Food: 9/10 Service: 8/10 Ambiance: 8/10 I'm obsessed with their teriyaki bowl because it's the right amount of carbs, protein, and fiber. I haven't tried their sushi yet, but I'm gonna go back to try. It's a little on the expensive side, but pretty solid food, especially with good portions. read more

Update: We liked the food and pricing so much that we came back to get more take out ourselves! They have a special posted out front that says they give a free roll when you buy two! We ended up buying five rolls and got one of our rolls free and an additional roll added at no charge! Service was excellent, friendly and helpful and the food was delicious. We just love their baked salmon rolls. Previous: We ordered via UberEats for delivery and the food came relatively quickly. We got a baked salmon roll, extra baked for $14.95 and a California roll for $9.99. There was a promo for the California roll that was buy one get one free so it was really $5 an order at the end of the day. The baked salmon roll was delicious, so tender and flavorful and still warm. Very good and the price was about average at $15 or so. The portions are a little small for $15, especially the smaller piece of salmon on top but overall decent. Cali rolls were also good, standard and solid. read more

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If it wasn't for the Mexican restaurant next door we frequent, I would have no idea this place existed! I'm so glad we checked out Ai Sushi & Teriyaki on Scripps Poway Parkway. The restaurant is fairly small but so clean and beautifully decorated with an homage to Totoro, the popular Japanese character. The staff were all so welcoming, friendly and genuine. At some points however I felt like I needed a Rosetta Stone, although I suppose that lent an air of authenticity to the place. We order many of the same items at all Japanese establishments we frequent and noticed immediately that this was a standout. Particularly their shrimp tempura and cream cheese wontons. Among the finest we've had. We will be back soon for sure as it now ranks as a favorite Japanese/Sushi style restaurant in the Poway area. read more

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We are happy we found this little hidden gem. Great deals and sushi is good. The chicken teriyaki is good and the crunchy rolls are on point. I Recommend it! read more

Back from airport. Stopped for dinner before home. Apps of Karage chicken and calamari very good. Hot and crispy. Had bento box for dinner. Salmon , tempura , and sushi all good. Recommend. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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I don't like to yuck other people's yum, but feel I should give my honest review. I ordered pickup from Ai Sushi on a Saturday night and it was an easy ordering and pickup transaction. The restaurant is tucked into the corner of a big lot. It's cozy and was busy on that Sat night. I ordered a chicken teriyaki bento. The rice & chicken were SO GOOD. Big portions, tasty, well-made chicken teriyaki. However, the rest of the bento was disappointing. The california roll pieces were the thinnest, smallest cuts of sushi I have ever seen. It was maybe like 1/2 inch thin. Must have taken a sharp knife to cut rolls so small. The miso soup was a little off, tasted somewhat sour. My hubby ordered tekka maki (tuna roll) and it was pricey for the small size of the roll as well. The sushi was falling apart, the rice was overcooked & mushy, and the tuna tasted fishy (not fresh). I wish I could have given more stars, but unfortunately it's a "maybe" recommendation from me. Stick to the teriyaki. read more

Sushi is mid at best but they always forget my sauces that I pay extra for.... Like ALWAYS.. I keep thinking ok maybe this time they'll remember and NOPE..... I order from here cuz it's close to my house but at this point even the proximity isn't worth it PLEASE PAY EXTRA ATTENTION TO ORDERS! If I pay extra for a sauce then please add it read more

Great place for cheap quality sushi! My boyfriend and I order from this place via UberEats often (they have a Buy One Get One Free promo for certain menu items on there) but decided to come in person on a Sunday afternoon. Very quiet place, but they play a mix of pop and kpop on their speakers. When we got there, it was pretty much empty - we were the only people dining in for the entire 45 min we were there. Service was really fast as a result. We ordered three rolls (as they have a Dine-In Special of Buy Two Rolls Get One Free from 11am to 4pm) and the Cream Cheese Wontons, which are always a hit. The food came out really quickly. My boyfriend's favorites are the Spanish and Hercules roll, the former of which has a nice lemony tang to it and the latter was a no rice roll. My personal favorite is the pizza roll, which I think is really yummy. They get a bunch of takeout orders, but dining in is fine as well! Overall recommend. read more

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Can't believe I never wrote a review for this place. This is my go to sushi spot in the area! Service is always quick and excellent. I've had many sushi rolls from here and they are always delicious! Their flavor profiles are great imo. Other places may have more "unique" profiles but can always be a hit or miss. I like my sushi "simple". That being said, the sushi here is by no means basic. It's just right and always hit the spot. I've tried many other sushi spots in the area but this is my fav. There's a lot of variety so you won't get bored with the menu. The vibe is very homey and chill. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Baked Salmon Roll, Samurai Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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Avocado Roll was good Chicken teriyaki's is ok Reason for the 2* was a safety issue. Not sure why there was something that feels like and looks like a little bone in which could've been swallowed read more

