I love Shiku so much! I frequent this place and they are a reliable restaurant for good quality…read moresushi. The salmon here is my favorite in all of and my friend and I could come here just to eat the salmon alone. Other honorable mentions: the spicy tuna crispy rice, any of the tempura options, and the hamachi heaven! Update on 09/05/2026: My friends and I are still regulars at Shiku and love this spot. We had the most fabulous cuts of salmon tonight, I mean, melt-in-your mouth cuts. Our service is always quick and exceptional. Shout out to Hana who has taken care of us over the years, she makes the experience that much more warm and welcoming :)

Stopped by for a quick bite after seeing all the positive reviews. The place is small, with one…read morefriendly server, and the atmosphere is relaxed and casual. They offer a limited happy hour menu from 3-6 PM, with all items priced at $5, which is a fair deal. I ordered the house cab and a salmon hand roll--both were just okay. My husband tried the shrimp tempura, which came with tempura green beans (since I'm celiac, I didn't try tempura) and we shared the warm salted edamame. The 15-piece chef's choice sashimi arrived first, but there was a noticeable delay, both for the food and my happy hour wine. Service was a bit slow overall, and our waitress didn't offer a second glass of wine until we were about to leave, so I ended up skipping it. Overall, the quality of the fish was average--nothing particularly memorable or worth raving about and not worth returning. Sadly disappointed :(

My best friend and I share birthdays and this year our friend group came to visit me in my hometown…read moreto celebrate our birthday. My friends had really wanted to have a cute experience and have delicious food, so when I suggested Blue Ocean/Harumama they were all in. I've been to the Harumama in Little Italy but thought that the La Jolla location would be a better option because of the views. They don't offer reservations, but the Saturday we came they had plenty of seating. You can request to be sat by the window but the wait time was almost an hour and half long. Our server was great, super sweet and really wanted to make sure we had a good time. For food, we ordered karraage, takoyaki and garlic edamame to start. The karraage was so tender and crispy and the flavor of the chicken was great. This was my first time having takoyaki and it was pretty good and the garlic edamame was perfect it had so much garlic I was really happy. For sushi, we ordered a regular spicy tuna roll, Chef's Special Roll (shrimp tempura, krab, avocado and topped with spicy tuna) and the dynamite roll (deep fried California roll with baked langoustine on top). My friend on his own got the ramen and we ordered a the pork and cow buns. The service was great food came out so quickly and our water was always topped off. The sushi was so fresh, I just wish the spicy tuna was a little more spicy. I definitely want to come back, the views are gorgeous and I feel like this would be a cute date night or a fun place to go with your girlfriends to celebrate a birthday.

We came on a Friday around 4:30pm. They don't take reservations, but at that time we could have…read morebeen seated right away. We decided to wait about 25 minutes for a window table, and I'm SO glad we did! The view was beautiful and really added to the experience. Parking in this area can be tricky since there are so many popular restaurants nearby and you're right by the beach. It's mostly street parking, but we ended up parking in the garage next to Duke's. It was $35 , but from there it was just a short walk to the restaurant. The restaurant has a really nice ambiance, and our waitress was great. I chose Blue Ocean/Harumama because I love ramen, but we were eating with our kids and I wanted somewhere that had plenty of options for them too. It ended up being a great choice for our family. I ordered the Flying Pig ramen, my husband got the Power Protein Poke, one daughter got the Crispy Chickie, and the other got a California Roll. My ramen was okay--not bad, just not my favorite ramen--but everyone else really enjoyed their meals. I tried some of the Crispy Chickie and it was really tasty! We also had to get one of the character buns . We ordered the Bunny Bun with Nutella and the girls loved it. We finished with the churros and chocolate sauce, which were delicious! One of my favorite parts about coming here was the location. After dinner we walked over to La Jolla Cove, watched the sunset and saw the seals. Everything was within walking distance, so it made dinner feel like part of a whole evening out rather than just going to a restaurant. Between the ocean view, atmosphere, kid-friendly choices and location, we had a really nice experience. If you have the time, I definitely think the window seating is worth the wait!

