Neighborhood gem. Incredible sushi bowls and great sake and $4 Sapporo. I lived just next door and this was my go to place whenever I wanted to eat something super tasty, filling and healthy. The bowls are very sizable, the sushi rice is delicious and not bland, and the seafood super fresh and served perfectly. Bowls are also very fairly priced ($20-$30) given the size and quality of food. Don't forget their starters either. Chicken Karaage is super juicy, crispy and has a great spice. Cheese croquettes are a must too. If you love Japanese food, sushi, sake, Sapporo, this place is a perfect place. read more

Kaoru - 3 Amigos Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Dined in the first time I went here. We ended up getting the high table/chair seating which was a bit uncomfy but the other outdoor seating area was already full so we didn't have a choice if we didn't want to wait. I ordered the uni Don with spicy tuna and salmon. Very very fresh quality food! Very filling as well. One of the waiters accidentally spilled soy sauce on my friend and got seltzer to clean it up as quickly as possible. We did have some communication issues with one of the workers there when we were paying but it was okay. I ordered take out for lunch another time. I got the same thing again. They packed the container with food and I was definitely full from it. I crave this place when I want some good quality fish. Must try if you're in midtown east! read more

Kaoru - Uni Don with spicy tuna and salmon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

So bad.... Rainy day thought gave myself a treat. Got Uni don, everyone mentioned the general portion but no, when I opened the box , it just looked sad. The fish isn't fresh.... Can't believe this is New York Japanese restaurant quality. I felt either their quality is terrible or they just did it to take out client. Too bad..I would never feel bad to spend money on quality sushi, but this is such a waste. And I had to order something else from different restaurant coz food left bad taste With $47 for this, is such a waste. read more

Uni don is out of this world. Lovely service, comfy decor, but the uni don is the star of the show. read more

Kaoru - Uni don with salmon and squid - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Totally underrated Japanese place in midtown east. I got the three amigos don which includes three different types of fish which are super fresh and big portions too! They have a small and a regular size. If you're pretty hungry I'd recommend getting the regular size which is what I got. The fish cakes were also yummy I've also ordered pick-up from here and it tastes the same. I could see myself coming here if I crave a good Japanese sashimi don. read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

We love this place so much and Kaoru might be our favorite Japanese restaurant in Manhattan. They serve very fresh sashimi don with affordable price! I always order their uni bowl or chirashi bowl and their portion is reasonable so I even can't finish by my own sometimes. read more

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Delicious and reasonably priced, and a quick delivery as well. My girlfriend lives in Kips Bay and we got our order in roughly half an hour. As for what we ordered, we got the chicken karaage set and the large size of the tres amigos. If I had to redo my order, I would've definitely just gotten the chicken karaage on its own not the set and a medium size of the tres amigos. We ordered way too much food and the potato salad was barely finished along with the sashimi and the miso soup wasn't even touched. So, just know that Kaoru is very reasonable with their portion sizes (which obviously isn't a bad thing) and give it a try. read more

Kaoru - Chicken Karaage Set and Tres Amigos (Large)- amazing - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Excellent Service & very good ambiance Would definitely go there a few times/ year! A great Gari of tasty foods. Great music from the piano. Oldest Japanese piano bar innNYC. read more

This place is so goddamn delicious. Got UberEats from here, ordered the large/regular portion of the 3 Amigos ($15 base+$5 extra, tax and tip not incl.). Sashimi was fresh, comes with hamachi, lean tuna, salmon, and a chopped up spicy salmon/tuna mix. Personal favorites were their cuts of salmon and the spicy salmon/tuna. Lean tuna was slightly less flavorful for me personally, but overall the combination works fantastically. Decent portion sizes. Would highly recommend! read more

Kaoru - Three amigos - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Amazing, authentic, and affordable! I had an amazing experience at Kaoru. The server was super friendly and gave excellent recommendations. We ordered the 3 amigos don with extra shrimp and the Hokkaido Uni don with zuke ikura. The portions were generous. Hokkaido Uni don was more expensive that the other dons but it was worth it if you love sea urchins as much as I do. IMO, Uni from Hokkaido is the gold standard; it's sweeter and fresher. 10/10 will return and try out other stuff on the menu. read more

