I had such a fun experience at Sakana-Ya!…read more A couple of things to know before you go: if you visit during business hours, you'll likely need to pay for parking. There is a parking lot nearby as well as some street parking, but it's something to keep in mind before your visit. I believe they offer an all-you-can-eat special for around $27.99 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays many menu items are half off. I visited on a Thursday and took full advantage of the half-off specials. I arrived about 40 minutes before closing, and as other guests left, I ended up being the only person in the restaurant. Honestly, it made for a great experience. The music was a fun mix of house music and R&B, and I found myself dancing in my seat while enjoying my meal. The staff was attentive without being overbearing. They checked on me when needed but also gave me space to relax and enjoy my food. The cook also came over and talked with me for a while and made some suggestions on what he thought I would like. Amazing ! Because everything was half off, my eyes were definitely bigger than my stomach! I ordered several different items and was completely full by my second plate. Most dishes come as small plates with two to four pieces, making it easy to try a variety of items. One of the coolest parts of the experience was the conveyor belt system. Once your food is prepared, it's sent down the conveyor belt to your seat. Since I was the only customer there, it was easy to know which dishes were mine. I'd be interested to see how it works during busier hours. I honestly can't remember everything I ordered, but I enjoyed almost all of it. My least favorite item was the sweet potato roll--it wasn't bad, just not my personal favorite. Everything else was fresh, flavorful, and worth trying. Overall, I had a really good time and will definitely be back, especially on a half-off day. Great food, great music, and a fun dining experience. For more fun food reviews and local adventures, follow me on TikTok @Boujeejuan or check out my YouTube channel, Boujeejuan's Diary!

Walking in on a Saturday afternoon, we expected it to be busy but to our surprise there was only…read moreone other couple there in the restaurant. The fun thing is that on this particular Saturday, it was half-price Sushi which is a very affordable time to go! The sushi rolls and appetizer items come down on colored plates on a conveyer belt. You don't have much time to review the info sheet so figure out what things are before it passes you by, and you do have to eat it if you touch the plate. It's kind of a fun game to play! We enjoyed a nice lunch with fresh sushi created by the sushi chefs behind the counter, of course. It's a peaceful place to go when there's only few people in there. But, I could see it being loud if there were a packed house in there. I wouldn't say it's the best sushi I ever had, but it's fun for the novelty of it for sure.

Food was great! We…read morehad hibachi -- scallops and steak tips with fresh-cooked vegetables including carrots, zucchini, broccoli, mushrooms, and squash. My wife didn't like the taste of the meat, but I thought it tasted good ‍. I traded her some of my scallops for her steak tips, so it didn't significantly affect our enjoyment of the evening The hibachi dinners come with soup and salad and they also served a small bowl of spicy mustard sauce that was really tasty Service was good The restaurant is clean and comfortable with one exception: seating at the hibachi tables can be tight/cramped unless everyone happens to be small/thin. Also, you may be seated with people you don't know (which is common for hibachi restaurants) unless you come with a larger group -- maybe 5-8 people depending on how busy they are. There are a lot of choices on the extensive menu, although there is no dessert menu. They do have vanilla and chocolate cupcakes for birthdays, and you can ask for one even if it's not your birthday. On your birthday, If you are 60 or older the staff will practice the Japanese tradition "Kanreki" and wear red adult diapers outside of their clothing for the required baby clothes look as per the tradition. The chef was very friendly and cooked the food well, although there wasn't as much performance/showmanship as I've seen at some other hibachi places. One more thing: I was joking about the staff wearing diapers for the Japanese "Kanreki" tradition

called ahead to see if they'd seat us (not knowing closing time) and they agreed. we got there and…read morethere were still families starting hibachi even tho they told us we had to sit in the tea lounge. got water and was told our server would be over and then never showed. another guy came to help us and was decent enough. sushi was subpar and so was the beef wrapped scallion. but very cute restaurant

A local favorite! The menu is expansive and great for sharing. The food is interesting and comes in…read morelarge portions. There's a little something for everyone and it's hard to go wrong!