Takaramono Sushi is easily one of the best sushi spots we've been to in San Diego. It's a bit more…read moreelevated than your typical sushi restaurant, and you won't find an overwhelming list of traditional rolls here, which I really appreciate. The menu is thoughtfully curated, with just a handful of rolls and more of an emphasis on sashimi and nigiri, which is exactly what we love. The restaurant itself is smaller and intimate, which added to the experience, and having convenient parking was a plus. Service was quick and attentive, and our waiter was incredibly helpful with recommendations throughout the meal. We started with the cucumber salad and seaweed salad, both fresh, light, and refreshing. The A5 Wagyu is an absolute MUST, truly one of the highlights of the night. It was unbelievably good and practically melted in your mouth. We also ordered the Hamachi, La Jolla Roll, and Pearl Roll, and every single one was exceptional. I honestly couldn't choose a favorite! I'm so glad we decided to try Takaramono. Everything felt fresh, beautifully prepared, and thoughtfully done from start to finish. Definitely a place we'll be coming back to. So, so good!

This was my fourth visit to Takaramono Sushi and it has been consistently excellent in terms of the…read morequality of the fish and the attentive and accommodating sushi chefs. It is located in a rather strange location with a small, very awkward parking lot on the NW corner of Pearl Street and La Jolla Blvd. kitty corner from the Baskin Robbins. However, it is very walkable from anywhere in the beach area or downtown La Jolla. Food is excellent and sushi chefs are very accommodating. For example, we ordered spicy tuna, hamachi and salmon hand rolls with avocado which were not on the menu and they were excellent. We had several orders of sashimi and nigiri and all were very fresh and delicious. We also ordered the La Jolla Roll, which is a rainbow roll with premium sashimi (salmon and bluefin toro and scallops...) on top of a California Roll with real snow crap instead of "krab". I also appreciate that they use real seaweeds for their garnishes and offer both "real" wasabi with mashed up green horseradish along with the more familiar pressed "soy sauce wasabi". Good sake selection, but no draft beers--only 12 oz bottles of light Japanese beers. Noise levels at the sushi bar are a bit overwhelming, particularly when they use butane torches to sear the fish and meat dishes. Service could also be more attentive. We waited about 15 minutes for our bill even though it was not busy. Food makes up for these minor deficits though. Overall a great spot. Highly recommended.

Dinner on a Saturday night…read more My friend lives in La Jolla and suggested trying Akari since it was under newer management from previous years. Everything was great - the service, decor and most importantly, the sushi. I ordered the protein roll, a Philadelphia roll and a beer. Everything tasted fresh and given that we're a beach city, I liked how the protein roll came on a dish in the shape of a shell (see photo). I was happy that they had my Ichiban beer, as not all places serve it, but they only have it the large size and normally I order the regular size. They had comfy booths to sit in and a beautiful mural on the wall, which added to the ambiance. I felt like the restaurant was clean - a very important factor when eating raw fish! I don't get to downtown La Jolla very often, but I will definitely go back here again when in the area. Parking can be a little bit tricky, but we came in the early evening to avoid the later dinner weekend crowd. So we drove around for a bit and finally found a spot. The restaurant is definitely worth the effort!

