07/06/09

Terrible Service! Rude waitress!

by Kbright

I live about 3 blocks from Ototo and was home sick not wanting to cook dinner. I called to order takeout sushi, BUT no one answered the phone. Not even a recording. I thought it was strange and maybe they couldn't hear the phone so I called 10 more times. Still nothing. So, I figured I would just drive there order and wait for the food. Upon arriving I told them that they may want to check their phone and that I would like to order something for takeout one of the waitresses barked at me "We are not taking takeout orders right now!" and kept walking. I told her that had they answered the phone I could have been saved a trip there, to which she had no answer and just waled by again. I checked their website to see if i had made a mistake and they had specific takeout times listed...they do not...needless to say my first experience with Ototo will also be my last. I would rather go somewere outside teh neighborhood than ever set foot inside their establishment again!

• Pros: NONE
• Cons: rude service

06/27/09

Our favorite place in Seattle.

by Yinzerjagoffs

I lived in Japan for 3 years.

I have had sushi at Shiro’s and Saito’s which are widely believed to be the best in Seattle. I just don’t think that they are worth the money. I spend $100.00 at Shiro’s for dinner. At Ototo we only spend about $50-60. and I can tell you, Ototo is just as good or better.

It is very hard to find really good sushi in the States. They all use American grown rice because Japanese rice is so expensive that they would have to charge you $15 for a roll! It is impossible to get the “real thing” without Japanese rice. That said making good sushi rice is an art. It takes years and years to learn how to do it properly and consistently. Hutch-san, the main sushi chef, is a master. His rice is never cold.

He gets great salmon from somewhere! His otoro is bangin’ and his negitoro is usually made fresh on request. His side man Takashi does great work on the rolls too. They offer a variety of non-traditional rolls that you can find at most American sushi restaurants, but we stick with the traditional old school stuff.

The food from the menu is ok, but not our favorite. The tempura is good. The gyoza is frozen and I don’t recommend it. The udon broth was very weak when we tried it.

We never ever sit anywhere but the counter. I suggest you do the same. Enjoy the art of sushi making.

• Pros: Authentic sushi at a fair price.
• Cons: Not the greatest hot food.

06/23/09

Horrible, Horrible, Horrible Service!

by neo2go

If I could give Ototo a 0, I would. We went with a group of four for dinner on a Tuesday evening - it was warm and nice so we asked to sit outside. After seating, our waitress left to tend to other tables, which is normal (obviously). However, we waited. And waited. And waited. After waiting more than 15 minutes for anyone to come out and acknowledge our presence, another group came and sat outside as well. They were there for less than five minutes when the waitress came out and asked if they had been helped. They said no, so we piped up as well that we hadn't been helped either.

From the time we ordered (and we had already been there a good thirty minutes just waiting for tea and water), it took an additional 65 MINUTES for our sushi to come out. We had only ordered four rolls. By the time our food came out, the other group had already eaten, paid, and were long gone.

Our drinks were never refilled, our waitress never came out to check on us, and for the first time in all of our lives, we left no tip. The service was that terrible! And it wasn't even busy! I have no idea what took so long but I will never eat there again!

05/22/09

Fresh Salmon

by SHoodie

Based on the "best of" list in Citysearch, a friend and I went to this restaurant last night. The salmon seemed really fresh, but other than that, this seemed like a typical sushi establishment to me. The decor wasn't anything to write home about.

• Pros: Fresh Salmon
• Cons: Atmosphere

12/13/08

GREAT prices, solid sushi....but not stellar

by GrubAddict

I love Japanese food, sushi in particular, and am pretty picky when it comes to the best locales in town....I lived in Japan for 4 years, so I am somewhat of a sushi snob...somehow or another, Ototo had never been on my radar until I went last night..silly me.

The sushi at Ototo is incredibly well priced, and the decor is fantastic. I appreciated the light use of wasabi, as it was well balanced and the fish was pleasantly fresh. The plate presentation is great, and the staff was polite and friendly.

The reason that I can't give Ototo 5 stars - First off, the sake menu is decidingly lacking, as there's nothing on the menu besides basic, cheap stuff, while places like Mashiko's and Umi have a wide variety of great things to try. I also felt that the sushi at Ototo was solid, fresh, but not stellar. Their menu has enough variety, but there was no one thing that clearly stood out as fantastic. Their piece size was a bit on the smaller side, like a kaiten may be.

