Shinsei

Wow! That was a great meal! We were here last night, after just leaving the airport after a trip to New York and all agreed that this was our favorite meal we had eaten all week.
We ordered the pork and garlic dumplings, the beef tenderloin with whipped potatoes and the honey soy chicken. Everything was absolutely fantastic. Even my picky 12 year old closed her eyes after her first bite of the tenderloin.
Our waitress, Zee (not sure how to spell it), was phenomenal. Very attentive, very sweet… she was the best waitress I have had in a long time.
I can’t recommend this restaurant enough! It was awesome!

Ok… This place haS good fish the food is good but the service was exhausting. Our waiter was good but it took forever to get our food. The waiter en apologized a couple times for making us wait. The cotton candy dessert was fun and the sake bottle was ½ price so that was a plus but the fact that the service was so slow really impacts my rating.

Oh goodness, where do I begin?
My boyfriend took me here for a birthday dinner with our friends thinking that Shinsei would be a great option for a special occasion; however, this was not the case. We both walked away in disbelief. We could not understand how the reviews are so high based on our experience! Immediately after our dinner, we sifted through the reviews again to discover that the former chef that everyone is raving about is no longer here, which explains a lot.
However, let’s move onto the reasons why this place deserves two stars —
1. Website Not Updated
According to my boyfriend, he chose Shinsei because of their happy hour option listed on the site, which looks amazing by the way. However, he found out that the happy hour is no longer available. You’d expect an upscale restaurant to pay more attention to its digital presence to ensure all information is updated accordingly. While the site isn’t updated, it is a beautifully designed. Don’t be fooled like my boyfriend though! You can’t always trust what you see on the internet!
2. Customer Service
After having dined at similar upscale restaurants and being a server myself, I know what good customer service entails — friendliness, attentiveness and professionalism. However, the service is subpar given its price range. I was expecting the type of professionalism I’ve received at other restaurants like Uchi and Lucia. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t outstanding. Note: This service wasn’t outstandingly terrible, it was just ‘meh’. It is only in combination with everything else that lowered Shinsei’s rating.
3. Food
This is probably the most *important* part of any dining experience, and Shinsei did not deliver. We got the volcano roll, sea urchin roll and crab cake roll (I forget what it’s called). The volcano roll has a lot of scallops on it, which is great… BUT they were overcooked and lacked flavor! I’ve never had sea urchin before so I can’t comment on this one. The crab cake roll tastes as if the crab was previously frozen. Everything was lackluster and simply ‘meh.’ As bad as this sounds, I prefer the teriyaki sushi rolls from Kroger over any of the ones I tried.
All in all, Shinsei is a beautifully decorated restaurant that showcases its ‘upscale-​ness’. However, in other areas such as food, service and overall value, Shinsei greatly falls short compared to other upscale Japanese restaurants.

We were promptly seated upon arrival. They were the usual amount of busy for lunch hour. We were brought our water and soda. The friendly waitress took our order. We finished our soda and waited about 20 minutes before I had to grab another waitress and ask her for refills on soda. Smh. During this time our original waitress came to see if we need refill on soda when it was plain our glasses were not on the table. We ordered the Lobster Tacos as starters. They were brought out in good time and were delicious! Yum! Our entrée, fried rice and chicken, seemed to take longer than normal. It should not have taken that long to get. It finally arrived and the presentation was nice. The whole egg was on the top. The gentleman mixed it for us and we ate it with a fury as we were hungry. Oh it was way yum. At the end we had to grab the same other waitress and ask her for our bill. Where did our original waitress go??? So basically food was way yum and service was poor.

My friend and I came here on a Saturday night without a reservation and had to wait about 15 – 20 minutes for a table, but it was well worth it!!! It was our first time here and the service and food was amazing. All our food came out very fast, but still tasting great. The beef hot rock was our favorite along with the salmon. Service is great here and they’re very attentive. We sat at the sushi bar and the sushi chefs were nice and social. I would definitely recommend this restaurant and come back again! ¹⁰⁄₁₀

We love coming to sushi for the nice atmosphere, great cocktails/​sake, and great food — great sushi, delish thai fried rice, and AMAZING steam buns. Pricey, but worth it.

Found this place on a business trip and was not disappointed. We tried several sushi rolls, the crab leg appetizer and Brussels sprouts and were blow away by the freshness and combinations of texture and flavors. Tami wanted us to try their fried rice so she brought us some and it was delightful. Ended with the banana parfait and again impressed
Lastly, the décor was beautifully done and intimate.

