Overall very bland and not much going on in terms of food, especially for the price. There's a lot of sushi options in Houston so you have to be very competitive with what you serve. We were not impressed by the omakase or items we ordered a là carte. The interiors and service are nice, we just wish the food mirrored that. read more

Delicious and fresh! I really enjoyed it. The hamachi nigiri was outstanding!!!

Came here for my husbands birthday and this place did not disappoint. We came at 5pm right when they opened and fun fact happy hour is from 5pm-6pm. We got the $45 happy hour omakase set which comes with 5 nigiri pieces, edamame, 2 hand rolls, and mochi. What a steal !! Not only was it a great deal but it was absolutely delicious. My fav things of the night was the muki hotate crisp (probably the best crudo I've ever had in my life) and the kanpachi (smothered in truffle oil yum). We also ended up ordering a couple more items that were on the happy hour/regular menu and even with splurging our bill ended up being a little over $150 for two people which to us was a steal and we were both quite full. Definitely great value without sacrificing the taste. We also got to try their black sesame mochi which wasn't on their menu cause it's seasonal but it was a great way to the end the night. Chef Young and Jessie were also hilarious, easy to talk to, and of course talented sushi chefs who just made the experience even better. read more

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Amazing service, great ambiance. The food is delicious. We experienced omakase and the wine flight to go with it. I also had a cute lychee cocktail. It was tasty. The path to the restroom is photo worthy. read more

I travel all over, this is hands down my top 3 favorite sushi spots in the US. The $175 omakase experience was just simply amazing, where expense and quality was not spared in the making. Paired your experience with a bottle of Kyoto White Yuzu and you have yourself an experience of a lifetime. Service is top notch here, ambiance is group friendly. I'm a fan and will be back. read more

Aiko - Scallops - Japanese Near Me - Houston, Texas

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Let's start with the food we had. It was great we enjoyed all the food. Sushi was fresh and I really liked the ambiance. I've been here twice and even celebrated my birthday here with our close friends. Everything was amazing and we all had a great meal per usual. Of course, until I went through my receipts and saw that we were charged for things we did not order. We had 4 people in our group and our mutual friends knew the owner and server so we figured that's why they kept bringing out more and more dishes. Our friends have been here countless times and we've been told they've done this in the past so we thought it was normal. They just told us it was an off-menu item or a gift from the kitchen. We found out afterwards that we were charged for every extra thing they brought out. The only thing they comped us was the Sake. Our friends never checked their receipt from previous times and had no idea they charged for all the stuff they voluntarily ordered all the other times. I don't know if this was a miscommunication between the chef and the server, but we were told countless times those items were compliments from the Chef. They asked us if we liked scallops and they kept bring different dishes with scallops, then charging us for it. They even brought out mochi as my "birthday desserts" when we did not ask or order it (I'm not a big fan of mochi, I know I'm weird). Of course, the mochi was also charged on there. Basically nothing was comped besides the extra sake they brought out. This was really disappointing because I actually loved this place and so did our friends. It wasn't even about the money (obviously because I did not see this until weeks after) it was about the principle. Not to mention, I came here to celebrate for my birthday and got charged for the birthday dessert I didn't even order lol. We haven't been back because honestly we feel like they knew what they were doing. I really hope someone looks into it and doesn't do this anymore especially to their known customers and friends. The food was at least 3-4 stars but my experience was more like 1 star. read more

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Came with a party of four on a Sunday night. It was my first time trying omakase style dining and I was very impressed with the flavors and textures of my food. We all opted for the $95 option and added two extra order of the king mushroom nigiri. Our meal consisted of two crudo plates spaced in between a handroll and nigiris. The seared wagyu nigiri in the middle of the course and the chopped wagyu with quail egg in the end were surprising to me. We closed off our meal with chocolate chip, pistachio, caramel and lychee mochi ice cream. Overall had a very pleasant experience. This was also my first time not needing to dip any of my pieces in soy sauce. Will definitely try again when I feel like splurging. read more

tips before you go: reservations are recommended. the inside also tends to get pretty cold so bring a jacket if you get cold easily. parking: they share a lot with tacodeli & there's valet parking available. there are three tiers of omakase to choose from-- $35/$55/$95. we went with the $55 per person & were given 8 courses along with edamame. you'll get a variety of dishes, from nigiri pieces, hand rolls, to crudo. read more

