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Chef JUN - Bay Ho

4.6 (704 reviews)
ModerateJapanese, Sushi Bars
Closed • 4:00 pm - 9:00 PM

Chef JUN - Bay Ho Reservations

Chef JUN - Bay Ho Photos

Business Info

CHEF JUN - BAY HO ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Trendy
Moderate noise
Dogs allowed

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Recommended Reviews - Chef JUN - Bay Ho

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Chefs choice sashimi, beer, Salmon/tuna Poke Bowl
Cassie K.

I am so thankful we stumbled upon this establishment! On a Tuesday morning, we initially tried to go to another sushi restaurant about ten minutes away, but unfortunately we didn't have a reservation and they wouldn't have had another table available for another two hours. Called Chef Jun to confirm if we needed a reservation here, but they said they had tables available since we were planning on being there in 10-15 minutes. We walked in and were immediately greeted by the girls up front and sat at a nice table outside on the back patio. We ordered the chef's choice sashimi, poke, beer, and green grape soju. I ended up asking for lemonade too to mix with my soju since I rarely drink and do not like the taste of alcohol lol. The food was absolutely delicious, I wouldn't have changed anything about our meal! We left satisfied and were so impressed with the sashimi variety we were served. I had no idea amberjack existed, but it's definitely up there with my usual salmon sashimi favorite! We definitely got our money's worth. Service was incredible, our server Marylyn D (that was on our receipt) was sooo sweet and we really enjoyed her energy. (We love your pikachu tattoo btw!) She made sure to check on us and give us updates on when our food was coming, which we really appreciated. Overall 10/10. Next time we visit from the Bay Area we will definitely be coming back here and recommending to our friends :)

Nigiri
Michele O.

Everything is always great here: the food and the service. It's definitely a favorite and I highly recommend it. The sushi is so fresh. They also have the most delicious kalbi rib plate!

Swan L.

We visited this place recently after many years since our first experience during the pandemic era, the dining area definitely looks really nice and it was comfortable and airy. Food wise, the Bay Ho scallop roll was pretty good but I wasn't too impressed with the textures of the tempura or the execution of the rainbow roll. There were a lot of little scallops that had a nice charred flavor for Bay Ho. The tempura was a but too thick and over fried. The slices of fish in the rainbow roll was falling apart. Otherwise it was an ok experience

serina c.

Amazing sushi spot in the most random location. Was wanting to go to Nobu but my date took me here and I was shocked how good it was. Presentation was very ig friendly for what he ordered and even tastier.

Oturo
William G.

Nigiri was excellent and Japanese beers on draft made it feel like we were back in Japan. Will definitely be back and recommend. Service was attentive and the inside is super cute. Enjoyed the ambiance and overall experience deserves 5 stars.

Sushi from Jun San
Gale R.

Always good! We shared the spicy garlic edamame. I had the Toro roll, which was delicious and melt in your mouth with the bluefin tuna. My friend had the fire roll and the Alaskan roll, which I got to try and enjoyed it very much. Great service. Cozy, modern restaurant Clean ambience.

Patrick P.

Chef JUN serves high quality sushi and other dishes with a reasonable price. I had several Nigiri sushi, handroll, maki rolls and chirashi and they were all tasty and a good portion. It has good space for dine-in and the interior is neat and moody. It's pretty quiet inside. The staff are friendly and attentive. I think their quality of sushi matches with other top Japanese restaurants in San Diego. Try out this spot if you are craving for sushi and other Japanese dishes.

California Cut Roll
Taylor C.

We love Chef JUN! Such a great experience! We had a stroller with us and the hostess was so nice to make space for us and give us a table in the back room where it was a little quieter. The food is great. We love to come and share a few rolls. The orange and Hawaiian rolls are my favorite. Great date night or meet up with friends spot!

Linh N.

