⭐️

I almost never leave negative reviews, but unfortunately I feel like I need to share my experience this time.

This was my first time trying Yakiya, and I specifically chose to come here to celebrate my birthday. It was also my first time trying Dine LA, so I was genuinely excited about the experience.

From the beginning, though, I noticed that the service and treatment my table received felt noticeably different from the table right next to us. At the time, I decided to let it go. I didn’t want one disappointing service experience to ruin my birthday dinner, and I normally don’t write negative reviews.

However, what happened afterward completely changed my mind.

My dinner receipt was $171.21. I personally wrote in a $22.79 tip, making the final total $194.00, and signed the receipt.

A couple of days later, I checked my credit card and saw that Yakiya had posted a charge of $365.95.

I have photos of my original signed receipt clearly showing:

Food + tax: $171.21
Tip: $22.79
Total authorized: $194.00

But my card was charged $365.95, which is $171.95 more than the total I authorized.

I have now had to dispute the $171.95 difference with my credit card company.

I originally wasn’t going to leave a negative review even though I was disappointed with the service. But seeing a $365.95 charge after I clearly signed for $194.00 is something I cannot overlook.

This was supposed to be a special birthday dinner and my first Dine LA experience. Unfortunately, it turned into an experience where I now have to spend my time dealing with a credit card dispute.

I’m sharing this because this is exactly what happened during my visit, and I have kept the signed receipt and credit card transaction record documenting the amounts.

My family and I came by for lunch to celebrate my mom’s birthday. We managed to snag a 1pm reservation, and while it seemed like availability was a bit difficult to find on Resy, the place was pretty empty when we arrived around 1pm on a Saturday, with just a few other tables there. The restaurant has a very refined and elegant aesthetic (very Japandi vibes) with plenty of spacious seating.

We all ordered the yakiniku set, which comes at $78 pp (before tax/tip). It comes with 3 courses of appetizers, 5 courses of meats, a fried rice dish, and a nice dessert. My favourite appetiser was the beef tartare, which was fresh and perfectly seasoned and came with a very tasty chip. The salad and chawanmushi were also yummy too.

All the courses of beef were so delicious — they were so tender and flavourful, and it was lovely seeing them get cooked to a perfect degree right in front of us. It’s hard to pick a favourite cut, but I really liked the harami cut (so juicy, just melted in our mouths) and the ribeye, which had a solid and savoury depth to it.

The wagyu garlic rice was very tasty, and even though it looked a bit oily/heavy at first, I think it was actually quite a nice complement to the richer flavours of the beef courses. The wagyu was delicious (as always).

There was also a hidden course of a small bowl of radish soup, which was an excellent palate cleanser before our dessert, which was a scoop of lemon sorbet with some minty/basil flavouring.

All in all, it was a very lovely experience with amazing food, service, and ambience. The price point is definitely on a high side, but certainly worth a splurge 🙂 Would love to come back again someday.