I eat at Nori very regularly. I recently had their poke bowl, which I think is new to the menu. It was absolutely delicious! My new favorite for sure. The best thing is, you can custom order every ingredient. That makes it easy to eat healthy. I love that they are open late and when we order to go, they never skimp on the portions. read more

I came here on a Saturday night with a reservation for 6. The first of us to arrive were promptly seated at a round table in the back by the sushi bar. Similar to many restaurants in Montclair, it is BYOB which is a nice change from expensive booze in NYC. The service could use some improvement -- although they were helpful with opening our bottles of wine after being seated, no one came to take any appetizer or non-alcoholic drink orders for over 10 minutes after the entire party arrived. We also had to flag someone down to place our dinner order. Additionally, the appetizer soup/salads came out at varying times, we assumed a few of the salads were missed on the order. There were 2 redeeming factors. 1. Two of us wanted to order an extra roll at the end of the meal, it was prepared and delivered quickly. 2. At the end of the meal they had already prepared 1 check for each couple so we didn't have to split it out ourselves. The food was good and the non-sushi entrees had large portion sizes. I'd definitely come back next time I'm there. Also seems like a good option for a date spot. read more

Took forever +40 mins for 1 cali roll and 2 special rolls. Horrible service. And their "special" rolls were smaller than the California rolls. Don't go here read more

Nori - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

What a great experience to be here with my friends. We have a party here total 12 ladies. The sushi is soooo delicious and fresh than most of sushi restaurants in NJ can not even stop eating. We also did order mango beef, chicken pad thai, Japanese ramen , yummy! Before I leave I ordered 2 dishes for my kids. I know they will like it. Strongly recommend this restaurant. The service is very good too. Will come again for sure! read more

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Nori has the best sushi in the area, IMO. It's a dream for anyone who eats vegetarian sushi (like I do!). Rather than just the standard AAC (asparagus avocado cucumber) roll, they have pumpkin! fried mango and avocado! Banana and cucumber! mango and sweet potato! The list goes on! A couple of days ago, I went to Nori with a group of 5 adults and a baby. We started with the harumaki, miso soup, and ginger salads -- each one is top tier in terms of Japanese restaurant apps. I had the banana and cucumber and the mango and sweet potato rolls -- each were divine. My friends had a mix of raw fish, crab, and veggie rolls, and everyone was super pleased with their meals. The one thing I will say about Nori over the years, is that the service is spotty. Sometimes the waitstaff can leave you hanging, and you have to chase them down. Sometimes they don't get your order right. If you're a stickler for efficiency, this might not be the sushi place for you. But for my vegetarian and slacker friends, give Nori a go! read more

Best damn sushi lunch special... period!! You get a salad with an awesome house dressing, soup, gyoza, and 2 rolls for like 13 bucks. And there's a lot of different rolls to choose from. read more

Omg...what is up with this?!? Went last night for a quick 'healthier' dinner while my kitchen is getting renovated... First I have to comment...waitresses are very sweet and accommodating. They really try to provide very attentive and good service. Honestly, I thought my waitress was very nice and offered refills on our green teas. But...this is a very big BUT...their rolls are no good and over priced for what they give. ((Try Hmart in fort lee...in their Korean 'fast food' section...excellent price, excellent rolls...)) I really really want to like this place bc the wait staff seems so nice n friendly but the food is no good. This is all Chinese, not Japanese. The rolls u eat/get here is Chinese rolls...it is not Japanese and it is not Japanese sushi rolls. Ordered udon noodles...that's exactly what we got..udon noodles-on a plate with some Chinese vegetables, mostly carrots...for $12. Folks..these udon noodles they serve here u can get at any Asian market for $5 for a pack of 4...$2.99 for a pack of 4 including soup base if u get it on sale. I mentioned, we ordered udon noodles...it means it's udon in Japanese soup base...waitress was very accommodating and talked to the chef and brought out udon noodles in a very thin clear soup...very disappointing. Rolls WE ordered...salmon and eel rolls were even more depressing n an assault on our taste buds. I'm giving two stars bc of the friendly wait staff... read more

