Just came back here after the remodel and wow!!! The food is amazing as always but the service the…read morelast two times has been amazing. Yohana was the nicest person ever and so attentive. We are even more loyal now than we always were!

I used to love this place. I am SO disappointed that the old owners sold but at the same time I…read morehave to be happy for them as I'm sure they profited from the sale. The quality of the sushi and the service has deteriorated. I remember the warmth in the service at the sushi bar before and that is completely gone...I have given it a few (maybe five or six) tries since they changed ownership and I think I'm to the point where it's clear that the disappointment is not just because they're new. The sushi is just not good. I have to stop coming here and it's a bummer because I live super close and used to love it. The green tea was even bad- all I could taste was hot tap water and it cost me $4.25 Not worth spending money there.

Offers indoor and outdoor patio seating. Good food and service. Popular and busy, so reservations…read moreare recommended. I had their set lunch which included your choice of one hot dish, your choice of one sushi roll, miso soup and a small salad for one low price. My salmon teriyaki hot dish with white sticky rice was good. The spicy tuna roll was smallish but okay. My spicy edamame appetizer was delicious.

I frequented the Chandler location for many years and decided to try the Gilbert. Gilbert has a…read moretotally different vibe, bougie-r. The chef was great, food great but overall I missed the cozy vibes of Chandler. I also missed the gyoza, and other items this location changed. The cocktails were good, the matcha martini was flavorful. Don't get me wrong I loved the food, different vibe, but it's not Chandler Shimogamo with the cozy vibes, and traditional menu items. I wanted to try the steak items but they were very over priced in comparison to other local restaurants. I will say the carbonara was good but missing the fish element. Overall service was great, chef great, but I have given 4 stars because I'm a Chandler fan for life.

It was a bit difficult for me to write this because I don't like writing negative reviews. At the…read moreend of the day this is my own personal experience and no one else's. I went to Sakura a few months ago celebrate a friends little brothers birthday. It was about 5 of us all together. We did AYCE and ordered many different sushi rolls - I naturally gravitated towards the spicy ones since I love spicy tuna, salmon, etc. Unfortunately, I early on could tell that the food was not fresh. I thought maybe it was just the rolls I was trying so then I tried my friends rolls & the tuna had a very weird taste and consistency. As someone who eats spicy tuna rolls any chance I get, I have tried many sushi places and this one was one of the worst spicy tuna rolls . We finished our meals and chatted for a bit. I would say not even 40 minutes had passed since we finished eating when I started to get nauseous. I think the worst part overall was getting sick from eating here. I was sick for about 2 days and couldn't keep food down if you know what I mean. I didn't want to ruin the birthday fun for my friends so I didn't mention how bad of an experience I had. I'd like to mention that my partner got sick from the food as well so it was not just me. I am writing this in the hopes that the Sakura staff make an effort into looking into the way their sushi staff prepare the fish/food. Or maybe this is a bigger issue with the quality of the fish they buy.

Wow 20 bucks for lunch…read more 30 bucks for dinner. All you can eat. And not just sushi. Really good sushi. Made to order. And prompt waitress service as well. Other oriental dishes are included in this very fair price. It's part sports bar with many flat screens. And primo music round out a date-quality dining experience. You gotta try this place.

Saturday lunch at Yanagi somehow surpassed even my first incredible experience there…read more It was a lighter afternoon service, with Han behind the sushi bar and Misook running front of house. The moment I walked in, I was greeted with warm smiles, genuine hospitality, and the kind of welcome that makes a place start feeling like home. What makes Yanagi special is that the experience becomes a conversation through the food itself. Han asked if I would trust him to make a few alterations to one of my selections, including a garlic ponzu preparation for the hamachi that was absolutely outstanding -- balanced, layered, and unforgettable. Then came a few off-menu surprises that reminded me exactly why sitting at the sushi bar matters. Thoughtful preparations, incredible fish, and the kind of attention to detail you only get from chefs who truly care about the experience they're creating. Every visit to Yanagi deepens my appreciation for what they are building there. This isn't just great sushi. It's warmth, craftsmanship, hospitality, and passion all working together in perfect harmony. One of the absolute gems of the East Valley. (I'm a picture taker. Not here. #ItsThatGood)

