Perhaps just a little prejudiced, having known the owner Akira and hostess Kimi for 40 years, this place is one of the most welcoming and comforting restaurants I have ever known. It was a Saturday evening and there was suprisingly no line! Easy parking just steps from the entrance, Kirala is located near Berkeley Bowl. Our party of six had to wait just a few minutes at the bar. The bartender was incredible: efficient and welcoming. This would be a great way to share some small plates and drinks, as you can order anything from the main menu there. There was a semicircular bar with about 10 seats as well as smaller tables. Covid protocols were followed by all staff, and there were large clear partitions which helped provide some separation between tables. The food was awesome. I think other reviewers have covered this in great detail. In short, pristine seafood, excellent grilled items, and well executed sushi. This is a place where single diners, couples, and families with children are equally welcomed. Please support this local gem! read more

Would order again: Sushi, Udon, Robata scallops & shittake mushrooms Would pass: Robata asparagus beef Let's start by acknowledging that there's a yelper that comes here almost everyday and has over 100 check-ins. I totally get why! There's a few Japanese options in Berkeley but Kirala has been my favorite thus far. I pass by on my way home and there seems to be a line out there door nearly everyday. It isn't going to be the cheapest meal, but it surely gets the job done. There's a parking lot in the back of the building but DO NOT PARK THERE. It is not a part of Kirala and you can get locked in. Best bet is to find street parking. Once you've gotten past parking and the wait(check in early on Yelp!), you're in for the good stuff! I would say besides the asparagus beef, I really enjoyed everything I had here. The beef wasn't bad, it was just okay and not worth it to me. The Udon was pretty bomb and very reasonably priced for dinner at around $11 so I'd definitely come back just for that if I ever crave it. The sushi and chirashi dinners were both great, and the Robata mushrooms and scallops were super juicy. I can't wait to come back to try to lobster tail everyone raves about! read more

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Great sushi at reasonable prices, tempura udon was good as well (lots of tempura) service was also flawless, fast and friendly. 10/10 read more

Kirala - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

Great food and great service! My boyfriend and I came here on a Monday night and there was little to no wait. I've been wanting to come here for a while since Kirala always appeared on the first page while I scrolled through Yelp for dinner spots. We ordered 3 dishes total: Deluxe Sashimi Dinner, Nabeyaki Udon, and the Rainbow Roll. 1) Deluxe Sashimi Dinner: Comes in 15 pieces, 3 pieces each of the following 5 types of fish: Tuna, Bonito, Salmon, Albacore, and Yellow Tail. My favorites were definitely the Bonito and Yellow Tail, but they were all very fresh and delicious regardless. 2) Nabeyaki Udon: Udon's my favorite type of noodle, so this dish definitely didn't disappoint. There were plenty of sides (fish cake, tempura, etc.) in the bowl, and the soup base was just right. 3) Rainbow Roll: Nicely made with even pieces of fish topped on each piece. I definitely want to come back another time to try the wasabi chicken and hamachi kama. Kirala's a great place for sushi if you're ever in the Berkeley area! read more

Whenever I walked by Kirala, I was always amazed by the lines of people waiting outside the door. Thinking that this must be an excellent Japanese restaurant, I decided to try one night, and luckily, there was not too long of a wait. However, while I was waiting to be impressed, my dinner was more on the average side of things. The things I liked: I though the sushi was pretty good. I tried the shrimp tempura and salmon skin rolls, and they were generally well constructed and flavorful. There was a dried spice on the salmon skin roll that gave it a complexity that was surprising but tasty. I also decided to try some of the grilled items, and this is where my meal becomes disappointing. The shishito peppers had a nice char to them, but the peppers' skins had a tough texture that made them less appealing as I ate them. I tend to enjoy mackerel, but the grilled saba was bland and forgettable. Despite the busy evening, I thought the service was attentive and prompt. Overall, it was an average dinner experience, but I would not be against trying Kirala again. read more

