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    AKEMI Japanese Restaurant

    3.8 (428 reviews)
    Open 11:30 am - 2:30 pm, 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM

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    AKEMI JAPANESE RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Trendy
    Good for groups
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - AKEMI Japanese Restaurant

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    The sushi here is fresh and delicious! The service here is top notch and very clean. Their Lion King is out of this world! I live in Walnut Creek and I love coming here to watch. Trust me It's worth the drive!

    Top to bottom: baked scallop roll, lion king roll, double hamachi roll, salmon & avocado roll
    Pat P.

    Wonderful restaurant with high quality food, calming atmosphere, and attentive wait staff. I've been here on numerous occasions and can't recommend their sushi rolls enough. The ingredients (most importantly the fish) are always fresh, and the rolls are prepared with great attention to detail. I love their rendition of the lion king roll, it isn't too mayonnaise heavy and the scorched top adds a wonderful char flavor. This most recent trip I tried the Akemi roll for the first time, which uses a cucumber wrap instead of rice. It was difficult to eat because the cucumber doesn't stick to the fish the way rice does, and it's too big to eat in one bite, but the flavors were so refreshing and I would absolutely recommend this for something different. I also want to shout out the baked scallop roll, the shrimp tempura inside was still crispy when served to us, which I rarely see done well at other sushi restaurants. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the rolls at Akemi. I've had their tonkotsu ramen twice: the first time it was perfect with a rich, flavorful broth, bouncy noodles, and a jammy egg. The second time the egg was overcooked. If you are looking for quality Japanese food I cannot recommend Akemi enough!

    kim d.

    One of my favorite places in Berkeley--been going here for the last 4 years, and the quality of fish has never let me down! My go-to roll is the truffle toro (although I'm not too sure of the official name) and the negihama (yellowtail roll)! The rice is always perfectly cooked, and the fish is top tier! The ambiance is very moody, so it's perfect for a date night, although I love stopping by casually for a quick bite. Service is always welcoming and I've been a regular for the longest time! Beautiful decor and amazing bites!

    Okonomiyaki
    Chris N.

    Upscale Japanese restaurant in North Berkeley. They have Okonomiyaki here but not quite what I used to get at this restaurant in Japantown that closed a few years ago. It would also be nice to expand on the protein offerings as well. I ordered beef teriyaki plate which I asked staff to make sure it was medium well but what I got was a pretty bloody medium. Although we got seated pretty quickly, the staff never really checked up on us much. Not really worth the price for an upscale restaurant they serves mediocre Japanese cuisine. 2.5 stars for me.

    Sushi Menu 7/25
    Abby C.

    I really enjoyed the atmosphere this restaurant provided. I was quite impressed with the sleek interior, the wood tables, and the lighting. The restaurant felt very ambient, even at noon. While there were only two tables at lunch, the service was quite slow. My friend and I waited quite a while for the Bento box and a couple rolls. The red dragon roll was fantastic, I enjoyed the quality of the tuna and the spice. I also ordered the 49er roll and I was very pleased to find the crab was not imitation crab. I tasted some of the wagyu beef my friend got in her bento and it was so tender and flavorful. I'm quite surprised at the generous portions of tempura, beef, and salad the bento had. I think it was well worth.

    Kathy V.

    Anyone say sushi? I can tell you I've had Akemi on my list for years! Located off Solano Ave in Albany/Berkeley. Sometimes it's hard to find good quality sushi and Akemi filled my needs. Agadashi Roasted squid Spicy edamame Chirashi bowl Ebi Toro roll Full and satisfied They also have Omakase for 100.00 Winning

    Giant's Roll
    Ronna I.

    This was a good choice for lunch. We shared a few sushi rolls in a nice and relaxing atmosphere with friendly service. We had the Crunchy Tuna Roll, Rainbow Roll, and the Giant's Roll. We appreciated that not a lot of sauce was used. Sometimes, the sauce can be too much and no other flavors come through. The fish was tender and its flavor subtle.

    Chicken Karaage
    Naima C.

    Went here to celebrate a friends birthday, I had never been in this area of Berkeley but it is located in a very cute spot. The restaurant is very lowkey and the restaurant provides a good atmosphere that welcome people. The food was delicious and everything tasted fresh and had good portions! I recommend adding the strawberry yuzu spritzer! Really good! My friends tried the lobster ramen and it was a really good size of lobster that came with the food and the broth had a lot of great flavors. Overall nice spot and I am happy to have discovered this new area.

    Menu (2/2) as of 1/19/25
    Winston L.

    3.5 Stars. Nothing really stood out for us. Sushi flavor and ingredient quality was there, albeit at the expense of sushi size. Ramen was good. Overall decor was quite nice

    Long sushi bar
    Patricia W.

    I booked the reservation on the past Sunday at 6 pm, via Open Table. When I called to make the appointment last Saturday, the receptionist was unable to take my reservation because it was very busy at the restaurant, she told me to make the appointment online or call an hour later. I had to read through the website to find it on the "About" section mentioned about make the reservartion via Open Table. I wish the OpenTable link could add to the front page of the website to make it easier for booking. Nice ambiance, like the salvaged wood for the tables and seats at the reception and bar are. We sat near the kitchen and facing the long sushi bar. There were a fruit fly over our table before our dinner, glad it was gone when the food served. The sake samplers were best for those who like to try different sake but don't have to order the whole bottle. My husband and I shared the Akemi sampler, it was only $18 for three kinds of sake. We shared the following food from the menu: Chicken Karaage, California rolls with real crab meat, sushi nigiri of Uni ($23), Hamachi yellow tail, Blue Fin Toro fatty tuna, Tai red snapper. Tonkotsu combo with mixed Tempura, Ikayaki grilled whole squid. I would stick to the sushi, good quality fish was fresh and delicious, good thickness of the fish slices, the sushi rice could be better because it was a bit mushy. The combo was a good value. The grilled whole squid was a disappointment, it was skinny and did not look and tasted like grilled (please refer to the grilled Hokkaido squid at Ippuku, I could encore on it). No complaint on the service, it was decent overall.

