Food was ok, not too special but not bad. Ordered edamame and it was cold and usually its steamed and hot. I suspect it was overnight and not fresh. Service was so bad and waitress was so rude!!! We asked to sit beside the window and she said no because we were two people and window table would take 4 people even though the shop was completely empty!!! So she could accommodate. I would never eat at this place again read more

Eiji - Various Sushi Lunch - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I love how cute the restaurant is since there are only a few tables. Their fish was quite good and they also put wasabi in between the fish and rice in their nigiri, which is really nice. read more

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Japanese breakfast in an intimate and homey setting, a tray layout with lightly fried fish, miso soup, tofu, seaweed salad, and other staples. You also have to try the desserts! exemplary portion control and refreshing colors and taste, I came to post these pictures from a while ago! Mochi Chestnut that changes on the weekly. Ichigo Daifuku classic Ice cream on Taro Mousse Paste read more

Eiji - Taro mousse paste Ice Cream - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Oh what a lovely meal, we felt instantly transported back to Japan in this cozy restaurant. The most difficult part of the meal is deciding what you want to order from their extensive menu, but from there it's all delicious and perfect. We started off with the special miso which was a tofu forward tasty salmon experience. The next course was tuna salad where the dressing on the salad paired with the tuna for a refreshing break after the soup. The salmon sashimi was perfectly buttery melt in your mouth omg fish. The roll and the nigiri we ordered were amazing, the scallop and uni were my favorite hands down. We always like trying the tamago at a Japanese restaurant to see their take on it, and this was nicely sweet soy with a bit of rice. The mochi strawberry was a perfect end to the meal and was reminiscent of one we had in Japan. Thank you Eiji, looking forward to visit again soon. read more

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Very quiet ambiance and small space. Recommend going in a small group. Food there is good. Recommend trying the strawberry covered in mochi. Really good! read more

Eiji - Strawberry covered in mochi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

This was the first place where my boyfriend and I went for indoor dining. The space for indoor and outdoor was relatively small, but the time we went wasn't busy. The sashimi and nigiri we ordered was amazing. The quality of the fish was great and each piece melts in your mouth like butter. We were happy to find this place on Yelp, since we usually eat sushi in Japan town. Also, I did see the waitress sanitize the tables outside quite frequently, which is great to see because they were following covid guideline! read more

Eiji - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

Intimate sushi spot. Good value ($20 for their regular assorted nigiri/chirashi), however the quality of the fish and sushi rice left more to be desired. Fish:rice ratio was off, with the fish being quite thin/dry. I did enjoy the special creamy miso with salmon. Maybe I need to go back to try their homemade tofu. read more

Eiji - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

The food is delicious, but they rushed us out. They served the check and asked me to pay while we were still eating dessert. I tipped well. Then as soon as we were finished eating, they asked us to leave. Not a great feeling to end the meal with read more

This is an amazing, delicious restaurant that really should have a higher rating on here. Homemade tofu!!!

Really disappointed, they told us it would be a 20 min wait and then it was over an hour and they refused to seat the three of us even though there were clearly two, two person tables open that we could have sat at. They were extremely unaccommodating with letting us sit at one of those tables and very uncommunicative about why we could not be seated. We didn't even end up eating there because they would not seat us for a long time. I'm not returning here and don't recommend! read more

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The food was great! It is a small space but I love it. The servers were engaging (they will engage if you also are open to have a chat). read more

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The restaurant could not accommodate our party of 5. We were searching for another place to eat and we were asked to step outside within a minute in chilly weather with children. When we tried to explain we needed a minute the gentleman at the door became aggressive. Two of us had eaten there before and found the food tasty. But a place that has so little regard for people is not one we will return to. Very disappointing. read more

