Downtown East Lansing offers a wide array of Asian cuisine dining spots. We found ourselves in need of some weekday sushi and made our way to Sushi Ya. The team members we encountered were welcoming and friendly. We were seated right away as during the summer with the college students scarce, getting seated right away isn't abnormal. The restaurant was quiet so we selected a seat next to the window; the foot and vehicle traffic on Grand River was a nice backdrop. We started with shrimp shumai and the tempura appetizer, then decided on the sushi combo b and avocado don for our mains. The shrimp shumai were dainty but tasty! However, the tempura veggies weren't really flavorful and I'm not sure what the sauce served with them was intended to offer but minimal flavor was found there as well. The avocado don was like a deconstructed sushi roll and was absolutely delightful, although the dish would have benefited from the avocado being more ripe; it was flavorful and plentiful! The sushi combo was also delicious and fresh, served with plenty of wasabi and ginger. Speaking of ginger the ginger dressing on the side salad was so crisp, fresh and tangy it was definitely one of the highlights. I think the avocado don may end up being a lunchtime staple for me! read more

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Top 3 restaurant in East Lansing IMO. You'll see Sushiya here do things at their price point that no other restaurant anywhere can replicate. Their fish is always fresh and served in super generous portions. Rice is always perfectly seasoned, and rolled are always put together well. Their rice dishes also always hit and you'll never ever leave the store not filled to the brim. Take my repeated business as a sign that this place is absolutely goated. read more

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This place is freaking awesome. The food is good and cheap. The service is good too. Good hidden college town spot. They have weird hours, but I usually work around them lol. The vibes chill, but don't eat there too often in person usually get takeout. But one time they thought I was dining and dashing a year ago and it was really awkward. Anyways sushi ya really put the ya in sushi. read more

highly recommend! kind staff, quiet atmosphere, and great prices. Food is great, tastes fresh and portion sizes are large for the price. Highly recommend the daddy's girl roll. read more

Was recommended coming to this establishment by a colleague of mine. Was impressed with how fast I was seated. My personal opinion I would say it's inexpensive. The signature rolls are very well priced. The "daddy's girl" was very scrumptious, and quite large. The restaurant was easy to find, quiet, and had a cozy vibe. The only downfall is my waiter forgot a Diet Coke I ordered and often forgot we were in the restaurant. Granted we were there an hour before closing but the service was slow. We did get our food quite fast, however we had to wait a while before seeing our waiter again for the check. I'm impressed by the food and the quality of the restaurant. Only the service could have been better. Considering we were the only ones in there. I would recommend this fine establishment during the lunch hour for faster service and an even cheaper deal!! read more

Sushi Ya - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

Ordered sushi via Doordash and this is what I got. It was packed correctly in the bag so the damage wasn't the fault of the dasher. Also, the fish wasnt fresh and tasted nasty. This used to be my go to sushi place. Not anymore! read more

Sushi Ya - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

Best prices in town, fantastic service. Good sushi. Nice patio. Soup and salad came with meal, portions pretty big

Disgusting service. I was charged twice for my meal. I've called their restaurant six times to resolve this issue, but each time, the manager is unavailable. When I ask to speak with the manager, the employees have even hung up on me. This level of customer service is unacceptable. I'm still waiting for my refund. Makes me thing whoever rang my tab in just gave themselves a tip regardless of my receipt, which is stealing. I won't be returning to Sushi Ya again food wasn't even good enough for this hassle read more

My fiancé and I celebrated our recent engagement tonight at Sushi Ya and We were not disappointed! We went with the Mango tango, Diablo, Spartan, White House, Twin shrimp, and Salmon on the beach rolls. The Diablo and salmon on the beach rolls are two of our favorites, and tonight we added the Spartan roll to that list. Presentation was lovely, as per usual. Already looking forward to our next visit! read more

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Low quality, sushi does not hold up very well. Barely got any rice with the Nigiri, and flavors are very bland. read more

Sushi Ya - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

Sushi is amazing. I would come here every week if I could!!!! Service is always great and quick. Never had a problem with the sushi. They don't charge extra for soup and salad (unlike other sushi spots in the area). I love when it's warm out and you can sit on the patio! read more

Sushi Ya - Shiitake Roll & Party Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

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I've been coming to this restaurant since I was sophomore in college and I'll always be a customer! Miso is nice and hot, and ginger salad is fresh. I always get the shrimp crunch roll! read more

Sushi Ya - Crunch Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

Service was bad. Ordered three dollar drink which was three sips and they have nothing on the menu. Waste of time and money.

