Sono: Raleigh’s Sushi Nazi?

There is a Seinfeld character called the Soup Nazi. Whose soup is so good there is a line out the door everyday. Customers have to follow a certain protocol or they are kicked out with no soup. A reader pointed out a story on the Consumerist about Sono that didn’t sound too different. There are plenty of sushi places in Raleigh that beat it on value and decor; Sono has to differentiate based on service and in my experience it’s pretty average. Apparently the service can be way worse than average though; Sono seems to be really pissed if you don’t follow protocol:

requiring a credit card to make the reservation, then charging $20 per person who doesn’t show up—but still refusing to seat an incomplete party. When Matthew tried to get his party of ten seated without two of the people—basically saying he’d pay the $40 to get out of the bar and at a table—management refused. We think this restaurant doesn’t like its patrons very much.

Read Matthew’s Full Story on the Consumerist.

VaNC04/15 03:16 PM

We were there Saturday night. I agree that this place is subpar. It seemed very much a place for the younger crowd who wanted to seem hip eating sushi. Almost all their rolls contained fried something…which I don’t really consider sushi, and all their speciality drinks were WAY sweet! The service was fast, but ditsy…although we were there early before a show and there weren’t many people there. I can not wait til Waraji opens a more traditional sushi bar downtown.

Ladye Jane04/15 03:49 PM

Well as a New Raleigh reader you are automatically both young and hip- don’t need Sono for that. I think Sushi Blues does a much better job of reaching that group anyway.

VaNC04/15 03:59 PM

Ha! I passed young a long time ago, but it is good to know that I still qualify as hip!

Funny you should mention Sushi Blues, cause when I checked out the menu at Sono the first thing I thought was….“oh, this place is another Sushi Blues…just a little fancier” Sushi Blues and Mura both seem to specialize in “sushi” filled with fried stuff.

Deb04/15 05:30 PM

The only time I’ve been in Sono so far was for a free wine tasting last Friday. There weren’t very many people in there (around 6:00 pm) and we weren’t persuaded by their menu to stay and have dinner there. Honestly, it seemed a little too pretentious to me (much like Mura). More of a place to be seen. It’s not encouraging to hear that the customer service is so tyrannical!

VaNC, I have heard from a reliable source that the downtown version of Waraji is going to focus more on “contemporary Japanese” food. I am not sure exactly what that means, and we will have to wait until early June to find out!

VaNC04/15 05:40 PM

I had heard that Masa was planning on expanding the Waraji menu to include more entree type items, not pure sushi. I am looking forward to it.

For me, right now, in addition to Waraji, the best sushi place is Haru, the new small place in Glenwood Village Sh. Center. No fancy rolls with fried stuff and asparagus, just really fresh fish.

Leo04/15 06:32 PM

FYI, Sono and Mura are owned by the same gentlemen. I also think it is the same guy that opened Pi bar (then Maanjri lounge) on Hillsborough St. After talking with him, it sounds like he opened Sono just to get in on the “downtown buzz”.

Just thought I’d throw that info out there. I’m not a fan of any sushi place. (and don’t want to be hip, lol)

VaNC04/15 06:37 PM

But its so hip to be hip!

the dude04/16 04:03 PM

Of all the places I’ve tried, and that’s no small list (though I haven’t tried Sono), Shiki Sushi near Southpoint is far and away the best I’ve had in terms of quality (great sushi and huge menu of rolls), service, and price (they have buy one get one free all day, every day). It’s not in a hip downtown spot, but in a strip mall, but if what interests you more is what I mentioned, you’ve got to try.

S McDonald04/16 06:13 PM

Haven’t tried Sono, but if it’s like Mura, they fry/cover their sushi to hide the (bad) taste from subpar fish. I have found a new place at Glenwood Village that has them beat hands-down. If you haven’t tried them, check out Haru. And try some sashimi (the fatty tuna and fatty Salmon will give you a real idea of how good their product selection is). We eat there at least once a week, and often 3 or 4 times. So maybe I’ll see you there!

VaNC04/16 06:15 PM

As noted above, I agree with your assessment of Haru..and it has the best ginger in town too. I just don’t understand the idea of putting fried stuff in sushi!

Baron04/17 01:54 PM

I also found the service at Sono to be terrible. I had about 10 ounces of beer spilled on me by the waitress and didnt even receive an apology. All I remember her saying was “Are you OK?“ No comped drink, appetizer, desert, etc. Later someone ordered Sake and then the waitress wasnt seen for ten minutes and she claimed she had not forgotten the Sake, but would check to see what the wait was. (I beleive the wait was for her to ask someone to pour the Sake, since their was only about en other people in the whole place.)
I enjoy Sushi, but certainly not an expert. I thought the food was good enough. The atmosphere just seemed to be trying a little too hard.

seekthesummit04/17 02:31 PM

I made reservations with a group of friends to eat at Sono with no problem and no credit card requirement. We had one less person show up than the reservation was for and there were no questions asked.

