Solid solid 4. Agedashi tofu had good shoyu based flavor. Chicken karaage was crispy and juicy. Grilled butter fish misoyaki was flavorful but too many bones Wafu steak was the best dish. The ribeye was tender and sizzling with a nice crust. Salmon sashimi, Tuna sashimi, Yellow tail sashimi was this evening's 3 sashimi chefs choice. Washoi roll was a spicy ahi roll with torched toro on top. It is worth ordering. Service was good. Place is small so make a reservation. Parking is conveniently right out front of the restaurant. read more

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Service was good and I enjoyed the miso soup and sushi. Was a bit expensive but quality and service was good. read more

Matsuri - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

My family and I wanted to go somewhere with good Japanese food and my father decided on taking us to Matsuri since he went there 3 years ago! We were not disappointed at all with our experience! Tip ~ They have a decent sized lot for you to park your car! I also suggest that you call ahead and make reservations, tonight we were lucky enough to get seated because a reservation got cancelled! *** Our Orders *** Wafu Steak (10/10) ~ This wafu steak was SO GOOD. It's served on a hot plate and glazed with some sort of sweet sauce. At first I thought they were going to give out a small sized steak, but it was actually pretty big in size! Everything on the plate was super good even the onions on the bottom as well! Blue Fin Omakase Nigiri Set (10/10) ~ You can really taste the quality of the fish w/ each bite. Everything was super good. I personally loved the fatty tuna! Nigiri Omakase (10/10) ~ You can taste the quality in every bite. Personally my favorite from the nigiri Omakase was the amaebi and their smoked salmon! Both nigiris just melted in my mouth!! Dragon Roll (10/10) ~ This roll was super filling!! It's packed with crab and cucumber and topped with unagi! Everything tasted so good together! Thunder Dynamite Roll (10/10) ~ To me this roll felt like an upgraded version of a spicy tuna roll and it was really good. Their dynamite sauce was what really held everything together! Overall, Staff was great, food was amazing! And for the price you really do pay for what you get, so overall this was worth it! I would come back here again! read more

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Good food great service! Nigiri sushi was on point, Hiramewith shiso, mirugai, amaebi and ikura fresh! grilled beef toungue with cilantro and scallion sauce read more

Excellent food and staff. Parking isn't that great but well worth going to. I've never been disappointed when I've gone there. Only problem was we ate and ordered so much food. We wanted to try everything!! Awesome specials of the day! read more

Matsuri - Hokkaido crab - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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A great place to enjoy high-quality traditional Japanese sushi. They offer a variety of items and create the feel of a small Izakaya with fresh seafood. I highly recommend it for a nice get-together, but keep the group size to four or fewer. Service is inconsistent when they are very busy. They may need more staff. read more

Our first time here since the March 2020 lock down. We ordered take-out. When we arrived we were very happy to see they complied to Covid standards. The staff wore face mask and customers were also required to wear them too. Seating were spread out and they had hand sanitizer's by the front door. We ordered the Kotobuki roll which had Shrimp Tempura, Hamachi, thinly sliced peppers. The flavors just burst in your mouth tasting all ingredients. We also had the Thunder roll which had Seared Spicy Ahi, Shrimp Tempura, Dynamite sauce. An amazing tasting roll. The Hamachi Kama was huge with lots of flavor and cooked to perfection. We had nigiri-Salmon and Ikura. So good! Very consistent quality since our last visit. It was nice to see owner Julie who greeted us and helped us out with our order. Was glad to see their restaurant is getting busy. Looking forward to many more visits. We're getting a little braver going out to dine-in at restaurants. read more

