I believe I found my new favorite Japanese/Sushi restaurant. First off, the place may look small from the entrance but it's surprisingly big on the inside. The back half of the restaurant had a hidden large party room (Not sure if there was a second one next to it as well cause I didn't walk back there) and the front half was for regular dining. The place can get very busy so the wait for food was around 15-20 minutes for us. Courteous staff though and great tasting food. I enjoyed the sushi and spicy champong. A warm and upbeat atmosphere. Will definitely return soon. read more

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DH & I were visiting the area for the weekend and chose to go to Akebono on a Friday night. This place is located in a little strip mall and I was hesitant to go in for all of two seconds. It was crowded and others were filing in along with us, so I was very encouraged about eating here. Like I said, they were busy, so we had to wait at least 20 minutes for a table. Not a problem, but after a while the servers got confused about the order guests were arriving. Maybe they should hire a hostess. We decided to split a ramen and order individual entrees. The ramen (I forgot which one), came in 2 large bowls that were almost full. I feel like we got 2 soups for the price of 1. I wish my bowl had a little more broth, but I won't complain. I had beef teriyaki and tempura and DH ordered tempura and sushi. My beef wasn't very hot; however, between the soup and a large Sapporo, I didn't have enough room to eat it, so I just packed it to go. Overall the servers were attentive and the food was pretty good. I would definitely go back when I'm in the area. read more

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This is by far my sushi restaurant. My boyfriend and I have become regulars there. The staff is always so so kind and even when it's busy, they try to find seating for everyone quickly. We've tried almost every roll on the menu and without fail, all amazing. Best place. read more

FOOD POISONING!!! Got confirmation from Kaiser.... Sigh, I LOVED this place too :/ I don't know what else to say. The food was AMAZING! We enjoyed the service. But losing 6 lbs of water weight and not eating solid foods for 2 days straight...it's just not worth it. Sorry Akebono, but it's a definite NO for me. My boyfriend and I dined here Sunday, July 9th for lunch while visiting family. We ate the same exact food as our family for the entire weekend starting Friday. The only meal that we had together (without the rest of our family) was lunch on Sunday. We were the only two people to hail the porcelain throne starting Monday morning. I was so faint from loss of fluid that I had to go to the ER, where they were able to confirm food poisoning. read more

We ordered the Sushi " Dream comes true", Sweep Shrimp and Tan Tan Ramen Noodle . Everything's great just Noodle came too late. read more

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Seated promptly & food brought in a timely manner. Lunch combo w/tempura. Broccoli tempura was soggy. Salmon was very good. Rice fell apart, hard to eat w/chopsticks. We were in the back room, it was so loud I could not hear someone sitting next to me. read more

I have been a customer for years whenever I am in Sacramento from Petaluma, Sonoma County. The Akebono menu is "natsuka-shii" with Japanese comfort food that reminds me of food I grew up with in Tokyo starting 71 years ago. I need to thank Sai Wong for his efforts in promoting Japanese cuisine here in the USA. The hefty Katsu Don-buri is truly my favorite! That said, I yearn for true Yakisoba and Ramen using thinner, curly Ramen Noodles with the certain texture and flavor resulting from use of alkali water and specific drying process instead of the flavor-less, thicker, chowmein-type noodles that are used not only at Akebono, but also at Raijin and Ruijin in all ramen type dishes. The locals here in the USA are totally oblivious to these qualitiy differences. Yama-chan/Ringer-Hut noodles may be an optional source. Your staff at your former Akebono is wonderful, especially Naomi, my favorite server who is bilingual. I wish whoever owns your ex-restaurant is interested in selling, as I might be interested in as an investment. Best regards, Ned H. read more

We love coming here! Akebono offers fresh fish, semi-traditional and American style sushi as well as ramen, etc. We love the geso appetizer, and usually sit at the sushi bar. The fish is fresh and the prices are reasonable, especially considering how large the slices of fish are on the nigiri. Service here is always on point. Everyone greets you with a smile and makes you feel welcome. read more

