Ben Gui was a choice garnered from Yelp. The reviews did not lie, this place is great. The atmosphere is relaxed and comfortable, the servers were helpful and gracious and most of all the food was good. The fish is fresh and (relatively) affordable. I ordered the lunch special that came with a salad that had some dressing that tasted like Larb Gai sauce. Very good. I got 8 pieces of California roll and six different pieces of nigiri for 10.50 at lunch. read more

Unbelievable sushi. I'm not exaggerating when I say that Ben Gui single-handedly improves the quality of life in Roanoke. Having access to top tier sushi is almost a necessity for me, so I'm extremely thankful to have Ben Gui here in town. Be careful though, this place is addictive! read more

From out of town.... Came because of yelp reviews! We were not disappointed. Very attentive service coupled with great sushi. Nice atmosphere as well. Don't be deterred by the strip mall location... Great dinner! read more

Best sushi in Roanoke bar none. They would never serve fishy fish here like many other places in Roanoke. They are very friendly, get to know customers and make recommendations based on what you like and what is fresh. I've never had a bad meal or unpleasant experience here. read more

Food 5 Ambiance 4 Service 5 Ben Gui is my favorite Sushi restaurant in Roanoke. The food is always fresh, inventive, and delicious. The owner is really friendly and service is always great! I'm very stingy with five stars so you know this place has to be good. read more

Customer service was awful. The guy making the sushi was wearing no mask or gloves while making the sushi. The sushi guy also had the worst attitude towards my family and was very rude and disrespectful. I asked about a salad and he told me he wouldn't make it. Not going back. read more

My number one choice in Roanoke!! There are bigger operations... but none with as good of food .. or as personable of a staff!!

I moved to Roanoke from a large metropolitan area. I was already mourning the loss of my favorite sushi joint and their late night happy hour until I stumbled onto Ben Gui. Well, Ben Gui has no late night HH, but the sushi is so good, I can get over it. There's a large variety of rolls, traditional, unusual, creative - all delicious. The sashimi is awesome, too. Honestly - I've never had anything here I didn't like except for the eel, but I hate eel and was "re-trying" it just to be sure. It wasn't them - it was me hating eel. Get the miso soup, seaweed salad, and/or gyoza to start if you think you'll have room for a starter and sushi. All of the servers are friendly and attentive. The ambiance makes you forget you're in a strip mall. Is it a little hokey? Sure. But it's clean, bright, and well-maintained which is a big deal to me when we're talking about a place that serves raw fish. Ben remembers me and that I moved here awhile back for my job. He knows I work at the local hospital and asks how work is going every time I see him. I know Roanoke has some other good sushi joints, but it's no surprise Ben Gui is consistently voted Best Sushi in town. If you stop by, I promise you will be rewarded with an excellent meal. read more

Although its pricey, this is some of the best sushi I've ever had. Its just so fresh and flavorful, you can tell they do it right here. All the sushi and sashimi I chose were chefs choice, and it tasted incredible! They also have a big menu with lots to choose from to match your budget or taste buds, and awesome lunch specials. They have very timely, good service, we never had to ask for anything. Ive been here a couple times and will definitely be back. The only thing I could knock about this place is the rice, which was maybe a little overcooked and sticky. But overall the fresh sushi and great service definitely make this an A place to eat. read more

Ben Gui Sushi - Sushi sashimi lunch special.. delicious! so fresh! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

BEST in town Sushi. Fresh, wonderful staff, always so friendly. The menu offers creative Maki choices as well as fresh sashimi options. From the kitchen are great choices for the less adventurous toward sushi :o) Thanks Ben for always making it a pleasure for my family. read more

Decent sushi for a mountain town. The sushi chefs cool and good to talk to. A great place to hang out.

