We have been met with perfection. I can leave this planet…read moreone day happy in knowing I have had The...Best. Royal's announcement on they starting to take reservations, a few months ago, immediately had me in stalker mode. I set a calendar reminder, waited for the day, hopped on & bang- success!! Another Philly weekend awaited, Yea! We arrived at Royal (apologies on review delay, circa April 11), for our 8:30pm high top table reservation. We were greeted and seated immediately- right side corner table ready. It's very dim in Royal, small but mobile and a bit noisy. Nothing unexpected. Skating over service, but they are so noteworthy. Our server was attentive, kind and helpful. They HUSSLE here to bus and clear tables. Timing for patrons arriving and being sat was like it was scripted, it was so flawless. No one waiting at the entrance corridor on arrival. Machine precision. Now, our meal- I'm drooling in my daydreams over it. We tried many plates & loved the portion size to be able to do so. The chicken wings- crisp, thick golden fried and tender. The toro with caviar- silk. A touch of brine, a melt in your mouth pleasure. The grilled octopus had an unassuming spice, mellow char and just the right consistency of chew. My husband ordered a surprise- I was scared. Fish heads. WTF, ok here we go. The plate came- heads on heads, quite the portion. This fish- first bite down, intimidation gone. This is one of the best things we've ever eaten. Succulent, moist fall apart whitefish. Didn't even taste like it was battered, no thickness to the breading. It tasted fried but so clean it didn't make sense how good it was. I don't have words. And now we get to the sushi- and I go completely mute.... There is no description worthy here. We had the Dragon Roll and the Spicy Crab Tempura roll. Can we call them the "Die and gone to heaven rolls". Fall apart fresh. Quality. Restrained, but pronounced. Pure. Insane. How can you describe food you will always remember. Except in having passion and a simple happy heart. This is what Royal gave us- in a sushi roll and a fish head. Thanks Jesse and team- simply the best!

I've always loved the Queen Village area, so I already liked the location of Royal Izakaya going…read morein. One thing though, the restaurant was surprisingly hard to find because there really isn't much signage on the entrance/door. But there's a paper lantern outside, so if you see that, you're in the right place. I had really high expectations coming here and thankfully I wasn't disappointed, although nothing completely blew me away except for the Aka Taka roll. The chirashi bowl was solid overall and had good quality cuts of fish for $52. Everything tasted fresh and balanced, but next time I think I'd personally just order the sakedon instead. The chasu bao also wasn't really worth the $14 in my opinion. It was still good, just not something memorable or mind blowing. Same with the wagyu steak, for $38, it honestly just tasted like a really good steak, and the portion was a little smaller than I expected. My favorite appetizer was definitely the miso eggplant. Such a unique combination of flavors and the eggplant was cooked incredibly soft and well. It almost tasted like a sweet potato with the miso on top, and I would absolutely order it again. But the standout of the night was easily the Aka Taka roll. For a $27 roll, I had very high expectations and somehow they were all met. The roll was stuffed with different cuts of tuna that were unbelievably soft and buttery, and there was this crunch in the middle, maybe daikon? Whatever it was, it added the perfect texture. Honestly, it's something I'd go back just for.

I came back and tried the spicy tan tan , what a joke this place is. The broth had no flavor and…read morechashu was rubbery and was undercooked , the broth didn't have much in it and it was just noodles and one piece of bok choy , no ramen eggs etc . I wouldn't mind the tiny bowl for $23 if it tasted good and authentic but it definitely did not taste good and I left half of it untouched. I give up with this place , will try to find another Japanese place elsewhere Service is decent and ambiance is good but food is the most important

Was offered a variety of of seats and chose the window so I could people watch while I ate. The…read morevibe is clean and cool. The menu has a lot of options but I selected the Mayu Tonkotsu. The bowl was brought less than 5 minutes later. The broth was very very hot. Flavor was delicious, creamy with a garlic flavor. Noodles were thinning than I'm used to, but cooked well. Quail eggs were listed as part of the dish, though I was expecting a jammy egg, as they're said to be soft boiled on the menu. Unfortunately my eggs were hard boiled. Additionally, the chashu was very fatty. Hilariously, I had a conversation with a colleague earlier in the day about what our last meals would be if we got to pick. When I looked at the magazine opened right next to my seat, I just happened to see that same question! How bizarre.

