Plenty of parking spots for a Friday lunch with coworkers. We made reservations and glad we did…read morebecause it was still pretty busy even at 1:15pm. The waiter was super helpful and patient with questions. It was a moderate noise level but you could still hear from across the table. They have a few bento box options which was nice. We shared the chef sashimi for 2 and the miso cod bento box. Perfect amount of food for two people. I had never had raw shrimp. It was on the slimy side but I'm just glad I didn't get sick. It's not for me but maybe it's good for others. Great experience, good service and the food was fresh!

Birthday Dinner: Uni chawanmushi mkt$ 5/5…read moreUni, bluefin tuna, caviar $26 4/5 Soy spicy ramen $16. 4.5/5: gingery so tastes medicinal but still light Stuffed shishito peppers $21 3/5 - underwhelming. Appreciated the plating and the shiso leaf and nori Kobe beef skewers $24: 5/5- could've added more to the plating but for the beef itself, it's fantastic Lobster soba $40 4.5/5- the tomatoes in this are wild. so good. and how can you go wrong with these ingredients? For what it was though, could add a kick. King salmon $14 4/5 rice is ok Dessert mango Bingsu 5/5 -mountainous Crème brûlée 4/5- good Texas hamachi 5/5- surprisingly my favorite- balance is amazing in this roll Service was fantastic.

I love sushi and japanese food- my friends came here on a late night because we just needed some…read morefood. We ordered everything to share and it was delicious! We did order edamame but it never came out and we didn't realize it until we left but with everything we had, everything was delicious! Great for parties and groups- they can definitely seat a party of 8 easily. Service was also great, the server was on top of everything and cleared away plates that were finished each time she came by to drop off food for us so our table was always spacious.

Love ordering takeout from this restaurant. I've never eaten there in person but the sushi is so…read morefresh and the edamame never disappoints. Every roll I've tried from here always meets expectations. If you want sushi tonight, come get azuma! Good stuff, Bob B.

As I am too young to drink I can not attest to the sake, however the chasu yakisoba is immaculate…read more Don't forget the chili oil if you enjoy a a good spicy.

For my own record: Purple yam fries-yes…read moreAnkimo-yes Top shell- yes Chikuwa- no Oropan tsukune-yes Beef tongue-yes Japanese scallop-yes Gizzard-yes but not grilled enough this time? Chicken wings- yes Shishito - meh Chicken thighs garlic- yes

Ah, yes, Norigami, crafting the hand rolls and nigiri of my dreams! Located in the West U area, the…read more24 seat restaurant does sushi classics with care and a creative twist. My friends and I love to go for their once a month $5 nigiri night and never leave disappointed! When it comes to sushi, the limit does not exist, right? All of their nigiri and hand rolls can be ordered a la carte or if you're feeling a bit in decisive, they have several hand roll sets that come with 3-5 preselected options. On nigiri night, announced a few days in advance on their socials, almost all of their nigiri is $5. Chutoro, otoro, hamachi, all melt in your mouth quality, all included in the special. That's a yes from me. As I mentioned, my friends and I love to do this deal every month and every time the staff have all been super friendly and make you feel more than welcome, providing recommendations and stopping by frequently to take more orders. Norigami does have a hidden speakeasy, Hidden Bar, which can be accessed through an unmarked door at the front of the restaurant. Drinks, and most of the food options can be ordered at either the restaurant or the bar which caters to whatever vibe suits you best - dark, intimate cocktail bar or more traditional sushi restaurant where you can watch each roll being prepared fresh to order. Overall, an excellent spot! Definitely check them out!

The service was awesome and spot on! The decor and ambiance were super cute -- definitely a great…read moredate night spot. As for the sushi, it was a bit hit or miss for me. The salmon tasted a little too fishy, and the hamachi hand roll fell short since I could barely taste the hamachi. However, the kanpachi was the standout of the night! It was buttery, flavorful, and easily the best fish I had there. The pricing was fair overall, and despite a few misses, the atmosphere and service made for a nice experience.

