Best authentic Japanese Place in Cincinnati. Actually might be the only one. Love their Bento Box with fresh blacked cod. Sushi is always amazing! You will not go wrong here! Pricey but worth it! read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Special of the day- snow crab roll. Phenomenal! - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Ando is hands down the best Japanese restaurant in Cincinnati or Dayton. The entrance is packed with people waiting for a table. We were lucky to get in without a reservation. My chirashi was amazing. The fish was the freshest I've had in Ohio and exceptionally well crafted. My son enjoyed his tekamaki and miso soup, which were both very good. While simple, it's a key requirement of an authentic Japanese restaurant. The staff is also very pleasant. While they don't serve alcohol, it's BYOB, so be sure to bring the beverage of your choice. They happily provided us with chilled glasses for our beer. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Tekamaki and rainbow roll - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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This is the best sushi in the cincinnati area, totally the real deal.

Piling on the Ando love. My husband and I came here for a date night when the mil was in town, a few days after going to Cloud 9. Both sushi experiences were great but very different. At most sushi joints here, we'll get spicy tuna rolls, something with avocado or cucumber and maybe salmon but we rarely get much sashimi or Nigiri. At Ando, we felt like things seemed more authentic so we were up for more adventure and less tried and true favorites. We shared a seaweed salad special and loaded up on all sorts of Nigiri. I can't recall what each kind were but all were delicious. The soy sauce too was really flavorful. The only miss for me was the Sakura Mochi. For me, the flavor of the leaf wrapped around the mochi was overpowering. read more

Fantastic Japanese food. Friendly servers. We have been going there for many years and always feel their the food is delicious and of high quality. Happy 20 years in business! read more

The best sushi I have found in the Midwest. Beautifully and authentically prepared. Can be pricey, but worth every penny.

Amazing. Real sushi made by experts. Great home made ice cream and desserts. Lot of amazing specials.

We are from out of town and decided to try Ando for the first time and honestly this is probably some of the best Sushi we have ever had. The service is fantastic and again the food is absolutely delicious read more

Easy access.. No steps...place is small so wheelchairs could get tight in here. It is BYOB...but they did have wine glasses. We wee there around 5:30 on a Friday night...early dining for us..but there was a line to get in from the moment we sat down. Friend that has dined there often said anytime after 6:30 you will find a line. Make reservation or get there early. We started with a tuna dish that was served in a bowl..very salty and very oily. It would have been fine served with crackers. We then had the soft shell crab that was probably the best I have had in a Japanese restaurant. Cooked perfectly. Of course J had the octopus sashimi (3 pieces) that he very much enjoyed...remember he never shares octopus. We had the black cod that came with steamed string beans, potatoes and carrots. The cod was tasty. We shared two bento box combinations for three people and with the staters it was plenty. They came with miso soup and a small salad. Both flavorful. Also had a side of rice with each. The sashimi and tempura box had shrimp and vegetable tempura ..perfectly lightly breaded. The sashimi was just the right temperature ...yummy. We had yellowtail in he second box which I thought was devine. Some of the other items in the boxes included pickled cucumbers, steamed greens and my favorite was the sautéed eggplant. Bill was around $105 without tip.. Pricey but for the quality of fish in landlocked Cincinnati..well worth it. Service was very good and the staff did a great job explaining menu items and making suggestions.. Still a line when we left! read more

Extremely disappointed. I dont know why people are rating this place so high. It is AN OVER PRICED SUSHI place. Extremely overprice & nothing different than anywhere else. Sushi is expensive but there is an average and an accepted plus or minus. $16 for a dragon roll $9 for a spicy tuna roll & $10 for a vegetable tempura that literally has 5 minuscule pieces is a disgrace. Not ever coming back here when there are places around the corner like Kanpai which is fabulous. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - $10 for a vegetable tempura that literally has 5 minuscule pieces is a disgrace. - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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If you are a spicy tuna, California or tempura roll kind of sushi eater, this is not the place for you. Ando is not the place for Americanized sushi. Ando is a place for a great variety of impeccable fish served expertly. They serve fish you don't find at other Cincinnati sushi spots: Arctic Char, Horse Mackerel, Herring, Snapper, Flounder. Ando is Japanese food for people who appreciate Japanese food and culture. I think from reading some of the negative reviews that people are judging Ando through the lens of Americanized sushi and Japanese food which is unfortunate. In addition to impeccable sushi, Ando does well with broths and noodles, hot pots, donburi and really, all other Japanese specialties. Portions are appropriate not grossly large. I'm not looking down my nose at Americanized sushi- even I like a tempura roll from time to time, but that's not what Ando is and it frustrates me to see people judging it through that lens. read more

