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    Samurai

    3.9 (311 reviews)
    ModerateSushi Bars, Japanese
    Open 5:00 pm - 9:30 PM

    Samurai Photos

    Business Info

    SAMURAI ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Samurai

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    Reviews With Photos

    Hamachi collar
    Richard W.

    We were glad that Samurai stayed open until 9:30 during the week - later than most other places in Mill Valley. Pretty massive list of menu items. I whittled it down to the following: Tahini Tofu Salad Tofu, avocado, organic green, tomato, and radish sprout with tahini red miso dressing. Great mix of ingredients with the kind of dressing that can be the star of the show, but I'm not sure how serving the dish untossed helps - the presentation is rather drab. Hamachi Nigiri - 2pc Yes, not being super creative here, but I wanted to get a baseline on quality and portions and it did not disappoint. Melts like butter. Nice portion size. Hamachi Crunch Seared Hamachi and steamed spinach with rice, cracker and creamy Ponzi dressing. What a unique dish! It looks like couscous but it's better - little crunchy bits in a heavier nutty sauce. They probably had too much sauce to balance the fish slices - which come seared but hard to tell behind the tan colored sauce. The flavors jump out, and this is a must order for newbies. Sakekawa hand roll Salmon, skin with cucumber, radish, sprout, scallion, and burdock root. I think it was the root that gives a hint of off-putting nutmeg that distracts from the salmon. The presentation is gorgeous, however. Hamachi Collar Yes, we did end up eating hamachi three ways! This one was a clear winner - the grilled collar, thinly seared to a light crunch and juicy supple in the middle. You don't really need the light ponzu sauce imho. Portion size impressive. For $13.5, simply a steak. Overall service was courteous and responsive. Any request was met with a quick return. For food quality and menu originality, this one is a tough call between 4-5 stars. That's all...

    Pickled cucumber
    Joyce S.

    Restaurant was a bit crowded but also cozy for a rainy day. We had about a ten minute wait before being seated. Staff were responsive and hospitable, prompt with service but also polite to give us time to look over the menu and to decide what we want to order. They checked in with us a few times during our meal to make sure we have everything we need. We ordered the seafood yosenabe and the beef sukiyaki. The beef sukiyaki can also come as a set, with added miso soup and tempura. I loved the yosenabe broth, had a good balance of flavor. Seafood was cooked and noodles were al dente. No shrimp in my dish but I got a large piece of scallop, some clams, fish and veggies. The sukiyaki broth was overly sweet for me, but had a good amount of beef and veggies with both clear noodles and udon. Both dishes came with a generous serving of pickled cucumbers and a bowl of rice. Portions were also generous. I brought home a little less than half of my portion and was happy to reheat it for lunch the next day.

    Gohar K.

    Saturday night with family while on a weekend trip to Mill Valley we ended up here for dinner. We enjoyed our food very much, the service was great. The rolls were delicious and the fish fresh. A lot of options for rolls and sashimi. I loved the jimbo maki roll. Ordered a second Jen. Overall a great place to dine at, a bit small and gets really crowded but a great ambiance.

    Stinson roll, Dragon roll and spicy tuna roll
    Emily G.

    One of the best sushi restaurants in the bay! Seriously stumbled upon this restaurant after a trek to Muir Woods and I was met with great service and fresh sushi rolls. This easily became one of my regular spots. I'm leaving CA and had to celebrate one of our last meals here. The Stinson maki is 10/10 and love the eel and avocado roll in the dragon roll. I always love spicy tuna and they have a tasty one with fresh tuna and a nice sesame oil flavor.

    One of the best sushi places in the bay! The sushi taste so fresh! The rice is always perfectly cooked! The roles are nice and packed and stable they don't fall apart! The owner and workers are always so kind & ready to help or get anything you need! It is a small place so it does feel a bit crowded and on weekends there usually a 20-30 minute wait but it's all worth it!

    suppose 2b ton katsu , taste as if it's DRY pork chops . sauce suppose 2b katsu sauce pic salty teriyaki sauce ,

    Suppose 2b ton katsu , taste looks as if it's DRY PORK CHOPS , was given salty teriyaki sauce in place for the katsu sauce . Very disappointing

    a close up of a menu on a table
    Kiyomi W.

    Came in on a Saturday night around 5:15. It wasn't too busy then around 6 it was packed and super loud. This place is really cold so bring a jacket. It made the dinner a lot less enjoyable and I heard a couple ask if they could turn on a heater and the waitress didn't even let the dude finish and she said no. Got the crazy horse roll and negihama roll. My friend got the 15 piece sashimi, cherry blossom roll, and 49er roll. The food is pretty good and the fish is fresh! The sashimi came out kind of fast and then we waited another 20 minutes for the rolls. I'd rate the food 5/5 but the experience as a whole wasn't a 5/5. So getting togo is probably the better option.

    Uni nigiri
    Stacie V.

    My new fav sushi spot in Marin! I snagged a seat immediately at the sushi bar on a Friday evening. The staff is extremely attentive. Prices are reasonable considering the quality which is a rarity nowadays. The place was loud and very family friendly. Lots of crying kids... I'd recommend getting takeout if the wait is too long and eating at a neighboring picnic table near the parking lot.

    Beef sukiyaki
    Ken D.