Honestly, Nori is one of the best sushi restaurants in the area. The fish is always very fresh and their exotic rolls are not only visually stunning, they are also a great size and perfect for sharing. Some of their exotic rolls are truly exotic and feature some interesting ingredients, such as my all-time favorite, the Donkey Kong roll, which is a shrimp tempura roll with a fried banana on the top. Yes, you read that right. A fried banana. At first you may seem skeptical, but I urge you to give it a try. It provides a nice hint of sweetness to the roll and is very filling. Prices are not bad for the area and for the actual cuisine you receive. They serve more than just sushi, too, if you come with people who may want something different such as chicken teriyaki meal or a hibachi dinner. Also, I love that they give you some complimentary fruit at the end of you meal! Nice touch! read more

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My family and I love to go to Nori. We have been going to Nori for the past 10 years. The service is wonderful and the sushi is so delicious and fresh. Our favorite dish to get is the Sushi Boat for 3. We love choosing our own rolls and the sushi and sashimi are amazing. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for amazing sushi in a fun atmosphere. read more

I always get a little leery of sushi places that go for the fusion thing, where they doink around with the tried-and-true formulae and start throwing random Amerikaner garbage into the mix, but sometimes they balance it well and it just works. Nori manages to balance the tradition of good sushi with some kind of out-there fusion ideas. For example: tempura banana on your avacado tuna roll? Why not? It worked like a whole truckload of farmboys in a field of freshly cut hay, with promises of Budweisers looming on the horizon. I am told that I am ridiculous, but it is the truth. My wife and I sought out Nori because of the menu, and we were just tickled. Like just about everywhere decent in NJ, Nori is BYOB, so we brought a bottle of excellent white wine sourced from Frankly Wines in Tribeca and had ourselves a sit-down. We ordered a mix of traditional and more radical rolls, and just enjoyed the hell out of the food. Everything was so carefully prepared, excellent to look at, and a decadent pleasure to consume. I will go back there as soon as I can work up the nerve. It's like going for a second date with the supermodel... you hope you'll be as funny and interesting as the first time, but really, you know you don't deserve what your'e getting. The prices are fair, the service was pretty good, and we managed to roll in on a Friday with no reservations, but got a seat anyway. The only con for the place is that it is LOUD AS HELL. The space is small, they cram a lot of tables in there, and ... let's face it, NJ folks just CANNOT behave themselves. I said it. Yep. read more

Of course after reading all the negative reviews here, I really wasn't sure if this was a good place to have sushi. I am very happy I tried their sushi! Probably one of the best places to grab sushi in North Jersey! I came here last night with a friend. Actually it was she that had picked the place as she had been there already. Granted, my brother usually comes here for sushi and also recommended this place. But those damn Yelp reviews had me second guessing. Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed our experience at Nori. Immediately upon entering, we are seated and given the menus. Service was quick and attentive. For appetizers, we ordered the shumai. In all honesty, I love shumai! Their shumai was very good. We also ordered two specialty rolls: the Butterfly (Spicy Tuna, Cucumber, Shrimp on top) and Tom's (Spicy Tuna, Spicy Salmon, Avocado, Cucumber, White Seaweed). Both rolls were amazing! Sushi was fresh and creative! You can tell that the sushi was well prepared with the utmost care and sent out in pictures perfect quality. After we were done, they gave us a bowl of sliced oranges! How cute! I don't care what anyone else says, I think I might have found my new sushi spot in North Jersey! read more

