Minato Noodles

First off I have been going to this restaurant off and on for a few years now. The sushi ingredients, presentation and roll recipes are outstanding. This visit was specifically for the Curry udon that is truly amazing. And has a strong, simple flavor, Plenty of noodles, and a great set of vegetables to compliment it with. The service that evening was actually pretty good, with employees stopping by to see if I needed a refill on iced tea or anything else for that matter. My only criticism of Minato is that such service is a bit hit and miss, particularly during lunch. Still, this is my go-to place to impress people for a sushi all you can eat experience.

I've been here twice and the first time was average - decent food, decent interior, and nice staff. The second time was a heavily disappointing. Long story short, there was a staple in the food and the staff member attending our table was very apathetic to the situation (see image). The AYCE for that member of the party was still charged and we only received a 10% discount. Plenty of other sushi places that we haven't found staples in the food, so I think the decision is easy - say no to Minato.

Minato Sushi is just a little bit better than some of the Asian mix restaurants that I have visited in the Reno area. While the wife and I didn't try everything, we ordered things that we knew. I ordered a Nagasaki Champon with a calamari appetizer. The wife ordered a Bulgogi Domburi and a cucumber salad. The calamari appetizer was straight from the freezer, nothing special and not very Asian. Dumb me, the name"Calamari" should have been a warning. The Champon was delicious. Fresh/frozen crab, squid, octopus and whole shrimp were present in the udon soup. It was a very large and well presented dish. The wife's cucumber salad was good but a bit on the sweet side. Portion was extremely generous. The Bulgogi Domburi was a small disappointment. Looked very good but tasted a little bland. We observed many rolls and nigiri go by our table. Everything looked good. Since sight is half the taste of food, I would say that it should be good. The interior was typical of sushi places, cluttered and kind of chaotic. I venture to guess that they all try to project a mix of cultures and not one specifically.

Flavors are okay. Soy sauce is cheap quality because it tastes too salty and lacks flavor. Rice is too sweet and rolls have too much rice. They are pretty giant and I guess a way to deter people from ordering too much food with all you can eat. The only redeeming quality is decent service and some nigiri items.

The food was DELICIOUS, & so was the dessert! I had a really great experience here. However, I'm giving a 4 star because I am laid up with food poisoning. I know sometimes this is not the fault of the establishment, but sometimes it can be. Hard to say. I loved the food enough to still want to come back, but it might be a while lol T.T