TLDR: A very quaint spot run by a couple from Japan. The food feels homey and is absolutely delicious! I couldn't recommend this spot more. Food: 8/10 The food was absolutely amazing! I'd definitely recommend their specials and checking out the small plates. My personal favorites were the monk fish liver and you absolutely must order the mochi strawberry! It was so perfectly tart, yet sweet and had me hooked. The fish was also super fresh and delicious. Price & Portion: 6/10 The prices are pretty standard for sushi. I think we ended up paying around $50 per person (and this is including dessert). We definitely left feeling full! Service: 7/10 The service was great here! There was a bit of a wait when we went, but we just walked around the neighborhood a bit. Ambience: 8/10 The restaurant is super small and intimate feeling. It's the perfect place for a casual date or catching up with friends. read more

Omg our server was an ice queen. It sucked. The food was actually pretty decent, but I won't be back because the server was super weird. Her cold and awkward demeanor made us feel really unwelcome. The guy who came out to cook and assemble the tofu was sweet though. read more

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If there is an option to give this place a zero star I would have. We came here for dinner tonight and were excited to try a few new things. When food was served, THE waitress was so rude and pointed at my phone with her finger and said "no phone or playing game during dinner". I used the Nest app on my phone to check out how my 17th years old dog was doing at home as he was home alone. I was equally shocked and felt bad. Shocked because of how she treated me as a customer. Felt bad because she probably has no awareness of how rude she is. She doesn't belong in customer service industry. Guess what? This is a free country so I made sure that she saw my phone and Pokémon app playing during dinner! Eiji owner - you folks have good food but bad service. She should be fired. Tonight I gave zero tips and will never come back. read more

I never leave 1 star reviews, however I had a terrible experience here. I was very excited to try this place as it has been on my list for a while. The quality of the sushi and the price do not align. Also I ordered the 7 piece sushi ($26) and they gave me the 11 piece ($48) sushi meal. Then when I mentioned this the waiter gaslit me and said I ordered the 11 piece when I know myself and have a small stomach and never order the larger serving. I left the establishment without finishing the food too because it started to make my stomach hurt. read more

This place has been on my list for awhile and I finally got the chance after I walked by on the way to U: Dessert Story. The restaurant is small so reservations are recommended because it can get busy. Here's what we got: Salmon skin salad: very good but very small, you get about 6 little rolls Oboro tofu with sesame seeds, shiso, ginger, green onion, and grated yam: it is housemade and worth a try if you really like tofu, otherwise you might not get it Okra beef: well made and delicious, I'd order it again. Asari sakamushi: clams steamed with sake, order this! The clams are small but well cooked and the broth is flavorful. Caterpillar roll: generic roll but nothing offensive read more

Eiji - Tofu - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

Really feels like I stepped into a spot in Japan. The food and service is also pretty nice. Would definitely eat here again and try some other dishes. read more

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We sat in a corner booth at Eiji where we could appreciate the cozy Japanese decor. We had the unagi, mackerel and hamachi nigiri which tasted fresh w/good quality fish. The seaweed salad and beef-wrapped okra were also good (okra isn't my favorite but it was nice to try something different). The main reason I keep coming back is become I'm obsessed with their AMAZING strawberry mochi, which isn't the best obsession to have since you're only allowed 1 per person and no takeout. I found out the hard way after I promised an out-of-town friend we'd pick up a few mochi there after eating lunch at another restaurant, then ended up having to sit down and eat second lunch here just for the one mochi! Another friend actually tried to special order a batch for her wedding but they said no, they only serve it at the restaurant! It's a small place holding maybe 30 people, but they have both indoor and outdoor seating. Parking here can be difficult but I can usually find something on Sanchez St where cars can park perpendicular. If you're looking for more dessert after your strawberry mochi, you can pop over to Giddy Candy or U. Dessert Story around the corner. read more