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This is a very small and busy restaurant. We made reservations for 7 o'clock, and were seen at exactly 7 o'clock. It took about 10 minutes to have our order taken, as the restaurant was quite busy! Not bad, I think, for a packed restaurant! Within 10 minutes after ordering all of our items have arrived. We started off with the kabocha nimono, and you can taste the ponzu on each stewed kabocha. It was chilled and cold and very refreshing. The garlic edamame was THE ONE. It was so delicious. A shoyu butter garlic base with the pepper kick was amazing. I kind of wanted rice!! The salmon was thick cut and so delicious. I don't usually like salmon because of its very fishy taste, but you can tell that this was very fresh. It didn't have a weird fishy taste at all. As soon as you put it in your mouth, it would melt away. It was also very good paired with some of the garnishes that it came with. After that we had the blue fin Omakase and the chuutoro and ootoro nigiri were so good. As soon as we put it in our mouths it literally disappeared!! So soft and delicious!! We were very pleased with our food choices, quality and speed of service. I took off the star, because it is a little bit pricey. Those 4 orders cost about $120. So this is definitely a date spot type of place and not somewhere you go because you're hungry. Was I full? Not really. Satiated? I guess. Did I go home and eat a dessert? Yes. Would I come again? After I grab some fries from McDonald's, yes. read more

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Before you come here, make sure to make reservations on Open Table. They do book quickly because they are SO GOOD. I took my mom for Mother's Day and she loved this place. Her favorite was their special, Hokkaido Crab. It was expensive but very worth it. The food was so fresh and tasty. We also ordered the beef tongue, sashimi, and rolls. Their 5 chef sashimi was so big! I was expecting a small amount but it could feed 4 people. The price is expensive but it's worth going for special occasion. The waitress was very friendly. I would come back again! :) read more

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This is our second time here and it was just as goo as the first time. We got the Wafu Steak which came out on a hot platter and was cooked to perfection with a tasty teri glaze sauce and onion . We also ordered Uni and a few orders of their otoro and chutoro. The service was great and the vibe is your usual chill izakaya vibe. It's easy to miss the turn into the area but drive slowly and you'll be able to see their sign on the building and one on the sidewalk. read more

On a quieter side street next to a busy main one, you'll find Izakaya Matsuri tucked away into a building with a small parking lot. If you don't know, you'd definitely drive by without thinking. However if you stop in, chances are you might be back again like many of the other visitors who are likely regulars or at least restaurant returnees. I like Matsuri for its cozy vibes. There aren't many tables, so everyone is sitting relatively close together. At times it may get loud, and I'm sure from afar it looks like a scene out of a movie. Sushi chefs slicing up sashimi, old friends gathered, clinking glasses, and a blend of Japanese and English because yes, there's a mix of visitors in here. I like going for the sashimi and other menu items like the beef tongue, crab salad, and braised pork. I also recently tried the spider roll and that was yummy as well! Also don't skip on their dessert. I love that they have items besiiides green tea ice cream. So yummy! I definitely want to try everything at least once. I'm also realizing I already wrote a review for this spot.. Good to know haha at least I still like it! read more

First time going to this place. I must say it was a good choice. We had the Hokkaido crab, tornado roll, garlic edamame, garlic onchoy to name a few and all were delicious! Definitely will go back again. read more

The food was yummy! We got the 3 fish sashimi, misoyaki cod bento, garlic edemame, kombucha and agadashi tofu, and sausage (hubby liked it, I didn't try). I would order all these again. Only issue is that you have to pay .50c for packaging (containers) for most items. Which most places don't charge. But it's ok. The problem was that the ONLY actually saucy one, the edamame, was the ONLY one in order that didn't have this option. Therefore, it spilt all over the bench when taking the Saran Wrap off as I obviously had to tilt the container to take it off. For the price, I don't think I'll order takeout again, but would eat there next time. Just too hard to get reservations nowadays in Hawaii compared with 3 years ago. And that's no fault of the restaurant. read more

Matsuri - Food - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Nice little spot for a nice variety of several sushi favorites. Service was pleasant and helpful. We ordered the chefs Omakase and it was really good. Prior we had a tempura appy which was perfect. read more

