We came here for lunch around 11:30 AM on a Saturday. There were ample tables open for outdoor dining. We were promptly greeted and we got to choose our own seats. We were served a small salad with a light sesame dressing along with a small bowl of miso soup. We ordered the calamari fry as a started followed by 3 sushi rolls: red dragon roll, geisha roll, and shrimp tempura deluxe. The calamari fry (3/5) had a great flavor profile, but was a little over fried so the calamari texture was extra chewy. The red dragon roll (4/5) had a good proportion of unagi to avocado per bite. The sushi was filled with cucumber and shrimp tempura inside topped with a lot crab along with tobiko on the outside! Great soft texture inside followed by a slight firmness from the unagi on the outside. Pretty tasty! With the unagi sauce, we didn't even need to dip it in soy sauce. The geisha roll (3/5) was our least favorite. The fish on the outside was fresh and delicious. However, the jalapeño toppings were very thick and the spicy sauce made it less enjoyable. The spicy sauce was quite sweet. Not much of a spicy factor. This also had cucumber and crab inside with unagi sauce as well as their spicy sauce. Lastly, we had the shrimp tempura deluxe roll (5/5). The shrimp tempura, crab, and cucumber were delicious. This was our favorite especially with the spicy tuna topping! Great place to satisfy a sushi craving. This place has great deals for sake + beer as well! read more

Joy Sushi - (From top down) Geisha Roll, Shrimp Tempura Deluxe Roll, Red Dragon Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

It's conveniently located more north of downtown San Mateo so parking is a bit easier. Service is usually really good here. I usually do take out and every time the rolls have been pretty good. This place will not use the highest grade seafood, however it does not skimp on quality and quantity. The rolls are huge!! We got the spider roll and the bay scallop along with two miso soup and even had left overs. read more

Joy Sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

We were so excited to eat out durin this pandemic and decided to try a favorite in San Mateo. Currently as of 4/10/2021 they're still doing only outdoor dining. Unfortunately it was a cold night and they have only 3 lamp heaters from what I saw and our table didn't have one:( Right away, We ordered drinks, and edamame, chicken Karagge for appetizers and our daughters plain udon. Our daughter scarfed down her noddles but unfortunately the edamame and chicken karage never made it out. When our sushi came out we asked about it and said we don't want it anymore so she cancelled it. We didn't think the appetizers would take longer than our sushi especially when it took us awhile to get our order in. On the plus size, all of our sushi was great. Sunshine roll, tekka , dynamite, baked lobster. They also had a great deal for $8 a large house hot sake with a larger beer. read more

Joy Sushi is hands-down my favorite sushi place in San Mateo. They are still open during COVID for take out and delivery, and their online ordering system makes things super easy and fast. We ordered the dragon roll and the samurai roll ($13.95 each). We were accidentally given the wrong rolls (baked scallop and 49ers), so the restaurant generously let us keep the wrong rolls and gave us the right ones. They were all delicious and huge; we were stuffed after eating 1.5 rolls each. My favorite was the 49ers which has a very crispy crunchy filling. Pricing is higher than some of the nearby sushi restaurants but the quality and size make up for it. Definitely worth it! read more

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Parking is great in the garage Staff is really nice Great outdoor eating Today I wasn't feeling it as much as I have in the past to be honest Although the they were very nice and gave us soup and salad before our sushi order It's hard to explain normally you want fast but this was almost too fast if it make sense The joy king could have been baked longer in my option but the dragon roll was good Over all 3 1/2 For today but normally I was give this location 4 1/2 I'll be back to try again for sure read more

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This has always been our go to local Japanese dinner place. Always constant quality. Today we were surprised that our bento box dinner beef teriyaki was so tough and grizzly. Really inedible. We tried, but couldn't even chew into some of the pieces. Hopefully, this was a one time mistake. We will see. read more

