First time here on a Friday night. The place was clean and cozy. It was full, so we had to wait a little. We got seated at the bar, which we liked because of the interaction with the sushi chef. While waiting, I heard from other guests that they had made reservations, so make sure to reserve ahead so you don't have to wait. We ordered a bottle of Asahi to share along with an order of Shishito Peppers and Garlic Edamame. Both appetizers paired well with the Asahi. Then we had two oyster shooters, which were very yummy. The oysters weren't fishy at all. We also ordered a bottle of sake to go with our sushi. We asked the chef to help us put together a few pieces of nigiri: uni, salmon belly, scallop, and salmon roe. The uni was amazing -- creamy and sweet. The salmon belly was very fatty, which I liked. The scallop was sweet and not fishy. I liked the salmon roe so much that I had to ask the chef for more. The bathroom was clean and bright, which was a plus. The waitstaff were friendly and attentive. They checked in on us to make sure everything was good and to see if we wanted to order more food. Parking wasn't too bad. We arrived at 7:30 and were able to find parking right outside. Will definitely come back to try other items on their menu. read more

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- salmon taster: (4/5) pretty good, the salmon belly one was the best. good value. - pork belly: (3/5) sauce good, but texture of meat wasnt as soft as i expected from pork belly - dynamite: (4/5) spicy tuna quite good. spicer than average spicy tuna and i like that - snow dragon: (3/5) solid overall. but the tempura flavor is strong here where i expedt the snow crab to be more prominent. - firecracker: (4/5) my favorite. im a big fan of seared salmon and spicy mayo, so this one definitely hit the spot read more

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I visited Nakama Sushi for dinner and was honestly a bit underwhelmed. I ordered the 20-piece Sashimi Tasting ($89), which came with 10 different types of fish (two pieces each). I understand that $89 won't get you a luxury sashimi tasting (especially in San Francisco), but it was still hard to justify the price. The first thing that caught my attention was that the cuts of fish were very thin. The second thing I noticed was that (with exception to the fatty tuna), everything else they served was cheaper cuts of fish (white tuna, salmon, etc.) The service was friendly, and they gave us a free dessert at the end (fresh strawberries, which were very good). Maybe I went on an off-day or I should have ordered something else (the reviews are otherwise so good!) But unfortunately, my visit was a bit disappointing. read more

I loved all the Nigiri except there was a bone in the Black Sea Bream. I mentioned it to the waitress and she said that's normal? Hmmmmmmm I've had Sea Bream quite a lot and never had a bone in my Nigiri or Sashimi. The Dynamite Scallop Roll was pretty good as well. I might try their Nigiri Tasting next time which looks like good value! read more

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YUM! This is the perfect date night for some sexy sushi. We got here right as they opened, and it seemed like a smart bet as we were the first seated and within 10 minutes the entire restaurant was packed. This restaurant is beautiful and it's a bit more spacious than I expected. Design elements and wood elegance spruce this up to be just the perfect spot for an intimate date. Opt for the sushi bar This was the best agedashi tofu I've had in a minute. Gelatinous in all its glory. Their Omakase was a sure bet an we did it for both of us. My husband got a roll and we had a late order of chicken karagee that put us over our limit of eating Absolutely would come back here. read more

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I had a wonderful dinner here! It was the perfect way to celebrate my birthday with my parents and significant other. My boyfriend convinced my parents that they wanted to try the Omakase. They had never tried omakase before, so lots of the food was really new to them. It was extremely fun to try so many courses of new food, especially because so much of it was new to my parents. It was such a pleasure to be at the table with them when they tried uni, abalone, chawanmushi, and barracuda for the first time!! My mom and I also both ordered the sake flight and we had a blast deciding our favorite and pairing different fish with different sake. I absolutely recommend the omakase with the sake flight, if you can swing it. It was definitely a dinner on the pricey side. Also, be careful about how much time you allocate to dinner plans if you pick omakase. The food came out a little slowly. Our reservation was around 5:20 and we finished around 7:10. However, I think the restaurant was having an off night and actively trying to train multiple servers, so I'm not holding it against them. It's just a valid logistical concern. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Nigiri - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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New Year dinner before the festivities and my first time here--so glad we chose this spot. Small and cozy Traditional sushi place. We sat at the bar and had a great time interacting with the chefs, and I'll definitely do the same every time I come back. The sushi was outstanding--flavorful and beautifully prepared. We had sashimi that was incredibly fresh and mouthwateringly good. The rolls were fantastic, and the sake was honestly one of the best I've ever had. Customer service was stellar from start to finish. This gem is one of the best sushi spots I've been to, and I highly recommend it to anyone in the city. They also have another location in Oakland under a different name, which I can't wait to check out. I'll absolutely be coming back every opportunity I get. read more

