Amazing date night spot! You couldn't go wrong with anything you order, the food is fresh, flavorful and memorable. My personal go to is the cold soba noodles and scallops, I seriously dream about this meal all the time! My boyfriend and I have been many times and would highly recommend sitting at the bar if in a party of two. The bartenders have been amazing every time we've sat there and the cocktails are delicious! We have only sat in the dining room once and the service was less personable. We sat there as an anniversary date but ended up agreeing we should've sat at the bar because the service was more personable, fun and added to the overall value of the night! read more

Everything was great! We had Austin as our server and he did a fabulous job! The corn appetizer, tuna tacos and scallops were our favorites. Thanks for a great night! read more

Mixed feelings on this one... The ambience, very cool! The service was good not great. We had to search for our waitress which is never good. The drinks, absolutely amazing! The sake-tini was awesome and the espresso martini was a delightful nightcap. The food, I wouldn't want another bite even if you paid me! The tuna crunch roll was edible but the tuna tuna tuna roll we couldn't even finish it was so bad. And given the price point, beyond disappointing. I would go back for the drinks in a heartbeat but I would eat somewhere else. read more

Amazing service and high quality sushi. The house salad was a favorite. Worth the price. Will definitely be back! read more

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Wow. Talk about overrated. I love sushi and this place was actually BAD. I don't know that I've ever had such bland dry sushi. I started with a piece of salmon and hamachi nagiri and actually started laughing. When my friend asked me what was up I informed her this fish was worse than Sam's sushi and that we were in for a night. Bland, overpriced, rice to fish was way disproportionate... I can honestly say this was the worst 120 dollars I've ever spent at a restaurant. My friend actually proclaimed that she never wants sushi again. However! The reviews are great, folks seemed happy, the service was good. So maybe just get a small something before ordering your full meal. If you're like me and start laughing at how bad it is then maybe don't order anymore. If you love it - then cheers! read more

Fantastic experience top to bottom. Mallory, our server, was awesome. She played along with my husband's ridiculousness and made the night so fun. Food was great & we can't wait to go back. read more

Tried this place for the first time and was super excited. The ambiance was fun and modern. Unfortunately I would not recommend nor go back. We got edamame and Brussel sprouts for appetizers and they were so over cooked. The edamame was not bad. The drink were decent but way to strong for the price we were paying. The best part and honestly only good part of our meal was the sushi. Overall the service took way too long for it not being super busy and the food was not NEAR worth the price. read more

Baru - Sushi Bars Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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I like baru! The food is always good. It's not my favorite place in town, but it's worth a try. Love the tuna crispy rice!

Food was great. I had umami corn ribs, edamame, lobster shots (so good), ahi nigiri, & white tiger roll. The spicy ginger cocktail is really refreshing. My guy Jacob was awesome and took care of me. Will be back. read more

Perfect place for a girls night out. Loved the service and light food options. Espresso martini for the win!

We came here for restaurant week. We tried a little bit of everything. The Brussels sprouts are incredible, as well as the truffle crunch. Service was fast and friendly. Arnold was helpful when it came to choosing a Sake. The tiger theme of the restaurant and the lights were cool. read more

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The food is in it, innovative extremely fresh. The only place for hot sake in Cincinnati, that I know of.the menu leads to a dining adventure. read more

Best Sushi restaurant in Cincinnati, or frankly, everywhere! We tried to go there on a Thursday night, and thankfully they were kind enough to squeeze us in between reservations. At first sight, the Sushi restaurant looked like a normal, fancy restaurant, until we started to see the lights moving up and down by the bar and by the kitchen! The lights were so cool and were coordinated to the beat of the music!! They even changed color! We ordered some starters, and they gave us a run down about the restaurant, and there goals for the future! It was so heartwarming and amazing that they came such a far way the have an amazing restaurant! When our edamame and Brussel sprouts came, we were blown away by the amazing seasoning and presentation of the food! I don't even like Brussel sprouts, but ended up almost eating g the whole thing! Staff were so nice and food was amazingly crafted... until dessert came... long story short, best tiramisu ever. It even came in a margarita class! Mochi was also epic! Definitely recommend this restaurant and definitely going back! read more

We stopped for a drink at the bar. I ordered Bacardi and Diet Coke. They charge extra for any mixer in your cocktail? read more

Baru - Sushi Bars Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Came here on Saturday night after a pretty long day of day drinking at the Oktoberfest. Only seating we could get was art the sushi bar but it was fine. Service was excellent and nice conversation with the sushi makers. I had a roll and the chicken katsu. Both were delicious. The atmosphere was very nice and modern. I would definitely return here. read more