Zhu is a solid place for fries in Chinatown, especially if you're looking for a hangout spot after…read moremidnight. I love that they offer a variety of menu items, ranging from skewers to noodle soups and even dumplings. So far, I'm the biggest fan of their fries, but their noodle soup was also pretty good. Vegans, you might want to avoid ordering the "mushroom" order from the izakaya menu since the portion is far too small for the price point. For those who aren't fans of loud places, this isn't a spot for you. Large groups tend to hang here for some card games (each table gets a deck, I believe), so it can be pretty noisy. Service here is adequate, considering there seems to only be one dude who mans the front while the wife/woman handles all the kitchen matters.

For my first review of 2025 I start at Z and give it up to a hole-in-the-wall Chinatown Izakaya…read morewith rustic charm. For my friends final Philly hurrah before moving cross-country she was nostalgic for a Chinatown visit and especially wanted to try this restaurant that she only had a drink in so far. So we passed by the entrance motorcycles, walked through the curtain, and were transported to the type of hole-in-the-wall Izakaya that you might come across in rural China. I only give it four stars because things like the milk crate stools that we sat on might be a little too hole-in-the-wall for most. But they also have some roomy booths and I appreciated the overall aesthetic of the place. I also loved that the bathrooms were filled with movies posted for films directed by the likes of Ang Lee, John Woo, and Wong Kar-Wai. For drinks they do have a reasonably priced assortment of sake, soju, and other libations. But when you see it on the menu you order a harder-to-find Chinese beer, and Snow was a pretty damn good one! Food was very reasonably priced for what you got, especially the skewers which ranged from $1.50 for chicken or squid, to $6 for grilled mackerel or roast pork. For around $10 I was enjoying lamb, chicken hearts & gizzards, squid, shrimp, and bacon-wrapped enoki mushrooms. They spice skewers to your heat preference and the medium was delectably fire! We also enjoyed shrimp and pork dumplings. Whewn it comes to reasonably priced good food and decently priced drinks Zhi is a perfect addition to Chinatown.

Izakaya 68 on Shawan Road absolutely nails the feel of a real Japanese Izakaya. The atmosphere is…read morewarm, lively, and authentic--exactly what you'd expect if you stepped into a neighborhood spot in Japan. One of the highlights (especially for families) is the robot cat servers. They're a hit with everyone at the table, from kids to adults, and they genuinely add to the fun without feeling gimmicky. The food is excellent and checks all the Izakaya boxes: yakitori, gyoza, and my personal favorite--takoyaki--are all done right. On top of that, they also offer sushi, ramen, and full entrée dishes, so there's something for every appetite. Drink options are just as solid, with Japanese sodas, green tea, and a good selection of Japanese alcoholic beverages. This is a great spot for the whole family and an especially awesome place to host a birthday dinner for teens. We brought a 13- and 14-year-old group, and it was a perfect balance of fun, great food, and a relaxed environment. Highly recommended if you want good Japanese food and a memorable experience.

Nice ambiance, clean restaurant. Robot delivery cool. Food…read morepretty meh overall. Pork belly really bad. Beef tenderloin had a weird after taste. Fried rice has a cinnamon flavor (?). Beef gyoza and shrimp tempura were only solid things we got of the 7 dishes we tried.

First of all - don't even contemplate coming here without a reservation. It's insanely popular and…read moreI can see why. We had dinner reservations for 7:45 but got there two hours early because we really wanted to try out their happy hour. Huge selection of food for happy hour and delicious drinks. We waited an hour but were sat and immediately cancelled our dinner reservations because we knew it was about to go down. Fair warning - if you're approaching 40 like us, it's dark, it's loud, and you're sitting on top of people. It will be worth it. We had the double knot roll, spicy tuna roll, BAO, and some drinks. All 10/10. But the real star is the grilled meats. Specifically the scallion ribeye. We tried to take pictures of all of it but it was literally too dark in the restaurant. I would go back and just order ribeye skewers for the entire happy hour. They don't take happy hour reservations but get there early. It's the best.