We've been coming here for over 25 years, always very pleased with the quality and quantity of our meals. Fish very fresh, service professional and courteous. Happy to see some new Korean items on the menu, highly recommend the Tokbokki with cheese, yummy. read more

Off the main strip of downtown San Mateo, tho rivals the more popular stops there (ex: Sam's) House sake was delicious Speed of service was fast Rolls are big, so take this into account when ordering. We did 3 rolls for 2 ppl and had leftovers, which is unusual for us. Interior is not the nicest / most aesthetic, so if you're in search of a cute date spot, would look elsewhere. read more

Fast and friendly service super fresh ingredients large portions it really hit the spot my old/new go-to sushi spot :-) read more

A hidden gem! There is a ton of seating inside, including an upstairs area. At this time, outdoor dining is also available if you feel safer dining outside. We went to Joy Sushi upon recommendation from a friend and let me just say... I have never gotten more bang for my buck with sushi- these rolls are gigantic! Not only were they big, but the fish was also fresh and the rolls were very flavorful. We got the Red Dragon, Sumurai and Lambada rolls, all of which ended up tasting similar with similar ingredients (e.g. tobiko, unagi, eel sauce, avocado, etc.) but that was just a result of what we chose to order. I guess we like what we like! Can't wait to come back and try some of the other options on their extensive menu. Happy Hour also seems like a must with the sake + beer deal. read more

Joy Sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Food: 5/5 Service: 5/5 Ambiance: 5/5 Good sushi, friendly staff, lots of variety of sushi to choose from. Good place for some sushi! read more

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I've been going here since I was a kid and it has never disappointed me! Truly some of the best sushi in the area

This is one of our go-to sushi place in San Mateo. Maybe more like 3.5 stars but I'll round up. They have a rather large selection of rolls which we like. The bento boxes are pretty good as well - note that the dinner prices are higher than the lunch prices. They bring you a small miso soup and salad with your meal which is nice. But edamame does cost extra unlike some places nearby. On our most recent visit, we ordered a spicy hemachi roll but they brought us a spicy tuna roll. When I pointed out the error, they corrected it immediately and let us keep the spicy tuna roll. I really appreciated that. The rolls are always delicious but I haven't tried many other things on the menu. Good local joint for decent sushi at a reasonable price. read more

Joy Sushi - Asahi Roll, Spicy Tuna Roll, Lambada Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

One of my favorite sushi places. Not a lot of frills, but the sushi quality is good, the quantities exceptional, large variety, and an amazing price point. It's extremely difficult to find a sushi place with all of these qualities in the Bay Area. It's really nice to go out for sushi and know that you won't break the bank and you leave feeling satisfied. The outdoor seating they provide is very convenient if you bring a dog. Ours had a great time. read more

Joy Sushi - Crunch Rainbow Candy Cane Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Great food and great service! Been coming here for years. Their bento boxes are nice. They have a downstairs and an upstairs. Reasonable prices. They have poke bowls and new desserts it looks like! Not a big fan of their chicken katsu donburis, but they have plenty of options and if you just like rolls, they have about 20-30 diff options! read more

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My partner and I came here to get some dinner. We didn't plan on it but I'm glad we did. They have indoor and outdoor dining during this time which was nice. We ended up sitting outside. The menu has a lot of options! I was indecisive on what I wanted to get but I ended up getting a plate that had a little bit of everything (I also love yellowtail). Beer was good, food was good, vibe was good! read more

Joy Sushi - Hamachi Lover 's Plate, Katsu Donburi Entree, Crunch Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

OVERALL: I've been coming here for over 10 years. It has changed a bit (to be competitive with Old Town Sushi across the street - Joy is better) but is always consistent. FOOD: They have a great bento box, tons of rolls and sushi, udon options, and more. I appreciate that their menu has pictures for all of their rolls and some other items. I usually get their rolls or the bento box. Their fish is not as fresh as some other places downtown; it's in that middle quality tier. Their rolls are huge. Their tempura is my favorite out of any sushi place - great crunch and not oily. You can customize the bento box with any options from their list, I really like that I'm not bound to certain combos, like at other restaurants. SPACE: Large space in downtown San Mateo. Downstairs, upstairs, and sushi bar seating. Great place if you have a group. Large TV on one of the walls. SERVICE: I've never had a problem with service here. Some of the same servers have worked there for years. Food always comes out quick. read more

