Food was excellent. Great flavors and nice presentation. Attractive space and tables are spaced out nicely. Seemed short staffed, and service not as attentive as one might hope, from the wait to be greeted, to trying to get server's attention after food came out to ask that chopsticks and napkin be provided for both people at the table not just one. read more

One of better Japanese restaurants in Berkeley Solano areas. Agree with some of the comments about uneven service and seating issues but not enough to not return. 3 stars are for overall - pricey menu, and inconsistent staff presentation. Otherwise food I have ordered has been delicious hamachi sashimi dish, akemi roll, beef tatami, etc. The reception staff were friendly but a bit tense for the few number of patrons in restaurant when we arrived - so won't be able to decide whether the behaviors are anomalous until I have visited more. Have been here twice and enjoyed the dishes we ordered both times. It is a bit expensive and mostly worth it (every once in awhile). read more

Food was okay but not great and overpriced. Service was also slow although the restaurant was almost empty.

I took my friend here for her birthday dinner per her request bc she loves this place. The place is nicely decorated and service was quick. It's a nice place for a date bc of the decor and ambience (dark, moody). The sushi was tasty, fresh and beautiful. Glad I tried this hidden gem. read more

See all

Akemi is delicious. But I think they were a little off their game when we visited last night for Berkeley Restaurant Week. At first we were greeted by the hostess, and she wished me happy birthday as she walked us to our seat. We were seated and we perused the menu, but didn't have the BRW17. Water comes and shortly after the waitress to ask us if we were ready. We ask for the special BRW17 menu and she gives us a few minutes after we give her an order for beer. We pick and choose from their offerings. I read ahead and already had my choices in mind. I had my heart (and stomach) set on the Kara Age, Buta Abara, and Penna Cotta. I was detoured when she tells me that they were out of the Buta Abara. How could they be out of one of their BRW17 specials? It was only halfway through the promotion, and we were there on a wednesday night before 7pm. I tried to shrug it off and picked the rainbow roll instead. Food came at a good pace. We added a tampura sampler to start. A mx of shrimp and veggies which was good enough to share for two. Then we started on the BRW17 first course. The KARA AGE was amazing! It was crunchy, it was juicy, it was well seasoned and then they gave you mayo to dip it with that just took it to another level. The mayo was so good I had to ask for some more. and then I asked for some more. I think the first person I asked forgot, because while I waited for more mayo the rolls came out for the second course and so I asked them for more mayo. The rolls were pretty. Pretty to look at and kinda pretty small. It was a long roll though and since we ordered two different kinds it was easy to share. Finally I ended the meal with the yuzu panna cotta! It was delicious! It was topped with small bits of strawberry and candied fruit strips but I'm not sure which citrus they used. It was a nice way to end he meal. Looking forward to trying them again soon, next time I'm craving Kara Age. Hopeful that they will have the buta abara then too :D 10/100 Side Note because it made me wonder - do they put candles on desserts for birthdays? they greeted me happy birthday as they showed us our seats but there was no candle to make a wish on when we got desserts. no big deal though just curious. read more

See all

Sushi, Sashimi, Robata, Tempura, seaweed salad, yuzu panna cotta desert, green tea, and miso soup are very good. Too bad that they have to put our party of 5 with a huge order at a table for four, while holding the table for 8 which they gave away to a party of 3 a few minutes. The worst part is not having enough service to get the dessert in time when we were crunched. read more

AKEMI Japanese Restaurant - White Shiro Albacore Sashimi, superbly fresh, generous cut, best around. Akemi is several notches above the norm. - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

It is my second time visiting AKEMI, this time for Berkeley Restaurant Week's dinner special. The food is as good as I expected it to be, definitely recommend the Kara age--moist and tender but not too oily. Sushi rolls are pretty good, although I would say that for the spicy emerald roll--personally that dollop of sriracha on hamachi sushi doesn't work for me. Love their tamagoyaki sushi--both presentation and taste (not included in the dinner combo). The dessert is light and uniquely fused Japanese element with an Italian dessert--I really liked how the sweet yuzu and fresh strawberry slices balance the creaminess of the Panna Cotta. Overall, besides the fact that I still have to wait for ~10 minutes despite making a reservation( granted it was a full house possibly due to restaurant week), I would say it was a pleasant sushi dining experience and would think about coming back! read more

