This was our second time going to Taka 555. We were seated right away and ultimately had the option to pick where we wanted to sit. We wanted to sit by the window, so we could look out (plus it was a high top)! Our server was amazing from the start with awesome recommendations. He recommended their oysters, and honestly, we probably could have just had the oysters all night long without ordering anything else! They were THAT GOOD! We had edamame, a couple rolls of sushi, but the favorite (and it was not pictured) was the chicken fried rice! We weren't going to order it and now we said the next time we go back, we are getting TWO ORDERS! Such an awesome experience. We overheard others celebrating their anniversary and that they ALWAYS come back every year to keep the tradition. This is a special place. Regulars. Celebrations. The Chefs feel like family and they love to partake in a round. We will ALWAYS go back to this restaurant. read more

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I came here for dinner with a friend. We both ordered the Omakase and it was incredibly fresh! The monk fish liver, butterfly squid, and oyster with uni that came as sides for the Omakase really stood out as being unique and took the experience to a higher level. It was already a 5-star experience for me thanks to the freshness of the sashimi, but this really knocked it out of the park! At the end of our incredible dining experience, our server brought out complimentary cheesecake that had such a velvety texture. It tasted like a cross between a cheesecake and a bread pudding. Whatever it was, it was delicious! Excellent food, wonderful service, and a fun atmosphere! Definitely recommend this restaurant! read more

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Came here 12 years ago on a date and returned again in 2026 to relive our sushi adventures still just as good as we remembered. Food and service are top-notch in the Gaslamp Quarter. The fish is incredibly fresh, full of flavor, and clearly high quality. Definitely a spot that holds up over time. Definitely will be back to take more shots and eat more sushi! read more

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Place was clean and put together very well! Came here for my bf and I's one year and loved it! Our server was so sweet as well as the other workers! Will definitely be back! The toro nigiri is definitely worth the money and the spicy tuna crispy rice was delicious! read more

Taka - Spicy tuna crispy rice, toro, bluefin tuna, hamachi, and wagyu nigiri - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

Taka remains a long-standing favorite in the Gaslamp area of downtown San Diego. The fish is fresh, the menu expansive, and the restaurant offers a nice dining experience both inside and outside. As many sushi restaurants come and go this one remains a constant. read more

Taka - Rainbow roll and Aji and Salmon nigiri. - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

Located in the heart of downtown San Diego, this is one of the best sushi spots in the city. Sitting at the sushi bar is an experience in itself--you get to watch the chefs skillfully prepare each dish right in front of you. The fish is incredibly fresh, and the sushi chefs are talented, friendly, and passionate about their craft. While it is a little pricey, the quality, experience, and flavor make it absolutely worth it. I always leave impressed and looking forward to my next visit. read more

I had the omasake experience here and it was amazing. If you're a sushi lover, I highly recommend you to do the omasake. We were seated at the bar right in front of chef Taka himself. It came with an appetizer, 10 plus pieces of sushi, miso soup, and dessert. I was so full. This personalized experience was one of a kind. I will definitely be back. Everything was fresh and unique. People did tend to rush and sit at the bar when the restaurant had opened. But it's big enough for large groups as well. read more

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Omakase sushi was delicious and filling. I was seated at the bar with Chef Taka himself! My favorite was the SD uni, so plump and juicy. I could barely make it to the end, I was stuffed! Everyone was extremely attentive. I LOVE that there were hangers for your bag under the bar. There is outdoor seating, but keep in mind street smells (exhaust, sewage, smokers) that might ruin the taste. read more

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Always the best!!! We Always come back here for their oysters shots, it's the best! Thanks TAka especially to Mario, he's great! read more

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Really fresh delicious high quality sushi at a reasonable price. It's pretty small inside so not great for large groups of more than 6 I would say. Our server was friendly and attentive. My husband and I came for dinner on a Friday night and were seated immediately. Very fast service. We were in and out in an hour. read more

Taka - Spicy Tuna, eel roll. Fresh high quality sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