If you're looking for a quick fix and decent prices, give Sushiya a try. They have a good amount of flow of people coming in and out and though they don't have parking here they do have street parking/ paid parking for everyone. This restaurant is right across from MSU so there is easy access and they do know how to get things done and well on those busy days, especially games days, look out! I always try to venture out in what I eat here but I always seem to fall under the power of the bento box. Though I do love sushi, bento here is my go-to for something filling, different options and no hesitation for keeping the tongue amused. It's a hot meal, good price, and does come with a lot and there are options to have a portion of sushi made out for you if you don't want to miss that taste as well. It's easy and fast, seeing how I'm usually on the go it's a good place to grab food from. Most of my meals are to go and they are done efficiently, but I've dined here as well and have always been treated well with staff who are more than happy to give out suggestions. read more

Sushi Ya - Bento - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

The spring rolls may be the best we ever had. The Sushi was very generous and fresh and large and very well priced. They even served it in a beautiful boat, which made it a lot of fun. And for every $10 we spent. someone in our party got salad and soup. We'd highly recommend this place. Maybe one of the best sushi places ever been to both for value and quality of food. read more

I ordered this through DoorDash today, it was quick and good quality. Sushi tasted very fresh and my take out order was well-packaged.

I tried Sushi Ya thanks to your Yelp reviews, and I'm glad I did. The food is affordable, and rolls come with free soup and salad. The miso ginger dressing was good, but the miso soup was not very flavorful. I ordered the MSU Roll, which is deep-fried fatty goodness. It came out warm and has this sweet/savory sauce. Service was a little slow, but I was in no rush. The restaurant is very cute with a great patio space and views of downtown. I'd come back for sure, and if I lived in EL, it would probably be a regular spot for me. For $10 I had a great lunch. read more

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This was my favorite place to get sushi in undergrad and I still make a point to go every time I'm in East Lansing. I always get a basic salmon roll with spicy mayo. Their salmon rolls are always marbled and generous. Love it and crave it always! Last weekend, I tried the Joe roll - strongly recommend it. It has a delicious mix of flavors and textures. If you're into tempura rolls, the MSU and No Name rolls are classic. Also, can't beat the free soup and salad w/ each roll! read more

Sushi Ya - Joe roll (left) and salmon roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

This place has been on my restaurant bucket list for a while and I finally decided to go. It's a small but cozy restaurant which I'm sure is for the college students in the town. For starters I had the spring rolls which were really good and came with a great amount and the Philadelphia roll which also was good. My cousin had got the Diablo roll which I tried and was actually good considering I was nervous about it being baked. For my main I had the ramyun soup which was great. The broth was nice and spicy but not too overpowering and the noodles were like ramen noodles which paired really well. My cousin had the spicy seafood udon soup which I tasted and the broth was amazing but I'm not exactly a fan of the thick udon noodles. Overall really good and inexpensive. read more

