This tucked-away place was wonderful! In the area for a conference, I was looking for a quick but nice dinner with local flavors. I was also on my own for the evening. I don't usually like eating out by myself but the Flying Fish Grill instantly made me comfortable- partly due to its semi-private booths, but mostly because of the excellent service! Staff was attentive but not pushy, prompt with food and service, and I never felt dismissed as less important just because I was eating alone (which I find to be a common problem). And of course the food was excellent. I had steamed artichoke to start with the pepper-encrusted rare Ahi for the main. Everything tasted fresh with a twist of asian and local flavors and ingredients. A surprisingly wonderful dinner! read more

We really love this place! The fish is very fresh and cooked perfectly. The food is excellent. The maitre d and servers are very accommodating and attentive. They clearly take pride in their food and work. read more

My wife and I had dinner there for our last day of our honeymoon. Very attentive and friendly service and really good food. Best food I've had in a while. Highly recommend! read more

See all

An excellent choice in Carmel. The place is in sort of in a mall (actually just at its entrance) but inside it is really cozy and you don't feel you are in one of those quite anonymous malls. The fish was really fresh and good. The recipes quite interesting. The service was good and nice and the price not too bad given that you are in Carmel and everything costs way too much given the quality. So, if you happen to be in town, just go there. It is by far one of the best options we tried! :) read more

Kitchen and service is outstanding! Black bean Alaskan halibut in parchment was over the top! Creme brulee with fresh berries awesome! You need to get a reservation away before you go! ONLY 45 SEATS! Great cold sake! read more

Wow. Everything from the moment we walked into this restaurant was like out of a dream--if you're like me and dream about food and gorgeous interiors. The highlight for me was the yin yang salmon. Words cannot describe how special it was, so you'll have to just try it for yourself. Definitely make a reservation in advance as this is a popular spot! Seriously: Do not miss this amazing experience. read more

Tucked away beneath a French pastry place. Reservations are needed since it's small. The host was able to fit us in after someone canceled..lucky us! We had calamari for the appetizer...so good. I had Almond Seabass and that was amazing! Service was personable and on point. A sweet little place I will return too next trip. read more

Flying Fish Grill - Japanese Near Me - Carmel, California

See all

Great service and great food! I have a shellfish allergy and normally wouldn't eat at a place like this, but we were invited for a friend's birthday, so I decided to make it work. Our server was great and when I tried to order something totally "safe" he told me they could modify any dish to make it safe for me. I had a delicious almond crusted sea bass over veggies. It's a very small place, so be sure to make a reservation. read more

The food is amazing. Off the main drag of Carmel, but still recommend a reservation. We had one and we're seated immediately. We had the shrimp curry soup and... OMG. It's to die for. Also recommend the Ahi. read more

Loved this place! A challenge to find, but cozy setting and food excellent. Nothing Asian about the atmosphere but distinct influence on the cuisine. Look forward to returning. read more

Was in town for a conference and wanted to take a client to dinner so I yelped seafood in Carmel. It turned out to be a great decision to dine at this establishment. The food was absolutely delicious! I highly recommend it. Great service and fantastic food so you cannot go wrong with this place. read more

Excellent dinner. Did my fair share of research on this restaurant ahead of time, but our experience nonetheless exceeded those expectations. The ambiance is upscale casual and almost tavern-like, very spacious with cozy comfortable seating. All the staff were knowledgeable and friendly, especially Rich who was particularly accommodating and welcoming. You can tell they take pride in their restaurant. And it comes to no surprise, for the food was phenomenal. Dinner began with very tasty wonton chips, and then my boyfriend and I split the tuna sashimi, almond crusted sea bass and black bean halibut. The two fish entrees were superb, couldn't pick a favorite between the two. Innovative and full of flavor. Finished with the banana sundae, which was very sweet but a nice end to an otherwise fresh, clean meal. Overall fantastic dinner. Cannot wait to go back! read more

The place is very dark and old looking. It's traditional Japanese food. If you are looking to eat sushi this is not the place. Service is good and the waiter was honest about some of the food recommendations. read more

