Zake

Another one bites the dust. I’m seeing a high correlation with my one stars and places on the death list.

Since I’ve lived in this neighborhood it’s changed owners and names. Haven’t eaten here in a while. But I easily order gluten free. Still one of my favorite places to eat sushi… easy to get into. And the sushi seems to be fresh consistently.

I saw all the bad reviews of this place before I came but thought things might have been different because their website says that they’re under new management.
From my experience and what I’ve read on Unilocal,it doesn’t seem like management has changed at all. Poor customer service. Their staff was unfriendly and sushi tasted like it had been sitting out for a while. The temperature was not cold for fresh seafood nor hot for cooked rolls. It was exactly room temperature – never had that experience before, never would want it again.
Their chicken wings were well done tho, hot, crispy, tasty. Maybe they should open a wing place instead.

Terrible, surly/​mousy service. Terrible, leftover, microwaved food.
At the door, we were met by a surly asian woman who stopped short of throwing the menus on the table in protest that we disturbed her. She said fewer than five words to us, none of which was «enjoy». The waitress was clueless, frequently too quiet and demure to communicate effectively, and let my wife order the curry katsu (which is the dish we came to try) before coming back and saying the kitchen staff could not prepare the dish. What does that mean? They don’t have the ingredients or that particular shift just didn’t know how to do it? We never got a clear answer.
But that wasn’t the worst of if. We both ended up ordering the hibachi steak which was delivered with a dome of what was definately frozen supermarket fried rice (an asian restaurant that can’t make fried rice is like a coffeehouse that can’t make cappuccino), passable veggies, jar sauces, and what we suspect was dry, microwaved steak cubes from at least a day ago. We ordered medium. I doubt this meat remembers being RAW!
The high point of the visit: they can make a cup of green tea without screwing it up.
I’d also like to add that this place, despite the corners cut every where else, was unwilling to spring for the Ad-​Free option on their internet streaming music over Spotify. They may be violating their licence agreement.

Absolutely terrible. We sat down while listening to «Drink and My Two Step» :insert sarcasm: don’t order anything. The volcano roll is the small California roll with spicy mayo sploused all over. We will never go back
We dropped a $ 20 on the table and bounced.

The big appeal to this place is the happy hour prices. The sushi isn’t terrible but it isn’t anything to write home about either. We went last night to eat sushi on the cheap with the happy hour deal and it still was hard to stay due to terrible service and really cheesy sax jazz being piped in. Waiter ignored us for the last 20 minutes of happy hour so we couldnt order anything else. He promptly walked up minutes after though to see if we needed anything else. Table next to us left after about ten minutes for similar reasons.

Many years ago I used to enjoy going to Zake for quality sushi, good drinks, and all at great prices. Then suddenly around 2009? Zake began to hike their prices, but lower the quality of their sushi? Get that. I continued to visit Zake because I thought they would eventually turn it around, but sadly the downward spiral as continued.
Besides the decrease in food quality, the service has also suffered. Last few times I’ve gone, the wait staff completely neglected me and my girlfriend. Zake will likely go out of business within 2 years.

I really wish I would have read the reviews before bringing an out-​of-​town important-​type here when she was craving sushi and I happened to be driving by. I’m not going to say anything that hasn’t already been said, i’m sure, but here goes:
PROS:
— sushi isn’t bad I guess.
— interior is clean
CONS:
— probably the single rudest waitress I’ve had in the entire Houston metro and that is a bold statement.
— seriously she was awful to us. I was embarrassed to have chosen this place.
— my friend was having a good time catching up with me and started laughing and they instantly turned the stereo up really loud. we were also the only people in the place at the time, which I think should have been a sign.
no, thank you.

I’ve been to Zake several times. Not because I like it, but because my friends like happy hour and cheap sake bombs.
The sushi is really the epitome of mediocrity. Just don’t even bother. The fried apps are passable, but I wouldn’t eat here by choice.

I was craving sushi the other day so my friend and I headed over to Zake’s for lunch. The place was empty which was good for getting a seat quickly. A waitress came over immediately and asked if I wanted a drink. As I waited for my friend, I noticed that the lunch menu, although small, had a good variety of well-​priced options. I went with the nigiri lover and my friend had the nigiri and sashimi special. The portions were generous and very fresh for a great price. I think our waitress was relatively new because she seemed nervous everytime she approached our table.
I’ve been to Zake’s at night and it definitely gets crowded. The bar staff are generally good at getting drinks out quickly. If you know someone at the place though, the service improves infinitely. Prices increase at night too. But they have amazing sushi so it is worth the splurge from time to time.

So, here’s the deal. I used to love Zake. Like, LOVE. Visited every two weeks at a minimum, and even held a few family dinners/​birthday celebrations there.
This, unfortunately, is no longer the case. I’m not sure what happened to Zake over the past year to two years, but the quality has greatly decreased (both food and service). I don’t even mind the clubby atmosphere that other Unilocalers have mentioned, but I do mind the sub-​par sushi and inattentive waiters. I used to crave their specialty rolls, but the quality of the sushi has decreased to the point where they’re nearly unedible.
What happened to you Zake? You used to be cool…
Two stars versus one, only for the sake of memories.

I’ve only been here twice, and both times was on a Thursday night. BEWARE THE AZN CROWD.
As soon as I walked in I felt like I was at Roxy. Loud music, lots of alcohol, and lots of Asians. The place felt like a club, not a restaurant. But I guess this is the new Toku since that place went downhill?
Honestly, I’ve never tried the food here, and I’m not sure I want to? The only time I find myself here is for a celebration or if my boyfriend’s cousin calls us to come out. I don’t think I’d ever go on my own accord.

Went there last night (9÷1÷11) and it wasn’t packed as usual. The reason I’m writing this review because they kept trying to pull the switcha-​roo on me. I asked for a crown and coke and the server brought it to me in a timely manner. I started to drink it thinking it tasted more gross than usual and then it dawned on me. THEY GAVE ME JACK AND COKE! I sent my drink back and my server was really nice about it. She brought me back 2 crown and cokes. okay, whew. right? Okay, then I ask for another round and they DID IT AGAIN! This time I confronted the bartender and she said the waitress told her, jack and coke. uhh, yea right. I know my waitress knew better than that. Anyhow, I ask for an exchange, she uses the same cup with the nasty jack and just poured Crown on top of the Jack… Professional much? Hardly.
Description of bartender: Chinese looking lady with short hair.
I know it isnt THAT big of a deal and no one died from it but it’s just insulting to the consumer. Have some respect, man.