Great atmosphere. Not really a sushi spot and a more diverse menu than you’d expect from a Japanese place. Fun spot to have a drink and they make great cocktails. Their old fashioneds are superb. You can valet or park in the lot, depending on day/​time and busyness. The fried rice is very fresh tasting. The serving is large by you’ll find yourself eating it all anyway because it’s so good. They do offer a half portion (not listed on menu) to help your self control.

Had an awesome date here last night. We had starters of rock shrimp and potstickers. Both were perfect. Sauce that comes with the crispy rock shrimp was heavenly. My fiancé described it as a fancy version of Mac sauce :). For rolls, we had the caterpillar, the tempura spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, and a tuna roll. All of them were delicious and very well made. We also had a side order of the fried rice with a fresh fried egg on top. They mixed the fried egg into the dish at your table. I really recommend the side of fried rice. It’s a big portion and very flavorful.
The service was also awesome. All of our food came fast. The only reason I couldn’t quite give five stars is because of how expensive it is. We just had basic (amazingly delicious, but just basic) rolls and appetizers and our tab was 100 bucks before tip. It was an amazing holiday treat, but I can’t see us doing this often. We eat out a lot and we know of a few good sushi joints where we can have a great dinner for less than half this price. But I really would recommend shinsei for a special occasion. The ambiance was extra special. Be sure to make a reservation online. They accommodated our request for a booth.
I definitely plan to go back for a special meal, probably the Peking duck special on a Thursday night!

my hubby took me here few months back for a date night, great atmosphere and service, we had the 5 course meal and loved everything they brought. Pr \icy but all worth for a great dinning experience. drinks were strong that i really appreciate the great mixologist at the bar. we will be back!

Waving fruit flies off my dinner was not my idea of authentic Asian meal.
Hair nets, unattractive as they are, do serve a purpose: finding Elvis’ hair in my sashimi did not add value to my dining experience.
Server was attentive. Brussel sprouts were good.

Atmosphere — 5
Food — 3
Value –3
Service — 5
The food was ok… The sushi rolls were good; however it didn’t make you go «Wow».
The service was incredible and the people were very friendly and informative.
The rolls seemed to have a lot more rice (very noticeable) and the fish was not the main attraction, but an after thought. It was a busy night, so maybe it was a «one off».
It is very expensive, so it will be awhile before I check them out again.

This place came highly recommended but I was very disappointed with the experience. The restaurant setting is pretty nice, cozy and sexy with a dark, lounge-​y vibe, Unfortunately, it’s so loud that you can barely hear yourself speak.
The menu is pretty interesting, although nothing unusual and I was expecting more fusion dishes, more originality and inventiveness.
We had a couple of rolls to start (the crispy rice was too dense and disappointing), followed by the vegetable tempura platter and the shrimp tempura which were large portions but really heavy. Way to much oil, too greasy and not digestible. Tempura should be light and crispy, not drenched in oil so that you don’t even know which vegetable you’re actually eating. We also had the rock shrimps that were decent (once again, way too fried, lost the taste of the actual seafood). The sea bass redeemed the meal a little bit although the portion was tiny. We shared a cotton candy dessert (watermelon flavored) that was interesting but tasted chemical.
The biggest complaint that I had is that we were rushed to place our orders and then that everything came at the same time. The hot dishes, the rolls, everything. It felt very rushed and overwhelming. We were done with dinner in about 40 minutes. I love going to Asian restaurants and take my time to experience all dishes individually, this wasn’t the case and contributed to a mediocre evening.

Chic, sexy Sushi and Asian Fusion restaurant spot. Small and cozy with lots of interesting menu choices, including very creative rolls. Sushi was extremely fresh and the rice was perfect. For dessert, our waitress recommended carrot cake spring rolls, which were unlike anything I’ve ever tasted. Amazing.
Not really a family friendly spot, but definitely good for a business gathering or a date.
Valet parking only.

Shinesei hey hey! I’m always down for a good sushi dinner and a great atmosphere. Shinsei combines them both. It fits right into the swanky Dallas scene without felling too upity for this okie!
Came with a group of friends and had excellent service, especially since there were 10 of us! One friend claims Shinsei as her favorite restaurant so it had a lot to live up to.
You must start with the brussels sprouts and possibly an order of fried rice. They can make it with white rice, brown rice or quinoa! QUINOA! You won me over Shin.
The crispy katina and the pressed sushi were highly recommended so I didn’t stray and ordered the pressed sushi for myself. Instead of rolled it comes with sticky rice pressed into a rectangular log with tuna and avocado over the top. Kind of a combo of sushi and sashimi. My friend next to me got the crispy katina so I snuck a bite! The crispy part in the name comes from the base. The rice is fried into a little square with tuna on top. It was sort of like a Japanese tater tot.
Heads up-​they serve their dishes as they are ready so expect orders to be coming out at all different times.

