This place is pretty freaking cool. It's a Japanese food hall with 4 individual spaces inside one…read morelarge space ( the owner also owns the Italian spot on the other side). I went for the buffet brunch at Dear Sushi. I'm not a hugh sushi eater but I loved the cooked stuff. I'm not super adventurous on the raw lol. The buffet is $65 and a 20% gratuity is added. The price was ok with me. There were plenty of food options for me to chose from and the service was good. We sat the bar, Jose and Molly were awesome and mixed up some delicious drinks. The food was delicious. Highlights for me were the fried chicken ( not sure of the correct name), milk bread (had to limit myself, I love bread lol), dumplings ( could have takien the whole tray lol), grilled salmon, and the tempura cauliflower. Another standout was the donuts from the dessert section. These donuts were so lite and airy. Almost guilt free when you bit into them. I would definitely return for brunch or to try out one of the other spots.

I had such an amazing experience here! I came for Beloved BBQ and was very impressed by the quality…read moreof each dish. The standouts were: A5 wagyu sushi, milk buns, and tuna crispy rice. The meats, of course, were all amazing and all melt-in-your-mouth tender. The staff was so attentive, and the dishes came out quickly. The interior is lovely, as well, connecting each of Love Makoto's restaurants.

It was sufficient…read more Ko is centrally located by Dupont Circle as a second floor restaurant (next to Zorba's). Interior is simple and open. A/C was nice and cool which I appreciated but found the place to be too loud for me once it filled out with more people. Service is courteous. I ordered the tomato salad and two sushi rolls. Yes I committed the sin of ordering just sushi at a kaiseki restaurant, gasp! So I guess I did this to myself since I found the food to be just ok. The spicy tuna roll was just not happening since all they did was drizzle hot sauce over the roll. I've been noticing this more at places, can we just say tuna roll with spicy dipping sauce instead? It's a bit misleading... but I guess I'll have to make sure to ask everywhere whenever I order spicy tuna. I am a believer in that if you're eating at a good restaurant and you ordered their less popular menu item that it should still be good but in this case, Ko didn't deliver. Anyways, I didn't have much of an appetite because of the hot weather so take this review with a grain of salt but I don't plan on returning unless someone can convince me otherwise and if I do, I'm not ordering sushi here.

I have had this restaurant bookmarked for the last two years since they opened and finally got a…read morechance to eat dinner there. I was impressed and by the experience and would definitely come back for a Japanese meal that did not focus solely on ramen or sushi. The ambiance is well done, and the service was excellent. Our waiter was very attentive and able to answer any of our questions. To share, we got the spicy salmon roll, Karaage appetizer, and eggplant cheese appetizer. The spicy tuna roll was the most lackluster of the dishes, but the fish was fresh and the portion was decent for $12. The karaage appetizer was excellent. The chicken was moist and the coating was crunchy and super hot. The eggplant cheese was a surprise highlight of the meal. Pieces of eggplant in a melted cheese bowl made of eggplant was a simple combination. That was a very pleasant mix of textures. The pork Katsu was a highlight of the meal. Unfortunately forgot to take a picture, but the coding was super crispy and the portion size was pretty solid. The Unagidon or grilled eel bowl was also very well made and tasted great with the pickled ginger and seasoning on the side. The set came with miso soup which was very nice as well. My companions also got drinks which they said were well priced and good quality. Our overall meal cost somewhere in the range of $160 before tip which was reasonable given all of the items that we got. I look forward to my next visit!

I stopped by Umai Nori in DC for a late lunch. It wasn't too busy when I went, but I could…read moredefinitely see this place getting packed for dinner. The layout is interesting -- there's an upstairs when you walk in, but the sushi bar and a good bit of seating are downstairs. The menu is pretty straightforward with a mix of hand rolls, appetizers, specialty rolls, nigiri/sashimi, and traditional rolls. They also have a few solid combo deals, though I usually prefer trying a variety of items instead. Service was quick, which is always appreciated at a sushi spot. We ordered a few specialty rolls, two traditional rolls, and a couple orders of sashimi, all served together on one platter. The rolls were a great size -- filling without being overly large. The sashimi was fresh, and the traditional rolls really balanced out the meal nicely. The flounder and tuna sashimi were both excellent, and the California roll made with real crab was simple, fresh, and really satisfying. The total came out somewhere in the $70 range, so after tip and splitting it between two people, it was about $40 each to try multiple rolls and sashimi. Definitely fair pricing for the quality and amount of food. This spot had been on my list for a while, so I'm glad I finally made it over. I'd recommend checking out the menu beforehand so you can go in with a game plan and try the items that stand out most to you.

