Yamato Japanese Restaurant in Rotorua

Delicious and fresh food. Love it very much.

Authentic Japanese food with real Japanese chefs preparing the meals. Small and no frills shop with counter seating. Good variety of foods.

Fantastic. All there is to be said

Best sushi in NZ I believe. The sushi master is making it in front of you with the most beautiful cuts of salmon and chicken. Tune menu is what you'd expect but the simplicity is great! I ordered the bento lunch box and it was filling enough but we added on a sushi plate to share - recommend!

Everything with joyful taste. I tasted the best tuna maki here. Service polite and helpful.

Food was fantastic, authentic Japanese and staff were extremely helpful. Would definitely come back

taste so nice! staff all friendly

The best Japanese in town - and authentic! For people like me, who frown on mayo drizzle on shushi and too sweet teriyaki, Yamato is heavenly. Tried lunch bento this time - sushi, sashimi, Saba and fish salad - wonderful, as always.

Best sushi in Rotorua, real Japanese experience!

The fish and seafood are all very fresh. However we found the rice bowls lacked Japanese rice like authentic Japanese food. Overall fresh food but lacks authenticity.

We were craving for some Asian food when we spotted Yamato. The lunch set on offer was value-for-money, as we could order 4 dishes from the various categories, and the set is served with a bowl of miso soup.Temperature of the food was inadequate. The udon noodles and miso soup was served luke warm, instead of piping hot as I expected, based on my experience from the many authentic Japanese restaurants I have patronised.The fried fish cake could have been better, and chicken karage was very different from what I have had before. The sashimi was excellent though, as well as the egg salad.The hot sake was excellent, and perfect for warming us up in the cold weather. Service was impeccable as we can expect from the Japanese.I would definitely give this place another try, but perhaps ordering more of the raw food, sushi, and other dishes.

I’m reviewing this restaurant as we are finishing up our meal because it is that awesome. The fish was super fresh and the sashimi was one of the best I’ve ever had. The staff are lovely and I really loved sitting at the bar top watching the chef prepare the fish!!! Will be back!

You must be doing something right if you have been here for 20 years! Their food were very good, authentic and high quality, made by Japanese and hosted by Japanese. The sashimi on the Chirashi was beautifully presented and very fresh. We enjoyed our lunch here very much.

Very busy restaurant but we managed to get our seats at the bar counter. Loved the sushi and sashimi very much.

Amazing restaurant. We ordered what felt like every thing off the menu, and nothing disappointed. Delish food.We decided to catch up one weekend and wanted to go somewhere a bit different. We choose Yamato Japanese Restaurant. It was a excellent choice. When we arrived (at 7.00 pm) the restaurant was very busy.

Long wait and dishes came over a long period. They were packed out and the dishes were very good and beautifully presented. I will go again without hesitation. The lunch specials were excellent. The dishes was very fresh and generous. Staff were running the whole time.

Sushi was so good, remind me of being back in Japan! Other dishes on the menu were very good too. Highly recommended!

The best Japanese restaurant I had in nz. Very authentic where fresh ingredients are prepared in front of you by the chef. The nigiri sushi are made with room temperature rice and super fresh fish. Soooooo good!

The taste of the food was good. The fish and salmon (sashimi) were very fresh and good. But if you came on the dinner time, it takes quite long until the food come. They always full. Originally Japanese

Oh loved my meal here as always. Was fully booked out for dinner but still found some space for me and enjoyed our food.

One of the best Japanese restaurant in Rotorua. Nice staff and beautiful food.

Very tasty Japanese food in Rotorua. Booking is essential. Because it is very full.

Lovely food, beautifully presented and the sashimi was very, very fresh. Staff were extremely helpful & friendly. We sat up at the preparation counter and watched the chefs create sushi rolls. A pleasant and relaxing atmosphere.

Visited on a Tuesday night (closed on Mondays), restaurant was quite busy so the service wasn’t as good as it could have been. Whilst sitting at the counter noticed frozen scallops and prepackaged ginger being used so not the freshest ingredients there but the sashimi was great. Decent if you happen to be craving Japanese cuisine.

Great service with great authentic Japanese ambianceVariety of food availableLunch menu is great source.Good customer serviceMust visit spot if you like Japanese food

Sashimi was really fresh. Didn't expect this before our visiting. We also had nigirin platter, Miso soup, tempura, salmon rolls, fried squid (or octopus) and takoyaki. Everything was good. Will recommend this place for sure.

