Went out for a sushi sister date here, first time trying sushi there for the both of us. It was your typical busy Friday night so we decided to sit at the sushi bar, needless to say we made the right choice. The sushi bar welcomed us with sake bombs and they took great care of us! The sushi was amazing! I believe we ordered about 5 rolls and they each were so flavorful. We are definitely going to be coming back for more! A great experience all around!! read more

Their lunch special is the best. From the seaweed salad to all of their sushi options, they all taste great. The service is always friendly and speedy. 10/10 recommend read more

Excellent ambiance, amazing food, great place to come with friends, family, or a date Tim really has a great place here very warm & welcoming highly recommend. We started with Miso soup & Karaage chicken, then I had the chicken katsu bento box with the ginger salad & house sushi amazing highly recommend & wife had Sumo Ramen she was very pleased. read more

Our food was very yummy, but the stand out of the night was our server Josh. He was kind and personable and could not have done a better job. He made sure our glasses were always full and handled our orders easily. It was a celebratory night for us and without asking he brought out special drinks for us! Thank you to Josh for making our night perfect. read more

Akebono has been a favorite of my favorite dining companion and I for years. They have very fresh fish, which is the cornerstone of good sushi. We typically each get a Sashimi platter and then some appetizers. The Sashimi is always top notch. My favorite is always Yellowtail. It's so light yet so flavorful. I could eat Yellowtail Sashimi from Akebono every day for the rest of my life and die a happy man. I'd probably be broke, but boy would it be delicious. Our absolute favorite item though, is one that you cannot get at every sushi joint in town. That dish? Hamachi Kama aka Yellowtail collar. This delicacy is absolutely mouth-watering. It comes out with a crispy exterior from brief but very high heat. The meat is so light and flaky it will absolutely blow your mind. You may want to order two. I could certainly eat an entire order all by myself! It is a limited availability item, because as soon as they're out of collars, there's no more Hamachi Kama. Get it while it lasts! I cannot for the life of me find the picture that I took of it, but pictures honestly cannot do justice to the juicy, succulent delight that is Hamachi Kama. If you're in Des Moines and you want some sushi, they're always a great bet. They're also an awesome option for a nice lunch if you work downtown or want to wow some clients. read more

Thanks for an awesome dining experience. Salad and two rolls I chose were really good. Service was spot on and very friendly. Highly recommended. read more

Akebono 515 has a cool vibe and a great location. Just a little west of the Court Ave district makes it easy enough to find a place to park, but still in the center of it all. The service staff is great and super knowledgeable about everything on the menu. We came in for ramen since my date isn't a huge sushi fan, and in my opinion sushi is more fun when it's shared! The ramen was good - it could have used a bit more umami flavor but I'm not too knowledgeable about Japanese cooking so I'll leave that to the experts. The drinks were great - fantastic cocktail menu and a lot of great beers to choose from. Great atmosphere, great location, service was fantastic -- will definitely return to try the sushi!! read more

Akebono 515 - Ramen bowl - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

Look, I get it... This is the Midwest, right? I'm not expecting sushi like that I'd find at the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo. I'm not expecting ramen you'd find at Ivan Ramen in New York City. This is the Midwest and getting fresh fish to Iowa is much harder than getting it to San Francisco or Los Angeles. I get all that... But in my humble opinion, if you've chosen to run a Japanese/sushi joint, you should be mildly informed as to what you ought to be serving. Ramen eggs, aka ajitsuke tamago, are marinated soft boiled eggs with a custardy yolk and a brownish white due to the mixture of Mirin and Soy sauce used to season it. Ramen eggs are most certainly not hard poached eggs. Togarashi is a spicy powdered assortment of dried chili peppers and other seasonings. You can add this flavorful seasoning to your noodle soup dishes or any other dish that needs an extra spice. You gave me Sriracha. Really? I've been here a few times now... I've tried to stay open minded but, I'm sorry, I can't do it anymore. read more

Akebono 515 - Sumo Ramen - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

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Hello management In case you didn't know, it's a slap in the face to your customers to advertise being open til 10, but lock your doors at 9:15, and tell me to go away you are closed, when your Restraunt is packed full of people. Fix yours hours! read more