This place is always clean and welcoming, and the service has been consistently great every time I…read morevisit. The staff is friendly, attentive, and make the whole experience enjoyable. They also have fantastic happy hour and lunch specials that make it easy to stop by more often without breaking the bank. I honestly come back again and again for the spicy edamame and the spicy tuna on crispy rice -- both are absolutely amazing and packed with flavor. The spicy tuna on crispy rice is perfectly done every time, with just the right crunch and spice, and the spicy edamame is seriously addictive. I've also tried the tempura, shrimp tempura roll, miso soup, and several other rolls, and everything I've ordered has been fresh and delicious. You can really tell they take pride in the quality of their food. It's quickly become one of my favorite sushi spots, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for great sushi, awesome specials, and consistently friendly service.

I had my first Sushi Rock & Grill experience last night and it will definitely not be my last!…read more On the hunt for something healthy for dinner, my son requested a california roll and my daughter quickly followed that request with one of her own: "a salmon roll and a cucumber roll." I did a quick search on my Yelp app and saw that SR&G was not far from their pickleball training and decided that a nigiri bento box sounded good to me too... I went online to place an order on their website and was also pleasantly surprised with the prices - it turns out that this meal would not be that much more than what I would normally spend on dinner at a nearby fast food restaurant, yet so much healthier! The ordering process was easy and allowed me to pay upon arrival. I went to pick it up about 30 minutes later and everything looked and tasted delicious. Service was friendly and everything was packed well with the condiments and chopsticks needed for our order. The restaurant itself is in a shopping center and has a casual and welcoming ambiance. As noted above, I'm sure I'll be back soon!

Tried this place over the weekend and the sushi is fantastic! I loved it so much that I went the…read morefollowing day to order some more. The sushi quality is nice and fresh, and the servers are kind and attentive. I also love that the solo fish rolls like the salmon roll or yellowtail are huge! I took off a star due to the lady with the silver chain around her neck, who was handling seating people/to go orders up front. She had an attitude towards me and other customers, and I heard her distinctly yell at one of the waitresses because she made a mistake. Not a good look for your business to have such a disgruntled worker.

I been coming to this restaurant for a long time everything is so fresh made to order this is my…read morefavorite restaurant here in Mesa. This is my spot to come and eat and chill service can be a bit slow for some people but this is not fas food is quality food so it might take a little. I don't have nothing bad to say about this place I love it.

First and foremost, this place had just I was looking for--casual/relaxed atmosphere, reasonable…read moreprices, and above all great food. The dishes we ordered were all seasoned very generously and the garlic edamame (a must-order for the table) had a little heat to it. My hamachi Kama came out first and was cooked beautifully through and again, seasoned well. The ponzu and ginger were a nice dipping sauce. The sunrise roll had great flavors and cool presentation. Our scallop and chicken yakitoris were great too. I didn't get to try it but the table next to us got agedashi tofu that looked great. Side note, every table was full--always a good sign for a restaurant when there's lots of competition. As someone from the SF Bay Area I'm pretty picky about landlocked sushi places, but this one knocked it outta the park for our spring training visit. Go Giants!! Sorry for not photographing anything it all looked so good we just dug in.

Great place for a delicious lunch/dinner…read more The restaurant was very clean, well maintained and the staff were friendly and polite. The starters and ramen were very delicious too and I would definitely recommend this place!