Hey munchkins how's it going? I have a lot of work to do but I wanted to take time out for a goodbye dinner for a friend who is moving away. We go to one of his favorite places Nakama Sushi. I get the snow dragon roll and it's very crunchy without much rice and I'd have it snow other way. If there was too much rice the roll would drag-on. My friend who is moving gets the rock and roll. He quite liked it. The rock and roll is a delicate combination of the finest eel known in the land with fresh avocado cut directly from the avocado harvest directly from the plant outside. The roll is covered in a generous helping of eel sauce befitting a roll of its stature. When he ate the roll he thought back to a lovely day in his childhood when he was sick and his mom brought him a dead eel from the river. My other friend got the double red roll. She found the combo of tuna with eel sauce a bit interesting but it tasted good. She remembered how her mother ate sushi while she was pregnant and how that impacted her as a child. The service was also great. The waiter cracked some great jokes when we dropped the chopsticks. The coke was really good as well. I highly recommend Nakama sushi! read more

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So, Nakama Sushi is basically like stepping through a magic portal from the streets of San Francisco right into a cozy little corner of Japan. It's got that perfect warm vibe that makes you feel like you're in on a neighborhood secret. The staff? Super nice and on top of things, and they got me settled at the sushi bar in no time. Now, let's talk food. I kicked things off with some garlic edamame and a bit of sake nigiri--delicious, but the showstopper was absolutely the volcano scallop roll. Imagine this: snow crab meat, creamy avocado, and these beautiful slices of Hokkaido scallop on top, all drizzled with spicy mayo. It's the kind of roll that makes you want to hop in the car and drive up from San Jose anytime you get a craving--and yeah, I'd do it again in a heartbeat! read more

This place is at a convenient location which is my guess as to why it had a decent amount of business on a sat night, however, it was not that good. The fish was not that fresh and had a very fishy aftertaste, which is a tell tale sign that it's not fresh. The staff there also seemed not to be used to the random burst of traffic before a concert nearby, since when i asked how long the wait is for 2, he said come back in 1-1.5 hrs. it was a cold night so we decided to wait inside and was able to be seated in ~30 min. Not sure why he was trying to shoo us away. I would not go there again. read more

Solid sushi spot but not spectacular. Everything seemed high quality but felt there was a certain je ne sais quoi missing that left us wanting... we enjoyed the ambiance and wood aesthetic throughout the restaurant. Unfortunately service was quite slow as well. We came here before a show at the symphony and would come back again if needing to grab a bite before another symphony/opera/ballet etc. Probably would not go out of my way or wait if it was crowded though. read more

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We went for the sample menu and one dish after another kept on coming fresh , immaculately presented , introduced by our discreet yet super efficient waiter. What a delightful experience. The atmosphere was chilled. Could sustain a conversation without having to raise our voices. A gem of a restaurant. read more

Came in for Valentine's Day omakase! Went with the pricier menu and was not disappointed at all. The presentation was amazing, and the taste/flavors of everything were even better! It was such a fun dinner and what made it even better was our server Benjamin! He went above and beyond to make us feel welcome and accommodated. We came in at 5pm right when they opened and had planned to go to the ballet at 7pm. I was definitely worried the omakase would take long but we notified Benjamin about our time crunch and he was so attentive the entire night and made sure our courses came out promptly! Amazing food, amazing service. No complaints at all. read more

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We were celebrating a birthday. The restaurant is a small, intimate place with raw edge wood tabletops and low lighting. We ordered miso soup, which was outstanding. Then gyoza, which was fabulous. That was followed by an abalone skewer and a single uni sushi. Both were very good. We ordered three rolls and initially received 2 of them. Upon asking, they rushed to make the third for us. We shared 2 crunchy lobster and one rainbow. Delicious. The fish quality was amazing. We ordered a coconut sake nigori. We were served a matcha one instead. She said, "Do you want to try it? It's very good." We said sure, since it's open. We agreed that it was good. But she never brought the one we ordered, so that was disappointing. We ordered the mochi for dessert. Delicious, as expected. The food was all excellent, the service was fine but bumpy. We still had a great time celebrating the birthday. I will think of that miso soup fondly. It was comfort in a cup. read more

