Part of my "food plan" for 2026 includes giving restaurants I previously avoided another chance. Zen Sushi was near the top of this list! When they opened many years ago, there was a lot of well-deserved local buzz. From stunning decor to one of the longest sushi conveyor belts I've ever seen, it was worth a visit just for the visuals. But the food and service were inconsistent, and I ended up never going back after my first few tries. Fast forward to the other night, my daughter and I did a mini "sushi hop" and ended up here. I have to say, I was pretty darn impressed! The conveyor belt was still just as long, and the ginormous sculpture (imported from Thailand IIRC) was still looming over the place. But they seem to have settled into their groove after so many years in business here in the Ham. We enjoyed a variety of options from the belt, including a few tasty rolls, as well as some nigiri ordered off the menu. Everything was fresh, hearty, and delish. I thought the prices weren't too bad, either. I will definitely look forward to visiting here again next time I'm having a sushi craving. I do want to say something about the service, as I noticed some recent reviews have mentioned problems in this area. On our visit, our server was very responsive and the special menu items we ordered came out quickly. So, at least on this particular night, there were no issues for us. Hopefully they're working on this! read more

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Oh Zen! Ummm, there's a lot to share. The most important is the sushi is subpar, the kitchen is DIRTY and gross. The eating area is yucky. The staff are too busy socializing in the corner to care. Won't be back. Yuck read more

Friendly staff and I like how quick we can seat and eat. Prices are not too bad but can $ add up pretty quick and sushi is mid in my own opinion and poorly rolled. read more

My partner and I have been coming to Zen's for years and normally we really love it. Today we went after a movie and got maybe 10 minutes into our meal when I realized our glasses were dirty. The inside and outside of both had multiple dark hard flecks that couldn't even be removed when rubbing them, they were caked on. It really soured our appetites (me moreso as I have OCD and this kind of thing grosses me out more than most), so we asked for the bill. The waitress, who I know didn't wash the dishes, was still very nonchalant about the situation and asked if we wanted different waters when we asked for the bill. I understand not everything can run smoothly all the time but we both would have appreciated if this was taken more seriously, as dirty dishes being used to serve food and drink in a restaurant is pretty unacceptable :( read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - Dirty fleck outside cup - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

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New to Bham and was excited for conveyor belt sushi so we went here without checking reviews first. That was our first mistake. Not immediately walking back out when we entered a completely empty restaurant at 7pm on a fair-weather Thursday was our second. The mistakes continued as we gave in to sunk cost bias and nibbled our way through the saddest, mealiest, most flavorless mushy sushi I've ever had. My wife ordered yakisoba and received a plate of what appeared to be yellowish grease with a few noodles in it. Flavorless, of course. The conveyor belt is in no way accurate to what's coming up, nothing is labeled, and (worryingly) the containers themselves are STEAMY (eeeuuuurrrghh) so you can barely see the sushi inside. You're basically left to grab anything you can maybe recognize. One roll (still don't know what it was) was so disgusting I stopped eating halfway through the first bite. Feel bad for the waitstaff, the place was dead and they're certainly making very little money on these shifts. They were super nice though so we tipped the crap out of them, left in a hurry leaving a table of half eaten food, and said our prayers we wouldn't wake up at midnight with food poisoning (and we didn't, so there's that). Long story short this place is absolute dogshit and I can't believe it's still open in such a plum spot in the Regal complex. Looks like it won't be for long. AVOID. read more

For a couple of years, this place had really improved. Now it's back to the same four or five boring rolls over and over. Signs trundle by on the belt promising fried shrimp balls, smoked salmon and takoyaki, but these never materialize. Oh, well. It was good while it lasted. read more

Worst experience ever. We didn't get water served till we got our food and had to chase the waitress. * Tempura was soggy. * Menus were sticky, wet, and looked chewed. Tables were FILTHY. * Even if they gave me free food I would NOT go back. read more

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Come here last month the food was fresh , come here today, table was so dirty and the food not fresh.