We've been going here for so long and they're so consistently good! Huge shout out to Hannah tonight for making our visit so special! Despite it being a full house, she provided us with amazing service and was just so incredibly kind. We always get the Jun San - it is so much food for such a good price! You're getting cod, uni, toro, oishi and more -- and the quality is always top-tier. Definitely my favorite sushi spot in all of San Diego :)

Chef Choice Sashimi
Allison P.

Quality sushi with an upscale, yet cozy, ambiance! We were so impressed by Chef Jun! If you're shopping for a nice date night spot with amazing presentation and even better tasting eats, this is the place. We opted for the Chef Choice Sashimi and the Solo Kaidan. The sashimi selection was solid with a good variety and generous cuts. No complaints here! The Solo Kaidan, though, was the star. Heads definitely turned when they brought this out- the presentation was top notch! It featured assorted sushi, sashimi all in one plate for one. There's also an option for two (the Sushi Kaidan for two), but we were plenty stuffed with just the solo option. So many fancy combos and new fish to try. You're definitely in for a treat with this dish!

Orange Roll
Fiona N.

This was highly recommended by people I follow on social medias. Decided to splurge for my son's birthday. It was tucked in a neighborhood mall where there's a liquor store there. Took us a while driving through a residential area to get here. Inside was warm and cozy with modern designs, and dimly lit. Onto the food, wished they offered more variety of sushi rolls. Most of the rolls consisted of spicy fish. Prices are comparable to other sushi places in SD, the freshness of the fishes could better. Service was good, there were a lot of servers but only one could take your order and check out. We most likely will be checking out other sushi restaurants in SD.

Avati Roll
Gina L.

What an absolute powerhouse in the San Diego Sushi scene! We came here for a date night and the service was impeccable, the recommendations were spot on. Their Omakase style menu was incredible and very affordable for what you get.

Chirashi Bowl
Kelly W.

I've heard nothing but good things about Chef Jun and can confirm this place lives up to the hype! The sushi is affordable for San Diego but that does not compromise its quality. The staff even took the time to explain each fish in my chirashi bowl. Super cute spot tucked away in bay ho, the inside looks nothing like the outside. Went in with high expectations and left pleasantly surprised, definitely coming back!

Cute walls

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We love Chef JUN it is fresh delicious sushi, clean restaurant & always friendly staff.

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Chef JUN - Bay Ho Reviews in Other Languages

Ask the Community - Chef JUN - Bay Ho

Are there vegan options?

I'm sure they can work around your request. They have a lot a lot a lot of vegetables.!!!! It's a wonderful restaurant. The people are amazing. Maybe you can just call them.… 

Do you offer happy hour?

Every Wednesday we have $3 Japanese draft beer happy hour all day. Thank you

Do you have outdoor seating options?

Yes we have a patio

Can I order gluten free?

Yes, please call us and our manager will go over gluten free options.

Do you have AYCE?

Sorry, we are not all you can eat.

Do they have unseared albacore?

Yes we do. Just ask for not seared albacore when you order :) thanks

Do they make spicy mango Kani salad?

Sorry we can make spicy kani, but we dont have kani mango salad.

Serving beer/sake? Yelp reservation email said no alcohol.

Hi Yes we do serve beer and sake I updated msg on yelp reservation but i will check again.… 

Do they serve alcohol?

Yes we do serve sake and beer :)

Do they have any lunch specials?

Hi Cathy, Yes we do have lunch specials, please check out our lunch specials here: https://chefjun.com/menu/ Thank you :)

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Azuki Sushi

Azuki Sushi

4.4(3.6k reviews)
6.7 mi•Banker's Hill
•$$$
Takes reservations
Vegan friendly

I have heard amazing things about Azuki. So was super excited to final it try it! We had…read morereservations at 6pm. We showed up on time but still had to wait 20 mins to get out table, which wasnt really ideal. But they did offer us free nigiri to make up for it was a nice touch. We sat at the sushi bar which was cool to see the chefs in action. They also had seating outside and a second floor as well. I got the strawberry matcha cocktail. This had to one my favorite cocktails in SD! The strawberry flavor was so fresh. And the fact that there wasn't an ounce of green but the matcha flavor still comes through was amazing! For sushi, I got the bluefin four ways. If your a fan if tuna I would highly recommend, it was delicious and a nice way to try the different cuts of tuna. We also got 2 nigiris, sake toro and scallops. Both also amazing. The rolls we got were the Rainbow Roll and the Super Dragon. Both delicious. One thing I do appreciate is that they use real blue crab instead of imitation crab. Will definitely come back! And highly recommend anyone to try it out!