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Very intimate spot that looks more like a classy lounge bar than a Japanese restaurant... great for a date. I came here on a Tuesday around 6p and there were plenty of seats available. However, the place is tiny, so head here early if you don't want to wait. I got their popular three amigos don (with tuna, salmon, spicy tuna, spicy salmon and hamachi) and was thoroughly satisfied with it. The tuna didn't have much of the taste, but the salmon, spicy tuna and hamachi were very fresh. The spicy salmon, though, stole the show: it was out of this world. My friend got the unagi don and the eel was delicious. Both don came with miso soup, which is a plus. Overall, it's a very solid restaurant. The food was very good (and plenty... considering that we didn't order appetizers), the ambiance was relaxed and the service was welcoming, personable and helpful. After a couple of restaurant I loved closed in this area, I'm happy I can add this place to my list. read more

Don-'t leave without getting a bowl of the Tres Amigos (Tuna, Salmon, Hamachi, Spicy Tuna and Yaki Salmon)! Any other Don would probably taste just as good too. Let me tell you...these things are MASSIVE!! The small was more than enough to make me feel full. Honestly, I feel like I've robbed the place! The value for what you get is amazing. And the quality of fish is top-notch! I was so surprised by the way the tuna melted in my mouth. The rice is also perfectly seasoned with rice vinegar - I couldn't stop myself from eating it. Definitely want to stop here again for the uni bowl and other fish next time. read more

Kaoru - Tres Amigos - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Kaoru is a rare gem of a restaurant that specializes in serving chirashi bowls filled to the brim with fresh sashimi served over perfectly cooked sushi rice. My go-to order here is the '3 Amigos Don' which includes tuna, salmon, hamachi, spicy tuna, and yaki salmon all for ~$20. This is seriously one of the best deals out there. If you are a fish lover, I highly recommend Kaoru to fill your sushi void. read more

Kaoru - Three Amigos Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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I ordered from Kaoru one day for pick up. I got there a little bit late, so my food had been sitting out for a while, but I really did enjoy my meal! I got the Three Amigos chirashi bowl, and it was pretty fresh and really hit my sushi craving. Prices are very reasonable. I would recommend this to anyone in the area looking for a quick sushi spot! read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Delicious food in a casual relaxed ambiance. I'd definitely pop in for some of that outstanding tempura again!

We came here around 6pm just before the dinner rush hour. They have a variety of sashimi donburi (rice bowls) to choose from and they were mostly from $20-30 which is reasonable. You can choose from sets or customize your own for additional prices depending on what you choose. The food came fast, less than 5 minutes after placing our order so that was nice since we were in a rush. Fish was fresh and portions were generous and came with miso soup. I saw a lot of people come in and eat by themselves but they sat at the bar so it's great for groups or solo diners. I'll be back! read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Menu looked great and we were in the mood for sushi. Sat down and waited 15 minutes and was ignored so we left

Fresh Delicious Generous portion Not fake wasabi The large bowl is so worth. If you go, get the large it's only a couple dollar difference from the regular read more

I came for lunch, and it was great fresh sushi. I had the karaage as an appetizer and a sushi bowl with kanpachi, fluke and tuna. The fish was so fresh, and the rice was well made. I'm a big fan of raw fish, and I am always in this area, so you can bet I will be back soon. read more

Kaoru - Kanpachi Bowl - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Kaoru reminds of a really old school Japanese restaurant in NYC from the 80's. Top quality Japanese fare in a jazz bar type setting (well from the interior anyway - we ate outside thanks to good old 'rona). The menu here isn't too expansive but they have a large amount of bowls that are topped with a variety of fresh fish as well as some other meal sets. The food here is excellent. The bara chirashi bowl was delicious - perfectly seasoned rice topped with chunks of eel and fresh fish. Tuna tartar bowl was also really good - marinated large pieces of tuna on top of sushi rice. Kids really liked the kara age set and their yellowtail collar was cooked perfectly. Service here was excellent - friendly and prompt. Prices are actually IMO very good for the quality and portion size. It's not located in a hotbed of dining establishments but it's well worth going to if you're craving excellent Japanese fare. read more