I stopped by with a large group (around 20 people) on Thursday night. We were taken straight to a…read moreprivate room so we had a lot of space with two waiters assigned to our table. The restaurant itself was such a large space with nice seating. Service throughout the meal was good but a bit slower. For appetizers, we had plates laid out for us to grab from. The eggplant items and spring roll I think were the best. We all got a large plate of salad which felt very generic with no Thai flavors. For my main, I chose the chicken in red curry. The curry was good, a bit mild though. The chicken itself was a little bit dryer than I was hoping for but flavor was good. I do also wish they had more veggies in the dish as well but the ones that were in there were well cooked. It would have been nice if there was more eggplant and hopefully also some bamboo shoots as well. Finally, for dessert I had the warm chocolate cake. The cake was tasty - basically just a chocolate lava cake. Additionally the ice cream it came with was a nice addition. All in all, a fine meal option in the area.

Went on a Monday night for their 50% off sushi (dine in only). Restaurant wasn't busy around 530pm…read moreand we quickly got a table. We opted for three different sushi rolls and ordered a kids chicken hibachi with noodles (this was a large portion for a kids entree!). The sushi was exquisite, especially dipped in their spicy mayo sauce. The hibachi chicken and noodles was cooked great and had plenty of flavor, though it was a tad on the salty side. My only gripe is that the service wasn't great -- our waitress came by only once and we never got drink refills. We also sat there for some time while we waited for the check. All in all, a great experience and we will definitely be back as Koto has some of the BEST sushi in Syracuse. We were probably only there for 25-30 minutes but the place wasn't overly busy and was quiet.

The interior of Koto is really nice considering it's in the mall. The Koi fish pond they have is…read morecute but a little depressing cause it's really small. As for the food, I've been here twice. I've had the sushi a few times and I'd say it's just alright. I can't say it's the best sushi I've ever had but it's not the worse either. It definitely hits the spot if you're craving sushi in the mall. My mom did order the hibachi scallop and we both agreed it was too salty with the sauce they use so I'd skip that. We also ordered the shrimp tempura bento box which surprisingly came with a lot of tempura and was filling enough where we had to take some home. Overall if you're craving Japanese food or hibachi I guess this place is fine

I've never actually eaten here in person but I've ordered delivery from here many times. Out of…read moreeverything the Mochiko chicken is absolutely my favorite! It's so juicy and flavorful and makes a great lunch when you're having a bad day. I also have tried their karaage and it is good but I'm not a fan of ginger too much and there is a ginger undertone to it as expected of karaage which is why I prefer the Mochiko more. I would also probably skip the spam musubi as I do think the spam to rice ratio is a bit much, perhaps just lessen up on the rice. Overall, I do enjoy getting delivery here and will definitely order from here many, many more times.

This is a small cafe that does a really unique combination of Japanese and Hawaiian food. My…read moredaughter and I ordered the bento boxes are were very pleased with the portions and flavor. The food was hot and fresh. The cafe itself doesn't look impressive but the food is impressive. Give them a try.

This was our first time here and we went with a party of 6…read morelast night. All the food was amazing. I can't remember when I had better Calamari. It was amazing! I had the Seafood Alexander (amazing). Their steaks were tender and delicious. The service was top notch. The Owner, Charlie, came around to the tables to check on us. We made reservations at the last minute, so we ended up in the "overflow" room, which was in a seperate room from the main restaurant. I would suggest if you go with younger kids (which we did) you book this area. The Ambience in both areas was great. We walked through the main restaurant which was dimly lit and had music. Perfect for a well deserved, relaxed evening. The Overflow room was more lit and quiet, for a relaxed evening with conversation. We're looking forward to another night out there!