It's a hit or miss for me. In this case, it's a hit! We came here around noon for Mother's Day and we had four people ahead of us with parties of four or five and it was just me plus one. We waited for only 5 minutes to be seated and I was pretty impressed! It was extremely busy! Right away, they took our drink order. Then within a few minutes we ordered four rolls and our food arrived within ten minutes. No one checked on us until we finished eating to ask for a refill. The food was decent. Other than that, I had a great first experience here! read more

Akebono - Akebono has many rolls to choose from! - Japanese Near Me - Sacramento, California

This little gem is our go-to for a night of reasonably priced quality sushi. The people working there are literally THE NICEST ever! Always running specials, giving us some extra sake or an extra salad. Sushi is always FRESH!! And the menu is the perfect mix of options. (Specialty rolls, hot apps, a mix of main dishes). Never had anything we didn't like, it's always consistently great. read more

This was a surprise find. The fish was fresh, they provide large slices, and the prices were right. I would recommend this place to anyone.

One of the best sushi spots in Sac. Boat B is always fulfilling and yummy. Customer service is always at its best. Seated quickly and the waitresses and waiters are very attentive. I love this place for sushi. read more

Akebono - Boat B - Japanese Near Me - Sacramento, California

Solid spot overall. The place may not look like much from the outside, but it's the complete package. I've loved all the rolls I've tried here. The fish tastes fresh and flavorful. I just decided to try the tan tan men ramen, and it totally satisfied my craving. I think this will become my go-to sushi spot in the Neighborhood. It's a great balance of variety, quality and overall value. read more

Akebono - Tan Tan Men - Japanese Near Me - Sacramento, California

5 STARS for their donburi rice bowls! The sushi is great too but great donburi is more difficult to find (At least for me!!) My fave donburi here is the Katsu-donburi. The Katsu is perfectly cooked and crisped and the rice is flavorful and moist with just enough tsuyu broth! I've tried it at a lot of other japanese restaurants in Sac & in the Bay but even though they look beautiful they don't taste as good and end up being too dry. Their other dishes are great too. They make their ramen noodles in house. I also love that they expanded! This place used to be so packed during dinner. Great service, great food! One of the all time fave Japanese spots. read more

Authentic Japanese cuisine. My favorite restaurant because the food is fresh, reasonably priced and large portions. I get my money's worth every time. read more

Solid sushi. The ramen soups are good as well. I really like the Hamachi collar and the toro when it is on special. The service is polite and quick. Nothing to blow your mind, but I've never been disappointed either. read more

I've tore up a sushi boat to go once so this time I decided to dine in. My party of 3 was seated quickly and the restaurant appear to be clean. The service was fine and the sushi was ok. I noticed the rice took up most of the roll and made it look huge. read more

The online ordering process for a sushi party tray is seamless. The food is EXCELLENT. Highly recommend this place!

Pulling into the narrow repulsive parking lot of a nondescript strip mall along Freeport Boulevard with its dismal looking storefronts, I began to regret my decision to go to Akebono for my initial endeavor into the "world of ramen". As I approached the door I kept thinking it was not too late to try somewhere else. Then I reached out, opened the door and was immediately taken in by the charm of this sleek little Japanese restaurant. I don't know if it was the man that happily waved us in while he walked towards us, warmly greeting us and showing us to our table? Maybe it was the clean uncluttered look of the place with its simple modern looking décor? Whatever it was, I was pleasantly surprised and suddenly very glad that I had decided to make Akebono my first stop in my exploration into the "world of ramen". After spending an ample amount of time perusing the menu, I decided on the champon ramen with the tonkatsu broth and a spicy tuna roll. My tuna roll was pretty good and for the most part, the broth of my ramen had pretty good flavor but I was disappointed by the amount of noodles. It seemed like there should have been something more than there was. My girl friend on the other hand ordered a vegetarian ramen that came with cabbage and her ramen for some reason had at least three times the noodles as mine. She decided to add some fresh ginger from her vegetable sushi roll and some soy sauce to her broth. By the time I was finished with my ramen she was already getting full and I was still quite hungry so she volunteered to share some of her extra ramen with me. Her ramen was phenomenal. It was so good I can't even describe it. I don't know if it was the original broth or the combination with the ginger and soy sauce but it was delicious. Our waitress had gone on break so I tried to ask two other people working there what kind of broth my girl friend had ordered and no one seemed to know. I certainly hope that when we return we can duplicate whatever it was that she had. I am afraid my first endeavor into the "world of ramen" has left me even more confused than I was to start with. read more