Came for our anniversary dinner. Food was great! There were some hiccups in service but they did a…read morenice job trying to make up for it. We made a reservation at the sushi bar so we could see them making all the rolls which was fun. We ordered the bluefin four ways, rainbow roll, super dragon and the sake toro and scallop nigiri. We got two of their cocktails as well. My favorites were the rolls and the sake toro. I usually prefer salmon so I didn't try the bluefin but my partner enjoyed it. The rolls were a good size and all the flavors were well balanced and tasted fresh.

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Azuki Sushi
Azuki Sushi
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Sushi MARU - Iwashi

Sushi MARU

4.8(88 reviews)
7.3 mi•Downtown, Core

Adequate street parking in front and a huge ACE parking lot right in front if you're down to pay a…read morelittle extra. Easy to miss the door but theres a small wooden plaque by the front. Super small and intimate service, never felt rushed and very attentive staff. Extensive sake list and more than the usual options for beer. Chef Maru recommended to take photos upside down to get a better angle and he's so right lol The nigiri was great and I loved how the menu switched from fresh snappy bites to buttery melt in your mouth pieces, never felt like the last piece was competing with the next. I loved that crab was used in multiple dishes, like the warm dish and soup. I wish the nigiri was bigger in general, on the smaller side compared to other spots. Tuna lovers will appreciate how many dishes had tuna. The warm dish (seabass w hairy crab sauce) was one of my favorites, the hairy crab sauce consistency reminded me of banh canh cua. Tuna is from Mexico, most veggies and fruits were from Chino farms.

I was really looking forward to Sushi Maru omakase. I made reservations for the late seating at…read more8pm. Once arrived we were seated about 5 minutes later. They were still setting up. My first impression of the restaurant was, it was beautiful restaurant with a counter that seats 14. First off, Chef Maru and his entire staff was absolutely fantastic and professional. They were all attentive on refilling water and tea. Chef Maru himself was absolutely awesome, he explained each course that was served. Which was the right way to do it. Omakase: Omakase 20 pieces at $180. It's a great price, but in my head there had to be a catch to it. The starter and appetizer started out strong. Everything (fish) were all fresh, so when the nigiri course started that's when everything went south. The nigiri that chef served was really small and it's not your standard size nigiri .There's barley any shari ( sushi rice) and fish. If felt like I was sampling each nigiri. You can't really enjoy it when it's that small.The only highlight was the Uni from San Diego. That felt like a month full, other than that everything just felt like a tease. Don't let my photos fool you, it was all zoomed in. My wife and I had many omakase before and lelf happy and satisfied. This was the first time that we ever left after an omakase meal and was still hungry and a little disappointed. I would love to give Sushi Maru more stars but I just can't after this vist.

Photos
Sushi MARU - San Diego Uni!! So sweet!

San Diego Uni!! So sweet!

Sushi MARU - Appetizer - Hairy Crab and Ika

Appetizer - Hairy Crab and Ika

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Soichi Sushi - Nigiri

Soichi Sushi

4.8(556 reviews)
5.6 mi•University Heights
•$$$$

We celebrated our anniversary here and had a wonderful experience! The food was beautifully…read morepresented, fresh, and thoughtfully prepared, with each piece of sushi showcasing the chef's attention to detail. The service was very warm and attentive, making the evening feel extra special. The vibe was amazing, creating an intimate and welcoming atmosphere perfect for a special occasion. One of the highlights was when the head chef played guitar for a customer celebrating a birthday and even came over to wish us a happy anniversary. Those personal touches made the experience truly memorable. We really appreciated the hospitality and would love to come back for another special occasion!