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A cute, cozy sushi place. The service was a little off-putting, but the food was good. RESERVATIONS: Made by phone for a Thursday night at 7:15pm for three. I got this with just one day's notice. THE SERVICE: A bit strict. One member of our party was quite late - 10 minutes past our 15-minute grace period - and when we went to get sat, the main server had to go out of her way to say "I just want you to know your reservation has expired and we can no longer save that table for you. [Long pause] But we can sit you at this table over here [proceeds to sit us at the table that was reserved for us, still with the "Reserved" sign on it]. Later during the dinner, I was showing my friend some videos (and turned the volume down, knowing the sound may be distracting in such a small restaurant), but again that main server came over and said that "movies are not allowed in this restaurant." * Oboro Tofu ($9.75) - 3.5 stars Good, but overhyped - not incredible by any means. No longer made at the table. * Eggplant dish - 4 stars This is was surprisingly delicious! Perfectly even texture, lots of flavor. * Salmon skin salad ($10) - 3.5 stars Salmon skin was great, but the cold ingredients had too much briny flavor. * Alaska roll $7, Ikura salmon roe $6.25, Uni, Salmon $6.25, Unagi $6.50 - all 4 stars Good texture to all of their fish. * Mochi Ice Cream Kyoto-style - 3.5 stars Very soft mochi, but a little dry. read more

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This place transports you out of San Francisco truly unique dishes. Nigiri was very good but appetizers were the most fun

This was a really solid and underrated experience!! (side note: i found this on an online guide of things to eat in sf before you die so maybe this is appropriately rated). First off- really great ambiance. It's a small, almost hole in the wall spot within 10 minutes of a walk from Mission Dolores park and owned by a Japanese couple. It was busy on a week night, but we were able to quickly get a table. We tried the homemade hot tofu after the lady taking our order strongly recommended it, and it didn't disappoint! We also tried the chirashi bowl, and it has definitely been one of the better ones we've had. The fish was really fresh, and the fish to rice ratio was pretty ideal. The portion was huge and worth the price- would for sure recommend coming hungry. We came towards the end of the night so the homemade strawberry mochi was sold out, but definitely excited to try it next time! read more

Eiji - Chirashi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

Wow best spicy tuna roll I've ever had! The strawberry mochi with fresh strawberry is divine. Small spot. Great service.

Great neighborhood sushi spot. Food is reasonably priced and yummy. The spot feels very homey and unpretentious. Def recommend! We tried several things and everything was great. New favorite go to spot for a chill dinner. read more

A mom and pop restaurant that is quite cozy. I came here because I was attracted to the tofu, and in all honesty, it delivered in the tofu realm of things. Cold Tofu: 4/5. You can definitely taste the tofu-ness of it and is quite refreshing. If you like the flavor of tofu, this simple dish can definitely deliver. Ankake Tofu: 4.5/5. If you only had stomach space for one tofu, get this one. This almost taste as smooth as a steamed egg with soya sauce. My only bloop on this was if this also came in a hot dish. Oboro Tofu: 3.5/5. The reason I came but not the reason I'll be back. This was definitely original but seemed even blander than the cold tofu. I love the original and purity of ingredients but this was a little much. Fun fact: They do lunch specials on weekend too and we also ordered the sushi plate. I'd recommend it- definitely tastes homemade and handmade with it's perfect imperfections. The STAR of this whole meal was the mochi red bean strawberry. Funnily enough, the wife/waitress didn't advertise it. Thankfully, I saw comments on Yelp. P.S. Don't expect A+ service here. After all, it's just a duo running this shop. read more

Good was ok. Services disastrous. Words experience I've had at a restaurant in a long time. They are not client friendly. We wanted to order edamame first while we decided what to get: not possible, they only get the full order at once. But that's nothing. Then we order the full meal. My friend orders "Gyosa". When they bring the food they bring "Yosenabe". I had asked about this dish earlier when we sat down but said "not today, maybe another day" and did not even mention it when we did the final order. A mistake happens. But the attitude the server took is NOT acceptable. She insisted we ordered it as if now you have to take it. Then I said, we haven't got the "Gyosa", and her reply was "what is that?" I said the dumplings you brought to the table next yo us. Her answer, "you mean GYOZA? You didn't order that, you ordered Yosenabe". To which I replied " we absolutely fid not order Yosenabe, I asked about it when we sat down but said not tonight, next time, we ordered GYOSA". Her reply, "we don't have GYOSA in the menu,we have GYOZA and you ordered YOSENABE". Yo which I replied "we absolutely fi not ordered Yosenabe, now let me ask you how do you confuse GYOSA with YOSENABE ". Her reply "I'm Japanese I know joe yo pronounce the correct names" and walked away. Thank god they had already brought our food to the table. We left after eating. WORST EXPERIENCE. ABSOLUTELY DO NOT RECOMMEND. There are many good Japanese restaurants in SF with much better food. read more

