Yakuza
(503) 450-0893
5411 NE 30th Ave
portland,
OR
97211
45.5622
-122.6349
Neighborhoods: Concordia, Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods
Reviews & Ratings for Yakuza
50 reviews
What users are saying:
Showing 1-10 of 50 reviews
Skip it!
by trossamatic
January 16, 2008
The restaruant looks great - but if you want fine Japanese food, do yourself a favor and skip it! Forget that it's a beautiful space and it's in a hip neighborhood. Do your research and find yourself a traditional JAPANESE OWNED restaurant. Japanese food isn't cheap, so why spend money on food that is not prepared correctly and doesn't taste good? Portlanders need to stop thinking that cheap, large portioned sushi in a hip space is good enough.
Not only that - the name Yakuza is offensive. The Yakuza are criminals. It's the Japanese name for Crime Mobsters. The Yakuza are horrible individuals that do terrible things to innocent people. Why name a restaurant after them? It's because the owners are non-Japanese and don't have a clue.
- Pros: Ambience - hip neighborhood
- Cons: Not a Japanese person to be found.
Not even the food was worth it. Never coming back.
by Rainyrain
June 28, 2009
I came here for my birthday dinner because I had heard fabulous reviews about the food. And for the most part, the food was pretty fabulous. I don't know if I would go as far as to call this the best burger in Portland, but it definitely ranks up there. And the beef tartare (or, really, the "crispy poached egg") that came with it was quite nearly spiritual, as was the scallop appetizer.
But then, there were some misses, like both maki we ordered (Dungeness crab and hamachi), which were bland, unspired, and far below the standard set by the, well, less Japanese dishes on the menu.
And the service was HORRENDOUS. And I'd like to make the disclaimer that I will usually forgive any degree of terrible service if the food is good enough. And the food here was nearly good enough--but the service was slow enough to ruin the meal. We sat for about 20 minutes before our waiter asked us for our orders, and it was another hour before our first dish arrived--and at least another 20 minutes before the next two. The food came in sporadic bursts, with unforgivable waits in between. And it wasn't just that they hated us--I often noticed times where hardly anyone in the restaurant had food.
I blame the kitchen. They seemed understaffed, for one, and the two-then-three chefs seemed to only be able to work on one or two (SMALL!) dishes at a time. We spent at least two and a half hours here and probably only half an hour of that time actually eating. By the end of the night our waiter was apologizing profusely.
In short, I am never coming back here. If you only order one or two dishes--and I would make it the burger and the scallops, probably--then you might be OK. And this might have been a bad night. But it was enough to keep me away from Yakuza forever.
Amusingly, though, Naomi Pomeroy of next-door Beast kept wandering through the kitchen, either to gather herbs or to watch the degenerating spectacle, I couldn't tell...
- Pros: burger, scallops, beef tartare, al fresco atmosphere
- Cons: ABOMINABLE service--and the sushi was not great.
Mind-bogglingly good sushi in awesome location
by owlberg
May 03, 2009
The ONLY reason Yakuza gets less than 5 perfect stars is due to the occasionally pokey service. Otherwise, both the sushi and (especially!!!!) the sashimi are second to none. Carefully prepared and imaginative rolls, and delicate, luscious sashimi, make this THE go-to place in Portland. Highly, highly recommended.
no apology
by stuff21
March 03, 2009
Food = excellent! Probably the best sushi I've had in Portland. Servers = pretty good, seemed friendly enough, fairly prompt. Why the one star then? They made a big mistake on my bill that showed up a couple of months later. They did refund me my money, but were very blase about it. If they just would have included a note of apology with the refund check I think I would have been fine. But the fact that they didn't feel the need to apologize just shows me that my business isn't important to them. If you go, my suggestion would be to pay cash!
- Pros: incredibly fresh sushi
- Cons: poor customer service
Response from this business
Mogwine– March 05, 2009 at 12:48:42 PST
Hello,
First I would like to thank you for your interest in Yakuza Lounge. Your business is very appreciated. My name is Ralph and I've been the Manager at Yakuza Lounge for the past year. During that time we have gone through several changes and grown much as a restaurant. I apologize for the mistake on your bill. Until now I wasn't aware of it or a refund check being cut. We are always striving for new ways of improving our customers experiences at Yakuza and appreciate your feedback. I hope you do visit us again. We also welcome any suggestions and/or feedback at info@yakuzalounge.com
Sincerely,
Ralph Arnold
Manager
Yakuza Lounge
Super fresh and delicious by adrienne s. at InsiderPages
Contributor
January 15, 2009
This place serves up great fresh rolls and an eclectic menu of other Japanese fare. I like to sit at the spacious bar and try some of their fun cocktails. If you are waiting to have dinner next door at Beast they will bring your drinks over for you. Great attentive staff
Unique and Sumptuous!