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Finally - checked off my Berkeley bucket list (my husband literally coined this after we left the restaurant). Never realized I had an actually Berkeley bucket list, but I guess I do! We were at the storage facility next door and saw ZERO line at Kirala at 6pm. Yes, you heard it right - no line at Kirala. A very rare sight. The decision was simple. We were greeted immediately by 2 smiling faces when we walked in and seated right away. The atmosphere is lively, bright, and inviting. Water served almost immediately too. We got an array of menu items: - Tender chicken breast skewer - Ume chicken skewer - Baby back ribs - Nabeyaki udon - Rock n roll sushi roll All were tasty! The meats were a little drier than I prefer though. I would definitely do without the chicken next time and try some of the other meats. The highlights for me were definitely the nabeyaki udon (the egg makes such a huge difference when mixed in) and the rock n roll (melt in your mouth delicious). Would love to go back and try their lunch special. PS there was a line to get in by 7pm. read more

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So, I was wondering why this place had such high reviews. It did not look eye catching from outside and I am always hesitant to try sushi from places I have not heard positive personal experience from. I am not writing this review like my others because there is not much to highlight. First, to be honest, it was fairly overpriced and the venue was extremely small. It made me feel real uncomfortable because everything was so tight. Couldn't really have a great convo over the meal or intimate setting. The food was okay...didn't taste as fresh I have had before for the price I was being charged. The servers were running everywhere and it felt like they were concerned when you needed something. There were no check in on the experience. Overall, I do not plan to return to this business. There are so many better venues. Not sure why this is such highly rated on Yelp. read more

Kirala - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

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My friend was visiting from out of town (New Mexico) and was going to be in Berkeley. He said he wanted sushi before going back home, and Kirala was recommended by my boyfriend's friend. We went in the afternoon on a Sunday and it was pretty full so we decided to sit at the bar. It's a cute little place and you can tell it's a local favorite. But I think it was bad timing or because we went during lunch, but they didn't have any of the fish my boyfriend asked for --kept being told sold out. He was told they do omakase but they said they don't do it. I ordered the sushi lunch which had nigiri and spicy tuna rolls. The fish and shrimp were pretty fresh, decent size, but nothing extraordinary. It wasn't as filling as I hoped. My boyfriend ordered some nigiri and a hand roll and also agrees that overall taste is okay. Friend had the chirashi which looked so pretty in the bowl; he said it was good but felt like he didn't get as much sashimi and crab compared to other restaurants. If I am in the area, I may give them another try to see the hype, but it's not my go-to spot. read more

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We were a bit early for the weekday lunch service and a line has already formed. Soon it opens, the place is almost packed with customers, Another wait to be served. I was hoping to sit at the counter for grilled items, unfortunately, I guess it's not in the lunch menu. The menu was simple for lunch service. The service was not as impressive as the food. It was just a prolonged process to get a menu, order, and add additional items. The "kitchen" lunch box was interesting, did not except everything in small proportion. The meal comprised of a small bowl of simple udon and rice. Soup base is clear, Several tempura veggies and one piece of shrimp. It was crispy but missing the dipping sauce. The four slices of beef teriyaki was tender and delightful. We also ordered the Sushi delight, that was a winner, but still a small portion for its price. Fish was exquisitely fresh and roll was yummy. Need to come back for dinner service and for their grilled items. read more

Kirala - Lunch special - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Always the best sushi in the east bay - freshness, texture, rice:rice vinegar and portion size. It's a bit of a wait so I try to go off hours. Service was a lil slow this time but we'll worth the wait read more

I have been eating at Kirala Restaurant since 1990. Food is always fresh and delicious. read more

Fresh and delicious ingredients along with perfect preparation: what's not to like? Light fluffy tempura and fresh sashimi, absolutely amazing. Excellent value for the quality in preparation. Rice was moist and prepared perfect. This review was for visit in June 2023. read more

This is my favorite sushi joint in Berkeley, the ambience is lovely and comfortable. I love sitting at the bar. Their fish is fresh, and the presentation is so lovely. Absolutely a fan of this place. I love their chirashi and pretty much everything on the menu. read more