tldr popular ramen spot serving up affordable ramen that needs some improvement on broth but has…read morefriendly service and clean setting i have really high expectations with ramen and unfortunately daruma did not meet them. the key component is a great broth and daruma's broth was really weak in flavor without much depth in pork flavor or its supposed miso flavoring. partner got classic tonkatsu and i got the spicy miso butter ramen. classic tonkatsu had a strong garlic flavor which masked the weak pork broth but was better than the spicy miso ramen. the spicy miso broth had barely any miso flavor. the toppings and noodles are what saved the dishes. the egg noodles itself was plentiful, bouncy, fresh, and tasty. they also provided a lot of solid toppings - bean sprouts, egg, grilled charsu. unfortunately, broth makes and breaks ramen so i would not recommend. the cucumber salad and gyoza were standard. i liked that the cucumbers were sliced thin to absorb the marinate better. gyoza seem to be the standard frozen ones that were fried. i did like the dipping sauce though. the restaurant seem very new and clean. service was really friendly so it was just a bit unfortunate that the flavors were not up to par. overall, i will not be coming back to eat here but hope that they can improve on broth as everything else seems solid! food 3/5 service 4/5 ambiance 3.75/5 value 3.5/5

Popped into this place for our last meal before leaving AZ and it did not disappoint! We were the…read morefirst people in. When we walked in it had a very fishy smell, so it kind of made us second guess our choice. But we went for it anyhow. The greeter/server was very pleasant and sat us. It was very clean inside with ample space between seat. We browsed through the menu and started with our usual edamame and pot stickers. The edamame was salted well throughout where a lot of places just put the salt on top only. We ordered a couple varieties of sake which were both good. Out of all of the things we ordered the karange skewer was just a little more oily than were use to, but still good. The spicy salmon roll had really great flavor and the lollipop roll was probably one of the better versions that we have had. The musubi was giant to say the least, it was good, but offered a bit too much rice. Overall the food and service was great and we were very happy that we ended up here!

On a Sunday evening, after checking out the Desert Botanical Garden, I was looking for some food in…read morethe area. I came across Zu Izakaya and it's great reviews as one of the options. I love Japanese food so my decision was made. I drove over and parked in their complimentary lot. Ambiance (3.5/5): I've been to Japan and there are plenty of izakayas there. Think of them as small bars which often serve solid food. Zu fits that bit. It's a relatively small restaurant, probably seats about 30 people. and it's pretty no frills for a Japanese spot. I was seated at a booth in the corner of the restaurant. They have free WiFi which is always a good touch. Service (3/5): Service was friendly, though a bit inconsistent. My waitress wasn't as attentive as I would have liked. The type of service where you have to flag them down to get what you want and to close out. Drinks (4/5): Zu has a nice menu of Japanese and Korean beverages, including sake, soju, Japanese beer, and more. With that being said, I just had an iced green tea. Food (4/5): I got a nice variety. I went with the Japanese sausage off of the grill menu, the OBI mayo roll off of the sushi menu, and the cheese corn off of the appetizer menu. Let's start with the sausage. It's a small item, two small sausages, but absolutely delicious. The sausage was bursting with flavor and basted in a sweet sauce. Minus the portion size, perfection. The cheese corn also hit the spot, but the execution was off. The corn is served on a hot platter, and unfortunately some of the corn on the edges was badly burnt. The type of situation where they should start over. Which they didn't. Lastly, the OBI mayo roll is essentially a California roll with marinated warm shrimp on top in a mayo sauce. I didn't love the hot and cold combo (shrimp and sushi), but outside of the temperature, it was a delicious roll. All in all, a very food meal. My only gripe with Japanese food is that it can get expensive quick. Given that Zu is in Tempe, I was hoping that prices would be a little cheaper. With that being said, they do have a solid happy hour (and reverse happy hour) with both food and drink specials. Next time I stop by, I'd like to check out some of their Korean options. I focused on the Japanese stuff this time (which makes the majority of the menu). Next time around, the bulgogi is calling my name!