I can't say anything bad about Akebono! My girlfriend and I can go here multiple times a week and then realize we have, vow to not come back for a bit. Then we come back the next week. Traditional order: Teriyaki Beef Don, Salmon Toro Nigiri, and a Itchiro Roll. Didn't look this up, and I can recite it from memory. We've had one of the sushi boats before too, it had some of the best sushi I've had in Sacramento. read more

Oh man. The tofu egg bowl is SO FREAKING GOOD. I went here with my mom and a couple other people and staff was pretty good! My mom can be really difficult and negative especially when it comes to food service and our service handled it really well offering alternatives and trying to work with my mom. The sake were really great and probably one of the most buttery salmons I ever ate. And if I didn't emphasize it enough earlier, THE TOFU EGG BOWL. BOMB. Can't wait to come back! read more

I always have a great experience here at Akebono. Always great quality food and great customer service. It gets pretty packed on weekends and dinner time because they're that good. The last time I came here I got the curry Udon and my friend got a ramen. The Curry Udon was delicious. I wish I had ordered more sides to go with it like some tempura or croquette that would've been perfect. But the Curry Udon by itself was delicious so much flavor and very filling. It's not really a soupy Curry Udon but curry with Udon noodles instead of rice and it comes with chicken as the protein but I'm sure you can order it without meat and maybe sub more potatoes and carrots. I'm definitely going back for their sushi selection because their fish always tastes fresh and rolls never fall apart so that's always a good sign for good sushi. read more

Horrible service has been given to the wrong person... ME!!! It takes a lot to get me to write this kind of review. I'm sure I'm missing more details that added on to my horrible experience but here it goes... Our server did not have a smile on her face, with a monotone voice, like she didn't enjoy her job from the moment she came to our table. We ordered waters and one beer. When we received our beer, we noticed there was about an inch of foam. Asked if we could get it topped off, she took the beer away without saying a word, and came back with the beer... Exactly how it was before. Okay fine. We ordered 4 entrees and decided to order a sushi roll a few minutes after. All of our entrees came and my husband ordered geso & another beer. This time, the beer had about two inches of foam brought to us by another server. Is this a joke freaking joke?? This time, I personally asked for the beer to be topped off, she took the beer without saying a word, just like the first server. She went back there while obviously gossiping about us to our original server. I'm not dumb, I've been in the service industry since I could start working. If you're going to talk about customers, don't do it right in front of them. It was that obvious. She came back with the beer completely topped off with the glass completely filthy on the outside. From that moment on, I've completely lost my appetite. Meanwhile, our sushi roll which has been sitting there for 5+ minutes in the window while they gossip amongst themselves. Our roll was being ignored, while other sushi items were being expedited and the three other people I was with were already done with their meals. We asked to talk to the manager. The short haired lady is the manager I guess? Her excuse of the beer issue is that their beer machine is giving them trouble. With a full restaurant, I'd expect they could afford a new beer tap. She kept interrupting me while I was trying to explain to her my whole experience. She even came back to give me the check and said, I talk to the girls, they said they weren't talking about you guys. Seriously lady? If they were, would they honestly tell you or would you come and honestly tell me they did? You all have time to talk about that but you could let my sushi roll sit at the window for that long? Give me a freaking break already. What a way to enjoy my Sunday night $65 dinner. How funny after talking to the "manager," the original server came back and she had a different tone in her voice, "could I get anything else for you guys?" Please, you did not deliver since the beginning. Get out of here, no wait... let me get the hell outta here before they suck all my positive energy. This has got to be the worst experience I've EVER had. The three people I came with all have restaurant/serving experience. Keep up with this kind of crappy service and I'm sure you will be having customers not come back, like me, my friends, family, and who ever reads this review that cares about service. I sure as hell am taking my business elsewhere. I regret coming here, not taking a pic of the beer, and not walking out after I witnessed them gossiping so my party could finish their meal. TREAT CUSTOMERS/PEOPLE THE WAY YOU WANT TO BE SERVED/TREATED. I thought we all learned this in grade school....? read more