I've been coming to Taka for years with friends, and it's consistently one of my favorite spots in the Gaslamp. The sashimi is always fresh, the rolls have great flavor, and you can tell they take real pride in what they serve. If you go, definitely try the house special sushi roll. It's honestly amazing and one of those things we end up ordering every time. The sake and soju are always a hit too, especially if you're there with a group. What really makes the place stand out is the staff. They're beyond friendly, super helpful, and they make the whole experience fun and relaxed. Sitting at the sushi bar is a great move because the chefs are fun to talk with and it adds a lot to the night. If you're looking for a reliable sushi spot downtown with great energy, this is it. read more

Taka - Sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

This is a nice place to get some delicious and fresh sushi. They offer different options to cater to many tastes. We were here for a company convention and a group of us decided to check this place out. Service was friendly and the environment was good! read more

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What a great restaurant. I came here on a Friday night with my parents and was pleasantly surprised by the interior. They do leave the door open, so bring a jacket. There is a sushi bar and tables, as well as an outdoor patio where you can sit. Now let's talk about the food, especially the fish. They brought out mini soft shell crabs as a starter, which were like little crunchy snacks. It was something new for me, and I really enjoyed trying them. We ordered salmon nigiri and golden eye snapper nigiri with yuzu sauce, and both were melt in your mouth delicious and full of flavor. For rolls, we had the negi toro roll with fatty tuna and green onion, which was amazing. The fish was buttery and the green onion added the perfect balance. We also ordered the salmon skin roll and the spicy scallop roll, and both were delicious as well. Everything was fresh, flavorful, and beautifully prepared. I would definitely come back. read more

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Taka Sushi is easily one of my favorite spots to dine in downtown. The quality of the fish is always top-tier -- fresh, clean, and beautifully presented. You can really taste the difference. Their rolls are amazing, and the Box Sushi Roll is hands down my favorite. Perfect balance of flavor, texture, and presentation. Every bite is consistent and well executed. Service is just as impressive -- attentive, friendly, and efficient without feeling rushed. The restaurant itself is also very clean and well maintained, which makes the overall dining experience even better. read more

Taka - Box sushi roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

So I was back for the second time in a week. I can't praise this spot more. I love the service, the vibe, and the food. I get treated like family every time I go no matter how long it's been since my last visit. I missed it up this go round and tried some new nigiri, which were amazing, but my got to(salmon) will remain my favorite. The best sushi restaurant I've tried in SD hands down. read more

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Great and friendly service at this gaslamp gem! Outdoor seating, makes it pup friendly if you have your furry in tow. Tasty Sushi and the chicken fried rice was REALLY good! read more

Taka - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

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Visiting from out of town for work, and this place was easily the highlight of my trip to San Diego. The nigiri was exceptional, so fresh and beautifully prepared. You can truly taste the quality. Highly recommend if you're looking for outstanding sushi. Toro, golden eye snapper, cod, yellowtail belly, must try. Thank you! read more

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Great service, ambiance, and some of the freshest fish in San diego. I'm surprised at how easy it is to make a reservation here. The uni and every cut of salmon was delicious. My only complaint is that each time I come the fatty tuna has some tough parts to the point where it is definitely not worth ordering. Everything else here is great read more

Our waiter was very friendly. I brought my adult international students. They were all very pleased. The food was very good. I got the saba battera. I loved it. I will order it again!! read more

Made a reservation over the telephone for two people at the sushi bar. We were seated at the sushi bar near the front of the restaurant. The decor is clean, modern and spare in the Japanese fashion. Taka is great in that you order your sushi directly from the sushi chef and he takes care of you for the entire meal. Our chef (didn't get a name) was friendly and was clearly an expert at preparing sushi. As far as the food goes, one of the best sushi restaurants I've dined at anywhere., including multiple trips to Japan. We went through a progression of nigiri, had the 'baterra', which appears to be a Taka innovation, and a negihama cut roll. The fish was amazingly fresh and delicious, and the presentation was expertly done. Also had a carafe of sake which was very good and kept in an ice bucket to maintain the proper temperature. Overall, the service from the staff, including the sushi chef, was excellent. I would rate the Taka experience as 'five-star experience but for one small detail. Next door to Taka is a cigar bar and the stench (apologies to cigar smokers but it is a stench to many of us) of the cigar smoke was wafting into the restaurant. Taka can't control what goes on next door but they had the two front doors wide open where the cigar smoke was entering freely. This certainly reduced the quality of the experience, especially for flavors as subtle as sushi. Hopefully they rectify this because I would certainly like to return! read more

Made a reservation. Got to the restaurant and they said they were too overwhelmed to take us even though I had a reservation.

