Martini Blu

02/27/2008 Posted by tandc

This place used to be a favorite of mine years ago… seems as if business has drastically slowed down and the crowd is much older now. I met up w/friends for happy hour and the place was dead. There was not even music on to ease the silence. We sat at the sushi bar and the most annoying thing was that the woman who was working at the sushi bar could not speak/understand english!! (I have nothing against people with english as their second language as I am too an a woman w/a native tongue but that was just ridiculous) She took our orders 3 times and it still came out wrong. Fortunately, someone else finally came out to tend the sushi bar and all mistakes were corrected but it was still a nuisance. We had a couple rolls off the happy hour menu (prices are excellent) and a couple off the regular menu but it just wasn't as great as I remembered. The sushi chef was also able to make us an off menu item which was fried hamachi. Sadly to say, that was the only highlight of the night.

Pros: Great prices on happy hour!

Cons: All but the above and the hamachi kama.

10/30/2007 Posted by frizzipunk

Pros: The sushi is pretty good, the sushi chefs are nice and theyre fun to watch, the presentation of the sushi is cool, the restaurant has a cool design to it. Cons: I went here twice, both times it took way too long for me to get poured a glass of water and there was barely any other tables occupied. I also wasnt offered the hot towel to wipe my hands with but I watched other people around me get offered that, including 2 guys that were about to leave at the other end of the sushi bar. No one checked on me a couple minutes after I started eating to see if the food was alright. I actually ordered something different than what I wanted - if they checked on me and said they would fix it even though it was my mistake that would have really made a great impression. I ran out of water half way through my meal and no one was around for me to get more, then my waiter was about to walk right past me without saying a thing or asking if i wanted more water and i had to stop him to ask! no one asked if i wanted dessert. owner (i think) came up to me and thanked me for coming - the idea is nice, but it was random and didnt seem geniune as I watched him do the same acted out thing to another couple. he could improve by making small talk, especially with me as i was alone. If you want sushi, try origami or nami - street level places with much more attention!

Pros: delicious sushi

Cons: poor experience over all

10/07/2007 Posted by homer21

I called Sunday afternoon (10/07/2007) and made a reservation for 8 to go to the "All you can eat" sushi sunday at martini blu. When we arrived the reservation was non-existent. Luckily we only had 5 show up, so were able to get seated at a small crowded table. We were not even offered the pre-sushi appetizers (Miso soup and edamame). We asked about them twice and didn't get them. Finally, well after the sushi arrived, we got the soup and edamame. The waiter didn't even notice that one of the soup bowls had a hole in it and was leaking all over the table and onto the leg of one of my friends. At that point, we just focused on sushi and asked to order a second plate. Took about 45 minutes to get the second plate of sushi. We were all joking that sure, it’s all you can eat, but you can't get any so it really doesn’t matter. We later asked for a 3rd plate (there were 5 of us...) to wrap things up, and that took another 45 minutes. When we went to pay, we asked the waiter to put dollar amounts on 3 different credit cards. He said there's no way he could remember and told us we needed to write it down for him. Overall, it took 2.5 hours just to have dinner and eat 3 plates of sushi. Sushi was good (not great), but speed, service, and attention to detail is definitely lacking at this place. The place is trying to be upscale, but is severely lacking the characteristics of an upscale restaurant. Bottom line is that I won’t be back, neither will the 4 people I took there for the first time. The owner needs to know this is a very poor way to run a restaurant and build a customer base. I had been here before, and also had very slow service, but figured it was because we had a large party (8 people). This is not the case – I really believe they purposely serve slow so you can’t really eat all you want unless you really want to waste hours of time sitting there waiting.

Pros: average sushi

Cons: sloooow, service with ZERO attention to detail

01/03/2007 Posted by jillnjojo

I was sadly disappointed with my experience at Martini Blu.. I've been in much nicer restaurants with better food and atmosphere which can support those type of prices. The food and ambiance do not warrant the prices they're asking. My date's dinner was oddly over-cooked, yet cold. I had sushi and although I enjoyed it, it was not superior to any sushi restaurant in town. I also felt the menu was odd...a weird mix of sushi selections yet heavily weighted in beef entrees. I do have to say that my martini, as well as the potsticker app were excellent.

Pros: good martinis

Cons: way too expensive

11/03/2006 Posted by ljsrobb

Martini Blu has an excellent seleciton of martinis and is reasonably priced during happy hour. They have a DJ who spins, and the ambeience is fun and happening. This is a fun place for after work happy hour.

09/14/2006 Posted by kklive

This place is dead- no people anywhere to be found! My coworkers and I stopped after work for their happy hour & it was nothing like what the review said it would be. There were no young corporate types or hipsters and we didnt see a dance floor or a DJ??? As far as happy hour prices go- not very happy. They had a few $6-$8 (very) small plates and that was it. The drink specials were all $5. I should have known better- its in a hotel and thats about the only crowd it draws- people who stay there and want to grab a fast drink due to convenience and lack of knowledge about the city. Their tuna rolls were excellent but that was about it. Im not going back due to the lack of people and the prices.

Pros: Sushi

Cons: Lifeless, Value, & Location

06/05/2006 Posted by underhill81

All the reviews I've been reading say this is the place to see and be seen. My friend and I decided to go here on Saturday night thinking it would be fun. There were maybe 5 people in the whole place and when we asked the bartender about it he said there wouldn't be much more going on than what we saw at that moment. Since we had already valet-ed the car we decided to stay for a couple drinks and figure out what our next spot was going to be. The bartender was very nice. He made us some fabulous martinis. My personal favorite was the banana split martini. Despite the good drinks ($8-$10 each) it was not enough to keep us there all night. We were very disappointed that we were lead to believe this was a busy downtown lounge with lots to see. We will not return.

Pros: Great martinis, Friendly bartender

Cons: Over priced, Empty

02/26/2006 Posted by mikempls

Absolutely fantactic! The sushi is 2nd to none! Very well prepared and very fresh. The calamari is the best that I have ever had. The Head Chef - Gary, even came to our table to inquire as to our satisfaction.....a definite PLUS in my book. The martinis are great......I can catch myself hanging out there LONNNNGGGG after happy hour. The ambiance is spectacular with all the dimmly lit blu lights. The best hotel bar that I have ever been to. Although the music get's a bit loud late night - it is expected as the DJ is right there on the floor spinning great sounds. I will be back there with plenty of friends time after time.

Pros: Great atmosphere, great food

02/07/2006 Posted by jtk5

Only go if you like cream cheese and strawberry "sushi"!

09/09/2005 Posted by fiestyg

My husband and I went there for a 'date' since we both love sushi and martinis. To our surprize we were misguided by the reviews on the net about the place. We read how great of a place it was and decided to try it. I have had sushi in many different cities before and there was nothing new on the menu that was invigorating. It was over priced and not really fulfilling. There was hardly anybody there for dinner on a Sat. nite....so hopefully that says it all. Our waiter had no clue what half of the stuff on the menu meant and couldn't provide us with any assistance. The bar was dead and the crowd was thinning. So in short it gives a wrong perception of the place. The time of the place is OVERRRRR!!! It must have been the coolest place on the block but not anymore.

Pros: Nice ambience

Cons: No energy, No value for money