Shensei salad: unique and very flavorful.
Big eye tuna and Salmon sashimi very fresh!
Jan roll and Clay roll are both excellent.
Shrimp tempura is one of the best I’ve ever had!

We had a private dinner upstairs with a set tasting menu. The hors d’oeuvres and appetizers were all very good– they had sashimi, sushi rolls, spring rolls, and a handful of other items. They also served steak cooked on a rock which was very theatrical– they placed an extremely hot river rock in the middle of the table along with a plate of thinly-​sliced steak and a sauce. You cook your own slice right on the hot rock (it takes about 8 seconds per side) and eat it hot.
The main dishes, however, left much to be desired. I did like the fried rice, but the short rib and ooey gooey chicken were both fairly bland. The short rib, while tender, was a little overcooked and mushy and lacked flavor. The salmon was very poorly done, way overcooked and dry all the way through.
The desserts were good, especially the banana crème pie bites they served. They also served cotton candy which was an interesting choice.
Overall, I think this place tries to be a very nice restaurant but the food doesn’t quite match up. Definitely focus on the appetizers, as those were the star of the show.

Having dinner at Shinsei was an absolute treat! It’s a two story restaurant with so much chic character. I think the interior design of the space is spot on with the colors, furniture, and lighting.
For a dinner date for two, we started off with wine and the Lobster Tacos. The appetizer came with two medium sized tacos, so once sharing; it left our mouths watering for more. Since the tacos were a bit on the heavier side due to the mayonnaise drizzling, we next decided to order the Crispy Rock Shrimp appetizer. Unfortunately, the Rock Shrimp were a tad over fried to my liking, but they still were good enough to enjoy.
We then decided to try a few of the sushi rolls. The Spider Roll was amazing. There wasn’t much different to it than your normal Spider Roll, but it was something about the sauce that made me happy we ordered it.
The Lynne Roll was exciting to eat! The Tracy’s Special Roll was also quite eclectic and delicious all in one. Of our entire meal, these two sushi rolls by far made the night unforgettable.
I can’t wait to come back here again! It’s one of my new favorite sushi restaurants!

QUICK HIT (Must Go vs. Consider Checking It Out vs. Pass/Don’t Bother): Consider Checking It Out
Asian Fusion Restaurant on Lovers — Yes, it is on Lovers, I Promise.
*As other Unilocalers have alluded to, yes, the place can be difficult to locate at night. My advice is to look for the valet stand on the weekends when turning from Inwood onto Lovers… the restaurant is right in front of that.
Atmosphere: Downstairs — social ambience, tables are close together, can be loud. I prefer to dine upstairs where it is more intimate, and seemingly quieter/​easier to converse with others (with more space between tables).
Food/​Drinks:
–I enjoyed the cocktails… may favorite was the sangria which had several different types of fruit including my favorite, lychee. Delicious.
–We sampled several dinner items last night. My absolute favorite was the Halibut that was cooked perfectly and very flavorful. I found the beef check equally appetizing. Unfortunately, I wasn’t terribly impressed with the sushi. No single roll was terribly memorable or unique. Disappointing, especially since we allowed our waiter to choose his three favorite rolls. The desserts were rich and made for an overall solid meal.
Service: The waitstaff was friendly and prompt. Much appreciated.
Overall, Shinsei was a good dining experience, but I am not compelled to make a second visit.

I was looking forward to good sushi based off of the reviews, unfortunately I wasn’t entirely impressed. The atmosphere is certainly nice and clean and the service was also good, depending on who your server is. I took notice of other servers that all seemed to appear charismatic and friendly, but our server was very“matter-of-fact” and looked like she was ready to move on to who other tables.
We order the Thai spicy edamame was good and had the kick I anticipated.
Note: none of the sushi comes with any cream cheese.
The sushi was okay, but I’ve had equivalent at Kroger or better at other sushi restaurants. The only sushi I truly liked was the Ashbey rolls. The lobster tacos were small in portion, but delicious. I do plan to come back for their Tuesday family special.