Outstanding. Large selection menu to choose from. Friendly helpful staff. Always a nice experience.

I picked this place because my wife wanted sushi, and she rarely does. Taka had a reservation. This place is amazing. The fish is so fresh and had a number of things I never have had before. We sat at the sushi bar with Taka himself as our sushi chef. I ordered the things I like. My wife got what she likes. I chatted with Taka and learned a lot. The ankimo here is made here. Most places buy it made, Not here. It was excellent. I also had a bluefin sashimi sampler. which was 2 pieces of bluefin, 2 pieces of chutoro, 2 pieces of otoro. Delightful. The Japanese scallop sashimi was also excellent. The saba was the best i've ever had. it was so incredible. Sardine was suggested and it went well with the saba, with shizo leaf inside. Really good. I finished with comparing japanese and san diego uni. loved the contrast. both great. Then i had amago, also recommended, as dessert sushi. Great fish. Prepared very well. Great selection. Given the incredible quality, the prices are fine. It's not ayce or budget sushi. It's super high quality. The place is small, but it's comfortable. the design is simple, yet elegant. the chefs all wear ties under their outfits. the waiters all wear ties. this is a really great place, read more

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- service : my coworker and I went here on a whim on a Tuesday night around 7pm and were able to luckily snag the last two not reserved seats at the sushi bar. The server was very attentive to us throughout our meal and we were able to order sushi straight from the chef in front of us and he was chatty when we wanted to chat and knowledgeable about the food - food : my coworker and I were both very happy with the level of sushi that we received! We started with the Toro (fatty tuna) sashimi and we got five decently sized slices, the king crab sushi was a very generous serving but a little on the salty side, the uni was very fresh, pleasantly salty, and creamy, and the rainbow roll was beautiful and tasty. However I believe the star of the show was their plain ol ebi (shrimp) sushi. It just tasted very simple and clean. Would definitely come back here again but definitely recommend reservations in advance! read more

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Wow. I can not even put into words how incredible this food experience was. We sat at the counter and had chef Taka serve us. Individually ordering nigiri one type at a time. I am in another world with how flavorful this sushi is. Even simple fish and rice nigiri is blowing my mind. You have to come here if you are a sushi fan or a foodie. You have to try the Golden Eye Snapper. It's on a whole other level. read more

Taka - Chef Taka - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

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Great at reasonable price. Would eat here again when in San Diego. Food is well prepared.

Beautifully designed space and top tier sushi. Albacore nigiri was especially tasty. Great spot for a date night, would not recommend for parties larger than 4 read more

By far, the finest upscale sashimi in all of San Diego additionally, the staff is amazing and friendly. The always greet you with a smile.. Highly recommended especially for a date night . read more

Very good sushi! Saw the great reviews and gave it a shot, and I'm glad I did. The fish were fresh and very delicious. The flavors were all there. A little pricey but I feel that it was worth it. Also, the vibes were great. Great music playing by a live DJ. Will definitely return. read more

My favorite take-out sushi spot downtown is Taka Sushi. Orders are always ready on time, packed well, and the quality stays solid even to-go. Fish tastes fresh, rolls hold up, and nothing feels sloppy or rushed. Easy choice when I want good sushi without sitting down. Why also have a great bar if you like indoor eating. read more

Excellent and fresh sushi and sashimi. We love sitting at the bar, watching the chefs prepare the sushi rolls. The food never disappoints!