High quality sushi (both rolls and nigiri) and great ramen. Some of my favorite Japanese food in Des Moines. They have a great bento box too and great appetizers. A gem of downtown dining! read more

Service was good. The bartender was attentive. The restaurant definitely caters to the Des Moines demographic. My only complaint was the karaage chicken. Take that disgrace off the menu or redo the recipe. It's basically Chick-fil-A nuggets with a side of ponzu. Don't waste your money. It's not hard to get a nice batter on chicken that's really crunchy. That's half of the dish; the crunchy outside of the chicken. Seriously, google karaage chicken. It looks wayyyyyyy different from what I got. 3 stars for good service. read more

Akebono 515 - Karage chicken and two sushi rolls - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

This place was so amazing! The atmosphere is awesome!! We had the surf and Turf roll and the rising sun roll and both were amazing. Service was awesome as well! read more

I came here because all the good reviews but the only thing I really like about this place is the mint chocolate they gave me after paying. The food here is really just average. I was really disappointed in the tempura chicken. It was so thin like I was eating only fried flour. The salmon roll was okay and the rising sun was good in general. The tempura shrimp in the Rising Sun was dried and hard to chew. read more

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I used to come here much more often for sushi dinners but the parking has become more of a nuisance. Especially the extra charge to validate it on the receipt. I decided to come back to try the bento box. It wasn't exactly the best but it was pretty good. The service was sub par. I will come back again eventually. read more

Akebono 515 - Tonkatsu bento - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

Oh dear lord. I'd come back to Des Moines just for this restaurant and our waiter Nick! He's a blast! All of the food was hot, fresh, and delicious. Plus they were really nice about my dairy allergy. The service was pretty quick and we left feeling pretty full too. read more

My boyfriend, sisters and I care in a few months back and had the worst service ever. My boyfriend and I decided to come out for a date night tonight and almost went across the street, but convinced ourselves to give Akebono another chance. Wow, I'm so glad we did. Our server didn't seem annoyed at us like our previous experience from a different server (who I will not name). Food came out timely and our cocktails were amazing as well. We will definitely be back thanks to our amazing server, josh. Who also went all out to sing happy birthday to the table next to us. As a server, I don't say I'm impressed often. But just wow! Thank you for making our second dine-in a hell of a lot better experience as opposed to last time. read more

Akebono 515 - Ramen - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

This is a very clean and modern place setting located in DT DSM. Definitely a place for your romantic setting and first date venturers. The food is great. We got the Akebono edamame, nigiri, Valentine's Day roll (special of the day), surf and turn sushi, and fried snickers bars. The edamame was garlicky and savory all in one. The nigiri is top notch. I got toro (tuna belly), taz salmon (salmon belly), ikura (salmon roe), and unni (sea urchin). First off the belly's of a fish are the prime cuts of meats of the sea. Super tender, buttery, and it just disperses into your mouth. Since they are the prime cuts they are pricier. But worth it for amazing sushi. Both types of belly were great. Toro crisp, fresh, and tender. Taz Salmon the softest of the fishes, buttery, silky, and sweet. Ikura was salty and balanced the sweet and softness of the bellies. And unni, i Love unni, salty like the sea, tender, savory, and fresh. The Valentine's Day roll was a heart shaped rolls that were filled with tuna and crab meat, covered with a layer of tobiko, topped with a thin slice of jalapeño and a dallop of siracha. It's spicy but tasty, chewy but soft also. It's caters to all senses of textures. Smooth, texture, chewy, tender. The surf and turf is a shows topper if you like flames. It is a roll that is lit on fire at your table. It's a sushi roll with tempura shrimp and crab meat, covered with thin slices of , spicy aioli, eel sauce, and green onions. After the flame goes out you are left with a warm sushi, steak cooked perfectly. Lastly, the fried snickers. This may have been a miss for us, but it may be a cup a tea for those that have a sweet tooth. The snickers are piping hot, gooey, sticky, and crunchy, served with sweet cold French vanilla ice cream, will a drizzle of chocolate and caramel. Overall great sit down place in DT DSM, great service, and tasty food. Will go there again. Also if you park in the parking ramp above them, they will come your parking! read more