Let me start with a little tid bit about Downtown Gilbert. There is nothing really special about it…read moreoutside of the vibe is right. Always a lot of people there so it makes you want to be there. Restaurant wise they have really basic offerings. Places you can find in Mesa, and Tempe, and Scottsdale. Now.... What truly makes Downtown Gilbert special are the small shops that are hidden away from the "main strip". One of those places is Clever Koi. Hidden in the Parking lot space behind Shaq's Chicken spot is a small strip of shops. A book store, smoothie place, and my favorite Clever Koi. Our family has very different tastes when we move from one member to the next. So finding places that we all like gets tricky. Clever Koi makes that easy because we honestly have yet to run into something we don't like. Let's start with our favorite starter. The steamed buns (giggity). The pork belly is hands down phenomenal. An amazing bite that literally makes you want more and more. The lazy fries are just that, again pork belly is included, but that garlic aioli is what drives this dish. The tai salad is obviously classic. The short rib dumplings literally make you close your eyes and just say "Mmmmmm". My middle child is the hardest pallet to please at any restaurant as he only eats certain things, but the Chicken Katsu sandwich here is his second favorite chicken sandwich in all this world. The first time he ate it he spent the whole ride home raving about it. Mind you, we live in San Tan, so not a short ride. The shaking beef is always good. It has this firey kick that brings the heat upfront but does not linger. You cannot forget about the fried rice here. Rice is one of my weaknesses in life second only to pizza. Fried rice ranks right up there with my top favorite ways to eat rice and this ranks right up there with my favorite fried rice places. The main reason we come here is because of the noodles. Ramen, ramen, ramen. When you think of Ramen, I assure you this is what you are thinking of. The broth is oh so savory and reigns in the fresh veggies and proteins to meld them with the noodles for a flavor punch each time you have a mouthful. They have great drinks here as well, or so I've been told by the other adults I come here with. I always just get a sake and Sapporo so... LOL The service is always good here and we somehow always manage to miss the lunch or dinner rush which is awesome. All in all... this is by far my favorite dining spot in downtown Gilbert. Great food, great drinks, great service, great atmosphere, in the middle of a great little square. A must eat for me.

Transport yourself to a city from-scratch Asian restaurant with a plethora of handmade cocktails…read moreand an upscale warm, inviting vibe. This is Clever Koi. Our server Maya was incredible and extremely knowledgeable on all dishes, drinks, and so many details of the restaurant! I've never had this good of service anywhere! My wife and I had the Pad See Ew with the braised chicken thigh which was INCREDIBLE. Perfectly chewy noodles, great seasoning. I highly recommend adding some of the homemade Fresno chile sriracha for a kick! The pork ramen was also very delicious. Be warned it's a lot of pork! My wife preferred it with the green jalapeño sriracha. The drinks were also very unique and delicious! A sideline view for me and riding the line for my wife. Oh and the best part was the dessert Bananas foster hush puppy puffs. These were so unique, seasoned with cinnamon sugar and Chinese 5 spice. It took some getting used to but the more you ate it with the Carmel toffee sauce the more I enjoyed it. All in all I can see why people love this place! It's a 5 star restaurant for a 3 star price! If you're looking to expand your flavor palette and have a wonderful evening I can't recommend Clever Koi enough!

I came to this restaurant after spending all day at the hospital across the street for my daughter…read moreso I was hungry and emotionally drained. When I walked in, I was promptly directed to where I should go so I could place a takeout order. The genuine courtesy of the staff here was just what I needed after a long day. Lots of great options for sushi but ramen sounded amazing on a chilly winter day. I ordered a couple options and requested for the toppings to be separated so my picky eater could pick out what she didn't like. The food was out promptly and packaged with such care. Once I got it back to my daughter's hospital room, we were able to feast on the best meal we had all day. I will definitely be coming back to this place again and I am grateful for their kindness just when I needed it. Highly recommend!

I have to be honest here. I only recently started trying Ramen. I don't know why, but I always told…read moremyself that I didn't like it. Anyway, this was only the second time I've ever eaten restaurant Ramen. The first time was so-so. And I was eager to see how much better it could be. So my wife started to do a little research and found that Daruma had really good reviews. So we gave it a shot. I have to say that I was very impressed with my Ramen. It was galaxy's better than the first one I tried. I can't wait to try a different one next time. Aside from the wonderful food. The staff there was really nice. They greeted us right away and quickly got us seated. Our server was also very friendly and attentive. The dining area was pretty clean and inviting too!