My boyfriend and I was introduced to this place thru a friend and our experience was not a disappointment. We have tried the medium size sashimi platter, aji, spider roll, akasaka (our fav), tempura, and udon. Definitely a bit more pricey, but you pay what you get and the quality of the fish is great. Average spending for two ppl is about $100 Service is friendly read more

Akasaka is a MUST if you are planning on traveling to Honolulu. It was kinda hard to find at first because it isn't in the most visible place of Waikiki area, but once you find it, you won't regret looking hard for it. When we went inside they greeted us with a loud welcome. Our family sat down and said, "just give us your best sushi." I thought to myself, oh it's going to be a regular sushi place. But, no. It is one of the best sushi restaurant I know. Take it from me, when I go to buffet restaurants, no matter how much it costs, I always try all their sushi first and judge upon the whole buffet how fresh it is. So I have been eating sushi all my life. But, this place is out of the chart! All the fish are fresh, the taste is amazing, and the display of their plate is out of this world. Don't believe me? Give it a try. You'll think twice on trying new sushi restaurant. read more

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Worst choice in town. I been there at night for some food and drink, the service is extremely poor compared to other japanese restaurant on oahu. The food is so so, but the service is terrible read more

08/22/20: COVID concerns: 1. Temp screening for all customers when they walk in / before seating. 2. Sanitizer available at cashiers (immediately to the left of entrance). 3. Face mask is required until seated & while walking to the bathroom. 4. All patrons are socially distanced (seating wise) - my bf and I actually sat in the semi-private room; we were the only ones in there! 5. All employees wear faces masks & gloves. 6. Shoyu is brought in packets instead of the shared bottle that is usually left on the table. This was the very first restaurant my boyfriend and I have dined in at since March, so we made sure it had to be worth going out for (and it was!). I've been coming here since I was a little girl & will always recommend this place to anyone who loves Japanese cuisine! Gotta support local ;) Service is very friendly and attentive, always checked in on us and cleared our dishes promptly. We'll be coming back soon (hopefully for my birthday!). read more

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Awesome food and service. I had the scallops teishoku and it was just perfect!! I cleaned all my plates/bowls. The teishoku came with the scallops, miso soup, rice and a salad. I wish I got the name of our server but he was really nice, good at making conversation, and great at his job read more

Almost mom and pop. Expensive and maybe lacking some personality, but honest. Fresh fish and carefully prepped.

When my friend chose this place for dinner, I freaked out. Some of the reviews on Yelp scared me (roaches?!) and whenever we pass by this place, my hubby reminds me about how he got really sick from this place and will never go back. Lucky for him, he's not invited to this dinner with my gal pal. :) It was pretty weird when we first got there - the place was virtually empty except for one girl that was dining alone and finishing up her meal. Eventually there was another Japanese couple that sat at the bar ,and another guy that dined by himself with a laptop, but that was it. I guess this place is popular amongst the later diners (from the neighboring bars/clubs). We ordered the agedashi tofu, sashimi, and sushi. The tofu was excellent, and the sushi/sashimi was melt in your mouth. And I'm happy to say, I did not see a single roach, and I didn't get sick either! It's quite pricey (came out to about $43 per person for the food and two drinks), but I don't mind paying a lot for good quality sushi/sashimi. read more

Akasaka - Hamachi, sake, and a negitoro roll - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Food: My company ordered a steak teshioku dish and they said it was delicious and filling while I ordered the Chirashi bowl which came with large pieces of fish and while it was filling, I tasted better. Service: Our male waiter was extremely nice and attentive, however, as others stated below...the owner/lady was not the friendliest. When my company asked the owner for a box for his left overs, she made a big sigh and muttered some comments about how little there was, making him feel as it would be an inconvenience. I think he had around 6 pieces of steak left. I was speechless! We paid so shouldn't we be able to take home our food? It wasnt as if there was only one piece of steak left. In the end, he ended up leaving the food there. The only redeeming quaility is they had that 10% discount after 9pm deal. read more

