I found this place on Yelp about a year ago and have been meaning to try this place. Street parking always scares me especially during the weekend but luckily I had a Monday off and was able to find parking right across the street. It's a cute little spot and aesthetically pleasing. I believe it's a kitchen hall where multiple restaurants are combined into one? You're able to order curry, dim sum, Japanese sandwiches, bento boxes, etc in one spot. Theres indoor and outdoor seating. We were greeted as soon as we walked in and were seated where the cushion chairs were. Then we scanned a QR code on the table and started a group order/tab. I was looking for some comfort food during these gloomy days so I ordered the Japanese curry with katsu which came with miso soup. Our food was served through a robot was pretty cool! The curry was good! My total for two curries with katsu, including tax and tip came out to be about $50. I'm rating this place a 3.5 due to our table not being wiped down prior to being seated, there were crumbs on it and our server just picked some of it up but did not wipe down the table. Other cushion seat tables were also not wiped down and the cushion seats had crumbs and stains on them. A family came in and their high top table was wiped down . We also didn't have any napkins in our holder so I did have to get up and grab it from another table. But I would come back and try this place again, maybe during the weekend. read more

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Delicious food and great service. I don't know how we've missed this place in all the times we've visited alameda, but is definitely going to be on our weekly rotation. We got the curry rice with chicken katsu and the tempura udon. The portions are huge -- especially the curry. You could feed at least two with the meal we were served. The tempura is hit and fresh, and the udon noodles are delicious. Gilbert, the owner, is super friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere is open and bright. We will definitely be back! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Curry rice with chicken katsu. - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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Every so often, I get a hankering for sandoitchi, the Japanese sandwiches you could buy with ease at every convenience store in my motherland. However, it's a rare sighting stateside, so I was excited to hear this spot made both beef and pork katsu sandos. I convinced Jamie W. to head over to Alameda to check it out with me for lunch. I wasn't aware it was a shared space concept called SAGA Kitchen described ambitiously as a "pan-Asian food hall". It was actually three Japanese operations plus a dim sum spot. Koharu is the Japanese street food option with the other two being sushi and ramen. We ordered off a QR code menu and were served by one of those Jetsons-style robots (photo: https://bit.ly/3Yx28lS). It did strike us how little human interaction there was even though two people were quite visibly handling the kitchen. Of course, we ordered the $19.95 Kurobuta Katsu Sando, a bit overpriced but the deep-fried pork cutlet was deliciously juicy with just the right panko crust. The problem was that the Japanese milk bread was toasted, a big no-no in a true sando (photo: https://bit.ly/3s0eKpt). But we devoured it nonetheless. More consistently successful was the $18.95 Soboro Don with Ebi Fry, a generous bowl of ground beef donburi with diced scrambled eggs, a side salad with miso dressing, and white rice topped with a couple of deep-fried prawns (photo: https://bit.ly/3OtTMqw). Authentic enough and it came with a solid miso soup (photo: https://bit.ly/3s3GwkZ). But please don't toast the bread. FOOD - 4 stars...Japanese comfort food executed well...except for that toaster AMBIANCE - 4 stars...plenty of room when we arrived SERVICE - 3.5 stars...well, the robot was programmed to be polite...we didn't know about the humans TOTAL - 4 stars...I could go for a sando now RELATED - Exploring Alameda? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2Ik8mky read more

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The freshest sushi I had in a while. And in such an unexpected location!! Ordered their famous treasure box! Will try their sandwiches next time! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

We had a terrific lunch there today. Ramen, chicken katsu, sashimi! Ramen and ktsi were delicious. My taste for sashimi is spoiled by my years of eating raw fish in the Pacific Islands. I dont like salmon raw and the tuna here in general, to me, is junk. Maybe it is OK when it is shipped, but if shipping is delayed, or handlers/chefs here are not painstaking, the end result is always a disappointment. In fact I have gotten sick from the sashshimi at one well known place in Alameda! I am happy to say that the tuna at Koharu today was darned good! My wife has spent a lot of time in Asia including Japan, she complimented the ramen! My chicken katsu was just the way I like it, tender, crisp and tastey! Koharau is the kind of place we like, not overdone with decorations, tables not too close together, the owner, Gilbert, is a local, Alamed HS, and his server is a cute robot! We can hardly wait to take the grand kids! read more

