Aoyama

This Japanese and Thai restaurant is not to be confused with Asian fusion cuisine, and the menu items stick traditionally to their cultural roots. I love the selection of freshly prepared sushi and sashimi, and it is clear that the fish is graded above typical Japanese restaurant quality. The Thai and French selections are also a delicacy that allows parties to mix and match appetizers and entrées. We will definitely be back again.

Aoyama is a very nice restaurant. It has a great atmosphere and is perfect for a family dinner. They also have a huge menu with a fusion of many different unique flavors. I have tried many things and have never been disappointed. I have had the sashimi and some of the Thai selections and they are very good.

Aoyama is NOT an AYCE Asian buffet — despite a diverse menu that suggests something along those lines at first blush.
More pan-​Asian — it is an upscale a la carte diner — with a hint of Indochinese French influence — and a BYO flexibility.
The ambiance is vaguely reminiscent of nightclubs you might have found in early 1970’s Saigon, including a multi-​tiered dimly lit stylized room with high ceilings, cultural adornments, with canned Viet-​French music playing softly in the background and pleasant floor to ceiling lighting effects on some walls.
I like the airy space, the large tables and the comfortable seating. The multi-​cultural wait staff was young and eager — almost too eager at times. Could have been because on our visit the place was empty. It was also Cinco de Mayo — and our intended Mexican destination, the Blue Moon Café (across the parking lot in this suburban mall) was packed. Aoyama was a worthwhile second choice.
The lengthy menu could be exhausting and confusing to interpret. We eventually ordered from three menu sections (Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese/​French) and decided to leave sushi out of the equation.
They started us with complimentary papadum served alongside a lightly spiced tomato/​onion chutney, refilled as often as you like. The unexpected Indian twist to this already complex menu was perfectly crisp, warm and pleasant, served alongside our Thai iced and hot green teas.
The foie gras special appetizer ($ 25) over toast points served alongside a raspberry/​blackberry sauce was a strange flavor combination. The liver itself was delicate and perfectly seared, however the sweet and citrusy sauce overwhelmed the subtle liver flavor — making this more like an amuse bouche rather than a starter. The foie gras was only two bites worth, maybe.
The Vietnamese spring rolls with shrimp ($ 9) were standard fare — served with a Chinese duck sauce. Although fried to a light brown crisp and not overly greasy — I found them uninspired. You can buy the same quality rolls frozen in any decent Asian market, and the saucing was too bland for my tastes.
Giant Thai mussels ($ 12) were the star of the appetizer round, served in a broth of coconut juice, Thai basil, kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass, galangal root and a hint of curry paste. These were the largest and most tender mussels I can remember eating in recent memory and the saucing screamed exotic and authentic Thai in every way. There are plenty in one order for an appetizer for two and they serve them with a thoughtful shell discard bowl. Nice.
Our mains were Nabeyaki Soba and Pad Kee Maow ($ 16 each). Both were large portions and a meal in themselves. The soba in my soup was a bit undercooked, making the texture unpleasantly brittle. Soba does not eat well al dente. But the dashi was rich with kombu and bonito, and a large variety of mushrooms, vegetables and two huge shrimp tempura that go with the soup made for a very satisfying meal. The Pad Kee Mao was maybe a «3» on a heat scale of 1 to 5, and just perfect by me. It was loaded with seafood and chicken, perfectly cooked (not mushy) flat wide rice noodles and more of the authentic Thai flavors we tasted in the mussels appetizer.
Next trip I would like to try their sushi, and overall, Aoyama was a pleasant dining surprise for us on a day when we really wanted Mexican. Reaffirms my faith in the value of serendipitous dining.

We were a party of 4, after what is normally considered lunch time, and were seated quickly, given the single use hot towels and quickly our server arrived. Each of us ordered what we wanted and we were able to enjoy a nice lunch together. The orders were King Pad something, looked really good, beef red curry (slightly smaller than expected but fine nonetheless) and a sushi lunch. It was a great lunch experience! I will agree with other writers they exterior is a strip mall & the inside is tastefully decorated, high-​end feeling. Not sure dinner prices are worth is but lunch is a for sure.

Food is excellent quality and service is good but 3 stars because the food takes forever to come out. I’ve been there when it’s packed and when it’s empty, either way you’ll be waiting 40 minutes to an hour for your food to come.