Akasaka - Chirashi bowl. Around $25.00 - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We live very close by. So thought would give it a shot today. It's end of 2019, worth a celebration. The restaurant is small and very Japanese. The menu looks simple but you can order far more choices off the menu. The staff here are really nice and they are happy to have explain and help with what you like. They have a lovely sushi bar, you can see the chef making the dishes in front you. You can taste and see he made it with absolutely care and heart. Although it's a bit pricy. But it tastes like what real Japanese. I recommend the spider roll here. It's crispy outside but melt in your mouth. read more

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Good solid sushi and food. Quality is great but nothing extremely special. Service was great for sure. Food is what it is. Worth going to if you're craving quality sushi. Size of fish was bigger than expected. Flavors were ordinary. For $180 for 2 people with drinks (and not overstuffed). I could find other places to have an extraordinary experience. read more

This is one Hawaii Local favorite sushi bar located on the outskirts of Waikiki (in back of Ala Moana Shopping Center). First, this restaurant is located in the "red light" district of town (i.e., lots of gentlemen's clubs in the area), but it is a really nice hidden gem of a restaurant. You walk into the restaurant and you are immediately immersed into Japan! The atmosphere here is quaint, vintage, and homey - just like it would be in Japan. There are about 8 tables, 10 seats at the sushi bar, and two tatami-style seating areas. Small, but cozy. The sushi here is AMAZING!!! Here's the scoop: Maguro / Island Ahi / Tuna: This fish is as fresh as it gets. The red color of the fish flesh is almost transparent and deep red. You can tell that the fish was caught in the last 48 hours of it being served. It was mouthwatering fresh and silky to eat. Note: Hawaiian waters are one of the best breeding ground for the Tuna. Grade: A. Awabi / Abalone: This was fresh small abalone, cut into bite sized pieces. The abalone wasn't chewy as it typically is served, because it was fresh (almost moving still). It was probably the Kona (Big Island of Hawaii) raised abalone. Those abalone are raised in water that is pumpped into tanks that the abalone grow in. The best thing about this dish was the the "guts" part of the abalone was put in a little bowl with ponzu sauce (citrus/soy sauce), grated turnip, green onion, and chilis. It was served as a side appetizer. Most sushi bars will throw this away. It was a treat! Grade: A. Hamachi / Yellow Tail: This was perhaps the best yellow tail tuna that I have ever eaten in my life. The tuna had a very fatty content because it looked beautiful like marble. It just melted in your mouth. You could tell it was high quality tuna from Japan that was probably flown in that morning. Grade: A+. Uni / Sea Urchin: What bad can I say about this? Nothing. The uni was super fresh and tasted very buttery. It was shipped in from Japan and it tasted freshly caught. Grade: A. Spicy Tuna Roll: Who would have thought that a basic sushi dish would be so complex? The chefs here get top grade maguro / tuna and cut it up to make the spicy tuna roll. Most typical sushi bars get the leftover maguro pieces and chop it up. Here, they get the quality pieces and use it in their rolls. It was served with hot sauce and green onions. DELISH! Grade: A. Unagi / Eel: YUM! I thought unagi was unagi, until I tasted it here. It was very buttery and well prepared with a thick teriyaki sauce. They added a bit of ground sesame and Japanese ground pepper to the top of it. Unique and delish! Grade: A+ Make sure you make reservations when you want to go here, because it can get crowded. The wait staff and sushi chefs are super nice. They take their time to make their sushi, so you know it is super good quality (but you wait a bit for the food to be made, which is not a bad thing). I'll be back here! Doomo arigato gosaimasu! Super ONO! read more