Flying Fish Grill - Japanese Near Me - Carmel, California

The place doesn't look like much from the exterior, as it's entrance is down some stairs under another restaurant. Definitely worth trying! Small intimate place, and both the food and service are excellent. We had the seafood clay pot, which was delicious and more than enough for two. Give this place a try. read more

We discovered this gem 3 years ago and we been there every year after that for our anniversary. We travel to Monterey every year and we absolutely have to have dinner here. The food is always amazing and the service is excellent. You must call in advance to make a reservation or odds are you won't have dinner here. The place is cozy and busy. We got the calamari for an appetizer and so far we haven't find a restaurant that beats it. It's perfect. As an entree we ordered the seafood yosenabe to share ($72). You finish cooking it at your table. The seafood is fresh and always top quality. For dessert we got the creme brûlée, it was exquisite! They're in the process of switching owners. Thank God! The past owners were unpredictable. One day they were nice and the other they would give you an attitude. The new owner has always been nice (he used to be a waiter). read more

Holy shiitake mushroom this place is amazing. And speaking of mushrooms -- the mushrooms in the ahi pasta dish my husband had are to die for. I had the almond sea bass and I'm not a huge eater -- I couldn't stop until I ate the full thing. The service was also incredible -- food + service don't match the decor (don't be discouraged)...it really was incredible. Eat eat eat here! read more

Flying Fish Grill - Japanese Near Me - Carmel, California

One of the Best Restaurants in Carmel for years! Halibut in Black Bean sauce the best!

I love that he's spontaneous & down for whatever. I love roaming around Carmel & stopping into whatever restaurant looks lovely & just wingin' it. Sometimes you come across a winner, sometimes you don't, but it's fun to try something new without too much fuss/planning/obsessing/yelp checking. Good-humored host, available-when-we-needed-him waiter, overall service was tops. Stairs lead downstairs to a dark, romantic space. I couldn't stop eating the complimentary fried wonton chips & ginger salsa, but food-wise, that's where the amazingness ended for me. The dungeness crab tower was interesting, & I always appreciate a bit of avocado, but the crab was fishy & salty. I ordered seafood pasta, & expected a thickish sauce...my angel hair, fish, shrimp, & other shellfish was drowning in a watery broth, similar to how cioppino is served. I was taken aback by my dish's execution, but luckily, the individual components were fresh & tasty. Made some lovely memories here, but we're on to the next (food) adventure. read more

Went to Flying Fish on the last night of our honeymoon in Carmel - it looks upscale and cozy, the perfect end to a great visit to Carmel. Not so much - the food is decent but overpriced and the restaurant is distractingly loud and not very romantic. First-off, the food. As other reviews have mentioned, the wonton chips/ginger salsa are very tasty - for the sake of our upcoming dishes (and arteries), we had to restrain ourselves from downing yet another basket of the chips. I would not recommend our first dish, Spicy Tuna Tartare - the chopped tuna was not very fresh and bland (could have used some sort of spicy or sweet/sour sauce) and accompanying toast tips were clearly stale with that not-crunchy-but-not-soft texture...ack! Our mains were both pretty good - the baked halibut was tender and served with a soy/mirin sauce whereas the abalone was nicely pan-fried and served with some sort of tangy cream sauce Considering the food alone, this is a decent restaurant - the food is good but definitely over-priced (1 app, 2 mains, and a beer cost $104) and warrants about 3 stars. Unfortunately, we ended up having a pretty terrible experience because of the ambiance and service. Halfway through dinner, our waitress seated a family of four next to us (who were apparently her friends). As soon as they were seated, the table began loudly debating what they were going to have for dessert...which eventually somehow turned into watching videos on Youtube on full volume and hooting and hollering. As we looked around startled for our waitress, THE WAITRESS SAT AT THE TABLE AND STARTED SUGGESTING MORE VIDEOS! How dysfunctional is that? Honestly I don't usually care about atmosphere at restaurants but when you're dropping ~$30/plate at a restaurant clearly aimed towards intimate dinners, listening to two iPhones blaring commercials at full volume is a bit too much. The high (low) point of the night is when the mom asked the kid to pull up a video called "7 Ways to Discipline Your Child". Crushed by the irony of the moment, we paid our bill and left. Never again... read more