Hole in the wall. Tiny place with excellent sushi. Super fresh sushi. Great flavors. Authentic! The place is super small so on busier nights you may have a long wait but when it comes to sushi you want the freshest and the best. Service was great also. read more

Doesn't look like much when you walk past, but the inside is has cute small shop vibes. I like that you can see part of the kitchen from the seating area. As far as prices go, it's a pretty good deal for a standard fare of decent sushi. Come here to support a business run by kind people! read more

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First real meal out since getting my wisdom teeth pulled, so this is totally deserving of a review! This place is suupperrrr mom and pop. It's practically a hole-in-the-wall sushi place that you'll definitely miss while walking by it on a weekend because the Kitchen Story customers are spilling onto the sidewalk. The mom and pop aspect is something I have to give them major props for, but on the flip side, because it is family-run and short-staffed, service is quite slow. There aren't many tables, but when the entire restaurant is full, one cook and one host/server is NOT enough. I ordered two items, one tofu and a sushi plate, so I got my items pretty quickly in succession, but I noted that other tables received their meals very slowly and I had already finished my meal before larger parties even received their entrees. Otherwise, sushi is super fresh and the fish melted in my mouth! The portions were generous. There was a 6-piece tuna roll and 5 nigiri pieces with a small cucumber salad and miso soup. Just FYI their wasabi is helllaaa spicy - was not expected, but probably great quality wasabi (as my parents always say). If I'm back, I'm definitely going to order the made to order tofu, because I thoroughly enjoyed the ankake tofu I ordered - it was silky, with just the right amount of sweet, savory sauce on top! Price is about expected for the city. read more

This is my favorite sushi spot. Be prepared to wait because they are tiny and don't take reservations. Well worth the wait.

I've held off on reviewing Eiji for years, but after going at least, literally, 85 times (times I actually checked in), I thought it was about time to give them a very well-deserved 5 stars. Love starting with the cucumber sunomono and ankake tofu, then the sake-steamed clams and hamachi kama, whatever rolls or nigiri we might be desiring, then ending with a strawberry mochi. Add a glass of sake each for good measure. The restaurant feels cozy and authentic. The service is nothing except professional 100% of the time. The fish is fresh and the sushi rice perfect. As lovely as it is to go for dinner (the space can fill up quickly), we love going for weekend brunch/lunch. The mood is tranquil (especially compared to the more traditional brunch vibe next doors), the food light, and the experience always leaves us in a good mood to enjoy the rest of the day. Highly recommend! read more