I think Ototo's a great deal, the sushi's good, service is polite.....but it's not nearly as amazing as Nishino or Mashiko's. I would definitely go back, but it's not in my top 3-4 places to go.

• Pros: Fantastic decor, cool vibe
• Cons: Sake menu too small/limited, no standout "must have" dishes

11/03/08

Seattle's BEST sushi with kind service and a wonderful atmosphere to curl up and do your daily ramblings in

by bunsennbeake

Ototo in Queen Anne is an absolutely OUTSTANDING sushi spot. I've had sushi all over the US since the 80s, and honestly, despite getting things I had never even tried before (along with a rainbow roll and the must-have melt me sockeye sushi)... well, I was impressed impressed impressed and more importantly happy. It has Umi and the trendy hotspot sushi spots beat by a landslide and is even, if sushi is truly your craving, a bit better than Nishino in my opinion... only a bit, mind you, since Nishino... well, it IS kinda the best Japanese food in the whole country :) That said, Ototo costs about half that of Nishino but also lacks some of the wildly creative specialties or the "chef will surprise you gleefully" option.

So in my most recent visit, I started with tempura... but I wasn't feeling like eating random amounts of onions and broccoli, etc... I saw "yam tempura" as part of a roll then asked what was in the veggie temp sampler... yam, of course, but also pumpkin, which was also amazing. They were entirely relaxed about customizing it (no extra charge), and it was positively wonderful.

Next came the most surprising and pleasantly "holy frickin wow" part of our meal, black cod that was marinated in sweet sake and grilled perrrfectly then topped with green soy bean sauce and served with grilled asparagus and zucchini on a bed of yummy greens. While the portion wasn't enormous, the flavor and heartiness were well worth the not-so-high cost...

After warming up with those, we went to our sushi and rolls. I didn't care for geoduck, but the rest... mmm! Absolutely the best wild sockeye, and for $4, we got a really good pickled mackerel roll with pickled ginger and things I forget :) Add a rainbow roll, plum and natto rolls, & fondue: only $50!

My only "complaints?" The plum paste roll needs more balance to accent the plum, and sniffle, they weren't serving the seasonal fresh rolls at 9pm on a Sunday. With salmon, tuna, avocado, and *mango,* I'll be back!

• Pros: best sushi ever, great ambience (not loud like many Seattle sushi spots!), service was perfect and helped us a LOT
• Cons: like many, they stop serving things like fresh spring rolls late, and geoduck and ume shiso kyu weren't anything wowing

07/29/08

Great food and service

by msluna

After a really bad experience across the street, my boyfriend and I stumbled upon this little gem of a restaurant. The food is phenomenal and the service is superb. They were friendly, lightening fast, and very hospitable.

• Pros: good sushi, friendly staff, very fast

07/22/08

Food OK, Service Bad

by minnesotan_1981

The service was terrible, we waited and waited and WAITED. for water, for food, for our check, etc.....

05/03/08

this is NOT the best sushi place

by sweeney27

There is good sushi in seattle, but this isnt one of them. First off, the atmosphere is not fun, its boring. Sushi is usually a fun experience- its interesting, this isnt

honestly, there are a couple of great sushi places, and if you want great atmoshere go to OHANA, in belltown. Not only do you feel like you're on vacation, the food is great. Its more hawaiian style-but you'll enjoy all of it! The best handrolls in town...HANDS DOWN.

03/05/08

Avoid!!!! Period!

by SushiShane

I went to this website and read the reviews...I was hesitant to still go but then I asked a few people in the area what is the best Sushi place in Seattle and they all mentioned this place, how could I go wrong?! First, I live in LA and travel 2-3 weeks a month around the country and find lots of great places to eat, this was not one of them.

1. 7pm Friday night in a highly lit not so crowded restaurant and they were out of Otoro and Chutoro. Did I mention at 7pm Friday for the audience favorite sushi winning restaurant Ototo was OUT of TUNA. Enough said.

2. Worst Hot Sake I've ever had. The cup was plastic and tasted melted.

3. The I wish I was in Hollywood waiter was bad. Really bad. Not attentive and forgot to bring the simple stuff....water...edamame...yes, we asked a couple of times.

I went against my better judgement and ate at this place and left hungry and got a burger down the street. For my first real night in Seattle and getting sushi, I was left hungry and annoyed. If you enjoy bright lights and people who overpay for anything, have fun but don't invite me.

• Pros: Attractive customers
• Cons: Ambience, Parking, Lack of food.