{Covid-19 Review} On Saturday, March 13th, I ordered the Kurobuta Tonkatsu Bento Box. I used the SAGA App, and picked up the food myself. The Bento Box consisted of breaded pork on a bed of rice, and some veggies. It's intended to be a quick meal. I thought the food was delicious and well prepared. The sliced pork was breaded and fried, but not oily. It was lean, and easy to eat. It laid on top of a generous serving of rice. Much too much rice for me to finish. There were raw veggies and pickled vegetables on the side. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Tonkatsu Bento box - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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My family was in town and my mother was eyeing this place as she was planning for the trip. We weren't sure about outdoor seating, so they drove by to make sure they had outdoor seating (everything for the doggo). Once they saw that there were a number of chairs and tables (about 8-10 sets) we set a date and a time to eat at Koharu. We arrived a little after noon and there was a small party waiting for their food. We went in to peruse the menu and order. Our order included: garlic teriyaki chicken, curry rice, and kurabota katsu sando. My family also ordered a CA roll from the sushi kitchen in the same storefront. They also weren't offering cups of water, so we added a couple water bottles to the meal. The cashier quoted a wait time of 25-30 minutes, and I wished I had ordered ahead. However, in the end, it was fine and the food was worth the wait. The garlic teriyaki chicken was very good and GARLICKY! I really appreciated the robust flavor and the lack of gloppy sauce. The tskemono and cabage salad were also very tasty compliments. The curry rice was also delicious and also had good flavor. My aunt who typically is a light eater ate everything! I enjoyed the sandwich, which had a good amount of kewpie and tonkatsu sauce. I saved 1/4 for later. The cabbage and tomatoes were a nice garnish. Overall, glad I tried this establishment and looking forward to visiting again. They had a deal for people who downloaded the SAGA app, so will definitely consider it next time :) read more

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Duplicate Yelp, one for each concept/business??? Sorry, but I am so confused... Was I in the city (SF)? Or LA? Way too trendy for Alameda. SAGA - "Locally-owned virtual food hall" Slurp shop - Ramen Yue club - "Authentic Cantonese Dim Sum Cuisine" Koharu - Japanese Cafe Quality/Quantity - Food was 5 stars! We ordered one dish from each business concept: Kohara - Chicken Karaage, hit of the meal. Deep fried, so slightly biased... If you are following, you know I love deep fried food. Good flavor, and the sauce was the bomb. Slight hint of heat, but NOT overwhelmingly spicy. SAGA - White Tiger, smaller than expected, but the flavor was on point, better than expected. Slurp Shop - Meyer Lemon Shio, flavors were good, including the broth. Expected serving size for the quality and price, but more than enough for a single meal. Yue Club - Beef Ball Dumpling, plating could have been better, but again the flavor was spot on. Additionally, the quantity was expected for the quality. Atmosphere - Food hall concept??? Virtual food hall concept??? First time here, but the lady that greeted us did not seem to care. Was told to NOT move chairs around and order through the app on the table. Normally it is pretty easy, but since there are 4 concepts/businesses here, it was not as user friendly as one would expect. Small local business or businesses, not sure how many businesses are here. Cool decor. Robot to deliver our food, which was NOT necessary??? So other than the entertainment value, no additional service. We also watched a couple other customers NOT know how to "finish" their service with the robot, etc. Plus one customer ordered ramen and it spilled on the robot. Street parking, no problem as we came late at night. Numerous to-go orders, very consistent, congrats. Kitchen staff working hard, and plenty of kitchen staff. I saw at least 5 team members. Not sure if that is due to the 4 concepts/businesses. Open 5 days a week from 11:30am to 8:30pm, closed Mon & Tue. Service - N/A, self service. Had to get our own sauces, utensils, and napkins from a self-service station. The phone website where we placed and paid for our order predicted our food to arrive 29 minutes after ordering. After 30 minutes, our food started to slowly arrive. We got our last dish almost an hour later. And it did not come in the order of appetizer and then entree. It came as it was made. Price - $54 + tip. Owner Comment - Congrats on your success since 2020. We will be back for the food. Can I suggest adding some human customer service? At least say hello and smile as customers walk through the door. read more

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Koharu Japanese Cafe is one of 3 menu options that is available at the former Alice's Bistro. offerings: curry, sandos, karaage, teriyaki, dons, gratin, japanese hamburg eats: curry rice (9.95) -spicy curry with a 1/2 carton of steamed short grain rice. probably from a commercial brand (S & B?) -doesn't come in round container pictured, square plastic container instead curry can easily leak out if container doesn't stay flat. 2nd plastic wrap stops it. -curry is ok, has a lingering aftertaste. -food cools quickly. doesn't travel well. note: pre-ordering didn't work. got notice order was canceled as i was waiting for Koharu to open. was able to order in house they opened. read more

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Been looking around a bit for a nice Japanese spot and I think I found a nice lil spot for the east bay region. It's in a nice area that's a bit out of the way from the main street so it can be a bit hard to find, but no issues with parking at all. Their menu is simple with not too many choices to overwhelm you. I ordered: -Garlic Chicken Teriyaki -Japanese Hamburg -Soboro Don w/crab cream croquette -Kurobuta Katsu Sando My favorite out of the 4 was the Sobor Don w/crab cream croquette. Mostly due to the fact that it was a nice simple meal and the crab cream croquettes were unique. The other 3 items that I ordered were kind of underwhelming in terms of flavor and texture. I know this is a new establishment so I won't be critical, but I think it would do well if the owners tried to add more seasoning to the food. I say this because when I tasted all four items, there wasn't anything too special or really popping out to me in terms of flavor or texture. -The Kurobuta Katsu sando just tasted like a regular breaded pork cutlet with no noticeable flavor. The bread was also soft which is what it's supposed to be like, but having a little toast to it, would give it more impact in my opinion. -The Japanese Hamburg was more rice than spaghetti. Having equal portions of rice & spaghetti would be nice. -The soboro don w/crab croquettes had more flavor even though it's a more simple meal. However, that was the star in my eyes. -The Garlic chicken teriyaki was just alright as well. However, I will say, that the presentation in the to go boxes is really visually appealing and also nicely packed. I do understand that it's a new establishment so I hope that they take this criticism in a constructive way and see if there can be room for improvement. I still plan on making another visit to try it out and hope this helps. I'm not trying to dissuade people at all. The owner (I presume) is a very nice person and I hope he sees this. read more

