Yama 49

I’ve been here twice, and I do really like their generous portions, their ambience (comfy seating, and soothing décor), and friendly service. However, on both occasions, I ordered salmon sashimi, and both times, my stomach left feeling unsettled. That is enough of a sign that I should not return for a third time, but who knows?

My boyfriend and I came here on a Friday night because the reviews looked solid, and the prices were reasonable. The ambience and décor is very nice, and the place itself looks upscale. The restaurant is bigger than the front lends it to seem, so fortunately, we were seated as soon as we arrived (without reservations).
Service: 3 stars
The service was average. The hostess and servers weren’t particularly rude, but they weren’t welcoming either. It would have been nice to give a smile or two, but to be fair, we don’t know what kind of day they may have had. It’s not like I always have a smile on my face at work either.
Food: 2 stars
We ordered the hotate butter ($ 9.75), sushi and sashimi for two ($ 65), and the tempura green tea ice cream ($ 8.75). The hotate butter was too salty and lacked depth. The butter nor garlic stood out in the sauce with the scallops and asparagus. Then came the sushi and sashimi. I mentioned earlier that the restaurant looks upscale, so I assumed (although I shouldn’t have) we would get high quality fish as well. The sushi pieces were very rubbery, and the sashimi did not taste fresh at all. My boyfriend will eat many things without complaint and never likes to waste food, but I was shocked to see that even he didn’t have the will to finish the whole plate. Fortunately for Yama 49, their tempura green tea ice cream saved the meal and earned a star back. The green tea ice cream wasn’t too sweet, and you can definitely taste the green tea. The tempura coating was crisp and not soggy at all.
Overall, the largest disappointment is the quality of the sushi/​sashimi. I would have given 2 or even 3 stars if the prices were commensurate to the quality of the food. But as it stands, we spent $ 100+ (including tax and tip), and we were really disappointed walking out of the restaurant with less-​than-​satisfied stomachs for the price we paid.
I don’t normally give Unilocal reviews, but I couldn’t help thinking about how much I spent for such low quality fish. Hopefully, this helps other people make a well-​informed decision when choosing a sushi restaurant in Midtown East.

I don’t know how this place gets 4 stars, it’s pretty awful. They charge extra to roll sushi roll with rice outside, $ 1 per roll, who does that? But then, I have to give them credit, they do put a lot of rice for your buck. In fact so much you can’t even see your main ingredients. Don’t go there. Quality is very low.

The best sushi I’ve ever had! I no long live in New York and dream about going back there. The number 5 roll is amazing. The fish is so fresh and the portions are huge!

It’s a very good place to have sushi, prices are not that bad, standard I would say. Our host was very friendly and our server was phenomenal. Sushi was great and the special rolls were awesome and huge

The «no shellfish» is amazing!

Came here for a quick lunch with my colleague and it actually surprised me from the upside. The 15 dollar lunch special combo — with eight pieces of sashimi, four sushi and numerous avocado/​salmon rolls was for sure the best bargain. We could easily share it without going for a second order! Not even to mention the freshness of the fish meat and the high quality of rice.
Inside décor was also very much intimate and relaxing. Our waiter always came by and did the refill. I could see my Japanese dining here — a side evidence that this place was indeed solid!

I LOVE this place. My boyfriend and I come here occasionally because it’s little expensive. I only get sushi, the sushi pieces are really big, fish is always fresh and service is great. I definitely recommend it.

Hello friends, I am writing review to issue a warning. You may be lucky to leave this place alive.
The grim faced Sushi man with the pencil mustache, became so angry when I commented on his ill conceived Sushi that he started nervously fiddling with his knife filling me with fear he was going to jump over this counter and slice me up into some sashimi.
I should have taken notice when we ordered a fried oyster appetizer only to discover that what we got was a tiny oyster the size of a grape surrounded by an object that looked like the tongue of your running shoes, a four inch mass of disgustingly deep fried Panko flour. My friend Alma, a wizened New Yorker told the waitress, «this is horrible, take it off the bill.»
The source of my real dissatisfaction with Yamma however was that it has corrupted the 5 century old tradition of Sushi making based on the crass commerical desire to be able to charge exhorbitant New York prices to naïve American customers.
I am speaking in particular of the Maki they have on the menu which sell for as much as $ 13 to $ 15 dollars each. Actually they don’t call them Maki, but «rolls.» Most of the «rolls,» contain a very small amount of fish, wrapped in a huge round of rice, covered with a thick circle of cucumber which obscures the subtle flavor of the fish to a point of tastelessness
The «logs» are almost as thick as the fake fire place rolls, you can buy in the supermarket when the real thing is not available. The problem is that if you take one bite of them the whole log falls apart in your plate leaving you with a mass of gunk to contend with.
The only alternative you have is to try to put the whole thing in your mouth wide enough to eat the whole Maki which will you will look like a member of the African Ubangee tribe with a saucer like object crammed in your mouth, the jungle mating decoration of choice,
It was when I spoke to the sushi man about this that they began to stare me down, and raising his knife, as if to give me a clear warning «Don’t tell me, tell the manager.» My response was I just told you.” He said, «Don’t tell me tell the manager» again and againto which I replied, I just did again, I backed off because I was afraid he was going to become violent at any moment
In fairness to the Sushi man, perhaps what he was saying is that he had been instructed by management to make the logs this way. BTW there was no manager to talked to, just some young female waitresses who made a failed effort to feign Japanese politeness.