My daughter got hives after dinner tonight. We ordered cooked oysters, sashimi and sushi roll. read more

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The food is fine. But not as much as waiting one whole hour for it to be served. It's really cramped in here too, which can explain the first observation. read more

Been coming here for over 16 years. Usually when I'm in the area shopping at Berkeley Bowl. Had a bit of love and hate relationship as the food quality has been kind of coming and going. And like the U.S. economy it's on the up cycle right now. Better than 2 years ago and way better than 12 years ago. Wednesday at 7 pm can be good as no wait. If you know about Japanese Kaiseki style cuisine, aka imperial court haute cuisine served in Japan, I think you can organize your meal in that fashion with what they have to offer. Sushi is very fresh. grilled varies veggies and meat are fresh. For the non initiated, teriyaki is good here. For those who are into the robata, this maybe one of the few ones that offer authentic ones in the bay area. Having had a good experience after a number of years of trial and error at this place, my faith is renewed. read more

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Very crowded and the service is to be honest less than we expected. The food was ok, I would give it 5 out of 10. Definitely do not recommend this place, worth the drive to Yoshis! read more

Very fresh sushi and omakase in person. Haven't tried the place since the pandemic, but I hope they're doing alright. The "Unaju" is a true treat if you're okay with eel and a few bones. Be sure to try the seasonal, fresh fish nigiri if possible. Even the more random fish options like "Trout" are great, as well as the more high quality options such as fatty tuna. read more

This is a really family style Japanese restaurant that serves more traditional dishes in addition to your regular ramen and sushi. The stuffed bell pepper with ground chicken is amazing. The way the chicken is marinated is unique, it balances savory and sweet and has a pinch of vinegar. The bell peppers go well with the chicken and they have a hint of heat. The Rock N Roll sushi roll is like most sushi I've tried with unagi, avocado, and a slightly spicy soy sauce but still enjoyable. The same applies to the Nabeyaki Udon. Since this is a restaurant that has a larger variety of dishes, I would recommend venturing to those instead of sticking to the usual. The more speciality dishes make this restaurant stand out and justify the higher price. read more

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Kirala used to be our favorite Japanese restaurant to eat at in all the Bay Area. We went there tonight and were deeply disappointed in the service and the quality of the food. We were a party of 5 who have all eaten here alot and we all agreed something is horribly amiss with this restaurant. We had to send a dish back because it wasn't cooked. The tempura used to be the best and now we all found it fried in old grease, yellow in color and lacked the presentation it once had. We had to send the ika sugata back because it wasn't cooked and when they brought it back it still wasn't done correctly. The service wasn't good. We had to ask for tea, water, refills, etc. The women who came to clean our table made us feel rushed and in her way. She never said "excuse me" as she pushed her way into our table several times. The service was never like this before. We won't be back to Kirala's ....something here has changed drastically. It's so sad. read more

With the change in management came disorganization and chaos. The night we went, by 6 pm, they had run out of all wine. This, even though they had been closed for two days earlier and could have easily ordered it. Waiting to get seated is worse than ever. And yet, the food remains fabulous. read more

Food is fantastic, but the experience of coming here isn't the most pleasant due to how crowded it always is. Absurdly busy and packed all the time. I've tried two separate times to come here before they opened to avoid a wait and was met with a line with others doing the same. Know that parking here is street only. Be ready to wait 45 min - 1 hour minimum for both take out and dine in if you want to eat (you might have better luck with takeout at their new takeout-only location that I just saw on Yelp before writing this review). Staff has always been very kind despite the near-constant state of dinner rush. The nigiri and sashimi here is very fresh, the best quality of any sushi place I've tried in the Bay so far. Although the selection for rolls is a bit limited compared to other sushi restaurants, they are of the same good quality as their nigiri & sashimi. The entrées are great too - I've had the beef teriyaki and sukiyaki, both were really tasty. The tempura and robata grill skewers appetizers were good too, I always get an order of tempura to share every time I come. read more

