Zama San Diego

Zama's vibes are immaculate and the food matches the beautiful aesthetic. Thank you to Sara for the amazing service and recommendations on the Zamatini and the roll of the day. Def would come back!

Came back to Zama after being invited by the manager and our experience this time around was great! From the moment we entered we were shown lots of attention from the hostess to servers and busboys to the manager. We had a 3 course meal along with a bottle of Malbec, which went great. Zama is a fusion restaurant of South American and Japanese cousins. Imagine eating lamb chops with sashimi as an appetizer...well we did! Sushi or braised rib as main course? We did. Ambiance at Zama is fantastic. The proprietors did major investment in getting Zama to be fancy, romantic and "sheek" all in one...

We went to Zama for a bachelorette as a group of 6 on a Saturday night and were so excited. The check in was fast and the place was very cute! We loved the decor and although the tables are close together, the music is so loud you can't hear them. The food was not bad, not spectacular but overall little complaints. My short rib was a little too fatty, but everyone else's food was good. The cocktails weren't bad either, we had many margaritas and a few other drinks. The margarita is pleasant, not too sweet. Service is where we had many issues. They do auto- gratuity which we expect for a big group. But we left very disappointed and would have never tipped that much for the service we had. Our waiter was not very personable and it detracted from the experience. I mentioned it was loud but many times during ordering our server snapped that he could not understand us or knew what we were saying, but not even a neutral way, in a cold way. When he first asked about our order one of us did not hear him ask if we were ready to order appetizers and started to order a main dish and he stated that is not what he asked, again in a rude way. He let one of us know that they could make any drinks we wanted while ordering, so because he had taken the paper menu we used the CURRENT online menu and he snapped that they can't make that. He was not friendly and at one point even stepped on one of us and did not acknowledge it. It almost felt like because the auto- gratuity was there he didn't feel he had to give good service. He didn't stop by very much, but we were actually grateful for that. We were there on vacation but visit San Diego often, and would not go back or recommend it.

I was recommend this place by several friends that I know are little foodies. I'll first like to say the staff was absolutely lovely and very nice ! This review has nothing to do with the people that work there but more about the food and drinks . We arrived for our reservations and right away they sat us at the table which was nice, the atmosphere and vibe were definitely something we were looking for going to downtown ! So much funWe order the first round of drinks and yea they weren't very good. They don't know how to make espresso martinis and also the old fashion was beyond beyond a heavy pour and again not mix very well. The food- we ordered a bunch of appetizers and everything those were descent and then the main courses came out , mind you we are a party of 9 people. I ordered the short ribs, and they were very over cooked and you need more than a butter knife to cut through it. My cousin had octopus and that was over cooked and the sushi rolls were not worth the price. My cousin ordered a steak and it was beyond over cooked. I do believe this place is more for the vibe than the food and that's why I'm giving it a low rating. I can't say go for the drinks because those weren't good .

Ordered:Junglerita (~$18): tequila, prickly pear, guava, house-made curacao, limeBooze-less Mule (~$10): pineapple, pomegranate, hibiscus, ginger, lemon3 Course Meal (~$50)-Calamari: flash fried calamari with shishito peppers and togarashi peppers, lime, and wasabi aioli-Ceviche: fresh yellowtail cured in fresh citrus, lemon oil, cherry tomatoes, and leche de tigre-Filet Mignon: 8oz with mashed potatos, broccolini, tempranillo wine reduction sauceJapanese Yuzu Cheesecake: with wild berries and vanilla sauceHazelnut Mousse: with caramelized walnuts and dark chocolate sauceAya's take:We happen to stop by during Restaurant Week and took advantage of this crazy good deal where we each got an appetizer, entree, and dessert for $50. The ambiance is great and has that Latin vibe to it. It helped that we had a reservation as we preferred to sit inside; there was plenty of outside seating available. The appetizers were both really good and the Filet Mignon was cooked really well. By the time the desserts came around, I was super full but both were a nice, sweet bite to end on. The drinks were good but not very memorable overall. It was a good experience overall until weeks later when I saw I was charged a different amount than my receipt said. After 3+ attempts at calling and trying to get a hold of the manager (he was apparently never available when I called), I filed a dispute with my bank and thankfully, the charge was removed. Regardless, this should never happen and your customers shouldn't have to double check their receipts to confirm it's the same amount they authorized when signing. It unfortunately left a bad taste in my mouth and hope this doesn't happen with other patrons.

Zama is located in the gaslamp district of downtown San Diego. I love the Amazon theme here, the location itself is Instagram worthy with the decorations. It's a great spot for cocktails with your girlfriends or a romantic dinner date. The cocktails here were very good and we took recommendations from our waiter.we loved all of the seafood dishes that we had, my only complaint was the steak that we ordered, which was definitely overcooked.

Came here for a birthday celebration. I would say 50% of what we got was pretty good, however, the prices are really high. The toro tartare didn't have much flavor and could use some crackers or something. Loved the shrimp appetizer. The restaurant has an unpleasant fishy smell when you enter. Workers aren't the friendliest. The host was staring at everyone up and down when they entered.

Good prices at Happy Hour (which went later than some, as well, ending at 7)... great food and drinks -- both Latin American AND Japanese -- with good service and cool decor. And the sangria was quite good!

Sara was the best waitress!! Great service!! I will definitely be coming back! She was more than hospitable

Love the vibes and food! Must dress cute and has a love DJ! Sara is so nice and recommended yummy drinks!