See all

Great service, great food, great ambiance!! Definately recommended. Check my attached pictures! read more

See all

Happy with the food and service. Love the salads, bento box meals, the sushi and their HOURS!!! The establishment is super clean and the servings are generous. The only drawback I find is when the live entertainment shows up, it's just way to loud and typically drowns out conversations at our table. We usually try to come early before the entertainment starts. read more

Came here for dinner, food was good however they charged for a roll we never ordered / received and we noticed it after we paid and left. After we called them to tell they never refunded us and then stopped answering our calls. Mistakes happen but their lack of communication shows their level of professionalism read more

First time reviewing this place but I have been coming here for years. This is our go to sushi place when we're not feeling like going too far away from home. I love the ambiance of Akemi, it's dark and modern and it gives off upscale vibes without being a place that will totally break the bank. We typically always get the same things when we come here, which may be boring, but if something is done right why mess with it? The other night we ordered the cucumber salad, miso soup, hamachi, California rolls, 49er rolls and crunchy tuna rolls with a cup of tea to split. A good pro tip is that you should just order one cup of tea to split instead of a pot of tea because they will refill your tea cup free of charge while the tea pot is over double the cost. Anyway my favorite item is the hamachi with avocado jalapeños and ponzu but the crust tuna rolls are my favorite rolls, they are spicy tuna and avocado with tempura flakes and then wrapped in soy paper. It is also worth noting that Akemi uses real crab and not imitation crab in their rolls - it makes a difference! Anyway, I love this place and next time I promise I will shake up our order just a little because honestly everything sounds and looks good on the menu. read more

AKEMI Japanese Restaurant - Crunchy Tuna, hamachi, 49er roll and California roll - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

I appreciate the simple & modern ambiance of this restaurant. Both the reservation & confirmation were made online and it was convenient to not wonder if we'd have to wait to be seated. Drinks & orders arrived right away. I especially like the fact that two of my favorite Japanese items are on the menu: sushi & tonkotsu ramen. The Lion King rolls were served warm on a plate, no foil and no mess. Salmon & tuna are both fresh. The the mochi ice cream was a favorite among the kids but I wasn't too thrilled about the uzu pannacota being that it has a strong citrusy flavor. Service here was great. Empty plates removed asap and drinks were refilled on time. Overall, the location was good, place was clean, including the restrooms. Pricing was moderate and equals the quality of the meal and services delivered. read more

Fabulous Japanese restaurant. The only thing I've ever eaten here -- and I get it every time, is the miso salmon combo plate, with the option to substitute extra "protein," as they call it, for the tempura vegetables. Tender salmon, with a delicious char! read more

Here for lunch. Beautiful ambiance and decor. Artistic presentation of food. All very fresh ingredients. Great service.

Limited choice, semi-fresh fish and uninspiring dishes. Only good point is the interior design. Service is also pretty slow. Overall 2 star maxim. read more

AKEMI Japanese Restaurant - This tobiko tastes full of chemical,eww. - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

This place gets 3 star for service. The food especially the sushi rolls are outstanding. I would rate it a 5/5. However, this restaurant lacks service. The service on a Friday is dreadful and a nightmare. It is a complete mess. Waited 10 minutes to be seated and then an additional 20 minutes for someone to just come by and take our order. 15 minutes to get the check after asking for it. Then another 10 minutes to come by and run the card. You could see the frustration with other customers as well. Everyone is just waiting. The owner needs to train staff and hire more staff especially on a Friday. They need to do something so customers can have a better experience. Terrible service. read more

My girlfriend and I were turned away at the door over half an hour before closing time. We will be taking our business elsewhere in the fitire. read more