I visited Eiji on a Friday night at 7:00PM. I made a reservation the night prior by calling ahead. You can only make reservations via phone, there is no online system. Food Very small ~$5 each Gomaae: Boiled spinach with sweet sesame sauce Cucumber Sunomono: Cucumber with Japanese style vinaigrette dressing Tofu ----- Oboro Tofu: Warm silken tofu served in a donabe with side toppings ($10) Ankake Tofu: Steamed cold tofu with a thick soy sauce ($5) Sushi ---------- Maki rolls were around $6 and the Nigiri was $8 for 2. Tuna Tekka Negi-Hama Scallop Nigiri Kampachi Nigiri Dessert ---------- Strawberry Mochi We started our meal with some small dishes from the appetizer section. These were just fine. I would have appreciated some more sesame sauce with the gomaae, but overall still okay. Eiji is known for their homemade tofu. One of the waitresses actually makes it to order in front of you on a small hotpot stove. There are three types. Oboro seems to be the most popular and it comes hot, with a set of various toppings such as sesame, spring onion, ginger, and bonito. We also ordered the Ankake tofu, which was not actually cold and came warm (which was very misleading on the menu) and served with a thicker light soy glaze. Both of the tofus were enjoyable, but nothing amazing to write home about. We then ordered two nigiri and two maki rolls. The fish quality itself was decent for the price point, however, came with way too much wasabi underneath, to the point where you are overwhelmed by the wasabi taste. We ended the meal with a strawberry mochi, which was again like most of the things on the menu, decent, but not spectacular. I think I would have actually preferred it without the strawberry since I had quite an acidic and not sweet one, it didn't mesh very well with the red bean paste. I don't understand why people seem to be going crazy for these things on Yelp. With all things said, for two people, I paid around 80 dollars post-tax and tip. There's an additional 4% credit card charge that definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Overall the food quality is just average at Eiji. If you are looking for sushi at this price, I would strongly recommend Tsubasa in Hayes over this place. read more

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I don't want to make this spot get too, too popular but I'm sitting here on a Tuesday afternoon wondering where all the people are! Sure it's *slightly* drizzling but the other indoor two person table is NOT taken! It's my first time eating indoors in 5 months (double vaxxed, thank you UCSF) and I cannot wait until this place can open up more seats. The sushi is better than any other place (fresh fish and perfect rice) I've tried since the start of the pandemic and I can't wait to come back to try more. Feels like a Kyoto restaurant inside, and truly feels authentic. I can't claim to *know* for certain as a white dude from San Diego, but I do know when I enjoy what I eat and when what I eat is better than simply good. Check it out, y'all are sleeping on it. Other places are as/more expensive and don't have half the taste. read more

Favorite down-to-earth Japanese spot in town. (Should be 4.5 stars.) We usually order a number of dishes, which are always great, but we come for the house, handmade tofu. It served warm in a stone pot and is superbly soft. The selection of toppings keeps each bite exciting and dipping in for more. The small, cute vibe of this place is warm and inviting as well. I can't recommend this place enough. Because the line doesn't flow out the door and reservations don't book up for months, few of my visiting friends choose it from my list; but the more secret this spot stays, the better for me. Happy eating. read more

Dinner review. Sashimi platter - 3/5 Black miso cod - 4/5 Rainbow roll - 2/5 Nigiri (Hotate, Uni, Aji) - 3/5 Overall, "A-OK." read more

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A very homey, quaint restaurant with a very professional and respectful staff. All the dishes were satisfying at a price comparable with SF sushi - would definitely go back again. read more

fresh sushi! try the tofu, it is really silky and is housemade, it comes with ginger and scallions. The special miso soup was unexpectedly so high quality, we had salmon belly and veggies for our special! Sushi was fresh. Restaurant was cute and friendly service. Mochi is great too! read more

Eiji - Special Miso Soup, Ankake Tofu - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Small local japanese restaurant located near the Castro. The place definitely has a more traditional feel to it and with only a few tables, gives a more intimate setting. My friend who lived in Japan for a couple of years loves this place because they serve dishes which are less Americanized. Though they do serve sushi and rolls, they also serve the smaller more traditional dishes which people in Japan eat. They also make their own in house tofu, which is quite delicious. The menu has a range of dishes from sushi, nabe, and various appetizers and salads. Definitely check out the specials/menu posted above the bar area, because that is where some of the best dishes of the day will be located. My group got their eggplant with walnut miso, and it was super delicious and umami, I think they occasionally change out the ones posted depending on the ingredients on hand. read more