This is my FAVORITE Sushi bar and that is saying a lot as I frequent a few in my travels for work. My hubby & I have sat at the sushi bar and provided our order directly to the chef -- and he has come up with some creations based on our likes, which were fabulous! This is a great "date night" place or special occasion as the food is fantastic and the experience is wonderful. We frequent Ben Gui whenever we are in town. Unfortunately, we don't visit enough to be a "regular" but Alan always remembers us when we come in greeting us by name and knowing what our "usual" is - Great Place and Highly Recommended! read more

Ben Sushi was great, we just moved to Roanoke from San Diego which has great Sushi places. Yelp has its hours wrong, it opens at 5p Mon-Saturday. We got their early but they let my family come in and enjoy the AC while they finished getting ready for the service. The service was fantastic the waitress friendly, the owner came by to say hi. We ordered miso soup and the platter of sushi for two. The sushi tasted fresh, the "My Best Friend" roll was amazing, Tempura Shrimp with spicy tuna on top. The many varieties of sushi that came with the roll were all very well prepared, nothing slimy, perfect spice. A welcome "go to" sushi place in southern Roanoke / Cave Spring. read more

This is one of my best Sushi in Roanoke. The service and the bar Chef are very friendly made me feel like home. Love their Sashimi the fish are very fresh specially white Tuna and Yellow Tail so tasty. I definitely will come back again. read more

Ben Gui Sushi is the best in Roanoke! We love Ben's attention to detail and creative assortment of sushi, sashimi, and rolls. We've never had a single bad experience here and we've been getting take-out every week since COVID-19 hit back in March. Wonderful, family run restaurant. read more

Great atmosphere for lunch- wasn't busy and my husband and I enjoyed a nice quiet time. Edamame for the appetizer was better than most, very fresh. The chicken and shrimp tempura seaweed rolls were good with average lunch prices all around. With the app, and both entrees it was around $30. read more

Growing up in Hawaii I have tasted some of the best sushi and Japanese food, so believe me when I say Ben Gui sushi is amazing! They have everything I look for in a restaurant; Family owned, check clean, check consistent quality food, check friendly, welcoming staff and owner, check I have tried some of the other sushi places in Roanoke b.b. (before Ben's) but they all pale in comparison to Ben Gui. Like any great work you must start with a strong base otherwise no matter what else you put on next everything will fall apart. Well the foundation here is the rice, good quality sushi rice (yes it does make a difference). Then it has to be seasoned just right too little seasoning and the the flavor of the fish will not be enhanced too much and the fish is overwhelmed. Like the baby's bed in the story of the of the tree bear the rice here is "just right" Both chefs take great pride in creating some of the tastiest roll from the more basic to the most elaborate they are a delight for the senses. We usually start with the combo # 1 a spicy tuna, a California roll and a white tuna roll a combo # 2 a shrimp tempura roll, a California roll and an avocado roll then we add a New York roll (salmon skin with green onion and eel sauce) an extra shrimp tempura roll and a Boston roll ( white tuna, avocado and cucumber). Ben will put this all on one plate so we taste all the different flavors one after another, until we are floating on a heavenly cloud of flavor and taste sensation. We have tried a number of other rolls and nigiri sushi here and have never been disappointed. One of the great things about Ben's is if you have a taste for something different, if he has the ingredients he will create something that will blow your taste buds away. I love all things salmon so I asked about a roll made with salmon skin, fresh salmon, and salmon eggs and he created the Daniel roll with all of this plus a little sriracha mayo eel sauce and green onions. The taste is beyond description! If you are looking for great sushi go to Ben's sit back relax and let them take you and your mouth on an amazing journey of taste sensations. And you will come back again and again. read more

Ben Gui Sushi - roll combo #1 and #2 an extra shrimp tempura roll, a New York and a Boston roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