Great food! Prices are typical for sushi. Easy parking! We ordered the chirashi and the beef sukiyaki. They were both delicious and came with miso soup. Parking was not difficult they have parking nearby. We had a great time and the servers were extremely friendly and helpful. Overall a great experience! read more

Kirala - Sukiyaki - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Parking: lots of metered parking and close to the BART station. I had the ginger beef and fried mix tempera with the soba salad. I didn't get to try the sushi but I just thought the food was just okay and comparable to any other place. I didn't find anything special. We got there 15 minutes prior to opening and there was a line formed outside already, so if you want to come here for dinner, either go early to get a seat or else you'd have to wait a bit, there were loads of people waiting for a table but the good thing is, they had a bar where you can just order drinks while you wait. read more

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Got here at 6:15pm on a Saturday and we had to put our name on a list. Just for the two of us the estimated wait was 45 mins, but we sat down in 30! There's a small waiting area in the back to stay warm or have a drink. Their food was amazing! I got to say it's one of the best quality I've had. You really don't need to use soy sauce on the fish, the fish itself flavorful enough. This place deserves a 4.5 star, only reason why it's not 5 is because it was really hard to get a waiter's attention and we went for a really long time without water :( read more

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We were checked in quickly by a very friendly, kind efficient host - who I believe may be one of the owners. The food was incredibly fresh and prepared well. We had grilled meats and sushi. The atmosphere is lively and the people who work there seemed part of a team and happy. The overall experience will definitely bring us back! read more

This restaurant always had long lines, so I never went . My partner and I went last night, I understand what all the excitement was about. We will be back! read more

Horrible service. Owner refused to sit me despite the fact the resto was still full and the posted closing hours was 930. Will tell our concierge at the Fairmont to not recommend this place to our guests. read more

WOW this place is soo popular! My friend and I came here on a Friday night around 8:30PM and still ended up waiting an hour to get seated. They have an indoor bar waiting area, so you can sit while you wait for your name to be called. I think they should consider serving food at this bar area too, so that way more people can be seated quicker. Nonetheless, when we were seated, the service here was very odd. The waitress was very aggressive and curt, so I didn't feel particularly welcome. It makes sense since they were very busy, but I was very impressed that my water glass was full pretty much the entire night. They really make an effort to constantly walk around and fill everyone's glass, which I really appreciate. The food here was pretty good, but it definitely wasn't the best. I ordered the Kashiwa (chicken breast) from the grill but it wasn't as tender as I hoped. I also ordered the potatoes from the grill which were nice and buttery, but I believe they could've had a bit more flavor. I also tried the gyoza, which were small but there wasn't anything special about them. I wish they had been more crispy. My friend ordered the sushi dinner, which he thought was a bit of a rip off, but he thoroughly enjoyed the fish and squid he ordered from the grill. The best item we ordered off the menu was definitely the tempura ice cream. I would highly recommend everyone to order it. It is fried green tea ice cream, and it had an amazing balance between the fried outer breaded exterior with the yummy green tea ice cream inside. I loved it! I wish I could just come back here just to get the ice cream. read more

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Came by for dinner the other night and managed to grab a seat by the counter with a fantastic view of the robata grill. Kirala tends to have long line and the food was definitely worth the wait! Started off with a miso soup and it was excellent. ...it turned out to be complimentary too! Moved on to the lamb chops from the robata grill and it was flavorful, juicy, and cooked to a perfect medium rare. The tempura appetizer was light and crispy. Oil quality was good too! Miso Eggplant was fantastic and was perfectly cooked. The miso paste definitely hit the spot! Miso Black Cod was excellent too with a super fresh piece of fish that was well marinated and perfectly seared! The salmon nigiri and spicy scallop rolls were both very fresh. The soft shell crab, like the tempura, was perfectly fried and was light. Excellent! The duck from the robata grill was okay...as were the seafood gyozas... Finished off the meal with a green tea ice cream which was excellent! Service was friendly by the staff. ~$57 after tax and tip for dinner. read more