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Akebono is by far my favorite sushi place in Des Moines. I wouldn't say the have the /best/ sushi per say, however, the experience here is what sets Akebono apart from the other sushi places in Des Moines. The staff is always welcoming, but witty and playful. The service is prompt and so is the food. The atmosphere itself can be cool and casual, or perfect for a date or nice dinner. As for the food? Even though I know it will make me fuller than I need to be, I ALWAYS, like truly cannot stop myself from, ordering the Tofu Fries. They are my favvvvorite, and the dipping sauces that come with are to die for. I love to go for the Carb Conscious roll, Fuji roll, or Dragon roll. And seriously, do a Sake bomb. Have some fun. read more

Partner and I had a weekend in DSM, and considering we're both sushi lovers we chose this place. We were super dissatisfied. First, they forgot about our edamame appetizer. We also were supposed to get "complimentary" miso soup and salad...but never received the miso. The sushi.....4/10 at best. Spicy tuna was EXTREMELY fishy, to the point we did not want to eat it. We chose a "carb conscious" roll because it was wrapped in cucumber and we love cucumber. Holy hell was the cucumber incredibly bitter, it made me gag. The other rolls, were just bleh! We were both very surprised at how poor this visit was considering the price and reviews. Our waitress was very sweet, but seemed to forget about us as we had to flag down other staff for refills and for the edamame. I would not recommend this place, find another sushi restaurant. read more

Got the salmon bento box and shrimp tempura bento box to go. Salmon was soooo yummy. The shrimp tempura was a little disappointing considering how thick the breading was and how little the shrimp was. Can't stop thinking about that salmon though...(: read more

It was our first time here and we really enjoyed our experience :) Our waiter was probably one of the nicest and friendliest waiters I've ever had! We shared a bowl of edamame to start. My girlfriend got the Mulberry sushi roll- yellowtail, salmon, cream cheese, tempura-fried, topped with unagi sauce and she loved it. She also ordered the steamed pork dumplings, but they came fried. Also they smelled strange (and she thought the taste was a bit strange too); we felt bad about complaining since everything else was great, but our waiter kindly replaced them immediately with another Mulberry roll for her. I ordered an avocado roll and a cucumber-avocado roll with mango on top. Both were delicious and a pretty great price!! :) We will definitely return! read more

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Amazing. You should try the Yakisoba it's really good! They have really good and nice staff that are super duper incredible. The place itself is wonderful the have a fish tank bar that are decorated neatly read more

Reviews were great so we thought we'd give it a try ! Very disappointed ! Ramen tasted worse than packet noodles as the noodles were soggy and the broth was tasteless ! Pure Kim her flavored soup ! The sushi was not bad but the quality of fish wasn't great and the avocado was almost black . The best items we got were the squid salad and seaweed salad ... but we all know that normally comes frozen from the manufacturer ! Service was good so that was nice! Will not recommend this restaurant ! read more

Okay food in lively atmosphere. We almost always go to the sushi place at 4th and Walnut st. because it's the opposite: No atmosphere but great food. We live closer to Ake but the food at Walnut st is so outstanding! If you haven't eaten at 4th and Walnut you'll be happy with Ake. read more

Great rice bowls, good sushi, and a mix of other offerings. Environment is friendly, too. Favorite lunch spot! read more

Absolutely the best sushi in Des Moines! Fast, fun, uniquely flavored sushi. So many other places have one roll taste like another and barely a difference between various sashimi. Akebono 515 is always distinct and fresh! read more

I ordered Eel Tempura and there was hardly anything eel but full of tempura. Not worth the price.

Really like the surf and turf rolls! Salmon sashimi is good as well. The server is very attentive! The place is so cozy. read more

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Akebono 515 is a great little sushi spot downtown. The ambience is upscale and casual at the same time. The staff is great (and kid friendly) and the sushi is tightly rolled and delicious. They offer miso soup (delicious) and a small salad with most rolls. We have 2 sushi spots, Waterfront if we're our west and Akebono if we're downtown. Order a few new rolls and share them with family or friends, you're bound to find a favorite... The patio seating is a bonus when the weather is nice! read more

Akebono 515 - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

Had lunch at Akebono yesterday, asked for recommendations from Stephanie & she hit the nail on the head (Tasmanian Roll). I liked the place so well, I came back for dinner. Highly recommend Akebono. Tried the Fuji Roll for dinner and loved it. The restaurant has a great vibe as well, indoor and outdoor. read more

Akebono 515 - Love this place! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

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Akebono is my favorite sushi restaurant in the metro. They have a variety of spicy and not spicy rolls and every one of them is delicious. The Nonsense roll (spicy) and the Akebono (not so spicy) are my favorites. The ramen is delicious too. The service is great always friendly and timely. They have a decent variety of beer, wine, and cocktails. I highly recommend Akebono if you're looking for good sushi. read more

One of the best sushi places in Des Moines in the downtown area definitely a must in my opinion.