So I have been going to Ando almost once a week and it is always a very positive experience! The sushi selection is so good and fresh and is prepared perfectly. Last night I had the grilled squid, bonito, mackrel, salmon rolls, surf clam, and a double tuna roll. Ando and his wife are so friendly and have been recommending different dishes for me to try. Yeah, I'll be back! And remember, they are closed Mondays and normally for a week around the 4th of July. read more

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Hands down as good as it gets in Cincy. Ando and the new Japanese restaurant La Hiro in Kentucky are (imo) the best in the area. Both owned by the sweetest Japanese couples. Their sushi and sashimi are always fresh. And most of my friends enjoy the ramen. Recently my friend and I got word of a secret menu that's all in Japanese. Curious, we asked the waitress about it, and she kindly brought out the menu and explained everything on it to us non-Japanese-speaking noobs. My oh my. I don't know if my revealing this defeats the whole purpose of the secret menu, but there are dericious items on there like CURRY and grilled mackerel that are not on the regular menu! My friend went with the mackerel, which came with a choice of two amazing sides--he got agedashi tofu and fried tuna. My stomach rumbled for some curry, so I got the fried shrimp curry. Yummmm, like true Japanese curry, so simple and satisfying. Also, never skip dessert here. At lunchtime they have green tea, red bean, ginger, and sesame ice cream! The ice cream is thick and rather sticky like mochi-turned-ice-cream. I hear they have an assortment of other desserts at dinner. And a little birdie has informed us that the dinner secret menu is much longer. Oh and I can't wait to try the sukiyaki. Is it dinner yet? read more

This is the most authentic and high quality Japanese restaurant in Cincinnati. They source some things direct from Japan and some things from local farmers. They know and have passion for their food. It's not cheap but it's worth it. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Special shipment of fresh fish from Japan! - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

It's taken me two months to write this review as objectively as possible. I'm sure there are better Japanese restaurants in the world, but there are none better in the Greater Cincinnati area. Had I based the review solely on food this would've been a solid four stars, but the service at Ando gains them the fifth star because they are the nicest people you could meet. I've lunched here on a weekly basis for the past two years, and am pretty sure I've tried everything on the menu except for the shabu-shabu and sukiyaki. My favorites: - Sashimi: always fresh, delicate, melt-in-your-mouth goodness - Una Jyu don: it's BBQ eel, and it's damn good - Maguro don: not on the menu because it's a special. Thin slices of tuna marinated in sake, and served on a bed of rice. Get it if you can. - Black cod: Cod fillet sauteed and served with vegetables. - Curry: I didn't know the Japanese made curry until I came here and saw a Japanese businessman chowing down. It has the best aroma, and fantastic spicy flavor not found in any Thai or Indian curry. Get it either plain over a bed of rice, or toss in tonkatsu (pork cutlet), mince (hamburger rolled in panko and fried), or a potato cake (not a favorite of mine to be honest). My wife just gets the sashimi every time we go. She started with the regular sushi lunch, but took to leaving the rice part of the nigiri behind so often that the chef decided to change her order one day to the sashimi lunch. She hasn't looked back since. She also won't order anything else, ever. When we try new sushi joints we have to order the sashimi, and it is always judged harshly to the standard set at Ando's. Only Jo-an is on par. The sushi rolls are very good and quite tasty. There is a good mix of traditional and western, but nothing exotic like "Double Godzilla" or "Dancing Geisha" rolls. Ando will also make special rolls not on the menu if you like. We had him make a spicy double salmon roll once just for the hell of it. I'm sure if he had the materials on hand, Ando would make a spicy double kobe beef sweetbread roll stuffed into a tempura haggis, but you'll pay market price. BEST. RICE. EVER. Yeah, bet you've never seen that in a review. I don't know how or why, but I can't get enough of their rice. The rice deserves half a star just by itself. Part of the weekly order if a take-away order for plain, white sushi rice with a little bit of wasabi for a co-worker in my wife's office. And finally, dessert. I think there is green tea ice cream and mochi ice cream on the menu. Ignore it. Instead look on the table for a card telling you what the special desserts are that day, and can at times be the best part of the meal. Chiaki's creations are some of the most exciting desserts we've ever tried. I can't adequately describe any of them. There isn't any one style she sticks to. Her desserts run across the gamut of pastries, cakes, puddings, "jello-s", ice creams and torts. Ingredients are very seasonal. The graham cracker crusts are always homemade. The special desserts are also "limited edition" as she makes only a certain number per week, and I can only think of a couple of times I seen a dessert repeated on the menu. So, if you buy a dessert and really, really like it, you'd better buy a second because the chances of ever getting it again are next to nil. That's about it. This will be my only 5-star review in Cincinnati. No one else deserves it more. read more

