My favorite sushi place I've ever been to - incredibly fresh fish and generously large cuts. Vegetarian options are also delicious. Would recommend! read more

Everything was Very good service was amazing and the portions were very generous. Everything was super fresh!

We absolutelty love this restaurant. The food is amazing. We have been coming for years. Highly recommend if you are in the area!

So yummy and fresh! Super Food and easy peaceful food! you just can't beat a great neighborhood place to eat some sushi read more

my wife and I go here every month. best sushi in Berkeley. neighborhood favorite. negihama fresh fish is the best read more

Kiku Sushi needs no press to bring business through the door; on a completely unassuming, undistinguished Tuesday, wait time can stretch well into the darkness of night, no matter when you arrive. Well known for their commitment to quality, what potential patrons may not realize is the utterly innovative vegan menu. It never turns up on lists for the best plant-based dining options, and yet it's far more deserving of the honor than many predictable staples. We're talking about more than the usual suspects here, with cucumber maki giving way to sumptuous specialty rolls that are every bit as creative as their fishy brethren. That said, there's plenty to relish from this bill of fare, starting with a number of truly killer apps. Don't pass up the opportunity to enjoy impossibly rich, savory spoonfuls of Mushroom Miso Soup, or meltingly tender Nasu Dengaku, without the fear of bonito lurking in the background. Spicy Tuna takes shape from chopped tomatoes, of all things, generously seasoned with fiery shichimi togarashi. A hint of cumin-scented shiso leaf and the crisp bite of crunchy cucumbers creates a well-balanced, fresh composition that's distinctly different from the typically mayo-laden approach, and dare I say, far better. Made of mushrooms instead of mollusks, the Baked Scallop Roll is an umami explosion in a rice-wrapped package. Creamy avocado adds richness without smothering the nuanced, shockingly authentic oceanic flavor. Though your eyes and mouth may try to tell you differently, that's not tobiko on top, but finely grated carrot that somehow becomes an unbelievably convincing imposter. If neither seafood nor any vegetable-based facsimiles ever did appeal, then the Kiku Roll was made for you. Take futo maki to the next level, and one step beyond, and you'll have some idea of the behemoth about to descend on your table. Fully deep-fried in a light tempura batter and drizzled generously with sweet soy and ginger sauce, one order alone could become a wholly satisfying meal. In a similar vein, the Spicy Crunchy Roll should have wide appeal across all dietary preferences and tastes. Toothsome marinaded kampyo meets yuba and decadent piles of tempura flakes, impossibly grease-less and, as promised, resoundingly crunchy. The spice level is gentle yet bright, clear, and distinct, perfectly cutting through the indulgent topping. Kiku Sushi clearly isn't hurting for business, and while I fear jeopardizing my own chances at getting in the door, such edible artistry needs to be celebrated. For a restaurant that never sought vegan accolades, they certainly do treat their plant-based diners to a royal sushi experience. read more

Great food, local spot, mom and pop service. Love walking to this spot in our neighborhood.

Great food. The worst, most frustrating service ever! Waited over 45 minutes to be served.

I've been coming here on and off for years, and the fish is consistently fresh. One of my go-to orders is the kaisen futo-maki, a 5-piece roll packed with an assortment of raw fish. It's simple, clean, slightly on the pricier side, but worth it in my opinion. The staff have always been friendly, though there typically only seems to be one or two sushi chefs working. During peak hours, that can mean a bit of a wait for your food, so I recommend avoiding the lunch or dinner rush whenever possible. read more

Kiku Sushi - Kaisen Futo-Maki - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Heard about this place on check please and it didn't disappoint. They close between 3pm-5pm. We got there at 2:30pm and they still sat us and didn't rush us at all. Our server was very welcoming and friendly, and checked on us regularly. It was relatively quiet, only one other table, but it gave a family restaurant vibe. The lunch specials were a great deal. The quantity of the sashimi at that price was a deal and the quality was great. The miso black cod was also very tasty, one of the better I've had. They also have a lot of vegan options on the menu. read more

See all

Great local sushi place. They have amazing vegan options. You won't be disappointed!!