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Aiko is very underrated. The sushi is all very fresh and flavorful and not too prI had the 3 nigiri piece of omakase (edamame, crudo, salmon handroll, 3 pieces of nigir) in addition to 1 trumpet mushroom nigiri, 1 crab handroll, 1 tuna crudo, and 1 egg plant nigiri I cannot say enough good things about the quality of the sushi. Everything is very fresh and well dressed. The tuna crudo was by far our favorite as well as the 3 pieces of nigiri. Next time, I probably wouldn't get the crab handroll but it was still good. This is a perfect spot for a date night, it is very intimate and very sleek. Also I would highly recommend the Saldo wine, it goes down very easily. read more

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND! This is the Best Japanese restaurant in Houston! My husband and I have been to a lot of restaurants but when it comes to Japanese food, this is extraordinary! The service is excellent,! They go above and beyond, we were celebrating my birthday and I can say it was the best! We got served by Donald, he is amazingly pleasant, knowledgeable about the food and drinks! The atmosphere is the best you can ask for no doubt! If you are ever in Houston, you have to try it. Everything is fresh and delicious Thank you Donald for giving us such an amazing and memorable dining experience! read more

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The ambience in this spot is very nice, the service was on point and if you're into traditional sushi. I would recommend going here, but if you are new to sushi in general the menu can come off confusing. read more

The flavors were **excellent** but I'm docking a star because the portions were small. We realized this was more of a place for a special occasion, because you're bound to spend a pretty penny on this meal. My friend and I each got the $45 omakase, which came with edamame, crudo, two hand rolls, and a mochi dessert. That alone somehow made us hungrier, and I felt as if I could eat two omakase orders by myself to feel full. Because we were still hungry, we ordered karaage (also a small portion) and chirashi bowl (which was actually SO delish but expensive for the portion size). I will say I loved the flavors of everything I tried. Everything was so fresh. I just wish there were more. For drinks I had two rounds of the saketini. Now this was a good value. $9 each for happy hour, and I enjoyed it so much that I got it twice. The service was great and the atmosphere was romantic. Parking situation: on-site read more

Yes, yes, yes! Sisters night out and everything was exceptional! Aaron took great care of our table! Everyone enjoyed their items. Not to forget the scenic pathway to the restrooms. These are just pictures of what I had and everything was melt in your mouth. Mini omakase for $35 was just right for me. Starts off with edamame, crudo, 3 pc nigiri, a hand roll and mochi for dessert. I also added 2 pc a5 wagyu tartare. Wow level 100. Cozy dining area and restaurant offers complimentary valet parking. Will def come back for date nights. read more

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We went for NYE and it was a great time! It reminds of the Devil wears Prada when Andy was going to all these cool and Qwaint NYC restaurants. The staff was knowledgeable, the drinks were sake based , I enjoyed them ! We ordered the omakase which allows you to try a variety of items ! It was fun being out of my comfort zone and everything was good! The portions are small BUT the quality of the food is amazing and flavorful! I did DEFINITELY come again!! read more

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Fresh and tasty sushi. The salmon roll was excellent. Service was good. Cozy place. Will come back.

Everything about this place was great. Fresh sushi great service I do highly recommend you RSVP they get really busy. The hostess really accommodated us with a table after coming late past 15 min sorry the traffic. But we really appreciated her working us in for a table and not a bar. The restroom is very zen and pretty! read more

The most delicious food! Big fan of handies duozo and had to try this place out. I was so impressed by the decor and ambiance as well as the amazing service. I tried so many dishes and every single thing was truly mouth watering. Can't wait to go back! read more

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Sadly, a friend and I decided to try this restaurant during Houston Restaurant Weeks. I will start out by saying this is the only restaurant at which I have dined this year that has cut their portions significantly to serve on the HRW menu. I'm not complaining about the quality of the food, which was quite good, but the portions were not even, large enough to sample each other's dish. The table next to us ordered extra food off the main menu because they were starving after finishing the HRW menu offering. Our server was disengaged... although she wasn't rude, she really could've cared less if we were there dining at the restaurant. Neither so us have any desire to return. read more

Great sushi, great service. Food was fresh and perfectly seasoned and staff was friendly! Knocked a star because the valet experience was terrible and even having a valet with a massive parking lot is POINTLESS. The guy was like, which car is yours? And I said, it's the one ten feet away, and he pulled it back 10 feet. The worst part was, he left my brand new car smelling horrendous of BO the whole ride back, it really knocked the good vibe. Like, why does a restaurant with a massive parking lot have a valet? I will never understand. Good food though. read more

