Stopped in during our road trip. I was impressed by their gluten-free options. The Kung Pao chicken was excellent, we ordered one to-go. Server was Vaden, super friendly dude.
We normally love Kemuri and have long trusted it as a safe place to eat gluten- and dairy-free without incident, but today we had an uncharacteristic experience that I feel needs to be shared.
We had a reservation for 8:00, and when we arrived the restaurant was full except our table and very busy. We were seated on time for our reservation and our waiter quickly came to take our order, but everything after that went a bit sideways. We knew what we wanted when we sat down - edamame and a gluten- and dairy-free Kemuri Platter - and ordered when the waiter came by to get our drink order. He was up front with us about not knowing much about what ingredients are and aren’t gluten free but made sure to note it on our order and told us he would trust us to tell him if something wasn’t right.
It took over 30 minutes just to get our edamame, and around an hour to get the platter. When the platter arrived, there was tamago nigiri on the plate, and the two rolls had multiple ingredients containing gluten (tempura, eel sauce, and crabstick), which we did not catch until I took a bite of one. Our waiter didn’t come back for a while after, so eventually we each took a turn to try to go find him to no avail. When he did come back, we let him know about the rolls, and he immediately informed the manager. The manager came to our table and was very apologetic, pointed out that the tamago was also not gluten free, and said she would have the head sushi chef remake our rolls. The new rolls came out very quickly, but were obviously very hastily thrown together. One was filled with so much cucumber that it was comical - there were some pieces of the roll that had double the cucumber compared to the amount of fish. One of the rolls also came on a bed of seaweed salad, which is not gluten free. We were given two extra pieces of nigiri as well, which we appreciated, but my wife could only safely eat one of the rolls due to the cross contact with the seaweed salad. We had been there far over an hour by that point and just decided not to worry about it a second time, and I ate the roll she couldn’t eat.
At the end of the meal, we expected to maybe have something taken off the bill for the inconvenience, but ended up paying in full. It didn’t feel worth arguing over the price of the bill after everything. I also want to note that we noted on the reservation that it was our anniversary, and it was not acknowledged at all - no one asked if we were there for a special occasion or anything and did not mention the anniversary part of the reservation. We did not leave feeling good about our visit or future visits to the restaurant during busy times.
The title of best sushi place in town tends to move around. Just when I think I've found it, I have several experiences that make me change my mind. But , with that in mind, I think this is the best sushi place in town currently. It was a good atmosphere, and the server was exceptionally good (though he was also tending bar, so his focus was a little split and a little slow to fill drinks, so I took a star for that), and the sushi was excellent. Some places you go, if you don't have the soy and wasabi, you don't really want the sushi. Or maybe the contents are too loose and fall apart, or the fish is almost soggy. None of these are the case here. I always try without the soy sauce first, and each of the four roles totally stood on their own with proper flavor and held together with and had excellent mouth feel.
A note for those that do use soy: they don't have soy sauce here. They have Tamari. If you look it up, you'll be tempted to think that it's just gluten free soy sauce, and you'd be a little right, but mostly wrong. It has a much stronger and richer flavor, with less of that soy salt. But be warned: a little dab will do you. If you're going to use it, just dap the corner of your roll in it. It's delicious, but it's potent.
I will also not that it's a bit pricey as well. We got two basic roles (10ish) and two mid range specialty rolls (20ish), and we came to a little over sixty dollars before tip. But that's not outside the range of what I expect for sushi today. Just know that going in.
All told, it was a fun place with excellent food, and I recommend it.
Samu is my family’s favorite habachi/sushi restaurant! Fish is always fresh, beer is always cold, and smiles are always given! Super tender steaks, juicy chicken, and perfectly seared salmon for your habachi!! Let’s not forget about their vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free options! There is truly something for everyone to enjoy! I would definitely recommend Samu to anyone looking for a new favorite place to get their bellies full!
400 N Bowman Rd Suite #28, Little Rock, AR 72211, USA
Gluten-free options
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Dodge Cowart
Staff knew what Gluten Free options were available and were able to help me select a new dish to try. The food was really good. I had never had Thai before and they said Pad Thai was a good option. I really liked it and will be back!
The service was excellent. The manager was so friendly. The sushi was fantastic. I tried the Rocky mountain roll with no crunchy and they carry gluten free soy sauce. My 7 year old ordered hibachi and loved it but also ended up eating his own little tuna roll.
IN LOVE with the metalhead roll! The server is so nice! They have gluten free soy sauce. And all the rolls are customizable. So you can take out the cream cheese or whatever if you can’t have it. I wouldn’t go here if you’re looking for a traditional roll. They’re all rock ‘n’ roll themed.(obviously)
Nice comfortable, laid back atmosphere. Food was very good. Sushi (spicy tuna roll) was pretty good and the rice egg bowl was very good and a large portion. I’ll be going back to try other dishes. It would be nice if the menu specified which dishes were gluten free.
Excellent sushi and hibachi . Plenty of food and options. Amazing price for the quality and amount of food you get. Service was fast . Servers are sooo nice ! Restaurant and restrooms are extremely clean ! Gluten free options if you talk to your server!
Celiac friendly