Amazing vegetarian options, fresh fish and authentic Japanese food! It was our first time here and we loved it. Definitely coming back as soon as possible read more

Delicious food! Love this place and always try to stop here when I'm in town. Yummy sushi

Kiku is such a delight every time. The fish is always so fresh and tender, and the flavor is great! We've gone a million times and there's never a dip in quality. The service is awesome and it's such a nice space! This time, I got the miso black cod lunch bento, and it was delicious! (Obviously.) The cod was so meaty and had a nice miso flavor. The sushi was half California roll and half Dynamite, both great! The meal came with so much food which was an added bonus! I highly recommend popping in midday for the lunch special pricing, it's really a great deal for great food. read more

Kiku Sushi - Miso Glazed Black Cod Bento Box Lunch - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Cozy space for fresh sushi and friendly service. The spicy tuna roll was on point, as well as the seaweed salad. Hope to have dinner again here when I am back in town. Reasonable prices. read more

Kiku Sushi - Dinner menu - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

I've been coming here for years (probably over 20!) as it's a centralized location to meet up with some family and we all like Japanese food. I've tried most of their menu and have never really been disappointed in the food here. The service is good, but not excellent. Parking right near the restaurant can sometimes be difficult to find however if you drive up Gilman a block or two, you can always find a space to park in the residential area. read more

Attentive service, quality sushi. Family-friendly for a Friday night. Top knotch dinner out.

Excellent service and great fish! The restaurant was very busy but the sushi came fast!

Wonderful selection of vegan sushi and other dishes! Great flavors and service. A lovely environment with some outdoor seating. You will be sure to have a good meal here read more

Really good sushi, we got rolls, not Nigri, love the service, the lady working there is the best!!!

The food was wonderful! The staff was friendly as well as professional. Enjoyed eating here.

Delicious! Delicious! The owner is a bubbly, smart, friendly, knowledgeable woman. I highly recommend this place. The O-Toro was so buttery and amazing! read more

Delicious food. Great neighborhood hidden gem. Lots of rolls to try. My favorite was the veggie Green Dragon Roll!

This wonderful neighborhood spot has excellent fresh sushi and great service. my favorite it the salmon skin roll.

great food great service. the chirashi bowl was our favorite. Add some ozeki nigor saki and for a great meal

Great sushi! I love sitting at the sushi bar, the fish is truly delicious. I've been coming here with my family for about 10 years. Never disappoints and very family and date friendly. read more

Great service and food - had lunch there today and was very happy with the tempura, chirashi sushi, and California maki. Looking forward to my next visit. read more

Love the variety of vegan selections: soups, sushi, salad, entrees & appetizers! Very veggie -full & attractively presented & so delicious! Our server was very pleasant, patient & knowldgeable ! The green tea was very earthy & robust (with matcha residue in the cup? ) We sat by the window ...but there's a lot tables packed into this small space & even outside along the sidewalk ! The service was very personal & friendly, the waitress commended us on our choices & we agreed & enjoyed our soups, which came out piping hot ! We also ordered the vegan roll & a mushroom/tempura green bean roll, the ginger was very spicy but good! read more

See all

Returned to Kiku after a short break (we had just forgotten about them) and it was as good as -- or even better than -- before! We had delicious sushi and tempura. The tempura wasn't greasy at all -- just fresh vegetables in a light batter. The staff were really friendly. They will even make the Sukiyaki, which is no longer on the menu, if you ask. It was just as delicious as we remembered, and we'll definitely be coming back more often. Thank you, Sophie and everyone! read more