    Just opened for this cold eve.
    Thomas B.

    What a nice change of pace for Japanese restaurant that I hadn't been to before. We were greeted at the door by Tina, who has this very outgoing and nurturing personality. She immediately directed us to a table of our choice because we came in early and we're wondering why the place wasn't full of people after good reviews. Later I found out why. The place wasn't full because they had just opened and by the time we left, it was full on a Tuesday night night. Looking around as we walked in, I noticed that the place was elegant and understated, which is a blessing because sometimes you go to specialty restaurants, and they have just too much clutter on the walls in the cupboards, then in the niches. It's well lighted big windows, but because of all the dark wood you get this feeling that is sort of a romantic atmosphere, everyone was smiling the staff and the chef all greeted us when we walked in and the great customer service continued throughout the meal. We got a great window seat. So it was fun to watch the activity out on Solano Avenue while we were waiting for our food. Tina suggested some great things to try that were specials on the menu and they were very very tasty. So I would recommend when you go in. Ask if the chef has a special for the evening or if there's a special dinner plate for the evening. We were very pleased with everything that showed up at our table . Looking back at what I had for dinner tonight. I was very pleased to try a pork belly tonkatsu Ramen, which was delicious. I was very surprised that it had the white sauce. I should say white broth, and it was a nice change of pace for me. We also had the chef prepare a six piece special sushi for a plate just to have a little taste of something special. One was Uni, When was exquisite octopus that had been marinated, and then slightly roasted, and the last item was this wonderful Sushi made from a delicate white fish. Our entrées were the pork belly, Tonkatsu Ramen. I also made sure on a cool evening like tonight that I had some hot sake with it. Though hot sake is more of an American tradition. It was sort of fun to have it on a cold everything we ate and wonderful flavors. Everything looked very, very fresh. It was very clean in the restaurant, and it would be fine to have this experience shared with friends again on another occasion. They will see us soon.

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    This place is nice inside, staff was polite and pleasant. All I can say is the food is AWESOME!!

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    We love to come here for special occasions or just for fun. The akemi roll is so good and is a family favorite of ours.

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    Fresh and delicious. I'm always kind of nervous about sushi since I'm a celiac but I have never been sick here.

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    Page 4 of 11

    AKEMI Japanese Restaurant Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - AKEMI Japanese Restaurant

    Is this AYCE?

    We do not offer AYCE - All You Can Eat. Akemi Japanese Restaurant offers A La Carte dishes from the kitchen, as well as combination plates, and ramen options. We also offer A La Carte items from our sushi bar (Sashimi, Nigiri, Maki rolls, and full… 

    View All 3 Questions

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    Vanessa's Bistro - Chicken lettuce wraps, so good!

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    Loved my time in Walnut Creek! We tried to eat at Lita but the wait was 90 minutes with no…read morereservation. We put our name down and walked around, then stumbled on Vanessa's Bistro!!! Much better choice!!! Hostess greeted us right away and got us a table. Service was amazing, the margarita was strong and tasty, and those chicken wings with the peanut sauce...So good!! Highly recommend they have TVs you can watch the game. They also have a good selection on the menu . Great food, great vibe, great service. I'm definitely going back and telling friends and family to check it out.

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    Top Hatters Kitchen and Bar - Meat Platter

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    Such a gem in this city. Was in love with their oxtail grits…read morewhen they were only a food truck. So glad I found them again and see them grow into a restaurant. Nice environment, decent service, high quality food. A must try place if you're a true foodie.

    Came here for a lunch date with hubby. We dont come to San Leandro often so not sure how was the…read moreparking situation. We saw a street parking as soon as we turn, and just parked even though it was 1000 ft away. The drink/cocktail list is vast, but we are not much of a cocktail drinker and not usually drink during lunch, but I saw Matcha Sharka being ordered a lot and the other seemingly popular drink was this lavender drink. If you are a cocktail drinker during lunch, do check them out. We ordered 4 shareable items: * Savoy Donuts - 5 stars - fluffy and yummy, not greasy at all * Focaccia w/ Meyer Lemon and Garlic Confit - 4.5 stars - wonderful texture, did not taste the garlic much but the lemon was really good add. * Grilled Beef and Pork Chipolata - 4 stars - I think the star was the dressing. The meat itself was just okay. * Rice Vermicelli Bowl - 4.5 stars - not sure why it is called a bowl when it was served more in a plate. This is the fusion take on the Vietnamese dish with different dressing. We selected the Galangal Pork, which I did not like as much compared to the usual Vietnamese ones with Lemon Grass. There is a choice to select Lemongrass chicken instead, so you might want to try that. The pork tasted "porky" despite it was thinly cut. I was hoping to try dessert, but we were full so we did not do that. Next time. The restaurant is nicely set, and you can select indoor or outdoor seating. We did make a reservation, but when we arrived there were plenty of tables available. Service was fine, we did not get the "is this your first time" greeting as I heard other tables got. But it was our first time.

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    AKEMI Japanese Restaurant - japanese - Updated September 2026

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