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we were the only ones in the restaurant at like 3:30 so very quick service we got 3 rolls for the deal -- buy 2 and get 1 free they were all great (crunchy pillar was our favorite) read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - tuna delux Crunchy Pillar Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

This Japanese style restaurant has very good sushi rolls and generous teriyaki plates at reasonable prices, especially when utilizing their pricing specials like free sushi rolls or buy one get one feee deals on Uber eats. Their teriyaki chicken is one of our favorite dishes since it's very good quality with little fatty meat. Portions are great. We love their sushi quality and great portions of fish. Maki rolls are outstanding. Not too much rice in the rolls. Great! Jessica Alba rolls are delicious. The service is very nice and helpful. We liked their friendly demeanor. The restaurant is cozy and cute. It's a good local sushi place for Scripps Ranch and Poway. read more

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Ordered avocado roll, cucumber roll, Yum Yum roll and yakisoba. The avocado and cucumber rolls are very fresh. The Yum Yum roll is my favorite and I really loved the spicy mango salsa inside. The Yakisoba was just okay. Would definitely come back for the rolls. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Yum Yum Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

Was searching for quick sushi and saw this place had 4.5 Yelp review so decided to give a new sushi place try. The restaurant is on smaller side but cozy. We went on Sunday evening but was seated right away. There were two sushi chefs and two servers working and was able to order right away. I ordered sprite, house salad, amazing dragon roll, spider rolls and baked salmon roll. They give you can of sprite not the tap soda so it was good lol. I want the bubbles. Amazing dragon roll was descent but spider roll was pretty good. Baked salmon roll was not bad but I thought sauce was too heavy. House salad sauce was good but could have been better. They had a lot of take out orders. Overall it's a descent sushi place read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - House salad - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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We stopped into this sushi spot for lunch on the weekend. Parking was ample and the restaurant was clean and quiet when we entered. We were immediately greeted and seated, and we perused the menu before deciding to get three rolls (spicy rainbow, salmon lover, Hercules) and an order of Monkey Balls. All three rolls were solid - not the best I've had, nor the worse - and that made sense with the prices they were sold at (buy two rolls, get one free; pre-covid prices!). The spicy rainbow was a bit lackluster, and I probably wouldn't get it again. I loved the salmon lover (it was my favorite!) and the Hercules was a pleasant surprise (super fresh, but maybe a little difficult to eat). The Monkey Balls were also very good - I thought they were a nice addition since our rolls didn't really have a crispy component. I would definitely visit here again when I get the itch for some affordable sushi rolls. read more

Just had dinner last night from them. The Crunchy Roll and Spicy Tuna roll and the garlic edamame. All excellent and very reasonable prices for the high quality! 5+++ stars read more

Came back to update my review on my favorite sushi spot!!! I seriously love Ai Sushi & Teriyaki so much. It's one of our go to sushi spots for both take out and dining in. Their salmon skin rolls is one of my favorites, we always get it!! Our favorite rolls are the Spanish Roll and Poway Roll and also always have to get a Dragon Roll! The service here is always friendly and I look forward to stopping in when I'm craving sushi. My only note is for take out it does take slightly longer than their predicted time, they are always slammed with take out orders, so just plan accordingly! Their food is worth it!! read more

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Really Good!! We ordered to go. Everything was delicious.! Thank You Looking forward to next time. read more

Good little spot if you're looking for some sushi in the Scripps Ranch area We order takeout from here so this review is strictly on their takeout. I will do another review when we dine in. The quality of the sushi was good. Both my wife and I liked what we ordered. I ordered the Crunch Spicy Tuna Roll and the Yum Yum. I enjoyed the Yum Yum roll more because I liked the mango salsa they used on top. The shrimp tempura was a little burnt, so that almost ruined the roll My wife got the Jessica Alba roll and Poke Roll. She didn't give much of an opinion other than "they're pretty good". We also got the chicken teriyaki bowl for my son which he also liked. My biggest gripe was the price. The bill was close to $80 for four rolls and a teriyaki bowl, even before a tip. That's pretty expensive. I can think of at least two other sushi places in the area where the quality is just as good and $20 cheaper for the same amount of food. We may come here again in a pinch because the food was as good, but I can't justify spending that much money on sushi when other local spots are cheaper and just as good read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Chicken Teriyaki Bowl - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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Ordered online but it became apparent when I got there to pick up that the restaurant never got my order...the guy in front said oh it'll be about 10 min...20 min later and after about three other orders leaving... I still had not gotten my food and decided to leave. If you missed my order I expect to be put in the front of the line when the mistake is discovered not slotted in along with all other incoming orders. When I went to leave they could have cared less that they lost my business, so that also doesn't make me want to spend my money there any time soon read more

Have worked the area for years and just found this spot today and it is fantastic. Ordered three rolls for lunch and they sushi was fresh and tasty. Staff was very friendly. Highly recommend. read more

We've been customers at this location for a little while. Food is always great. Sushi is tasty and fresh. We especially love the Baked Salmon roll. Yumi and, more recently, Kym have provided us with friendly/good customer service. read more

Service is great and the sushi was amazing. Can't beat these prices either. Definitely coming back.