This has been my friend and my go-to spot for sushi lunches since COVID hit, primarily because there is a large tent outdoors with ample seating space. The food has always been just okay. The rolls always seem to be a hit or miss. For instance, I ordered the Dragon roll off of their menu, because the image used had eel on top of each roll and the roll looked appetizing. But when the roll came, it had 3 pieces with eel on top, and the rest was covered with a thick layer of avocado. That would be okay if it were more evenly dispersed, but the avocado was so overwhelming that I ended up eating only the rolls with the eel and having to spend more time than I preferred scraping avocado off the other rolls. Note: I can eat avocado in moderation, but not large chunks of it due to the heartburn it gives me. We have been noticing that many of their rolls have less fish and more vegetable ingredients piled on (like the avocado), so perhaps they are cutting costs? The service here is great; the server we seem to encounter the most is a very polite gentleman who is attentive and fast. No complaints there. If they could remain consistent with their food I think I would look forward to returning more. read more

Joy Sushi - Dragon roll - notice all the avocado. - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Joy sushi knows what they are doing. Amazing rolls. Tons of options. Good quality fish. Huge portions. Clean inside. Two floors inside! Good service! read more

For my beloved friend's birthday we were treated to a delighted night full of Joy(ful) Sushi. We were fully satisfied. For a fine young gentleman as my friend Brett, Joy provided us with worthy feast. The boys (and girls) were stuffed after a few exceptional platters of sushi. Unaware that this was merely an appetizer, it was tough to find room for the following main course. But we did. For those looking for a delightful night of Joy(ful) sushi, we could not recommend this place enough. read more

Joy Sushi - THE BOY - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Horrible dry chicken teriyaki !! They worst one I've tried..no joke. Not only is the portion tiny( barely any rice) but the meat was so dry with NO flavor. They drizzled a little amount of teriyaki sauce on top which isn't that great tasting anyways but barely put any. So combined with very cooked dry chicken with no flavor then the little drizzle they put on top made this bowl extremely hard to eat. It was so dry I thought I was gonna choke. Absolutely horrible quality. To Top it off I bought 3 of these garbage teriyaki bulls that's a waste of $50 down the drain. read more

Joy Sushi - Chicken teriyaki bowl - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

I was very pleased with my outdoor dining experience over the past weekend. I enjoyed my vegetarian bento box. For the vegetarian bento, comes with 2 choices. I picked the agedashi tofu and the veggie potstickers. The bento came with veggie tempura and miso soup too! My food was good. Our server was friendly. Outdoor dining experience under the tent was nice. When it got dark, they friend on the string lights on the canopy tent which gave a nice ambience. Will visit again. read more

Joy Sushi - Vegetarian bento: agedashi tofu, edemame potstickers, with vegetable tempura, rice and miso soup - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Pretty disappointing. I've been to joy tons of times prior to Covid and even once they reopened. Today I ordered delivery and got the Toro sashimi - which is $17. The pieces are clearly half the size that they should be. I understand times are difficult for restaurants but please just don't offer this on your menu if it's going to be blatantly downsized. You can just look at the two pieces. If I put together the pieces that were cut into four they do make two regular nigiri or so. read more

Joy Sushi - Hamachi Belly Nigiri and half sized toro sashimi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Joy Sushi is my favorite to go spot for some bomb rolls! The servers are friendly and quick. My favorites here are the samurai, lambada, and joy scallop. The fish is always fresh and portion is pretty generous. read more

