(212) 387-8885

115 E 18th St
New York, NY 10003 40.7367 -73.9876

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Neighborhoods: Gramercy Park, Midtown, Union Square

BUTAI.US

Last updated 6.15.10

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, Discover, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Business Dining, Romantic Dining, Date Spot, Fine Dining

Cuisine:

Japanese

ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. “romantic Environment,fresh food.”
  2. “Service is average, deco is cool and atmosphere is hot.”
  3. “The atmosphere is great for either a business meeting for clients or a romantic date.”
  4. “My boyfriend & I went here on New Years Eve for a nice romantic dinner before going out for the night.”
  5. “They have a beautiful upstairs with comfortable tables.”
  6. “I've been a regular at Butai for some time and it has always been an amazing blend of food, service and atmosphere.”
  7. “We walked by this restaurant and thought the decor was interesting although the tables were empty.”
  8. “Nice decor, especially upstairs.”
  9. “Nice atmosphere, great for dates, and not too loud.”
  10. “The service was excellent, the food was very good, and the ambiance was trendy but chill.”
  11. “The bar has good ambience and decor, if a little empty”
  12. “We had a great time there - the ambience was excellent and the food was truly exceptional.”
  13. “But I wouldn't do it again at Butai, not unless I was around there and I wanted a nice, dark atmosphere, at a place that's dead quiet at dinner time on a Saturday night!”
  14. “gem in a great location”
drinks
80.0% positive
  1. “really took to the bartender and his dedication to making a good drink.”
  2. “The server got the wine wrong, the order wrong, and the whole experience was incredibly slow.”
  3. “The bar has good ambience and decor, if a little empty”
  4. “Just went by myself, on a Sunday night - sat at the sushi bar and had a great experience - food & service-wise.”
  5. “The food and drinks were good, but what should have been a quick meal took an hour and a half.”
food quality
96.42999649047852% positive
  1. “As for the food, this was some of the best sushi I have ever had & this is coming from someone who eats sushi on a weekly basis.”
  2. “was on a date and wanted a sushi place which doesn't look like a showroom at IKEA, and is not over played like Samba or Haru (which are both great places).”
  3. “We ran up a big bill waiting for food that we couldn't enjoy.”
  4. “If you're more of a sushi person, this restaurant offers a good sushi menu as well.”
  5. “I've been a regular at Butai for some time and it has always been an amazing blend of food, service and atmosphere.”
  6. “the tsukune (chicken meatballs) are perfect, and the lamb chop is amazing.”
  7. “The sushi rolls were amazing, and the grilled meat was apparently amazing as well (I dont eat meat so I didn't have any but my friends CLEANED IT UP).”
  8. “the eggplant with bonito flakes was delicious, too.”
  9. “The service was excellent, the food was very good, and the ambiance was trendy but chill.”
  10. “romantic Environment,fresh food.”
  11. “The service was always bad, the prices were always astronomical and the food was always good- but the last time I went to Butai the management was so awful it ruined the meal.”
  12. “really nice casual hang out place with wonderful modern Japanese food.”
  13. “Just went by myself, on a Sunday night - sat at the sushi bar and had a great experience - food & service-wise.”
  14. “loved the homemade tofu dish and the "lucky bags" especially!”
  15. “The food is so yummy here and the lycee martini, I love!”
  16. “One of the reasons it's great is that you can order many small dishes rather than just one entree.”
  17. “The service was incredible and the food was better (if possible).”
  18. “Amazing robata grill to accompany outstanding sushi”
  19. “The kushi yaki specials are nothing unique but always tasty.”
  20. “I'd recommend the lamb chops as well as the short ribs.”
  21. “As for the food, the grilled skewers were cold, the kalbi was so fatty and tough that we couldn't chew it.”
  22. “Neither if which is true but that it is a place where the staff and management do what they can to help me have an enjoyable meal every time I drop by.”
  23. “The food was really good.”
  24. “This is by far the best sushi I've had.”
  25. “The spicy tuna was so fresh we ordered more when we were STUFFED.”
  26. “The quality is good enough that I have seen sushi chefs from other places in the neighborhood frequent Butai.”
  27. “The lychee martini was great, but the highlights were the various food options - from a melt-in-your-mouth marinated tongue to the surprisingly buttery "grilled" sushi.”
  28. “We had a great time there - the ambience was excellent and the food was truly exceptional.”
  29. “and i agree with others postings here - the sushi chef was very amiable and helpful!”
  30. “There's so many fabulous restaurants in Union Square- give this one a pass in favor of one that serves food with a good attitude.”
