QQ Sushi Train

First time… last time. Gross. Bad service and bad food. Shumai watery and cold. Shrimp tempura roll was loaded with lettuce???
Table next to me ordered a Michelob and was told oh we just ran out! Lol. 3 tables in the place. Seriously? Just ran out? Was there a run on Michelob before we arrived?
So glad we didn’t do the all you can eat.
Supposedly the menu was 40% off yet for 2 miso soup, shumai, edamame… shrimp tempura roll and a California roll it was still $ 20. So this is what you get for almost $ 40 normally?
I generally don’t review places unless it’s good but this place is one you should avoid.

Sucks from start to finish.
Forgot our drinks
Edamame was mushy
Miso cold with no flavor
Shumai was cold and watery
Sushi rolls unimpressive and made with lettuce
Not a real «sushi train» just pictures of food going round in circles
Never asked how our food was, had she I would tell her instead of posting this review
Yuck, never again

I hate to waste a meal, especially an indulgence (what some people call a cheat), and QQ was a real disappointment.
— smiling service, tough to catch to get, say, utensils. Slow, and it was 3-​ish on a Saturday — not peak time.
— green tea: oversteeped and bitter. Opened the pot and found it half full of leaves. How do you mess up green tea? Also, water disappeared for a refill and came back about 10 mins later.
— nigiri: slivers of bland fish on mediocre rice balls.
— rolls: fat crab sticks (cheap, as they are made of corn starch and other cheap carbs) but nothing else about them was generous. Bland.
— revolving: or not. Cards on plates, not actual sushi.
— atmosphere: jade green booths don’t match the whimsical wall colors and parasols (cute!) — spoiled by obnoxious music and too many screens. (I hate screens in restaurants — why do we need food spoiled by constant distraction?)
Go to Sachiko or any of the other halfway decent sushi spots instead.

I finally decide to try this place after hearing about it, so my experience is pretty bad. I took one roll off the belt and it has been sitting around probably for at least 3 hours, I told the manager I didn’t want it and to order off the menu bad move also. The sushi quality is one of the worst I have ever had. This place is very slow and I don’t think any of the food is fresh won’t be back

Tonight was my third and last visit to QQ Sushi Train. Let me set the stage – It’s 8PM, I’m hungry, and just want to read my book while eating sushi. I arrived, as the only patron in the restaurant, and was promptly seated. Two servers were on the floor and two sushi chefs were behind the counter. My drink order was taken and the last time I saw my server was when the drinks were delivered. I filled out my sushi order, no server. I got up and gave it to the sushi chef. About 10 minutes later, the sushi bell rings, once, twice and then a different server drops off my food. I’m out of tea, I need spicy mayo because there is no gluten free soy sauce, and I asked for no crunch in my roll and all I got was crunch. I eat one of the rolls. I fill out my sheet for another order. No server. I spent 37 minutes in this restaurant and finally, after one very expensive roll, tossed a $ 20 on the table and walked out. As I was leaving one of the servers started to follow me – I told her I left the cash on the table but hadn’t seen my server for 20 minutes. I can get great service at so many restaurants in Tucson… I won’t be back.

I couldn’t wait to try this spot. I frequent QQ near the University and had heard a new location was opening.
Turns out that the two QQs in Tucson aren’t even owned by the same person.
Anyway, the service was pretty good, but the food was… well, not that great.
First thing to know: while the sushi does rotate here, the majority of the offerings are going to be ordered off the menu. What is profoundly aggravating is that the placards on the belt do not correspond with the food offerings the majority of the time. Ugh.
Also, I saw the same plates full of California rolls, edamame, pot stickers and seaweed salad rotating the entire time I was there. Selections are sparse. I did try a roll from the belt, but found that it was not very fresh. I also ordered the kani salad, but it was drowning in mayo. I opted at that point to order everything from the menu.
Another thing: dinner is offered at an all you can eat rate of nearly $ 20. This can be confusing for newcomers, especially since the general method at rotating sushi restaurants is that you pay per plate. Nope.
Going for the salmon, tuna and mackerel, I found that the flavor was flat. And they did not offer ikura. But the presentation on sashimi and other dishes looks to be grand and lovely. Still, sadly, I left tremendously underwhelmed.