I've eaten here twice. The restaurant/belt area was a two star experience and the bar/menu experience a four. The belt had almost nothing on it. What's the point of a conveyor belt if you can't grab a few different things quickly? The few items that were on the belt had clearly been there quite a while. Servers were unseen and unavailable, but the restaurant LOOKED nice and at least I was in good company. The bar area was an entirely different experience. Service was prompt, attentive and very friendly. The several nigiri items I ordered were quite good albeit a bit more expensive than other sushi places in the area. If you go here sit in the bar and order off the menu. read more

We love all the vegan food we can get here! Fresh and delicious. Highly recommend for vegan options in Bellingham.

Which I could give 0 stars.... The food is good as usual and the service has gone downhill. Last night, 2/19, I went we my mom and the service was just terrible. The waitress we had, kept walking back and forth without acknowledging us when needing a refill while we had our empty drinks were on the edge of the table, waiting to be filled again and wanting something from the kitchen while helping out the table behind me (and overcharged the family). She did not want to take an order of edaname from the kitchen and wanted us to take it from the belt which was cold. She had that snotty/bitchy attitude with her head held high. Had to talk to her twice to get those things. She only came when we entered to have dinner and when it was time to get the check. read more

All of the above and then some! We really enjoyed the shrimp tempura udon today! Hit the spot! Always a great go to sushi place for a date! Love the atmosphere and vibe! Great service! read more

Hmmmm. Where do I begin. We have been coming up to Zen for years. Tonight though, we will be thinking twice about coming back. Three staff to take cate off tables. The lashes were quite stuffy. Minimal patronage. We had to flag our waiters down twice for refills even after empty glasses needing left at end of table and she walking past two times. When asked for edamame from the kitchen, she didn't really want to fill the order as there was one on the belt cold. Ok food service leaves a lot too improve on. Attitude of waitress was off the charts not acceptable ... read more

Such a fun place! Love the belt sushi. Service was amazing and very attentive and fast :) One of our rolls from the belt tasted funny, but our server was so understanding and didn't charge us for it! Ambiance was very spacious and open! Very clean read more

do not waste your time or money coming here. The food tastes like it's been sitting out for days, it stinks, and everything feels so dirty. Not trying rude but genuinely the worst place I've ever been to. read more

My family loved the Zen experience. We were dubious due to the reviews but were pleasantly surprised by the tasty sushi and friendly service. Price was right too! read more

Great sushi and attentive staff. We go all the time and keep going back for more. Prices are reasonable too. We also enjoy the variety of their menu. read more

Large eating area - we arrived at 6:20pm on a Friday and were told it would be a 30 min wait time, which was pretty accurate. First conveyor belt sushi restaurant I've been to where nothing is labeled. Just have to wing it and see what you get. It's also not grouped together - guess this makes it easier on the staff to not have to wait for a particular sign to come around in order to restock the sushi, but it is difficult to know what you're getting. Also, just about every roll had the fake crab meat/California roll base inside - not super tasty or inventive. That said, the food wasn't bad, just not fabulous. If you live in B-ham I can see this being a quick lunch stop or a standard Thursday night dinner. read more

This is still my favorite sushi place in Bellingham. The quality for the price is unbeatable and I only go here. However, unfortunately this is the presentation of my food that I have been getting. My california rolls just seem like they're thrown together so carelessly that they fall apart. Either Zen hired someone who doesn't care, or they need to address the issues of one of their employees that has given up on take out orders. I still love ya guys and will keep eating here... But I can't show off my food when it looks trashy. read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - Spicy California Roll, Sake Nigiri - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