Saikō! (最高 / the best) Amazing presentation and precision I love sitting at the bar to talk with the chefs. What dedication and pride when you meet a true Itamae. Live Sweet Shrimp Live Lobster served sashimi style with the head cooked into your miso soup Raymond was my sushi chef talked with me about my selections as well as other items on the menu. This is in the top 5 sushi experiences I've had outside of Japan. Well done you. I'll certainly make this a regular when in SD. I mean after I've had some Mexican food of course. read more

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Taka was a great experience. I am not well known to sushi and while the menu didn't have descriptions of what rolls included, the sushi chef (Itamae) was nice in answering our questions about the different rolls. We ended up getting the shrimp tempura, rainbow roll, and yellowtail sashimi. The rolls came out quick and fresh! A couple sat down next to us and also asked questions and asked the chef to make them a chef special roll with options they liked. We heard them continue to rave about what they received. We came in before a rush after the baseball game, so be sure to plan accordingly as the location is relatively small. read more

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This was a tender miso black cod, but the bones found inside gives me the impression that there is little care and attention to the preparation of the fish. Use a fish bone tweezer! read more

Taka - fish bone in black miso cod - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

Amazing service. Usually doesn't have a long wait. Recommend sitting at the sushi bar and let the chefs make the recommendation.

My friend and I haven't been back since 2017. So glad we resurrected this restaurant from our archives. New ownership, new renovations... it was about time, hence the reason why we stopped dining there. It was nice to see Martin still working there. I made 6:30 Yelp dinner reservations. When we arrived, it was nice to see the restaurant new layout, very open, a clean crisp look, we chose to sit at the sushi bar where Reimon our sushi chef took excellent care of us. We ordered Reimon's Perch Sushi recommendation, then moved on to ordering Sea Urchin, Yellowtail, Smelt Roe with Quail Eggs Sushi. In addition a Spicy Tuna and Salmon Skin Hand Roll along with a Soft Shell Crab appetizer, all while indulging on Sake Bombers. Everything was excellent! Fish was fresh. The Soft Shell Crab was big. Thank you for making me a lover of Taka again! Atmosphere: open, clean crisp look, nice vibe. Service: excellent. Food: excellent. read more

It's OK, but that's really all there is to say. It's fairly priced in general, but a tad on the expensive side. Personally, I didn't love the opening three dishes for the Omakase, but the actual main course was quite good. The restaurant itself is nice inside, and the staff are quick and pleasant. I likely won't be back, though, as I think there are better sushi options around. read more

This was was average, nothing special or spectacular. I found this place through social media so I decided to check it out, especially since it was located in the Gaslamp Quarter of downtown, which was where my friends and I were staying. At first glimpse, it was really polished and fancy. There was a chef's counter, indoor and outdoor seating. Since we had reservations, we opted to seat at a table indoors. Service was really slow. We waited a long time for someone to come take our order, and had to flag down several people to get a waiter's attention. Not sure why that was the case, especially because we saw other tables getting served. The food was also just okay, nothing remarkable.. We tried ordering a variety of sashimi and rolls to try but honestly none of them really stood out to me. I would say I liked the oysters and the yellowtail and blue fin tuna sashimi the most, but I wouldn't order either rolls again. They were pretty basic, and I felt like the rice was over powering. I would say for the price and quality of food, this place wouldn't be top of mind since my experience here was just average. read more

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We made a reservation for three people on a Saturday night. My friend found the place so we decided to check it out. It is right in the Gaslamp Quarter in downtown. They offer indoor or outdoor seating but we opted for indoor since it was cold outside. Fresh oyster 1/2 shell (4/5): This was a good appetizer. Of course the oysters weren't the same size but one was noticeably smaller. It had a spicy daikon oroshi ponzu sauce topped green onions. The sauce was a little too salty for my liking though. Yellowtail sashimi (3.5/5): The fish tasted alright but wasn't the most tender. Nothing wrong with it but just wasn't as good as I have had. Blue fin tuna sashimi (3.5/5): Same thing with the tuna. It was good but felt like it wasn't the freshest. Salmon roll (4/5): A pretty basic roll so it was good. The rice however was a bit too mushy. No avocado which I feel usually comes with a salmon roll but that's ok. It came with 8 pieces. Soft shell crab roll (4/5): Again, another solid roll. Nothing to complain about but nothing amazing. The soft shell crab had a nice crunch. I will say the service was slow. I saw many servers assisting other tables but it took a while for anyone to take our order. The hostess said she'd send someone over to us but that didn't happen. We had to flag someone down. Overall it was an okay try. I probably wouldn't come back since it was average and there are other spots to check out. read more

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Frozen fish, horrible service, had a reservation and got seated right away and then ignored for 35 minutes, Needed to request water twice. read more