The food and experience are authentic and delicious. We went for lunch and got the lunch special. I found that it’s taste and presentation reminded me of my time living in Japan. That was exactly what I look for in a Japanese restaurant. I highly recommended this restaurant.

Fantastic FRESH shashimi made right in front of us and delicious - you must sit at the bar for the best experience!

Lovely place, staff great, bbq whole squid amazing, really nicely made and presented food. Gets busy , so have to book during school holidays.

Entrance door was very weird, was covered with a banner, not very welcoming for me. Booked in for dinner, lucky to have available seats as I’ve heard they usually get busy. Food in general tasted nice, I just didn’t like their Takoyaki. It was very soggy. Their sashimi was fresh as well as the salmon sushi. The place was alright with Japanese music playing which suits the vibe. One order got served to the next table yet they tried to serve it to us yet it was already very late. Disgusting as we weren’t asked if we still wanted it or not. Also, when you pay and someone rings to make an order, you have to wait literally a couple of minutes until the lady at the counter finishes in order for you to pay. Waited approximately 10minutes for that. The lady told me their phone system is connected with their payment terminal. Too bad, I had an unpleasant experience.

I am having a different opinion to the most reviewers, although the sashimi themselves are definitely fresh, the sauce used in the donburi doesn't taste as typical as what you would find in Japanese streets. I guess something has to change to adapt to the local culture here in NZ.

I was having the tempura udon and it was the best!! They took a while to prepare the food, but that's all for your tongue. They're really friendly towards us, the music and the lighting is good.

One of two of my favourite traditional Japanese restaurants in New Zealand. Drove 5 hours for it. Think about that.. not too long, then come here for a delightful feast. 食べ物をありがとう

Amazing food at a very reasonable price. Won't be able to eat such quality food at this price in Auckland I must say! Sashimi and sushi done in front of you, with a back kitchen. Authentic Japanese cuisine, cooked and served by Japanese people. It's not a big restaurant, so ideally you'd need to book a table in order to get a seating. The only downside of this restaurant is actually one, they don't use nice chopsticks but takeaway ones - and two, they don't make ramen but only udon.

Friendly staff. Great food. Not many vegetarian options. I ordered salad roll. It was very good.

Good, authentic, Japanese fare at very reasonable prices

Nice place to eat lunch and dinner. All the people are hard working. So satisfied with the service and food. Will visit the next trip

Authentic Japanese food, and service. And very well priced!

Very nice food cooked perfectly and the fish was fresh

Lovely friendly staff. Delicious bento box - you create your own. Great value for money

An unexpected gem. Great quality, we had a feast.

This was our third visit to this restaurant which was firmly established as our go-to food outlet when dining in Rotorua. The Sashimi was lovely and fresh but we wouldn't order the tempura again. The dish consisted of 1 prawn, 3 slices of kumera[ 2 types] and a small piece of broccoli for $16 which I thought was a bit on the nose. We would still go back though.

Great taste but expensive than food quality

Delicious food. We went here 2 nights in a row because it was so good :) would highly recommend!

I absolutely love this place. I go all the time. I was so pleased to find out that they had Beef takaki available normally they have sold of it. Everything was delicious and perfect as always. Thank you

A nice restaurant that was quite popular at dinner time. Grab a seat at the sushi bar yo watch the chef. Teriyaki bowl was just alright but the such rolls are great here. Big, fresh, and tasty!

Food was great, made me feel like I was back in Japan. Wait times were a little longer than I'd like, but they were full house and post COVID so I can't really blame them. My service was still great. Will definitely return

Did not expect much when we entered but was surprised by the quality of the food and fast service. The Saba was particularly delicious and the sashimi platter was fresh and well prepared as it should be. Prices were also very reasonable.We have a lot of good casual Japanese restaurants back at home and this one compares to the best of them. If I'm ever in Rotorua in the future, I will definitely remember to visit this gem again.

Please don't miss this place out!!!! Huge fat freshly made in front of you ROLLS. Genuine, traditional way of making sushi. The chefs are amazing and the price reasonable! Not the kind of sushi place where you leave empty pocketed and still hungry! Huge thumbs up for these Japanese guys! You rock!!

Sushi and meals here are very authentic. The salmon sashimi is so fresh and it’s just melting in your mouth! Will come back to try other dishes.