We ate lunch after 1pm at Zen Sushi Bar. We hadn't been there since before Covid hit. The restaurant was filling up nicely. It's tastefully decorated with an enormous feminine Buddha center stage in the eating area. Here's a little fact, that Buddha is so enormous that it was dropped in by a crane before the roof went on the building. The conveyor belt wraps around her and the booths are in hands reach of sushi floating right past you. The Buddha sits on a concrete platform that needs a dusting. There is a separate bar room, an outside patio with hanging lights and fire feature to warm up to. The Sushi photographs well. It looks far better than it tastes. The slices are on the thin side, mostly tasted like rice and sauces, a cucumber here and there and some small tempura shrimp. The cake rubber on top and mushy in the center. Our bill came to $48 after tip. That's not a bad bill for sushi, but it lacks in portion size and amount. I have eaten at Zen's 4 other times and I would've given it the same exact review for those times. Haggen's has better Sushi and it's made fresh daily. read more

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Made me throw up in the haggen self check out the morning after Not good. Do not recommend. Unless you want to deficate straight water. read more

A great post-colonoscopy sushi restaurant! It's so near the NW Gastro Endoscopy Clinic. I knew after starving myself for my colonoscopy that I was going to want to eat myself silly, so my BF drove me the short distance where we racked up 11 plates of great conveyor-belt sushi! We also encountered another colonoscopy patient who stumbled in right after us -- great minds on anesthesia think alike! But seriously...I've been here before and the service was good and the food was delicious. Reasonable prices, too. I will be coming back. read more

The sushi is really not good unfortunately it's warm and fishy tasting. The service was alright

This is my second time here and I don't know how to say this... I rated it 5 stars the first time, but it SOMEHOW GOT BETTER?! I didn't think it was possible, but the flavors today were Tongue-gonna-slap-yo-brain incredible! It was excellent the first time, and this time it was excellent +++! You have to try it! If there's a line, WAIT! It will be worth it! Clean, friendly, fast, perfect, go now! read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

Great food and great service. I'm not sure the name of our waitress and I forgot to ask but she has orange hair, she is very friendly and cheery, wonderful customer service. If I could give more than 5 stars I would, will definitely return! read more

Zen is an okay place to grab sushi and one of only two conveyor belt spots in Bellingham. Nothing will blow your socks off and the service often leaves a lot to be desired, but it also won't break the bank and you won't get sick eating here. We've come a few times and stopped because the salmon nigiri was consistently warm. And not warm from the rice, but the fish was sitting out on the counter (which we could see from our seats) warm. read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - a plate of sushi rolls - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

I only like the crab mountain roll. It's spicy and amazing. I appreciate that you get a booth instead of a counter with awkwardly close neighbors. read more

Despite some of the bad reviews, the sushi is good and the employees have always treated us well. We have been to Zen many times before and it's always been great. The conveyor belt is very convenient and if you want something that's not going around the employees are always happy to help! Zen is one of the better places to get sushi in Bellingham. read more

Worst sushi option in town. Overpriced mediocre sushi. The rolls have shrunk and the price has doubled. Don't waste your time or appetite here. read more

Avoid at all cost if you don't want food poisoning- our family used to go and it was good- we went again after having a long lock down because of the pandemic- things were terrible. Sushi on the sushi belt was old, so we decided to order- the avocado in our sushi was BROWN, dark brown, all of it... so I took that our and fed the rest to our toddler who was starving- i then saw the chef took out garbage, came back and wiped down the sushi rolling station and the reaches into the fish and grabs a slab of salmon and started rolling sushi... all using ONE pair of gloves- disgusting I mean come on now- I know you're trying to cut down cost but that is not ok! read more

A girlfriend and I were craving sushi, so we got Zen's small sushi platter that contained about 5 smaller rolls, and a order of Gyoza. It cost about $35 and comes with Ginger, wasabi and soy sauce. The rolls were good, but the platter was mainly all the imitation crab sushi and all the rolls were very Mayo-heavy. There was only one roll with fresh fish, and several that were deep fried and covered with lumps of mayo covered imitation crab. They gyoza was good, but for $35 I wish I enjoyed the sushi more. It satisfied our craving, but usually I feel good after eating fresh sushi, and after this I just felt heavy. read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - a plate of sushi and rolls - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