Oh so heavenly. On my birthday trip to Monterey, this was our only MUST EAT. We were definitely not disappointed. Instead of bread being served before dinner, crispy won ton chips with ginger salsa. This was so good, the table next to us had three servings. I would have eaten the whole thing myself, but I wanted to save room for dinner and dessert. Our server was excellent, and everyone there was friendly. Water was always full, and drinks refilled in perfect timing. I had the rare pepper ahi and it was excellent. It came on a bed of pasta with a delicious sauce. The fish was cooked (or not cooked depending on how you look at it) perfectly and so fresh and tasty. For dessert, I had the creme brulee, which was outstanding. It was perfect. I eat creme brulee everywhere, and I'm ranking this particular one as one of the top three. It was perfect, and I repeat that twice because I want to make sure I hit it home. We also tried the sorbet sampler. On this particular night, they were out of raspberry and something else, so we got coconut, passionfruit, and mango. OUTSTANDING. I can't stress how good this was. I've never had a mango dessert that was so true to the mango taste (and I live in Hawaii so we have mango everything). Flying Fish was such a pleasant dining experience, and definitely worth looking for. I can't thank them enough for a wonderful meal and great service! read more

Do not even tell me that you make a dime on your wine, because if anyone knows mark ups it's me. I have no clue how they do it, but this place sells their wine for less than I have seen in wine shops. And I am not talking Two Buck Chuck, they roll out the red carpet for some serious juice here. Yes, the food is excellent but did I mention the cheap wine prices? read more

Good food. Cozy atmosphere. Dark restaurant. Great fish selection. $20 corkage fee. Walking distance from shopping.

Love everything about this place - a great Asian-influenced restaurant with an interesting menu, good wine list, and stellar service. My work colleague asked "why don't we have something like this in our town?" Good question. The Flying Fish Grill is a subterranean beauty of a place - all warm woods, fireplace, and subdued music in the middle of Carmel. It's antithetical to the "Cheesecake" type places that are everywhere now. The wonton chips with ginger salsa are genius; the tuna tartare is delish. I have had the shabu-shabu (on the menu as beef clay pot) and it is worth the $$ charged. Our waitperson was knowledgeable and provided near perfect service. Will definitely be back to the Flying Fish Grill when in Carmel (guess this is my 4th or 5th visit). Great yin/yang balance. Good food. Highly recommended. read more

I want to give this place four stars. I really do. The food is great, well-priced and has a great ambience. The food's a sort of weird japanese menu. It wasn't full Japanese nor did it seem to commit to any particular theme - tempura, some salads, who knows - but everything (the calamari and the shrimp tempura in particular) was great. However for some reason the service was of the "uh I guess so" variety. I went for my birthday. The waitress appeared once, asked for our order then disappeared for 20 minutes before I just gave up and got the manager. She'd walked past a few times and just refrained from eye contact. So okay, sure. I didn't like the sake - I was prepared to pay and even apologized (sincerely) but I wanted a glass of Cabernet. They knew in advance I liked Pinot (girlfriend's wonderful) and brought out a taster of two different wines. The meal was back on track. The manager was super sweet and gave a generous pour. I was much happier. The food came, it was great and we said hey - we have to go can we get the check with our desserts? It arrived. After 10 minutes of watching the same waitress walk past us repeatedly - and even take the order NEXT TO US with her back turned - I just gave up, left cash and walked out. It's such a shame because the manager was so nice to us. It's just the height of lame service to be left with the check and worse to keep your back to them. After already basically ignoring them most of the time. Thanks everyone! Happy birthday to me I guess. I'd return if I wasn't left with such a bitter taste in my mouth. read more