I found the restaurant well planned, good services and great food. Very fresh and well selected fish.

Victim of its own success. I had dinner on a weeknight and it was packed. The service was kind but also slow and, frankly, sloppy. I ate alone so sat at the sushi bar, an area where every customer seemed to feel neglected. I ordered sake but it never arrived (except on my bill); I had to flag three people down to request my initial bill. It took about 10 minutes and an additional request to get my corrected bill; the server was very apologetic and nice about it though.
The sushi ordering menu isn’t anything new but it was different enough to confuse me; I ordered King of Crab Sushi without knowing how much or in what form it’d be served. Special Roll #3 was good.
The décor is great; even the entry way is luxurious and makes good use of the space. Yama 49 is probably an amazing restaurant, but my specific experience was lacking a lot of that grandeur.

Did I just find a sushi spot to go to for lunch around work?
$ 15 for 8 pieces of quality sashimi, salmon and green onion handroll, tuna and cucumber sushi rolls, and 5 pieces of sushi?!
I think I just did. See you tomorrow Yama!

I was pleasantly surprised by Yama, even from first impressions of walking in. Due to it being busy lunch hour, I was accustomed to those rushed sushi «restaurants» with rickety tables and expedited service. Yama, however, has a beautiful interior with comfy booths and mood lighting. One would expect the price to match such great ambiance, but it actually is on par with most sushi lunch specials.
The portions are also quite generous, which is rare for a sushi establishment. Last of all, the fish is very fresh and delicious. I will definitely return to Yama for my sushi needs.

One of the best places to have sushi. The restaurant is gorgeous with excellent service. The food is beyond amazing. Very clean bathrooms and nice interiors. I came here for a date one night and it’s spectacular. Good date spot too.

I’ve walked past this place for years as I park on this block, not realizing it was open for lunch. When I finally took the plunge, I regretted not trying it sooner.
We started with shrimp shumai, vegetable gyoza and hamachi kama.
The shumai were the usual Japanese version, but plumper and more savory. I think a lot of the restaurants serve pre-​made ones, these were clearly fait maison. The vegetable gyoza were tasty and fairly greaseless. Hamachi kama arrived as two chunks, nicely salted and really tasty, although I think I have had a better bone to fish ratio. The only issue was timing, it arrived after our mains.
We all went with the sushi/​sashimi special, which was something of a bargain at $ 16.95. Some nice nigiri sushi, a tuna roll, an avocado roll, and nine slices of sashimi. Quality was certainly above average for a midtown lunch special. The center of the box held a sesame dressing. This fish would be worthy of the fresh grated wasabi.

I’m so surprised it took me this long to discover Yama! It is barely half a block away from home and such a great sushi restaurant!
My wife stumbled upon it during one of her exploratory walks, and we decided to go there last week. The décor is really upscale and the restaurant is so spacious. really unlike 99% of the sushi restaurants I have been to.
I am not particularly a connoisseur of sushi, but to me the fish tasted very fresh and the shumai was very tasty.
Overall, this is a great restaurant. Slightly on the pricey side, but to me, totally worth it!

Beautiful décor, good service and amazing fish. This is my 2^nd time here and I am a fan! Delicious sushi and these portions are HUGE. I repeat portions are HUGE!!! Highly recommend!

Really nice neighborhood sushi restaurant in midtown east. Came here on a Saturday night and was promptly seated without a reservation (wasnt that busy for some reason). We ordered the sushi & sashimi for two and it was a terrific choice. Plenty of food for two and good variety. The sashimi is cut thicker and larger than what Im used to but it was still good quality fish! Really enjoyed the fish roe as well.
Clean restaurant, moderately priced, had a good experience here!

One of the better mid-​priced sushi restaurants in the area that is clean and spacious (plenty of room for a stroller!). Large booth tables across from the sushi bar make up the front area, with tables in the back area. Typical stuff on the menu with lots of different types of rolls. Their soft shell crab appetizer is always a win.

Nous nous sommes rendus à ce restaurant hier soir et ce fut l’un des meilleurs restaurants à NY auquel il m’a été donné d’aller. Il nous a été indiquée par une amie, car endroit est assez caché et il est très facile de passer devant sans vraiment le voir.
J’ai commandé un bento (le special du soir) avec sashimi, maki, nigiri et soupe miso. Le saké est délicieux, prenez la carafe! Les maki sont gros et ont un bon goût. Mes préfères étaient les sashimis qui étaient incroyablement tendres. Les nigiri étaient aussi très réussis. C’était cependant assez cher. Par contre, je né regrette absolument pas car pour 16 $ on a des sushis d’une qualité imbattable!
Je recommande aussi l’atmosphère du restaurant, très cosy surtout pour le dîner.

Solid sushi restauraunt in midtown, slightly hidden on 49^th street, could use a better sign.
Nice ambiance, communal table in the middle as well as tables and booths.
You order the sushi by ordering on paper! Great special rolls, highly recommend the 2, 5, and 7. Spicy tuna is ammazing. Fish tastes so fresh! Always do inside out and rice is moist and they don’t skimp on the rice!
If you have room for dessert the green tea tempura ice cream is a nice way to end to end the meal and clean your palette.