Came here for one thing and one thing only - the hand rolls!…read more I've been to Kazu Nori and other places that serve hand rolls so I wanted to see the hype around this place. I ordered the 5 set hand roll with Hottie scallop, Kanpachi, Torch me slowly, Spicy salmon and Mango Tango. I loved the flavors of each one but the wrapping was tricky. Some of the rolls wouldn't come off because the wrapping had a lot of moisture so I ended up just eating it deconstructed. I prefer how Kazu Nori gives you each roll one at a time to prevent this. Overall great hand rolls but it's super messy so I'd give it a 3.8/5.

This was my first omakase where it only featured nigiri sushi and wow, was I impressed with Sushi…read moreNakazawa. We sat at the counter, and the classic omakase was priced at $190 each. We also added the A5 Wagyu Nigiri for $18 additional. If you choose to dine at the dining room, it's $160, but they exclude several items such as their fantastic tiger prawn. The classic omakase consists of 20 items of sushi. I wish I had written notes on each one, but basically from what I recalled, we had chum salmon, soy marinated king salmon, scallops, squid, tiger prawn, mackerel, sea bass, crab w/ tomalley, ⁠⁠Spanish mackerel, hay smoked mackerel and others. The main course was the four different types of tuna. Of course, the best ones were the chutoro and otoro. The A5 Wagyu was really good as well. The omakase ended with some hand rolls (the toro one was my favorite), uni, eel and the tamago. It's hard to pick a favorite dish since they were all so good. I think this was the first time I had sushi rice that was flavored. That was really good. Service was fantastic. I only wish they had a full bar, because I really wanted to drink some Old Fashioned with this meal, but opted for some Japanese beers instead. My water was replenished frequently, and it was fun interacting with the sushi chef. This is a great place to celebrate a special occasion.

An enjoyable omakase for lunch - a quicker pace with fewer dishes - that still requires a few…read moreadd-ons (pushing the price up) to really wow. It's a solid one-star Japanese place sourcing ingredients from around the world, but there was nothing too surprising or impressive about the experience, other than this was "very good." I enjoyed lunch - it allows a look without the full three-hour commitment.

Went during HH (5-7pm), had the Sake for $20, and then had chicken thigh, fried garlic, fries, and…read morebrussel sprouts with pork! Would definitely fried garlic again, and the brussel sprouts! Fries were filling but nothing massively special. Just a good bang for the buck

We are here for work and one of my colleagues wanted to come here…read more It's located upstairs so remember to take the stairs on the left side. Super cool looking restaurant. As soon as we reached the top of the stairs, to the right is an amazing bar. Darker warm lighting in the whole restaurant. There are a few tables to the left of the bar, that's where we were seated, and more to the right and there's bar seatings as well We shared all the items ordered and enjoyed it all. Gyozas had wasabi on it so be careful but it was amazing with layers of flavors. The rice pot was more than enough for 4ppl to share with tons of meats and seafood inside. Like a paella but Japanese. Meatballs were underestimated but it delivered. Tasted amazing we had to order another one. Most items are one order, one item so ask before ordering. Service was perfect. Waitress always checked on us and food came out very timely.

Took my girlfriend here for her birthday and it was the right call. The edamame was a simple,…read morewell-executed starter -- nothing fancy, but it set the tone before the real highlights arrived. The toro tacos were a standout -- rich, buttery toro paired with a crisp shell, the kind of bite that balances luxury with a little bit of fun. We rounded things out with several maki rolls, all fresh and well put together, each one distinct enough that ordering a few felt worth it rather than repetitive. Beyond the food, the service made the night -- attentive without being intrusive, which is exactly what you want for a birthday dinner. The ambience matched too: romantic, trendy, dim lighting that made it feel like an occasion without trying too hard. Great pick for a celebration -- between the toro tacos, the maki, and the overall vibe, Shoto delivered on every front.

Came here on 6/28/26, had a reservation at 8pm and were seated immediately…read more The space inside is gorgeous but cramped and LOUD. This is not a space to grab food if you're trying to have a conversation. We often found ourselves yelling across the table and when selecting items to share we crammed ourselves on one side of the booth squishing other patrons. Otherwise this would've been a 5 star review. Our waiter was amazing, albeit a bit distracted at times because of his service area, and helped advise us on the items we were interested in. We had: Koika No Karaage - their version of calamari - 10/10 - lightly fried with the most amazing texture and paired with a yuzu mayo. For the price I wish the serving size was larger but that's my only gripe. Kani - 10/10 - snow crab with spicy mayo - 2 came with the order and they were amazing. The Japanese crest was the perfect contrast to softness of the snow crab. It was also seasoned well. Hotate Toryufu - 10/10 - the scallops melted in your mouth. Amazing. No notes. California Maki - 6/10 - my least favorite thing here. It wasn't awful but it didn't compare to the other things we had. Drinks - I WISH I could remember the name of the drink I had. Hands down one of the best drinks I've ever had and was paired with sparkling sake. Bathe me in sparkling sake, put a bottle in my casket, I want it with me forever. I would come back for sure but would opt to sit at the bar. It would definitely be easier to speak to someone sitting next to you than across from you. For the price you will not get full here but if you want to share some small bites of new food this is absolutely your spot.

