The food wasn't too exceptional but tasted good enough. The environment was pretty good, though. You can find a full menu behind the counter, which is a bit inconvenient... A good place for a quick, cheap, yet not too cheap a meal. read more

Aki Japanese Restaurant - Salmon with rice. - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

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You gotta come here for lunch, yo! We ordered the sushi bento box. I got the eel sushi. Pretty much everything was good--only thing I had an issue with was that they were pretty chincy with the ginger and wasabe, and they didn't give us our water until the end of the meal (?!?). The bento box was about $9.00 for lunch. read more

Run by Chinese people, not truly Japanese food... been there a few times to give it a chance... the chicken tempura is awesome.... not really Japanese, but damn good. the BAD -- sukiyaki beef was TERRIBLE... Oh -- no credit cards unless you charge $10. (It's illegal to have a minimum charge, by the way) Very cramped, small space. Seats are hard wood, 90 degree upright read more

Come here for the atmosphere! It's tucked away as one of the back restaurants among a group of others on Northside (sometimes heard to be the 'Northside Asian Ghetto'). The wooden decor makes for a relaxing lunch. Plus, the staff is always so very agreeable! Not the best Japanese food in the area but something good if you want something close to the Berkeley campus between classes. They don't have that big of a variety of sushi if you're used to unique sushi rolls. I'd suggest one of their bento boxes for lunch. Their miso soup is pretty tasty. But, stay away from the udon, here. read more

This is definitely the restaurant i visit most frequently on north side. Food is delicious and service good. Price is fair. I like the bento box and minced pork rice. read more

If you are around Hearst Street bear the UC Berkley and want to get simple Japanese food instead of traveling outside the campus come here instead small and tiny inside and more patio seatings outside read more

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Food: The Bento came with fried vegetables (it was really gross: soggy lumps soaked with grease and flour), sushi roll (it was sub-par california rolls, fell apart when I picked it up), and chicken teriyaki w/ rice (like 5 chunks of chicken and a giant scoop of rice). Needless to say, I was disappointed. Price/Quality/Quantity: It's a little pricey compared to other places that offer Lunch Bento's ($9.80 here vs. $8.50 other places). Quality was bad and quantity didn't save it. I wasn't expecting great Japanese cuisine or anything but with this quality and quantity, the price is NOT worth it. Atmosphere: limited indoor seating though most people do take out or outdoor/deck seating Service: very disorganized and your typical fast food Asian restaurant type of service Parking: street read more

While trying to reduce my stress of my upcoming midterm that day, I decided to eat out- food is the number solution to stress- and ended up at this place somehow. It was my first ever experience at a Japanese restaurant. I got Chicken Tempura Don, which costs me about $11. The food was honestly ok. The order came with about 4-5 pieces of grilled chicken, chicken tempura, small bowl of rice, salad and fried vegetables. The portion size was too small for the price. read more

I came here once with some friends after a basketball game so we were all hungry and I'm sure that made the food taste better. I don't even know what I had because my friend knew the people who worked there so they ordered for us and gave us some sort of discount on the food. We ended up having something I would think is like chicken katsu. The reason I gave it four stars is the chicken was pretty good. It had to do mostly with the breading. It had this odd sweetness to it that most other chicken katsu or imitations of it I've had doesn't have. The breading was light, yet you tasted it. For that alone, I give it an extra star to four. I would go back and order that if I knew what it's called! read more

This is my favorite spot in the Northside. My go-to order is the Katsudon, which is sooo sooo good! It's literally all that I eat during dead week. The price is super cheap too! However, the wait might be a little bit long when crowded. read more

Aki Japanese Restaurant - Katsudon - Japanese Near Me - Berkeley, California

Ahhh... the memories that come back with a hot chicken tempura donburi at Aki's. I had forgotten about this dish, but used to eat it a lot while in Berkeley. It was good years ago, and nothing has changed, which is both good and rare these days. We also ordered the donkatsu donburi today too, and it was good. It seems a little a bit generous to give a small hole-in-the-wall college eatery four stars, and mainly based on one dish, but I thought this one dish deserved the four stars. read more