What a great sushi place!!! My friends and I made a reservation here on Friday night and it was delicious. Megan didn't want to come but I hope she had a good time she ordered some good lemonade that was super fresh n sour. I got free edamame for checking in and the ambiance was really great with live music that was nice and mellow and very fancy lighting. I got the Asami roll which was great it had chili oil on it which was interesting and new. I also tried my friends roll which was wrapped in cucumber I forget the roll but it was very good. All the fish tasted super fresh and delicious!!! I will be coming back when I want some nice sushi. read more

See all

My first experience at Akemi was amazing - last Christmas day. My friend had ramen - I tasted it and it was very good. I had a sushi combo. Excellent. Since then. not so much. Service is spotty - and I've been here about 5x. My biggest issue is the cleaning products they use (which was not an issue that first visit). Once I walked in and walked back out only because the whole place smelled of something like Pinesol. I can't appreciate delicate fish when my nose is blown out with chemicals. They also have some sort of Airwick things in the bathrooms that give off a floral, but chemical smell. I've never run into a restaurant with these issues, so I'm sure they are fixable. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a freakish chemically sensitive person. It's just these odors are overwhelming when trying to enjoy food. The atmosphere is kinda hip/trendy and Zen. I like that. But the cleaning product smell has got to go. read more

I come here about twice a month. They recently renovated their space and revamped the menu. Overall it's pretty average Japanese food. I do like their combination lunch combo because it comes with tempura, miso soup, salad and an entree of your choice. I would give this place a higher rating but the service is always subpar. At times there are only 2-3 tables with customers, yet the 4+ people on staff still manage to ignore you, not refill your water, not give you your bill, etc. read more

The ambiance of this place seems high end, large ornate floral displays set against an elegant austere zen table layout and sprawling sushi bar. Quite beautiful. Sadly, the quality of service doesn't measure up to the setting, and I think this might be why the place was relatively empty for a Saturday night. None of the waitstaff were rude, but there was a delay in getting served and no extra warmth or finesse (plus our mains came out at different times). Kind of killed the experience and made it feel overpriced, even though the food was pretty good (though I was sad about how little chicken was in my ramen) and like I said, it looks more high end. Some additional training for the waitstaff and a slight bump up in the attention to food quality would go a long way. read more

Service is bad as a lot of people have stated here. My experience was not any different... slow, had to ask for water twice before actually getting it, no refills on water during entire dinner, appetizer came out last, after we finished our main course and had to flag down two different servers just to get our check. But the cherry on top for me was... a "service charge" of $8.47 to our bill of $27. When asked what the service charged was for. The front manager told us, since we used a Restaurant.com certificate, there is an automatic charge 18% to our bill before the discount. I did the math. It was NOT 18%, more like 20% charge. I informed the manager of the discrepancy. She told me, that it is 18%. And the restaurant had an agreement with Restaurant.com to automatically add a service charge. So I whipped out my calculator and calculated it in front her. It definitely was not 18%. She apologized and said she'll refund us. Thinking she'll take off the service charge. Instead, she comes back to our table, and hand us .75 cents; refund the 2% difference. Seriously?! And why a 20% service charge, for a below par to nonexistent service?? So check your bill and the service charge carefully. I told her there is no jargon anywhere on the certificate that states an automatic service charge to the bill. And that they need to make it clear to their customers before they use the certificates. Her response was, "we have an agreement with Restaurant.com. You can call them. You want to call them now?" Again, SERIOUSLY?! Final words, it's not worth getting the Restaurant.com certificate to this restaurant and having to deal with bad service and management. There are a lot more sushi restaurants around the area that you can enjoy without the hassle. read more

Had a spectacular dinner with the assorted chef's pick of sashimi, the miso marinated black cod, the Akemi special roll, and the yaki-ika. All the dishes were great, and the service was great as well. I will definitely be back soon. The only drawback that I could find was that it's on the expensive side...but the quality is definitely worth it! read more

I love the Bento Box combo with Wagyu Beef!