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Food - 5/5 Service - 4/5 Atmosphere - 3/5 Price - 5/5 Here for Dinner - Bill was $70 w/ tip In Lansing, MI for an overnight and had the wife drive out from GR to stay the night. I asked her what she wanted and the choice was brought down........ Japanese. We looked on yelp and kind'a randomly selected Sushi Ya. Hit directions on the Yelp Android App, touched Navigate, set the Droid in the GPS Car Cradle and off we went. On first approach we didn't realize that you couldn't park in front - a East Lansing'ism - so we discovered the city parking lot in the back - $2 for 1.5 hrs - not bad. Upon entering I had mixed emotions. Walking down the long hallway from the back entrance to the opening of the restaurant - I almost felt like we were in the stereo typical college town pizza joint. Not a lot of color on the wall or decorations - pretty plain, open, and not very exciting. Almost strip mall'ish. But once we sat down and saw the thoughtful table setup - my perception changed a bit. Maybe there might be something exciting here besides the obligatory California and Tempura Shrimp rolls and over salted broth for Udon Noodles. (see pic) Trying to live where I open my point of view - to see what the people we depend on to make great food see - I ordered a shrimp tempura roll and told the waitress "What ever the chef feels the best about today" She went away with a smile and an assured "Okay" as if a lot of people order that way. "Oh yeah do you want soup and salad - it comes with it" she quickly remembered and we acknowledged in the affermative. Miso Soup and Salad - the Miso was okay at best. Nothing memorable and I would pretty much call it food service grade. The salad wasn't any better but the dressing was notable. A nice ginger citrus that could have stole the "Starters Show" if presented better. LIke on a bed of spinach or mixed baby greens instead of - the only ONE selection that screams no imagination - F'ing Iceberg lettuce! A different server came over, John - I'm pretty sure that was his name (sorry brotha if you read this an your name isn't John), and he had a quizzical look as to what I wanted to order. This is where the lesson of "miscommunication" comes in. I said "I want the chef to give me whatever best represents him - what's his best work". John understood and about 15 minuets later this ginormous sushi boat appeared and my wife's jaw dropped. Now mind you I ordered a shrimp tempura roll and I wanted ONE MORE roll or whatever best represented the chef's skills. My wife ordered the veggie udon and a Philadelphia roll. We were taken aback by this Japanese fishing fleet being placed on the table. Me thinking wow this looks great and Molly thinking - holy crap how much is this going to run! It was truly an AWESOME presentation (see pic). Loaded on the boat was: Snapper Nigri (top left), Salmon Nigri w/lemon wedge (bottom left), Spring Flower (across the top), Shrimp Tempura (second row from top), Philadelphia roll (T-shape), Lansing Roll (bottom row and bow) and finally 4 pieces of Salmon Sashimi (bottom right) The entire selection was devine. The Snapper was delicate soft and delicious. The Salmon had a great mouth feel - a plesant balance of fatty oil and smooth flesh and most importantly FRESH FRESH FRESH! I'm sorry to say I didn't record what was in each roll as I thought it would be on their website but it isn't. I will say this - EVERYTHING was well balanced, flavorful, fresh and was eagerly devoured. Nothing presented was remotely fishy or had any indication that it wasn't the freshest of ingredients. Total bill was $60 - a lot more than we expected considering it was just the 2 of us. We explained what our expectations were and discovered the miscommunication. John set out to make it right and they reduced our bill to $40 If you're looking for great Japanese in East Lansing or in the Lansing area in general - YOU MUST check this place out. read more

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After living in a country where tempura rolls meant only one item inside the roll is deep fried, it's awesome being back in America and getting your entire roll fried crisp. I'm totally serious. Sushi Ya has the best tempura rolls, with the MSU roll at the top of the list. Other raves: the BlackJack roll. Add a Philly roll, and it's more than enough to fill up two people. The rolls, while small in size with each piece, makes up for it in quantity. The service is friendly and prompt, and all the ingredients are fresh. This place used to be a teeny, tiny joint on one end of Grand River before it moved into this bigger spot. I honestly think it was word of mouth that pumped business, forcing them to expand. My favorite sushi spot in East Lansing! read more

Amazing Food! Fast delivery! There's an excellent selection and their spicy choices are actually spicy. This place has become a huge favorite in my household and I highly recommend them. read more

Ended up at Sushi Ya with friends thanks to Yelp... I met up with few friends for lunch and we couldn't decide on where to go to eat... so after checking Yelp, that's how we ended up at Sushi Ya. We walked in, got a table for five... after few minutes, we asked to move because even though we were about 10 feet away from the door, the cold air still hit us... so we moved closer to the sushi bar... as for the ambiance... standard tables and chairs, some tv's on the wall, but compare to all other tier 2 sushi joins, it's about the same setup. Now, I can definitely tell this is Korean owned by the menu selections... and looking into the back of the kitchen, I saw stacks of Shin Ramen boxes (dead give away)... yes, they use those to make spicy ramen and charge you $7.. when you can buy the whole box for like $15... do the math... $7x20pkg = $140 in sales for them. Anyways... one of my friend got the spicy ramen, because he wanted something spicy and warm... the other two said, I can order, so I looked at the menu and went with the following items: 1 - tuna roll 2 - spicy tuna roll 1 - salmon roll 1 - diablo 1 - crunch 1 - eel roll 1 - california roll and couple of rolls that I cannot remember... the waitress asked if we all wanted the free soup and salad... of course we said yes, can't pass on the free food!! We got the soup and the salad... the soup was on the little salty side, but it was edible... not sure if it's always like this, but today it was on the salty side... the salad was okay... I've noticed that some of the lettuce was getting old... Then came the spicy ramen... so they added, sliced onions, sliced jalapeno peppers, mushroom, and an egg... boiled the noodle out of the package and served it in a bowl... It wasn't busy when we got there, but within 20 minutes, it got busy and with only two waitress working; our waitress did her best to check-in on us. Well, I was expecting our food to arrive on plates, rather it came in a boat.. who knew... so we all dived right in and started our attack! The rice - it was on the little blend side, needed little more seasoning, but with the items in the rolls, the seasoning blended well. I would rate this place on par with sushi.com in downtown Ann Arbor. The fish were decent, it wasn't flown overnight from Tokyo for sure :) We finished the boat, but we ended up ordering two more rolls, which did it's job of filling us up. The total damage? $100.06 with tax and no tip. Overall, nice place to swing by to get some sushi... if you are college student and on a budget, you'll love the free soup and salad. read more

