I used to love the Bleu Monkey! I ate there three to four times per week. But then, one day I went to pay. I was moving quickly on my way to class and must not have tipped on the kiosk when paying. I took my receipt and left, yet as I was walking out the employee checking me out followed me out of the restaurant to argue about me leaving a tip. He bullied me into buying a soda just to leave a tip, which I am sure did not go to the server I had, which for the matter just brought me my food and check. I did not have bad service, but as a student with limited finances, I did not have the luxury of tipping extremely well, and do not feel that it was right to be bullied into tipping especially when in the state of New York, tips are not mandatory. If this employee feels this strongly, he should recommend something to the business instead of bullying college students into buying other things to leave a tip. read more

Good dinner. Decent price. Nice, patient waitress. Had a collection of dishes - spring rolls, shrimp tempura (yummmmmy!) oysters, chicken bento box, cobra roll, specialty sodas read more

The gyoza is great but the dumpling sauce is more sour than what I'm used to. I recommend any of their signature rolls because it's a good portion and tastes fresh. I've had better and worse. They do have a lunch menu too which I will remember for next time. Service isn't personable but it was quick and attentive. I wouldn't have a big dinner party here or anything but it's a good place to go if you're looking for a quick fix. read more

Bleu Monkey Cafe - Shark Roll, crabmeat roll, Lava roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Syracuse, New York

As with all Asian food on Marshall, its quality can't compare to the ones in NYC and its so much more expensive. But all in all, their sushi rolls are quite good. The monster roll is huuuge! I also tried the Jason Roll and couldn't stomach all of it. Its got 3 types of raw fish; and I don't particularly like raw food in large quantities so maybe its just me. Their soup noodles are decent I think. Their stir fry is sub-par, but not terrible. I repeat, Asian restaurants on Marshall can never compare to ones in NYC. But hey, you get sick of dining hall food! read more

Absolutely incredible food!! Plenty of eye candy strolling by as well.

I have been here a couple times now. I would not say that this is the BEST Japanese food that I have had but its worth a visit. This time i ordered udon soup noodles, my friend ordered a side of rice that was not cooked fully but the waitress was very kind and without my friend asking, she took it off the bill. read more

Bleu Monkey Cafe - Udon soup. Was more then a meals worth so I brought home some left overs! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Syracuse, New York

Bleu Monkey was overall a very good experience. The waitress was very friendly and attentive, and our food was delivered promptly. The place was clean and organized, and since my friends and I had a late lunch, the restaurant wasn't too noisy. The food itself was amazing, and it didn't come as a surprise. I've been an avid client of Bleu Monkey ever since I started college. I love their sushi rolls-- especially the lizard roll. The salmon is always fresh and the plate always looks carefully prepared. Overall, I'd give my dining experience a 4.5/5 stars. The only downside to my dining experience would be the bathrooms, which should be cleaned more often. read more

See all

Kind staff, quick to smile. Sashimi: tantalizing. Cozy in winter. read more

The host was really nice and very accommodating when we changed our party of six into seven. We were instantly seated and the waitress was just as equally nice and accommodating as well. I got the pork belly tonkatsu noodle bowl with ramen noodles and tonkatsu (pork). The noodle bowl comes with corn and bits of seaweed already but I added in a few extras: fish cake, a soft boiled egg, and a sheet of seaweed. Pork was pretty good, tender and not that chewy and a decent amount for what you're paying for, 3 pieces. It was pretty tasty, compared to other ramen places I've been to in NYC. Also had the fried baby octopus as an appetizer (my friends devoured it before I could take a picture). Batter was tasty and crispy, making the octopus crunchy. Dessert was an order of ginger ice cream, the ginger flavor hits you subtly in the beginning but gets stronger the more you eat. Overall if I'm ever in Syracuse again, I would definitely come back for the noodles. read more

Bleu Monkey Cafe - Pork belly tonkatsu broth ramen noodle bowl with a soft boiled egg, fish cake and seaweed - Sushi Bars Near Me - Syracuse, New York