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Great food, great service, and not too long of a wait (definitely check into the waitlist beforehand). We ordered the sashimi dinner, unagu, and two skewers (chicken wasabi and duck). The sashimi dinner came with around 5 fat slices of red tuna and albacore tuna that were pretty fresh! Unagu was well flavored and came with 3 pieces of unagi. Skewers could have been a bit better, the duck didn't taste that great and the chicken skewer (although it was cooked at the right amount of wellness) could have been flavored better. Service was super good, the waiter came around often to check on us and was really friendly! Overall a great experience, highly recommend! read more

Kirala - Sashimi Dinner - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Expense doesn't pay for poor service. We walked in and the hostess told us it would be a 40 minute wait for a table for two. Without telling us you can eat and order at the bar? After waiting 20 minutes I asked the bartender if we could eat at the bar and he immediately said yes, so we sat down to order. Watched the bartender and a server bicker at each other briefly and then we were told they weren't doing the seafood yaki (happened last time we were here too.) I just hope for more when a restaurant gets hyped up in the area. read more

excellent quality fish and service! went for the weekday lunch sushi special. we got there 10 minutes after opening and got seated right away. however, by noon, they were out of the sushi special. if you're interested in trying the specials out, i would definitely recommend going earlier than later. it was great being able to try a variety of fish - the salmon melted in your mouth. super excited to come back and try the other menu items. read more

Kirala - weekday sushi special - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

Short version: Best Japanese restaurant ever!! Long version: take a seat at the bar! It's the the best way to get an amazing experience. They have many vegetarian dishes but they are so nice to also make special ones if you ask. I love potatoes; their grilled potatoes were to die for. Oh the grilled mushrooms were also delicious. I really enjoyed every single dish and so did other non-vegetarian in my party. Don't forget to get a dessert. I loved the food, service, and the entire experience. I will go again anytime. read more

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5/20/22 Berkeleians strike again!!! What is this place right now... 4 stars? Something like that? Personally, I think any resident of Berkeley, or a fanboi of the area, should be barred from scoring restaurants. They are FAAAAAAARRRRR too lenient, or just trying to be nice?--I dunno, but basically any Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Burmese, Indian, Ethiopian, etc.... any ethnic restaurant... just take the score and half it. That's probably the real score relative to restaurants distributed throughout California. Anyway.... yeah, just gonna be straight with ya: the food is edible and does resemble Japanese food, but isn't any better than what a low-end home cook can make and costs basically 50% more than such food should. 1. Shrimp Tempura Appetizer $12.50 (+4% CC charge) "two batter fried shrimp & vegetables": You get basically squash, carrot, sweet potato?, 2 string beans, and two I would say 2 smaller shrimp sticks. There's nothing remarkable about the batter. I do think the shrimp is far softer than usual, whether you consider that good or bad I dunno, but I would say the fresher the shrimp the "crunchier" it is. 4/10 2. Tonkatsu Dinner $22.50 (+4% CC charge) "deep fried black pork tenderloin with bread crumbs": This is worst of the whole meal. It's possible this is the worst pork tonkatsu I've yet had. The meat itself was okay--not dry, not super juicy, but was fine. But the real problem was the coating, which was overfried, slightly blackened in the flour undercoat. The panko was horrible--I dunno what they used, or perhaps they made it themselves, but it was far too fine with little texture, and the coverage was just about 50%, with mostly the undercoat showing through. And it tasted like it looked--a brick coated in sawdust. 2/10 3. Nabeyaki-Udon $13 (menu actually says $15) (+4% CC charge) "hot noodle in soup, topped with poached egg, shrimp tempura and vegetables": We actually ordered the seafood yaki udon, but were told it was out. Anyway, THIS was the SAVIOR OF THE MEAL. I think the noodles were house-made, which as you know is REALLY rare among Japanese restaurants in this area, in particular that they didn't even note this on the menu. I mean, if you're gonna make your own udon, which no one else does except my gf at home, brag about it! Anyway, the udon was EXCELLENT. Texture was "qq" and elastic, and perfectly done. Not al dente, but appropriate for Japanese tastes. I also liked the broth which was quite flavorful... kinda atypical for Japanese places, but it tasted very meaty, and slightly sweet. The negative here is other than great noodles and soup, it's pretty boring. Like zero effort to make it meal worthy. Anyway, if you're a noodle aficionado, you'd still appreciate the skill in the noodles. 7/10 4. Deluxe Sushi Dinner $38.50 (+4% CC charge) "nine assorted nigiri sushi and tekka roll": Here we go--the sushi. Look, it's not bad tasting. It's fine. Rice is fine. Fish is fine. So, a plate of okay sushi for $40. If you're okay with that, well, you're probably not someone that cares for my reviews, cuz otherwise you know me--there's PLENTY of other places giving a better selection of fish for the same price. Also notable is that the shape of their nigiri is unique--it's skinny as hell. Like anorexic. I think they measure just a bit over a 1/2" wide. I dunno what the deal is, but it's definitely more appropriate for super small mouths--like a 5 yr old's. 2/5/10 5. Miso Soup (free): I didn't care for theirs. I dunno why but it tastes more acidic than normal, and the miso flavor didn't come through strong enough. 2/10 Note that the waitress told us there was no robata. Like an entire page of the menu gone. Something to consider. Also, as indicated above, the prices are before a 4% surcharge for CC. Which makes this place REALLY expensive for what you get. Our bill was just about $100 for me, my gf, and my 2yr kid who barely eats when we're out. Cuz it's among the worst 20% of sushi places we ate at... 1/5 #berkeley #japanesecusine #japanesefood #sushi read more