    Average food, but good enough to eat at since it's the only Japanese restaurant in town. I had the beef sukiyaki. It was served In a regular porcelain bowl. The broth was decent but it was super simple. Lacking in cabbage and only came with a little bit of clear noodles. Sukiyaki is traditionally served in a shallow clay pot, not giant soup bowl. My friend ordered 2 rolls and the pork gyōza. I tried a piece of gyōza just 5 minutes after it came out and they were already cold. Would not be a first choice of restaurant to visit, but if I were in the area and really craving Japanese food, I could give it another try.

    Edamame, Nigiri - Hamachi, Maguro, Bincho Maguro, 49er roll, Crazy Horse roll, and Spicy Scallop roll.

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    3 months ago

    This is one of our go to spots in Mill Valley. Always good and great service. The nigiri and rolls are always delish.

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    1 year ago

    Our local favorite. Reasonably priced, consistently good. We've often done takeout, occasionally eat in - small busy place.

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    2 years ago

    Food was tasty and service was terrific. It was pretty crowded at the bar, but that's not a bad thing.

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    Samurai Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Samurai

    Do we need to make a reservation for 3 people tonight at 6pm 03/22/24?

    They do not take reservations for less than parties of four.

    Do they still use that amazing sesame mayo in their rolls?

    Yes

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    Oni Kuma

    Oni Kuma

    3.9
    (121 reviews)
    0.7 mi
    Family-owned & operated
    Free parking

    Came here for a date night. It has casual hole in the wall vibes. We sat outside the night was…read moreperfect. I ordered the angry edamame, Brussels kushiyaki, and tempura veggie roll. My husband ordered the Hirame Carpacccio, Salmon lemon roll and bacon wrapped mochi. He claimed the bacon wrapped mochi had the best bites of the night. It appeared to have the same sauce as the Brussel sprouts which was delicious. The angry Edamame had a delicious chili garlic oil. The food was solid. The service was attentive and friendly.

    Was very excited to try this place…read more Arrived at around 11:50. We had dogs with us so we were waiting to be sat outside, the server made eye contact from inside, but only came to greet us after we waited a few minutes and finally called out to her from the doorway. After being seated and given menus, we waited another 10 min with no service, and I decided to walk in and wash my hands. On my way out of the restroom, the server was finishing chatting with the only customer inside of the restaurant. I asked if we could have some water brought to the table, and she nodded. 5 min or so after I asked her for the water, the customer who was inside was walking out, and we chatted for a bit. Come to find out the sushi chefs and kitchen staff were not available due to the traffic on the freeway. I was in the same traffic, and I knew it was really bad. That was not the issue. The server never came out to our table. She never told us what was going on. We were left hanging for almost 20 min with zero contact, other than dropping the menus, and requesting waters that we never recieved. At an empty restaurant. There was no notice posted out front, there was nothing said from the server. If I was stopping in during a lunch break, I would not have been able to dine elsewhere due to the time I wasted sitting at this place waiting for service. All it took was for the server to let us know the situation and I would have tried to come back some other time. There were 20 full minutes - plenty of opportunity - to make best of a bad situation, and none were taken. Absolutely unacceptable.

    Photos
    Outside Patio
    Outside Patio
    Karaage Chicken
    Karaage Chicken
    Yasuo head chef

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    Yasuo head chef
    Kuro Nami

    Kuro Nami

    4.5
    (112 reviews)
    5.7 mi
    Locally owned & operated
    Eco-friendly

    We had been too long in trying this gem. We ordered food to pick up and were delighted. Ordering is…read moreeasy and quick. The restaurant doesn't allow modifications, which was one reason we waited until now to try, since both of us have food allergies. We selected the miso soup (my husband said it was difficult and he liked it, but has had better), the seaweed salad (I loved it-clean and not dripping with dressing), four types of sashimi (all very flavorful and fresh), and two rolls (ocean, and soft shell crab). The soft shell crab was delicious and the ocean was very good. The outside patio will be our next destination. Everyone was very nice and friendly. We're looking forward to trying a meal in the patio soon.

    I have been here about 5+ times over the last year plus…read more Generally exceptional food, service and atmosphere. Had dinner here last night and was disappointed on several levels. Service by main waiter was great as always. Getting our food was very slow and left some with ordered items and others of us waiting 20+ min (I expect timing differences in sushi restaurants but not to this extent) Sushi (tuna only) and also the Roll with tuna on top did not look presentable, as fish was probably older than it should have been, and/or not handled properly, or a poor section of fish, and should have been used for a different purpose (or discarded), rather than give us something that does not look or taste great. Another roll (Akira) as well was not at the same level as it had been on other visits. We should have complained, but waited so long that we just moved forward with items that were still good. Food should look beautiful or intentional relative what it represents, which normally it does at this restaurant. Experience last night was a 2 star given a couple of the items were still good (salad, salmon, others). Adding 4 stars to this review given the normal 4 to 5 stars based on prior exceptional visits. Hope last night was a one-off and doesn't represent something else going in the restaurant. I will be back and hope this comes back up to higher level.

    Photos
    Crispy Rice Sushi Bites
    Crispy Rice Sushi Bites
    Hiro's roll
    Hiro's roll
    Kuro Nami

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    Samurai - sushi - Updated August 2026

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