First, the restaurant itself is subpar. The interior looks like it could be any cuisine. It just felt dirty and worn. Now this could be forgiven had the food and service been exceptional. I have had excellent food in places that are 'dives', but Haruki is an all around dive.
The service was abysmal. Me and my wife waited too long for drinks, and the appetizer which we ordered with the drink came 13 minutes after the drinks (20 minutes in total). I then was never offered a refill, instead having to ask for it despite my glass sitting empty well after our meal had arrived.
The food left much to be desired. We ordered Gyoza, which were floating in soy sauce. This is bad for a panfried dish, especially in a salty liquid that just leeched into the meal. It transformed the dumplings into salty and soggy messes. Then we shared a bowl of Udon, which tasted like mass-produced noodles in a broth which should not have been served. Our main dish followed, and was small and somewhat unappetizing. The sushi and sashimi served with the main course were decent, but the rest of the dish was too small and tasted like something served at Applebees.
We then paid much more than it was worth, and left still hungry. Japanese food is expensive, but there are much better options that offer better food for much less. And service should only be mentioned if it is poor, because that can affect a meal much more than the cooking.
We visited the primary location in Cranston, though there are different locations throughout Rhode Island. They also have a website, except upon posting this Google has warned me that the website could harm my computer. I'm going to post it anyways in case the malware ever is removed. It's nice to see the website perfectly tell you what the restaurant is like.
www.harukisushi.com
Rating: D