We've been going here as a family since they opened and come here regularly. I'm finally writing this review to praise them for their kids' meals, which have to be some of the healthiest available in town. We go here without the kids too. Love the giant Asahi Dry, the Gekikara Ramen, and highly recommend the Big King special roll and Rainbow Roll. Like any other sushi restaurant the quality of the fish can vary a bit but all within the realm of good to excellent. It's very casual here, with not much ambiance -- our other favorite sushi restaurant is the more upscale Kru when that matters to us. We get our kids the Chicken Teriyaki kids' meal. I believe it's ~$6.95 or so. It comes with grilled chicken cut into strips, a block of rice for little fingers to grab, tempura shrimp and veggies, some blanched veggies (carrots, broccoli, etc.) and orange slices. For our more finicky eater we ask them to leave the teriyaki sauce and dressing off. Yes, the tempura is fried (and hot at first so be careful!) -- but when you compare it to other kids' meals you will see that it is a much more balanced meal than most. Don't forget to ask for the Fun Chops (chopstick helpers/attachments for the kids). The staff are all extremely nice and helpful. If you have kids, get here before 6pm or bring a snack and something to keep them occupied. The restaurant fills up quickly sometimes. The one thing that drives me bonkers is the crappy K-Tel 70's love songs CD that is played on a loop. There's nothing like eating sushi and listening to one hit wonders that should be buried. Makes me want to go El Kabong! read more

They have forever ruined Top Ramen for me. How can I go back to it when I know that a huge bowl of ramen with slices of bbq pork and seafood is waiting for me at Akebono? Well, I'm broke, so as I weep bitterly into my noodle cup, I promise myself, "Another day, champon ramen, another day..." I always feel kinda sheepish when I eat at the restaurant because I can never finish a bowl of ramen myself; I can barely make a dent in it, actually. So when the waitress comes to give me my check and box, I always feel some insane urge to proclaim my love for it, as if I've betrayed some sort of sacred ramen-ness. The restaurant is pretty clean and service is very sweet. There are actually Japanese people working here, and actual Japanese sushi chefs! CRAZY! I know! Must be why there are so many Japanese families dining here. I can't say anything about their sushi rolls because they were expensive and looked to be the sauced up types. Bento combinations are a good deal, and the chicken teriyaki tasted good. Tip: If you're not a big eater, I would recommend splitting the ramen with a friend. It's cheaper and still just as filling. read more

So we were in the mood for some Japanese food & my sister said this place was decent from her recollection. However, the night we were there was a miss for us. Staff was friendly but the food was okay. My daughter always orders a rainbow roll. The one we ordered was different here. Instead of crab inside she got a tempura shrimp with fish on top & it was not enjoyable for her. She didn't care for the shrimp so it was a let down. The rice fell apart when eating it too. My son's tonkatsu kids meal was good although it came with only 4 pieces, rice & tempura. He didn't eat the tempura but also came with a drink which was a plus. The chicken katsu curry was okay. Katsu was good but way too much curry on the runny side & the potatoes were underdone. Overall would not come back the food was lacking. read more

There was a time in my life when I'd run to the store just because they had ramen on sale at 5 for a dollar. That would be followed by a double helping boiled in my hotpot in the foyer of my dorm room. Ah, the bad ol' days... It's nice to know that as you get older and have a few more coins in your pocket, you can sit in the comfortable confines of places like Akebono and be served gourmet ramen in giant ceramic bowls. Of course, this is no plastic-wrapped, hardened tile of ramen. This is restaurant ramen and that means tender slices of BBQ pork, bamboo shoots, green onion and seemingly endless strands of stringy noodles wade deep in perfectly seasoned broth. Akebono has several variations of the soup--pork, soy and miso are the standbys--including a seasonal special curry udon that made me immediately close my menu and look for the server. I don't pass up curry. Nope, not gonna happen. Both the curry udon and the tonkatsu chashu ramen, tried on a subsequent visit, were hot, fresh, well-spiced and lovingly presented. This, like pho, on a cold, wet day warms the cockles and completely fills any happy Buddha belly. Akebono also serves sushi and many other traditional Japanese dishes such as yakisoba, tonkatsu and--wait, what's this?--curry rice. Yeah, I'll be back. And not soon enough. read more