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Ben Gui Sushi........What a JOKE One word describes this place..........SKIMPY I literaly just ate my sushi from here and am so dissapointed because I got ripped off. I got takeout and ordered a a spicy salmon roll, avacado roll, and best friend roll (shrimp tempura & spicy tuna) with miso soup and salad=$30 all together -they didnt even fill up the soup container half way! crazy. and the miso was thin and not tasty.salad was ok, pretty skimpy too. ginger dressing was very thin. -ALL MY ROLLS WERE SKIMPY AND SMALL. the avacado roll was average. the Spicy salmon had good flavor but was incredibly skimpy. -my "best friend roll" was far from my best friend. it literally was the MOST SKIMPY special roll i have EVER ordered at a sushi restaurant. my avacado roll was bigger and less than half the price! I did not get full from my dinner! i just made a cup of velveeta to actually fill me up!!!! Im dissapointed by my fellow yelpers. shame on you. go to Wasabi's in downtown, they give HUGE rolls, or Cafe asia (a little expensive tho but worth it). I GOT HUSTLED BYY BEN GUI !! read more

For being in a small town in southwestern Virginia, this place is outstanding. My primary residence is in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I had a rather pessimistic perspective coming to Roanoke regarding the potential for decent sushi. I was happily surprised upon discovering Ben Gui. Their sashimi is invariably delicious and rolls please the palate. The chef and waitstaff are extremely pleasant (make you feel like a part of the family) and typically have terrific suggestions regarding fresh selections. The prices are quite reasonable for a sushi restaurant. I brought my parents (father has spent a considerable amount of time in Japan) and fiancee (also a Bay Area sushi fanatic) to this location all of whom where impressed. In my opinion, Ben Gui is the best sushi in Roanoke and is certainly better than average compared to the multitude of sushi restaurants I have frequented. read more

I recently moved to Roanoke from San Francisco. I loved being able to go out practically every night and tasting the fantastic variety of restaurants there. When my girlfriend said ' I am going to take you to a Sushi place that will knock your sox off ' I kinda chuckled to myself since I consider myself a bit of a sushi snob. Now for my review: The place is simple and minimalist with authentic Japanese accents and a very nice Sushi Bar. The music is lively with a japanese flavor. The atmosphere is very nice for a sushi restaurant and the staff is very friendly. This restaurant would be able to compete easily in San Francisco. After eating at a multitude of Sushi places in SF I would put this in my top 5 category. The sushi is superb, fresh, and prepared by a true artist. The 2 chefs there seem to love their jobs and tailor your sushi to your taste while always keeping it authentic and refined. There is a huge variety of of Sake and the chefs know how to pair them very well with your order. Most of the bottles come in a small size so that you can try a few different types. I can't comment about the miso soup, salad, or other stock American palate dishes because quite frankly this is a Sushi restaurant and I don't want to waste precious space on fillers for rookie first time Sushi adventurers. This restaurant specializes in sushi. If you must have a borderline filler, try the spicy seaweed and crab salad. If you want something hot and authentic try the Hamachi cheek (Hamachi Kama). The sushi is incredibly fresh and they get seasonal fish, shellfish and other specialty items. I recommend sitting at the bar. The first few times I went there I sat at the table... Now that I have been there regularly the bar gives you the most privacy, a personalized experience with the chefs, and you get to see all the eye candy other people are ordering. If you want teriyaki chicken you probably wasted your time by reading this review. Any 20 cent japanese sweat shop can dip chicken into teriyaki sauce and serve it over rice. If you want real, fresh and masterfully prepared sushi or sashimi look no further. read more

Ben Gui sushi is one of the best places to get sushi in Roanoke. I'm tired of people coming in here and saying "Wasabi" is better. The portions are the correct size here and rolls are tasty. If you want your rolls or nigiri to be filled with sauces be my guest and venture to Wasabi's, but here is where you want tasty fish. I also read some complaint about sushi rice on here and I found that complaints kind of stupid because the rice here is one of the best. Every time I go to Roanoke I try to eat here and I don't mind spending money for it because I know this is one of the cleanest restaurants around. read more

People got a little touchy about the teriyaki portion of the review. We got that for our kids and a restaurant should not offer food from the kitchen if it is not any good. Also, miso soup can be wonderful. Why should anything be a mere formality in a restaurant? If you want great sushi leave Roanoke. Ben Gui's is okay, which is enough to make it successful in Roanoke. read more