Matsuri - Chef's Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Really enjoyed eating here. The food was Super ono, the shop and staff were great, and the facilities and parking worked well for me. We had the Hamachi Ponzu to start and the thickness of the hamachi along with the right flavor of ponzu sauce, topped with peppers made for a really tasty first impression, and... wash that down with a cold draft Ashahi..., OMG!!! Broke da mouth!!! The maguro nigiri was next and it was sooo ono! I also wanted to try the ahi, but in all honesty the prices are a bit high so I went via the Toroneido Roll, and the ahi on it as well as the whole roll was fantastic. We then went for the Philly Roll so we could sample some of their Salmon, and again...so ono!!! With the fish tasting soo good we figured we see how well they cook up their meats, so we had the Wafu Rib Eye steak and WOW! it was very tasty, Japanese style flavoring, mmmm!!! We were getting full but everything was tasting so good that we went for the Saba Nigiri and again, very very delicious. At this point I was stuffed but I love tofu so I ordered the Agedashi tofu and I may have been too full, because it tasted good but not as good as the rest of the meal. Overall this Izakaya had one of the best tasting sushi and steak I've had in Hawaii. The shop itself looked like an Izakaya and the staff was very quick and courteous, that along with the Japanese speaking back and forth between them really added to the authenticity of the place. Our server Lei was very friendly and we enjoyed talking story with him, and it was cool that his dad was the sushi chef, I just like that when these small shops have family members working together. As far as the facilities, the bathroom is located outside the restaurant and requires a key from the server but its specifically for the patrons of the Izakaya so its clean and its only 10 seconds away, so right around the corner. The parking situation is good too, lifted trucks can park in the stalls but it is tight. We went at 5pm on a Tuesday and all the stalls but 2 were taken. It did however empty out at 5:30pm so I think when the surrounding businesses close there are much more parking stalls available at least until it gets full with customers for Matsuri. Also there were lots of side street parking. My wife and I really enjoyed eating here and will go out of our way to eat here again. read more

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Food A+ Service A+ Ambiance A+ Izakaya Matsuri is a hidden gem on Young St in the heart of town. Tucked away in an unassuming building, this charming restaurant serves both quality sushi and offers an extensive cooked menu. Their 3 and 5 kinds sashimi are always fresh and the portions are generous for the prices. I love that they have Kinmedai as well as Nodoguro on their menu regularly as they can be hard to find in typical run of the mill sushi joints around town. Their Uni is also consistently fresh and delicious, something I'm finding rarer and rarer these days. The ankimo (monkfish liver) is delicious. I didn't get a great picture but their assorted tempura is also solid. Their grilled beef tongue is delicious and served with a wonderful unique sauce as well. Although I tend to stick to sashimi, of the times someone in my dining party has ordered rolls, the rolls have been delicious and made with quality ingredients as well. The kamameshi is a nice treat, a savory warming rice dish cooked at your table in a kettle. I want to make it a point to say their service is always amazing. I came in at 9:05 pm on a Thursday (they close at 10 pm) and we were the only ones in the restaurant. We still received top notch service and food despite being the only ones there within an hour of closing. Open table allows bookings until 9:15 for the restaurant which is amazing for anyone looking for a late night bite. Even when the restaurant is filled, it's still an intimate vibe. Noise levels are usually decent and it's a comfortable experience overall. Side note, another diner complained about this place not being friendly to queer sushi lovers. I've been here multiple times with my female spouse and we have never been discriminated against in any way. I wouldn't want anyone feeling dissuaded from trying this place because of a remark like that. read more

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Loved this place! It was absolutely amazing. The price was right and the food was delicious!!! The omakase chirashi for the price was unbelievable. Can't wait to go back!! We had a reservation for 6 PM and it was empty, but filled up fast. It was super quiet when we got there and did become a little bit louder but it's a tiny little restaurant. read more

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A hidden gem. Matsuri is tucked away in the heart of town on Young Street surrounded by residential buildings. Located on the bottom floor of a 3-story office building. Easy to miss if you're not looking for it. Also known as the old Hakkei Restaurant. Parking available on the street and in their private lot. The restaurant is on the smaller size and can fill up fast, so best to make reservations on the Open Table app. We went for a 7:30pm dinner and ordered: *Fresh Oysters (half dozen) $23 *Hokkaido Hairy Crab mp $100 *Deep-fried Founder (half fish) $18 *Grilled Nodoguro Ichiyaboshi $39 *10pc Omakase (Nigeria chef set) $100 *Toroneido Roll $23 *2pc Saba Nigiri Sushi $12 *Kotobuki Dynamite Roll $20 *Kubota-Black Pork Sausage $8.95 *Zenzai (usually green tea ice cream but opted for vanilla ice cream; served with mochi balls and sweetened red beans) $12 Everything (and I mean everything) tasted amazing and fresh. Hands down the Hokkaido Hairy Crab was my favorite. Lots of sweet firm crabmeat. Pricey but worth it. Highly recommended. Service was excellent. Food was fabulous. We'll be back. read more

