We've gone here a few times over the years. Like all restaurants in Truckee it can get very busy which will affect service. Most recent trip we were there on a Monday night, so not super crowded. Still very lively, but service was on point. Sushi was all fresh and tasted great. Definitely on the pricey side, but to be expected these days. read more

Tried Drunken Monkey in Truckee and was blown away by the flavor. Everything was bold, balanced, and super satisfying. Service was a tad slow and not super attentive, but the food made up for it. Still definitely worth a visit if you're in town! read more

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Best Sushi in Truckee bar none. Service is always spot on but it's all about the Nigiri here for me. So so Delicious and Fresh. Your paying for the quality but it's well worth it. The Pho is pretty delicious as well. This is not an AYCE restaurant. read more

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Another top notch Japanese restaurant in Truckee. It opens at noon and have enough seating options and great ambience. They have a variety of food options from rice dish, sushi's and noodle bowls. The food is tasteful and the service was great. Highly recommended read more

Drunken Monkey - Singapore Noodles - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

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The vibe makes you feel like you're not in Truckee. The pace is quick. The focus is on food. The sake is good and the fish is fresh. I recommend ordering for the experience and getting out of the norm. Try something new, let yourself be surprised, enjoy the flavor journey along the way. Oh, and if you like garlic, you CANNOT skip the edamame pictured. read more

Drunken Monkey - Nigiri Special - King Salmon - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

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Had dinner at drunken monkey last night with a few friends and we had such a great night. It was surprisingly busy for later on a Sunday night but the hostess was still really nice and able to seat us within a couple minutes. Our waitress was very prompt and made sure to check on us throughout our dinner to ensure our drinks were full and we were enjoying our food. All the cocktails were incredibly tasty! A couple standout food items for me were the calamari, monkey madness, and Shiro Tataki roll. I will definitely be coming back to eat here again! read more

I was so excited to come visit this place that i have heard so much about ever since I moved to Reno. I probably will not be coming back again. The problems with this meal were prevalent from the start. Super duper SLOW!! Slow. Slow slow. Any kind of service was super slow to happen. From being seated to getting waters and drinks to ordering food and even getting our meals. Finally had someone come and take our drink orders and that was fine. They came out after awhile and then we waited some more to have or meal order taken. Nobody brought out utensils, chopsticks, napkins....nothing! Then, once the food started to come out it was piece-meal! One plate at a time. I was ticked! we want to eat as a group not finish a plate before the other dining guest has even got his/her meal. And, on top of it, i was waiting the longest (we were a group of 5) and finally when I said something to the server they went back to check and came back to tell me that they forgot to put my order in and it was never prepared!! WTH? I realize post-covid its hard to find service help but this was ridiculous. Food. Chicken teriyaki-was really tasty. pretty good. Chicken Katsu was good. Not the best ive ever seen but good. Honey pork bowl was pretty good. Shaking beef was good. And finally after everyone was done eating, my dinner came out. I ordered the Serrano chill shrimp and it was not bad at all. Food was not bad. Service was totally awful and it made the whole experience distasteful. Two stars rounded up from 1.5 read more

I went in to Drunken Monkey with very high hopes. We were extremely disappointed with our experience. Not only did the food taste old, it took around 45 minutes for it to come out. That is not to mention that the drinks did not come out until we were done eating. On top of all of that, the waitress was not friendly and rarely checked on us. Overall, I would not ever come back as the food was subpar, the service was slow and unfriendly, and it is absurdly overpriced. read more

We tried this restaurant in Truckee and honestly I was really disappointed. We got the chef's special sushi plate for market price, and it was $150. It's one thing to pay that much, but as you can see in the photo, it's really not that much food which was extremely disappointing. You essentially get one roll, 6 pieces of nigiri, and a few pieces of sashimi for $150.....not worth it at all in my opinion. The fish was seasoned well and tasted pretty good, but I simply couldn't get past the price. The kitchen was also super backed up so when we were still hungry after the chef's special and decided to order more, it took way too long so we decided to cancel the order because we didn't want to wait. Overall the rest of the food was pretty mediocre as well, and again for that price, I would simply not return here. Just my opinion. read more

Drunken Monkey - Chef's Special - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

Overpriced sushi. Paid almost $60 for 2 miniature rolls. See picture. Almost $8 service fee for to go order and they didn't even inform me of this until I looked at the bill. Waited 30 minutes for order though restaurant was empty. read more

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This place was a good spread and got there early enough to avoid the dinner rush. The cocktails the waitress suggested hit the spot along with the drunken monkey sushi rolls and the Kim chi. Would definitely come back and sit outside on the patio when the weather gets warmer. The spread and aesthetic of this place seems small inside but welcoming and not too much hustle and bustle from the surrounding crowds! read more