First off, let me just say I was tricked by my crew into coming here after they lied to me about going out for brunch elsewhere in Montclair. You see, while trapped inside someone else's car, everyone oh-so-conveniently brought up their love for sushi and the "new" plan was to switch it up and head to Nori. As the odd-man-out, I kept any opposition to myself, grinned through my teeth, and nodded my head in feigned agreement. So, maybe the paranoia's a bit of an exaggeration on my part, and for all I know, we really were headed for brunch all along and said crew is not a bunch of conniving, back-stabbing con artists. Still, the fact remained - sushi is not my thing. It's not that I hate it. I just never seem to enjoy it as much as everyone else. Also, I get super-overwhelmed as to how to order and end up with tons of rolls in front of me that I still reluctantly finish and then I get a seafood stomach ache like a little child. I blame my mother - she's the one who told me it's rude not to clean your plate. But really, it's very possible I've just never had good sushi. With half of my life story behind us now, I gotta say, I really enjoyed myself at Nori. Their $12.95 Lunch Combo is hard to turn down, especially to a sushi-skeptic such as myself. It also helped me tremendously in gauging how much a normal person should order at one of these restaurants. There are four components at work here - choice of 1) gyoza, shumai, or fried squid, 2) green salad or ginger salad, 3) miso soup or clear soup, and 4) two rolls. Nori's laundry list of "special" and "exotic" rolls includes those named after the string of Essex County suburbs along Bloomfield Ave. (Bloomfield, Montclair, Verona, and Caldwell). There's even a Spicy Caldwell (shrimp tempura, tuna, and spicy sauce on top), which I felt compelled to order given my hometown roots. And while it was hardly spicy, it was pretty damn good. My other selection was the Fried Crab Meat, which I admit, was not the most adventurous thing on the menu, but damn, was it delicious. Bonus points to Nori for not being above naming their rolls silly things like Bugs Bunny (appropriate given the selection has carrots) and Donkey Kong (includes bananas). The interior is particularly inviting. Nori is decorated with a Japanese tapestry behind the rear sushi bar and seemingly authentic wood-fashioned booths. I've been to classier sushi joints, but I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I've been to any more personally satisfying. Leaving Nori after all was said and done, I finally felt the same way the rest of the world feels after eating sushi, and not like some hostage forced to dine some place against my will. Not only did they get a new customer out of the deal, but I just may have rediscovered the sushi world at-large thanks to Nori. read more

I have this really distracting habit of moaning while I eat when I'm at Nori. I can't help it. The sushi is that good. The sushi is always super fresh and I have yet to be disappointed by anything on the menu here. The wasabi shrimp is amazing. If you do not like raw fish you will love their sweet and spicy, tempura drenched wasabi shrimp! My two favorite rolls as of now are the sexy (obvi) and the wasabi roll. BYO read more

I was in the area and got some sushi takeout. I ordered a brown rice Alaska roll with a seaweed salad. The roll was a little dinky portion and the seaweed salad had a lot of dressing on it (and was served with a maraschino cherry on top which was a little unusual). All in all, I wasn't too impressed. read more

Nori - Brown rice Alaska roll with seaweed salad - takeout (not pictured, maraschino cherry on top of seaweed) - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

I've eaten here countless times and the sushi is fresh and prices are reasonable. BYOB is a plus as well as the location. I would definitely recommend coming h read more

This is our go to sushi place in Montclair. Specialty rolls are great. Top picks: perfect rainbow, samurai, montclair. read more

Nori - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

I truly enjoyed my first experience at Nori. Conversation and BYO-Wine flowed, and the evening passed with much sushi and many smiles. And sure, we nitpicked a little. Our booth fit the six of us snugly and added a nice aspect of privacy. The tables in the center section are much more exposed to the hustle-bustle. I'd reserve a booth. The Special/Spicy mixed raw fish appetizer was beautifully presented and delicious, and is highly recommended. The vegetable tempura came in a tsk-tsky tiny portion, and arrived without the dipping sauce, which was a quandary. The vegetables were cold when it showed up 10 minutes later. I have no doubt that the management would have taken care of this under ordinary circumstances. We were told there was no management on the premises. Hm. The appetizers are each suitable for 2 people. We ordered 7 rolls and my dear Sara T. asked in eager, hopeful anticipation if we would get a boat. The correct answer would have been, "You want a boat? You got a boat." They weren't short on boats. I could see a giant stack of them towering behind the sushi bar. "Two more rolls for a boat," we were told. Really? 9 rolls for a boat? How arbitrary can you get? That complaint was ultimately mitigated by the fact that we happily devoured all 9 boat-earning rolls as well as 2 additional rolls. The menu is enticing and extensive, though its navigation could be overwhelming. Take your time. Bring your reading glasses. Order some edamame while you think. Our favorite was the Titanic Roll -- a shrimp tempura roll with spicy tuna on top. The Spider Roll was poorly constructed - the individual pieces were saucer-sized and fell apart. There are a lot of rolls to try. Godspeed! Nearly all of our quibbles are attributable to Nori having been under-staffed and/or under-prepared for a night at full capacity. It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving. They should have checked their list twice. The atmosphere is quaint, and has the basic characteristics of a neighborhood sushi joint: white walls, minimal decoration, a small sushi bar, and lots of light-colored wood. It's not a significant departure from Sushi-Hana or Dai-Kichi, the two incumbent sushi staples in Montclair. I had a great time, which was due in a large part to the illustrious company I'm lucky enough to keep. My family loves me, even when I refer to them with such flowery phrases as "illustrious company." We left full and happy, and our little misgivings faded into the overall lovely experience. Nori deserves both a try and a revisit, and I hope to revisit indeed. read more