Joy Sushi - Baked Lobster Roll, Sunshine Roll, Cherry Blossom Roll, Caterpillar Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

Joy has been my wife and I's go to sushi spot for over 6 years now. We are always happy with their quick service, accuracy of our orders, and the size, price and quality and variety of the rolls. Even our to-go orders are always complete and accurate, which is hard to come by these days. We enjoy the low-key ambiance and the upstairs seating section. read more

I really want to give this place more stars but the wait time for to go made that very difficult. Came in on a Friday night at around 9:15pm and it was not busy. I placed my order at 9:20pm and did not get my food until 10:03pm. I get it maybe there's only one cook or maybe you are short staffed but the least you can do is give us an update. The male worker kept walking by me and can clearly see me waiting. read more

Joy Sushi is one of my favorite sushi restaurants! My husband and I come here all the time. They're service is always amazing -- friendly & speedy! We usually order several of their specialty rolls but on occasion will order sashimi. Honestly, top quality food all around! I love the design of the restaurant too -- there is seating upstairs which we usually opt for. Overall great spot and we always bring our out of town guests here. read more

Joy Sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

The sushi was ok, went here with my pregnant friend for lunch so we ordered all cooked rolls. The first thing I didn't care for was that the hot tea was lukewarm at best like at a temperature where I was considering whether I would get a stomach ache after. The miso soup was equally lukewarm and then the salad was ok but could have done with a bit more dressing. The rolls themselves were ok, nothing to write home about. We had a baked salmon roll which I probably enjoyed the most, a cooked roll that included tempura shrimp, unagi and avocado with some crab on top and that was decent as well and then futomaki which was my least favorite. I may go back if someone wanted to go there but with so many Japanese restaurants in that area I likely would try another place first. read more

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Joy Sushi is my go-to restaurant for Japanese food. They have a good selection of vegetarian dishes. I usually get the vegetarian bento box, which comes with your choice of 2 items, plus salad, soup, rice, and vegetable tempura. For the 2 items, I recommend the avocado roll, edamame gyoza, spring rolls, and oshitashi. The avocado roll comes with 6 nicely sized pieces that fill you up. The edamame gyoza is fried so it's pretty oily but the filling is good. The spring rolls come with 4 pieces and are a really good deal. The oshitashi (spinach with dipping sauce) is a good healthy option. If you're vegetarian, ask for 2 salads instead of salad+soup because the soup is made with fish broth. If you're looking for a lighter meal, the sushi rolls are always a good way to go. I really enjoy their vegetarian sushi, such as the avo-asparagus brown rice roll, oshinko roll, and mixed veggie roll. Prices are fairly reasonable - about $10-$15 for dinner, depending on what you order. read more

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I've been back a couple times to Joy Sushi. The service is usually friendly and there's always seating when needed. Strangely their sushi pieces are really big, which you think one would like and in theory - yes, you get more for your dollar, but it makes it hard to eat. I usually eat mine in pieces. Personally, I like sitting upstairs more, as it's quieter and the service doesn't suffer. All in all, it's an easy Sushi place to get into, the sushi is pretty good, and it's located centrally in downtown San Mateo. So we'll keep returning. read more

Finally a decent sushi place on the peninsula! The portions here are huge, quality was good and the price was right! I had the spicy scallop roll and spicy salmon, as you can tell I like spicy! Can't wait to come back here. read more

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I love the size in sushi rolls . I always order shrimp tempura & Philly roll with a simple California roll as well . Less then 50 dollars with very little fishy after tastes & the rolls itself come out moist & perfect temp. read more

This is my favorite sushi place to go to in the San Mateo area. The sushi quality is great and the price is fair. The only downside is when it gets busy the service is a bit slow and cooked food can take VERY long. They have a lot of selection so even if you aren't feeling the sushi you can always get a bento, noodles, donburi, or sashmi. Soup and salad are complimentary and sushi rolls come out pretty quick. Staff are very friendly and welcoming there. Their baked rolls are very good as well (my favorite is the Joy Scallop roll). Their sashimi / chirashi combo are generous as well, definitely leave this place feeling stuffed and satisfied every time! They have two levels and usually project sports games on the wall which is pretty neat. read more

