Nobu's Japanese Restaurant   

My boyfriend and I are frequent sushi eaters. We used to go to Nobu's about two years ago and the food was good. However, in the past couple of years, things have declined quickly and horribly. The last time we went there for lunch, the rolls were bland and dry, the asparagus was brown and dry and the fish was...for lack of a better word, fishy. And a little too wet (ugh). The service was horrible, the atmosphere left much to be desired. We have been going to Oishi in Creve Coeur (our favorite) or Wasabi in Clayton and it's just not worth the money to go to Nobu's. Save your wallet, your time and your taste buds. Don't do it!

My girlfriend & I went to Nobu’s for the first time last night. For reference, I lived in a rural area of Japan for three years so I would say that, while I’m not Japanese, I know a lot about Japanese food. We received “eda-mame” for starters, & they were over-boiled, soggy, & bland. We ordered the yakitori (pieces of chicken marinated in teriyaki sauce & grilled on a skewer.) The chunks of chicken were too big (about 1" cubes), & the sauce only coated the outside of the meat--no marination. The absolute shock, however, was the sushi! The packed rice underneath the fish was absolutely rediculous--both in portion & shape. I flipped over each peice & confirmed they were all the same. I'd say each piece of fish was about 1" wide and 3-4" long. The rice underneath, however, was 3/4" wide by 1"-1.5" long!! In addition, it fell apart when you tried to pick it up... It was like Nobu had run low on rice & was trying to ration. On top of that, Nobu's charges around $2.50-4.00/piece. I felt like I'd been robbed! Finally, the rice itself was bland & dry. I called over the sushi chef's wife/waitress & calmly voiced my disappointment. She stated that this is just Nobu's style of sushi-- that he used minimal rice to keep customers from getting "too full". She said that he had worked in Ginza and Kobe, & insinuated that I probably just didn't know good sushi. She said she was sorry that I didn't like it, but that this was simply their style. (As a note: I've had sushi at top restaurants in both Ginza and Kobe, & I assure you this is not a regional thing.) If you go to Nobu's, be prepared to pay a lot, to not be filled-up, & to wish you'd picked another St. Louis sushi restaurant instead! We will NEVER go back!

I've hear Nobu's is supposed to be St. Louis' best sushi resteraunt so I had to give it a try. The service was slow and inattentive, and you cannot have mixed drinks because they have no bar. The sushi itself leaves much to desire. It is poorly wrapped, breaks apart easily, and the sauces inside are not well flavored. Basically, the roll ends up tasting strange. If you want the best sushi I've found in St. Louis, try Miso on Meramec (Clayton), the service is great and the variety is fabulose.

I had sushi at many restaurants in Tokyo, Honolulu, Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Monica and Chicago. I dined at Nobu once during dinner time. I ordered several nigiri and maki. I enjoyed large sized and reasonably fresh neta. However, the size of rice was smaller than average one finger technique size, and was not made tight enough to pick with chopsticks as it was broken pieces very easily just like the one from a sushi rice maker. Maki was also not rolled skillfully as nori wrapping was came apart easily, and was too moist and tough like an electrical tape. I do not think they should serve end piece of maki cut as it does not have nice shape. Water content of shari was inproper as it was too sticky and a grain of rice was squashed during rolling process. They served complementary edamame, but it was boiled too long or failed to put it in the ice water to stop residual heating action after boiled. Overall, sushi was overpriced for this quality of sushi.