GOOD SUSHI IN LA JOLLA (4.3 stars)…read more - FOOD: pretty good; very fresh fish - PRICE: fair - SERVICE: excellent - AMBIANCE: quaint sushi restaurant (which I like; nice and quiet and chill) I knew something about the execution was familiar. I didn't know it until after eating there and reading a review that this is the sister location of So Cal Sushi (in Normal Heights) and after comparing the menus it made sense! What stood out to me when I knew nothing about this restaurant was that spicy tuna is in majority of their speciality rolls and after tasting it I had thought 'this seems familiar' - sometimes spicy tuna (in anything) can be overdone, played out, or not really cared for. Same thought when I first ate at the sister restaurant in Normal Heights when they first opened years ago - too much of it. But overall execution of the meal was good. :: ORDER :: MISO SOUP ($3.95) - served with wakame, negi, and tofu. average/typical. KURODAI ($9.25) - they have rotation fish list and saw an offering of Kurodai and had to try it. First of all, my favorite is Nodoguro but they didn't have that and was told closest to that was Kurodai. Honestly, I thought differently - didn't really come close to Nodoguro but Kurodai is also a nice cut of fish. The texture was somewhat firm and the taste was light and clean in flavor with a little subtle ending taste of faint sweetness. The fish was extremely fresh and you can taste it immediately. HIGHLY RECOMMEND CITRUS BLISS ROLL ($21.95) - spicy tuna, krab, and cucumber. Topped with salmon, avocado, spicy mayo, crunchies, and unagi sauce. I loved how they make the rolls - not too much rice nor dense packing, very tender and soft roll, easy to consume and eat more without feeling full, and the perfect amount of cut rolls per serving. You can taste the spicy, little bit of creamy, and a good amount of citrus... and if you dunk the roll in soy sauce you get the salty. It is a good roll if you like spicy and citrus - for me I like citrus more than spicy. The roll was good I ate everything, BUT I do feel there could be some improvements. I know people love spicy but when it comes to raw fish - that needs to shine in the sushi. yes tuna is basic but overkilling the flavor to make it spicy isn't for everyone (as it's in nearly every speciality roll). I would recommend lowering the spicy in the tuna because it already has spicy mayo included + it allows the customer to control their spicy level. The sriracha takes over the taste and when eating sushi the spicy for me should come from the wasabi (not soaking good quality fish in a sriracha bath). I wish they also offered their rolls with regular tuna instead of spicy tuna. I will def be back! Overall great place. Until the next bite...

Such a cute little sushi spot in a beautiful part of La Jolla! The atmosphere is casual and…read morerelaxed, which makes it perfect for an easy lunch, but the food definitely doesn't feel casual when it arrives. Everything we had was incredibly fresh, the portions were generous, and the presentation was thoughtful. Honestly, that's half the fun of going out for sushi. You eat with your eyes first, and these dishes looked so pretty. The rolls were colorful, thoughtfully plated, and tasted just as good as they looked. Fresh fish, great portions, beautiful presentation, and a sunny La Jolla setting...pretty hard to complain about that.

the circumstances that brought us back to this place again are for another day, but let's just say…read moreit was our second sushi restaurant of the night and like last time currently this place was just OK. It has a nice atmosphere, especially outside although we sat at the sushi bar inside. My absolutely stunning date had a very good salmon skin hand roll and the albacore sushi was not the best, but not the worst. I was not a big fan of the mint in the water, but it wasn't OK touch The service at the sushi bar was friendly, but not overly attentive and we were very frustrated that it took four requests to finally get the check. There were plenty of people just standing around and somebody said can you close out this table and then nobody did anything about it.

We found this way after taking a night walk around La Jolla. They did not have dedicated parking…read morebut there tends to be enough people coming and going that you can usually find a spot somewhere close. The street with a few restaurants is closed off at least at night. We have come here a few times. We had the Crunch Shrimp Roll (amazing), the Salmon Avocado Roll (small for the price) and the Miso Cream Udon with Shrimp and Scallops (worth the trip). We also, after the first time, ordered a side of white rice. It is a pro move. After you finish the Miso Cream Udon add the rice and it will soak up all of the goodness. Do Not Leave Any Cream Behind. They were busy so it took a bit for them to take our order but we weren't in a hurry. There is cool art on the wall and one made of cut wood blocks that may just be held together by gravity. I was very tempted to remove a block but I don't want to get banned from this place as we want to come back : )