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Enjoyed my first outdoor COVID-19 dining experience! As most restaurants close early, I was glad to stumble upon Joy Sushi that was open till 9pm on a Friday evening. Tables are under a tent, seated 6ft apart, and wiped down between uses. Props to Joy Sushi for the individual hand towelettes as well! After ordering, each person is given a side of miso soup and salad. Unfortunately, the miso soup came out lukewarm and the salad dressing tasted watered down. However, loved the taste of their hot green tea on a chilly Friday night! We received our order of 3 rolls (Samurai, Salmon Paradise, & Joy Scallop) within 20 minutes. At roughly $13.95 each roll, we were greeted with huge portions that contained roughly 7-8 dense pieces each. *Samurai is a solid choice. It's filled with tuna, unagi, crab, and cucumber topped with huge salmon slices. *Salmon Paradise was just ok. It has crab & cooked tempura salmon on the inside and topped with raw salmon. *Favorite was the Joy Scallop. Though it held a "mushy" consistency after being baked, one could see actual sliced scallops on top of warm California-like rolls. The accompanying sauce was tasty! Overall, it was a pretty solid sushi experience that left me completely full. Can't wait to come back and try the bento boxes! read more

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Outdoor dinner! Really busy but they take reservation on their website. Sushi is really good but the chicken teriyaki was just ok. Service is good. read more

Joy Sushi - a long platter of sushi rolls - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Great sushi for a great price, service was fast and we loved the other non sushi items

We've been going to Joy's for a while now. It's not the most authentic or fresh sushi on the peninsula, but one of the better bang for your buck type places. Recently we came here for a take out order since we are still worried about COVID. We ordered the Joy scallop roll, the rainbow roll, the lambada roll, and the samurai roll. The rainbow roll was as good, and met my expectations. The samurai roll was my favorite. The unagi and tuna on the samurai roll with the Joy special sauce were packed with flavor and kept me coming for more. The lambada roll was good; you can't complain with tuna and salmon. All-in-all we were quite satisfied with our meal and will be sure to return to satiate any Americanized sushi roll cravings we may have. read more

I'm a frequent visitor at Joy Sushi's Mountain View location. I happened to be in the San Mateo area so decided to check out this location too. My boyfriend ordered the CHIRASHI bowl and I got the BENTO with salmon teriyaki & spicy tuna roll (my go-to combo here). My bento was just as good as I remembered! Tender salmon and rolls filled up with spicy tuna. My boyfriend also enjoyed the chirashi, but felt that the fish could be a bit more fresh. Service was very quick and we were seated within 5 minutes upon entering restaurant on a weekend afternoon. The waiter was attentive in filling up our waters and we got our food very quickly after ordering. This location in San Mateo is a lot bigger compared to Mountain View's. It has 2 stories and can accommodate larger groups better. It was a great refuge for a meal during the massive heat wave awhile ago! I like the small, intimate location of the Mountain View restaurant a bit better, but would still drop by the San Mateo location if I'm in the area. Happy to patronize a local restaurant! read more

I have no idea why this place only has 3.5 stars. This has been one of our spots for quite a while now. Tonight we had Heesun as our waiter and the guy could teach a master class in waiter etiquette. The guy was never overbearing but always present to refill waters, take our order, get the check, etc. The food is good! It's pricey, but not more than any of the other restaurants in San Mateo. The bento box comes with a ton of food, so keep that in mind. I've also had the chicken donburi which was good but not exceptional. Their vegetarian platter is a ton of food for the price, easily enough for three people. Overall, would recommend for anyone in the area! read more

I went there, and I seen a rat wobble across the room. It was totally disgusting. I will never eat here again read more