As for ‘the dude’s’ comment about Shiki being great - it is. However, you have to drive OTB to get there and who wants to do that? I’d rather walk to Sono and pay for two rolls than drive to dirty durham to buy one get one free. If you’re ever in that area though take ‘the dude’s’ advice and give it a try.

japan04/17 03:26 PM

I go to Sono about twice a week, with my clients, wife, friends, and co-workers. It has always far-exceeded my expectations

Mark04/17 04:57 PM

Biscuitville ain’t got jack shit on Biscuit Station.

David04/17 05:53 PM

Least. Expectations. Evar.

Ann04/22 06:23 PM

I’ve been to Mura dozens of times and have spoken with the staff dozens of times. The fish there is fresh. If you don’t like sushi with sauce, don’t order it-it’s right there on the menu, you know it’s coming like that. I’ve also been to Sono and had an amazing experience. In the restaurant business some nights are good, some are bad, you have to accept that or cook for yourself. As for Shiki Sushi, I’ve been there once and hated it-the wait time was 30 minutes longer than they said (on a Monday) and the sushi was “sub-par” as people like to say. Oh, and when I ordered a simple well drink they brought out some fancy martini-as if my vodka and juice could have been confused with anything else. But hey, I only went there one time, if they keep getting good business there’s no way everyone has my experience. When you go to a new place, enter with a positive outlook and if they truly let you down in various ways, be glad you found out for yourself, and just go elsewhere. If everything is excellent, TIP YOUR SERVERS WELL! You can be sure a good server will remember you and do everything they can to get that good tip again.

carrie04/23 12:10 AM

I think the sushi at Sono is good but I agree that the service is lacking. I have been there twice and service at the sushi bar was great. I went there for lunch and my lunch date received his meal about 20 minutes before I received mine so needless to say he was finished as I was beginning my meal. I never got an apology or anything comped as well which I thought was deserved. Hold tight, Waraji is coming soon!

J04/25 06:52 PM

As for the article written by Mathew he failed to mention he actually never spoke to a manager and also never spoke to his server about the bad hostess and bartender. As for his 20 person party he also failed to mention he was never charged for missing people. The company has never once charged reservations that didn’t show or that were missing people. Lastly if he had such a bad time then why didn’t he contact the manager of the restaurant. He instead decided to use the one place where he knew he could get hundreds of naysayers…the internet.

But then again don’t believe everything you read so do or don’t bother to read this as fact. I’m sure out of the thousand + people that have been to the restaurant since its opened, I’m sure there were a few bad experiences. If it were perfect then it would be fake.

-J

Nick05/01 07:11 PM

I’m glad I’m not the only one who didn’t like Sono. I paid $15 for a “sashimi” lunch that had 3 pieces of seared tuna and 2 pieces of tofu as part of the 12 piece dish. Then they charged $2 for a side of rice I didn’t even ask for.

The best sushi in Raleigh is at Waraji. I’m glad they’re coming downtown soon.

The best sushi in the triangle is Akai Hana in Carrboro, hands down.

Willy Chase10/01 01:55 PM

SONO is awesome and I think most of the people on here are wrong. The sushi is great and the atmosphere feels more urban than anywhere else in Raleigh. Waraji???? No way. Outside of the Mary Roll, that place was severely overpriced for the quality.

nicole11/01 04:15 PM

We go to Sono at least once a week. Food is always incredible and the staff has always been pleasant.

Tony11/19 12:09 PM

What you people complaining about not getting sat with an incomplete party and getting charged no-show fees dont understand, is that when a restaurant takes a reservation for a large table, they have to turn away reservations for several other small tables, which on average spend more money then one large table. They also may have to turn away a reservation for another large table to accommodate you. Unfortunately, its not polite to ask if your 15 top table is going to be a Big Swinging Dick, exotic fish ordering, $100 a bottle sake drinking business function or a bunch of hick asses from the country gathering for a birthday party where half of everyone is going to split an entree or just get a California roll and water. Bottom line; Real estate in the form of a table in a restaurant is valuable, and the establishment needs to make sure they are getting all they can get out of it, which is hard to do when inconsiderate SOBs book a party for 10, 15, or 20, and then half the people show up.
And by the way, speaking as someone who has worked in sushi joints all over, unfortunately, the fried s$!t sells. Whats funny is people on this website complaining about it. You either like rolls, or you like the slabs of raw stuff(Where you can taste the fine nuances of each fish in its purest form;Raw). If you only like the rolls and not the sashimi, don’t act like your better then the California roll eating hicks or Frat boys who are just there to look hip. Your not. Until you eat the sea-urchin gonads or a 1oz slab of Escolar, your just a douch to complain about the content of the ‘rolls’.

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David Tuesday, April 15, 2008