[Review #571]
2020 Yelp 100 Challenge (81/100)
Long overdue... I was reminded of Oki Doki Sushi when I was cleaning up my takeout menu drawer. ODS has been a hidden gem of the South Bay since my daughter's godmother introduced it to us almost 20 years ago... I have had date nights with my husband, celebrated our birthdays, & just hung out with friends.
Simon, the owner, is a sociable guy... & always greets us by name whenever we drop in. Whenever we're in a small group (2 - 4), we usually try to sit by Sushi Chef Chan, & every now & then he would comped us a small plate of tempura/fried albacore. Yum!
Although we're been coming here for years, we haven't tried every roll/menu item because we have our favs: SASHIMI SALAD (generously filled with sashimi), TEMPURA BOWL & TEMPURA NOODLE (kids' favs because they're not sushi fans yet... it's a work-in-progress), OISHII ROLL (spicy tuna, imitation crab, albacore, salmon, avocado, cucumber), ICHIBAN ROLL (spicy yellowtail, tuna, salmon, albacore, fish, shrimp, avocado), IN & OUT ROLL (spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber, seared tuna), SNOWCONE ROLL (imitation crab, avocado, baked albacore, lobster), P.C.H. ROLL (tuna, salmon, imitation crab, avocado, soy paper), VOLCANO ROLL (baked scallop, spicy imitation crab, avocado, spicy tuna), ALOHA ROLL (spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber, albacore), CRUNCH DRAGON ROLL (avocado, crab, shrimp tempura, spicy tuna), CRUNCH ROLL (shrimp tempura, avocado, imitation crab, smelt egg), DRAGON ROLL (imitation crab, avocado, cucumber, spicy tuna), VEGAS ROLL (tuna, imitation crab, avocado, salmon, shrimp tempura). From the Specials Menu, our regular picks include: CRISPY SPICY TUNA (spicy tuna, jalapeño on crispy rice), JALAPEÑO BOMB (spicy tuna, cream cheese, jalapeño with spicy garlic sauce), FIRE ROLL (tuna, salmon, albacore, yellowtail, avocado, imitation crab, cucumber, onion with spicy sauce, soy paper), SUPERMAN ROLL (spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber/eel, imitation crab, smelt egg with special sauce), TUNA TATAKI (seared tuna with garlic dressing), CRAZY ROLL (spicy tuna, imitation crab, avocado, shrimp tempura, soy paper, deep fried), ALBACORE JUNGLE (albacore sashimi on crispy onion with ponzu sauce).
This is not high quality fresh fish like Sushi Sasabune, K-ZO, Matsuhisa... but for what it is, Oki Doki Sushi's fish is fresh, & their special rolls are inventive & oh so good. The filling is fair & sometimes generous that you definitely get the bang for your buck. We like Chan because his rolls are tight, so it doesn't fall apart if we can't eat the roll in 1 bite. From the standard menu, Oishii Roll is almost always ordered; I loved that it's carb free & super refreshing with the cucumber wrap instead of seaweed. Ichiban Roll is a frequent pick because of the packed filling of variety fishes. As far as the specials, they're all pretty yummylicious.... I love the chili heat from Jalapeño Bomb & I really enjoy the texture & flavor of the Crispy Spicy Tuna (this is reminiscent of the crunch from Chinese Sizzling Rice Soup aka 鍋粑湯). The garlic dressing on the Tuna Tataki is soooooo dope that we used the excess sauce to dress the plain rolls like Spicy Tuna Roll. The Fire Roll's spicy sauce is also packs a l'il punch (I say little because I have a high tolerance for chili)... notice a trend in my fav picks? ;-)
Service is obviously great since we're regulars. The dining room is on the smaller side for a sushi restaurant & is often packed no matter the time of day -- weekday or weekend. Prices are ridiculously cheap from $4 - $15 (higher prices are for the special rolls). Prices have increased over the years but ODS is still offers competitively priced sushi. Parking is a major problem because there's only a handful of spaces that's shared with 7-Eleven & a pizza joint in the same plaza.
NOTE: I haven't been back since the change in ownership/COVID-19 lockdown. But a neighbor picked up an order for us in October 2020 when he was getting takeout for his family. Sushi quality remains the same but a couple of rolls were a tad skimpy in filling. :-|
Highly Recommended: Oishii Roll, Ichiban Roll, Crispy Spicy Tuna, Jalapeño Bomb, Tuna Tataki, Fire Roll, Crazy Roll, Snowcone Roll. read more