We've ordered takeout from here so many times now, I have to leave a review! Their sushi rolls are tasty, and we choose to come here for another big reason. The simple classic rolls are just the right diameter for my kids to eat on their own. Many other places have massive avocado rolls (which could actually be a good thing for some people), but my kids have the tendency to shove an entire piece into their mouth so smaller ones are perfect. It means I don't have to worry about them choking on a massive piece of rice and nori! I am personally hooked on their salmon skin rolls. The salmon avocado rolls have been great as well. The prices are reasonable, pickup is never too busy. I recommend ordering over the phone or through their website. Thank you for feeding my kids the perfect-sized avocado rolls every time we are in the East side of San Diego!! read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - From top: Avocado rolls, salmon avocado roll, salmon skin roll, California roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

This is the best sushi spot in this area FOR SURE! And the Buy 2, Get 1 free deal 11am-4pm every day is amazing! Their rolls are $9 + & are priced fairly well, especially in conjunction with their special. Huge fan. SUSHI No, this is not gourmet sushi like Nobu or Hidden Fish, but it is fantastic "casual sushi." You know what I mean?? I like their rolls with ponzu, such as "Jessica Alba" and "Pokie" rolls. But you really can't go wrong with anything here, just pick whatever fish you like in the roll, and it'll taste good. I've been coming here for over a year, and it feels like i've tried every sushi roll. Never been disappointed. They also have pretty decent bento boxes if you enjoy chicken teriyaki, etc. SERVICE The restaurant is very small. Most patrons appear to still be ordering takeout. Be aware when they quote you 30-40 minutes to prepare your order, it is usually accurate, and has never been early in my experience. Definitely order ahead, and order early. LOCATION Ai Sushi is located in the back of the shopping plaza past Domino's & Starbucks. A total hidden gem! PARKING There is plenty of parking where they are located so it's always hassle-free. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Updated special!! Other photos are outdated. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

Im sad we didnt find this place sooner! Its tucked into the corner of a small plaza in Scripps Ranch. For appetizers we got the crazy bomb which is jalapeno stuffed with spicy tuna and topped with spicy mayo, eel sauce and scallions. That was veryyy good. We also got spring rolls and those were also hot and crunchy! For the rolls we got the Amazing Dragon, Amazing rainbow and yum yum roll. They currently have a buy 2 get one free offer on the rolls so come in while it lasts! All of our rolls were to die for.. the fish was clearly fresh and not fishy tasting. The toppings were fresh and crunchy. Everything we had tasted incredible. Our waitress was also super nice and attentive! Cant wait to come back and try their other items (: read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Crazy Bomb - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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If you're a little tired of sushi factory like restaurants, and want something more personal with very fresh fish and great service, this is your spot. It's totally become my go to sushi restaurant. Very clean, not great ambiance, but not bad in any way. These folks do a land office business with local to go orders, and only occasionally more than 6 of their 10 tables full. Their rolls are everything I'd want it terms of variety, from traditional to fancy, spicy to sweet. Their sashimi is very fresh and nicely presented- one of the the true measures of a good sushi restaurant. They also have hot Japanese food and a few Ramen dishes. The only hot food I've ordered are the yellowtail collar- excellent And ramen - seemed okay, I'm no ramen expert for sure. I can't recommend this place enough. read more

Really fast service & excellent food. They saw us even though it was 30 minutes to closing and the food was brought out so quick even though lots of people kept coming in to pick up their orders. It's also very cute inside. They have a life size Totoro statue too. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Totoro from My Neighbor Totoro - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

Food delicious and fresh! Salmon skin hand roll perfect!! Extra crispy skin! Very good. Jessica Alba the best sushi! We love this place! Their tempura veggies are the best, super crispy! read more

We came back to take advantage of the special: buy 3 rolls, get 1 free. Everything was super delicious. My kids were so hungry, they gobbled everything up quickly. The waitress and sushi chef remembered us for dining here twice this week. The sushi chef, I assume is also the owner, came out to say hi to us, which we thought was a good gesture. If we happen to move to the area, this place will be our regular place to go to for sushi rolls. Give this place a shot! You won't regret it! read more