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Got some good ass sushi from this place in the Hayes Valley area. It has a classy casualness to it. Nakama Sushi seriously has some of the best tasting stuff. Hard to find it this fresh. The prices aren't bad for quality. A lot better than most sushi restaurants to be honest. It's a pretty intimate setting. The bar is the most open area and where servers are most likely to remember you. Be sure to get seated here. We had a few rolls. It was about $5 for the cheapest. The Oshinko Roll is made with radish. Good. There's a few cheap other ones if willing to wait. Also we got a Veggie Tempura Roll. This is the best vegetarian choice and it's crunchy too. Has variety in the rolls and whatever's on the menu. It's one of the nicer places around here for sushi. There's rolls filled with fish and those for vegetarians. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Oshinko Roll And Veggie Tempura Roll - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

This is a great place for having sushi if you are ever in the mood for sushi . I specifically chose this place because it was only a couple of blocks away from my residence. The sushi I had was excellently prepared and the service was amazingly friendly and the ambience of the place was great. I give them 5 stars read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Sushi - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

I had a perfect meal. I ordered basic dishes, and they were the best versions of each I have ever had. Service was warm, welcoming, and attentive. The room was cozy, not oppressive; alive, not overwhelming. I will return again and again. read more

TLDR: I'm not convinced this is THE BEST sushi in SF, but definitely delicious option in a sea (pun intended) of options in the Hayes Valley area. Reminding me I need to stop in to a few other options in the area to determine my go-to. 4.25 stars overall xD Unfortunately the draft I wrote up immediately following the meal didn't save aside from the star ranking. I'm going to stick with four stars, because it wasn't a poor experience by any means, but there isn't anything particularly standout or unique in my memory. Longer: I love sushi, but it's not my go-to and always better with a group in order to try many rolls. When my sister and I met for a longggg overdue sister-sister date, I did enough research on nearby sushi to go cross-eyed. I landed on NAKAMA given all the options averaged about the same overall star rating and a few dishes (ie eggplant skewers) highlighted by other reviewers caught my eye. Service was ever so slightly snail pace, so don't come here expecting expedited eating (ie prob not the best option for a quick meal before nearby Symphony, Jazz, CA&L, etc.). The volume in the restaurant was low, so this issss a good option for a mellow meal with a side of conversation (ie you won't be yelling across the table, which isn't always the case in many HV restaurants). After we placed our order, it felt like it wasn't ultimately input into the point of sale system, as it took quite some time for our sake and miso to arrive. Later, it seemed our position at the bar, sorta hidden behind a column, was to our detriment, as we had to flag servers down for water refills and a request for more pickled ginger. TGOD for tasty (ozeki nigori strawberry) sake while we waited, amirite?! The miso soup was the perfect salty, warm start to the meal and while the eggplant skewers were tasty, my family cooks a lot of eggplant and it's hard for me to find value in veggie dishes at restaurants unless they are out of this world and/or I'm super low on time (time is money, after all). The benefit: this particular eggplant dish inspired me to make my own rendition plus extra sauce for a fraction of the cost at home. Caution - the eggplant bites are truly hothot upon arrival at the table, so consider slicing in half to allow the insides to cool, or be prepared to potentially burn roof of mouth if you're low on patience like we were. We got 1 order of sake nigiri, and two rolls - just enough for the two of us to feel satiated but not stuffed. The fish was fresh and there was plenty of variety in rolls, but nothing particularly unique. I do try to limit my carbohydrate intake when having a high protein meal (yay not making my own insulin), so it was wonderful to have the option for a cucumber wrapped roll. I'll by no means turn down a return to NAKAMA, but it isn't top on the list considering there's way too many other options to try within ~1mi of my front door. read more

My favorite dinner companion and I were set to go to the symphony. I thought it would be nice to grab a bite before hand. We had been to Nakama before. It was a hit then, and it was a hit last night. Last night we had the sashimi tasting. Delightful. I got a small order of cold sake. We shared and we're amazed how much there was in the little carafe. Service was top-notch, atmosphere was lovely. Definitely not our last visit. read more

casual spot for some excellent fresh sushi. We ordered as we ate, everything was fresh and delicious. Service was pretty decent, our waiter was friendly and knowledgeable. read more