Food is good but would definitely not come back. The front desk person was VERY rude when we tried asking about how long our table would need to be ready. He did not give clear answer and his attitude was clearly not welcoming. We had a reservation at 9pm and were seated at 9:20pm. They offered us to sit at the bar meanwhile while we were on time and ready to be sit down on time. read more

The atmosphere was really cool! Our appetizer (corn ribs) were absolutely delicious but I was pretty disappointed with the sushi. I guess I assumed that since it was pricier, downtown and trendy that it would be much better than what I was used to, but it didn't have much flavor. The truffle one was the only redeeming roll. ‍ Also, picky, but the lime garnish on my husband's drink was kind of mealy and gross. read more

Baru - Corn ribs & Valentini - Sushi Bars Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Food was good and had good recommendations. Himachi jalapeño is a must. Service started off great at the bar and then a disappearing act happened. Never saw the bartender/server again. Value was good. Recommend the silk tide cocktail read more

I previously had a wonderful experience. Tonight, our appetizers were burned, they admitted it and we waited for them to cook them correctly. I have a shrimp allergy and informed the waitress. She brought rolls to the table and assured me the white tiger was shrimp free. Luckily my daughter remembered it had shrimp. Lastly, she forgot our fried rice. We informed the staff who were empathetic and informed the manager who did nothing. As a physician myself I want to save people who have allergies. Do not come here, they will not take them seriously nor do anything when they have made a life threatening error read more

Always have a great time when there's a big event. Great dance floor potential especially when u want the whole floor for u and ur group. When there is a ton of people you can still breathe love the staff, great music for sure. And u can pregame at Tokyo kitty before it gets litty at Baru read more

Very nice atmosphere cool bar setting but unimpressed by the sushi. Lack of flavor for sure. The Katsu chicken was nothing special. And the fried rice lacked a lot of flavor. That wasabi was a weird green color and was pretty hot. The bartender charges not happy hour prices at the manager didn't make it right which was a good thing and fix our bill. The service were very nice and on top of everything. I just wish the food is better. read more

I came alone for lunch so can't comment on much but the tuna crispy rice was fresh and flavorful. I'll be back for dinner to try more sushi dishes and cocktails! read more

We've been wanting to try Baru. My fiancé, and I had an amazing experience. Shout out to our bartender and server Jacob, he was very outgoing, and explained the dishes to us well! We tried a lot of different dishes, and each one was amazing. We will insert some pictures! The Land and Sea + Rodeo Drive rolls were very impressive! Also, the vibes there are really cool, we loved the decor and bar. Their bar is huge, we would recommend sitting at it. It's very pretty vs the tables! read more

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While visiting Cincinnati for a couple of days I stopped into Baru for dinner. The ambiance is nice and the bar, where I choose to eat since I was alone for the evening, was very well appointed. I ordered the following items: Crispy Rice Spicy Tuna - served as three square pieces. The pieces are too large to eat with chopsticks. Even when cut in half the crispy rice was not sturdy enough to support the spicy tuna on top. For reasons unknown to me the server sprayed some sort of artificial flavor on top of the pieces when it was served. In my opinion the added sprayed on flavor detracted from the dish. The rice was very tasty the spicy tuna was lacking, although much of that maybe due to the sprayed on flavoring. Tuna Tuna Tuna - served as a traditional maki roll this plate seems a bit confused about what it is. The mix of differing types of tuna is not the problem, rather it's the dollop of hot sauce, on top of each piece, juxtaposed with the crunchy semi sweet flavor of the tempura at the center of the roll which just doesn't seem to come together well. Additionally the presentation, in my particular case, was a bit lacking with the end of the roll actually balancing on the edge of the plate and the pieces not cut well or proportionately. Trifecta - this was excellent, the presentation was as very nice and the flavors came together very well. I would recommend this. The portion is very generous, a bit more food than a traditional maki roll. Ahi nigiri - the tuna looked good and the presentation was nice, but was sadly it ruined by another spray of the liquid flavoring. I did not witness the spray this time but there was an unmistakable flavor that shouldn't have been present on the nigiri. Chicken fried rice - the chicken fried rice was okay, although for the price the portion was a bit on the small side. Kirin beer - it's Ichiban, what else can I say about one of the best Japanese beers. All told my meal came in at just under $130, the service was good and the ambiance is great but frankly the quality of much of the food left me a bit disappointed. read more

stopped by to get a bite. no customers. full staff no one wanted to walk over and seat me. they looked at me. the doors were open. don't recommend read more

