Japonais: User Reviews
How sad to see a once great venue decay to such abysmal depths in both quality and service. Having been a good and loyal customer from the beginning, I am sorry to say that Japonais has deteriorated in every way. My experience there a couple of weeks ago is a good, if tragic, example of this.
The filet mignon (which I've enjoyed many, many times before) came out burned to a crisp and as leather. No one bothered to check on us to see how our meal was (we were on the outside patio), and I literally had to carry my plate to the host stand and wait for a manager to come out. By the time they had re-cooked it (the restaurant was practically empty), my guest was completely finished with her sushi.
Under the circumstances, any fine restaurant would have comp'd the filet or at least offered dessert on the house, however not only did the manager not offer to do so even after I actually requested that she do so (and after mentioning my long-time patronage), but she actually informed me that she didn't have the "authority" to do so. Instead, she handed me a card with Sandy Parks' (director of operations) on it and told me to call her. It was a pretty shocking experience and one that would never happen at the many other fine restaurants in Chicago (imagine this happening at a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, such as Joe's? not a chance).
Since then, I have left multiple messages for Ms. Parks, none of which has been returned.
Japonais is tired and worn down, and they are hardly endeavoring to "up their game" in light of the struggling economy and recent competition from much hipper new venues such as Sunda. Based on how they are treating their loyal customers, they deserve what they get.
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Walked in feeling good walked out feeling cheated...
By jrdragon21 from Bridgeport, July 5, 2009
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Have seen Japonais many times driving by and heard from friends that it was supposed to be fantastic. Decided to try it on a random Wednesday hoping not to catch the crowds. The hostess was crowded by the rest of the wait staff lingering at the entrance talking. Once we were seated we ordered and got our drinks and food quite quickly. We ordered the duck and the chicken. When we requested more wrappers for the duck there was an extra charge. When I cut open my chicken it wasn't fully cooked. The waiter had to look at it twice like I was lying about the chicken not being done. After taking the chicken away he brought it back 10 mins later. The chicken looked like it had been thrown back under the broiler to finish and had dried out so they smothered it in another coat of sauce. Needless to say my meal was ruined and I doubt I will return anytime soon short of a miracle. For that tier of restaurant the service is no where close to where it should and needs to be. The ambiance might be great but nothing can save that type of disregard for customer satisfaction.
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Perhaps it was because my visit to Japonais was during Restaurant Week and they were extremely busy, it was not a good experience. The service was patchy. The food coming out of the kitchen was great. The sushi however was mediocre. The rice did not stick properly, the rolls poorly presented.
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Great place with bad service
By Veronica from Gold Coast, Chicago, September 27, 2008
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The place itself is nice but our waitress was very rude and unfriendly. She had the biggest attitude and did not pay any attention to our table at all. She had no manners and did not make eye contact - just kept on staring out in space. She did not listen to what we were ordering and kept ignoring our questions. When the fish filet which we ordered came in with bones in it, she gave us attitude and rolled her eyes when we asked her if the fish filet was supposed to have bones in it. I would not recommend this restaurant overall and would definitely like to warn people of the bad service.
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I have been lucky to dine at some wonderful restaurants all around the world &I have dined at Japonais many times now. I have always enjoyed the food & the envorionment, but I was in just last week and I felt the need to comment. The service provided my friends and I was impeccable . From the moment we walked in the staff was friendly and focused. Our waiter was attentive but not annoying, and made excellent suggestions when we asked. The FOOD was as usual, excellent, I try to try something new each time and I have literally never had something I didn't like. Because of this I am going to bring my parents in, I know they will love it. Thank you!!
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Our waiter was very nice and took time to explain the intricacies of the menu. They guy who comes around to fill the water wipes off the table and gets in your way gets very annoying. For some reason the air conditioning was NOT on on a 80+ degree evening in August. The food was overall very good, albeit expensive. Not an everyday restaurant.
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Expensive, but good for a special occasion
By partygirl4 from West Suburbs, August 12, 2008
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The food was really good...about 15% overpriced though. We went there on Saturday, had a reservation, and didn't have to wait at all. I did feel like we were being rushed a little though by the server.
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Japonais is by far the most pretentious, over-priced and over-rated sushi restaurant/lounge in the city of Chicago. We waited 45-60 min to be seated with a reservation, and then dealt with poor service and rude staff. There are so many better options, and the ambiance doesn't make up for all that it lacks. I absolutely DO NOT recommend this place to anyone I know.
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If you don't mind being treated like dirt in exchange for a fantastic meal, then you should go here. If you expect that customer service is paramount, then don't waste your hard-earned money here, because you will be disappointed. The host and waitstaff are horrendous. They don't need your business because there is a huge line of people behind you ready to take your table. Go there for amazing food as long as you know this.
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Japonais is our favorite restaurant and we go there as often as possible. I have had a lot of sushi and this is by far the best tasting and best place!! The french/japanese infusion makes the dishes very unique and very tasty. Every single time I've been there, the service has been amazing and we have NEVER had to wait for our table when we have a reservation. Definitely my favorite restaurant in the city!!
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Review Summary
The following scores represent the average rating submitted by 133 users:
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