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Our family loves sushi and sashimi so we were excited to try Matsuri for the first time! It is a small restaurant that was packed on a Saturday night. It's kinda hard to find, but we drove slowly on Young Street when we were near so we didn't miss the turn into the parking lot. They have limited parking for their restaurant but we got lucky and took the last stall. We were there to celebrate my daughters birthday so we ordered lots of food. With the exception of some of the sashimi, everything was good! Pricey, but gotta pay for the fresh stuff! Service was okay, the ladies were nice and our dishes were taken away in a timely manner. Next time I would want to try other things on the menu. Just a heads up, they don't have paper menus, gotta scan the QR code and look on your phone. Their menu isn't easy to follow. The pictures and words were not next to each other. We asked for a menu but they offered us an IPad. read more

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Service was great. The owner is so nice. The place gives you a vibe of the bars in Japan. The food is outstanding

I've been to Japan and ate just as good here! The definition of a hole in the wall, a hidden treasure in Honolulu. The service is outstanding and so welcoming. All of their food is delicious but their sashimi was our favorite. This family run restaurant is very authentic to Japanese cuisine and their nostalgic dishes. When we travel again we'll be coming back! read more

Matsuri - 3 Kinds Sashimi - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

The sushi and raw foods are great. The cook dishes is a little disappointed. Service was okay! When I called the woman on the phone was rude. Usually when you call a Japanese restaurant ppl are kind. read more

Matsuri is a fantastic izakaya and when we went I think we were the only mainlanders. Great local joint with good food. We had a hitch on the service side. The waitress forgot to put in our food order and we waited an hour before I asked what was up. She forgot to put the order in! She was so nice and apologetic I couldn't be mad albeit a little frustrated. They gave us some nice sake on the house and all was well! The food was really good. Menu is a nice mix of cooked and raw items. The night we were there they had live hairy crab from Hokkaido! One of my favorites is their TANUKI OBORO SALAD which is an amazing array of textures and freshness. They top it with some of their homemade tofu that is delicious! We didn't have a bad dish. Go here. You will enjoy it. read more

This place surprises me with the above average fish. It was really so yummy yum yum. I will be back. The crab was so yummy with the easy shelling. Pricey but delicious. The shrimp tempura was light and crispy. I haven't seen This type of batter since a long time ago. It is something I would eat again and again. Chawanmushi is good but they put the white bean that is not my favorite. See my photos. Food was amazing but then it was expensive. Owner is Korean chef is Japanese. I don't usually like going to Korean sushi houses but this was amazing here. read more

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Boyfriend took me here for a date and it was our first time here. The service was decent. They checked on us and answered our questions. The menu is online, but its written in an almost confusing way. Maybe it's because its on the phone, but the pictures and menu items were sort of all over the place. There is a board where they also have the specials written on it. We ordered the chirashi omakase and it was huge! They packed rice on the bottom of the topped it with loads of seafood. My boyfriend doesn't like ikura so I got it all to myself! We shared the variety of seafood and there was enough cuts where we each got to try a little bit of everything. The fish tasted fresh and were thick cuts. The chawanmushi was flavorful and smooth. It's one of my go to orders if I see it on the menu and it did not disappoint. The bottom was loaded with fillings and while I don't care for the gingko nut, I liked the other fillings. The lobster dynamite was actually a mistake. I meant to order the roll, but ordered this instead. While it was good, it was also costly for such a small dish. If you want to splurge on something small and delicious, this would be it. The wafu steak would have to be both of our favorites. It was seared and flavorful. The sauce was delicious and the steak was juicy and tender. We ate it with the kamameshi rice. The Choi sum was sautéed with garlic. A nice and simple dish. The kamameshi took a while to fully cook, but it was worth the wait. It looks small, but its actually more than enough for two people. There was a variety of seafood and mushrooms topped over the rice. It comes with green onion and ikura on the side to top it off. And lastly, the dish I was most excited for, the sake crime brûlée. The sake flavor was light and the crime brûlée was torched to perfection. The ice cream on top just really put it all together. It was also big enough to share for two people. Matsuri is hidden underneath a building and behind a park. They have a small little banner sign outside, but its easy to miss. They have a few stalls in the front for parking, but there is also street parking available. read more