Place is cute, food is meh. Free green tea to start the meal, which is great on cold winter days. The rice bowls are probably the best deals, as they come with free Miso soup, and anything with teriyaki sauce on it is pretty decent. The cooked fish can also be pretty good. The sushi is HORRIBLE, and tastes like it was previously frozen. The gyoza also tastes like it came out of a freezer bag, and I advise against ordering it. I like Japanese food and really want this place to be better, but am usually left disappointed and a little hungry. However, the food at least feels a little healthier than other Asian options on North Campus, and the little booths are cozy, so I will no doubt occasionally be drawn back in. read more

I went here the first time here during their off-hours (around 5 PM for dinner) because I was finished with class early. Even though I was sitting outside and there were flies trying to swarm my food, the service here is great and the food, soup, and tea were hot (and not lukewarm). read more

As one of the only Japanese restaurants in the north side of campus, I decided to stop by here once for lunch (back a few years ago). I ordered their chicken teriyaki bento box, and it was not very good. The chicken was very tasteless, even with the teriyaki sauce. The tempura was very soggy. And the california rolls were disappointing, only could eat about two before calling it quits. read more

Reasonable price You get what you pay for Pretty crowded with Berkeley students during the lunch hours don't get noodles they suck but their rice bowls are ok read more

My friend and I have become regulars since trying this place a couple months ago. Food is delicious and authentic but most importantly the service and atmosphere are excellent. I love it when a restaurant knows how to make their guests feel welcome. read more

Food that I've had here is always really good, especially for the price! Staff have always been nice and even with takeout orders, they'll offer miso soup. Their Taiwanese menu is great-- almost always order from there. read more

I get 1 thing here and only 1 thing. The chicken tempura don. This shiznit is the bizness. I dream about coming back to Berkeley just for this bowl of fried chicken and rice. Its been over 10 years since I've been here, and i think about this place maybe once a year. read more

It's better not to go there during lunch time. It takes about twenty minutes to get your food and bad service as well, course you will still have to pay the tips. As for the dinner time, the waiters are much friendly. By the way, they 're udon is not good at all. read more

Fish quality okay. Too much rice on the sushi. Reasonable prices. Cute decor. Menu not very extensive

Just ate here for the first time... WARNING: I found plastic wrap pieces in the kappa roll...took a roll apart and found that it was because they didn't remove the plastic shrink wrap from the cucumber before they sliced it and made the roll. I could've choked on that! DANGEROUS! They offered to remake it however I refused. In turn they gave me a partial refund of $2 for what cost me over $9...as if I would eat the rest of the meal after I found plastic in it. Moreover, the price in the menu was a little over $7, but they charged me more without saying why. I asked the waitress and she said, "Oh sorry the menu prices are changed now...its more now." What a way to scam people. Finally, I just wanted to say that even though you pay for a bento box to go, you don't get the miso soup or salad with it, if you order it to go. This is also something they don't tell you until you pay. Never ever coming here again! Ever. read more

Still there? Located within a little open-air cove with tables surrounded by a number of small food shops off of Hearst, back in the college dizzay, I used to love going to this quaint little Northside japanese joint for a bento box. Food is quite good and reasonably priced for the students. That was then, though, and it may very well have gone downhill since or folded up completely. read more

Know what you're getting into before you order. This is not a place you go to eat "Japanese food". This is a place you go if you want lots of meat and lots of rice. Whatever variant of tempura/katsu you get, there will be plenty of everything. And if that's what you want, you won't be disappointed. And if you can read Chinese, their Chinese menu is pretty decent too. read more

The food here was just OK. It's relatively expensive compared to other restaurants around. And I think that's why they are always less busy compared to others. read more

There are better Japanese places near Berkeley, but unfortunately none on Northside near Euclid and Hearst. So if I want Japanese food or seafood, I often come here. Their bento boxes are pretty big, and they're actually large enough for dinner. Each bento box comes with miso soup, vegetable tempura, diluted soy sauce for the tempura, and rice. The sushi bento is pretty good (you can choose from the different types of maki and nigiri listed on their menu). The sashimi bento is similar to the sushi bento, but the seafood isn't extremely fresh, and the sashimi costs a dollar extra. The chicken teriyaki bento is probably my favorite and actually comes with a lot of chicken. Other dishes include the chicken katsu with curry over rice. It tastes good, but they put the curry over the chicken itself, which makes the chicken soggy over time. I have also ordered the unagi donburi, which is delicious, but extremely expensive. It was also a bit smaller than their bento boxes, which made it good for lunch, but not dinner. The interior is nicely decorated, and the owners are nice. But they're cheap. The menu is a little bit too expensive for the quality you get. read more

Aki's is awesome. Cozy place, more vegetarian options than 10 years ago when I was last here. And one of the cheapest lunches you'll find at Berkeley, if you are savvy at ordering. Polite too: as I left "thank you, lady". That said, the rice seemed a bit over cook and maybe mushy. but I will give them another try soon. read more

Terrible. So salty and msged that I couldn't stop drinking tea.