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I was very disappointed and felt a bit misled by the reviews. The Japanese food was average at best and the cleanliness was questionable. We had a few rolls and their fried chicken. Service was nonexistent and slow. For being the only two tables after the standard lunch hour, I was surprised by the lack of service. read more

This place is uni heaven! If you want to eat a lot of uni at once like I do, check out Kaoru! They give you A LOT of uni when you order their Uni Don. And the uni were actually very good. The fact that you can get so much uni and uni are usually the most expensive piece of sushi on the menu, we thought it wouldn't be good BUT they exceeded our expectation; it was really good! We ordered two Uni Dons. One with salmon, tuna, & Ikura, and the other one with salmon and hamachi. I tried all of these raw fishes without any condiments to taste their freshness. They're all very fresh and not stinky at all. It's crazy how you can get so many delicious uni and sashimi for just $25, I gotta come back! The interior was pretty chic; hardwood floor, couches, rectangular layout with bookshelf and piano in the back, and the lights were pretty dim. The service were great. Surprisingly not crowded. Any good restaurants with a great deal these days are packed. We came here at around 6pm ish and more people start rolling in at around 7pm ish. BIG TIP: Come before 6:30pm or you risk them running out of Uni. read more

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OMG the most worth-it uni bowl that I've ever had. I went here alone during my lunch break and had a seat at the bar/counter area. The uni don wasn't on their physical menu, but they had it written down behind the bar. For $25, you get a bowl with many pieces of uni (some places serve uni nigiri for $10+ which doesn't come with much uni and the uni might not be the best, and this place you get so many pieces, well worth above $25 with the nigiri comparison) and 2 other types of sashimi. I chose salmon sashimi and yellowtail sashimi, and I paid an extra $3 to add some ikura to my bowl. The additional item came on the side, which was cute. I wasn't expecting much in terms of the quality of the uni given the price, but I was very impressed when I tried it. Either I got really lucky that day (most likely it) or I just have horrible taste buds. The texture was smooth, and I didn't get any of the bad smell or yuck-ness from bad uni. The salmon and yellowtail sashimi were great too. I ate some pieces with the rice, and some alone with some wasabi. The ikura was great too, and it went very well with the rice. I'm already out of NYC, and I miss this place. If I'm back around the area, I'll be coming back here to try their uni bowl again, in hopes that I'll be as happy with it then as I was this time. read more

Kaoru - Uni bowl with salmon and yellowtail, with a side of ikura - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Every year that I've come to visit New York, I've come back here. It's hard to beat the mix of price, quality, and decent ambiance that Kaoru offers. For $25 you can get a bowl with really good quality sea bream, shrimp, ikura, squid, and tuna. I'd usually go for the uni don (also a steal, they offer lots of uni & 2 other fish options) but they were sold out again. read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Great Japanese cuisine, great selection homemade dishes. Nice service. We liked fresh sushi and amazing tempura.

So I decided to check out this place due to the glowing reviews and how close this was to my office. When I first entered, I noticed how cute this entire place was. The ceilings were low and the decoration was very authentic. Once I was seated, the waitress served me my water and the menu. I was looking for the Uni bowl but unfortunately, it was not in season? Not really sure what happened but that just means I'll have to come back here again! I decided to order the Salmon bowl with Squid and Yellowtail. The food came out pretty fast and I was amazed at the presentation! Upon eating my bowl, I LOVED LOVED how fresh everything tasted. For $25, it was definitely worth it. I literally finished every single grain of rice in that bowl. The service was prompt and the food was delicious. I highly recommend coming to this place! read more

Couldn't believe how fresh the fishes were! They're pretty generous with the amount of fish they give you too! Don't let the picture fool you, the bowls are actually a lot bigger than they look so it definitely fills you up. I took a star off because the fried mix seafood tasted a little over cooked and dried. The unagi Don lacked creativity; you only get the unagi and rice which can get pretty boring. They offer outdoor seating and decorated it. Looked really cute, so great place for a date. read more