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Gave this place a shot with my little family and I am sad to say that the reviews have failed me. The service is extremely slow and the food is subpar. We ordered the yakisoba for my kids. Although the portion size was pretty generous the way it was prepared was not good. My kids are not yakisoba connoisseurs but even they said they didn't like it much. It was drenched in too much sauce. The rolls were quite disappointing for the price. We ordered a few different rolls(I think 3 or 4). I can't remember the names but they looked like they needed more fish, more filling, more rice.. just more of everything. How do you charge $15 or more for rolls that can be compared to the circumference of a half dollar? Extremely disappointed is an understatement. We definitely won't be coming back as there are plenty of other options. read more

I was craving sushi in 4th of July. This was the only place open within 10 miles of my house and I'm not mad about it. They were fairly quick with the food prep for my to go order. Took me about 10 mins to drive home. Everything was so good! And so fresh!!!! The sashimi was perfect, fresh, flavorful, and clean! The rolls were full of so much flavor! The crazy bomb was pretty good. This place was worth the 10 min drive for spontaneous take out sushi! read more

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DINE IN YELP EXPERIENCE - 6/5/20 I had came across this restaurant randomly through while skimming yelp. Was curious to try a new restaurant which had its grand opening during Covid19. Upon entering, we waited at the entrance at restaurant. They had a promotion of buy 2 rolls get 1 free. We were given hand sanitizer and then got our temperature checks. Then we were told to sit anywhere available. For areas that they tried to keep social distancing, they had a handmade sign that said "Sorry no service." Outside before entering, you have to enter with a mask or face covering. Rolls we ordered- Crunchy Spicy Tuna: my staple favorite. Volcano Roll: Mr. W's favorite. He likes the combination of the mixed sashimi, imitation crab with the salmon on the outside along with the sauce. Hercules Roll: We weren't too big a fan. It was wrapped in cucumber, and I think the cucumber overwhelmed everything else within. Sushi rice seemed like it was fresh out of the rice cooker. It didn't seem like the usual sushi rice, but still tasted good. Service was a bit slower as only one waitress. I think they just started dine in and they're a pretty new restaurant. Would come again. read more

The place is really good including the kids teriyaki the waitress was so kind and helpful and the place was really organized and clean and the food came really fast and the food was SO GOOD read more

We keep wanting to support a local business that is conveniently located next to us but this place continues to keep disappointing with how they run a business. There has been at least 5 different times where I have ordered food for my family to go where they quote me a 45 minute wait time. That in itself is not the issue, we arrive to pick up 45 minutes later, and we find they haven't even bothered to print out the ticket to start the order. It is like they purposely do this to make sure people will pay for their order. So basically every time we have had to wait for over an hour to get dinner for my family because they are scared people don't come pick up their food. It is a terrible business practice and I have never consistently experienced this before from any restaurant. Tonight only 2 tables were full, but about 5 different people waiting for their Togo orders also experiencing the exact same issue. We tried to show a lot of grace because it is a small business, but this is no longer an isolated incident and just their normal way of doing things. Luckily there are plenty of options in the area. read more

With the bogo deal, the rolls are pretty good for the price. I think it's a decent mid tier option. However, the ginger was so old and soggy. These little details matter in my opinion. It was nasty taking a bite of the old ginger. read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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I ordered over the phone they said 20 to 25 minutes. I got there. It was 35 minutes when they finish.

The rolls are delicious here. Our favorites were the Samurai roll and Hercules roll. The Amazing Dragon roll (we got it without cream cheese) was also good. We'll definitely return as the food is good and they have a promotion every day until 4pm where it's buy 2 get 1 free roll so it will allow us to come back many more times. The employees were nice and I think it's important to point out that it's good etiquette to tip based on the original non-promo price. They work hard here and I hope they'll continue to stay in business, especially since now I have a good go-to sushi place nearby. I hope more people try this place out! read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Samurai Roll - definitely get this! So good. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California

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My favorite for take out. We get sushi about once a week, and AI has become our go to. They don't disappoint with quality, and their rolls are very solid. I can't recall the time when they have messed up my order - which is a huge plus. read more

I didn't know that this place changed owners. It used to be called Ikura. Apparently it opened about 1.5 years ago. Better late than never! They have a sushi roll special from 11am -4pm except holidays -"buy 2 rolls and get 1 free. " This is applicable for dine in and take out orders. So we ordered 3 rolls. They were the Pokie Roll, Hot Lips Roll, and the Rainbow Roll. The rolls tasted pretty good ...the fish was fresh. We enjoyed the Pokie Roll the best. Prices on menu were reasonable. I'll be back to try more! Let's continue to keep these local restaurants in business! read more

Ai Sushi & Teriyaki - Rainbow Roll, Hot Lips Roll, Pokie Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Poway, California