Been here a couple times now, and I cant believe I have never reviewed it yet!! The parking here is limited but you can find some meter parking close by too. So not so bad. Sometimes its good to make a reservations cause this restaurant can get busy fast. I always prefer to sit at the sushi bar too. I must say that my favorite dish to eat is the scallops! OISHI AND A MUST ORDER!! SASHIMI http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/akasaka-honolulu?select=ExD6t9cwCKEKAWDThKUU_A#ExD6t9cwCKEKAWDThKUU_A UNI NIGIRI http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/akasaka-honolulu?select=MjdzwXdkJAcj2-EWeIXBkw#MjdzwXdkJAcj2-EWeIXBkw SCALLOPS http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/akasaka-honolulu?select=zcdd029BsikHvYTiwSLxUg SALMON BELLY http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/akasaka-honolulu?select=pCALdPj8Yw_dwewRq2kzlA#pCALdPj8Yw_dwewRq2kzlA read more

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The oyster appetizer (5-pieces) for $29.95 looked appetizing on the menu. Then, the server brought a small 6 inch round plate with 5 small clam-size oysters with ponzu sauce. My wife and I was in shock to see the smallest oyster. Our jaws dropped to the floor. So, I asked the server, to make sure, what the price was and she said $29.95. She continued saying, "these oysters are special kind that's why it taste sweet and good". I replied, "but for that price and the small size costs too much". She simply only smiled. The rest of our order quantity were small in portion too. You'd be crazy to dine at this place, where quality & quantity does not exist! read more

The miso cod for lunch was good, although pretty much same as everywhere else. Good and efficient service Did not try the sushi because I thought it was overpriced read more

It's OK but it's expensive. A rainbow roll cost $26 and a spider roll $15. The quality is good, but that's about it.

This place can be really hard to find if you are not familiar with the area. It is hidden away in the midst of parking lots and bars. It is near the beginning of Kona street and Atkinson. Call before going to see if you need a reservation. I called and was told a party of two can come at anytime. Once we got there it was about a 1 5-10 minute wait to be seated. This place sets you inside a very wood style decor. We sat at the sushi bar and got to see all of the fresh sushi coming out. The fatty toro came in such beautiful and large cuts! You can really get the buttery flavor when you combine a little shoyu, wasabi and ginger together. Second must try is the miso butterfish! There were very few bones with the cut I had. They did a really good job in minimizing what you have to pick out. If you are looking for a great place to eat that is hidden away from the main attractions, this place is a great one to check out. read more

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This is one of my favorite Japanese restaurant, not because of the food, but because of the atmospher and tatami room. My H had the Matsu Nigiri set ($23.95), which comes with 9 pieces of nigiri and 6 pieces of maki. The sushi is always fresh and has a decent cut. I had the 2 choice combo ($24.95), butterfish and NY steak. The portions were a bit small for my combo, so I was dissapointed. My friend had the Scallop Butter Yaki, that looked really good, so I might try it next time, but keep in mind that it was only 5 pieces of scallop for $18.95. All dinner sets comes with miso soup and salad. We had a great time and conversation in the tatami room. The boys were a bit uncomfortable since they can't stretch their legs, but I really enjoyed it. read more

The food was amazing and they do have a great selection of sushi. Service is amazing and everyone helps each other and interacts very well with their customers. The ambiance is great and very welcoming. read more

I have never felt more let down by a restaurant than I do with Akasaka. I have eaten there many times over the years and even patronized them after they reopened. However, I have gone there several times over the past few months to have dinner and been rudely turned away by the owner, as they now prefer to solely cater to large parties of diners, rather than individuals like myself. I have called ahead to ask if I could go there for dinner, whereupon I was told "No." and they promptly hung up on me. So, if Akasaka doesn't want my business anymore, I will go elsewhere. read more