Cute Japanese spot with a full vegetarian menu (4/5 green stars) Kiku Sushi in Berkeley has a sister restaurant in Lafayette - I enjoyed eating at both of them - service, food, and ambiance were solid in both branches. Most memorable dish: Crispy Rice & Sweet Potato ($9.25). For those looking for a fully vegan Japanese restaurants in Berkeley, I can also recommend Cha-ya or Tane Vegan Izakaya, both of which are on Shattuck Ave. Cha-ya is usually listed as a vegetarian Japanese restaurant but it's actually fully vegan. Of these three, I've been to Cha-ya (the oldest) most often, but I can recommend all three of them for different situations. For example Cha-ya for comfort food favorites (e.g., Taku-sui), Tane Vegan for its inventive food and bustling atmosphere, and Kiku for a quieter meal in a cute location. Both branches of Kiku score well on the cuteness scale, in terms of both the restaurants (Berkeley perhaps has the edge, here) and neighborhoods. I'm also giving Kiku Sushi 4/5 Green Stars for social and environmental impact. * Both branches of Kiku have an emphasis on vegetarian items with a fully vegetarian menu that helps avoid any confusion or mistakes while ordering. * The menu does feature fish and a couple of chicken or pork dishes, but avoids the most climate-unfriendly meats - beef and lamb. * Fyi, if you want to choose climate-friendly fish, then small pelagic fish (sardines, mackerel, anchovies), farmed bivalves (oysters, mussels, scallops), and some wild salmonids (salmon and trout) are your best bets. Avoid crustaceans such as shrimp, prawns, crabs, and lobster. https://greenstarsproject.org/2023/12/16/whats-the-most-sustainable-kind-of-seafood/ * Kiku doesn't provide any information on sourcing of fish or other ingredients. Please join in and include a Green Stars rating with your own reviews! read more

Kiku Sushi - Crispy Rice & Sweet Potato ($9.25) - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Came here o. Sunday with my best friend and two kiddos. They were not busy at all and we were seated promptly by our lovely waitress Maigan. The sushi chef - Ben made us our food promptly. The duo treated us well and served us excellent food and were super polite and kind. We even had the chance to chat with them after dining and they were just two amazing people ! Many thanks to them for their great food and service! I definitely recommend them and will be coming back. read more

I've been to Kiku twice in the past month. Both times were excellent. I appreciate they offer so many vegan rolls with really creative combinations of vegetables, tofu, and sauces. The ninja roll is particularly delicious. The fish nigiri is excellent as well. And the service is friendly and attentive. This place is a hidden neighborhood gem. read more

Kiku Sushi - Ninja Roll, Green Dragon Roll - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Was in West Berkeley looking for vegetarian food and saw the large vegetarian sushi menu at Kuki and decided to try it out. Arrived at 1:15 to a PACKED place with available space at the bar. My mom and I shared Avocado Tempura, Veggie Tempura and Plum and Shiso rolls. All were AMAZING. The tempura was perfectly airy and crisp, the veggies tender and fresh. The plum was a bit too sour for me, but that was a me thing. The sushi was beautifully presented and the staff was quick and efficient in getting all of the orders to tables both inside and out. I can see why they were packed all the way to 3pm. Well deserved! read more

Neighborhood sushi place that the locals obviously like, but I wonder if they know that this place does not serve genuine Japanese food. We ordered the chirashi and by the look of the sloppy cuts of fish, the chef could've been using a hatchet. Since Kiku appears to be a family-owned restaurant, I will not completely trash it, but I don't think I'll be returning. BB read more

I've heard about the place on "Check please Bay Are". So decided to try it . Ordered rainbow Roll togo for $21 (if you pay cash, otherwise it even more expensive ) Was very disappointed. The rise was soooo dry , one practically cannot chew on it. Perhaps they used leftovers rice for a togo order? read more

So disappointed to not find good salmon skin rolls anywhere in the east bay. This was the worst yet. So bummed I wasted my money. The skin was not grilled nor julienned. Big fat hunk of cold skin with way to much meat attached. Making the roll unreasonably large. Not a nice cone shaped roll that fits in your mouth. None to fresh and the California roll wasn't any better. Update to be fair. Called the restaurant to express my displeasure and they refunded my money completely. read more

Kiku Sushi - Garbage - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Best vegetarian sushi ever. Great service and excellent selection of sushi sashimi and non- fishy dishes.