Amazing beautiful new restaurant on Solano. Great vibe and delicious food. We came here on V-Day and had a great meal. Friendly staff! Great sushi bar. Highly recommended! read more

BAD SERVICE!!! It's a terrible experience!!! Waiting for almost 1 & half hour for simple ramen because they missing our order. read more

I use to come here a lot when it was still Miyuki and after the month long of remodeling, I have to say that it is definitely a great change. The atmosphere inside is the perfect setting for dates, or even for a group of friends who want to hang out and eat Japanese food. I really like the transformation of the sushi bar and the addition of a zig-zag wall. One side of the wall there are tables mostly for 2, and tables for 4. On the other side there are wooden stumps with a candle on top which adds to the modern setting. Moving on to the food, I was impressed with the vegetarian choices. Before the remodeling, there were almost no vegetarian dishes on the menu. When I went after they reopened, there were more than a handful of entrees that I, as a vegetarian, could choose from. That is a huge plus. Also, the presentation of selected entrees are very appealing, which is an upgrade from miyuki. Overall, I give the place and experience I had 5 stars. I am happy with the wider selection of vegetarian dishes and the modern design. read more

The whole point of calling ahead a week in advance to make a reservation is to reserve a nice table. Instead they put us in the freezing cold back room and brought me a heater when I made a fuss. Heater helped but the experience was tarnished. Probably won't go back. read more

Came here for lunch on restaurant week. Had a 2:00 reservation. Arrived at 158pm to be turned away by a very rude hostess who mumbled to me four times before I could hear her that the restaurant just did last call. You are only as good as your staff. Will never come back. read more

Consistently good food, good service, great location - convenient.

This is my favorite of all sushi places. The ambiance, food and staff are all wonderful. They gave a large assortment of great rolls to choose from along with other Japanese favorites. read more

I love the interior here! The evil roll taste really good but I don't like their reman!!!! Won't ever order again! The toro nigiri is fresh! I tell them to torch on the top, amazing and melt in my mouth read more

See all

Bought a groupon (2 ramen + hot sake) and the waitress was nice enough to give us Sapporo instead. The eggs were done perfectly tho a little under marinated. The spicy miso and tonkatsu soup was rich but was one note and salty (salty with noodles is good tho). The place is really pretty and has great ambiance. It's not the quietest place for a romantic date tho. The biggest downside to this place is the service is crap for the type of restaurant they're going for. I asked 2 different waitresses for some chili for my ramen and it never came. I'm not surprised because the place was filled on a Monday night but it could because service is slow. We saw the waitress 3 times - once to order (I had to signal her over), once when dropping off food, and once to pay. None of that checking up on you shenanigans because it just isn't the type of upscale Japanese place it's trying to be. So if you don't mind the wait, got some nice eye candy across the table, and prefer your waiters not to interrupt you ever, then come here. read more

It's a beautiful restaurant, shiny and modern. Unfortunately the food doesn't quite match the space. I had the udon, the egg was good but the broth was bitter and salty. I ordered the chicken teriyaki Bento for my daughter, the chicken was stringy and tough and the tempura was very greasy. When they saw that she liked the tofu in the soup, they immediately brought her more, which was very nice. It's just not great food, but it is a nice environment and the service, although not on top of everything, is pleasant. My mother-in-law likes it so I'm sure will be back. From what we saw, she matches the demographic of their clientele, mostly elderly people. read more

I never had the urge to visit Miyuki, but when it changed to Akemi I figured I'd give it a try. So I had a bowl of chirashi for lunch one March day. At $17 this wasn't cheap. Nor was it particularly fresh or interesting. Two pieces each of ikura, maguro and himachi and a single piece of saba and a solitary ebi. Oh, and two substantial slabs of puffy tamago. The fish seemed to be of good quality but was not particularly fresh (the ebi was even a tad gummy) and the sushi rice a little cold and crusty. I wouldn't return for this. An adjacent table was enjoying what looked to be pretty nice tempura, and a bowl of ramen I spied looked cheerful enough - so maybe I ordered poorly. Even so, the sashimi should be better! The atmosphere is cool and stark - a sort of modern Spartan Japanese aesthetic one sees these days. The servers were bubbly and helpful and the lunchtime crowd not young, to put it mildly. read more

