled to write a review about my crappy experience. It took the waiter about 15 mins to come to our table of 3 after being seated. He then asked for drink orders and took 1 person's order and left without a glance around the table. We had to catch him as he passed our table later to put in the other orders but in his hurry he only managed to take one. 15 mins later when he returned to tell us the specials, (now 30 mins after being seated,) without any drinks and a request to ask the second person's order again. Apparently ""Sprite"" is a complex drink to remember. He then returned to take our orders....and brought with him the one Sprite. We then proceeded to remind him about the first order to which he did not acknowledge having ever received. We had now been there for over 40 mins and could not seem to get two soda's ordered properly. At that point I didn't bother to order the 3rd drink for fear he would not be able to remember a more complex alcoholic drink order. Service continued like this throughout the meal. He chose not to write any of our orders down and ended up coming back twice to ask for parts of our order again. Somehow, we managed to get everything we ordered in the end. Food was okay, unique, but not everything worked. The El Topo roll was good, the plaintain crusted chicken hot plate app, which was basically a sour chicken tender, was not. The seafood entree was overcooked. Nothing was really notable or worth the painful service and prices. Lastly, the place is laid out poorly with tiny tables jammed next to each other on the edges and gratuitously large sushi bar in the center. The girl sitting at the table next to me was literally 6 inches away and had to push her table into the aisle to get up to go to the bathroom. Our table itself was tiny and I was slightly amused (although mostly annoyed) when watching the servers try to place 3 entree places, soy sauce dishes, and apps on one tiny table. Their solution was to float 1/3 of each plate over the edge of the table into our laps. Ridiculous. Pros: Unique concept Cons: bad service, poor layout and cheap decor, bad value more

I went out to eat with 10 friends for my best friends birthday, Saturday night November 1, 2008. He called in advance to make a reservation, and they took his credit card to charge a $25 cancellation fee if anyone less than 10 didn't show up. They would not seat us until all 10 people showed up, which meant that he had to wait 35 minutes to sit down. After that they then told him there would be a $50 minimum for dinner, and were trying to push a ""prefixed menu"" on us. Finally, fed up we pushed to get an a la carte order, but they still placed a minimum $50 dollars per person. The host was very rude, and incredibly unhelpful. Additionally, he had a very slimy appearance. The bill ended up being horrendous, which was probably the hosts plan. The food itself was ok, but I have eaten far superior sushi, with MUCH better service for literally a third of the price. Unless you are very desperate, I would not recommend Sushi Samba to my worst enemy. Pros: Food OK Cons: Terrible Service, Rude Host and Waiter, Very inattentive, Horrendous Value. more

I made a reservation for 8:00 Friday night and arrived early and jumped to the bar to wait for our table. my boyfriend was running a little late and the hostess said it was alright and sat us without him as he was on his way. after we ordered a few appetizers and a round of drinks the waitress kept eyeing us rudely. Around 8:20 the hostess came back to inform us that we had better order dinner because they need us to finish up so they can seat the next table for the 9:00 reservation. she was nasty and rude and i could not believe that a hostess of this type restaurant ($$$$) would be so ridiculous after she sat us knowing we were an incomplete table. We had ordered drinks and within 15 minutes already had a $40 tab. I have never been treated so poorly and in such classless taste. i understand that is was a friday night and the restaurant was busy, however i have NEVER been given a time limit on my meal. never again. the hype is just that hype for miserable service, overpriced food and watered down drinks. save your money. Cons: rude inconsistent service, more

The food is good but kind of expensive for what it is. The server was a sweetheart and did a good job even with the busy floor. We have to sit almost on top of each other and, to get even more claustrophobic, the manager could not leave me and my girlfriends alone. Invited us to the bar, asked to buy us drinks, in a very annoying and awkward way. Even started to look quite mad when we didn't understand his accent - maybe Russian? And kept walking around our table staring and trying to look busy. The specialty drinks are very good, but I'm afraid I'll have to go to the other location to get them!!! more

Had lunch this weekend at Sushi Samba and never thought I could be better treated in New York City. Ordered th Eltopo and calamaris. The food was great and I got them quite quickly. But what blew my mind was the hospitality. The hostess, young and so beautiful smiling Brazilian, don't remember her name. I had my broken leg and she took good care of me even better than my friends at work. Got me the booth, a chair to put my leg on, checked on me once in a while. You could clearly see how she genuinely cares. The manager, Dina, came over and asked if everything was ok. Definitely coming back, Dina, definitely! more

Came here with a few friends. The drinks were okay. The food was also okay, nothing so special, except for the calamari. I always come back here for that. The service was good, the servers and busboys kept staring at us for unknown reasons, so it was kinda weird. more

For a restaurant with the very word ""Sushi"" in its name, I was extremely surprised. While I understand it is a fusion restaurant that my father has frequented many times in the past, my first occasion here was a disappointment. The sushi was not fresh, the seaweed was soggy and chewy, the rice was flavorless. The more exciting dishes were mediocre, such as the random chili additives to typical sushi. One thing, however, was very memorable: the mochi ice cream desert. It was probably the best mochi ice cream I've ever had, with very different flavors--the day I went there was Mango, Vanilla/Chocolate Coconut, and Lychee. Quite delicious. Pros: easy to get a reservation Cons: food quality more

