Wagamama

I really do like Wagamama for a quick and easy lunch/​dinner without fuss. I usually have the same meal over and over again, yeah I know! :) I’ve tried a couple of dishes though and THAT’s why I stick to my teryaki salmon! I’ve had the «spicy itame» with beef as well and I am not sure if it was my taste buds, but this dish was only spicy without any distinct flavor. Anyway, I love their teriyaki dishes, gyozas and their house ice-​tea! They’re usually quite quick with seating, taking the orders and bringing the meals. I am sure this teriyaki salmon is not the «healthiest» as I saw the cook pouring the «white» sugar into the pan, but whenever I have to choose a rather quick meal, I go for wagamama. The stores I’ve been to so far are clean and staff is usually quite attentive. It doesn’t have a «restaurant» feeling though, maybe that’s why I am not expecting too much.

For some reason I’ve always had high expectations of Wagamama, but of late have always been disappointed. Perhaps I’m ordering the wrong things these days (noodles), perhaps I should stick to the rice dishes!

We waited for about 15 minutes with our menus closed, before anyone approached us to take our order.
The food was alright. My bro-​in-​law ordered the appetisers, and I probably would have been more adventurous, but oh well. We had the duck gyoza, and the sweet potato kusabi. I couldn’t even taste the wasabi in the mayo.
I was only able to eat about a third of my kare lomen, but no one came by to check on us, therefore I just left it. I hate waiting for service, about as much as I hate wasting food.

A friend repeatedly insisted I come here. Now that I finally have, I can say I feel almost indifferent about the place.
After having it so hyped up, obviously the experience was going to be a let-​down. However, standing on its own merits, Wagamama was by no means a stellar experience. I found the idea of circling menu choices with pencils a little pretentious, and because we had quite a large party confusion brewed. For about 15 minutes I heard, «Where’s my pen?», «What am I supposed to do?» and «Where’s so-and-so’s sheet?» «What sheet?» and the like. I guess it was a conversation-​filler.
We decided to all order different dishes and sample each other’s food. I found a great diversity between the delicious and the awful. However, in uniform fashion, each meal serving was very small. And as expensive as Wagamama’s is, it’s not the upmarket experience associated with tiny servings.
I found the whole night «OK». Our party overstuffed our table, so that people were sitting right up against each other, making things somewhat awkward. Somehow the distraction of funky décor couldn’t quite mask this.

I had my doubts when I first had Wagamama. I thought… this menu might be a bit fancy and I wonder if the pencilled in numbers with circles drawn around them on my paper placemat is legit… I wonder if they will remember what I ordered. Sure enough… they did. The waiters sit down next to you to order… a little bit… casual? Apparently this is the new trend for fancy places. Paper placemats and casual waiters with t-​shirts on.
While the atmosphere was a strange assortment of casual but trendy restauranteers, and the environment left my friends and I somewhat baffled in a good way, the food did not disappoint.
While I was very happy to order a few entrees and some rice to go with them, my friends dove right in to order the noodle soups, and fancy fried rice. The mains are a bit expensive (the Wagamama philosophy says ‘value for money’) but the environment is very chic.
Not the most romantic dinner or lunch setting because strangers get seated next to you on large long buffet like tables… but it is worth a visit.