Yes this is def a hole in the wall type place, but I can't say the food is very good. Aren't holes in the walls usually good? Well in any case, the very very FIRST you need to know is that they only serve about 3-4 low grade cold sake which they serve in their small carafe that equates to 2 1/2 small cups for $25 (which is the most expensive one on their list). For such low grade stuff I can't believe they charge that much for so little bad sake? The food, the crab salad $14 is a joke; they threw a few pieces of rubbery crab legs on top of a reg salad. It's a total rip off not to mention I couldn't eat it, the crabs were def in the freezer for a very very long time, it should have been thrown away imo. The fried chicken was not good, dry, no flavor I say pass on that too. The sushi was mediocre quality so I give 1 extra star for that. IF you must go stick with the sushi and drink the beer skip the appetizers, cooked food and sake. read more

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Was looking for a nice, but casual Japanese restaurant during my visit to Oahu and discovered this absolute gem. We arrived around 7pm on a weekday and it was bustling with customers. After a short 10 minute wait, the server promptly guided us to our seats and treated us with the utmost hospitality. We started off the meal with sizzling scallops and Agedashi tofu. The scallops were absolute divine with the exact right amount of seasoning. The agedashi tofu was the perfect combination of sweet and savory with the soup base being perfectly balanced with the lightly battered tofu. As for the mains, we ordered the deluxe sashimi combination and nigiri a la carte. The sashimi platter was incredibly fresh and the wide assortment of fish was refreshing to see. For the nigiri, we ordered salmon, unagi, yellowtail, uni, and red snapper. The nigiri was absolutely delicious and filled us up quite nicely, but the star of the show was definitely the sashimi platter which I still cannot forget. Akasaka is a quintessential Japanese restaurant that exceeds in taste, quality, and service. If you're ever on the island, I would highly recommend you try this place out. read more

Akasaka - Deluxe Sashimi Combination - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Great quality food, especially the fresh sushi and sashimi! We also liked the green tea ice cream for dessert.

Delicious, traditional sushi. The o-toro was my favorite. We also had the aji garlic nigiri and the akasaka roll. All delicious!. A must try. read more

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yikes this is the first time where i've had such an unpleasant food experience from start to finish. we were rudely greeted by a lady, and upon seating, she came over and immediately said "are you ready to order?" we hadn't even opened the menu yet nor have gotten water. when we told her we weren't quite ready, she responded with a sense of urgency and replied "order fast". mind you, we arrived at the restaurant an hour and 20 minutes prior to closing. now, there was another party after us, but they had received all of their dishes before us while we sat and waited for nearly 20 minutes. then, when the food did come out, it was so sloppy with no care or attention to the appearance whatsoever. taste-wise you can give it a pass, but if you're one to keep an appetite based on appearance, this was really off putting. it was quite shocking and appalling. omg and not to mention they got our order roll on top of the ridiculous prices!! geez $27 for a rainbow roll and $40 for A1 sauce steak?? with the mixed reviews, we gave it a shot. i only wonder if it was an off day, but if this is how it always is, i would not bother coming back here. i'll also add that it seems that we're not the only ones who experienced this based on other yelp reviews. read more

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I took a tour of the Honolulu Fish Auction and asked the tour guide what his favorite sushi places were. This was one of them so I decided to stop by. I sat at the sushi bar and was undecided on what to order. I could usually order omakase and stuff my face, but I wasn't super hungry when I went. The sushi chef recommended I just order the nigiri combo and a few add ons if I wanted more, so I took his advice. The fish was fresh and tasty, the tour guide did not let me down. I have a thing for otoro and ama ebi, so I added an order of each and the otoro melted in my mouth. I'm definitely coming here many more times. read more

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Sukiyaki takeout with side order seared scallops is great meal. Small crowded space when eating in. But worth it.