I’d give this place another star if I could. Seriously, you don’t find better food or service in Bergen county. I’ve been there a dozen times. The food is always delicious and service is impeccable.
Last time we were there, my mother forgot her reading glasses for the menu. The waitress brought her a box of backup pairs to borrow. That’s the kind of thoughtfulness we’re talking about.
The waitstaff always make great recommendations too. If you’re stumped on what to order, tell them what you like to eat and they’ll always recommend something wonderful.
It gets pricy, easily $ 100 for a meal out, though you’ll spend less if you go easy on the alcohol. It’s a very impressive choice for dates and celebrations. I can’t think of a single con to this place.

I recently went here for lunch with some people from work and it was a very pleasant experience! They brought us warm hand towels to clean our hands and their staff was very kind and attentive.
We ordered dimsum, edamame, and spring rolls for appetizers. The edamame were great but I wasn’t crazy about the other two. We also all ordered green tea which came in these adorable individual tea pots and little cups (picture below.)
I got the Pad Kee Mow (Drunken Noodles) for lunch and got it pretty spicy (level 4.) It was pretty hot. I would definitely go down one notch on sppice if I went back.
Overall great experience!

Very surprised after walking through the door. It felt like I was entering a trendy NYC restaurant. Very cool and much larger than you could imagine.
The sushi was very fresh… which was extremely welcome after my experience at Iroha (reviewed) in NYC.
My Pad Kee Mow was level 2 spicy… had the shrimp and chicken mix. Four shrimp and a healthy amount of chicken. Not drenched in sauce so not overwhelming. Definitely enjoyed… should have had them make it a little spicier.
Will happily return!

The outside of this restaurant is deceiving because the inside is so ornate! Came here on Saturday night with reservations and got seated quickly.
Had a sushi roll to start and the tuna was excellent. It was served at just the right temperature. My noodle curry (soup noodles) were on point and delicious. I ordered them a level 2 spicy and it was perfect for me. The hubby ordered the Pad See EW and enjoyed his meal.
Lastly, the birthday song that they play in here is great. A truly custom experience! Will be back and love the fact that its BYOB.

We ate there yesterday afternoon and my husband has been throwing up till this morning. He didn’t eat any dinner yesterday and all he had was the chicken soup and Aoyama roll at this place. He threw up all night and all morning.
I’m disappointed. Otherwise, I was going to write a five star review for them, because the service was perfect and my roll (Caribbean) was out of this world. Still keeping one extra star because of the service.

Aoyama is inside a strip mall but manages to have a fancy in a «casino» way type vibe. They have Thai, Japanese and French inspired food on the menu. I gave them 4 stars for lunch, because they have good lunch specials and very friendly attentive service. I had the Thai green curry, which came with the choice of miso soup or salad. It was very good for lunch, but I think a bit pricey for dinner.

Our 1^st time here and we are more than pleased. My wife ordered the tempura lobster roll and I ordered a Thai Pad Khing. Both were delicious. The place was very packed but you could talk without yelling. Great food, service and atmosphere. I bookmarked this place. We will def be back.

We have been here several times and have enjoyed the food. The Pad Thai is particularly good. HOWEVER, they simply don’t know how to manage a Saturday evening crowd. We ordered take out and were told it would be 30 minutes. I showed up 30 minutes later as told, then proceeded to wait 40 more minutes. In the interim, people were seated and served! The young ladies at the door were appropriately apologetic. BUT, the manager never once came over to the group of 8 or so take out orderers like myself. A simple apology or coupon would have made us all feel a lot better, but he seemed like he couldn’t care less. I’d go back but never on a Friday or Saturday.

