04/19/09

best sushi

by triolive

I celebrated a friend's birthday there on saturday. So glad she picked Samuraiblue! I love sushi! The fish was so fresh and the rolls were quite tasty. Yellowtail and uni were the best. I 've been eating there for three years now, still my favorite sushi spot. The oldsmar location is real convenient and has a clean, modern feel. Parking is much more easier.

• Pros: food & atmosphere

02/17/09

NEVER AGAIN!!! CONSUMER BEWARE!!!

by casey217

Where do I start. I made reservations this past saturday (Valentines). I knew it would be busy but my boyfriend and I love sushi and have been here before. We waited well over an hour past our reservation time. No one seemed to care. The hostesses tried their best. No manager in site. once we sat it took our server 15 - 20 minutes before she came over. She took our drink and food order all at once. We waited another 15 minutes until we got our drinks. Again no one seemed to care! Server was rather rude and very short with us but she was busy. After waiting almost an hour for our food it finally came. The rolls looked sloppy and thrown on the plate. Our tempura rolls and conch on the volcano were ice cold. Our server didn't care. We asked to speak to a manager and were told there was none, but the owner was there. We asked to see him but we were told NO!! What the f***. Absolutely the worst dining experience we have ever had. Not even close. They obviously don't care about the customer. We aren't the only ones that feel this way. I just hope more people come forward. NEVER AGAIN!!!!

• Pros: None
• Cons: Service, sushi, nobody cares about customer experience. server, manager & owner

09/18/08

Great Restaurant

by JeffGa

In town for a friends wedding and went for the bachelor dinner at Samurai. WOW!!! Very impressive. Great sushi. I eat sushi a few times a week in Atlanta, this place was one of my best meals. Fresh uni, salmon, and tuna. Order the Summer rolls. Great sake!

• Pros: great food and decor
• Cons: parking

06/14/08

Worst Sushi Experience in my Life

by Ava669

We'd been to Samurai Blue several times, but after this most recent experience, we're never going back.

We got there, & they told us it would be a half hour wait. We said ok no big deal & sat on the sofa right behind the Hostess. After 40 minutes & watching them sit 2 couples that came in after us before us, we went up there & said, you told us a half hour, & you sat those people who came in after us before us. The lady told us 'you're not on the list,' to which we said, 'you said you put us on the list when we came in & we've been waiting here behind you for the past 40 minutes.' She didn't apologize, & just got us the next available table.

Our waiter was bad, but that's nothing new. In the middle of us ordering our food, he walked away. We never even got our appetizer.

We ordered the Ying Yang roll, eel roll, tokyo roll (tuna & yellowtail) & a spicy crunchy tuna roll, & 1 order of yellowtail. The yellowtail & tuna were bad. We took one bite & almost threw up. My date did end up sick there & we were both ill once we got home. We told our waiter this is horrible, we don't want it, we're sending it back. The supposed manager came over & told us 'the fish came in this morning, it's not bad, you just don't like it.' We said, 'that fish was bad, we don't want it.' She argued with us & finally walked off. We finished the eel rolls, but both of us felt ill. We asked for the check & they'd wanted us to pay for the 2 bad rolls & the yellowtail, & I refused. Finally they removed the 2 bad rolls & the nigiri. However, the manager was unconcerned with us being unhappy, & the waiter was unconcerned with his bad service.

The manager didn't even seem willing to consider the fact that the yellowtail seemed dried out, had a film over it. I don't care if the food came in that morning, if it wasn't chilled or prepared properly, that could account for the food being bad. When we asked if the manager had tried the food, she said, well, no. But she wasn't willing to.

• Pros: The food used to be good, and make it ok to overlook the bad service.
• Cons: The food appears to be bad now, the service is bad, overpriced

10/28/07

Completely OVERRATED!! If you are a true Sushi lover go elsewhere!

by squishysquishy

After all the hoopla I've heard about how good Samurai Blue is I decided to check it out. To my disappointment it was the WORST sushi experience I have ever had. It started with the service and ended with the lack of innovation and taste of the product itself. The online menu is fairly impressive; too bad half the items listed are no longer being served. The Sushi/Sashimi Dinner (chefs choice) for $19.95 consisted of a sub par California Roll and chunks ( yes chunks people!) of tuna , salmon, shrimp, and imitation crab nigiri thrown over shredded cabbage and carrots (salad heh). The sushi itself was so overpowered by the scent of lemon one could only question how fresh the product actually was. I have never had fish that tasted or smelled that fishy unless it came out of a can. If you aren't a sushi fan and wanted to try one of the dinners offered stay away from the Tokyo Styled Spare Ribs ($16.95) unless you enjoy chewing on raw hide! The dining area itself is tastefully done (probably to mask the garbage that they serve).

If you are in the Ybor area I would recommend Sushi Raw on 7th Ave.

07/03/07

Not bashing but....

by lisafitzchic

I must say Samurai is ok at best. I live in westchase and much prefer Zen Bistro. My girlfriends and I prefer the quality service and one thing seperates Zen and Samurai and it is the owner or i think he is the owner at Zen. His name is Kevin, how do i know this because unlike samurai he is always out front talking to tables and helping out, it is obvious he operates a quality place and cares. I have never seen a manager at samurai. Lastly we like martinis and Samurai has no bar atmosphere at all, kevin has turned us on to several "wow" martinis at Zen and it is those touches we like. Not bashing but....

05/04/07

Good time to be had

by bigfoodie

I must say I was impressed by this place, seeing as how it was the first restaurant I went to after moving to Tampa. I would go as far as to say that it has the best I've ever had, but the sushi was darn good. I just wish they had uni and toro (two favorites) when I went. Otherwise, the food was good. My only other complaint is that they label themselves as a "sake bar," their selection was a little lacking. For the money I spent, it was a great experience and I'll definitely go back. Excellent value!

• Pros: Value
• Cons: Leave before Ybor city gets crowded

05/03/07

Best sushi "In-Town"

by chrissrt8

This was probably one of the top 3 meals that I have ever enjoyed. The presentation of the rolls was excellent and the flavors were unbelievable. The service was excellent and helped to make for a great evening. The red devil roll and the volcano roll were the best. When we were leaving the only problem of the evening was encountered when we had to wait 15 minutes to get our vehicle back at the valet stand. Highly recommended.

• Pros: Food, service, ambiance, location
• Cons: Parking

04/30/07

OK.. I'M ON THE SAMURAI BLUE BANDWAGON!

by mbaparis74

Excellent fresh, well-prepared and tasty sushi. Highly recommend this unique sushi restaurant! Excellent experience!

• Pros: Good sushi, decor, atmosphere
• Cons: parking

04/30/07

Samurai Blue Rocks!

by cottonkali

My first sushi experience was at Samurai Blue, and since going, I have become addicted to it! I have gone to many other sushi restaurants, and fail to find anything that can even compare to Samurai Blue!!! It's amazing to have such a fantastic place in Tampa! My boyfriend & I had our first date there in Feb. '04 and we're still together! Great date spot!

• Pros: Unique Menu