Sushi Ya's pickup is well orchestrated and efficient. Everything is packed neatly and organized. The only thing for me was the rice was a little too crunchy in the sushi, but that's alright. I know it's hard not serving sushi right off the bar. I'm glad they were able to pivot so quickly into curbside pickup. read more

Great sushi! Ordered pick up because of COVID and staff was very kind. All staff were wearing masks properly which was much appreciated! I recommend their bigger ills, so many good options! read more

Officially my Go to sushi spot!!! I ordered the diablo and it was perfection. Idk what kind of sushi I was eating previously, but I love the way they made it. I'm coming back to try the spicy tempura udon . read more

Sushi Ya - Diablo Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

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As far as East Lansing goes, I generally go here or Sansu. Parking around here sucks (especially when you have to pay for it or during the winter when you have to walk in the ass cold) which is why I usually pick Sansu, but in terms of food, I'd probably have to give the nod to Sushi Ya. The place offers a number of interesting combination rolls, and they give you free salad and miso soup if you spend $8 or $10 per person (at least this is how it was the last time I came here). Prices are about what you'd expect for sushi. My only real beef with this place besides the parking is how small it is. Granted I've never had a really long wait, but when you can over hear the people next to you without even trying, that's not cool. One of the best (for the area). read more

I've been going to this place regularly since 2009. Overall, it's a decent sushi spot. The service is consistently good, the sushi chefs very friendly. The sushi menu is pretty expansive including many of the traditional rolls and a lot of creative options for the most adventurous eaters. The Spicy Ramyun here is easily my favorite dish on the menu. The broth has a great depth of flavor. It's one of the best meals to have on a cold day in East Lansing or when you're under the weather. It's warm, flavorful, and filling. Overall, it's a good spot to grab sushi. Some rolls are better than others and I'd steer clear of the salads (lots of iceberg lettuce). Prices are affordable, food is served quickly, and service is solid. read more

I've landed here three times by accident, every time a pleasant surprise. The last time I went, service food, everything was great. Literally everything. Rolls, nigiri, helpful wait staff. Going back soon. read more

I bit into the edamame and found a maggot in it. My friend who was also eating the edamame puked up a maggot. This place is disgusting, I can promise you I'm never eating here again. read more

Sushi Ya - Sushi Bars Near Me - East Lansing, Michigan

I always get the lunch bento box. It's delicious but so much food, be ready for a nap after! They are also very accommodating with regard to tweaking my order to my preferences. read more

The worst sushi experience I've had in the Lansing area. I visited Sushi Ya for lunch and started with the fried beef gyoza. Despite being fried, the gyoza was soggy and practically falling apart. Then onto the sushi - the most disappointing portion. I selected the spicy tuna, yellow tail, and shrimp tempura. Not only were the rolls objectively too large, but the rice was also hard and oddly warm which made eating the sushi near impossible. Alongside the sushi I also received standard side salad and miso soup. The salad was most likely a lettuce mix which was drenched in a questionable ginger dressing and the miso soup had microscopic tofu. More disappointment. Despite the poor quality in food, the service was very nice. If you want reliably excellent sushi, I would recommend Maru over this establishment. read more

