Tag: Japanese

Sushi & Salad 3 – This is how you do customer service!

It was that time of year again – My wife’s birthday. Sushi & Salad is one of our favourite restaurants and we come here every year without fail (more often than not, we come here several times a year). We have reviewed it time and time again explaining why we love it so much but I was a little anxious tonight, as I was not sure whether there was anything left to say on this visit other than “it’s still awesome”.

Luckily, Sushi & Salad gave us another example as to why it is one of the top restaurants in Cambridgeshire that perfectly demonstrates why we keep coming back. Tonight, there was a lesson on how to maintain unparalleled customer service and keep long term customers returning.

Brazilian style Japanese sushi

Even the best restaurants will have an off night or the occasional error. Those of you who say that they don’t are quite frankly lying. It is impossible to run a restaurant for several years without the occasional problem or technical issue, though it isn’t the ability to avoid problems which define a restaurant but how they handle it which makes the difference.

During our latest visit, we placed our order with the team and continued to chat while our food was being prepared. Sushi & Salad make a point of making their dishes fresh to order, so we were aware that their orders can take longer than some other restaurants (and for good reason). After 50 minutes nothing came, yet we had noticed that 3 other tables had gotten food before us despite arriving after.

Avocado

We brought this to the staff’s attention who decided to look into why this was. It turned out that our order had been lost in the computer system which communicated with the kitchen (let this be a lesson in always communicating with the restaurant). Naturally, the staff were mortified and apologised profusely. Not only did they rectify and problem promptly but also gave us a bottle of wine on the house (and a deduction in our bill). This was entirely unprompted by us and initiated by the staff team. Wow! No muss, no fuss!

Naturally, the food was to their usual high standard and came out shortly afterwards. The white wine is simply excellent and was perfectly suited to sushi; being crisp, light, and zesty.

Error aside, the meal was another outstanding success. This is and always will be one of the top restaurants in Cambridgeshire. Make sure to try their Spicy Crunch and Crunch rolls. Even during my tour of Japan I had never found anything I have enjoyed this much (which is a bold statement, I know!). Needless to say, we will be back!

Have you had any examples of top quality customer service? Have you had any nightmare customer service experiences in Cambridgeshire? Let us know in the Cambridge Foodies Facebook group.

Thanks for reading!

Sushi & Salad – Ely

I’ve been saying this for years but Ely has been in desperate need of a sushi joint.

Before Sushi & Salad opened we would have to trek all the way to Mildenhall or Cambridge for our foodie fix. That nightmare is now over as Ely is dragged into the 21st century. Not only have we finally caught up but it appears that we have been rewarded for our patients with a sushi joint which completely knocks it out of the park!

In my time I’ve travelled across mainland Japan and hit every sushi place in Cambridge. I am confident in saying that not only does Sushi & Salad keep up with everywhere I tried in Japan but actually beats everywhere I’ve been in Cambridge too!

Hard to imagine for a place that size of a small town, right?

The restaurant is small but pleasant and intimate. You get that feeling that you are sitting in a quirky Japanese living room with a bar.

The customer service here is top notch. The gentleman serving us was engaging and kept us in the loop with what was going on with the food. When we came to order, they explained that because everything was made fresh that it may take a while to come out. A little communication here goes a long way in my opinion. It didn’t feel like we were sat here getting frustrated and wondering why we were waiting. My wife and I just sat back, relaxed, and took in the surroundings.

This is not a place for a quick meal but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. If you are looking for a quicker experience then they also do take away’s which can be phoned in to collect. That way you can collect immediately then go enjoy your food in front of the cathedral or river side.

One of the best things about the Salad & Sushi experience is that it is located in one of Ely’s historic alleyways. With the outside seating you can sit and people watch as the world goes by. Sitting here felt like the closest thing I have had to a holiday since before the pandemic and it was absolutely lovely.

There was unfortunately no beer on tap and there was only 330ml beers available. Disappointing, especially since they weren’t far off a fiver for each bottle but we did get a selection of authentic Japanese beers, which was good.

All the food we had was simply out of this world. I couldn’t put my finger on what made it so special until it clicked. With Sushi & Salad it’s all about the texture. It really made the food pop in your mouth and the sauces really complimented the flavour. I honestly thought I could go on and on without stopping. Some places you can find sushi a little dry but here the succulent texture was the best I’ve had in a long time.

This really helped with the presentation too. Everything from the serving platters and the plates were authentic Japanese designs. This with the excellent preparation of the food made it really pop on arrival. As they say, the first bite is with the eye.

Unfortunately however, the food had to come to an end and we settled the bill. For three of us the bill was a respectable amount. They’ve really serve Ely well and I’m please to say that the wheelchair access is also great too. This is something which can be a problem for places in historic centres but the entrance has a flat floor so it’s accessible for everyone!

I really cannot recommend this place enough. I would suggest booking a table in advance as the venue is small and can get full quickly but if you manage to get a table you are rewarded with an atmospheric, intimate and very personal restaurant run by attentive friendly staff who are very responsive to your needs.

Please make sure you check them out as any Sushi fan is going to love it!

Website: https://www.sushiandsalad.com/

Phone: 01353 659 932