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I had an early dinner at Kaoru which was lovely. I came to the place to built my own bowl as I am fascinated with this concept of eating. I had Uni(Sea Urchin) Don with add ons, Tuna and squid. The fish was very clean tasting it melted in mouth. It came over a bed of rice with was fine. My suggestion is to cut down on the rice and add some lettuce the meal will feel even lighter. Nevertheless my eating experience at this restaurant was awesome, I would go back in the. future. read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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A really awesome place to grab lunch. I came here with my gf for one of her lunch breaks and this place was rockin, the wait was about 20 minutes. Even though there was a wait, don't let that deter you from getting an awesome lunch here. The restaurant is fairly small with a bar and a few tables but I would suggest sitting at the bar, I guess it reminds of eating sushi at the sushi bar, so it felt fitting. I thought the Chirashis here were great, the fish was really fresh and the regular size was such a huge portion, but a big portion of it was rice. In the chirashi, they do something that I don't normally see which is give you a wedge of lime, I tried it on my chirashi for shits and giggles but I am not too sure it worked for me. The food: Uni Don with Hamachi and Salmon- I really enjoyed this bowl, I thought the uni was great, it had really nice flavor and a nice consistency. The salmon and hamachi are always solid picks and they both delivered in this chriashi. https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=tLji2lTKxLAbfdgWE4949A&userid=Y_iTTjKvV5hLy-880SZzlA Three Amigos Don- Tuna, Salmon, Hamachi, Spicy Tuna and Yaki Salmon. I thought this was really good with the spicy tuna being my favorite. The hamachi and salmon were both really good like the above, but I wasn't all that in love with the Yaki Salmon, it was cooked salmon and it kinda missed the mark for me since it was kinda dry and lacked flavor. read more

Kaoru - Uni Don with Hamachi and Salmon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Good quality kaisen don but if I am to be picky maybe there could be less rice in the bowl! But definitely a positive experience and the service was great. The appetizer of the day was super delicious as well. read more

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If you're looking for a no-frills, mom-and-pop kind of Japanese restaurant, Kaoru would fit that bill. Their main attraction are the fish-based bowls, or don. Wouldn't say that it wows, but it gets the job done if that's what you're craving. read more

Wonderfully fresh sashimi. For the price point, this was phenomenal! Highly recommend. read more

Kaoru - For the price, this was phenomenally fresh. I would go back!!! - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Bajillion out of 10!!!!!! I came here with my boyfriend and it was super tasty and super cheap as well, I recommend the spicy tuna... the salmon was very fatty, it really fills you up :) the staff was very polite and the service was 10/10. The place was very quiet and they seem to like the Beatles so that's also 10/10. I recommend this place. read more

Kaoru - Roll A set - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

I ordered lunch for pick up - 3 amigos with salad instead of rice, seaweed, side edaname. It came to $43 which was more than I expected but it all tasted great. The only thing I would say wasn't worth the price was the few slides of dried seaweed but the sashimi was yummy. I also found the place to be charming and very inviting if you have the time and inclination to eat in. read more

What an incredible find!!! I was craving a fresh, chirashi-style sushi bowl really badly last night and found Kaoru on ubereats. Some of their bowls are on the pricier side but the photos looked so good we decided to give it a go. My boyfriend and I each ordered the Three Amigos bowl (he got the regular size, I got small) which came with a ton of fresh tuna, salmon, hamachi and small but of spicy and grilled tuna and wasn't that expensive. We also ordered a side tuna salad, which was yummy. The portions were way bigger than expected and the fish tasted incredibly fresh! Overall, I highly recommend Kaoru if you're in the mood for fresh fish donburi. The quality is amazing for the price and I'll definitely be ordering and/or eating here in the future! read more