Came back for my 3rd visit here since they've opened and am thrilled that the business is doing…read morewell and has continued to hold it's Michellin star. I've ordered the Omakase each time and while I still love the atmosphere and the energy from Chef Soichi and the staff, I do have to say that this last go round was not quite as good as the last two. This is meant to be opinionated criticism to help improve but I think the dishes could use more diversity and depth. Having done a fair share of omakase from places like Kinme and Matoi, I feel like this isn't that much more memorable or special and I'd hate for it to follow the same path Tadokoro did where they were absolutely my #1 choice and fell after they got their star (which they later lost). Still love that Chef Soichi continues his tradition of birthday serenades with his guitar and the place still has that mom and pop charm so I hope they continue to thrive!

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Soichi Sushi - Beautiful flowers for Valentines!!

Beautiful flowers for Valentines!!

Soichi Sushi - Fried shrimp head. Whole thing is edible!

Fried shrimp head. Whole thing is edible!

Soichi Sushi - Appetizer

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Appetizer

Ichifuji

Ichifuji

4.9(214 reviews)
3.5 mi•Clairemont
•$$$$

If you're looking for a unique, intimate omakase experience and love trying unexpected flavors,…read morethis is absolutely worth it. We initially couldn't get a reservation, so we joined the waitlist and were thrilled to get a Friday afternoon call offering us an 8 PM opening. The sushi bar has only about 10 seats, making the entire experience feel incredibly personal. The fish is flown in daily from Japan, the menu changes every three months, and you get to interact with the chef as each course is prepared. There are two omakase options: $145 or $165 with additional nigiri. If you're worried about leaving a tasting menu hungry, get the nigiri. I lost count of the courses and was completely stuffed by the end! The highlight was getting to try fish I'd never even heard of and some genuinely creative flavor combinations. You do need to be an adventurous eater--think oysters and fried shrimp heads--so it may not be ideal for someone hesitant about seafood. But if you're willing to trust the chef, that's part of what makes it so fun. The entire experience lasted about 2 1/2 hours, and because the setting is so intimate, we even ended up chatting with the diners next to us. And the sweet potato ice cream at the end was absolutely divine. We left full, happy, and feeling like we'd been briefly transported back to our travels in Japan. Such a special experience. We will absolutely be back!

The omakase started off alright with complex appetizers that I didn't love, but fit Crystal's…read morepalate better. However, when the sushi started coming out the omakase got better and better and the fish selections included both classics as well as some unique options that we had never had before.the flavor combinations were also quite strong. Additionally, the price point was very affordable at around $160 per person.

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Ichifuji
Ichifuji - Toro handroll

Toro handroll

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Shino Sushi

Shino Sushi

4.4(686 reviews)
7.0 mi•Little Italy
•$$$

What a little gem in Little Italy! Shino Sushi was recommended to us by a friend, and since it's so…read moreclose to my brother's apartment, we decided to give it a try. Such a cute, intimate spot, and everything we ordered was absolutely delicious! What really stood out was the hospitality. The chef personally went out of his way to accommodate us, which made the experience even more special. We ordered the Wagyu sushi, which is traditionally served raw, but he kindly seared it for us so we could enjoy it the way we preferred. We had so much fun stepping outside our comfort zone and trying new things! Delicious food, thoughtful hospitality, and a wonderful overall experience. Definitely a little hidden gem we'll be coming back to!