Rachel Ray recommended this place on one of her shows and so I was really excited to go check it out when I went to Carmel for President's Day weekend. I love Rachel Ray so I knew this place was going to be awesome. My friends and I loved our meal! I got the almond encrusted sea bass and it was soooooo wonderfully tasty and fresh. Two of my friends shared one of the clay pot concoctions where you cook your own seafood - like shrimp, scallops, and salmon. The seafood that came out for the clay pot was so beautiful and fresh. In fact you really didn't need to be cook the seafood in my opinion because it was obviously sushi grade. My boyfriend got the rare peppered ahi tuna which he said was great but he found the sauce slightly overpowering. At the end of the meal he said he wished he had gotten my meal or a clay pot meal. Overall this place serves wonderfully fresh and beautiful fish. The price isn't too steep either and just what you'd hope to pay for really good seafood. P.S. The fried wontons and special salsa they bring out for free at the beginning of the meal were awesome! read more

Wow! I wish I knew about this place on my prior visits to Carmel. Flying Fish Grill is tucked away in downtown Carmel -- and we are happy we stumbled upon it during our last stay. We came in for dinner with no prior reservation, but the staff was friendly and made sure we were taken care of throughout the meal. It was really more of an 'event' than a meal as the waiter and host were so kind to us and made several recommendations for us during both our wine and meal selections. The food: amazing. A real treat. We both had specials for the evening and they did not disappoint. Everything from starters to dessert was perfect. The meal wasn't 'cheap' but it was the best -- in both food and service -- we had while in Carmel. We will definitely be back! read more

I have to honestly say that this was the best meal I have ever had. I mean from start to finish, it was all amazing. Yes, it's pricey, but so is every other restaurant in Carmel- and this meal was worth every penny. Rich was our waiter, super friendly and a genuinely nice guy. My boyfriend and I started with the artichoke. It came with a wasabi mayo dipping sauce that was melt in your mouth fantastic. We were also given complimentary wonton chips with and asian influenced salsa. I never would have thought to put those two things together but it worked into this wonderfully crisp and light bite. Now for the entrees. I ordered the almond seabass (my mouth is literally watering as I type this review). The seabass came out perfectly pan-fried with an almond crust over the top. It was served atop potatoes that were covered in the most amazing stir fry sauce that kind of turned into a sort of broth in the bowl. Amongst that broth was cabbage and rock shrimp that paired so well with the rest of the dish. Every bite was incredible, I tried my best to savor every last bit of it. Simply amazing. My boyfriend ordered the ahi tuna- another fantastic and flavorful dish. The ahi was perfectly seared with a light pepper crust. it came with very thin angel hair pasta coated in a sesame soy sauce. Everything within the dish complimented each ingredient. I can't express how much we enjoyed our dinner here. From the service to the food, we had an amazing meal and a fabulous time. No doubt, this will be our go-to restaurant when we come to Carmel. read more

4.5 we were delightfully surprised with a basket of fried wonton chips served with ginger salsa instead of bread and butter. the chips were addicting, light, and crispy. the ginger salsa was fresh, zesty, and refreshing. the california tower was like a deconstructed california roll. the crab was extraordinarily fresh and there were many lumps of salty flesh. the rice was perfectly sticky and soft. we came here highly recommended and were advised to order the almond crusted seabass. we also ordered a lobster tail which was served with clarified ginger butter. the seabass was absolutely amazing. cooked perfectly with a beautiful crispy almond crust, the flavors just bursted in your mouth. the lobster tail was quite large. broiled and served on a bed of curried rice and julienned zuchinni, every bite dipped in the butter was succulent. for desserts, we had the trio of sorbet and the warm banana sundae. the sorbet flavors were delicious and rich. the tempura'd bananas were topped with a hefty serving of vanilla ice cream and ladels of caramel and fudge (upon request). everything was sprinkled with chopped macadamia nuts. altogether, it was quite an amazing, "roll your eyes to the back of your head" dessert. the owners and staff are very nice and friendly. they really make you feel at home when they know that almost 90% of their patrons are tourists. we will definitely revisit when we're back in the area. read more

See all

The Flying Fish Grill, in Carmel, CA, is the best restaurant I have ever eaten in....amazing, food is perfect, good service most of the time, and always worth the cost. We fly from Atlanta GA and family members fly from Texas and Hawaii and meet here each year for golf at Pebble Beach and this restaurant. You will not be disappointed...we never are!!! Thank you to the incredible owners. Norma Johnson read more

The menu looked good - and the greeter was very friendly. The servers were very pleasant and were willing to give advice on the fresh catch section This is where the problems started to occur. My partner ordered the Halibut - which was meant to be fresh. The fish had no texture - I tasted it too. To my palate it feels it had been previously frozen. (After living in Japan for many years we both know our fish dishes quite well ) Even if it wasn't previously frozen - there is no way that was fresh catch. This fish felt it has been mashed together The server did offer immediately to take the plate away - which was good read more

Great food... Only topped by the service provided by the entire staff. Would make this a regular stop if I lived here.