Decent, but no where near the high ratings here on yelp. Fish quality was a 5 out of 10 and the service was average at best. I know you get what you pay for with sushi, but I was misled by the reviews on this one. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Sushi Lunch Platter - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Ando = Blissful pleasure to my chronic sushi craving toungue With great sushi comes great responsibility, and they do it right here. "I decided to try their Ramen..." These words alone will tip you off that reviewing a Japanese Sushi restaurant should not be a top priority for this individual. Everybody these days thinks they are a sushi snob. In reality, all I see are reviews on spicy tuna rolls, soft shell crab, salmon and unagi. All great sushi choices, however not differentiators for a sushi restaurant. The hotate is to die for. So fresh and it melts in your mouth. Sake, amaebi (I love fresh raw shrimp), squid, uni, makeral and toro were also glorious bites of heaven. They add fresh raw lobster sashimi to the menu and you will not see me leave the place. Most def a 5 star sushi joint (with Cincinnati as geographical context) Eat up! read more

My wife convinced me to go to this restaurant for my birthday. I wasn't sure if we came to the right place but after my first bite, I almost cried 'cause it was so good!!! Hey, I'm born and raised in Japan!! read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Literally the best sushi I've ever had. I came here with my coworker who is visiting from japan, and he vouched that this place is extremely authentic. The sushi platter is fantastic. My friends for the udon and the ramen, and they loved it. No complaints! I want to come back every day. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Sushi dinner - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Agree with previous reviewers. This is the best sushi that I have had in Cincinnati - fresh and well made. They also offer certain types of fish that one is just not able to find at other locations. Their menu is quite extensive with a lot of ethnic Japanese food that looks delicious (I will have to come back to try this since we focused on sushi). Tip: BYO, need I say more. read more

AWESOME! I visited here on Monday excited to try something new and boy did I get what I was looking for! I love trying new menu items wherever I go, but Ando delightfully surprised me. I ate tapas style getting several menu items, all traditional Japanese items. The staff was delighted to serve us the items we ordered as they are a little, ok a lot, different than what you would normally eat. Trying raw beef with a sauce that has a quail egg mixed into it, to thinly sliced cow tongue, I was pleasantly surprised at each item. The staff was very friendly allowing us to sit, eat, and talk for a couple of hours, not rushing us in any way. I will definitely be back!! read more

Being a poor student, I eat my fair share of budget sushi -- all you can eat rolls, 1/2 off deals, etc. I am, by no means, above budget sushi, but Ando is a place that I know my parents would enjoy. Ando, along with Matsuya and Jo An in Kentucky, is a place where you get an authentic experience and feel safe to order dishes like uni, where freshness cannot be compromised. read more