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They take dine in reservations. Very good service. They were a mask and followed safety protocols. Food was great as always. The oysters were very fresh and the sushi was awesome! The only disappointment was that I ordered wine and it was probably just 1/8 of the wine glass. I had to order a whole bottle because i felt like they were stingy with the amount of wine they put in my glass. Otherwise I would come back again for the food. read more

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During COVID, a lot of restaurants are requiring a reservation to dine in. I love when restaurants utilize online apps/services for this purpose, it just makes life easier. Maturi uses OpenTable. It was a breeze to make a reservation and when I needed to make a change I called the restaurant directly and I learned you can also call/text to make a reservation or order take out. Talk about convenient. Parking is free and is in a private lot where the restaurant is located. The lot is kind of tight and may require maneuvering such as in the Austin Powers movie. I decided to come here because I wanted to propose to my bridal party and we all love sushi. This restaurant is on the smaller side so I wouldn't recommend large groups. We were a party of 5 that shared a tiny table that would fit 2-4 comfortably. My original reservation was for 4 so I understand why were seated at that table, my fault. On that note, the service was superb. They recognized that the serving dishes were quite large and they often checked to see if they could remove any dishes from our table to make room for the endless amount of food we ordered. Now for the moment you've probably been waiting for, the food. I've had my fair share at sushi restaurants and Matsuri has made my top 3. I want to highlight the blue fin ahi set. A price point of $75 for what they offer is a steal in my opinion. You get 2 pieces blue fin nigiri, 2 pieces chutoro nigiri, 2 pieces otoro nigiri, 1 otoro gunkan, and uni garnished on 1 piece of otoro and 1 piece of chutoro. The uni garnish was something I never knew I needed *chef's kiss*. I also want to mention the beef tongue because it came with this sauce that I think was made of yuzu and other things but nonetheless it was delicious. I'll definitely be back! read more

Matsuri - Beef tongue - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Great small authentic Japanese restaurant. Enjoyed their appetizers and sushi! Clean, quick service. Was in and out in less than hour with reservations at opening time. 5/5 for everything! Uni sashimi $40 but super fresh and sweet and creamy. Agedashi tofu - large portion with silky tofu, chewy soft skin and nice sauce Tempura - large portion, crispy light Oysters so refreshing and sweet Nigiri - fresh with unique fish, took the servers recommendations and was highly impressed! read more

Matsuri - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Hubs and I tried a new sushi spot (new for us since we pretty much only go to Murayama) for Valentine's Day. Cute lil place on Young, off Keeaumoku...didn't even realize there were businesses there. Ordered some beer and sake. I didn't like the sake, but liked the bamboo carafe it came in! "Not for sale" she told me. Oh well, never hurts to ask! Decided on the 10 pc nigiri omakase. Waitress said little bit slow, so maybe order pupus. Seems like a sneaky way to get us to order more...but she was so sweet don't think she was trying to be sneaky. Asked if all 10 come out together or separately...she said separately so we ordered soft shell crab. That was delish. Super light crispy batter. We drooled over the leftovers at the table next to us since it sat there for quite a while...Finally our nigiri came out. 2 pieces on separate plates but the rest came out together on a single platter so good thing we didn't order choke pupus to eat in between. 1st was a salmon under a smoky glass. Mmm...I could have eaten that all night. The rest was good but nothing spectacular. Too much rice for me so the hubs ate it. Not enough food for him. Pretty good, but think will just go back for happy hour like other yelpers suggest. read more