So I had dinner here with my Franklin Lake cronies this past weekend, and from it’s description their food is described as «French Thai & Japanese». The fusion trend spawned from the cities a decade ago persists and has permeated Suburbia! I have run across a growing trend of Thai/​Japanese/​Chinese permutation restaurants across North Jersey, and I’ll get into that in a moment. As I looked at the menu, I scanned through the Thai section, and saw items like Steak Au Poivre, Pan Seared Ostrich, Baby Back Ribs? sandwiched between Scallop Pad Prik and Gra Praw. Really? The confused looks on people’s faces with their mouths gaping. The Japanese section looked the typical appetizers, special rolls, sushi/​sashimi combos, and the typical yakisoba/​udon/​tempura/​teriyaki offerings.
We ordered Tom Yum Koong, and Tom Ka Kai soups, Royal Massaman Curry, Gang Keaw Wan curry, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Pad Kee Maow noodles, Grilled Squid Salad, Chicken Sate, Chicken Yakisoba and several Japanese rolls. The Thai dishes looked nice, but after our first bite, thought it wasn’t bad and described it as clean flavors. So clean, that halfway through the meal, felt everything was generally diluted, very mild with hints of Thai flavors. The Royal Massaman Curry was quite watered down to what I am used to having, the soups were a good effort, but the remaining items especially the noodles were quite bland. Don’t get me wrong, the food was ok, but my palate was expecting Thai, and I got… FUSION!
So back to the fusion thing, which has spread across the country like a virus. I appreciate the efforts of chefs combining certain cuisines and tastes to evolve food, but what has happened to many great ethnic foods is an unfortunate dilution, and most ethnic cuisines are not being protected from this trend. I’ve seen the same happen to Italian, Middle Eastern, Chinese, Spanish… No cuisine has been spared from this political food socialism that has negatively impacted American food palates for the past 7 years.
Just say no to Fusion!!! Say Yes to Individuality and Authenticity! Please vote as such in the next elections!

This rating is based purely on what we ordered. Either the dish was a little salty or a little bland. Nothing that would make me crave to go back for more.
Since it was my first time, we decided to go safe: miso soup, salad, shrimp tempura appetizer, stir fry soba, eel and avocado, and the shrimp Massaman curry. Meh.
The restaurant was beautiful (the 4^th star), the rolls that we’re going to other tables looked lovely and the wait staff was «very» helpful. The waitress asked my 8 year old if she’s like to try the Kobe steak for dinner… I thought that was a bit much, but maybe that’s me.
More of a date night than dinner with the kids between dance and tennis.

I love French Thai and this is some of the best and right in the town I live in.
The wait staff is excellent!

Awesome steamed duck buns, very tasty!
The Pad Thai with beef was also very good. The atmos was awesome, very clean.

This is a great spot! It’s definitely pricey but the quality & atmosphere is worth it in my book. I only eat sushi here. I’ve tasted the French Thai that friends have ordered & it seems overly flavorful. Just haven’t loved those flavors yet.
Back to the sushi … The aoyama roll is definitely something to check out!
They use a lot of soy paper in the rolls, which is not my preference but if you ask they will switch to the traditional nori.
I’ve had friends tell me they didn’t like sushi, then try a roll from aoyama & suddenly change their opinion of sushi.
Great quality!
Byo.

Although the multi-​cuisine subtitle made me raise an eyebrow, it was a decent meal. French-​Thai and Japanese… Hmmm…
Our table stuck to sushi and Thai food and was pleased with our meal and the service was great even as the restaurant crowded up as the night went on. The Tom Yum soup I got was good though not the best. I got the wide rice noodle with chicken and shrimp instead of the regular pad Thai and enjoyed it. The noodles were not overly cooked and maintained a really nice chewiness! I guess you could call it al dente. There were decent portions of shrimp and chicken as well. For decent the Crème Brûlée trio was decent. My flavors were pear, mango and vanilla. The pear and mango were alright though come off a bit gritty but the traditional custard vanilla was nice and creamy. The tops were not very brûléed though so there was no crunch.

Not sure how to pronounce the name, but I sure have enjoyed our two visits for dinner.
They have a large menu consisting of Chinese, Japanese (sushi), and Thai w/​a french influence. Looking for pork buns or peanut and chicken lettuce wraps — Chinese menu. Steamed mussels w/​ginger or Freshly made shrimp dumpling soup — Thai menu. Seaweed salad or Boston roll — Japanese menu. They also have an updated specials menu with many new selections.
They have just about something for everyone.
Prices were a bit on the high side, but that might be expected for Bergen County area.
The interior was very nice, which is deceiving since it’s in strip mall and windows all have shades not allowing you to see in from the street.
The service was good, but they did commit two of my biggest restaurant peeves:
1. Placing the menu on top of your clean plate instead of handing it to you after you are seated. (Restaurant menus are full of germs)
2. Server held glass from the top lip area when refilling water. Would rather them refill the water without lifting the glass off the table or lift the glass from the base.
Sorry, my fiancé tells me I’m a germaphobe, but she also agrees with me that their is proper restaurant etiquette. Handling food and drink properly should be a priority to any restaurant.
This was our second visit and it was another tasty experience.