Ryan Moore
25-Mar-2012
It was with great expectations that I finally got around to dine here. Maybe expectations sometimes dampen an otherwise decent meal, as I believe the case was here. The restaurant is well appointed and full of promise of an authentic Japanese experience. I found the service really bad. The menu was not explained properly. A proper Japanese dinner is all about combining sushi, soup, noodles, tempura and other delicacies. When we attempted a combination of these different dishes, it was as if we tried something totally out of the ordinary! We had to wait way too long for dishes to come out of the kitchen, had to ask where some of the dishes were, if we could have another look at the menus (because the portions are really tiny). However the food was not bad, the atmosphere also not bad. I think that the element that lacks is that the promise of an authentic experience is not delivered.
Inx
28-Feb-2012
This zen restaurant serves the most freshest and incredible tasting sushi! Their Scallops and The Sea Soup is out of this world. Definitely try the Chef's Special Sushi plate!
Alicia Killian
24-Feb-2012
We had dinner here on Wednesday night 22/02.
What an absolute gem. I have been driving past this restaurant for years and I regret not coming here earlier. It is an excellent Japanese restaurant, but I would rather call it an excellent seafood restaurant.
The quality of the seafood is 5* and the ingredients are treated with respect. Still can't decide what my favourite was. From melt in your mouth tuna sashimi to seared scallops, feather light tempura and a delicious seafood broth called "the sea". There is also a great variety of seafood on the menu, which you don't often see in Cape Town.
Very calm atmosphere as well.
Definitely going to visit more often.
Richard Van Dorp
21-Feb-2012
I have been coming to Kyoto since the beginning and still get that fresh enjoyment, free relaxation and peacefulness.
Kate Mathews
21-Feb-2012
My partner and I also enjoyed our Valentine's evening at Kyoto.
Choosing a restaurant for Valentine's Day - “What a mission.”
Except when you enter Kyoto Garden Sushi in Tamboerskloof.
The atmosphere is 100% romantic and may I add a big dash of sexy. From the precision staff to the gracious host. Flowers on every table! There must have been 30 couples served with Valentine's desecration. We were given among many other treats salmon roses made from wild red sockeye salmon and Norwegian Orange salmon and we were also given complementary edamame.
Thanks for making this Valentine's one to remember!
Jane Hughes
1-Feb-2012
The best sushi in Cape Town: Kyoto Garden Sushi
I am a frequent globe trotter with some certainty that I’ve been in some very good sushi joints world wide enough to say I have a fair standard of sushi-judging.
I have visited Beluga, Sevruga, Willoughby and Nobu which have been so-called rated as the best for quality of sushi. I was just scanning through my lonely planet tourist guide to find something to do, when I saw an article on Kyoto garden sushi. Tucked away on Lower Kloofnek Road, very easy to find parking not too over crowded.
Upon entering Kyoto Garden Sushi, I felt like I was transported to a Japanese restaurant in Tokyo. The place definitely had a lot of thought and taste put in to it - Japanese style at its best. The Zen-like atmosphere was so relaxing. Mini water feature next to the bathrooms only added to this.
The menu confirmed the Japanese authenticity along with the Japanese sushi. I had never had abalone sushi. While the menu doesn’t have what you’d expect as the full range of Japanese dishes, I had never thought of having tempura oysters.
We were handed a cocktail menu on being seated, the boyfriend had a drink mix of whisky, lime, fresh ginger and I had a drink called the dirty ninja, it was not the name that sold it but the fact of putting cucumber with sake, I had to try it to see if it worked. The drinks were very well thought of and tasted great.
After ordering we were served snacks - edamame beans, baby clams, prawns, fried squid and jellyfish. What you have to love about Japanese people is they’ll eat anything. You could never accuse them of unadventurous eating. It all felt very authentic.
For starters, the boyfriend had Miso soup, and I tried The Sea - both were delicious.
We moved onto the highlight of the evening: a chef’s choice sushi platter of sashimi, nigiri and california rolls. I can’t effuse enough praise on the sushi: it was unfaultable. The fish was the freshest I’ve ever had in a long time even when I have been for sushi in London and New York, the rice was perfectly soft and flavoured and even the wasabi paste tasted better than at other sushi restaurants. I could have eaten piles more.
We got told about the dessert by the polite waiter who told us about Green tea ice cream with a green tea crêpe, that topped off my evening.
But seeing as the rest of the food was so top-notch, I decided I had to come back before we left back to the UK. I felt that we had not even delved deep enough into how good the rest of the menu is and I felt I am going to miss out on some very special foods.
Scott, the owner, told us that he only uses the freshest ingredients available and had also traveled extensively. It’s this attention to freshness that is clearly evident in the dishes and makes Kyoto Garden Sushi stand out from its competitors.
Kyoto Garden Sushi is a bit more pricey than your average sushi restaurant, but then it’s definitely not your average sushi restaurant. It’s more a special occasion kind of place
This is the place to go for fine sushi and fantastic cooked Japanese food for sure. I have never been so impressed.
Best regards
Jane
Comments
Philip
22-Feb-2012
Food is so-so. Problem is I refuse to go there as the owner has expressed himself very openly about not being fond of the 'typical Afrikaners'. As one of 'those' and knowing his feelings, I believe it is safer not to go eat there.
