Sasaya - Berlin

sasaya is excellent !

Tried to go there the other night. I treid to reserve 3 days in a row but no one picked up the phone. I turned up at 8pm on A Thursday and it was full with a long waiting list and then they asked me if I had reserved. So I asked them why they don't bother to answer the phone. They said if they have too many bookings or people they don't bother to pick up. What a curious place. OK the food is great but that's no way to treat people. So I went off and ate sushi somewhere else that wanted my custom.

agreed, they didn't seem very interested in giving my wife and I a table when we went there a few nights back, even tho there were literally five people in the entire restaurant. fair enough if it is fully booked, but the waitress came across as extremely rude about the whole thing. will not be going back.

Sasaya is always pretty busy so it's very important to book in advance. This is for good reason as the food is fabulous. Unlike the other two posts i have found the staff to be accommodating and polite in comparison to much of the service in Berlin. Really recommend to try some of the more unusal dishes as opposed to the plates one can find everywhere, the more unusual dishes are the chefs own choices and are always perfect whereas california roll, for instance, can be a bit lack lustre. Try the octopus and the butterfish plates, yum!

Went today and got in, the food was really great. Shame i can't say the same thing about the staff, who #kept complaining about a couple of children who were playing quietly in a corner, telling them how dangerous it was to sit in a little side enclosure - which was not true. The staff kept saying "Wir haben ein problem". That's true, they really do have a problem, this place has a bad attitude; and I have a problem with that. I'm going to find another sushi place. Anyone know a really good one that's not outrageously expensive and where the staff are reasonable?

I've been going to Sasaya for years, and I'm really puzzled by some of the comments regarding the staff. Especially when you consider what service is generally like in Berlin. They've always been fantastically polite when I've been there. Even Japanese friends of mine have approved of the service as being respectful by Japanese standards. The only thing I can think of is that some of them aren't very confident speaking German and are even less so in English. Perhaps this is what happened to dag? You can be sure that all the tables were booked, even though there were only 5 people in the restaurant. And this is b'cos the food really is the best Japanese in Berlin, especially for the price. black1, a really good Japanese restaurant that is cheap and where the staff are charming is not to be found in Berlin. But give Ishin a try, just don't don't go for a weekday lunch or expect charming waitresses.