Nori is definitely a step above your typical Americanized sushi restaurants. The sushi is fresh and the rolls are creative, albeit untraditional. You will have your typical untraditional list of like 50 rolls to choose from, but some of them are very good. If you are vegetarian (really even if you are not), definitely try the Zen Zen roll, you will not be disappointed. The staff is very friendly and attentive, but tends to hover around your table a little too much for my liking. There are plenty of booths and tables, as well as a small room in the back for private dining. If you like sushi, you will not be disappointed here. If you know sushi, you will think it's decent. If you order a sushi boat, you will be happier than everyone else there because it looks good, it tastes good and it makes you feel good. read more

Nori has consistently offered tasty food at reasonable prices. The lunch bento box at $13.50 is a real bargain with soup, salad, sides and main course. The staff is friendly and fast. Fresh sushi and sashimi. We usually come here a few times a month. Always satisfied. read more

Nori - Beef teriyaki bento box!! Delicious and satisfying - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

Nori, seriously, get it together. Been here several times for sushi fixes. They aren't terrible, but for what they charge, I expect a lot more. Today really may be the last time I visit. I stop in to pick up a cucumber roll and an avocado roll for take-out. No one else in the place. It somehow takes over 15 minutes. When I get home and open the package, not one single piece was intact - they were all coming apart. The avocado was really under-ripe and in huge, awkward chunks. I could understand the sloppiness and the long wait if they were extremely busy, but alas, no. I didn't order some elaborate boat or something special - it's rice and cucumbers/avocados wrapped in some nori. I'm no sushi chef and I've made better on my own after a few drinks. On top of that, the two rolls came to $10. If you're gonna charge me $5 for a cucumber roll, it better at least be in roll form when I eat it. read more

We were in Montclair and craving sushi so we decided to check this place out. This special rolls menu is overwhelming to look at. Just when I thought I got through all of them, I realized there was another page. Definitely come with an idea of what kind of fish/roll you want or look at the menu beforehand. If not, you will be staring at the menu for 20 mins like we were. After changing our minds about 5 times, we finally decided on the verona, samurai, and titanic rolls. The rolls were a little small for special rolls and not very visually appealing. The shrimp tempura in the titanic roll was definitely lacking, as it was pretty skimpy. In spite of these shortcomings, our rolls all tasted pretty delicious. The fish was fresh and they got the spicy mayonnaise to fish ratio right in the spicy rolls. We also shared a tom yum soup, which was just okay in my opinion. I've definitely had heartier ones with more flavor. My cousin ordered tofu teriyaki, and it was really crispy and tasty. Overall, this is a solid byob sushi restaurant. read more

Nori - Titanic roll (middle, back), Montclair roll (sides), samurai roll (front) - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

Decided to eat here because Cubans Pete's up the block had a 40 minute wait. Anyway worst sushi in Montclair hands down , actually in the whole Essex county!!! Went here on a Friday night (ladies night) Let me start with service... I don't think I could start because it was horrible... Our waiter was a tad rude but I don't know if that's the way he is or maybe came across that way because of the language barrier but if u want a good tip u could at least check up on us and say is everything OK... Anyway it took for ever to get our taken, Forever to get our salads and miso soups And an hour to receive our sushi. For a second there I was going to ask our waiter if they were out fishing the fish for our sushi because it took 1 hour to bring our meals... Anyway besides the wait for our food and the poor service the food itself was fresh and great such a shame... they need to improve with the service this is my 2ND time here and both times service has been atrocious. read more