I'm not the biggest fan of "fine dining" sushi, only because of the prices being high for smaller amount of portions, but that's something you should expect eating at these type of restaurants. So i'm not going to dock their review because of that. As far as quality wise - Aiko has the best tasting sushi i've ever tried in my life. Great quality cuts and even though the portions are tiny, those tiny portions packed a lot of taste. It was for sure a taste explosion in your mouth! 10/10 read more

What an extreme disappointment. My girlfriend and I decided to celebrate our one year anniversary here since the food looked good. We have very high standards for sushi, and based on what we found online, this looked like a place that could deliver. WRONG. The food was subpar and dissatisfying, which is even less forgivable based on their abysmal service. The restaurant was near empty. There were five parties including us, which were reduced to three by the end of the meal. There were four sushi chefs and more in the back kitchen, which makes their inattention excusable. It's not that they weren't inattentive to everyone -- they were busy falling over each other and clamoring to hit on the girls next to us at the sushi. This wouldn't have been a problem, except we didn't get any of our food in a timely manner. If we're sitting at a sushi bar, I would expect to have eaten way more than two pieces of nigiri and one salmon crudo within a 45 minute time span (we ordered way more than this, and had ordered almost as soon as we sat down). We received maybe 0-1 dishes for every 3-4 dishes that those girls got served. In the meantime, while our sushi chef was in the middle of *finally* making something for us, the other sushi chefs kept trying to call him over to take a shot with them and those girls. Because clearly, paying customers are not the priority. Nothing against those girls who were just enjoying their night - really this is all on the staff. Other issues/examples that just added up to a sour experience: - We tried to make friendly conversation with the sushi chef at first, but it was very jilted and awkward because you could tell he wanted to be talking to those girls rather than us. - Ordered beef tongue and duck. We finally got it over an hour later after reminding them, so we immediately ordered another set. It came out within 15 minutes the second time, which makes me think that they just forgot about it the first time (like they forgot about so many other things). Also the second order had some great flaky salt on it, which was sadly missing from the first. - Someone in the party next to us asked what a particular fish was, and the SUSHI CHEF had no idea that it was kanpachi. Not to sound like a snob, but I would hope that a sushi chef (or any chef, for that matter) knows what they are serving... - We asked how many bites the taraba was. They told us four. It came out as a clear three bites. Not the biggest deal in the world alone, but for $36!! Plus all of these issues are additive and makes it clear (yet again) that they don't know anything about their own dishes. - The fish slices on the nigiri were super thin and not worth it. I have eaten at hundreds of sushi restaurants including in Japan, and this fish looks tasty but was beyond thin. - Charged us the wrong ticket at the end of the meal. Usually wouldn't be a big deal, but there were only three parties (including us) by then. Shows their clear inattention and it just wasted more of our time. Spent $250 for a horrible experience and subpar food on what was supposed to be a special occasion, and we were still hungry after. I don't think that I should have to heat up a frozen dinner because of hAnger after this type of meal (which is exactly what I did because the whole experience was too exhausting for us to even want to stop at McD's) or have to deal with this type of disrespect. I would save your money. read more

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Great food and drinks. We sat at the sushi bar and loved seeing the sushi made in front of us. The restaurant was beautiful and chic.

We had changed our reservation in advance but when we got to the restaurant we waited 35 min for our table. They took care of our drinks and brought out trumpet mushroom nigiri on the house to make up for it. Food comes on time and is honestly very fresh read more