They got the concept all wrong. Not worth the money or the time.
A typical revolving sushi bar will allow you to pick and choose what sushi you want and pay only for what you take. This «all-​you-​can-​eat» concept took us completely off guard. Way too expensive for the mediocre quality.
Plus, there was NO SUSHI ON THE CONVEYOR BELT. Instead, they had «hot» Chinese foods revolving around (getting cold and mushy in the process). Instead, we had to order the sushi. We then had to wait 20 minutes to receive our sushi, which was over-​the-​top presentation.
The edamame wasn’t fresh, the dumplings were mushy, the siew mai was lukewarm, the scallops had too much mayonnaise (or mayo tasting ingredient), and the sushi took too long to make.
In the end, we were very worried about having to pay an extra fee of $ 0.50 per piece because it was too unappetizing to eat.
We won’t be returning and I would not recommend.

Sushi was completely disappointing, and nasty! You go in, they don’t give you an option to opt out of all you can eat buffet ($ 17.95 adult) and it is .50 for each peace you don’t finish. You can’t even take it home. It’s a lose lose, because you will not like the sushi and you will not want to eat it. Service took quite a while. They have revolving sushi bar and you can grab it from your table, but even the appetizers are completely disappointing. Food had a weird funky smell to it too! I walked out of there feeling disgusted and sick! I wouldn’t recommend it whatsoever, coming from me who is a huge sushi lover. You will be let down. Wish I could give it no stars.

DON’T DO IT. RUN, SAVE YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY.
Now that I have your attention, please read.
As I am sitting here typing this, I am hoping that I don’t spontaneously throw up or spend the next 12 hours on a toilet. This restaurant took an awesome concept that is widely popular in many parts of the country and throughout the world, and totally botched it in every way possible. I am almost certain the people who run this place used to run a Chinese buffet that charges $ 8.00-$ 12.00 for all you can eat that comes with «sushi», but only this time, it’s the same quality «sushi» that they put it on a belt and charge you 18 bucks for «all you can eat».
Lets start with the ambience. It looks exactly like a Chinese buffet, but this time, with a conveyer belt wiggled in between. The plates they use have colors that are nauseating, bright pink, orange, green, etc. It really makes the food look extra appetizing (sarcasm)! They got lazy with the graphics and used index cards to label the food, with incorrect spelling. lovely. If you like evergreen colored walls with tacky decorations, come enjoy it. Half the restaurant is blocked off (waiting for expansion I assume, which I doubt is going to happen).
Food: or I should say, «food». Most of what you will be eating comes out of a can, followed by a jar. Kimchi lacked flavor, it was luke-​warm (no good). Calimari reeked of ammonia. Gyoza was dry. Nothing came with the sauces they should. I started out with a California roll, to avoid the canned and jarred items. At first I thought I was eating something with squid in it because it was very chewy, it turns out it was the avocado. What kind of avocado has a rubbery, chewy texture? I am not familiar with this exotic type of avocado.
On to the highlight of my night, the «sushi». I’ll keep it short. Salmon smelled fishy, tasted slimy and obviously not fresh nor should be considered sashimi grade. Squid: it looked like plastic, felt like rubber, smelled like chemicals and bleach (honestly.) I always loved squid sushi after this I might have to wait a couple of weeks until reattempting, I will go to Sushi on Oracle to regain my love for sushi. Octopus: it was bitter and dry. I only ordered a few dishes before calling it quits to head next door to chipotle. On the plus side, the presentation of the sushi is pretty interesting, your sushi might come with a pot of glowing flowers or like, huge leafs and other interesting toys, aweesome!
service: if you’ve ever been to a Asian-​style/​Chinese buffet, that’s the exact same service you will get.
In all honesty, there is so much potential. They spent so much money getting the conveyer belt why not complete the picture with some decent food? I’m sure people would pay good money for it. I hope the owners take note of what people are saying and make some MAJOR changes soon.
This is probably futile, but! if anyone from management cares, here are some tips from the bottom of my heart:
1. redecorate. simple sometimes is better.
2. get rid of the ugly colored plates. they decrease the value of your restaurant and your food
3. seriously get some higher quality sushi, and everything else
4. remake your sushi list because it is crooked and smudgy. because little things matter.
Here are links to what a real, well managed revolving sushi restaurant should be like: (yet they still get some negative reviews, picky Unilocalers)
happy sushi-​ing Tucson.