Kiku Sushi on Gilman has just re-opened, with a new owner. We're still fans, but with new prices we'll reserve Kiku for special occasions. WHAT'S NEW? ***Cosmetic Upgrades*** The space looks very similar, but more upscale and less cluttered. There's nice new wood paneling in back and over the bar. The most noticeable difference is the much brighter modern lighting, which I liked at first, but found to be a little harsh. ***Vegetarian Delight!*** The biggest change at the newly reopened Kiku is an extensive and creative array of new vegetarian and vegan menu options! This is easily the most extensive and diverse fish-free sushi menu I've ever seen. There are over two-dozen vegetarian or vegan Maki rolls, each filled with various combinations of avocado, eggplant, sweet potato, crunchy potato, spicy tofu, and some even have ginger carrots, or pumpkin seeds, and multiple types of mushrooms. All were quite tempting, we tried two and they were both delicious. They have multiple other vegetarian options as well, including salads, soups, noodles (hot and cold), vegetarian teriyaki, they even offer a vegetarian Chirashi bowl, which is something I've never seen anywhere else. We were surprised when we ordered seaweed salad and found it was made from fresh seaweed with homemade sauce -- totally different from the fluorescent-green seaweed salad we're used to, and also delicious. ***Service Improved*** Service still wasn't perfect, but much more attentive than in the past. OLD KIKU: As more or less monthly regulars for 15 years, we'd grown to expect poor service, and we repeatedly chose to forgive amateur mistakes from waitstaff because the sushi was consistently cheap and delicious. KIKU NOW: In a dining room this small, we were generally able to get somebody's attention after only a minute or two, but when my daughter (of course) knocked over her full water glass, the three of us were quick to jump up and begin strategic napkin placement, but even with our whole party standing up and performing flood-control, nobody noticed, and after getting the spill under control we eventually had to ask our waitress for more napkins. For a meal of this price, I would expect a higher level of attentiveness. That brings me to the last thing that's changed, which is: ***New Prices*** Welcome to 2024. We ended up spending almost $300 for dinner for two adults and one child. This includes a surprisingly expensive Otoro nigiri from the specials menu (my fault, I should have asked), and also a $35 bottle of sake. Even with those indulgences, we were a little surprised by the total. I understand there's often a premium for good fresh sashimi and sushi, but at this price we'll reserve Kiku for special occasions. WHAT'S UNCHANGED? ***Fresh Sashimi*** As always, the fish is consistently fresh and delicious, with multiple specials available. They didn't have the chalkboard set up yet, so our hostess recited the various offerings verbally (and quickly). When we got the bill I regretted not inquiring about pricing before we ordered. ***Accessibility*** Generally excellent. There's limited parking in this neighborhood, we sometimes end up a block away, on narrow residential streets. Outside, there's no covered waiting area nor seating. Inside, there's again no waiting space, the small dining room is packed with tables, leaving very limited standing room. The small space could make it tricky to maneuver a wheelchair to your table. There are no stairs to enter the restaurant, but there's a single significant step up to access the restroom, which also requires walking outside and around back. The dining chairs are comfortable and supportive, and there's also a padded bench along one wall, and four tall stools at the chef's bar. read more

A favorite local Japanese spot. Excellent vegetarian options and one of the few places that has sukiyaki at times. read more

See all

This is the best sushi I have had except in Japan. Everything is meticulously plated, perfectly presented and tasty in all the ways sushi should be from the Japanese Uni to Ami Ebi with the fried heads. The miso soup was super flavorful and not too salty, and even the pickled ginger was not too sweet or too astringent. Seriously the BEST SUSHI around. read more