Ando Japanese Restaurant - Fish boat special for 2 - Japanese Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This place has wonderful food but, even better, it has a homey feel, helpful staff (v welcoming to japanese newbies), and a proprietor with her hands on the wheel. Everything is so good, and the place overflows with warmth and good cheer. If you've never had japanese food, go here. If you're an old hand at sushi, go here. Cooked entrees, nagiri....it's all wonderful. And they'll help you figure out what/how much to order. The BYOB policy is a money saver. Spend what you save on a homemade dessert! (I love the decor here. I never realized how tired I am of cold ceramic tile and marble tabletops until I saw this cozy, carpeted room with kimonos on the wall.) read more

Ando is truly delicious!! They have a great selection of Japanese food and it's all very high quality. The only thing I wasn't pleased with was the amount of time it took to get a seat, but it made sense because it was a Friday night. For an appetizer, we had the squid (not sure what the name on the menu was), and it was very flavorful! For my entree, I got the tonkatsu which I've never had before and it was amazing! It came with some type of mayo for dipping. It also came with some veggies which didn't really add much. My friend got the philly roll which was good and she also had the crispy shrimp roll which was SO good! For dessert we had the matcha mascarpone cheesecake which you must try. I'm honestly not even a big fan of matcha, but I'm never gonna forget about this cheesecake... read more

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FANTASTIC! and SUPER AUTHENTIC! I was greeted with a friendly "Irasshaimase!" by the Japanese hostess on a busy Friday night. The place was packed! They told us the wait would be approximately 25 minutes, but we were seated after 15. The customers were mainly Japanese businessmen, which is ALWAYS a good sign of authenticity. The hostess delighted us with a complimentary edamame appetizer for our wait. How considerate! We ordered saba, ikura nigiri sushi and three rolls. The Salmon Skin, Futomaki, and the Super California rolls all knocked our socks off! It's amazing how authentic Japanese sushi chefs make such a difference!! The service was top notch, the decor was very pleasant. I felt like I was back in Japan! Thank you so much for a wonderful experience. I am definitely going back! (Next time with my own cooler full of booze!) read more

Fantastic service - the server saved me money by telling me that he could substitute one of my options and actually opened me up for a side as well. The food is very fresh - easily the best service I've had at a sushi joint. read more

I sat at a table but the sushi bar looked nice. I tried the edamame, miso soup, house salad, salmon sashimi, and salmon roll. I had a few temperature issues- both the soup and hot tea were not very hot. But the soup flavor was good and had big pieces of seaweed in it which I like. Salmon ok. Salad very good. The service was good. Good place for a sushi fix when you need one in Blue Ash read more

OH. MY. GOODNESS. If you're looking for the best sushi place in the Cincinnati area, Ando is the place to go! Some things you definitely have to try are the sea urchin (so rich!) and the homemade ice cream - I really enjoyed the black sesame. Honestly, no one expects amazing sushi in Cincinnati, and in terms of the options I've seen, there are some pretty good places, but Ando by far has some of the best and most flavorful sushi I've had in this area. It's fresh, not fishy, the octopus is soft and not chewy, and the rice is cooked to perfection. Other perks: the staff is super friendly and has some great recommendations if you don't know what to get. Additionally, it's BYOB! Enjoy! read more

Seriously, when I looked at the menu, I was shocked by the price. I can't believe a sushi dinner is $30 and chirashi is $35. I live in San Francisco Bay Area, where the living standard is very high. But sushi dinner and chirashi are way cheaper in there. For the food, it's great. I could taste the professional of the chef. So 5 stars for food. For the service, it was just satisfied. Overall, I would say it is just okay. Not worthy for second time. read more

We must be on a hot streak... This was an amazing place probably because we ordered the Shabu Shabu--a shared dish where you cook your beef, napa cabbage, carrots, tofu, onion, fish cakes, shitakes, and noodles in a pot of boiling water. Extremely fun dish that will set you back $26 bucks a person-- but worth it. They use very good beef (thinly sliced flank steak?) and vegetables and plenty of them. Also, BYOB, so don't forget your drink if you wish. Service was excellent, almost 5 star, extremely classy. will be back read more

