Masa Japanese Restaurant

I was one of the first customers who walked through the doors of Masa when it opened nearly three years ago and I really enjoyed my experience.  Intially, it was a friendly and well serviced restaurant and I returned many times, with many friends.  However, recently I was charged for my usual request of extra curry sauce (the chef does not provide enough to cover the rice) and the staff were not very attentive or friendly like beforre.  Secondly, they have recently added Foi gras to the menu which is a cruel practice that I cannot support.  A lot of the vegetarian food is tasty however, if these things don't matter to you.  

The food was ok but the service was terrible. Trying to catch the attention of a waitress was near impossible (and there were loads of them and it was not busy!) It was also freezing inside. They were trying to set up some new bought little bar heaters but they barley took the edge off the chill.

Rather overpriced for what you get.

We had our Xmas staff party here on Friday 17th 2010- though most of us had never had Japanese food before every dish was enjoyed down to the last morsel. They exceeded everyone's expectations and the service was great.

We went to Masa with my 7 year old boy for his birthday. He took his Japanese friend and we all like sushi. We chose the tepanyaki style cooking (in front of you) and it was a great night for the kids. It's not a cheap option, we spent around £75.00 between 2 adults and 3 children, but the cooking spectacle & flames were great and the chef flicked bits of omlette into the children's mouths. We all had a great time and the food tasted delicious. If your kids enjoy a meal with a difference, I would highly recommend this restaurant! We would definitely go again!

Five of us had dinner at Masa last evening. Everything was more or less ok but nothing spectacular. Three of us had a set menu and the others ordered a la carte; this seemed to cause them timing difficulties with when food was brought to our table. They also had some difficulty dealing with recommending dairy free options which we thought a little strange for this style of cuisine. Service was adequate but at the end it slow going getting the bill sorted. I wouldn't recommend against Masa, but next time we want Japanese we'll test out one of the other options.

I'm not going to pretend to be a sushi afficionado but tried this place due to the fact that Yo Sushi!was rammed on saturday lunchtime. This place was empty when we arrived, not a great sign, but by the time we left the place was a third full - a mix of western and oriental faces too. I had the miso soup which for something I'd never had before - was delicious. We then tucked into 20 pieces of sushi and sashimi (actual raw tuna and salmon) served on a minature boat like wooden boat - weird but top marks on presentation. I don't know if the staff were actually Japanese, but we left happy and satisfied.

When I was first made aware of Masa I ventured in with my wife, it was early and mostly empty…However! WOW…For the last 10 weeks I have missed one Saturday only. Each time I have been in with between 4 and 10 different friends and have never been let down. The food is fantastic (please ask for chef called Pang) he is the best I have ever met and I have eaten all over the world!! Ask for James (the boss) and he will make sure you are looked after properly, show the staff respect and you will in turn be respected to the highest level. One more thing…Masa also stock the finest Yamazaki Single Malt Whisky…What more can you ask for?? Go on, give it a go, you will not be dissapointed…

Sushi: Vinegar rice has a little bit too strong taste but fish is great! No smelly, good variety, nice display. Price is about £4 each (2kan). Unagi is tasty.
Soup noodle: Too weak taste. The soup was more like for Udon. I wish it will be changed.

I didn’t expect that much because when I get inside the restaurant, BGM was somewhere asian and chef and stuff are probably chinese. But the meal exceeded WAY MORE than my first expectation.

Miso soup was sweet but my husband liked it. Gyoza was lovely with sweet sauce. (maybe chinese sweet sauce) This japanese restaurant is the first place where I want to come back.

I was excited about the prospect of having an authentic japanese meal and I must say it’s nothing like how I expected. I went to the restaurant with 5 friends and we had various dishes which I tried most of and they were all very dissapointing. Even the rice was cooked badly. Tempura was too big and greasy. Sushi wasn’t great even though I got one of the most expensive one. The only half decent dish was the curry?! It was more like chinese food dressed as Japanese. I would not recommend going here at all.

Very impressed. Authentic, Japanese staff, nice atmosphere, excellent fish. Feels like I’m back in Japan.

I have been twice and will definitely be back. Only drawback is eating too much ;)

My husband and I decided to give this place a try, though we are big fans of Obentos. The staff were very attentive (maybe they saw the reviews which said otherwise) and everything we ordered was so fresh and lovely! The sushi was some of the best we’ve had and the portion size was generous of the main meals. I have the feeling we will be going back soon!

Masa is good, and I can tell you that it is certainly better than Obento.

Good service, full marks.
The staff try harder than most, so I think the review below is either unfair, or out of date. Don’t attempt your Japanese language on these guys though, they are Chinese….not that it matters.

Oh and the sashimi is good, but the rice could be better.

Wow. What a breath of fresh air. Its about time Bristol got a truly authentic Japanese restaurant. The food was fantastic and the service was impecable. This is definately going to be a favourite of mine.

Decor = 8/10
Food = 7.5/10
Service = Agonizingly rubbish

Service was terrible, with my order not taken down the first time round then, taken down wrong the other two times I re-ordered!

Sadly a big disappointment! Had it not been for the confused and incompetent server I think I’d have most certainly enjoyed my Masa experience.