Mr. MVP works in East Lansing, so we get to have sushi take away in Kalamazoo every so often. We miss having a proper sushi place in Kalamazoo since Sushi Ya closed, so having Sushi Ya East Lansing is pretty fantastic. First I have to say, I've never set foot inside the place, so I have no idea what it looks like. As far as I know it is the most amazing sushi joint on Earth. Mr. MVP brings it home to me, 80 minutes away and I don't think much about the building. The sushi itself is very predictable Sushi Ya sushi. We like it because it fits in with our FODMAP diet. The sushi makers are always willing to take off the sauces and extra toppings and they are very good about listening and getting our order right. We have never had an allergen mixed in, which is impressive. Our favorite roll has beef, carrots and lettuce - it's the Michigan roll - no sauce or toppings. We also enjoy the avocado roll and a chicken roll with avocado. The rolls travel in the car just fine during the commute and until Sushi Ya reopens in Kalamazoo, we will keep ordering from East Lansing. read more

Was back in EL visiting all the old haunts, so Sushi Ya had to be our dinner choice. Finally saw the new location, wow! TONS more tables, very nice interior, a mix of booths and freestanding tables, and of course available seats right at the sushi bar. Food was excellent, as always. The general manager was also our waiter, and he was great -- even made a special roll just for us (it used to be my favorite roll on their old menu before they did the move but is no longer listed). If anything, I love this place even more now. read more

I have always loved Sushi Ya and their new location has only increased my love for them. The staff is always friendly, the menu is delicious and always expanding, and now they have plenty of seating and parking available. The prices are extremely reasonable for the quality and quantity you receive. They have fantastic lunch specials! Overall, this is a great place to go any time and with any number of people (or, even, by yourself). Your experience might be even better if you know enough Korean to chat with some of the staff. read more

Sushi Ya is probably one of my favorite East Lansing sushi places, especially when I don't want to spend a lot of money. Cheaper and less trendy than Omi or Sansu. VERY good spicy tuna can be found here. Oh, and the miso soup + salad are free (unlike Omi). Like one of the reviewers below me, I almost always received a free dessert (bananas tempura with chocolate drizzled over the top, mmmm!). The waitstaff and cooks are very friendly and will gladly recommend some rolls for you if you're having trouble deciding. Yes, the place was quite small with only a few tables, but last I knew Sushi Ya was moving to a new location (the old Burger Down) so perhaps the size issue will be resolved. read more

I came here a few years ago with the Bo and it was an awful experience. The sushi rolls were awful. My sister recently turned me on to sushiya after she tried it during finals week and had a really great experience. My sister and I came here on a slow Friday lunchtime. We ordered the curry chicken katsu don, spicy tuna roll, Tiger Roll, and Chirashi bowl. The salmon in the Chirashi bowl was a bit slimy, but other than that everything else was really delicious! I really loved the spicy tuna roll and the curry chicken katsu don a lot! Those two items were the highlights of the meal for me and I will come back here to get these two items and you should too! Remember to ask for some hot tea! read more

I think I might just have an unexplainable love for Americanized sushi places, but that's what this is and I love it. The new location and decor is quite nice, and the food as good as ever. I always get the No Name b/c I love cream cheese tempura sushi, and every time I ask if they can name it after me but time after time they refuse. You want your 5 stars Sushi Ya? You know what to do. read more

So glad to find this decent Japanese restaurant by the bed & breakfast we staying. The food is very appropriate for the younger crowd the restaurant caters to. Lots of fancy rolls and novel appetizers. I loved the heart attack and fried soft shell crabs appetizers. Chicago roll was good. Spicy ramen noodle was a big disappointment; taste like instant noodle. Overall pricing is very reasonable and cheaper than what I am used to. I got so excited over the cheap pricing then I really ordered more than I could stomach :p read more

I really would prefer to give this place a 2.5, but alas, I have to choose either 2.0 or 3.0. When Sushi Ya occupied its previous location, it was definitely the best in the area. I don't know if the move to this newer location or a change in staff caused the decrease in food quality, but this is not what I remember from undergrad. Based upon the sushi, I was not impressed. The nigiri I ordered did not stay on the rice and and both the fish and rice were under flavored. The rice also lacked stickiness and fell apart the instant any soy sauce made contact. Very inferior product, especially when the product is mostly sticky rice. The noodles I've had here have been phenomenal. I'm hoping that this was a fluke. I'll probably go back, but it will be for their lunch specials to save $$. read more