See all

When I think of my experience here, I think of the scene from the office when Mindy Kaling says "First of all, how dare you???" My boyfriend and I go to school in Ithaca, which has a pretty lackluster selection of Asian cuisine. We thought Bleu Monkey could be a solid ramen spot, especially when there was a pretty solid crowd when we walked in a little before 8pm. We both ordered a tonkatsu ramen with pork with an additional poached egg (the egg was $1 on top of the cost of the ramen). We also ordered a "nom nom" roll to share (scallop, seared salmon on top). The ramen wasn't offensively terrible, the broth was fairly rich and the noodles were a solid level of chewy but not mushy. However, that's about my minimum expectation from ramen. However, the chashu was dry -- somehow, even the veins of pork fat were dry. All this dryness acted like a sponge and it managed to absorb a LOT of sodium from the broth. And now I have to describe this ... "poached" ... egg. You know how the perfect poached egg is soft, breaks apart and spills yolk into your broth when you nudge it with your chopstick, and somehow, that yolk has a touch of sweetness? Yeah. It was none of that. It was literally a hard boiled egg, not even soft boiled. I could have gone to my local grocery store, bought a dozen eggs for $2, thrown 10 out the window, poached two eggs in the microwave (yes you can do that!!), tossed one in my bowl and one into my boyfriend's, and had a better egg-related experience, for the same value of the $1 additional egg for each of our bowls. Yes, I am extremely salty about this egg-perience (haha), no, my saltiness does not even match the saltiness of the chashu (double haha). The nom nom roll did not make me go nom nom. The scallop had very little flavor and wasn't very fresh, and despite being coated in some spicy sauce, the roll managed to be very bland overall. Also, this dining experience somehow came out to $40 dollars. For now, I've given up on finding palatable ramen in upstate NY, and I'll be eating instant ramen when those ramen cravings hit. Send me a message if you have a location that might make me change my mind, PLEASE. read more

Best ramen I've had in awhile, and they really don't gip you on the portion size. Also the sushi menu was huge. The only thing I wasn't wowed by was the mochi ice cream because it didn't taste that fresh. Great experience overall I'd say. read more

I started going here in college and it became my favorite restaurant . The staff is incredibly welcoming and the food is amazing. I became a huge fan of their bento boxes . I would definitely recommend Bleu Monkey to anyone looking for a quick bite on campus as well as anyone visiting or living in the local area! read more

The best sushi in all of Syracuse, hands down, this is my favorite place. My fav rolls ? Cobra roll and the wolf roll... you won't be disappointed. read more

The service was terrible. Woman at the front treated all customers like trash. The food was not edible besides the miso soup. The food was not ready until 45 minutes after the set time. Insanely upset and disappointed. Never. Going. Back. read more

Bleu Monkey has become my go-to place to eat out after a long day of work and school. The bento boxes are great for a college budget- a lot of food that would cost a lot more someplace else. I'm a big chicken and rice fan, so the healthy serving of teriyaki chicken on rice really suits my taste. Also, the sides that come with it (soup, salad, spring roll) are a perfect complement to the meal. Even the california roll on the side of the chicken and rice fits the palate, especially for a guy who doesn't usually like sushi. The service is friendly and responsive, and the restaurant is always clean. All in all, I'd highly recommend Bleu Monkey to anyone looking for a good meal on Marshall Street. read more

I've had different experiences with this restaurant. The first time i came here, the sushi rice was warm and the salmon frozen. However, the subsequent times i visited, the sushi and fish was fresh and the noodle bowls were delicious. read more

This review is mainly for their noodles bowls which i get almost exclusively. There are dozen of places that serve sushi (and other standard japanese food that people expect) in syracuse area, but not a single good place that has a good tonkatsu broth within probably 100 miles. maybe 200. They offer half a dozen noodle choices and they have a pretty decent ramen. Their tonkatsu broth is really special. I've had tonkatsu broth across the country in the US, and in tokyo and theirs really stand out. Its not as pale as most other tonkatsu broths but still has a very hearty and porky flavor. :3 also they serve it in a iron pail/bucket thing with a handle and that really speaks to me. :P I do wish they would start offering additional topping options for their noodle bowls like most other places (like scallions, bean sprouts, bamboo, egg, etc.). Hopefully someday! I got there about once a week. read more

Consider the fact this is Syracuse and bleu monkey being in the university are, I give bleu monkey 4 stars. Best sushi on Marshall street, or even the whole university area. They also have a noodle bar which is nice. The only thing with bleu monkey is that they think they are in a higher class, so they do charge you more than they should. read more

I'm not a big fan of their sushi, although the vegetable rolls are decent. That being said, they're on par with other sushi bars in Syracuse--the pickings are just a little slim in this city. So why the five-star review? Dear reader, let me tell you: their hot pot noodle bowls are *fantastic*. I mean really, really, really, really, really fantastic. They're not on the regular menu, but rather are advertised on little blue cards at each table. Choose one of 5-6 types of noodles, one of two broths, and one of four proteins. As far as I'm concerned, it's one of the best noodle bowls I've ever had -- I order one 4-5 times/week and still crave it every day. Why they don't even particularly highlight the dish or put it on their regular menu is beyond me. read more

Our waitress, Wing, was incredible. A smile on her face just brightened our whole day. The food was marvelously delectable and I would most certainly bring my loved ones back here for another fantastic experience. read more

Just alright. Not the best sushi on the block, I recommend trying out some of the other options first. The bento boxes are okay, not as big as a portion as they should be for the price you a paying. The salads are usually alright, nothing special. read more

They are overpriced. Apart from that I don't have any complaints. Great place for sushi lovers. I mostly accompany my sushi loving friends for a quick bento box. Word of advice for vegetarians though, do not take the tofu bento box. I love tofu, but I almost choked on the tofu I ordered here. I am going to stick to the katsu chicken or pork for next time. read more

An excellent dinner! I went to Bleu Monkey last night with some friends and we had a delicious meal. I had the Lizard Roll, one friend had a ramen bowl and the other had chicken teriyaki over rice. The bathroom was clean, the service was a great pace and the food was tasty. Will definitely go back again! read more

See all

Why does it always say open everywhere when you guys are always closed? Ridiculously inconvenient.