Wow, this place is great, so glad we finally have an awesome AYCE sushi place near us. Was a little disappointed when our favorite Chinese buffet that used to be in this location closed down, but this more than makes up for it.
First off, it’s an incredible deal at only $ 13 for lunch and $ 18 for dinner, and even cheaper now while they have a 30% off grand opening special. We paid under $ 30 for lunch for two with drinks and I almost felt like I was stealing with how much I ate.
Pretty good selection of interesting rolls to choose from off a list, with more available for dinner, and lots of good appetizers like dumplings, crab and seaweed salad going by on a conveyor belt.
Only minor complaint was that the sushi rice wasn’t quite right so the rolls fell apart, but that just meant you could eat less rice and more of the good stuff. Yum!

Be warned — this sushi restaurant is Chinese owned. I don’t have anything against Chinese, but the people here seem unclear on the concept of conveyor belt sushi (which I’ve had in Japan, Portland, and San Francisco). There wasn’t a lot of food going around on the belt, and I arrived at 6:30 on a Thursday night. It was confusing and disappointing. All you can eat for $ 17.95, but when I was there, customers were offered a 30% discount. It wasn’t clear whether ordering off the menu was included in the all you and eat deal. No slices of raw fish on the belt, but the chefs were preparing big plates of sushi for other customers who ordered off the menu. The seaweed salad was room temperature and bland — it should be cold and briny. A bit too much fake crab in the rolls. The best plate was actually the dumplings… which isn’t exactly sushi.
Advice: There are plenty of sushi restaurants in Tucson. The best and most authentic is Ginza. It’s way northeast, but well worth the drive.

When we walked in, there was no greeting. Only a couple of tables were occupied. The revolving sushi was interesting, but there didn’t seem to be many options.
After a couple of minutes, a woman showed us to a booth. I inquired about the happy hour, which had been featured on stories about the restaurant, and the woman quickly said there was no happy hour.
So, I showed her the photo about the restaurant on my phone where it stated «Happy Hour Promotion — Daily 3:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. — Discounts included: Appetizers, sushi and drinks.» One of the articles also stated: «Each option sits on a plate whose color identifies the price. Items on a pink plate are $ 1.75, purple is $ 2.25, green is $ 3.25, blue is $ 4.25 and red is $ 5.25. What makes it even more fun is that during happy hour, which runs Monday through Thursday from 3pm-​5pm, a special color, or combination of colors, is chosen for the $ 0.99 happy hour special plate.»
She said I was wrong and that they only offered an all-​you-​can-​eat option for $ 17.95.
I’m sure once this place closes in a few months, they can offer seminars on how to alienate customers. Until then, we won’t be dining here, and I’ll be spreading my aggressive word-​of-​mouth campaign against Sushi Train.

The food was awesome and the service was fantastic. Carol was so nice and the other servers did a great job explaining to us how the ordering system worked. Plus, everything for $ 17.95 at dinner? A rarity in Tucson: quality and quantity.
The concept is slightly different from the revolving sushi places I’m used to, but it didn’t take away from the experience as the ladies were quick and attentive.
EDIT ⁹⁄₂₀₁₅:
I have been forced to reduce my review from 5 stars to 4 stars. I recommended QQ Sushi Train to friends after going and they had quite a negative experience: comparable to many of the other negative reviews already posted which consist of a lack of service and lack of understanding of the system. During my experience, I did inquire about how it worked while my friends chose to stay quiet, but their main complaint was even getting attention in order to ask a question.
Therefore, due to inconsistency, I am lowering my score. I hope that in the future, I can augment it back to where it should be.