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Hubby found this place when he was craving sushi. We wanted authentic fresh sushi. Make reservation for sure. This place only seats so many people, very small place but the food is so good. I would recommend you look at the menu before you get there. I read the reviews and Hokkaido crab was a must. Was it good? It was worth it. Yum!!! Then we decided to get the omakase for 2 people and the presentation was on point. It was beautiful, art. Every single piece of fish were so fresh and amazing. I don't like uni but had to tey the uni from Hokkaido. It was so sweet and delicious. The flounder was wow and the Hamachi???? I could go on and on . We also ordered the lobster dynamite. Really good. The sake was Daisso 39 and it was amazing. Go check this place out. You're missing out read more

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Posted 7 days ago and returned this time to celebrate my friends birthday. This time we tried the three type sashimi platter and was not disappointed. It was huge and the fish was super fresh. New things we tried this time around included misoyaki butterfish, super soft and mildly flavored but appreciated the fish more. We also tried mozuku and it was tasty. Of course I returned for more assorted shrimp tempura, natto washo, and fresh tofu. The wait help are so friendly and ready to cater to your every needs. The restaurant opens for dinner at 5 to 10 pm but I wish it stayed opened later! read more

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My dad was craving sushi and found this place on Opentable. Small hole in the wall type of place. There's a small parkiing lot that they share with other businesses, but quite a bit of open spaces when we went for dinner. We ordered their sashimi trio, which came with hamachi, ahi and salmon, hamachi kama, assorted tempura, chicken karaage, agedashi tofu, thunder dynamite roll, and sake creme brulee. The highlight was probably the hamachi kama as the portion you get for the price was an amazing deal. I believe they make their own tofu which made the agedashi tofu stand out compared to other Japanese restaurants. I also really liked the thunder dynamite roll, but it was pretty pricey. The dessert was a bit deceiving because the dish they use looks deep, but really, the bottom is located halfway of the dish so it was pretty shallow. I liked the flavor of the creme brulee. Who knew sake and creme brulee would go together? Overall, the food and service were great. My family and I all agreed that we would come back here. read more

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Located on Young St. Next to the Byrna store, there is parking inside the lot but also plenty of street parking. You might want to make reservations before coming. The inside is on the small side, nice and cozy. They also have a sushi bar too. We ordered a bunch of sushi rolls, Rainbow roll, Dragon roll, Dynamite roll, and a sashimi platter, Also got the steak and Hokkaido crab nice and sweet. And the oysters too. Everything was good i think my favorite was the Hokkaido crab it was nice and fresh. Would i come back again yes i will be back to try some more different dishes. read more

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Been to this place a couple of times. Once with a friend, the other with the girlfriend and family friends for happy hour. We like this place, not only because it's right next door, LoL but the food is great. Small little place, but feels really comfortable. All the food I have had here was tasty, from the sushi, sashimi, tempura, AND especially their Tempura Ice Cream (yummy) During Happy Hour (5:30-6:30pm) there are a nice selection to order from. Smaller portions so you can try MANY things. Outside of Happy Hour, portions are larger, but still same quality and flavor. Both times I've been here, the food came out in a timely manner, not slow but not rushed... at a nice "eating" pace. I would suggest this place to others for the food, prices, and ambience. read more

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A nice little izakaya located on Young street. The parking can be a little difficult. There is a private lot and ramp parking but both are dead end lots so be careful. There is also street parking. Make sure to make reservations as there is limited seating. Also you have a time limit so be sure to be on time. They have a decent selection of sake. We got a variety of cooked fish, sushi and a sashimi platter. Everything was delicious. The fried fish was crispy and well seasoned. The cuts of sashimi were generous and fresh. They did give us a time limit though due to decreased capacity which was fine. Overall definitely a place worth trying out. read more

This place has good food, and we have been here multiple times. However, adding a forced 18% service charge is not cool. read more