This restaurant was one of several just steps away from our hotel, and it had a very impressive…read moreexterior, with its all-grass hedges (if that's what you call it?) instead of the usual. However, I noticed that its ratings were much lower than others on this street. Still, we decided to check it out... For some reason, we decided to order the same thing...the Chicken Katsu Bento. In addition, we ordered a side of Shrimp Tempura. Their Shrimp Tempura was really good...and generous in size. However, the Bento was very underwhelming. It even came off as an Americanized version...in that it completely lacked any Japanese sides like most Bento Boxes. It only had a huge portion of a salad with Japanese sauce. It didn't even have any Spring Rolls. Just the Katsu, a few Tempura pieces, and Rice that seemed at least a day old. Katsu and Tempura tasted good, but the rest of the items in the Bento was just bad. Then the worst part? Their Miso Soup was totally bland. In fact, mine was a totally clear broth with ZERO flavor! I added a ton of Soy Sauce to make up for it, and still tasted horrible. I hated to do it, but mentioned this to the waitress, and she brought out another cup of Miso Soup...and it, too, was terrible. WAY too clear and tasteless. At this point, I understood just why the ratings were so low here. Of all the restaurants I've been to in San Diego, this had to be the worst. It's a pity for such a beautiful looking restaurant (at least on the outside...inside was much more casual-usual) to have such sub-standard foods and portions. Sorry...but 2 stars are all I can muster for this substandard Bento Box.

This place was great! They had so many options that it was hard to choose. We went with the spicy…read moreedamame, which was , a couple of BBQ kebabs, a sashimi plate, and three hand-cut rolls--salmon skin, salmon, and albacore. Everything was delicious! Probably one of the best parts of the night, though, was the service. Brennan, you're the man! You're a great server and really topped off a great date night out with my wife. Thank you for being such an amazing host. We'll definitely be back

Randomly came here because I wanted sushi. This place is legit good! So impressed with the food…read moreand service. Our server was amazing too. Brandon was great! The food also came out fast! Parking- large but busy. Ambiance - the decor is nice. The restaurant is small but can fit so many people in a good way. Food- got several sushi rolls. My favorite was the meat on top sushi! Wow. So good. Brandon recommended it and it was on point. We also got the flight sake drinks and beer. Loved everything!! Totally come here.

Excellent food , great service . Sushi Ota has been a…read moreclassic Japanese restaurant in Mission Bay of San Diego . Reservation is a must even if you dine in a weekday . We ordered the OTO B set , one order of the Tokusen nigiri, 3 pc shrimp tempura and Matcha ice cream . To be continued...

Very good sushi in an unsuspecting spot near a 7-11 off the freeway. Service was solid and food…read morecame out very quickly. The o toro sashimi melts in your mouth. Worth every penny. Overall, this place is pricey like most sushi spots in San Diego. Ambiance is nice, it looks nothing like you'd expect from the outside.

Love the fusion and the flavors! They guys are #legit . One of the best new food finds in awhile…read more Noodles and your choice of veggie, carne asada, chicken, and if you can't decide go with campechana and get asada and chicken! Super tasty, and don't sleep on that Chile sauce. It's just spicy enough but adds another dimension of flavor. Super stoked they will be available on UberEats soon. Definitely go find where they are and eat something good!

Vietnamese and mexican combine for an explosion in your mouth. And a ton of protein to fuel the…read morebody!! Second time was just as good as the first!!

my partner and I came for the first time and we had a great experience. it's a small place so we…read morewere put on a 45 min waitlist, it was worth the wait. the service was so quick and attentive, you can tell the staff cares. the food was great! the panko crust was crispy and delicious, simple yet flavorful. the coleslaw salad on the side balances the pork katsu perfectly. i loved the interior, it felt very intimate. overall great place, great experience, we will be coming again.

Hidden away in a plaza, this little gem is easy to miss but once you find it, the tonkatsu makes it…read moreworth the hunt! Parking is a little scarce, so be prepared for that. We came for lunch and waited about 30 minutes to get seated. The front of the restaurant is pretty small, but don't let that fool you. It opens up to a covered outdoor seating area with heat lamps, making it surprisingly cozy. Now, let's talk about the star of the show: the tonkatsu! Crispy, golden, and perfectly tender on the inside. Every bite had that satisfying crunch you want from a good tonkatsu, and the quality definitely matched the price. If you're missing Japan or simply having a serious tonkatsu craving this is the spot. The best tonkatsu I've had in San Diego so far, and absolutely worth checking out. Come hungry!