This dinner and restaurant was an experience. The warm welcoming smile and great in-depth explanation from the server Christina. The food and drinks were definitely on-point and delicious. read more

Baru - Sushi Bars Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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As a former coastal consumer of sushi (i.e., sea food freshness snob) that has relocated to Cincinnati, I have to cheer when a restaurant succeeds in offering sushi that is not "half price" in Cincinnati. I ate at Baru with the family this eve and it was really good. From their sweet/glazed version of edamame to the Trifecta roll, which exceeded all expectations, it tops my list of Cincinnati sushi establishments in terms of creativity, freshness, and quality. The cocktails offered a fresh take on some classics as well as a full sake menu. My only criticisms are, frankly, outside the control of the kitchen. I'll go back. read more

First time here, Jake the bartender was great. De'Asia was our server after we left the bar and she was amazing as well. Very prompt and great service. On top of that the food was 10/10. Will definitely be back. read more

Food is mediocre. I understand they are serving sushi in a very landlocked location but we had several apps and sushi rolls for our table and none of them were very good. Bland flavors. Service was good and ambience was interesting but very disappointing menu unfortunately read more

The ambiance is great-dark and intimate. The service was outstanding! Cocktails were great also. I ordered the chicken fried rice. It was really good but had a kick to it and I don't typically like spicy foods. I was going to eat it, but the bartender quickly suggested chicken katsu, and it was so good! The unagi sauce was amazing. Living a few blocks away, it will be a restaurant I visit often. I can't wait to return! read more

Outstanding all around. Our party had probably half of the sushi options and each were outstanding. Hamachi + Jalapeno is always solid. Drinks were great and the ambience, as always, was outstanding. Mallory was our server and she made our night great. Perfect suggestions on both food and drink, and really helped this be a night to remember for my wife on her birthday! read more

Amazing evening. Food was great. Service was great. I'll be back! My only problem going back will be what to try next time. Everything we had was so spectacular! read more

The service was excellent and the food was excellent... The menu was innovative. New ways of constructing sushi.. The "Composed" Nigiri section of the menu was the highlight of highlights. I also like that the menu is relatively small for a Sushi Place... They are focused on precise dishes... Great drink selection too.. read more

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We went out for an early dinner at Baru in downtown Cincinnati Thursday July 18th. We had excellent service (Chas), great food and overall a wonderful time. As we were leaving a front desk young woman with a thick brunette braid and tatoos told me "to help myself refilling my purse" as my husband and I were walking out the door. She was referring to the candy dish in the entry. I thought this was thoughtless and very unprofessional of this employee. It really embarrassed me and put a damper on the entire evening. read more

Great food and great service. The apps and mains were all fantastic. Great ambiance and unique to find a sushi spot in Cincy with an upscale feel. Our server, Chas, was awesome read more

They are still working on their service, however, food and ambiance were fantastic. The light they have hanging over the bar are super cool and entertaining. The trifecta roll was delicious!! We'll be back. read more

Baru - Hamachi Jalapeño - Sushi Bars Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Overall, food was good. Brussels Sprouts were amazing. Lemon Sake was delicious. Go on a Monday for their specials and happy hour.

The aesthetics of this place are beautiful the staff was very friendly and willing to help us with recommendations. Very stylish place perfect for a drink or dinner date read more

They took 45 minutes to bring me a tuna roll, my the time it got to our table it smelled like unwashed genitalia, my 84 year old grandmother had to take a second dose of blood pressure medication to keep her from having a stroke because of the smell. I stupidly tried to give it a chance, thinking maybe it was just an exotic breed of tuna, only to find what appeared to be rodent claws in my food. I am not fish expert, but I have yet to see a tuna with toenails. I am currently battling a severe case of scombroid poisoning just from the two bites I had. The service was terrible and our waiter acted like we had no reason to complain about any of this. I would recommend this place to anyone who cannot find a place to use the restroom, or as a last resort for a glass of water for anyone on the verge of dying from dehydration. Anyone else would be better off buying a goldfish from petsmart and eating that with some rice than to spend ten cents at this establishment. read more

Overcooked edamame, bland fish served in weirdly large portions that had me questioning the quality of the fish the restaurant is obtaining. The sushi was some of the worst I've had in Cincinnati with Kroger usually coming in better. The cocktails were surprisingly good and the service was fine. It seemed like the restaurant was struggling and trying to give the appearance of being full on a Saturday night without actually having many people. Lots of empty space led to a weird atmosphere which reminded me of someone DJing to an empty room. Would not recommend aside from a drink and a cooked appetizer if you're desperate. read more