Matsuri - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Izakaya Matsuri could achieve excellence, but our recent visit fell far short of that potential. Serving a wide selection of sushi and cooked dishes, the small restaurant located just off of Keaumoku on Young Street left us wishing we had gone to Sushi Sasabune instead. This was our first dine-in experience following the vaccine or test mandate. Checking in took a little longer because of the vaccine checks, and they demanded identification for our minor daughter (because every 14 year old carries ID, right?). No big deal, and we were seated after a few minutes. The menu is online-only through use of a QR code, while the drink menu is hard copy. These wouldn't be issues, except that the format for the online menu is terrible-- several photos of food followed by several dish names separated by categories. Although we mostly knew or could deduce what we were looking at, it made selecting our food order much more difficult and took much longer than it should have. That alone wouldn't be a big problem, but the waitress kept standing impatiently and told us to hurry up. There were two waitresses. One was soft spoken and respectful, while the other was very rude to us. Unfortunately, the rude waitress had our table. We noticed that her demeanor was different with some of the other tables she served, so she may have just not liked us specifically. The food itself was very good, if not particularly inspired. Ingredients were high quality and the seafood was very fresh. The negitoro roll was excellent; although I expected a hand roll, the temaki-style negitoro roll allowed us to share more easily. The Matsu set was very good, and it included a good variety of premium nigiri. Other sushi spots often add some less expensive choice like ika or tako, and the lack of those pieces made the dish feel smaller than the price suggested. The dessert of creme brulee with green tea ice cream was not bad. The final note is price. The price was at the higher end of what I would consider reasonable for the meal. With so many places for great sushi in Honolulu, I feel that there are much better meals to be had for the same or lower prices. If the service had been better and the prices were more reasonable, then we might visit Izakaya Matsuri again. Based on our experience, however, I cannot recommend it. read more

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The husband-n-wife run Matsuri has become our go-to neighborhood izakaya place! Very authentic Japanese dishes, such as delicacies like the hard-to-find Hokkaido crab (have to be lucky or come early to get it), and the monk fish liver. Their fish is always fresh, and great sake to pair! The place is small, reservation is highly recommended, either with Julie (chef's wife) directly by text or on Open Table! The service is informal but family like, very much like the local izakaya places in Japan. read more

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Excellent fresh sushi!! There's happy hour everyday 5:30-6:30, except Sunday because they're closed. However currently there's happy hour all day Tuesday! $3 asahi drafts!! Anyway on the happy hour menu the house-made oboro fresh tofu and their special jelly sauce is a must have! Their ika geso and chicken karaage is super tasty! Yoshi, the owner / chef, gets his fish every 2-3 days from japan or local fishermen! They have fresh amazing kusshi oysters with ponzu on the half shell that are a must have! But the best item on their menu would have to be the 10 piece omakase nigiri. It's chef choice so he picks 10 of the freshest fish for the day! read more

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Came here for my birthday this year and it was great! Easy to text them and make a reservation. I made a few changes and they were very accommodating. The restaurant is very small so make sure to reserve in advance. The one downside is that they do not have happy hour anymore which is the main reason why I wanted to visit. I wasn't sure since it wasn't on their online menu, but I thought maybe they still had it. My boyfriend and I dined in around 5:30 pm and they had our table ready. It wasn't too crowded when we first sat down which was nice. Once seated, we scanned the code to view their online menu and looked at their drink menu provided. They have a huge menu so it is hard to pick and choose. We settled on the beef tongue, oysters, mix tempura, and deluxe chirashi to share between the two of us. Food came out at a good time - not all at once but enough to enjoy each dish thoroughly! We started with the beef tongue which was VERY tender and delicious. It was served with a green ginger sauce. The dish was on the smaller side but so tender and worth it!! If you're a beef tongue fan, I would recommend trying this dish. Next up were the oysters. Served with a ponzu sauce over the oysters, they tasted very fresh. These are also a bit pricey at around $3 per oyster but very good! The mix tempura came with two of each item - shrimp, carrot, sweet potato, pumpkin, bell pepper. Of course the batter was flaky and crisp. It was perfectly cooked and had a good amount of veggies on the plate along with two big pieces of shrimp. Lastly, we tried the deluxe chirashi bowl that comes with a huge selection of sashimi. It included uni, ikura, amaebi, toro, chutoro, otoro, unagi, hamachi, nodoguro, scallop, ika, salmon. YUM! Although pricey, the ingredients are top notch and well worth it. Some of the more premium fish only comes with one piece - but you can pick and choose what you want to eat, or just get one for yourself! The prices are a bit on the pricer side here, but I think the quality is great and dishes are well executed. A classic izakaya! I only wish they would bring back their happy hour. read more

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