I've began to come here every time I visit Northstar to ski. The sushi is amazing and the service is fast. All of the rolls are so yummy, I am truly a happy customer. Oh and the spicy garlic edamame is delicious and definitely comes with a kick. read more

Love this place and stop every time I come by I watch all the other great entrées and starters going by everything. Here is great standard Real true Japanese food quality no weird mayonnaise junk all a great spinach dish this morning or today. I just spent much of time in New York in Portugal eating great food but drunken monkey as weird as Name is. It's top top top top sushi spot in the world. If you miss this you missed out I never miss it. read more

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An okay sushi place... the sushi was decent but not the best. There was no nigiri combo or set which was a bummer so you have to order each nigiri separately. Miso soup was definitely a miss and lacked an authentic miso flavor. It was more reminiscent of a chicken soup. I think this sushi spot is decent, but if you're used to more authentic Asian flavors this might not be the spot for you. Service was good and the inside was nice! read more

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Really cute vibe with a sushi counter. Didn't expect fresh fish out in Truckee but was pleasantly surprised. Hand rolls (temaki) were so great especially the hotate one. Special rolls were pretty good as well. Not mind-blowing but good for a sushi date night. Good service but can definitely be a little slow when crowds pick up. read more

Drunken Monkey - temaki - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

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Expensive sushi, but worth every dollar. Fish is flown from Hawaii and tastes so fresh and flavorful. Some of my all time favorite sushi rolls - especially the red dragon roll! read more

Drunken Monkey - High monkey maki (left) Red dragon roll (right) - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

This was absolutely terrible. From the service to the drinks and the food I could not be more dissatisfied with my experience here. To begin, our waitress was incredibly unfriendly. It took her 15 minutes to come take our order. We ordered drinks and food at the same time. We went through three plates of ginger before any food came, and were almost done with our food when the drinks finally came 30 minutes later. The sushi was awful, it smelled and tasted old. To top it all off, the prices of this restaurant are insane. Do not go here. read more

We had a great meal here with 8 people last weekend! We called that morning and they told us to just call when we were on our way and then they were able to seat us quickly. We had the Kamari edamame to start, which had a kick from the chili. I thought it needed salt, but my husband thought it was the best edamame he's ever had! We then had the Sierra sunset roll, the Tomoe roll, and the sake (salmon) thin roll. The tomoe roll was so good, it was deep fried and delicious!! I also had the hibiscus margarita which was delicious! It was light and fresh, and not too sweet! Overall a delicious meal with friends! read more

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So expensive and the smallest portion the honey pork was WAY too salty the monkey madness was the size of salami and 28 bucks and at the end it was 210 dollars you heard me right 210 DOLLARS. read more

This places service was mediocre at best, bringing the score down. They pretty much never came over, and when we tried to flag them down for a second Sopporo, it was a bit difficult to get their attention. We came here on a recommendation of the front desk at Gravity Haus Truckee. We biked here; a short, breezy, enjoyable bike ride. We arrived on a Monday evening at 7PM and seated promptly amongst a bustling crowd. The music was loud and a bit disruptive. This place is more of a fusion, and none of these rolls really remind me of authentic Japanese sushi. They added stuff like garlic aioli and deep fried the sushi. Which is okay, but was still a bit bland! We did really like the katsu dish. The fried rice had good wok hay, which we enjoyed. The Kathy was fried perfectly, yet still tender! We would probably never visit again, as there are definitely better sushi places we've visited! read more

Drunken Monkey - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

The best sushi in Lake Tahoe. Innovative cuisine and tasty rolls. Wait times are usually low.

My family and husband and I love this restaurant. We make it a thing to come every visit to Truckee. My husband and I have never left disappointed. Today we had our first disappointment, although it was righted for the most part. We love love love the Singapore noodle dish. We get it every single time and we usually come twice a year. This time, my husband's pork Singapore noodles came fully seasoned and delicious as it usually does, but my chicken Singapore noodles came with hardly any seasoning at all. It had very little flavor and looked very different than my husband's dish. We asked the waitress if the pork dish is seasoned differently than the chicken (as the dishes looked like night and day--the pork version visibly coated with seasoning, bursting with flavor, and a rich yellow curry color, but my chicken version only a very light yellow and no sign of seasoning, let alone flavor). She said no, that they season them the same. She asked me if I wanted her to bring me a side of the seasoning, so I said absolutely. I'm paying for my meal and want one with flavor. I should be able to enjoy it like every other time I've had it. She brought the seasoning out and I added the entire cup of it! That's how much was missing, and I'll tell you, it made ALL the difference! She asked how it was again, and I told her it was soooo much better, and I commented lightly that I thought the cook may have forgotten to season mine. She then responded that my noodles wouldn't have had that yellow color if it hadn't been seasoned. I thought that explanation was a little silly, given that the two dishes were so starkly visibly different until I added the rest of the seasoning it should have had in the first place. Like we could actually see the seasoning with our own eyes on his and hardly any on mine. I think the cook may have seasoned the chicken while cooking it a bit and then forgot to add the rest when the remaining ingredients went in. No one is perfect all the time, but I didn't really appreciate the brush off response to my very visibly under-seasoned, under-flavored dish that I get every single time. She was nice enough and attentive in every other way, however. Our favorite restaurant still gets at least 4 stars! read more