Nori - Love boat - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

We went here last night at 9:45 after we looked it up and saw that it closed at 10:30. As soon as we walked in we were unbelievably rushed. The second we sat down the waitress told us that last call for food was 10pm so we had to order everything we wanted right then and were we ready to order. We hadn't even opened the menus so we asked her to give us a minute. She came back probably 30 seconds later and continued to rush us through the entire meal. That whole thing was very annoying but besides that the food was good. It's a byob so we brought wine and ordered shrimp shumai and 3 "exotic" rolls. We loved the shumai and liked the rolls. There is a nori in Wayne too, and I liked that one much more but this one was still good. I just would not recommend coming in after 9! read more

Nori - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

I love Montclair! I originally wanted to move here until I saw the cost of property taxes, it was then that I realized I can just visit the town and still enjoy it. We made a reservations for 8 people. When we arrived they didn't have anything set up for us. But they affectively moved tables together to get us seated. One of the best perks about Nori is the fresh sushi. I love their food. They have some original rolls for those who want something non-traditional. A great perk about the restaurant is the BYOB. At the rate that NJ is charging us for property taxes I need my savings wherever and whenever. I think one of the down falls to the restaurant is the service. The staff doesn't speak very well English. Towards the end of the night as we tried to finish our wine we were asked to quickly finish our meals and leave because there was a wait. At this point we haven't even gone over 1.5 hours. It's pretty rude to ask us to leave when we made reservations and hadn't even finished our meals. Nor were we able to ask for desserts. read more

I will NEVER go back here!!!!! I ordered two salmon rolls!! I found plastic wrap in my sushi roll!! After I finished all of them except the last one!! Absolutely disappointed and gross the f*** out right now!!! I got a refund but seriously how do I not know if I ate it!!! We will see if I throw up later or will be in the bathroom all night!! read more

Wonderful sushi! Great ambience and service. Wide selection of specialty rolls. Really enjoyed the Caribbean roll!

We went here for dinner, nice conversation, good food, and a relaxing time leading to a movie. Well, at least we got dinner! Here's what we were unable to have: Nice conversation. Nope, the restaurant was way too loud for that. After shouting our way through a discussion about how our days both were, we eventually opted to stare at each other making facial expressions to communicate. It was like playing charades, but with your limbs tied down. Good food. Not much of that, either sadly. The house salad was a small lump of iceberg lettuce and a glob, and I kid you not, a GLOB of this ginger dressing which had so much pureed carrot in it that it just kinda stayed on top in one piece. No big deal, as there was a pool of cold water at the bottom of the salad bowl that I guess I could have mixed the gloppy dressing with it to obtain a proper consistency. The miso soup was reduced heavily and very salty. Someone in the BOH should have tasted it before sending any more of that stuff out front. Tempura veggies were good. Crisp, piping hot, and not overdone. Near perfect, actually. A bright spot, finally. There were pan fried lo mein accompanying the dish, which were good. Now, back to the dark side, young Jedi... Hibachi vegetables were basic, flavorless, and strewn about on the plate, with the same tasty pan fried noodles on the side. Meh. Just...meh. Service was distracted and slow as far as our waitress...but our food runner was fast, polite, and professional. At one point, we thought they were issuing "Last Call" because the lights were shut off in the dining room. Suddenly some bad karaoke version of "Happy Birthday" blared out over the house speakers, complete with a birthday cake delivered to the victim, er uh...birthday person. Strange, yes? I prefer the group of servers banging a gong and yelling "Banzai!" over this towering achievement of uber-cheese. Not to mention it was dark and, when using chopsticks, it would have been very easy to take out your eye or jam it up your nose due to poor lighting. That situation has "lawsuit" written all over it, no? Two stars is all I can offer this disappointing venue. read more

I compare all my sushi experiences to this place. They never disappoint, and they're a family favorite. I fell in love with the Ichiban and Dragon rolls. read more

Different varieties of delicious sushi.. left there stuffed wasn't even able to get to dessert. Service was fast. Usually busy but when my friend and I went, it was pretty quiet so got a table really quick. Its a definite must go! read more

Nori - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

The food is very delicious. The music is very peaceful. The service was very nice and the waitress was very informative. I loved the food mats. Me and my dad had a very good time there. The pickled ginger was different from the others that I tasted. The wasabi was very spicy. I like it and it made my brain tingly. I love the sushi and the rice. I think I like sesame seeds now. Thank you NORI!!!! read more