Akebono! How I have a love hate relationship with you. Your Soba Noodles are so wonderful, your ramen exquisite, your sashimi and nigiri top notch. Your service has always been great and friendly. Lately, however I am a bit hesitant to come and frequent you. I am a fish biologist and to see that you serve Blue fin tuna is distressing. This is a species of concern and should be avoided, it's even on Seafood Watches avoid list. Also, your ramen has MSG in it, and unfortunately that is something I have found out I am very sensitive to. So, go for the sushi, Soba, service, tempura, avoid the blue fin tuna.....and the ramen. read more

I heard a rumor that this place is the center of the Japanese community in Sac. Not knowing, I cannot say. What I CAN tell you is that the food is delicious. I usually get either chicken teryaki or tonkatsu. Either of those are ridiculous and you might just die of happiness. The nigiri is also top-notch. You won't be sorry you ate this. Why four stars and not five? Every once in a great while, the tonkatsu and tempura is just a little flat. But usually this is not the case. I definitely love it here, you should totally love it. read more

Great place for ramen! The broth could be more rich but the bbq pork in the shoyu dish is great! I also tried the takoyaki and it was good, but it didn't have a lot of octopus in it, only little itty pieces. read more

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I finally found real sushi in Sacramento. I don't know where the local sushi shops learned to slap cream cheese on fish, but i'm over it. Akebono, is a simple family restaurant with high quality sushi. Lots of great rolls, and fresh fish. The best I've found in Sactown. I hear the ramen is excellent also, so i'll be returning soon. Peace out. read more

SURPRISE FOOD ADVENTURE #5 Roommate and I were craving ramen, so we decided to have a surprise food adventure with Erik L. and another friend. I sent out the address to Erik and our other friend, and they both showed up without knowing where exactly they were heading, but alas, both of them had actually been to Akebono before! Oh wells. It was still a surprise? Akebono is my new favorite ramen place in Sacramento. Although given the way that I feel about most of the other ramen places in Sac, I'm not really sure how high of praise that should be taken as. What Akebono does right: - Broth: The flavor of the broth is delicious! I am so tired of going to ramen places in Sac and being sorely deprived of flavor. In rating ramen, broth is always THE most important factor for me, and at least in terms of Sacramento ramen joints, Akebono takes the cake on this one. - Noodles: Some people are really picky about their noodles, but as long as they're not incredibly mushy, the texture of the noodles does not make or break a bowl of ramen for me. That being said, the noodles at Akebono were quite good-- like I've said before, I'm an al dente kinda girl, and Akebono served up their noodles with just the right amount of firmness for me. - Spiciness level: Roomie, Erik L., and I'm sure countless other Sacramento transplants have been sorely disappointed by the level of "spiciness" in foods in Sac that are supposedly "spicy." How many ramen places had we been to in Sacramento that had served us sad excuses for "spicy" bowls of ramen? Too many... until Akebono. Akebono offers varying levels of spiciness for their ramen. Erik L. decided to go out on a limb and ordered a super crazy spicy challenge ramen that was beyond even the highest level that was advertised. I feel like when you're ordering an off-menu level of spiciness... you might want to think about that decision very carefully. Erik L. approached it with a "YOLO" kind of attitude. What he should have been thinking instead was the Lonely Island version of YOLO-- you oughta look out. Poor boy. He probably will never admit yea (yea, I'm calling you out, Erik), but I think he was dying. He looked like he was dying. So yea, I think that Akebono can do spicy ramen. tl;dr: Akebono is my new favorite ramen place in Sac. I wish it was not quite so far away from me, but if I am ever craving some gooooood ramen, I'll know where to go. Now to come back and try their sushi... read more