I've been putting off writing this review & holding my tongue since I have good relationships with the workers at Aiko. My friend & I came a while back & was greeted by our friend who's the hostess there. We sat down & was served by our other friend & was introduced to the chefs at the sushi bar. We ordered the recommended omakases & a small 300mL sake bottle. Eventually we were talking to the chefs & had a wonderful time. My friend & I decided to close out after our meal except the chefs stopped us with a 700mL sake bottle. We did not order it & was told it was on the house including all the sushi being sent by the chefs as well. They kept insisting that we all go drink together after. We turned them down respectfully. Later we asked for our bill to close out. It was ridiculous. My friend & I both work in upscale sushi restaurants so we know how comps work & know that sushi chefs are able to abuse their power. Our tab should've been a little over $100 as a quick meal of 2 $55 omakases & $25 sake. It ended up being around $300. It's not about the cost because $300 is typical for sushi for us. However it's the integrity of the restaurant & basic ethics. It made us extremely uncomfortable since the person who closed our tab out was our friend. I wasn't vocal about it since I didn't want to be embarrassed. Eventually before we left the restaurant, the hostess friend asked about our experience & I told her exactly how the chefs scammed us & did exactly what another sushi restaurant was known for doing. She was furious & addressed it to the manager. The manager was very understanding & decided to void as much as he could (not everything). Obviously we didn't adjust the tip lower as it would affect the other staff that was wonderful to us. It's upsetting that our experience was robbed & we were taken advantage of. We definitely would not be returning guests for as long as the perverted chefs are employed. The waitstaff was great & well structured though, oh well. read more

Fast food omakase is how I would describe this place. Food was ok. Decor a bit stark. Bathroom had a bamboo pathway nice concept but those bamboos needs some grow lights. Good for a quick bite read more

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I gave this place 5 stars because of the quality of the fish and the service played a big part. The atmosphere was great -- 2000s music and the bathroom was so cool and very clean. The parking lot was so easy and there's valet as well. Tony and Brian serviced us at the mini bar near the door. I would definitely recommend them; they are very knowledgeable and enthusiastic to work and talk to everyone! The best pieces we had were the pieces that Brian recommended to us. We loved the seared king salmon, the shark skin flounder, and the uni with ikura. The hand rolls are similar to Handies Douzo (because the owners of Aiko are the same as Handies), so you definitely get the best of both worlds at Aiko. The pieces are smaller than I'm used to, but the rice is so good and warm and the price is very good for what you get. You can't beat the quality and the service here. One of the owners, Patrick, even came and asked how it was so far. He was very personable and so nice! read more

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Oh sooo good. This is Kokoro (my all time favorite) and handies (which has limited menu) had a baby. We ordered the Omakase and then more. Would recommend skipping the Omakase and ordering everything you want. Will definitely come back. Gets pretty expensive. Definitely a place to bring out of towners to enjoy. read more

The food, service, and ambiance was amazing! I highly recommend this restaurant as everything had tremendous flavor and is of the highest quality. The drinks are also great and very tasty. The only aspect that they can work on is the pricing as I feel it was slightly over priced. However, it is a great place to check out. read more

Incredible hospitality and service combined with high-quality sushi. My go to sushi spot in H

Highly recommend this place and to sit at the sushi bar. The sushi chefs are awesome, so nice and entertaining. Food and drinks were great! Service was outstanding. They forgot an item in our order so treated us with some crudo and melon from Japan. They really know how to make it up to you and make the experience awesome! read more

Really had high expectations for this restaurant because I'm a huge fan of Kokoro & Handies. They did just open so maybe they need to work out some kinks. The server was nice, said he would time our food so that we would get our hand rolls out fresh. We had wrong drinks brought out to us 3 different times that were for a different table. The nori did not stay as crispy as it would be compared to Handies. Understandable since it had to wait to be pick up by the server then brought out to the table. Normally I what would have been an 30min experience for Handies was roughly about an hour or more dining here. I would like to give it another try one day, but I'll probably request to sit at the sushi bar. Hope it would be a better experience read more

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We got the $25 happy hour omakase and a few other items. The omakase started off with edamame and lemon salt. The BGB sake crudo followed. It was pretty and interesting. The ikura, dressing, salmon and tomatoes combined into a refreshing dish. The first time I took a bite of the Kani handroll was delicious. The lump crab, yuzu kosho aioli, fried shallots, cucumber spear, white rice against the crispiness of the nori wrapper made me order a second roll. It wasn't as tasty as the first roll but still good. The 3-piece nigiri we ate was yummy too: salmon, tuna, caviar and green onion and flounder with caviar. Next, I ordered a few different items to try. The hamachi handroll was pretty good. Mostly I tasted the negi relish. The unagi nigiri was freshly torched so had a nice crunchy texture. The spicy Hokkaido scallop had a little lump of Serrano verde and colored sesame seeds. It was so pretty, uniquely decorated and spicy. The Muki Hotate was scored like a piece of squid and dressed with colorful sesame seeds and tiny flowers. It was pretty like a cake and yummy. The silver butterfish with tamari-miso (torched) had a nice cooked-squid-like texture. The torched tamari miso was a nice salty addition. The entrance to the restrooms is unmarked, so once I opened the door and saw the bamboo walkway, I felt a bit like Alice. The bamboo stalks, bright lights and mirrors created a cool walkway to the restrooms. Everything was pretty delicious and combined for a hefty bill since the portions are just right. The sushi bar was decorated with figurines. read more