Used to love them and would go all the time. Very fresh fish, calming atmosphere, friendly service. They have a great variety of innovative rolls and their lunch special was a great value (2 8-piece rolls + miso soup for $9!) Then their prices went up, their pieces got smaller, I moved downtown, and I fell in love with Wasabi's lunch special. The end. read more

Fantastic sushi, probably the best I've ever had. I have spent the last 3 weeks in Roanoke and been here 3 times. If I come back to Roanoke again, I will go to Ben Gui. If you love sushi, get the Sushi/Sashimi dinner combo. You get a LOT of fish. The albacore and salmon melts in your mouth like nothing I have had before. Sit at the bar and you can talk with the owner/chef, Ben Chen, and get some suggestions from him. I like how when you get something like the spicy tuna roll, they don't just bring it out, they ask you how spicy you want it on a 1-10 scale and prepare accordingly. I told him I wanted just a little more, not a full roll, and he said he would make something off menu just for me. I got 2 spoon creations, one was lobster topped with wasabi roe, and the other was sea urchin topped with a quail egg yolk. Both were fantastic. He also makes a "Trust Me" roll. I forget what is in the bottom, but the roll is sliced, laid on its side and topped with a slice of strawberry and jumbo lump crab meat. It is about as good as a roll can be. This guy could kill it in any major city, and Roanoke is lucky to have him. read more

Amazing. Run by to people and the sushi place still looks like a work of art. The soup is most delicious as is the sushi itself. Raw, cooked or whatever this sushi spots got it. It's also not run by Americans trying to make an extra buck but is run by an experienced friendly guy named Ben. read more

I really wanted to like this place based on the reviews! However I split three different rolls; avocado, California, and shrimp tempura and they all tasted the same. While they are similar rolls I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference with my eyes closed. Very bland flavor. Heavy reliance on rice over filling in the rolls. The Shumai was decent. I'd rather have a Wasabi's roll since they seem to be filled with more ingredients. read more

I'm very impress with the chef in the combination of sushi. I got the VT special and Nama Mama roll. Nama Mama roll is great! It's chili spicy, I never have sushi with chili spicy taste. It's new to my pallet and boy... I like it! Wait staff is friendly and kept my water glass full (yup... it's important for me!) Definitely going back if I ever go to Roanoke again. read more

Heard good reviews from locals and have been craving sushi since moving to Roanoke. To be honest, this place is more of a 3.5 stars, but considering the fact that there isn't lots of fresh fish to get out here, I'm acknowledging their ability to still provide some solid quality food. Came during lunch time. Decor of restaurant was clean and had the more traditional Japanese feel with the wooden panel doors and sushi bar, which I appreciated. Ordered two specialty rolls: Salmon Lover and Kate's Favorite. The raw salmon was of a decent quality, but I felt the cuts were a bit thin, though maybe I'm just used to higher quality thick cut salmon (I miss you Cha Cha Sushi). I also thought it was interesting that the waitress asked me how spicy I wanted my spicy tuna that was inside of the roll. She gave me an option from 1-10, 10 being the most spicy. This is the first time I have ever been asked to give a spice level at a JAPANESE restaurant. Happens at Thai and Indian, but rarely Japanese, because their spice level isn't generally that high, unless you're talking about wasabi. Kate's Favorite was an awesome roll--soft shelled crab in the middle and eel avocado on top. The sauce was not too heavy and the crab was freshly fried, which was a nice touch. We also got a lunch bento box B that had beef teriyaki. The beef was pretty moist, but BF felt there was a bit too much sauce loaded on top and the sauce was a tad too sweet. It didn't bother me too much because I like sweet foods, but it's something to keep in mind. The tempura was definitely freshly made and good dipping sauce that came with it. The most disappointing thing was the California roll in the bento box--made me wonder if they purchased it outside rather than making it themselves since the quality of that roll was a bit subpar compared to the other rolls we ordered. In short, decent sushi spot with some interesting variations. However choice of ingredients did seem rather limited to spicy tuna, cream cheese, tempura, avocado, eel, soft-shelled crab, california roll and repeat. I kind of wished that there was some other kinds of raw fish available in the preset rolls, but I didn't order the chirashi, so maybe my perspective is skewed. Fried food is very fresh and well done. I did feel it was a bit on the pricey side, but it is the same price as sushi found in the Bay Area, though I'm not sure if this restaurant would be as highly rated there. read more