Kaoru - Takeout (small and regular) - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Meh. Overall I was disappointed by my experience at Kaoru. The ambiance of this place was a little strange because it felt like I was sitting in an antiquated living room. The food was mediocre and the service wasn't the best. I got the Ikura Don ($20) which came with salmon roe and 2 items of my choice. I ended up going with salmon and squid. The salmon and salmon roe was very fresh and tasted great with the rice. Wasn't too impressed with the squid so sadly that was left untouched. My friend got the Three Amigos Don with uni added on. However, when preparing her order the server came to our table and said that there isn't enough uni to add on because the uni was reserved for the Uni Don. This doesn't make any sense because they have uni but it can't be used as a side?? What's the difference. The server didn't provide my friend with any alternative options and just asked if it was okay if there wasn't uni in her food. When the server left I suggested to my friend that she could get the Uni Don and add the fish from the Three Amigos Don on top so that she was able to get basically the same thing as what she originally wanted. By the time we were able to flag down our server to let her know she was already bringing out our food and basically said too bad... Not sure if that's the best way to get customers to return. read more

Kaoru - Ikura Don and Three Amigos Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

When I found this place on yelp, it reminded me of Shokusai in Niseko, Japan, where I had eaten a delicious hanachirashi don for a decent price. Eric R. and I met my brother and his girlfriend here tonight since we leave NYC tomorrow. We started off with Kirin on draft while perusing the menus and the handwritten specials behind the bar. My brother ordered the special trout salmon don and added tuna and yellowtail plus he got the salmon skin salad piled high with bonito flakes. His girlfriend ordered the most popular, called three amigos. It had salmon, tuna, yellowtail, grilled salmon, and spicy tuna. Eric R. ordered the zuke ikura (marinated salmon roe) don with salmon and yellowtail and added tuna for $3. I ordered the uni don with yellowtail and salmon and added scallions. Immediately the hottest bowl of miso soup I have seen in the states was delivered with tofu skin in it, plus a small side of daikon-carrot pickles with konbu per person. The bowls arrived soon after. From my pictures, you can see how fresh and beautiful the seafood is! The service was stellar throughout - I asked for a side of ponzu which came out right away. We were given a last call warning but for some reason I interpreted that as alcohol related, so when the check dropped and I asked for yuzu sorbet, the server hesitated. Nevertheless the kitchen obliged and our bill was adjusted. Overall, I felt the price was incredibly reasonable for the large portions and high quality seafood. The atmosphere is very quaint and clean, and the service was great. I would definitely recommend this place and return. Itadakimasu! read more

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Tbh, I'm surprised I haven't written a review for this place yet. I've been coming here for the past 4 years or so, and it has always a pleasant space to dine and enjoy the quality of the food. Huge, huge fan of sashimi bowls (chirashi don). I always try something different each time I visit and my favorite will always be uni and ikura. The quality is always amazing. I think I've converted a few uni haters after bringing them here. Before covid they had a pianist and it was truly a special experience. Definitely my type of vibes, super lowkey, small and cozy, and just the right amount of noise level. Service is really quick and super friendly people. If only I live down the street. read more

I came in on a weekday night after work and was seated right away at the bar. I noticed immediately that the decor is a bit strange but we came for the food and not the ambiance so we didn't mind at all. After hearing such great things about this place, I was excited to try their chirashi bowls. I ended up ordering the Uni don with salmon and Ikura. It came with miso soup which was perfect since it was a cold day outside and we were sitting near the door. When the food came, it looked amazing topped with more fish on the rice than I had anticipated. After my first bite, It was apparent that there was a bit too much vinegar in the rice. Also, the salmon was fresh but unfortunately the Uni tasted off. Some of the pieces were fine but as I kept eating, some of the pieces tasted like it was mixed with chemical products. I ended up picking at my food and ate all around the Uni. This was extremely disappointing because the Uni is what I specifically went there for in the first place. read more

Kaoru - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

SO YUMMY. This place is in a fairly non-descript part of Midtown but offers such an amazing Japanese food option to the surrounding population. I came with a few friends, one of which had already been here, and was pleasantly greeted by the front staff who seated us very quickly in the outdoor seating area. We were served warm miso soup (perfect for a cold-ish fall night!) and also started with a shared "hot pot" styled appetizer with different tasty ingredients boiling inside. We all opted for chirashi bowls which were served with large portions of delicious fatty fish topped over a bed of sushi rice. Great portions, amazing fish, and incredibly fair prices. What else could you ask for? We all each tried the 3 amigos which offered a solid variety of different tastings. We left very full and satisfied. I will certainly be back to try out more of the menu. Can't wait! read more