Superduperoustandingridiculousness. Fried won tons served at the table with homemade salsa: Yum. California Tower: boom. Stupid good. Sea Bass: Delish. Black Cod: Solid. A Yelp reviewer said to avoid. Really? Don't listen. Go. Go NOW. read more

SERVICE - We had a reservation and only waited 5 minutes after arrival to be seated. - They were always prompt in refilling our waters. - At the end of the meal, I think it was the owner that came by for some small talk. Thought that was really nice. AMBIENCE - A little difficult to find (remember that Carmel doesn't really have street addresses. Hint: the entrance is down the stairs) - Small and cozy place - Unique decor of flying fish made of different materials in the entrance - Small but clean bathroom FOOD - OMG the won ton chips and ginger salsa are addicting! I had to stop myself from continuously stuffing my face so I could enjoy the rest of the meal. I think they knew this because they were a little slow to refill this. - Almond-crusted sea bass was my favorite dish here. Perfectly cooked fresh fish. - Rare Peppered ahi was good, but just not as tasty as the sea bass. This was the least impressive of the dishes that I had. PRICE - A little on the pricier side, but worth it for the fresh seafood. Nice date spot and I would definitely come back here. We still have to try the black bean halibut! read more

Honestly this place deserves 5 Stars. Yelp! has a tendency to remove 1 and 5 star reviews though. My wife and I ate here on our baby moon. We were greeted by either a server or buss boy. Not sure which. The dude was super friendly though. He told us the host would be right with us. Sure enough, he was. He escorted us to a nice booth table, one that my pregnant wife was able to slide into easily. I was wearing my Florida Gators sweatshirt and he made some small talk about them which made me feel welcomed. They brought out some chips with a salsa type dip. While we browsed the menu they took our drink orders. BTW, the carmel beer...not sure of the name. It's awesome. Get a couple and enjoy. My wife was concerned about a dish being to spicey, after having the buss boy from our arrival confirm that it should be fine, we were delighted when they brought out the sauce and some bread for my wife to test before they made the dish. I ordered the seafood pasta. It was awesome. More seafood than pasta IMO. Which was awesome, however the pasta was excellently cooked so it would've been fine if there was more of that than the seafood. For desert we had the tempura fried banana sundae. Everything was superb. The Host stopped by several times to check on us. The buss boy did as well,. Though it's not like they were intruding, just genuine great customer service. read more

Yum!! This place has been my staple dinner spot in Carmel since 2003!! It's crazy how Flying Fish Grill has managed to stay successful for so long with the same menu, but that just goes to show how fresh seafood cooked perfectly is always in. Our most recent visit was a group of four and in usual Chinese family fashion we went for family style. Our order in ranking order: 1. Almond Seabass: #1, MUST order! The fish is always perfectly cooked (when is seabass ever bad?) but it's on mashed potatoes and the most amazing seafood sauce with tons of flavor. 2. Alaskan Black Cod: Another white fish but with a fresher flavor with the salsa and arugula. 3. Seafood pasta: A lighter take on pasta with angel hair. It's packed with tons of perfectly cooked seafood and provides a nice variety with all the fish dishes. 4. Yin Yan salmon: I remember liking this one in the past but it was slightly overcooked this time. Still a good one but last in ranking for this meal. Oh yeah, have you read all the mentions for the wonton chips and ginger salsa?? Genius. They also provide a hefty wine pour, such a steal ;) Can't wait to have it all again! read more