My son had a doctors appointment in the medical center and we stopped here for lunch after. It's a…read moresmall hole in the wall that does not look like much from the outside. The food was amazing! Best ramen I've ever had. My son who eats ramen all the time also loved it!

Ordered door dash order for sushi and it didn't come with soy sauce when I asked for soy sauce and…read moreginger. How can I eat this? Tell your workers to make sure to put soy sauce when customer orders sushi. Come on this is common sense. Now I'm eating sushi with no soy sauce. Rice is lacking sushi vinegar and taste like regular rice.

Went here for the first time on a Friday night. The…read morerestaurant had a great ambiance and atmosphere and all of the staff were extremely friendly. It was little busy, but people were only waiting for tables for 10-15mins. The Lychee frozen margarita was delicious! I really liked they had a whole section for ramen add ons, so you can kind of customize your Ramen and get exactly what you want. The add-ons were also super reasonably priced!

Great kushiyaki and okonomiyaki with lots of negi and teriyaki flavors. The okonomiyaki and lava…read moretoast looked quite heavy, but were actually pretty light (which is "authentic"). The toast is also much more springy (in a good but surprising way) than fluffy or toasty, so take care when slicing. The central part of the toast was heavenly sweet. The ramen didn't impress me too much (I had the shoyu). It was ok but the toppings were eh, the chashu was tougher than it could be, and there was way too much noodles over everything else. My friend got the spicy tori paitan and liked it, though. Personally, I feel like they are an izakaya first and a ramenya second, to be honest. Great for late night snacks but rather average for ramen. My only complaint with the izakaya stuff was that the chicken meatballs could use more flavor in the balls themselves (they had to rely on the sauce and egg yolk that come with them).

We had such a great experience at Kira! The food was beautiful, fresh, and absolutely delicious!…read moreeverything we ordered was presented so thoughtfully, and the sashimi was especially fresh. The dessert was also such a fun way to end the meal! One thing I really appreciated was how accommodating they were with our requests. My husband's doctor has him doing a strict 2-week low-sodium diet, so we asked if they could put the sauces on the side. We're honestly not usually picky customers and felt a little bad asking for modifications, but the staff was completely understanding and happy to accommodate us. They brought everything on the side so he could control how much he used, which made dining out so much easier for us. It's those little things that really make a difference. We never felt like we were being difficult or asking for too much. Beautiful food, great presentation, and genuinely accommodating service. We'll definitely be back!

This was my second time visiting Kira but the first time I was successful eating here. I tried to…read morevisit for lunch when they first opened but was turned away since I didn't have a reservation. I would say that was a little off putting but I still wanted to give it a try. I waited a few months to try again and I was able to walk in for lunch. There was only one other patty there so it was pretty dead. They asked me for my phone number to seat me which I would have preferred to just give my number vs my personal info but I didn't fight them on it. I opted for the lux hand roll selection and a glass of white wine. Food was good, a tad pricey. I think it was about $100 for lunch. I would go again and maybe try something different but nothing super spectacular stood out. Felt a little sterile and without warmth.

This place has been on my to-go list for a while and it did not disappoint! We started off with age…read moretakoyaki and toro carpaccio, which were both recommended to us by our server. The age takoyaki was creamy and good to share amongst a group. The toro carpaccio was amazing as well and melted in your mouth. We also ordered chicken curry udon, chicken karaage, and tantan noodles. All had really great flavors but my personal favorite was the tantan noodles which came with poached egg, sauce, and garnishes that you got to mix into the noodles. Super creamy and nutty! I really loved the vibe of the restaurant too, it's small but has a homey vibe that would be great for either a small group hangout or a date. There's a lot of bars to visit nearby too. Our server was also so sweet and brought us a baggie of Japanese candies & sweets after our dinner since it was Valentine's Day. Only complaint was parking. Very small lot and very packed! Get there a bit before your reservation to figure out parking.