Cooked items okay, but Worst Sushi Ever. Fishy and chewy. We only come here for the convenience factor. It's close to Cal and there are several Asian run establishments in the same complex. read more

Inside of a little chinatown, the place wasnt bad. Came here for lunch, and you would expect the speed of service to be faster, but it wasn't. The food wasnt bad though. Make sure you bring cash. Actually, just always have cash on you when you are in berkeley since many places only take cash read more

It is definetely the best Japanese-style Chinese food ive had. It is certainly not authentic but it still tastes good. I usually stick to the katsu-don or other rice bowls but my friends love the tempura. It is cheap and looks clean, but I am still a little scared to try the sushi. read more

Cheap but overpriced japanese food. Much rather go to C U sushi down the street. Better quality for the same price.

My gf and came here one weekend because, unfortunately, all the asian stores in the northside asian ghetto were closed except this one. (I don't why that was..) I know my fish and I know when and where to get the best of fish; My instincts told me not to order nigiris here but ......=(.... I did, and I regretted it. Salmon was blah!!! It was gummy, smelled realllly fishy (fresh sashimi should have very little to no stinky fish odor). STAY AWAY FROM THE RAW FISH HERE! As for cooked entrees, we had the tonkatsu and salmon teriyaki. Tonkatsu was great! Served hot and crispy; not too oily at all. However, slightly pricy for just fried pork over rice. Salmon Teriyaki was pretty standard. I had it as part of the bento box if I remember correctly so I'm not quite sure if it was worth the money. So leeson learned, cooked entrees here are good, but stay away from the sashimi! Therefore 2 stars. read more

Yes, as far as I know it's still there. It's still good, still reasonably priced and still worth the walk up the hill.

I haven't tried their sushi, because for some reason, I just don't trust for it to come from here. I had a couple of their cooked rice plates, and they were just okay. The tonkatsu wasn't as crispy as I prefer, and the sauce just wasn't as tasty as others in the area. =( read more

It's cheap for a Japanese place and it tastes okay. Portions are still a bit small and it's still overpriced though.

If you are looking for real good authentic japanese food, this isn't the best place to go to. There are better places like Joshu-ya Brasserie. But for the price, it's still pretty decent. I preferably order the sashimi bento because it comes with what you are looking for in Japanese cuisine: raw fish, tempura and some grilled meat. The tempura of course being vegetarian which is expected because if it was shrimp tempura, they would have to raise their price up to offset the cost of making it and that would turn off some college students as many have budgets to keep to. For me, the portions were enough and it tasted very good. I would recommend this place to Berkeley student's as a regular Japanese restaurant to go to because of its quality and price. It is better than Tako sushi and that Japanese restaurant in Southside Asian Ghetto in my opinion. read more

nice little tucked away restaraunt. on the northside of campus in restaraunt/cafe row. The tempura, rice, salad good. I loved the tea. great for lunch. read more

Been here so many times ! The food is really good and the service is always great. I love their chicken tempura....it's mouth watering! It's my favorite...along with the tempura udon with the egg and veggies! read more

Add a really bland shrimp udon the other day, with at most 5 shrimps hiding under the noodle. Nothing to be really excited about. Even in this creepy northside "asian ghetto", there are better places to go. read more

This place is tiny, warm, and cozy. I don't care what people say, maybe the food isn't the best in the world, but its still -good-. You're getting a bento box with loads of japanese food for 8 bucks, what do you really expect? I think that for the price, this place goes above the bar. If you want to spend $30 for something mind-blowing, go to Yusan. But if you're in berkeley, have 8 bucks and want a warm japanese meal, go to Aki's. read more