Such a nice spot. It's kind inconspicuous from the outside. If you're not looking for it, you might not see it. Atmosphere inside is nice. It would be great for a nice lunch or even a fancy date night. The selection of sushi/sashimi/ramen is huge! And the presentation is spot of. Definitely one of my favorite go to sushi restaurants. read more

See all

Don't recommend, sitting here for over 15 minutes and have not ordered yet and didn't get help what so ever. Way better places with better service. Do not come hungry or else you WILL starve to death. PS. Took around 10 minutes to receive my bill after I requested it. The restaurant had 4 other tables that day and there were 3 servers. read more

Akemi is enchanting ly beautiful, peaceful and serene. Some of the best Sushi I've ever had. Service was impeccable. Came for grand re-opening. This place is a must try, see, eat Japanese restaurant on Solano Ave in Berkeley (some may think it's Albany). Nonetheless, highly recommend for a date night. Fresh and organic dishes to delight and taste. The ambience makes you feel like you've been transformed to some place other than Berkeley. The distressed wood and ceiling treatments are phenomenal. Great eye candy and backstory. From the designer to the owner to the decor. The front door and a handle are amazing and r here's even a private dining room. Don't take my word for it. Just go!!! read more

AKEMI Japanese Restaurant - Tuesday Sunshine enjoying Akemi in Berkeley! Amazing... - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Have been here at least 6 times with my mom and every time the food is fresh and flavorful and the service is lovely. Their spicy garlic edamame are addictive, and their seaweed salad has so many varieties of seaweed making it a true standout from the usual homogenous seaweed salads. Also my mom is hard of hearing and this spot does not get too loud so it's is easy for her to hear, love that. read more

We paid a visit to what used to be Miyuki on Solano last weekend. Turns out Akemi has been around for about a year now, and I'm sorry it took us so long to try it. The restaurant is sleek and elegant, more intimate, with romantic lighting, reclaimed wood, lovely, rustic stone tableware - overall, a badly needed remodel on the rundown, garishly lit Miyuki space. I'm still not sure who owns the place - Akemi's website calls it "the latest incarnation of Miyuki." A server told me they were the same owners, but a manager-looking-type on Saturday said no, they were new owners. Three of us ordered the hamachi "salad" - yellowtail, avocado, edamame jalapeño, and ponzu; miso-marinated black cod; okonomiyaki seafood pancake with cabbage, bonito, nori, aioli, tonkatsu sauce; a 49rs Roll; spicy scallop handroll; nigiri of toro, shiro maguro, and sake. Everything was wonderful. The hamachi was a bit hard to eat with chopsticks, as the other elements sat on top of the sashimi. But otherwise, a beautiful dish. The cod was perfectly cooked, nice and moist, with a little bit of charring and a bit of arugula salad on the side. The okonomiyaki was my favorite, and did its bonito-shavings-dance-thing as it was brought to the sushi bar, and was delicious - very fresh tasting, great texture. I'd be very hard-pressed not to order it again. All the fish was fresh though, and nicely cut. I'm dying to try their lobster ramen, tonkotsu ramen, the grilled kurabuta pork belly, and the momiji braised spare ribs. Their wine list is really interesting - all Italians! I can't remember the name of the producer, but it seems they're only using one, and they'll be switching up the wines intermittently. The manager-type said that they picked Italians as they go very well with Japanese food, and sushi in particular. I had a really lovely, extremely floral sauvignon blanc; wish I'd remembered to get the name of it as the wine list isn't on the website. Service was great - efficient, warm and friendly. We're really happy with this change. read more