Food: 2/5 Service: 2/5 Ambiance: 5/5 The food here is very mediocre but I guess you can't expect much from a sushi place in Tahoe. The only thing that was really good was the scallop handroll. Would definitely order that again. Everything else didn't taste fresh and felt like I just bought it from the grocery store on $5 Fridays. There was a mystery meat in the chirashi bowl that tasted like nothing. And for the love of God, do not order any noodle dish here. Bonus that they use real crab though? Service is mediocre. We were celebrating my dad's birthday and I mentioned to one waitress (blonde, high heels) that we were celebrating. (So.. they can bring out a dessert) She looked at us like she's never heard of celebrating a birthday at a restaurant before. Didn't relay the message to our own server (Mary, I believe). I had to tell Mary again, where she explained they don't celebrate birthdays. That first waitress could have clarified that instead of being so weird about it. The ambiance made up for the entire experience. Can't be mad when you're in beautiful Tahoe. We sat outside and the weather was perfect. Overall, would not eat here again and don't plan on celebrating a birthday here because they've never heard of that. I would come back to the plaza for the ambiance and eat at the Thai place next door. read more

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The food was so good! Everything was so fresh and the flavor was so good! We got the tempura and it was perfect!!!

Me and my fam went to drunken monkey for the first time and it was amazing. They have fun dishes for the kids and great drinks for grown-ups. The service is great and if busy, the waiter of waitress tries their best to get you seated at a table, or the sushi bar. Overall I rate this a 4.5/5. It's truly the best Japanese I've ever had! read more

This was my 2nd time there. Like before, the food was great! But this time, the service was horrible. Last time it was just my husband and I. This time, I feel like since our party was big-ish (less than 10 ppl), and gratuity was automatically included, the waiter didn't feel inclined to do much. He forgot to ring in one of the meals, never refilled our drinks, didn't come back to check how things were... and it wasn't just him. Whenever we needed something we would ask someone else (because our waiter wasn't stopping at our table), they'd say OK, but never come back. One thing I asked which was very important was, is one of the menu items is cooked with peanut oil? We had a peanut allergy in our party and needed to know. The woman said she'd ask, and then never came back. Another time, all we asked for was a fork. My son doesn't know how to use chopsticks yet, and he got a ramen bowl, so it's not like he could eat it with his hands. He never got the fork.. Even after we asked 2 different ppl not including the time we asked our server. Every time we asked him for anything, he seemed seriously annoyed. Like, how are we bothering you?! You are giving our table ZERO attention. His major f*ck up though was when he almost gave a cocktail to one of the kids. They ordered a ginger ale and one of the adults ordered a ginger ale mixed cocktail. The dad even said "I think that's mine" and the waiter said, "no, this is the plain one".. luckily the dad knew the short glass was the cocktail and the tall glass was the plain one. So as the waiter was passing it to the kid, the dad quickly stopped him. Again, the food is really good, so if I do come here again, I'm ordering it to-go. They are a very busy place and idk if they know how to handle that. read more

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Super fresh sushi, great flavors. Highly recommend! I took a little day trip from Reno to visit here. My chef at my restaurant recommended this spot. I'll be back. read more

Drunken Monkey - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

I have eaten at Drunken Monkey a half a dozen times over the years, starting about 15 years ago with a memorable experience that introduced me to Escolar. It feels like this restaurant has just constantly gotten worse and worse, both the food, but more on the service side. On the food side of things, the most disappointing dish for us was the Chirashi, which lacks art and flavor, and skimps on the fish. The Shaking Beef used to be one of DM's best dishes, but now is just sort of a tough vinegar-y mess. I would also recommend avoiding the house cocktails and sticking with sake or some other thing that can't really be ruined. On the service side, which you see all sorts of bad Yelp reviews about, it's probably a broken culture and poor leadership. The staff is brusque, hard to flag down, and doesn't make you feel like a welcome guest at all. This isn't like a single rude staffer... it feels like a top down focus on valuing volume and speed, while devaluing making people feel welcome. The star average on this restaurant is well deserved... you've been warned. Whether you want top notch food, great service, or both, Drunken Monkey is ready to let you down. read more

The food is meticulously prepared and of the highest quality. The service is attentive and friendly. The seating can be cozy, but is always comfortable. The sushi rolls are a traditional size, compared to rolls served else where they are about twice the size read more

