We were in Japan for 30 days and had a few big ticket restaurants we wanted to visit. On our second day in Tokyo we went to Shima, near Ginza, known for their Wagyu beef. We had booked in advance, budgeted $500-$600 and brought cash — it was meant to be one of our ballout experiences for our honeymoon. The steak was roughly $180 for 150g (but their shtick is to weigh it in front of you and it's always much over the listed weight).
At the time, the Canadian dollar was an easy exchange — you could just drop two zeros from the Yen and that was approximately what it was in Canadian. 3000 Yen = 30 CAD with quick math.
Here's the kicker — I am a career server. I have some decent (but modest) wine knowledge including several accredited courses. I am mostly familiar with American wine and Italian wine. My husband let me pick the wine and I was interested in a Châteauneuf-du-Pape for $150 or a Bordeaux for $130. He was encouraging me to splurge on the Châteauneuf-du-Pape… it's our honeymoon afterall! I opted for the Bordeaux thinking it would be better with the meat; a 2014 Château Haut-Brion. The host kept coming over to us saying things like "very special wine." I was confused because I was like, lady, we already bought it… you don't need to sell it to us. It was incredible and I took a picture of the label, thinking this is really good for $130. Too good for $130, as it turns out.
We were seated at the bar where all the action happens, watching the old master sitting on a stool as he grills on his rotating skewer. It was pure magic. The man seated next to me was from Upper Eastside New York, joined by his family. His young children ordered more expensive steaks than we did. He too had a Bordeaux, albeit more modest than ours, I would come to learn.
The experience and service was incredible. When people say Wagyu melts in your mouth, you never truly understand until you've had it. 11/10
At the end of the meal I went to the washroom while my husband got the bill. I came back and I could see a look of sheer terror on his face. The host had brought him the wine list and he was looking at the price of wine we ordered.
We had missed a zero. What I thought was $130 was in fact, $1300.
Thank God we didn't order the $1500 wine.
The host realized our mistake, all the staff realized our mistake, my buddy next to me now shied away from me as I said in a hail Mary "we missed a zero!" As if this rich newyorkan was gonna help us out. My husband desperately asked if credit card was ok, she said yes. She took the card and processed it, returning it to us and showing she had deducted $300 from the bill. Our food was almost entirely comped.
Embarrassed and horrified, we quickly left. A chef stopped us on our way and handed us an entire cheesecake, to which I said "we didn't order this!" He forced it into my hands.
Once outside, my husband and I made a pact to not be upset. We couldn't afford it, but we wouldn't let it ruin the rest of our barely started trip. We left and bought a pack of smokes at the nearest konbini. I don't smoke.
When I returned to work a month later I told my sommelier about my blunder. He asked what wine cost you that much?! Welp, apparently I got a steal of a deal for that bottle. Because you can't get that house and vintage for anywhere near that price in Canada. Guess I've gotta brush up on my wine knowledge.
We are returning to Tokyo this fall and my dream is to go back to Shima for dinner and bring the receipt to show them the kindness they showed us by taking off $300 when it was clearly our mistake. But also to gift them some Canadian ice wine or something.
Edit: To clarify… We didn't know they comped us until after the fact. We thought we were paying for the entire bill, she took our credit card away and processed it. She returned and said she had subtracted 30000 yen. We didn't ask for nor wanted or expected any compensation for our mistake.
I have also learned the receipt is not the move. Thanks for your feedback. We will likely just enjoy dinner there again if we can secure a reso and not mention the mishap at all. And after we've paid maybe a gift for them and the staff to say thanks for two lovely experiences.
Edit: spelling
by Odd_Pea_104