I am compelled to leave an honest and disappointing review…read more As with many in the area at graduation, we were looking for a place to have a great meal and we were excited to learn about a steakhouse that was super attentive and provided quality and well cooked meals. We were extra excited by what seemed to be their signature dish, steak and mashed potatoes. Well, we had an 8pm reservation, which to me is normal time, but seems to be like a last seating for this restaurant. The place was full upon entering but emptied out quickly during our meal experience. It was just our immediate family of 4. Started with cocktails and proceeded to order the seafood trio app, which was good. Wedge salad, which was also good. Had a nice waitress who had a good sense of humor. The rest went downhill. We all ordered different types of steaks and 3 of 4 medium rare, one NY Strip medium. Ordered a side of Brussel sprouts and some other accompanying sauces. All 3 steaks came out in variations of well done - gross! On an even more disappointing note, we were told there is no more mashed potatoes, which is why we chose this place, and then told only 2 baked potatoes, so we had to decide who gets it and who doesn't. A TERRIBLE thing to happen at a steak restaurant, in addition to ruining what seemed to be quality steaks. The Brussel sprouts came out overly well done drenched in their sauce. Bite into any of them and they were totally deflated and not good. We couldn't even eat it. The waitress came back and asked how things were... my wife's fillet was so over cooked the waitress even agreed and offered to remake. By this time it was almost 9:15 and she lost her appetite. The three of us just didn't mention how ours were because it would have just caused chaos that none of us wanted. We NEVER send back food, but in this case, hers was insanely overcooked. We asked to have it removed from the bill, which they did. Regardless, we dropped $430, including a $70 tip (because I am generous... waitress should have done a lot more for us when noticing the quality of what was served to us) for the 4 of us, with only 3 main meals. Just a real poor experience. I'm hoping this was just an isolated happening, but completely upset it happened to us for my daughter's graduation, son's 25th Bday and our 27th Anniversary. All that weekend. Advice to owner: please ensure you have enough product for your reservations. We were not walk-ins. Then, listen to the customer's request for how they prefer their steaks to be cooked and serve as ordered. 8pm reservation should not make a difference from a 6pm. I'm just really disappointed and wish we went to Ts instead, but liked the idea of smaller and more intimate.

We came in for dining week and it was our first time visiting 317. For anyone that doesn't know,…read morerestaurants participating in Downtown Syracuse Dining Week usually put together deals, specials, or limited menus for a set price. The variety on the 317 menu really stood out to us. The portions were sized down due to dining week, but everything was tasty! I will have to come back after dining week and try their normal offerings, but they're a bit on the pricey side so I was glad we got such a good deal tonight. Every individual glass of wine was $12, so we opted to split a $40 bottle between 4 people. The duck poutine and the pear goat cheese salad were favorites! The ambiance really stands out at 317! This historical building has so much charm, and the wood and brick made a warm, inviting setting. Some of the tables, and the bathrooms, are down a set of stairs. I think this is really unique and I liked how the restaurant used the flow of the old building, but definitely something to keep in mind if you are dining with anyone that has mobility issues. When we arrived, we waited at the entrance for a few minutes before anyone greeted us or checked us in. The entry way is a small space with tables surrounding it, so waiting was a little awkward. We only saw 2 servers working the dining areas, and the kitchen staff were delivering meals. Although it seemed like the staff was spread too thin tonight, our server, Mike, was so friendly and had a great attitude. We really enjoyed our time with him!

This is another restaurant that I wish I'd visited before their last of business but I'm glad I…read moremade it. This is a quiet, cozy, restaurant located on Montgomery Street. There is a smaller menu right now but the food is delicious. If you are hoping for a certain dish it may be a good idea to all that they have all the ingredients ahead of time. For example, I ordered the chopped walnut, goat cheese, and baked pear salad but was told they didn't have and baked pear when it was served to me. Otherwise the food was great. I loved that there was the RI style calamari on the menu. The butternut squash ravioli was tasteful. It's worth a visit before they close. Their last day of service is 12/31.

Mojo is a place you can go to while you're downtown. I've been a few times & had very mixed…read moreexperiences. I've had some really wonderful food & some that was meh. Service is also a very up in the air experience. I've gone times where the team was present & times where they weren't. I do love the space because of the bright colors & beautiful decorations. It is a space that would be very nice to sit down & chat or just enjoy the atmosphere.

I went here when it first opened and it was super busy! Despite the chaos the staff worked really…read morewell and efficiently. I was able to try mochi donuts for the first time and was really pleased with the variety as well as the taste. I also got a Korean corndog which was another first for me. It was super tasty. I think everything was reasonably priced. The cafe is attached to Gongcha so you can also get bubble tea. It is quaint but I was able to get some seating while I waited.