Eiji - Mochi dessert - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

i love this little place! my partner and i came in for a late lunch and there wasn't anyone in the shop. a couple people trickled in after us, but it was not crowded at this off hour (2pm). NABEYAKI UDON: this was the Best thing i've had in awhile. i had lingering cold symptoms and this was the perfect cozy meal. it had a substantial amount of seafood (two different types of fish, mussels, shrimp, etc.) and the noodles were so good. the broth was excellent. i have no complaints and i'm stoked to go back!! read more

Hype. Most of us succumb to it. I will gladly admit that I can be the #1 offender when it comes to hype. As soon as I hear about a new "it" place, I just have to go. Like a mad woman, I do my research to try to secure reservations. I once went as far as finding the co-owner's number of a new restaurant to secure reservation for their soft opening. SO you best believe, if I ever thought my significant other was creeping on me, I would be lurking in the bushes with an industrial pair of scissors. *Snip Snip* Muaahhaaahaaaa. I'm kidding... Eiji is not a new "it" restaurant but it's supposedly the "it" place to get tofu. With all the stellar reviews, we expected to have the BEST tofu of our lives. Mmmm, maybe we needed more sake. Ok, more on that later. First things first, you need reservations to eat at Eiji. We saw people get turned away who didn't have reservations and the place wasn't even full. Eiji is small and fits about 25 people. There's no sushi bar which I find odd for a Japanese place that also is a "sushi bar". Parking is terrible in the area because it's a residential area so allot an extra 15-20 minutes for finding street parking. There's no nearby parking lots. My gf and I normally opt for omakase at Japanese restaurants but they don't offer it here so we stuck with the highlighted items on Yelp. Eiji is not a place I would recommend for good sushi as I found it very mediocre especially for the price point and they have a VERY limited fish selection. For hardcore sushi lovers, I recommend Ino (purists), Okina (cheap and simple) or Akiko (if you have a sugar daddy). OUR ORDER: *Miso Black Cod - $13: http://bit.ly/1cFXoAe *Deluxe Sashimi (Maguro, Sake, Hirame, Amber Jack, Hamachi & Toro) - $27.75: http://bit.ly/14Cc5tY *Sake Salmon - $5.25: http://bit.ly/1eMzsqE *Amaebi Sweet Shrimp - $8: http://bit.ly/1dauNRk *Uni Sea Urchin - $8.50: http://bit.ly/17PTBZ8 *Ceviche Roll - $8.25: http://bit.ly/1eMzvm7 *Negi Toro Roll - $11: http://bit.ly/1cFXMhZ *Ankimo Monkfish Liver - $9.25: http://bit.ly/1eMzD5b *Oboro Tofu - $9.25: http://bit.ly/1cQca6G *Strawberry Mochi - $5.50 for a pair: http://bit.ly/15JtDEV I generally despise cooked fish but black cod is an exception because I love the buttery delicateness. I would have enjoyed the miso black cod more if I didn't have to pick out bones from my mouth with each bite. Tsk tsk, that shouldn't have happened especially when you're paying $13 for a small portion. Nothing noteworthy about the ankimo, sashimi, nigiri, or rolls we had other than it's overpriced for the quality you get. I will say that were very disappointed about the ceviche roll that others raved about. Not sure what's to rave about salsa and rice because that's exactly what it tasted like. And, what's up with not serving the amaebi heads? A good sushi joint, will always prepare the heads either fried or in a miso soup. As for the oboro tofu, I do love the concept that it's made to order but it was nothing special. It was just warm tofu served with condiments (sesame seeds, ginger, scallions, etc). It's bland so you have to add soy sauce to taste. Maybe we got a bad batch but it wasn't even silky and just disappointing all together. *Sigh* The best part of the meal was the strawberry mochi which is limited at one per a person. A deliciously plump strawberry encased in a thin layer of sweet azuki and then wrapped with glutinous rice with a lovely toothsome chew. I could of eaten a whole tray of these bad boys and did without the rest of our order. Service was very polite and somewhat attentive. Hmmm...what else... It took me nearly 4 months just to write this review because there was nothing really to say about Eiji other than it's overhyped and overrated. That is all. read more

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