My husband and I recently spent a long weekend in Carmel and this was by far the best dining experience we had. We wanted to splurge on some nice meals, so we did a bit of research before our visit. This was the ONE restaurant that did not disappoint and ended up being one of our less expensive meals. Every employee we encountered was friendly without being phony. They were extraordinary knowledgeable and professional while still being warm and relaxed. This was not typical of their neighbors. Every bite of food was wonderful. We enjoyed the calamari appetizer and the seafood clay pot. The best calamari we ever had and the clay pot was so fun and every bite was fresh and delicious. The wonton chips and ginger salsa served at the beginning of the meal were also great. I could tell by what we ordered that we didn't just luck out by ordering the right thing; I'm confident that everything they serve is the same level of perfection. The seating and ambiance was cozy and romantic without being claustrophobic. We cant wait to return and recommend it to anyone who will listen. read more

Over labor day weekend we had dinner here. I didn't expect much from a restaurant with a name like "Flying Fish Grill" located in a shopping plaza. I was glad I was wrong. This place was very charming with a japanese twist added to the decor and menu. The house started us with fried wonton with salsa dip, which turned out to be a pleasantly complimentary combination. I ordered the almond crusted sea bass, that just melted in my mouth with a bit of a sweet crunch from the almond. From my observation, it didn't seem like this place was touristy at all. The staff not only recommended a dish but also recommended activities after dinner. I was impressed that the owners went to each table and that they knew a lot of their guests. Make sure to make reservations to dine here. read more

Last time I visited this place was 10 years ago with my parents. 10 years later, I still remember Flying Fish fondly and decided to take my date here. Still lives up to my memory - Excellent food, excellent service and excellent atmosphere! We had artichoke (super fresh and delicious with wasabi sauce), salmon, and my date with almond crusted sea bass. All were yum. Topped it off with banana ice cream dessert and some coffee. Server was very attentive and very polite. My stomach is growling just writing this review. We will be back! read more

To begin, this particular night I was not really in the mood for fish. Boy am I glad that I listened to my girl! I am sorry, but I have to jump into this magic- The Almond Crusted Sea Bass - Hands down, one of the top five fish dishes I have ever eaten (outside of what fish I have caught myself). That may be all you need to know. If you need more persuasion, here is a proper review. We called the place at 8:55 and asked what time they close. The man answering said, "usually at 9, but if you get here in 10, we can seat you." :-) We couldn't find the place at first (Carmel has no addresses..... weird). We called again lost, but as we found it, the same man (Rich) was walking out of the restaurant, looking for us. A host. Were we surprised when he was also out very generous waiter. We ordered a plum wine and a sake for drinks, and two amazing fish dishes- Black bean halibut in paper and almond crusted sea bass. The black bean halibut came in a paper case, which another server opened beautifully for my girlfriend. Inside, the nice halibut cut had a classic black bean sauce. The halibut was hot and melty, the black bean sauce, gave it a nice salty depth without being too salty (which black bean sauce can be). Aside of the fish was matchstick veggies and BBQ rice ball. They were nice compliments to the subtle, yet spot on black bean halibut. The Almond Crusted Sea Bass however, towered above the halibut (and I love halibut). Out came this beautiful piece of sea bass, almonds crusting the browned top, sitting atop a small pile of mashed potatoes. Around this, rock shrimp and cabbage sat in an incredible light jus. The sea bass was hot (almost scalding), but the crust was AMAZING. I had to slowly enjoy each rich, crispy bite. By the last bite though, the fish was still HOT. It was wonderful. A dish you should drive hundreds of miles to try. For dessert, we ordered the hot fudge sundae and it was better than many ice cream parlors of quality that I have visited. Rich (out waiter) was accommodating, generous, and a delight. I left feeling like I will miss him and need to come back, just to say hi. But I think I might have to eat some sea bass when I do :) read more

I did not know what to expect when my husband made reservations here, but I like trying new places so I was also excited. A colleague recommended it, so we went. The place is small-- it seats only 45. It is Fusion with a capital F. I had the ahi, my husband had the black bean halibut. The halibut was AMAZING!!! It was baked in a paper pack. My ahi topped angel hair pasta and a cabbage salad. The staff was amazingly attentive. I knocked off one star because there is no street address to this place! You can't put it into the GPS, so we struggled to find it. It's seriously in a nook! Around the corner, downstairs. read more