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I arrived just after 1pm. The restaurant was maybe half full. I was greeted by the hostess. I told her table for one. She literally says "uhhhh. Ok. Give me a minute." I looked around at all the empty seats a little confused. No more than three seconds later, two people walk in behind me. They get seated immediately. Weird. But ok. I get seated, waitress comes over and asked me if I want anything besides water. The one alcoholic drink I asked for is "Basil Smash." She says oh let me see if there's someone who can make cocktails. Comes back, says yes. I order. She comes back a few minutes later and says they are out of basil. Ok. I'll try the drink anyway. Meanwhile I sat and watched the food go by on the conveyor belt. Nothing caught my eye. I ended up grabbing 6 or 7 different plates. They were all mediocre at best. Not thrilled to pay over $50 on boring sushi but now I know better. read more

To think they can charge people 6 months later after the original visit is sad. My bank statement said it was paid that day and then another following 6 months. That was not even the same price as the first. Then post on your website you won't refund people. Never going here ever again. read more

So I have been to this place at least twenty times. They usuallydon't dissapoint. High five for the following: Ambiance- very nice seating with lovely decor. Bar- strong drinks and great service Service (restaurant) - always quick and service with a smile Barkley Roll - deliciousness on a plate Friendly chefs. 2 small cons 1. During happy hour plates are $1 off if you order any type of a beverage. However, not if you special order it. It can be confusing. 2. Pricey Overall I enjoy going here especially for date nights. :) read more

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Undercooked, no teriyaki sauce, just plain disappointing. I have no words. I ordered on doordash and I was in shock when I opened my bag. I'm not one to complain but wow... read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - I'm sorry but this is not what I thought i was going to get when I spent almost $20 on teriyaki chicken!! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

A picture is worth a thousand words, and would you believe me if I said this was actually chicken instead of dog food. This has been the most disappointing dish I've had from a restaurant from a restaurant in a long time. It just looks depressing and gloomy. First the rice is overcooked and soggy as if it's the bottom of the barrel rice that's been sitting in a rice cooker all day. I took about two bites of the chicken before I wanted to gag. It has a slimy texture that sends me into nausea. It's honestly one big coagulated mess I had to throw out my garbage early because this was sitting on top, filling up the room with a weird body odor type smell. The sushi I got was pretty good, so I guess just stick to the rolls if you're going to eat here. read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - Teriyaki chicken over rice. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

Zen sushi was a great experience-a belt line sushi as well! I love how there are different colored plates on the belt so that you know exactly what price each roll is. I loved the presentation as well as the taste of all the rolls. My favorite had to have been the dragon roll! My boyfriend loved the volcano roll. read more

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If you want crappy service with mediocre sushi for a high price this is it. It took a long time for someone to even acknowledge us at the door to be seated. Once seated we asked if we could put a order in but the waitress literally told us to pull from what's on the belt because everything on the menu is on the belt (rude) We we're 3 plates deep when we noticed the plates were filled with black mold. So unsanitary and disgusting! Who in their right mind would serve food on a plate filled with black mold!!!! Avoid this restaurant at all cost! read more

Zen Sushi & Bar - Black mold all under the plates. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

My grandchild was excited to try a sushi place with a conveyor belt. I was concerned when my friend recommended this place because of all the bad reviews, BUT we enjoyed the experience and the food. We went on a weeknight, so it was almost empty. Seated right away, and the waiter was friendly and helpful. Agree that there is no labelling of the items on the belt, but the waiter was more than happy to explain what the items were. We got several things off the belt in addition to a couple items off the menu. I don't know if this sushi is the best in town, but I do know we all enjoyed our food and the experience. It came to about $20 a person, and we were all satisfied, including the gluten free adult and the picky teen. read more

This was the most disturbing and disgusting lunch I've ever experienced. My husband and I were enjoying our lunch when I witnessed a man that was handling food and working in plain sight blow his nose in a napkin with his gloves on. The man then proceeded to throw the napkin in the trash and continue working with the same gloves!! I notified staff and the chef appeared to allow the man to continue working! I am not sure what happened next because my husband and I paid and left immediately!! Just writing this review I am feeling nauseous. read more