wasabi japanese restaurant and sushi bar

horrible birthday experience! terrible service.. my partner organized a surprise birthday dinner for me last night at wasabi. we were a table of 9 and there were hardly any other patrons in the restaurant besides us. i had been to wasabi several times in the passed and really enjoyed the sushi and service. this was horrible! the sushi was good...hours later when we got it! the service was the big problem! a few people ordered appetizers including soup. the appetizers took forever to come out and they all came out randomly. one person got a soup then 15 minutes later another would get a soup. once the appetizers were finally done, we waited and waited. i finally got up after 30 minutes or more and asked to speak to a manager. our server came out and said she was the manager! she said the food was coming...after it finally came, people were out of drinks. she never asked if anyone wanted refills and when someone just drinking water asked for one she only refilled their glass and no one elses. i had to ask for a refill on my beverage twice before receiving it. at no point did the server apologize for the poor service or extremely late food. in the end, we all wanted to order more sushi but didn't want to wait another hour for it. we left to eat elsewhere.

the place to go when you're downtown ottawa, skip the others ... eat here!

went to wasabi last night the food and service were really good, however i think the prices are pretty high. but that is to be expected when your in the market. the sushi was really good, and i loved the non alcoholic daiquiri's.
my only dislike was there were no signs or notices on the menu that said if the sushi was entirely raw or of there were cooked or gluten free sushi.
but other then that i really liked my visit at wasabi.

really great food! service, not so great. we came to wasabi late one night as we were craving some sushi. the patio was booming, but the inside had about one table with people at it. we were seated right away in a large booth, the booth was very comfortable. we had to wait about 5 minutes until we actually got our menus, seems a little ridiculous considering the menus should be brought right as you sit down. we received our menus and ordered our meals. we also asked for water, which took about 5 minutes to arrive. the table behind us received their alcoholic beverages before us, and they arrived after we did. once the sushi arrived, we were pleasantly surprised with the taste. the sussex roll was really good! it had cream cheese, cucumber, and smoked salmon. it was nice and tidy, and the flavours of all of the items meshed well together. i was craving more as it was very delicious! once we were finished our sushi, the server came and we asked for the bill. the server wasn't very friendly, didn't even talk to us as we were paying. i would only come here for the food, the service isn't anything to rave about.

not the best place in town. was there on may 23, 2011 for supper...

sushi: fresh fish, but poorly rapped. ingredients not so creative and not the best combinations...

food: avoid kitchen stuff!!! miso soup salty as hell. took the seafood bento (3/4 batter, 1/4 fish). oil that they deep fry isn't clean. salmon terriyaki looks like the same style and taste you get at a fast food. sushi in bento box not freshed (looks like they made it in the afternoon, or perhaps let overs from lunch time). this is not authentic japanese cuisine.

service: slow when you need something, fast to pick up the bill. not very knowledgeable on their own menu.

price: pricey...the dished they serve can be obtained in sushi buffet...probably you'll get better food at a sushi all you can eat for half the price.

ambiance: nice chic setting...but serving plates is a deception and does not match with the restaurant and the trendiness of the district.

overall: let's just say i'll never go back and will advice everyone i know to not go there...there are many other places on the same street to try out.

wasabi barely tepid. did not have a great experience last week. took a friend to lunch and the service was average and the food, mediocre. the miso soup was just okay, and some of the vegetarian sushi pieces were limp and flavourless. it used to be quite impressive. will not bother to go again.

truly one of the best experiences i've ever had in a while. i went there for my birthday dinner with my partner. the setting inside was relaxing and truly very warm. the hostesses were really lovely. i believe we spoke to either the chef or the manager not sure should have asked but he was great too on checking on us causally too as well. we had a lot to eat that night. we started off with trying 3 different sakes a warm one, a clear cold one and one that was unfiltered called the samurai. then we had spicy prawn, the chefs special of sashimi (different types of sashimi), sake ribs (beef short ribs), spezza salmon roll, seafood ramen brown (which came with salad) and the hamachi negi. flavour galore and it was honestly the best kind! could you believe after all of that we still had room to try dessert!!? it was green tea cheese cake which was very smooth paired with green tea and whipped cream. truly an all around incredible experience. i highly recommend!!

sushi rice packed too firmly. fish was fresh though. spicy tuna a little salty as well.

as a sushi place i'd rate below average.

had to reduce rating, getting the bill in this place is like pulling teeth with tweezers. near impossible. sigh

wow...canada day in ottawa! needed a beer and found room at wasabi...not terribly busy yet waited an hour for a beer...not too impressed. nice people watching while we waited an hour for said beer.

i've been there four times and found the food to be above par for a sushi restaurant. the ambiance is good and has all the charm of a typical japanese restaurant. unfortunately, the service is consistently very poor. waiting 15min+ to receive a menu is disappointing and frustrating. the staff is confused and disorganized resulting in a wait time for drinks, appetizers and entrees to be unacceptable. i don't plan on returning until i see reviews that show they've improved their service.

unfortunate experience ever. visit ottawa for the first time! went there for dinner close to 8 pm, only a few tables inside. i and my friend ordered two different ramens. when they come with one ramen first, we confirmed the kind with them, but turned out it was still wrong. we told them, one server took it back then another server took the same bowl to me in one minute, as we noticed my friends chopsticks still in the noodle.
no apologies at all the sever took it away smiling, and gave me another ramen with less basic items couple minutes later.
the later ramen served was way too salty, but they don't care my complain at all.
cold face all the way down.
before we left, they again gave us the wrong bill.

the restaurant has a nice ambiance and the staff are very friendly. the sushi is high quality and fresh. the miso soup is excellent. for appetizers, the white tuna sashimi, fish tacos and the shrimp/chicken tempura are the best we have ever tasted anywhere. we love salmon so we ordered the spezza which has spicy salmon on the inside with a layer of salmon on the outside. the rideau roll is another good choice. it has shrimp tempura in the middle and a layer of spicy tuna on top. the neptune roll is filled with a good portion of tasty lobster. all these rolls are big and very delicious. the green tea is bottomless and the japanese asahi beer is crisp and refreshing which goes well with sushi.  for non-sushi eaters, there are lots of other great choices such as the teriyaki chicken.

the food is good, however you don't get a lot for the price you pay. i went as a group of 4 people. we shared a sushi boat and each ordered one main dish of sushi. between the 4 of is ae were still hungry but the bill was high enough so we bailed out. not a good place for all you can eat but great for just a casual dinner.

we went here . the food was pretty good. i thought it was a very mature restaurant. the place seemed very fancy and great service. it was really pricey. but the food was really great.

my husband and i always come here almost every sunday, it's the best sushi in ottawa, we've gone to other sushi places before but none can compare, we are always coming back here, the asmosphere is warm, the waitresses are friendly and attentive, my favourite dish is deluxe sashimi dinner, it's always fresh, we'll be back very soon.