It's a hidden GEM! I was surprise to see a lot of people here! It's a small Restraunt! With awesome sushi, shrimp tempura, and fried scallops! read more

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Traditional Japanese sushi bar in a "shady" part of Ala Moana, next to Femme Nu and Jazz Minds. They have very limited parking and be careful parking on the street. 24 hour tow away zones, and lots of homeless people walk around Kona street. The place is very small, but has a nice atmosphere on the inside. Generous portions of fish over small pieces of rice. The quality of the fish is exceptional, but as others have mentioned, this place is fairly expensive. If this is your first visit, I would recommend the Sushi or Sashimi deluxe plates for around $30, will give you an idea of the high quality Hamachi and Salmon cuts. The toro is around $45 per serving, and as I mentioned very expensive! I would also recommend the clams miso soup, for $4.95. read more

I was craving japanese food tonight and tried to go to Rinka but the waiting was 45 min and there was no way this demanding belly was willing to wait that long! I checked in my yelp app and saw this place, I remembered being here long time ago but didnt have a review so why not to try it again? *Ambience: going to the place may not be the nicest area and it feels like you are going to go in but may never go out! However when inside it is nice and cute. *Service: The lady was nice and friendly until she saw me taking pictures of her menu, she literally flipped on me and didn't believe me i was taking pictures for my review.... *Sashimi combination (S) $26.95 The fish was SUPER SUPER SUPER fresh! Loved it! *Asari garli butter ($16.95) Great flavor! *Scallop butteryaki teishoku ($26.95) This is their specialty, i liked it but it wasnt mind blowing to me. Overall, i would come back but get me their large sashimi!! read more

Had the omakase here and honestly have some mixed feelings. I have very high standards for sushi having eaten at numerous higher end sushi places (call me a sushi snob) so some of the nigiris here were great but a lot of them were "hm. This is pretty good...right? I think...." not to say that the sushi was bad at all, but occasionally I would get some pieces that were swimming in ponzu sauce which is a big no no for me because I want to actually taste the fish. I would say probably half the omakase was good and the other half was a meh. Also for me, I like to live by the rule of sometimes simpler is better when it comes to sushi. Really fresh fish doesn't need all these sauces and Negi toro, truffle, foie gras, caviar and gold flakes on it. There was this one piece of squid and negi toro and a quail egg on top which was overkill because I couldn't appreciate each of the ingredients. The one thing I didn't like was that the sushi chef didn't tell us what he was giving us. He would just hand us the plates with sushi on it and walk away. I had to ask several times what type of fish it was but eventually just gave up after asking the third time. All the places I go to tell you what you're eating! The best part of Akasaka is probably the service. This kind lady who was our server was super friendly, warm and definitely made the dining experience so much better. read more

Akasaka - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Exemplary sashimi establishment with a 38-year pedigree of excellence to back it up. We needed a place for a working lunch and my associate recommended Akasaka. We had reservations and it was a good thing we did. We arrived at 1130 on a weekday and by the time we left at 1300 it was almost packed. Very authentic... very Japanese... it had an air about it.... might have been the tatami matted reserved elevated seating platform in the corner..... hmm.... where was I? Oh yes, so after all the customary bowing, pleasantry exchanges, etc., we were seated very quickly at the sashimi bar which is my favorite place to sit, right close to the chef. One regret was that the nature of our meeting precluded watching the chef work... but we had other business we needed to take care of first. We were able to put our papers and documents away in time for the food to come out. We ordered sashimi mix of all our favorites....oni, ahi, maguro, tako, and another 4 or five fishes that my business partner recommended as been special flown in from Hokkaido. My associate also ordered some nori wraps and other dishes that incorporate rice but I can't eat gluten anymore, I let him go at it! How can I describe the sashimi? Melt in your mouth? No too cliche-ish.... in any case it was extraordinarily fresh and amazing! Thought I was back in Japan on business and started speaking in Japanese to the staff (well, ok... let's say in my usual poor Japanese). The staff was experienced, warm, and funny... they added to the charm of the whole dining event. As two guys usually do when super hungry: we ordered a ton of food.... no seriously I mean a "ton".....therefore when the food kept coming out, they began to joke with us saying, "if you need any help finishing off that sashimi, we can help you!".... too funny! I should have stood up, bowed and offered them the unused chopsticks at the nearest empty place setting but as a nerd without humor I usually think of witty sayings 2-3 days after an event (Sic semper cum engineerum").... ah but I digress.... on to other det Parking was available and no problem for us but I can see that at night when the jazz club d those other adjoining ah....ah....."nocturnal establishments" open up, it could be quite different/difficult to find parking. Prices: here's the thing.... after eating at some of the high end sashimi restaurants on this island, I thought it was going to break my wallet... in fact it was cheaper than expected....half of what you'd expect to pay at Ala Moana or Waikiki based restaurants. Overall a most refreshing sashimi experience that's tourist-free, and ultra authentic... I'll be back again for lunch very soon. read more