  31. “Great experience and food”
  32. “BTW the food seems to take a little longer than you would expect but all in all I think this place is great.”
  33. “absolutely love their skewers and their grilled meats.”
  34. “Really good food”
  35. “went back again last night, and the food once again did not disappoint.”
  36. “It was good sushi, very good.”
  37. “The food and drinks were good, but what should have been a quick meal took an hour and a half.”
  38. “The robata dishes are excellent.”
  39. “Very good salmon.”
  40. “The food was excellent - fresh grilled meat and seafood, and a good sushi selection - but what we really liked was the personable manner of the staff, particularly the chef.”
  41. “and food is fresh ,delicious food, nice people, warm environment.”
  42. “but pretty darn good quality sushi!”
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. “The small, medium, and larger plates presented an appetizing variety of flavors and ingredients and combinations.”
  2. “Not cheap, but you will find some good deals in the robatayaki menu.”
  3. “They made great cocktail and sake recommendations and gave us pleanty of time to read through the menu.”
  4. “The lychee martini was great, but the highlights were the various food options - from a melt-in-your-mouth marinated tongue to the surprisingly buttery "grilled" sushi.”
  5. “The food was excellent - fresh grilled meat and seafood, and a good sushi selection - but what we really liked was the personable manner of the staff, particularly the chef.”
  6. “If you're more of a sushi person, this restaurant offers a good sushi menu as well.”
  7. “The menu was more than sufficient and had some great combinations and rolls.”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “But I wouldn't do it again at Butai, not unless I was around there and I wanted a nice, dark atmosphere, at a place that's dead quiet at dinner time on a Saturday night!”
  2. “really nice casual hang out place with wonderful modern Japanese food.”
  3. “This is a great date place, but not a great place for groups.”
service
75.0% positive
  1. “The service was excellent, the food was very good, and the ambiance was trendy but chill.”
  2. “Just went by myself, on a Sunday night - sat at the sushi bar and had a great experience - food & service-wise.”
  3. “only wish zagat would review this place so more people could enjoy.”
  4. “Amazing how you can get such horrible service in Manhattan.”
  5. “I've been a regular at Butai for some time and it has always been an amazing blend of food, service and atmosphere.”
  6. “The service was always bad, the prices were always astronomical and the food was always good- but the last time I went to Butai the management was so awful it ruined the meal.”
  7. “really took to the bartender and his dedication to making a good drink.”
  8. “and food is fresh ,delicious food, nice people, warm environment.”
  9. “Honestly, the "worst service" review that someone submitted really surprises me!”
  10. “This place has some of the best service that I have experienced in ages.”
  11. “The service was incredible and the food was better (if possible).”
  12. “Yes, there were a lot of people there on Valentine's Day, but I thought the service was excellent.”
  13. “Neither if which is true but that it is a place where the staff and management do what they can to help me have an enjoyable meal every time I drop by.”
  14. “The server got the wine wrong, the order wrong, and the whole experience was incredibly slow.”
  15. “Terrible service”
  16. “The service has been great as well with friendly waiters, waitresses and managers and a nice bartender.”
  17. “From the moment we sat down the entire wait staff was extremely attentive & helpful!”
  18. “The food was excellent - fresh grilled meat and seafood, and a good sushi selection - but what we really liked was the personable manner of the staff, particularly the chef.”
value
58.33000183105469% positive
  1. “All my friends and clients I took for dinners became huge fan of him and his cooking.”
  2. “This is Union Square, it's not the price- its the suffering and punishment factor from management that is surly and incompetent- and apparently the owner likes it this way.”
  3. “Some new fancy fusion places really charge you big bucks, Butai never makes you nervous of your wallet.”
  4. “Not cheap, but you will find some good deals in the robatayaki menu.”
  5. “The service was always bad, the prices were always astronomical and the food was always good- but the last time I went to Butai the management was so awful it ruined the meal.”
  6. “The portions were tiny and it was the most expensive take out we've ordered in 8 years in Manhattan.”
wait time
50.0% positive
  1. “The server got the wine wrong, the order wrong, and the whole experience was incredibly slow.”
  2. “The food and drinks were good, but what should have been a quick meal took an hour and a half.”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

