I have given this place three chances to impress me but still can't figure out why it's so popular. The service is slow; the waitress is unhelpful and seemed to resent my questions. When I persisted, she simply walked away. The first time I went, I ordered a noodle bowl. The broth was so hot I could not eat it, but -to be polite- I got a to go container and waited til I got home to throw it away. The second time I tried a different noodle bowl and asked for mild spiciness but it was still entirely too hot. Back to the garbage again. On my third visit, I tried the large sushi plate. I told the waitress specifically "no escolar," a beautiful, white fish but also one of Nature's most effective laxatives. It is also known as the exlax fish. When my plate came, there it was: three whopping pieces of escolar, waiting like a trap for the innocent customer. When I pointed this out to my waitress, she offered to bring me aw tuna as a substitute. It never came. Escolar is actually banned in Italy and has been banned in Japan since 1977. As anyone who likes Japanese seafood can tell you, they will eat anything that swims except escolar. It also goes by the names "butterfish" "white tuna" "seabass" and "snake mackerel." I can't believe it is still sold all over the US in fish markets and restaurants that should know better. Three chances are all Master Joe's will get from me. I give it a good solid D. read more

This was the BEST sushi I have ever had! I highly recommend the Perfect Storm, Oceans Eleven, Red Rose and Sea Through rolls. Compliment them with the Zolo red blend wine! It was amazing! read more

The 2 stars is based on the experience we had at the end of our meal. The food was great out server was as well, but then things turned for the worse. 3 of us were there for my 40 th birthday we spent over $200 and we waited 30 min for the shots we ordered at the end of the meal to be told we had to leave. This place does not take reservations and we "shared" our table with the group next to us that evidently was irritated that we took too long to move and complained. So as we were finishing our shots the owner came over to be interrupted by another member of the staff saying rudely "we have a bar" the owner stopped her apologized and asked if we could move and that he'd buy us a shot the next time we are there. The thing that bothered us (we are service industry people) we waited 30 minutes for our last order, were gracious to the all the people next to us and they were aware we were celebrating. He should have bought us a drink then not some later date where he won't remember us and his other employee needed to not talk to us like we were trash. Needless to say I won't ever be back. I have always loved this place, recommended it to everyone I ever talked to, but based on this experience I won't make that mistake again. It is sad because I travel for a living and people come here all the time asking were to go this place won't be on the list. read more

This place isn't my absolute favorite but the food is pretty good. It is a tight-spaced restaurant with low lighting 24/7 (minus 1/2 a star). The servers are always having to shuffle past the other sideways and the bar gets extremely crowded and the bartender has a 20% chance of messing up your order, but I will get them slack for constantly being busy. The sushi is great, but a little pricey (minus the other 1/2 star). I love the titanic roll and the bama roll. Their appetizer of those cheese rolls with an orange sauce is great though! For dinner with a party of 4, expect to pay over $70. Their lunch specials are great though and very economical! read more

Great place! Our favorite now! It has great atmosphere, small but cozy! This was our 2nd date, we sat at the sushi bar. The chefs were great and crazy fast ! Fried cheesecake was awesome, left me speechless. Then again so did her kiss! :) read more

Very good sushi. Best sushi on Eastern Shore. Service is spotty but food makes up for lack of service. Get there early or in off hours as there is limited seating. read more

service has gone way down. food is still ok but servings are smaller. the staff has an attitude and are rude to you. drinks are over priced. sushi pricing is fair except for signature dishes that are overpriced. u get in line, they tell you 20 and you wait 45 minutes. they dont apologize either. attitide. not the place it used to be. read more

I had been here once before for lunch and had a good experience. The food was tasty and the wait staff was friendly. However, this last time was absolutely horrible. I called in a to go order for two sushi rolls, a California roll and a tuna sushi. I was told it would take 20 minutes so I ran an errand and came to the restaurant to get my order. I waited in the restaurant for my entire 30 minute lunch break and was not apologized to hardly at all as I watched the sushi chefs make a total of 6 rolls ahead of mine. I was extremely angry when I finally got my food and the waitress who handed it to me rudely and sarcastically told me to have a nice day. When I called to place my order, she immediately had an attitude and was very short. Then had an attitude as I was leaving. I walked out behind another woman who ordered a to go meal and she had the same issue. I'm very displeased with the service and will not be returning. read more

Love the atmosphere and the food! This will be on our permanent rotation when we visit Fairhope!

I went last week for the first time. We ordered the pork dumplings as an appetizer, which was pretty average for a dumpling. For our meal, we ordered two sushi rolls and when they came out, I couldn't believe how big they were. If they were not so incredibly delicious, I don't think we could have finished both rolls. Fairly priced, I will definitely be going back. read more

Best sushi I've ever had. Place is small so get there early or go on off peak hours. Service is good and food is out of this world. A Fairhope gem. read more

This place has some delicious sushi! It's more expensive than Daruma, but worth it. The seating isn't always ideal, but it's not a big deal. They've got a bunch of fried sushi and other good menu items too, so you can take your friends/family who "don't eat raw fish". read more

Don't miss eating here! Great food, service and atmosphere! I'm from Fairhope and I try to eat here every time I am home and last night did not disappoint. Well done! read more

The food takes forever to get to the customer and half of it gets cold because the sushi chefs don't realize that Americans like to eat their food with their company at the same time so the food from the kitchen comes out way earlier than the sushi and the sushi chefs cuss and yell in front of guests. The place is small and the chefs also yell at the employees. This place is not a good place to take your friends or kids unless you like overpriced food and waiting a long time! read more

Best sushi on the Eastern Shore if not in all of Mobile area. Exceptionally high quality ingredients (comparing with traditional sushi restaurants in CA) and offering a wide variety of sushi without resorting to gimmicky creations that bear little resemblance to the accepted definition of Japanese sushi. One nontraditional but excellent offering is sushi pizza. Off menu but has always been made whenever I've quested it. Waitstaff is friendly and casual but often very rushed due to popularity of Master Joes. Some delays in getting seated during lunch and dinner rush, but worth the wait. Located near all the shops in Fairhope's historic down town, immediately adjacent to only downtown hotel and directly opposite the city's museum. read more

This really burns me when a restaurant does the following. We went to Master Joes for lunch and were the only two people there at first. I ordered fried calamari and my husband ordered the Bama Roll. After about 10 minutes two more people came in and there were now only four people in the restaurant. They brought my calamari but not my husband's order so I had to eat or let my food get cold. There were 3 chefs and two waitresses. The chefs looked like they were working in slow motion with absolutely no expressions on their faces.....it seemed surreal. My husband complained to the waitress twice but still no food. Seven or eight minutes later his order finally came and he complained to her again. She was nice and said she would tell the manager who was in the back. The manager never came out to address our complaint. Four people in the restaurant and 6 employees and we basically had to eat separately. This place has been in business long enough to know not to serve people separately especially when you're paying about $30 for lunch. The quality of food has gone down and the portion size seems smaller. My husband had a hard time finding all the different types fish that the menu said was in the roll. There might have been 1-2 ounces of fish at the most for the $15 roll. Bad value, quality, and poor planning from the "cooks". Master Joes and his 3 expressionless automaton "cooks" who don't care about proper food service have seen the last of us for any meals there. read more