I had pretty authentic eating experience here. Food quality was good and the price was reasonable…read morefor DC. I liked how they fixed up little townhome and made it a cozy restaurant. The owner served us and she was nice.

We were looking forward to a mildly adventurous night out and approached this open to trying and…read morelearning about new things. Unfortunately, the restaurant staff wasn't particularly helpful or supportive in this endeavor. Asking for details on the menu and suggestions seemed like either a burden eliciting sighs and slight eyerolls or an inability to offer any meaningful suggestions; so, alas, we were left to ourselves. The space, at least on the first floor, is tiny - just counter bar seats in front of the kitchen in a narrow rectangular room. We were excited to use this as an opportunity to learn more by watching and interacting with the cooks, but that did not occur. Without guidance, we ordered hamachi, salmon, and kampachi sashimi. The portions were generous - 5 slices of each. The salmon was buttery and the kampachi fantastic - rich and interesting flavor. The hamachi was not liked - it was streaked with some sinewy type substance that didn't help the otherwise unflavorful fish. The soba noodles came with a rich, smoky/strong fish-flavored broth that was interesting. Unfortunately, there is no gluten-free option for the broth. The yakatori skewers (only ordered because they were the only gluten-free skewers) were nothing interesting. The wine list is quite small (understandable considering the tiny size of the restaurant) and the chilled red and the Italian rose were both quite good. The pricing was reasonable in general and considering the quality of the meal and the overall experience.

I have been to Kyojin several times. Consistently excellent…read more Great atmosphere, great food, great service from Jay this most recent time. I will keep coming back.

I went actively searching for this restaurant, yet still found it easy to miss. It's tucked away…read moreand for good reason. It's a secret that you wish never got out. I went alone and sat at the sushi bar and did the premium omakase. Non traditional in that it was all served on one plate, but worth it. Nice presentation. I even watched a fish delivery from a vendor. It strikes you as too trendy to be good, but that's not the case.

Walked in and immediately LOVED the vibe. Very welcoming and just completely cool. Fantastic…read moreservice from the wait staff -- especially Q. He was terrific. Wonderful recommendations. Non-alcoholic drinks were on point. Make sure you ask for Q to make yours. Oh and do get that cauliflower. -- Your welcome.

I had such a wonderful time visiting O-Ku. It's one of my favorite sushi spots in Washington DC…read more This time, a bartender named Adam stood out for being exceptionally attentive. He had a great knowledge of the menu and encouraged me to try new dishes, which turned out to be fantastic. The customer service was excellent, and I really enjoyed my experience. Keep up the good work, and I wish you all the best.

This is an awesome addition to the Clarendon area and I'm so happy something like this has finally…read morecome into the neighborhood. The food at Sakaki is full of flavor and the prices are reasonable for the amount. I think, after being twice, that the AYCE is not as worth it for me personally because I'm not a big eater, but it's totally worth it if you want a lot of variety and you have a good appetite. I really liked the rolls in particular. The service was excellent- it was a nice balance of coming over once in a while to ask how we were doing without coming over too much. The vibes are awesome with a really nice interior- definitely a nice place to go for a date,!just to go with friends to have a nice meal, or even to grab a meal alone since the center has a large area for single seating. Fyi- for the AYCE menu, note that once you put in an order for a round, you can't order for another 10 min so be sure to order enough at a time. Also, there is a time limit to the AYCE (I think it was 90 min). This'll definitely be a place I go to regularly in the future!

First off, let me just say.... If I'm honest, whenever I…read moreshow up to an AYCE I'm always skeptical with the quality of the food, especially when it comes to sushi but wow, I was blown away how great it was for AYCE. The set- up and the ambiance is very comfortable and sleek/modern with the main sushi chefs in the middle and the tables around them. The tables have waiters and a tablet at the table like most hot pot/kbbq places and you can order everything off of there. I have only been here once and wanted to try to low tier without going "all in" on the top tier option of diamond without knowing how the basics would taste. Let me say if the bottom tier was as good as it was, I'm excited to come back to try the next tier! Anyway, the basic tier already comes with a lot of sushi options and should be enough for those who are craving just sushi. All of the cuts of nigiri was great, all tender with great flavor, but what stood out to me the most was actually the yellowtail, super buttery and great flavor. The eel was also a top choice! All the rolls were good basic to the fancier ones, I would say that most of the bang for the buck would be the nigiri. The rolls are good but a little too much rice for me personally. The appetizers, didn't spend too much time on them but the chicken karaage was solid and the seaweed salad was my two favorite. Overall, super solid for the price and I'd totally want to go again to try more of their options! 100% recommend!