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. Reading the reviews, we knew there would be quite a long wait. Thankfully, we got there early enough and waited maybe 15 minutes for a table for 2. Service was great even though it was super busy. Although they ended up not having a couple of things we ordered (cod and uni), the server kept it light and funny which made up for it. We decided to order some nigiri and a few grilled items. The grilled item that stood out the most was the whole squid. It was cooked well, not chewy whatsoever, and the creamy sauce complemented it perfectly. The nigiri pieces we ordered were good, fresh, not necessarily memorable. The rice was also seasoned well. No need to order rolls here as the highlights of this spot are the robata and nigiri specials. Finally, we ordered tempura green tea ice cream which was decent. Lots of sake to choose from. Street parking. Probably one of the top choices in the Berkeley area. read more

The sashimi is so fresh think it's the best I had in the Bay Area. Rolls are good too !! Service was nice and pleasant be prepared for a wait this place get pack during dinner hours. read more

Although Kirala is located in a semi-sketch location far away from the UC campus and many UCB students--including myself--, I would be down to come here whenever I have the time. My friend and I took the F bus to come here, and we waited for about 20 minutes before we were seated. I had a hard time narrowing down what I wanted to order (everything sounded yummy), but I eventually decided to get the Unagi Tenju. It was SO DELICIOUS!! I love unagi, and this was one of the best unagi I've ever had!! I was initially disappointed because the meal looked so small... but it actually filled me up!! I want to come back now!! I also got a complimentary green tea ice cream for my birthday :) read more

Kirala - Sushi Bars Near Me - Berkeley, California

One of the finest Japanese restaurants in town! Highly recommended ;) Came here for dinner at 5:30pm (opening hour on Saturday) but waited in line since 5pm in order to secure the seatings. It was worth the wait! This restaurant is usually full right after its opening hour. Majority of the dishes I ordered here tasted so fresh and so good! They are authentic dishes and of good quality, brought me back the memories of the dishes I tasted in Japan! A must try for those who love eating fish would be Hamachi dish! I find grilled scallops and grilled mushroom very tasty as well. read more

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There usually is a line to get seated at kirala so go inside a make sure you wrote your name on the wait list and hopefully there is seating at the bar in the back so you can order drinks as you wait. I like to eat at the sushi counter but today we had a party of 5 so we sat at a table. I ordered the saba grilled mackerel from the roto grill that comes with miso soup and rice. The food is always fresh here and good service. The grilled salmon is great also. One of my favorite Japanese restaurants in Berkeley. read more

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