Oh, Drunken Monkey! It has been a staple in our lives for so long! It's the delicious food & quality that keep us coming back for more. But over the years, things have changed. As they tend to do. Drunken Monkey got rid of their Veggie Gyoza. (*sigh* my favorite.) And the prices have doubled. I laughed at my last review, stating a dinner for two is easily $100... try $220 these days. We treated ourselves to a fancy Old Fashioned for $21/each. And honestly I wasn't impressed. (*sigh*) For a $220 dinner, I expect for service to be top notch. Excellent. Superb. But on our last visit it felt rushed and informal. There seemed to be 3 different, very young, people waiting on us. Each one would just kind of drop stuff off or pick stuff up without asking any questions or engaging us in any way. My husband still swears by the quality of their fish though. So I suppose there is definitely a reason this place is always busy and we keep coming back! read more

Drunken Monkey - Singapore Street Noodles w/Tofu (so good!) - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

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TRUST THOSE WHO YELP REGULARLY... WOW! I've heard and read mixed reviews, so I had to check it out. We came in on a Saturday evening about 6:30p. The place was PACKED, but we were fortunate to get a seat fairly quickly for our foursome. That's about the only good experience of the evening. Our waitress was far too busy to care, and she made that apparent. Bussers and servers were also just too occupied, too clueless, or had been poorly trained. At one point, a buster brought water, but only filled one of the two empty glasses. We also asked a server for wasabi and low-sodium soy sauce, which she immediately seemed to have forgotten. When we subsequently asked our waitress, she seemed annoyed by us. Our food sat for probably 7-8 minutes before we gave up waiting... the wasabi and soy showed up around the 10 minute mark. The food was ok; nothing special, the place was abnormally loud for dining, and the sun pelted us in the face, due to an elevated window where blinds appeared to have been at some prior point (brackets still in place). Unless management corrects ALL of this, I'd have to recommend another dining experience elsewhere. Not recommended read more

We came in on a Tuesday. There was nobody sitting at the bar and a few people sitting at tables. Once we ordered some other people sat down and they got served way before us. We have been waiting already for about 30 minutes. There were three or four sushi makers, once we saw the ingredients for our softshell crab sit at the sushi bar for at least 15 minutes before they made our roll. The sushi was mediocre for the price. We were still sitting there finishing up when the three top next to us got up and left because they already been served and all eight although they did arrive later than we did. I think I'll wait to go to Reno next time. I eat sushi. There's zero sense of urgency here and they obviously don't care too much for their customers. read more

Service is amazing and is only outshined by the food. Can't say enough good things about this amazing spot. We've been coming for a decade and don't intend on stopping. Thanks to Drunken Monkey for always creating a welcoming space for us to enjoy a delicious meal. You are Truckees best! read more

If you're a foodie, this Truckee treasure is a must. Never had a bad meal. From the Singapore Noodles to Mochiko Chicken to the Calamari served in a rice paper bowl to the sushi that leaves me wanting more, I can't recommend it enough. My favorite thing to do is to sit at the sushi bar and watch Ned and his team create the most incredibly beautiful dishes. We eat with our eyes. That holds true for Drunken Monkey. Make it s top night and order anything from their sake menu or any one of their specialty drinks. It's a bit pricey and the wait may be 20-30 minutes but worth it. If you are craving fresh sushi, don't miss a chance to get a little "drunk!" read more

Drunken Monkey - Tomo Maki - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

food was alright but definitely not justified for the price service was terrible, didn't get checked on once and was waiting at least 10 mins for just our water dirty plates, small sushi read more

Sushi was great but server messed up our order, couldn't correct it cause she never checked in on us anyways (legit I'm not dramatic I'm a server too I get it but not even a check in between the greeting and check is absurd to me), and I stepped in poop in the bathroom. That I know they can't help/aren't aware of till end of shift but ew. Ruined my appetite read more

Drunken Monkey - Poop on the floor - Japanese Near Me - Truckee, California

The rolls were great, service was good and ambience is super. Service was a little slow but it wasn't a deal breaker.

So delicious. We went here after a few hours at the lake and it definitely hit the spot. I got the ramen and my husband got mochiko chicken. It was absolutely delicious. Service was kind and quick. They knew the menu really well and answered all questions. We loved that we were able to sit outside and enjoy the trees. Definitely want to come back read more

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Great food and amazing service! Good for groups and family. The menu was very eclectic for Truckee. Our party of 11 had an amazing meal here after a full day of skiing. Highly recommend! Oh, they have a nice list of sake too. read more

The service was excellent and everything was served in a timely manner all in order. the food was exceptional and was some of the freshest seafood I've had in a while. a wide variety of sushi's and different menu items which I'm sure all taste amazing. read more