Great Ramen!!! Well worth a visit. Atmosphere is clinical but portions are generous and flavorful. Wine list and beverage variety is very good. Will be back again!
Been going to Yamato for years and decided to put a review up. The food is authentic and some of the best sushi that I have had. My favorite dishes are the Kara Age and Gyu Tataki. Cristina ( the owner ) is very warm and is fully committed to delivering an outstanding experience each and every time. In a world where faux Asian food is popping up everything, this is truly a gem and best kept secret in Illovo.
After a long week in the office we decided to venture out and try Yamato Illovo on Friday last week. Nestled in the heart of Illovo, Yamato is one of the few authentic Japanese restaurants left.
We ordered various dishes to try out. I must say I was super impressed with Cristina the owner for being so accommodating towards me as I am allergic to fish🙊.
We had the Pork Gyoza (Japanese potstickers), Kara Age (fried chicken strips), deep fried crispy chicken with sweet soy and chilli sauce, special Wakame Ramen and Miso Ramen, Tuna California Rolls, Orange Salmon Rolls and last but not least, Tempura Prawn Maki.
We left the restaurant full and happy with a big smile on our faces.
The food was so fresh and full of Japanese flavours. A must for those seeking a good Ramen noodle🍜. They even have deep fried Haagen-Dazs ice cream for those that are adventurous 😎.
Food: 9/10P.S- We went back for diner :)
It is quite a decent place with quite decent sushi. The lunch special were pretty awesome to be honest and the sushi was well prepared (with the exception of the maki where it was overflowing with the rice. The appetizers were a way to prevent the long wait for the main food. But generally speaking, the lunch weren't that pricey.
I love yamato, Its unassuming.
, Its not trendy, its authentic and its all made with care.
Its not overpriced.
The service is decent.
Its tiny.
Great noodles. Decent ramen. Nice okonomiyaki, nice agedashi dofu,
We're spoilt for choice. So many good Japanese restaurants around, i mean momo soko is right there. Yamato is more authentic I guess.
I'm afraid it will fade away but i hope it doesn't
A great Japanese food experience. We took the agadashi tofu, wasabi parcels, tuna maki, vegetable tempura and the salmon platter deluxe. It was a grand feast. Most delicious.
What an incredible dining experience , today with so much of everything just been the more Of the same. It was amazing to find such a beautiful authentic place. What an fantastic host the owner was amazing to us. Introducing us to an incredible Japanese hot pot, where you dip the meat into raw egg. Sounds weird can’t tell you how delectable it was. The sushi was out of this world , green tea ice cream... special , special , special!!!!!
I have never had a bad meal at this very authentic Japanese restaurant.The food is always fresh,flavoursome and delicious.The place is sometimes sedentary but I actually enjoy that because itis peaceful and calming.I highly recommend it
This is my favourite Asian restaurant by far, since I love and respect Japanese food and culture, it is a good place to experience Japanese home-cooked style of food that is eaten by Japanese people almost daily. I struggled to find an Asian restaurant that served Japanese cuisine other than sushi, so I was very pleased that I found this place that serves a wide variety of Japanese cuisine. The staff are very friendly and the food is delicious. I hope this helps anyone interested in going to this restaurant. :)
Not bad for Japanese in South Africa. So far, best place. Haven't tried sushi yet so will update the review lost another visit.
The food choices are authentic with a mix of Korean and some Chinese elements.
Cashew chicken and tofu Chigae were both very good.
Nice ambience tucked away next to Beefcakes.
Staff not so great and needs more training but the owner was there which made a difference.
They were so helpful. We did not have Reservations but they managed to accommodate us. The food was amazing. Enjoyed the freshness of the springroll. The presentation of the food was done well. We had the set menu A. Was well worth it.
Food is truly delectable and authentic. Not your run of the mill sushi restaurant. Really a cut above. The sushi is beautiful and much better than most other sushi restaurants and the rest of the menu was great as well.
The service was somewhat lacking though. Our various dishes were delivered to the table at strange and inconvenient intervals, empty plates and glasses weren't removed timeously and started cluttering the table and where we were seated we constantly had Uber Eats drivers wait for collections right next to our table, watching loud TikToks on their phones.
Good food, good atmosphere, excellent service. At the time of writing this review, they have no liquor license so you can byob
Nice casual asian dining. Extensive menu of Asian - not only Japanese - cuisine.
The fish was nice and fresh. Whatever we tried was really tasty.
Quickly popped in for a meal.
Great ramen and dumplings. Sushi was also really good.
The waitresses were literally running to ensure they were able to attend to the tables.
Well worth it.
Very authentic feeling sushi place. Great quality and sized portions of sushi at affordable prices. They had Gluten free soy sauce, which I needed and appreciated.
The owner told us they just moved to this location on October 1, 2022. The environment was very clean and nice. I would recommend giving them a try.
Fantastic Ramen. Super tasty and loaded with green onion, sprouts and cha Sui slices.
Must say after living in Asia for 20+ years I was sceptical about finding good Ramen in Joburg. However pleasantly surprised.
Staff were great too. Will come back again.
Delicious food,great service and lovely atmosphere. Will definitely be back again. I had the Lunchbox (a) which consisted of a miso soup, gyoza, spring roll, fried chicken, stir-fried veg and rice. Everything was devine. My husband had the bento box and also everything he ate, was super yummy and packed with flavour. The food makes every cent so worth it.
We visited Yamato as all the other restaurants in the Arch were jam packed during the Christmas light event and I must say I am so glad that it turned out that way 😃😃
As a lover of all things related to Asian cuisine, this was an absolute gem of a find. We had a few dishes: Sho-Yu ramen, tempura prawn, noodles and others and each of them were cooked to perfection. I’ve been after a proper ramen for ages and this hit the craving properly. You’ve earned a permanent patron. I will definitely be back soon.
Wow, what a great restaurant! There is a very extensive menu and the food was absolutely fantastic.
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