I came here a few weeks ago and thought the sushi was pretty good overall. We ordered the chicken karaage, Agedashi tofu, dragon roll, scallop roll, double hamachi, double red. I also ordered the hotate and o-toro nigiri. I really liked the scallop roll, o toro, and dragon roll. The prices are pretty steep here. I didn't like the double hamachi roll as much. read more

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Wow. The abalone skewer was the best thing I've eaten in a long time. I put a dab of the fresh wasabi on one and it was bliss. The seaweed was yummy, the tea was good and the edamame was tastier than usual. This is a good thing La e with good service. read more

Small sushi joint. The sushi didn't take long to come out after placing my order. Dragon roll was good! Double hamachi roll was ok though. Agedashi tofu was decent (this came after my sushi rolls I would've preferred to eat this first since it's an appetizer, but I liked how they have a good amount of tofu pieces. Also, my first order of the hokkaido uni was yummy. My second order of uni was just ok. I would want to go back to try more rolls and nigiri just to see how their other cuts of fish tastes. The service is okay; I had to remind them to refill my water, but after that they were on it. Also, I would recommend ubering here or taking muni since parking seems tough. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Best sushi in SF. Went here for my sister's HS graduation and they went above and beyond for us. Amazing service.

Great experience with fresh delicious food and good service. We were in Hayes in dinner time and decided to give this place a try. We were seated right away without reservation, which is luck on a Sunday evening. We ordered Snow dragon, Spicy summer, Double red, and Nasu roll. I liked all of them but my favorite was Double red. Our server, Uncle Ben, was extremely attentive, which added to the experience. Extra ginger, water refill and even complimentary sweet treat at the end - made that dinner memorable. The place was cozy with lights dimmed, and calm guests. I'll definitely come there again. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Menu - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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The staff was friendly and the sushi was fresh! The pricing was reasonable and my husband and I had nice time sitting at the sushi bar!

Nakama Sushi is one of my favorite spots to eat in the Civic Center area. We started with the agedashi tofu and the kani chawanmushi. The tofu was so soft and silky, fried perfectly as the batter was so crispy and light. The chawanmushi came with crab and was perfectly cooked and seasoned very well. It was the perfect dish on such a cold evening. The salmon tasting came with 5 different types of salmon, each with a unique preparation. It wasn't fussy or complicated, which allowed the fish to shine. Lastly, we had a rainbow roll and the spiderman roll, both of which had very fresh fish. The portion sizes are more akin to what one would find in Japan. The focus is on quality, not quantity. The atmosphere is relaxed; this is not a place to do sake bombs! We really enjoined the friendly service. This is a great spot to have dinner before taking in a show nearby. It's probably a good idea to make reservations if timing is a concern. Parking can be found nearby on the street or in the Performing Arts Garage. The Van Ness Muni station is about 1.5 blocks away. read more

We placed a delivery order in the evening. When we checked 50 minutes later on the status, we noticed that the restaurant had not confirmed the order. We called the restaurant and they did not pick up. However, immediately after hanging up the phone, we received a notification that the restaurant canceled the order. Instead of canceling our order immediately so that we can make other meal arrangements, they left it sitting idle without a response for an entire 50 minutes without notifying us or canceling our order. "This email is to inform you that your order from Nakama Sushi was canceled because the store was reported to be closed and currently unable to fulfill your order. " read more

i loveeeee thisss placeee!!!! just being here you can just feel the warmth of being at home, everything the ambience and energy where the waiters just make you feel like you're always welcome to be there. not to even mention the delicious food that you can sacrifice your friends in a battle of who gets the last piece!! i 1000000000% reccomend heavily if you want to feel like you've just ascended by the gods of yummy goodness definitely go here noowwwww!!! read more

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I left a review last year, but have to shout out again. Incredible food and incredible prices! The service is excellent and the quality of the food and the sakes and wines is premium. it is a hidden gem with a lovely atmosphere as well. read more