The service here is great and so is the food! I had been to the one in Miami many times and wanted to try the NY one out. The hostess (i think her name is Dana) was sooooo nice! We had to wait awhile for our reservation, which was ok b/ we had great mango mojitos at the bar, and when we sat for dinner she sent us over Tuna Tar Tar as well as beef skewers to apoligize for the wait. Our waiter was great and helped us order the best things off of the menu incld the crab cakes!! Overall it was a great time and i will def be coming back again!!!! Pros: GREAT GREAT GREAT SERVICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! more

Took my sister who was visiting here for Brunch yesterday and it was the best I've had in the city. Even better than places like Balthazar and Pastis. We ordered the 4 course family style brunch special they had. The eggs benedict was a cool twist from the usual with smoked salmon instead of canadian bacon. The smoked fish plate was delicious, the sauce was one of a kind. And the steak and eggs was the best I've ever had. In addition to the food, we indulged in some mid afternoon drinks. I had the Nina Fresa while my sister had a Mimosa. Pros: Atmosphere, Food, Drinks more

The service at Sushi Samba is fantastic; the servers have a relaxed, hip, and friendly demeanor when they interact with you, but the service style is professional and formal. They even have bathroom attendants that help you wash your hands. The decor is also very ""cool"" and trendy, and the drinks are out of this world (try the signature Brazilian drinks with cachaca!). But while the cuisine is innovative and the menu is fairly diverse, nothing I tried was so great that I'd order it again. The calamari appetizer with cornmeal breading was interesting and fairly good, the tuna seviche with jalapeno and almond was fiery but somewhat one-dimensional, and the pork tenderloin entree was well-prepared but un-adventurous. \r \r The problem is, the portions are rather small, and everything is pretty expensive (four dollars for a tiny bowl of rice? $15 for seviche with a portion size of a golf ball?). The food is good -- but not good enough to warrant that high price tag. I'd gladly pay $15 for a golf-ball portion of seviche that was worth it, or for rice that was really unique in some way. But I just didn't feel the quality of the food was really deserving of its expense. more

This place is a great divergence from the same old sushi menu you can find anywhere. I wasn't sure about the idea of mixing South American elements and ingredients with Japanese cuisine until i tasted it. The result is a spicy, natural mix of two cultures that have perfected the art of raw seafood. There was something on the menu for everyone in our group, including great steak, seafood and vegetarian options. The atmosphere is relaxed but the food is fine-dining quality. Check it out. Pros: Ambiance, Food, Menu more

What is wrong with the people writing these reviews. People are complaining about not getting seated fast because they came late, that they don't like the hostesses, ooooh it's too expensive (go to a diner then if you want to get a DISCOUNT on FOOD). Whatever.... Get over it. They obviously don't appreciate a good thing when it's being digested in their stomach. Anyway..... The food is amazing here. My server was super nice and very informative. This menu is extensive. Expensive too, but there isn't food like this anywhere else in NY. Get the Neo-Tokyo roll... I am completely addicted. And I want to know how to make that spicy sauce that came with it. so perfect. The seviche was yummy, Chilean Sea Bass - excellent. My mojito was quality and my second and third even better. And I loved the different flavors for the mochi, so cute. not made in house, but tasted good, so I don't really care. I already made reservations to go back next week with friends. I recommend you do the same. Pros: food, food, food... mojitos are tasty, best seviche since my mom. Cons: ummm.... can't really think of any --- but definitely make sure to have reservations. more

The food and drinks at Sushi Samba is good, but not outstanding for the price. I liked the twist they gave, infusing Asian and Brazilian tastes. The waiter was very polite and friendly. However, the hostess was incompetent. There was really no organization and it gets super crowded. We had a reservation for 6 guests and we were only missing one person, but the hostess refused to seat us until the whole party was there and insisted that we wait at the already crowded bar.This is just silly because what was wrong with sitting down 5 of the 6 at a table that was already available instead of keeping us at the bar where there was obviously no room for hungry patrons and waiters coming in and out to get drinks. Aside from the hostess, the experience was decent, but that and the unremarkable, expensive food is enough reason for me to not go back. Pros: Signature cocktails Cons: Hostess more

I didn't find this sushi particularly better than most decent sushi places in NY. I think it's overpriced and you can find better sushi for much less money. The restaurant is nice looking, the food is OK at best. I had heard great things about this place, and I was frankly disappointed. Way overrated. more

I was there on Saturday night and had a wonderful time! The drinks were wonderful(get a Nina Fresa) and the bartenders were fun and flirty! It is a must to visit! more

LOVED this restaurant. Started off with a watermelon martini - which offered a nice smooth taste that was unique and memorable. We had never been before - so we opted to let our waiter decide our menu for us. After giving a price per person to our waiter, he arranged the best selection of appetizers and main courses - and everything he picked was amazing. The sushi was fresh and crisp - I cannot wait to go back. Pros: Waitstaff, Menu Cons: A bit pricey - but worth it. more