by willingtotaste
October 13, 2008
The reviews which Yakuza received during the summer of 2008 do not do justice to the dining experience it offers now. I ate at Yakuza with Portland friends on October 12, 2008 while visiting from the East Coast. The experience was sublime! We ate slowly, took our time and enjoyed conversation while sampling nine or ten dishes. Four or five of them were among the best Asian/sushi/fusion dishes I have ever had. Don't go here for traditional sushi but do go for inventive Japanese fare. Each menu item was distinct in flavor from the next and each melted in our mouths. The Kobe beef strips with raisins and fresh figs were incredible. The salmon carpaccio was a subtle explosion of different tastes. The tempura fried chevre with caramelized onions was rich and flavorful. There was a squash dish which I could have eaten all night. We consumed the scallops in a citrus infused sauce/soup right to the very last drop. The cucumber and avocado with sesame seeds was a perfect traditional foil of taste to balance against more exotic menu items. The blends of fruits, ginger, other spices and fresh bits of greens were imaginative and perfectly blended to temp the taste buds. The service was prompt and our waiter was able explain all the ingredients of each dish with enthusiasm. I would readily return to Yakuza on another trip to Portland!
- Pros: As you sample different menu items, you wind up wanting to taste every dish on the menu!
- Cons: Had to leave for the airport.
Third time was NOT a charm...
by hearrrmeroarrr
July 31, 2008
The first time I went to Yakuza, I had an amazing aesthetic dining experience. The ambiance was stunning, the service fantastic and friendly, drinks were spectacular and the scallop tempura and pear avocado roll were simply to die for. My next visit was as equally splendid. Spider roll to die for and the honey basil drink was awesome.
However, last night I brought a group of about 12 people to Yakuza, thinking this amazing restaurant would be an ideal place to celebrate my birthday, but I was thoroughly mistaken. The service was horrendously slow-a brand new server was throw into our group and had no idea about the food, drinks, or really how to wait tables at all. She was obviously flustered, but our sympathy and understanding only went so far. The other staff member started getting incredibly testy with us as well. It took us over 45 minutes to get our food and when we got it, it was NOTHING like the food I had experienced before. The spider roll in particular was simply horrendous and nearly inedible. The food simply tasted old and gross. After dinner, one by one, all 12 of us started complaining of stomach pain, which then lasted well into the next morning. It then took an hour to cash out, which was not pleasant considering all of us were suffering from severe sour stomachs.
I have no idea what went wrong this last time, but luckily this was the last time I will be visiting Yakuza. It such a shame...this place was so AMAZING the first few times. The only thing that was constant were their drinks. They were still fabulous, however they were not able to make up for the horrific service and sickening food.
Now there's something I've never seen.........
by tastebudblitzkrieg
June 10, 2008
Got rid of amazing sushi chef. Bartender clad in a grey t-shirt and ratty jeans. We sent back two undrinkable Cosmopolitans (pretty hard to mess up), and guess what? The bartender proceeded to taste, yes, with his mouth on our glass, BOTH drinks. You decide.
Best food ever!
by pizzapizzapizza
April 10, 2008
Don't go here if you just want to get some sushi rolls- they cut rice from the menu, so more nigiri or rolls. That said, this place offers up some great dishes! Smaller plates, but not tapas small. My wife and i split 5 plates (3 appetizers and 2 small plates), had one specialty cocktail each and split a 22oz. Sapporo. All for about $68 and we were stuffed! Every plate was AMAZING! It was extremely hard to pick a favorite dish, but the grilled asparagus in orange pistachio pesto with manchego might be the winner.. Maybe a tie with the "fish and chips"- raw salmon, yellowtail, and tuna piled onto crsipy lotus root...mmmmmmm.... It wasn't very busy when we went (on a friday around 9ish), so we didn't encounter any of the "bad service" some of the other reviews mentioned. In fact, our waitress was super nice. This place rules.
Underwelming
by jamyebb
April 06, 2008
I'm a huge fan of sushi and this was some of the blandest I've ever had! The service was speedy, the decor was crisp and modern, but the sashimi had absolutely no flavor. The dishes were way too expensive for the size and taste. I would recommend sinju in the pearl for melt in your mouth sushi or even a conveyer belt over this.
- Pros: None
- Cons: poor tasting food! need I say more