Fan-freaking-tactic all around. We went on Mother's Day without a reservation at 7:00. Sat immediately and greeted like family by host and acknowledged within 3 minutes by server. We were offered water while we read the menu, suggestions and clarification for unfamiliar menu items. Apps came after drinks and before sushi...odd to comment on that but course timing is lacking in a lot of restaurants. Sushi was phenomenal and priced below most Des Moines sushi joints. Fresh and well rolled. Quality was as highly rated as the service. 3 people had 9 rolls, 2 appetizers and 1 martini for $120. Well worth every cent. Most sushi restaurants are way out west or closed on Sunday's if they are downtown. This is our new go-to for sushi. I wish I could give it more than 5 stars. read more

Despite Yelp and google reporting their hours, they repeatedly close at least an hour before those. It sucks to have come here twice and see patrons inside and have the door locked. I call and they just let the phone ring... it's a shame. I guess I'll give up and try elsewhere. read more

By far this is the best sushi and more restaurant in Des Moines. Usually when we go to sushi restaurants, we only order sushi. The other dishes are so plain and common. However at Akebono 515, the other dishes make it a very hard decision. The ramen and udon noodle dishes are truly tasty. The burgers are a-mazingly good. And the sushi rolls and sashimi options are a true master piece. Having been here 5 or more times in the past year, i have tried a lot of dishes. It is one of those restaurants were I have yet to find my favorite because everything I have tried has been so good that I am afraid I will miss the ultimate dish by not trying something new each time. Luckily, I have always come with someone else so I've been able to get a taste here and there of many more dishes. So if you're looking for sushi, come here because the rolls are creative, tasty, and fresh. If you are looking for great Japanese fusion dishes, come here because the know how to fuse ingredients together to make a tasty explosion in your mouth. read more

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I want to give this place a 10,000 star review. I frequent here and its one of the few places where they know my name and what i usually order. The sushi here is top notch. I typically order the Nonsense, Spring Roll (sushi roll), and the spicy salmon, but every once in a while will order off the happy hour menu or an entree/bento box. I have NEVER been dissapointed! Great drink specials, great food, and great company, and a GREAT place. read more

Akebono 515 - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

I will echo lots of reviews here and say that the sashimi is delicious. This restaurant and Wasabi Chi have the best in Iowa in my opinion. The atmosphere is great, and if you sit at the sushi bar, you are going to have a fabulous time because the chefs are hilarious and so friendly. You will meet awesome people here, too! read more

Akebono 515 - Compressor roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

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Sushi is my favorite food so I decided to try this place while on a work trip. I am from California so it would be unfair to review this place and compare it to the places back home. I'll comment that the service is very friendly and the complimentary miso soup and salad is nice. I ordered the Overload (pictured on top) and Captain Crunch roll (pictured on bottom). If I try other sushi places while in town, I'll come back and post other comments. See my other reviews on Sakari and Wasabi Tao. Winner of the three is Wasabi Tao! Comparable to sushi in California! read more

This is the first time I have had Akebono sushi and liked it. I have been several time for lunch but this is the first time for dinner delivery no less. Oh snap and Malibu crunch roll were both good. Both of them needed more sauce but that is my preference. The rolling pig was the best surprise and my dining partner allowed me to have one piece. I will order that in the future. I didn't post pics because it wasn't beautiful upon delivery. read more

We were treated and sat as soon as we entered the restaurant. Within minutes our waiter Josh was there. He pointed out the happy hour specials as well as supplying with all the other menus. He quickly returned with waters. Josh answered all our questions. Since we had requested a number of items to be spicy, he brought us a spicy sauce to add to our miso soup...... delicious. Service was so quick that we even had time to enjoy our meal before our show (normally we rush through to make our show on time). read more

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