10/28/09

Yummy!

by Jazmine33 at Citysearch

The food is so yummy here and the lycee martini, I love! I also love the fact that they remember your name when you come back second time. Nice decor, especially upstairs. You just have to try!

  • Pros: Food, Decor, Service
  • Cons: None
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/06/09

Great place!

by starwang8888 at Citysearch

Wow I had such a different VDay experience! Yes, there were a lot of people there on Valentine's Day, but I thought the service was excellent. The waitress would come and say "thanks for waiting!" when we literally waited for like 5 minutes for each meal she brought out. I went back again last night, and the food once again did not disappoint. The sushi rolls were amazing, and the grilled meat was apparently amazing as well (I dont eat meat so I didn't have any but my friends CLEANED IT UP). DEFINITELY GO HERE!! For some reason I feel like not many people know about this place, but it is actually quite good. And it's not overly expensive either.

  • Pros: food, ambience, service
  • Cons: not enough people go!
1 Star Rating: Poor

02/15/09

Decent Food, Terrible Service

by MikeWGS at Citysearch

Well, it was Valentine's, so probably a bit busier than a usual night, but seriously. We sat and our order was taken right away. We ordered an appetizer, a few sushi rolls, a tapas sized filet, and some very small skewers. The appetizer came shortly after, and was good... but then the service stopped. Sushi came 45 minutes later, and we were asked if we wanted anything else. How about the rest of the food we ordered, and the drink menu? Our waiter apologized, and came back another 45 minutes later to give us our filet - we never got the drink menu, so he brought it. I asked which sake would be good hot, so we took his bottle suggestion. He came back 15 min later with an ice cold bottle, telling us it's better cold, apparently forgetting he just suggested it to us as one that would be good hot. He did go back and heat it up, then brought our next dish. It was okay, but a little cold, probably because it had been ready for 20 minutes. We still had two tiny plates of skewers coming, and decided to wait it out, because we'd already been there for 2 1/2 hrs...what's a few more minutes. Well, the final 2 bites of our food came yet another 30 minutes later, and was fine. The service made the food irrelevant, though. Many tables came after us, ate more than us, and left well before us...a very frustrating dining experience, to say the least.

  • Pros: Nice atmosphere
  • Cons: Terrible and inattentive service
4 Star Rating: Recommended

02/07/09

$$$!!! but pretty darn good quality sushi!

by scotty9500 at Citysearch

I read all of the reviews before going in, but should have actually *looked* at the prices before ordering. I got a miso soup, 3 yellowtail rolls, an eel avocado roll, and 2 salmon avocado rolls, and finally a piece of toro sushi. My check? $55! That would have been between $10-15 less expensive somewhere else. $8 for an eel roll? But I have to tell you... that was some of the best eel I've ever had. Very good salmon. For the price of the yellowtail though, they should dice it up before rolling it. The place is very dark and swanky, but I was just doing take-out. It was good sushi, very good. But I wouldn't do it again at Butai, not unless I was around there and I wanted a nice, dark atmosphere, at a place that's dead quiet at dinner time on a Saturday night!

  • Pros: Great sushi! Lots of space to sit, as it's not busy at all!
  • Cons: Go broke for good fish.
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

01/02/09

Possibly best sushi I've ever had!

by gap183 at Citysearch

My boyfriend & I went here on New Years Eve for a nice romantic dinner before going out for the night. We had such an amazing time. First of all we messed up our reservation time & got there almost an hour early but the hostess barely even blinked at the mistake and sat us right away anyway! From the moment we sat down the entire wait staff was extremely attentive & helpful! They made great cocktail and sake recommendations and gave us pleanty of time to read through the menu. I highly recommend the Butai Wild Orchid martini. As for the food, this was some of the best sushi I have ever had & this is coming from someone who eats sushi on a weekly basis. It was extremely fresh and flavorful. And their plating was lovely. Based off the reviews here we also got the robato or japanese grilled lamb chops. We went for the tapas dish just in case we didn't like it. But they were fantastic...what a treat! I definitely recommend trying it. Definitely check out Butai...we had such an incredible time & will definitely be back!

  • Pros: Great food, great staff, good drinks
  • Cons: a little too dark to read the menu (we used the candle on the table...) haha

The Details on Butai

Place Categories:

  • really good modern japanese food
  • great date place
  • best good sushi
  • excellent terrible service
  • very inviting manager
  • worst service
  • great experience
  • nice dark atmosphere
  • nice romantic dinner
  • apparently amazing grilled meat
  • warm environment
  • unique kushi yaki specials
  • recommend lamb chop
  • good ambience
  • good drink
  • worst dining experience
  • great waiters
  • extraordinally good personal warm wellthought suggetion
  • great sushi rolls
  • helpful entire wait staff
  • great waitresses
  • extraordinally good cooking
  • nice decor
  • nice more people
  • extraordinally good servise