Of course, I was hesitant to visit Nori after reading some of the less-than-stellar reviews. Horrible service? The place has gone down hill? I guess my boyfriend and I were feeling brave because we decided to try it before heading to Clairidge for a movie. I don't get it! We thoroughly enjoyed our experience at Nori. Our waitress was a little spaced: she forgot my seaweed salad and brought us a wine bucket with way too much ice. However, another server quickly rushed to help us when she noticed we couldn't quite fit our wine bottle in the bucket. And the seaweed salad was promptly delivered after we reminded her. I LOVED the selection of vegetarian sushi, which is probably the most creative I've ever seen. I ordered two rolls that I wasn't sure I would like, but I was feeling daring: a cucumber roll topped with fried banana and a fried avocado roll topped with mango. Both rolls truly blew my mind! I mean, cucumber banana?! It was actually great! The meal was definitely a little more expensive than some other sushi places, but give the place a break: they must have to pay big bucks for prime space on Bloomfield Avenue, and at least they're trying to be creative with their rolls! I would say ignore the other reviews and give this place a try. It sounds like some of the other reviewers did not have sushi, but sushi seems to be the specialty here! read more

Well, sushi, I tried you again, and this time you were filled with sweet potato and not much else, and you were actually delicious. I never liked you before, and while I am not sure if I will become a sushi convert now, I do thank you for being so enjoyable. Maybe next time I go to Nori, I may actually ORDER sushi. (Disclaimer: as my initial review says, I don't like sushi, but that's not Nori's fault! They are totally consistent at being good at life, and I still love them.) read more

Great selection of vegetarian options... And my oh my do they taste amazing compared to your typical vegetarian California roll! 5 stars for just the variety of options available (especially vegetarian). Check out the pic of the bugs bunny roll. My girlfriend also recommends the sweet potato/mango roll. I've not tried it but it does sound good. read more

Nori - Bugs bunny was surprisingly delicious! I won't spoil you with the details. They have a great selection of vegetarian options! - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

This is probably my favorite Japanese restaurant in town. I came here with my family for my fathers 70th birthday and everything was TOP NOTCH!!! I forgot the name of our waitress (sorry about that). My parents loved everything. Will see you soon guys! Keep up the good work. read more

If you are looking for a sushi place where you can relax and eat food with your group of friends in peace, run far, far away. Our waiter and the hostess sssh'd us (yes shhh'd us) several times as if we were children because we were "too loud". Mind you, we could hear the conversations of other guest but they did not approach them at all the same way. We also had guest sitting directly next to us and not once did they complain and say that we were too loud. Also I ordered a vegetable ramen. Someone from the cookline approached me and stated that they actually use chicken broth for their vegetable ramen. If I could give this place zero stars, I would. read more

Great byob sushi restaurant! Came here for dinner on a weekday and ordered three sushi rolls. The sushi was pretty fresh and service was very quick. I also thought the prices were reasonable. I will definitely be returning! read more

Nori - Japanese Near Me - Montclair, New Jersey

I came here because of the high reviews but was really unimpressed. The rolls took forever to come and when they did the shrimp tempura was cold and fishy . The spicy mayo tasted like only mayo and was white in color . Not sure how you can mess up spicy mayo but they seemed to achieve it . Will not be coming back here . read more

Overall very unimpressed with the quality of their sushi and our waitress was on the rude side. The sushi was tasteless and the menu was large but very redundant. Great location but the restaurant needs to focus on the quality and fewer but better rolls. read more

Good, consistent sushi, reasonable prices. The nigiri sushi was very tender and delicious, seemed to be very high quality. The "exotic" rolls were all very inventive and equally delicious. Everything, down to the edamame, was good. The menu is huge, which is kind of annoying. The service is efficient, almost pushy. read more

Nori sushi is pretty darn good; quality food wise. I went for lunch recently and they had a good lunch special menu, pretty extensive and not too expensive. We totally enjoyed what we ate when we ate it. I think you have to be a little pushy with the waitresses though, our waitress was quite absent after taking our lunch order. Then brought our entree before the salad or appetizer. ugggh read more