The Tornado was fantastic. Spider Roll wad special. Hamachi Koma was the best I've ever had. Cooked to perfection. This place is a jewel read more

Love this place! We go every Tuesday! Hands down the best sushi I have had in Roanoke. Owners are as sweet as can be! I highly recommend this place!!!! read more

Second time eating here tonight and maybe my last. First time I shared a love boat with my boyfriend and we enjoyed it enough to come back. This time I got the Super Chirashi. Chirashi is usually served in one bowl with everything - sashimi and all - on top of sushi rice. Here, the sashimi was served on a plate, the eel in a bowl on rice. Most of the sashimi tasted previously frozen and had little flavor. The tuna sashimi was a dark red instead of a fresher red which made me suspicious. The rice was way too vinegary. The eel, however, was good. My boyfriend got the sushi sashimi dinner plate and he noticed the same with his sashimi. His spicy tuna roll that came with it was good though. The service was good too but the food is more important to me especially when sashimi should be fresh and not frozen. Overall, not an enjoyable experience second time around and will not be returning as I'm sure there are other places we could try than waste our money here! read more

Ben Gui Sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

We got the iCrunchy, the VT special, and a shrimp tempura roll. They tasted really good. The wait for the rolls were 25 minutes though. It took way too long. The wait staff was rude and wasn't attentive at all. If you go here be ready for subpar wait service. read more

Service was warm and friendly from the moment we walked in for dinner. Highly recommend the agi dashi tofu appetizer and the plate for two (a step down from the boat). The sashimi was melt in your mouth, and the Best Friend Roll (which you can request as spicy as you'd like) was flavorful and a bit crunchy. It was so much food for two, prepare to be stuffed and take some home for a midnight snack. read more

Awesome Sushi. I wouldn't expect to find such wonderful sushi from a restaurant in a small town like Roanoke. This place could absolutely compete in a big city! It's easily on par with sushi spots in DC, NY, and LA. The service is outstanding and the servers are always ready to make suggestions and recommendations. I am usually reluctant to take advice on ordering food but I have learned to allow them to "surprise" me when I go in to eat because they always impress me with their selections. Don't worry about those silly sushi "score cards." Ask the staff for direction and I promise you won't be let down. Keep up the awesome work, Ben Gui, Roanoke is lucky to have such an establishment. I hope it isn't taken from granted because Ben Gui Sushi is a gem! read more

Very friendly chef and staff, very accommodating. Did well with gluten-free options. Our favorite sushi place!!

I have pretty high standards for sushi restaurants and am often disappointed at what is available in this area, however, for the price, this is excellent. It is casual and affordable and delicious. I wish they would just keep their menu authentic in terms of sushi names, etc, but otherwise, they at least start you off with a hot wet towel and use real sushi grade rice. I will be back for sure!! read more

So many people told my hubby and I to try this place, so we did. I was not impressed - the sushi was fresh but it was BORING - the portions were small, miso soup watered down, all in all not a great meal - we'll stick with Wasabi's! read more

Good sushi. Fresh taste. Highly recommended for lunch since the price is otherwise on the higher end during dinner. Get the maki special w the two rolls and a ginger salad for a starter. Fast, friendly service. read more

After having been to all the sushi places in the valley, we find ourselves time after time returning to this place. It is just a simple and clean place. No gimmicks, just simple and fresh sushi. Every time we go there the owners are always super friendly, greets everyone by their names. Sounds like a lot of faithful regulars like us. Definitely the best place in town for some good sushi. read more

Whether your a sushi eater or not, Ben Gui Sushi is the best! The food is always fresh, artfully prepared, and delicious. The atmosphere is great. We are always greeted warmly and by name when we arrive. You will not be disappointed. read more