Planned a date night here and was not disappointed! We were greeted with a classy woodsy vibe when we entered and managed to score a seat at the bar. It was pretty busy as this was one of the free places open on Thanksgiving night, so it took a bit to get our order in. But once we got our server things went smoothly. I ordered the sake flight which included 4 premium sake pours. Totally worth it, but the best sake is by far the Izumi Judan Extra Dry Ginjo. I ended up getting a carafe of that one afterward. With the drinks flowing, we decided to order the A5 wagyu on a hot stone. It was immaculate and also it was super sweet of our server to give us a demonstration on his to cook the meat properly. The wagyu was melt-in-your-mouth good. From there, we tried the salmon five ways, a halibut hand roll, ordered an assortment of nigiri and sashimi, and my partner had the chirashi don. Everything was so fresh and melted like butter. The quality of fish here is unreal. I'm taking unbelievably fresh! Overall, we were super satisfied and left the restaurant on cloud 9 after having a near-spiritual experience with the food here. Get the sea breem for sure and the unagi, and if you're up for dessert, the mango panna cotta is so, so good, but seriously, it seems you can't go wrong with any of the fresh options here. As a bonus, we met our "uncle" here, and he was such a joy and made sure we left happy and tipsy. Definitely check this place out! read more

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My absolute favorite sushi place in the city. They have the best tasting and best quality fish. My favorite dish is the soy marinated tuna but honestly every single thing on this menu is amazing. The service is outstanding every single time we go. I cannot recommend this place enough. read more

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First time at this place this past weekend but not our last! Celebrating my dear friend's birthday -- and our server Benjamin was on point every step of the way! He knew exactly how to make the birthday person feel special, but also how to meet our other requests and overall make the evening so much fun that one of our guests said "that's the best server I've had in a long... wait, maybe ever!" The space is well decorated and comfortable, beautiful touches with serving utensils of animals and other ornate / adorable things, and sake serve-ware super classy. Last but not least -- the sushi itself was out of this world. We'll definitely be back soon. (Thanks again Nakama, and pro-tip celebrators -- ask for Benjamin if you want the best!) read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Toasting to birthday and an amazing first time at Nakama :) - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

1st time trying this sushi place and it was very enjoyable. There are many sushi places in SF and this one is worth a visit. We order a bunch of sushi rolls and they were all excellent. The place is small and cozy. The stuff is very attentive. We will be back! read more

I don't ordinarily begin reviews by highlighting the ambiance, but then again, Nakama is no ordinary restaurant The quality begins the moment you walk in the door. It has an incredibly welcoming atmosphere; the interior decorated in warm woods, complimented by modern fixtures that allow it to walk a perfect line between elegant and cozy. It exudes calm and warmth, a welcome reprieve from the cold and at times unforgiving streets of the city outside. Thankfully the positives don't stop at the ambiance, and Nakama delivers excellent food and kind, attentive service as well. Of particular interest to me was the Salmon Tasting, an option I've yet to see at any other Japanese restaurants that includes four different cuts of high-quality salmon sashimi along with the best Ikura, or salmon roe, that I've probably ever had. I can never skip trying the fried and grilled foods at Japanese restaurants, and both the Agedashi and Eggplant Skewers were delicious and provided a valuable contrast to the fresh sushi dishes. San Francisco is a city with no lack of Japanese and sushi restaurants, but Nakama rises above the fray and I hope I have the opportunity to go back soon. read more

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It's a bummer I have to rate this so low after wanting to go here for so long. I live in Hayes Valley and have walked by this place so many times with the plan to eat there. I decided to finally check it out on a Friday night after looking at the menu. I was super excited because everything on their menu sounded fresh and they had some dishes that you don't always find at traditional sushi restaurants. The ambience and decor were nice, but the food just wasn't up to par. We got a cucumber wrapped roll, the miso cod, a spicy sashimi roll, and the albacore tataki. All of the dishes were lacking in flavor and like other users, I found that the fish just didn't taste all that fresh. Normally, even if the dish is missing flavors the fish delivers the flavor when it's fresh, but I just didn't find that to be the case here. It was so disappointing that at some point the two of us didn't even feel like finishing. To top it off, the food isn't cheap, so it just felt like a waste. read more

More like a 3.5 since it was nothing special but rounded up to 4 because service was amazing. The fish was fresh, but a little pricey as the rolls were a little small. My favorite was the chef special which came with two types of white fish. I think the element of surprise added to the uniqueness. The best part was that there was unlimited ginger here AND the ginger they use is real pickled ginger. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Hamachi tataki - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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The food is insanely good and Benjamin is an absolute legend! He took care of my GFs allergy's no problem. Will definitely be back soon read more

Beautiful space and ambience. Food was really good, fast, and well portioned, however service was really lacking. I understand it was busy but we were served by 3 different people and not checked up on ever, struggled to flag them down. read more

NAKAMA Sushi - Hamachi crisp - Japanese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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A small but cozy Japanese restaurant. The service was super good and fresh sashimi. Good for smaller groups (2-6 people)