I first went to this place after watching the documentary "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" on Netflix and I must say, this is probably as close as you'd get to that in Cincinnati, right down to the sushi chef's motions. I've been here for sushi, ramen, and bento boxes. I thought the ramen was average, but the bento boxes and sushi was definitely very strong and extremely well considering lower expectations in Cincinnati. Service is attentive, though as busy as they were, I can forgive one or two empty tea cups which weren't refilled. The menu is quite busy, and gets even busier if you get a bento box like I do, as then you get the hand-written sheet with all the entree selections. That said, I appreciate the variety of seafood offerings they had on the menu. The preserved vegetables feel like the weak link in the bento box for me, but the presentation of the meal makes up for that in my opinion. This reIt feels like sushi made here is done right - the classic way. If you don't believe that statement, just spend some time watching the sushi chef work his magic. It just feels like a scene from a particular documentary on a sushi chef... It might as well be a 5 star selection in Cincinnati or if I was just rating it on sushi, though there is room for improvement on some parts of the menu. I will say that this is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Cincinnati. read more

Excellent authentic cuisine! Accommodated us including little guy even though they were already full! Kid-friendly! Favorites so far: Chicken katsu-don Nabeyaki udon Grilled squid Unagi & salmon nigiri Gyoza Black sesame ice cream Will definitely be back! Call ahead for reservation! read more

Solid sushi in the middle of no where. One would not think of venturing into this restaurant, but rest assured, it is legit. The quality of the fish is excellent and fresh, and the selection is above average. They had plenty of daily unique specials for sushi and food which which is appreciated. Overall I would recommend this spot as solid sushi restaurants are hard to find in middle America. read more

This is the authentic sushi restaurant owned by Japanese family! As a Japanese myself, I was super thrilled to eat at this place. What made me happy was that they had fish from Japan. We had Aji and Isaki sashimi from that menu. Living in the States more than 15 years and it was 2nd time for me to have Isaki in this country. We ordered many items from the regular menu and everything was great. The service was great, too. We didn't make reservation but we will make sure to make one when we go there on Saturday night next time. Also we will make sure to bring our own sake! :) read more

The word on the street is true-- Ando is the best Japanese restaurant around in the Cincinnati. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to try to raw fish since I'm pregnant right now, but everyone says it is delicious! I certainly plan to get a platter of sashimi as soon as I can. Service is great! I love the nabeyaki udon-- the broth is flavorful, and it warms me up inside. The bento boxes are decently sized. I know lots of people, including those who have lived in Japan, that agree that this is the best Japanese place around, so you should take the time to check it out! read more

When I crave sushi, this is my first choice. This husband and wife team up to bring authentic Japanese delicacies to Cincinnati! I have been going here for years. My recommendations are the Shishiamo... grilled eggplant with miso....and the broiled flounder with plum sauce.... They also have shabu shabu as well as a wide variety of Sushi! Get their early because it get's packed - although this hidden little gem is definitely worth the wait!! read more

Tried their veggie roll, it was made out of a cucumber on the outside. The place looked horribly small and dingy. Funny to see non Asians working as sushi chefs, the wait took forever. I didn't come back again in the four weeks I stayed next to this place. Very disappointed. No alcohol either. read more

A more traditional Japanese place which is great. The fish is amazingly fresh and service is great. More unusual cuts and more traditional cooked offerings. Japanese folks frequent this place. Additional pros for families: Kid friendly Changing station available in women's restroom Downsides: smaller than typical Americanized portions and about 50% more expensive. After I think about it some more, if price was more aligned with say, Ichiban, I would make the effort to visit here more often. read more

Ando is always an incredible experience and Aiko and her staff are always extremely attentive and knowledgeable. Definitely the only place I will eat sushi at within the greater Cincinnati area. read more

Ando is by far the top place for authentic, fresh sushi in Cincinnati. I've been here several times and have never had a bad experience. The service is top notch and the food is incredible. Put your faith in the chef and order the omakase, you will not be disappointed! read more