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decided to give this place a try. wasn't too busy on a weekday dinner time which was good. the restaurant looked very empty, no decoration whatsoever, maybe they should put some stuff because it felt like i was eating at school lunch table lol. our server lisa was friendly, and all the food we got were good. cant choose a favorite honestly because all of them were palatable and delicious. the handrolls were def awesome. the drink menu wasn't appealing and the guy (didnt catch his name) recommend a soda cocktail (not on the menu). i tried it and it was so good! i recommend it. we tried mochi for a dessert but i wouldnt get it again. overall it was great but nothing too special. and i wasnt too thrilled with the price lol $150 each? id go somewhere els. but oh well, i was hungry! idk if i would go back because it didnt struck me a wow or anything. oh and the parking is weird, it's on the side, a bit weird and dangerous looking. with the price i was expecting a valet service or something. read more

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Delicious food as usual. I have been there 4-5 times and I am never disappointed. The fish is always fresh and tasty, service is great, and ambiance is on point either for a date or a family outing. I will definitely be back. read more

Really enjoyed the experience at Aiko! They recently opened and are a sister concept to Handies Douzo and Kokoro. Aiko translates to "love child" so beautiful and fitting name! The leadership team was present and working alongside their team during our visit. CJ and Lisa were very friendly and personable and provided great suggestions. Great location, with a decent sized parking lot. I didn't immediately spot the restaurant as their was no overhead signage, only the name on the door but that may just be due to them recently opening. The restaurant is located next door to Taco Deli. Once we entered, we were greeted and taken to our seat. The restaurant is small and intimate with seating also available at the bar. The bar offers Sake and beer, no liquor. They offer a special menu which changes daily in addition to their standard a la carte menu. The nigiri ranges from $5 - $16 per piece and the handrolls are between $7 - $12. We decided to try the Omakase which comes in various sizes (small, medium and large). We went with the small option for $35. I highly recommend this route so you can try various menu items and add on as you desire. I'll list out what I tried below but my favorites were the Maguro Crudo, Hirame and the Hamachi handroll. I definitely enjoyed the experience and can't wait to try Handies! Apps Spicy Edamame Hamachi Crudo (Yellowtail) Maguro Crudo (Bluefin tuna) - highly recommend Handrolls/Sashimi Madai (Japanese sea bream sashimi) Hirame (flounder) - highly recommend Shima Aji (smoked striped jack) Hamachi (yellowtail) - highly recommend Loup de Mer - mediterrian sea bass read more

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This place is an amazing combination of kokoro and handies douzo. This trifecta of restaurants these restauranteurs have created are all my absolute favorite sushi experiences/sushi of all time. Aiko is a combination of kokoro and handies douzo menu wise but with more space/restaurant ambiance compared to just eating at bar or in the bravery chef hall that kokoro is in. Every dish we had here was amazing. We did the mid tier omakase and a few add ons. Everything was superb and the wait staff is great! I love kokoro and handies douzo for an intimate date night since it's more of an eating an bar experience - but aiko due to the space/table settings/full restaurant experience, anything more than 2-3 people would be better here! read more

Amazing! Still on a high from how much of a treat/delight this was. Everything was so fresh, balanced, and just incredible. I wish I had gotten some photos but was too busy enjoying every bite. Service was also so great. Could not have asked for a better experience. Will definitely be back! read more

First time in Houston and had to try this spot. We were greeted by the friendly team members and were educated on an assortment of sushi and sashimi offerings. Traveling domestically often, this is the best sushi concept I've ever had. The food was delicious and the team members were more than phenomenal. Jason was great at guiding us through our meal selections. Can't wait to come back and would recommend to anyone visiting or locals! -Logan Winslow read more

Always great to visit favorite is definitely the karage with caviar. Very calm atmosphere with great lighting especially with the lamps on the table. Service was great with suggestions from Jo and Lisa, a great experience to anyone who wants great food in the area. read more

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Omakase was amazing! The FAM roll was exquisite... and we still added the Karaage chicken at the end and it was