Solid Japanese cuisine in Houston that I'm sad I just tried out! Their lunch menu options are great…read moreand reasonably priced. Nigiri was fresh, tempura was hot and crunchy. Staff were friendly. It feels more casual and a good place for a quick dinner or just a casual grab with friends when you don't want to cook for the night. Would definitely come back. The parking can be a little tricky since it's pay to park. About $2

I've been going to Aka for over 10 years. I used to come here so often when I went to school…read morenearby, but even now Aka is still one of my favorite Japanese restaurants around town. The restaurant is small, well decorated, and casual, and the parking lot can get pretty packed during lunch or dinner hours. The servers are friendly but can be a little slow sometimes. The portions are not large, good for lunch and early dinner, but the prices are reasonable. The happy hour options are amazing and affordable. From the dinner menu, some of my favorite dishes here include the Gyu Don, Kakuni Don, Katsu Kare Don, Yaki-Soba, and the Tonkotsu Ramen. Some of my favorite small bites include the Fire Cracker Shrimps, Stuffed Mushrooms, and the Shisho Hasami-Age.

Food: 2/5 Service: 2/5…read moreAmbiance 4/5 Was in town visiting and I love Japanese food so I said let's give this place a try since pass it often. OMG, this was the worst Japanese food I have ever had. The miso soup was not good, the portions were small and the quality of the food was not good. When we arrive only 2 tables were full. We were seated right away then after that it took awhile for us to give or order then to receive our food. We kept looking around like it's not busy, so why are we waiting so long. Also, there was like Tofu on the bento box and we asked if we could get subutuite that and we were told no. Really, so we are paying for something we don't want; like or even going to eat. Wow. However, I will not return. Houston had good food, but this place failed Houston.

Excellent ramen! I dropped by during lunch and got the Tonkotsu Spicy which came with 5 pieces of…read morechashu, mushroom, ground pork, bean sprouts, and cashews. The chashu was tender, the broth was somehow rich but light, and the noodles were the perfect texture. Everything was executed perfectly. I customized the spice to hot and it was actually pretty hot, so be warned!! For the lunch combo, I added the pork chashu with rice for additional $4 which was pretty flavorful but not sure I'd get again. Overall, the portions were pretty filling! Ambiance was really good and felt like I was in Japan (but more spacious). Only one waiter but service was good.

Ramen gachi I'm on a…read morequest to find the best tonktosu ramen! Unfortunately this isn't the one, but it's still a great bowl! Service: immediate. Friendly. One waitress served everyone in the restaurant while I was there. She was speedy in taking and delivering orders. She seemed very nice! Food: ordered Tonkotsu Gachi and my mom ordered the yuzu. Food arrived very quickly, though we ordered no appetizers. The tonkotsu broth was rich and velvety in texture, but more like a mild umami in flavor. The chashu pork was pale, but melt in your mouth buttery and bursting with savory pork goodness! The marinated egg wasn't brought up to temperature with the broth -- a little cooler than room temperature, with a medium oozy yolk. It felt like the marinade penetrated all through to the yolk -- it was great! I welcomed the novel choice to use red onion over the usual scallions. It was a nice touch of color and brought in that bright, juicy onion flavor that I crave. Noodles were perfect texture. Not too hard or mushy. This bowl feels made to focus on the broth and flavor and not so much an instagram post. Delicious!! My only complaint was a very very very slight bitterness in the background. I couldn't pin where it was coming from. Maybe that's a risk of simmering bones for so long. I'll keep this short because I couldn't just eat my moms bowl... The Yuzu shio broth was clearer, with bright, citrusy, and savory body. The bamboo shoots were golden (grilled?) with a little snap to it. Reminds me of a king oyster mushroom. This is really a unique broth and I haven't had anything like it. You should definitely try it! Restaurant: clean, neat, every table literally has its place /orientation. Deep wood furniture, honeyed lighting, and dark window shades give the restaurant a cozy chic ambience despite visiting around noon. Good food, great service. Great prices. Large portions.