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This is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Sac. It's one of the few that's actually authentic (most of the servers really speak Japanese and don't try to correct me when I order a "sah-poro" instead of a "suh-poor-o) and they have the freshest, most high quality sushi in town BY FAR. I can't recommend any rolls off the menu since I usually just tell the chef what I'm in the mood for. Last time I asked for some kind of roll that incorporated hamachi, salmon, jalepenos and lemon and it was THE BEST ROLL I'VE EVER HAD. EVER. The staff is SUPER friendly but it can get busy, especially during weekend lunch time. Aside from the sushi I love the ramen, the tonkatsu miso is my favorite. The tempura is also very good. I've gotten a boring meat-based bento box a couple times before and it was just ok. I don't really like the dressing they put on the salad. If you come here and order something boring like teriyaki chicken you probably won't be impressed. This place is for RAMEN + SUSHI. read more

Akebono is the bomb. The sushi is fresh and you definitely get what you pay for. I wanted sashimi but the only sashimi platter they had was a dinner plate. I didn't want the salad and soup etc. so the chef made my dining partner and I a sashimi platter. It was fantastic - suzuki, hamachi, toro, sake, maguro - it was $25. for 3 pieces of each. Now, I personally would have rather paid $5 more and had 4 pieces each so I wouldn't have to get into a chop stick fight for the last piece.... but, whatever, I lived through it. We had two rolls each, which were good, as usual. (I had the akebono and the requisite rainbow roll - my dining partner had the pink lady, it was awesome.) I love sushi but I wish it wasn't $100. every time two people want to go for some good sushi. Overall, if you like sushi, it's definitely a place to check out. It's good and the portions are large. The last time I went was a Sunday a few months ago and a friend and I shared the "B" sushi boat. (look on page ten of the menu - the very last page) I swear that damn thing had 120 pieces of sushi on it. If you like rolls, get some friends together and order a boat. The boat takes up the whole table and may seem expensive but when they plop the huge plastic boat on the table with so much sushi you kinda go into a sushi coma before you even eat it... and, you have to stand up to see the person you are dining with, well, know you are getting your monies worth. Minus one star for the 3 piece thing. I actually had conversation with the chef (we were sitting in front of the sushi bar) about the sashimi. If I owned the place and was cutting the sushi, I would have put one more piece on the plate. Two people, two servings............ I'm not saying, I'm just saying.... not trying to be a greedy brat, but either put two or four. Check it out... have fun... thanks for reading. read more

I've been a server and manager in the restaurant industry for over 10 years and Akebono is still struggling to provide an average if not enjoyable dining experience as far as service is concerned. I've been here twice, and the first time was fine, but my most recent experience on Superbowl Sunday was lackluster at best. Our party of 7 arrived without reservations and were promptly seated. The restaurant was maybe at 25% of capacity and there seemed to be plenty of staff on hand both on the floor and behind the sushi bar. We ordered a half dozen oysters in the half shell and edamame for appetizers. Akebono must have the slowest oyster shucker in the world because we received our entrees before our oysters even came out. The $13 nabeyaki udon that I ordered came in a drastically smaller portion than my dining companions bowls of ramen which cost $8. My Uncle ordered a spicy tuna roll and we had to remind our server about it, and our edamame.... it never came. But they remembered to charge us for it. Lastly, I understand that at any Japanese restaurant there are literally dozens of plates on the table at the end of the meal, but you should never stack plates on the table while the guests are still sitting at the table. Granted, overall the portions at Akebono are substantial and a good value, but if you don't receive your food, a value it isn't. Maybe it was a fluke, maybe the server was having a bad day, maybe the staff was focused on the game, but all in all, I can't recommend this place even if the food is decent. read more

My wife and I went to Akebono for the Father's Day dinner last Sunday. Wife ordered teriyaki Salmon and I ordered teriyaki steak (menu advertised as New York steak). I was deeply disappointed with the steak. It was tough (definitely not NY steak) and overcooked. I gave up after trying to eat few strips, and just watched my wife ate her salmon. At the end of the meal, the manager came over to apologize and admitted that the meat quality Is not good because COVID-19 affected the meat processing plant. I said if he knows the meat is not good, then he should not offer to the customers. The manager didn't charge me for the steak, but it's not just the money, it ruined my dining experience. It ruined my Father's Day meal. Well, my wife liked her salmon. read more