Stopped in for dinner after seeing pictures here. Unfortunately I had a different experience. We ordered a roll, fried octopus, a pork belly, and a beef ramen. The sushi wasn't to bad itself, a solid 3 stars but everything else was disappointing. The octopus was 'well done' to put it nicely, and the pork belly was tough. The ramen itself was pretty unremarkable and didn't even include a soft boiled egg. If I happen to be in the area and wanted sushi I might stop in, but otherwise not. read more

really great sushi, the environment seemed very chill and lay backed, the smell when I first walked in smelled wonderful and just like japan. read more

I eat here on Tuesdays mainly when I get home late from an appointment after work and I always order the salmon bento box...to die for!!! I love salmon to begin with and this has just enough to fill me up..miso soup is wonderful as well! Keep up the good work! !!! read more

Ehh.. By no means best.. Just a quick fast food like restaurant. Service was terrible and sushi was very ehh. Don't go in expecting to be having quality sushi. This is more of a college-student budget sushi restaurant. This place ignored one of the things sushi fanatics love about sushi... The art.. There was none.. It was more of a here a roll worth 8.5$ in raw fish, veggies and rice. read more

I don't come here for the sushi, I come here for the udon tofu miso soup. It's the perfect comfort food for the long winters in Syracuse. I usually get take-out because the place is cramped and I like to sip on some soup while I do research. I only had sushi here once and it was average and the service was polite and friendly. Do try the udon miso soup! You will want to come back for more. read more

Omg this is the best sushi place I've ever been to! I sat down, and was almost immediately greeted with a fresh draft beer! It was almost like they knew who was coming! Ordered the obachama roll, the hostesses and waitresses made my night! And so gorgeous too! 10/10 would come back again. Best restaurant on the SU campus. read more

Not good. That's it. Just not good. At. All. And not clean. Gross food. Bad service. Pretty sure if I had eaten the shrimp on my lackluster salad I would have gotten sick. read more

I had a pleasant experience at the restaurant. I was quickly seated and served and the food was good for the price. I had a chicken and rice bowl which was a pretty simple dish but definitely was filling. The overall ambiance is nice as well. It's definitely a good option if your looking for a nice place on a budget. The place seemed clean. Great for college students. read more

See all

So good....the ramen noodles with miso were amazing! I got sea food and also added veggies and tofu. Amazing!! Loved the dragon roll, too.

This was only my third visit to Bleu Monkey, but I definitely need to start going more! I am always very satisfied with the food and the service. Today, I went around 11:45AM for lunch with a friend. We were seated right away and our waitress was very attentive. I ordered a lunch special for $11.25 which came with 2 rolls and a house salad. That price is unbeatable! My friend ordered a ramen noodle bowl with chicken, which she enjoyed as well. I was impressed with how fast the food came and with our waitress who constantly checked in on us and refilled our waters. I will definitely be back in the near future! read more

See all

For all the times I've been to eat sushi here, I thoroughly enjoyed the quality and taste. The perks is that it's close to campus.

I'll start by saying the food here deserves 3, maybe 3.5 stars. I knocked down my rating because of the service I received while dining at Bleu Monkey. I came in for dinner with a friend and we both ordered Bento Boxes and shared one of the specialty rolls. For being not near the water, I was surprised that the sushi was pretty great. I enjoyed the rest of my Bento box too, it was definitely plenty of food. The place wasn't all that busy while I was there, but my friend and I rarely saw our waitress. On top of that, the few times we saw her she spilled water all over our table and dumped a full dish of soy sauce all over my friends shirt/pants. Overall, not super impressed but it's not a bad option for food if you are looking to get a Japanese fix. read more

The food was good, and it used to be one of my go-to places around campus. But I do NOT appreciate their new check out way. While the waiter just standing right there staring you to tip at least 18% minimum. Especially when the services are not even good! read more

Very good lunch specials, fantastic and large bentos! Good service as well.

I love the haha roll, eel nigiri and blue monkey salad. My bf loves their noodle soup.

Love the sake and gyoza, but the lighting is very dim and the chicken always seems to look a little weird. Great place otherwise and one of my favorite restaurant at Syracuse. read more