I've been meaning to try Double Knot and was glad to go tonight with a friend/colleague. It is…read moredefinitely very dark inside and I was glad to be seated in the less noisy basement compared with the super noisy bar area on the first floor that also has dinner seating. We sat in a cozy corner booth and could easily hear each other although we could not read the menu or clearly see what we were eating the lighting is so dim (and consistent with the gothic theme). Now onto the food. We ordered 9 dishes (waiter suggested 8) and it was way too much for us and I'm a big eater! Edamame dumplings - 4/5, may be just me, but I don't really enjoy mushy fillings to my dumplings. The broth they came in was amazing though Tuna rice cracker - 4/5, not really a cracker, more like a crunchy mini loaf of rice topped with tuna and a slice of jalapeno - delicious and much more filling than what I was expecting. I only gave a 4 instead of 5/5 for taste because of the unexpected presentation of the "cracker" Shishito pepper small plate - 5*/5 outstanding! I could eat these all day they were so delicious. I'm not sure how they flavor these or what light crunchy sprinkles were on top of this very generous portion of peppers (I would estimate maybe 30 peppers?) I'd go back just for this dish Black cod fried rice - 3/5, I should know better that a miso black cod will be somewhat fishy, and with it spread in chunks throughout the fried rice I'd say this was my least favorite dish. Crispy brussels sprouts - 4/5, a solid offering, not much to write home about Crispy tofu - 3/5, not particularly unique although it sounded amazing when described - cubes of deep fried tofu drizzled with peanut sauce on a bed of cilantro pesto. But not that tasty and not that interesting Scallop robo - 5/5, excellent with a kick from the spicy powder on these, note these are very small portions, three slices of scallop (not even a full scallop or if these were full scallops they were very thin) on a stick Ribeye scallion robo - 5/5, also excellent, with three chunks of tender grilled beef Mochi ice cream: passion fruit, matcha - 4/5, but mostly because I'm not a huge fan of mochi ice cream, I'd rather just have the ice cream or have it with a brownie or between two cookies So overall, service was great, not overly attentive. And the food was very solid with an outstanding exception with the shishito peppers. I'm not sure I'd go back as it is very dark in there and if I was seated on the first floor I'd not be able to have conversation with my dinner mates.

We've been enjoying sushi here for years (one of their early customers). We had a celebration of…read morelife here, and it could not have been any better. The food, as always, was wonderful, and the service top notch. Quiet time to celebrate, eat great food, and make a wonderful day. Easy to enjoy meals here, but just about perfect for our party. Every guest loved the food, the service, and the setting. A few guests who've never been here now insist they will be back.

Best sushi in the area. Cutest spot ever and wonderful service. The vibes are 10/10 here it's sort…read moreof moody and aesthetic with nice decor. Feels high end without being over the top. The spicy tuna is to die for. And we are obsessed with the Brussels sprouts .... I'm not big on veggies or Brussels but I can't say enough about how dang good they were. Shout out to GREG the owner for being the greatest and so sweet and kind. This is definitely a hidden gem on the Philly suburbs. Run here don't walk ! They offer sushi classes which I highly recommend as well. Couldn't be a more fun experience. Thank you for the best night. Truly obsessed with this place.

Great happy hour - even on Sundays! Enjoyed grabbing some tasty yakitori and other bites before…read morecatching a show at the convention center. Service was quick and there was plenty of seating too! I would definitely go back for the HH.

The ambiance of the restaurant is really nice for dinner time. It's dimly lit, while still having…read moreenough lighting at the tables. The music has been great all night. Think Mariah the Scientist type music. It's also not too loud so you can hear the people next to you. Service was quite slow at first but the staff did a nice job of assisting each other. Our food came out quickly though when we did eventually place our orders! The food was really good! I got the Teriyaki Salmon bento box. And it came just as expected:) We had a few issues at our tables with dirty glasses and things in our water (picture included of thing in water)

I have no idea why this place doesn't have a higher rating. They have such an interesting cocktail…read moremenu. Loved the Matcha-tini! The bartender used ceremonial matcha and whisked it with a chasen in a traditional manner. We tried 4 cocktails between the 2 of us and we loved each one! There is only one other place in Philly which serves really good Japanese-inspired cocktails so this was a great find. Would travel again from Philly just for their drinks. The bartender (forgot to ask his name) was also very friendly and fun!

After many months of intending to visit, we finally dropped in at Izzy's for an early dinner on a…read moreThursday night. This cocktail and handroll spot might be one you miss if you are just driving by and not in the local Ardmore scene, and that would be a catastrophe, as it is unique and delicious. This bar has impeccable Japanese ambience with high, light wood ceilings and a quiet atmosphere. It offers exclusively high-top table and bar seating, but still feels elevated. This is one of the best sake menus I have seen in the area, including domestic production, and also offers Japanese beers and a very delicious cocktail list featuring sake-forward offerings. Sake served generously with the cedar box tradition. Specials are available daily and warm food from the menu seems to be prepared next door at Ripplewood (same ownership). Handrolls were bright and fresh using clearly high quality, fresh ingredients. We also enjoyed a Branzino collar. We'll definitely be back, and will try to be early again to get good seating (spots fill fast, as you'd expect!)