Akebono - Japanese Near Me - Sacramento, California

This is a great all-around Japanese restaurant. I was first intrigued by the numerous ramen debates that pitted this place against Shoki, which I have been a huge fan of since the time that Edokko on Broadway closed down. The loss of Edokko left a gap in my heart (and stomach) that wasn't filled until Shoki opened its doors a year later, for which it won itself a loyal fan... but then years later I found out that Akebono's ramen recipe was based on the one from my lost love Edokko. Do I settle with my new love, or try to revisit an old flame? What is a boy to do? -- begin tangent -- This is straight out of an Asian drama... except nobody's dying of Leukemia or needs a kidney transplant. In the drama it would feature some girl who lost her fiancee in a car accident and after years of mourning, learned to love again by dating the guy who was there to comfort her. Then suddenly, she runs into her dead boyfriend's long lost twin and her life becomes a jumbled mess and she walks into a truck. Ack, the conflicting emotions. Fortunately this is real life and I'm allowed to have an open relationship with my restaurants... -- end tangent -- So, is there enough room in my heart (and stomach) for another ramen place? The answer is an emphatic "yes." The ramen is legit and they've got a wide variety of ramens to choose from. Also, if you're looking to tackle a food challenge, they've got a large super spicy ramen challenge. It's only about habanero hot, but the temperature of the broth and the quantity is large enough to make it an ordeal... but it's possible. I did it. read more

This place is better than most yet the menu selection is still the same as the competitions around it. If compared to the local sushi places, it's one of the best. However, compared to others in town, it lacks quality and customer service. But if you're in the are and feeling like sushi, this will satisfy that craving. read more

Less successful than our great meal at New Hong Kong Wok was our trip to sample the ramen at Akebono. I guess I set my expectations too high when people told me that this place would compare to Santa Ramen. First off, I wasn't stoked on Akebono's ambiance, too brightly lit with plasma TV's playing the Golden State game. Now I realize that every man in the room was happy to have the game on, but the loud table of people slamming drinks to go along with the game wasn't the quiet traditional ramen or sushi house that I had in mind. Another thing is that rarely does a ramen house have great sushi and vice versa, it's difficult and untraditional to accomplish both of those specialties under one roof. We brought along a school friend to join this weeknight dinner. I opted for the tonkotsu ramen which is my benchmark ramen for initial ramen evaluations. While I found the broth to be better than Shoki Ramen, this was not even close to the sublimely rich pork broth at Santa Ramen. The noodles were nicely al dente, but the other components of the dish were not carefully arranged, more piled in there. The size of the bowl was gigantic though, enough to feed two. Temperature was ok, the broth could have been hotter especially b/c the restaurant was chilly inside. Since I hadn't had any sushi or sashimi for a while, we decided to start with a sashimi appetizer. I was shocked at how low quality the fish was. I found a small bone in one piece and the salmon, aji, and hamachi were low on flavor and did not taste fresh. I would put this at the quality level of basic grocery store sashimi and lower quality than what you can get at Nijiya Market. I won't be rushing back there but if I had a craving for ramen, I would probably come here over Shoki, even though I liked the service and home-style ambiance at Shoki better. 2.5 stars. read more

After a good friend recommended Akebono, we decided to give them a try. Although I usually let new restaurants work out all the kinks for a few months, I broke my rule. Good thing I did. We arrived at about 5 p.m. on a Saturday, were seated promptly and joined by the rest of our party (total of 7) about 15 minutes later. The menu had a very nice selection, many specials and reasonable prices. The wait staff was helpful, almost too helpful as we had my daughter with us, she's almost 2. And she was playing drop the chopstick, which I believe is bad luck in Japan; they were very quick to pick them up. Anyway, I digress. The rolls were great, sashimi was fresh and the place was clean. First thing I do in a sushi place, smell the air. If it smells like The Wharf, I turn and run. It was very nice. All in all, we had a great meal and dining experience. I did notice that they had a few large groups standing by ready for any empty tables at around 7 p.m. but if you only have a few, they have a very long sushi bar. read more