An extra star for the thoughtful and child-friendly service…read more I brought my 6 year old here for sushi after trying to get into Sugarfish and then Azuki. There was no wait here but parking was a nightmare and there is almost no street parking right around the restaurant which is near the trolley tracks. I recalled coming here for a light dinner with my husband many years ago and thinking it was good, but expensive. I asked if they had Japanese soda for my daughter because it was not on the menu, and they said no, but after we came back from the bathroom the host had found one for us. They gave us chopstick helpers and were very nice. We ordered braised pork belly as an app and wagyu nigiri, albacore, hamachi, salmon belly, 2 salmons, and unagi. I think that was all. They nicely split the order so half had no wasabi for the kid. They were very considerate and I appreciated it. The food however took a while to come out. The braised pork belly was ok, but the fat had not rendered as well as at some other places so we ate around it. The flavor was good though. The hamachi was probably the best item-tender and tasty. The albacore was standard and a generous piece, but the salmon was a bit tough and my kid who usually inhales salmon tasted and then left the salmon. The wagyu had good flavor but was surprisingly chewy. For $26 I would expect it to melt in your mouth but it was not easy to bite through. The eel was very tender but had a weird taste, and was disappointing. I found myself chewing on a scale from maybe the salmon and was overall underwhelmed by the food. The bill for a soda and the sushi came to almost $150 after tax and tip for me and a 6-year old. Usually my husband and I and my kid go to places with better quality and pay the same price for the three of us. Will not be back.

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Shino Sushi - Sushi bar

Sushi bar

Shino Sushi - Tofu

Tofu

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Lumi - Charred Yellowtail yellowtail, charred green onion, masago, avocado, cucumber, yuzu kosho aioli, garlic ponzu

Lumi

4.2(1.1k reviews)
7.9 mi•Gaslamp

My husband and I came here for dinner and really enjoyed both the food and the atmosphere. The…read morerestaurant has a modern rooftop vibe in the heart of Downtown San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter, making it a great spot for date night. We ordered the miso soup, spicy edamame, Den Miso pork belly skewers, tamarindo tuna ceviche, seabass serrano, crispy karikari tuna, and mochi ice cream for dessert. To drink, we had the Taiyo Margarita and the Clouds of Matcha cocktail. The spicy edamame was probably the only dish that fell a little short for us. It wasn't bad by any means, but we were hoping for more flavor. The absolute standout was the Den Miso pork belly skewers. My husband and I both took our first bite at the same time, looked at each other, and immediately said, "Oh!" We were genuinely surprised by how juicy, tender, and flavorful they were. There were only two skewers, but they packed so much flavor that we instantly wanted to order another plate. The tamarindo tuna ceviche was fresh, light, and refreshing. The taro chips added a nice crunch without overpowering the dish. The seabass serrano was enjoyable, though it wasn't a stand out for us. The crispy karikari tuna (spicy tuna over crispy rice) is one of my go-to orders whenever I visit a sushi restaurant, and this version was up to par. The only component I wasn't crazy about was the long, thin slice of avocado on top--I personally could have done without it, though my husband actually liked it, so that's just a matter of preference. We finished the meal with mochi ice cream, which was the perfect sweet ending. Overall, we had a great dining experience. Between the rooftop ambiance, attentive service, and several delicious dishes - especially those unforgettable pork belly skewers - we'd definitely come back and would happily recommend it to anyone looking for a great dinner spot in the Gaslamp.

This is a hipster restaurant for after-work drinks and sushi, where the crowd is relatively young…read more The rooftop bar and open air is great for a breezy summer evening. The music is a bit on the loud side, but you can still have a chat with a group. I ordered the Akira Back Pizza, Mango Bongo Roll, and Super Spider Roll. Akira Back Pizza was my favorite, as the crunchy chip base and truffle drizzle made it extremely craveable. The rolls were pretty good too, and they use real crab! By the way, Lumi's AI answering service says they do not do take-out, but they do. Their receptionist is difficult to reach to confirm, but I have ordered take-out from their bar without any issues. It's just that they may not be able to allow call-ins for to-go orders.

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Lumi - Inside the upstairs.

Inside the upstairs.

Lumi - Namaiki "Sassy" made with producer espadin, herradura blanco tequila, aji amarillo, pink guava, lime

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Chef JUN - Bay Ho - japanese - Updated October 2026

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