Akasaka - First course.... - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Butteryaki scallops were delicious! Scallops were big and prepared in a hot skillet where sauce was put on top when they served it. The otoro sashimi was amazing! Melted in your mouth butter goodness. Amaebi sashimi was super sweet. The set lunch with chicken terriyaki was tender and sauce was done well. Not a cheap lunch but okay to splurge once in a while. read more

Came here to try their sushi and glad we did. Fish was nice and fresh. Good cuts of fish. Good amount of fat to meat ratio. The staff was good and attentive when it came to refilling our drinks and asking us how everything was going. Got their oysters which were fresh and very sweet. I'd recommend trying it. They had different kinds and just told the chef to pick it out for us. I'd come back probably. Some items were a bit more expensive than other places but you get good quality here. read more

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All the fish was delicious and fresh; the sake was probably the best I've ever had from any Japanese restaurant anywhere. Minus one star, because the prices were higher than I was expecting for a "$$" restaurant. I guess that's okay, because the fish was quality, but a bit of a surprise. read more

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Saw this place on the Yelp IG & decided to check it out. Called at 5 to make a reservation for a party of 5 at 6pm. This place is in an alley way (google map it). When we arrived surprisingly the whole restaurant was empty so of course the lady helping us tended to us more than needed. We ordered: Fresh oysters: It did taste fresh but about the same as other places. Misoyaki Butterfish dinner: Comes w/rice, miso soup & salad. Very tasty & melts in your mouth. Sizzling scallops dinner: Comes w/rice, miso soup, & salad. IMO best plate we ordered. Rainbow roll: Taste just about the same as other places. My boyfriend loves to order uni & o-toro (I can't tell you how that tastes because I refuse to try it!) Our bill came out to $187 and the lady gave us a $5 coupon to come back which is nice but honestly, I could stick to eating at Yanagi. read more

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Went over here to have a dinner since we were craving sushi. We got the following: Soft shell crab Rainbow roll (consists of hamachi, salmon, and ahi) Unagi with Avacado Roll Agedashi Tofu Ube and green tea ice cream The food was really good and we really enjoyed each dish. Next time we'll probably come for the Teishokus for the butterfish and sashimi. Andrew was a great server and provided great service. You can make reservations here as we made one 30 minutes before we came and parked right in front of the restaurant. This is during the tier 1 for Covid 19: They took our temperatures and had us write our contact information read more

It's been so long since I've been to Akasaka. The last time was before I left for school 14 years ago. This place is as good as I remember it. The portions are huge and the sushi is fresh. The portions are so big that I had a hard time finishing my omakase. read more

Akasaka - Omakase set - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

A true hole in the wall gem. Standard Japanese restaurant here, although it is a little small. The sushi here is spectacular. Mimi the server is also fantastic. Chairs are very uncomfortable and it can get quite loud. Parking is also unbearably difficult. It is also unusually hard to find. Yet, we really like this place. $400.00 for party of five=$80 pp read more

Akasaka - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Squeezed into their last open spot just in time. We were comfortably spaced out. Staff gave great recommendations based on what we were interested in - letting us know what was the best quality fish they had that week. Fish was great - clean taste and great texture. Never had butter fish before but it was an absolute find - super unique and delicious. read more

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So yummy got omakase total was about 290. We got two beers and two sakes. Didnt take pictures of everything we ate, but everything was so deeeelicious! read more

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