So I was extremely hesitant to come to rotating sushi bar in Tucson but I really have to say… this place didn’t disappoint. They had a really eclectic mix of different sushi variety from mango sushi to sweet potato rolls they had it all. I really liked hat also included in the all you can rotating sushi you could also get other variations from a menu of preselected sushi’s!!!
Will be back for more.

We were excited to try this new sushi place. It was bad from the moment we walked through the door. Smelt like bad fish in the entry way. We sat and watched the conveyer belt move around but they were out of or didn’t have much on the belt. The waitress said she was sorry but they had been busy that day. Nothing on that belt looked good and I’m not sure how long all of it had been on the belt unrefrigerated. We ended up having just a drink and leaving. Won’t be back.

Just drove across town to go there yesterday and they had taken down the 30% off sign and had a sign up that said «Closed for mechanical problems »

Love the idea of the conveyer belt sushi. I’ve been to a few in CA and WA and now having it in my city is what’s enjoyable. They offer different types of rolls, full menu of Nigiri and sashimi, as well as traditional Japanese food such as teriyaki chicken, steak and udon noodles. With the conveyer belt you just grab which rolls sounds appetizing and what your eyes desire which is pretty convenient. Each plate comes with an average of 4 pieces which allows you to try all the different types of rolls without looking at a menu for what’s in it or a picture they love to provide at some places. Came to dine in and hour before close so some of the better rolls weren’t rotating when we got there. Perk is they did allow us to order which rolls we wanted that they didn’t have on the belt. It was good sushi but I’m sure at a busier time it would of been that much better! They do offer Happy Hour Mon-​Thurs from 3pm-​5pm with rolls starting at .99 cents. Really hope this place will strive and continue serving sushi with this concept.

A bit disappointed when we entered the restaurant. Looks like the owner wants to utilize the furniture from China Star (the old Chinese buffet that used to locate right here) but don’t know what to do with the furniture just yet. A section of booths that clearly were the old settings from the buffet were still there. This place seems to be not fully remodeled for their new type of business.
Kaiten-​zushi (conveyor belt sushi) is not considered a high-​end fancy restaurant in Japan. This place, however, set their price even higher than the other regular Japanese restaurants in town. The price ranges from $ 1.75– $ 5.25 each plate. They offer 30% off until the end of August 2015, which would be a more reasonable price in my opinion.
The rolls and nigiri sushi were not too bad. For the raw fish, we only tried salmon sashimi. Not very fresh. We also ordered vegetable yaki udon from the menu. It’s not bad. The waiter did not provide us any menu. I had to go to the cashier to retrieve one. We’ve been to several other conveyor belt sushi restaurants so we know what to expect and how it works. Being the first of its kind in Tucson, I do agree with other people’s comments that the restaurant should explain a bit more to those who never been to this restaurant before.

First one of its kind in Tucson that I know of, sort of a cool concept but that fade relatively quickly. Portions are on the small side and overall taste was ok, however service is lacking. We sat down at our table without a menu, with any idea how things worked, we were left to figure it out ourselves. The décor is nice and concept is new for Tucson but this will not be my go too place for sushi, I don’t think I can say with any confidence that I will be back, maybe just one more time in a few months and hope that they got their act together.

I waited a long time for what has turned out to be a largely disappointing experience. This location used to be China star, a run-​of-​the-​mill Chinese buffet. I was very hopeful that the construction would transform it into something wonderful. The results however, are underwhelming. The addition of a bar and a conveyor belt carrying sushi appear tacked on. The restaurant essentially looks the same. When we sat down here, we were never given a menu, or explained how the sushi train works. We actually had to flag down a waitress to bring us drinks and plates. The idea of pulling sushi off a conveyor belt and eating it is at first very novel. Shortly though, it is evident that the sushi is overpriced, in very small portions, and only of average quality. I would like to add, that I wonder how safe eating raw fish that has been sitting on a conveyor belt, not being refrigerated is.