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Covid review: The food is simple, straight forward, and satisfying. Had the kurobuta tonkatsu pork and the chicken karaage. Each comes with a good portion of meat, small little bit of veggies to try and keep you regular, and a lot of white rice. Overall not too salty and not too unhealthy for a quick meal, just don't finish all the rice. Ty read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

the kids were hungry when we were in the area, luckily found this place! Kids love the fried pork chop and fried steak sandwiches! the mean quality was really good, and portion of meat are good! very filling! The creamy crab coquette is very well done as well! read more

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My latest favorite little discovery! I'm a creature of habit when it comes to food spots so venturing out to try new places is not easy for me. My bravery was rewarded and the kurobuta katsu sandwich I had was so good I placed another order (via DoorDash) while eating! Never done that before! S.O. had the curry rice and loved the flavor; he thought there would be meat though so he order the chicken karaage the second round. We will definitely be trying more items and hope the menu expands with more deliciousness! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

On my first visit to SAGA Kitchen, I ordered sushi from Sachi Sushi, which is one of the three restaurants here. While waiting for my order, I checked out Koharu's menu and I would plan on ordering some food from Koharu on the next visit. For my next order I ordered sushi from Sachi and the Kurobuta Tonkatsu Bento Box from Koharu. I used the SAGA app, but wasn't sure if both items could be combined on the same bill or if I had order separately. Yes, you can combine and get you 20% off as one transaction since your first five orders qualify for the discount. The Kurobuta Tonkatsu Bento Box consisted a generous piece of Kurobuta pork over a large bed of rice with shredded cabbage and some carrot slices, two stalks of broccoli, a grape tomato, picked cucumbers and a container of tonkatsu sauce. The panko breaded pork was fried golden brown and was moist and tender. Very tasty. I will be back to Koharu for the tonkatsu again. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Orders from Sachi and Koharu - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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The short lady front her attitude isn't that good. I ordered a beef sando and there was a big bone in it. Thank god I was using my chopsticks that instead of my hands or else I woulda chipped my tooth. Look at how big the bone is. I'm pretty sure that there isn't suppose to be any bones in a sando. The pricing is super taxed for the type of food because their standard isn't up there. The chairs were nasty. It was literally dark blackish read more

Not much to say about the sando. But it was made well nothing bad to say about it. Maybe a sauce on the side would be nice to compliment the sando read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Korubuta Kurobuta Katsu Sando (right) - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

came for lunch around opening time--clean facilities (there is even a separate eating area for folks with pets, which was great since we had my friends' corgi with us) and good service. this sandwich was thick and fatty, so I ended up taking half of it home. would come try something here again! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

*SIP/COVID19 Review* 4.5/5 Was in the area and decided to stop by and check this spot out. Parking is street parking so you may need to circle around a bit, but I got lucky and found a spot on the same block. Order: ~ beef katsu sando: beef was tender and soft. Although the breading was separating from the meat a little as took bites, it just slightly sliding and not really a deterrent ~ kurobuta pork katsu sando: pork was tender and juicy! Overall, I really enjoyed the sandos. Packaging was super cute and sleek, perfect for takeout. Personally, I preferred the pork over the beef based on overall flavor and texture. I thought there could be a little more katsu sauce but I understand that they probably didn't want to put too much and make the bread part get soggy. It was a little on the pricey side, but it was enjoyable and the service was very friendly and quick (~10-15 min wait) , so it was nice to support a small spot like this. read more

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I really wanted to like this place since it's nearby, but I thought the food was okay. The lady at the register was really nice and engaging to all customers. A++ for her! The place is cozy and clean w/ street parking available. To kill time, there's a hoverboard you can play with while you wait for your food :) I got the beef and pork sando. Taste was both okay. I prefer the beef than the pork. The pork was more on the dry side for me. The beef had a little bit more flavor because there's few fats that gets soaked with the sauce and it made it more enjoyable. I think in needs more sauce, but I get that if it's too much of it; it can make the sando soggy. Maybe sauce on the side and light on the mayo** Coz the sauce was good but not enough. I've had other Japanese sando that was juicier and tastier despite of its meat being smaller. Chicken Karage was alright. I felt like I was eating popcorn chicken lol. However, it was my fault for not ordering the one with the curry... now that would have enhance the flavor more. The rice and the miso soup that it came with was spot on tho! Oh by the way, I wasn't able to try the salted egg bun because they ran out! Be sure to call ahead before coming in. read more

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Alameda is starting to open up more Japanese curry restaurant, and I'm LOVING it. I came here on my lunch break with my bf, due to covid, there's no seating in and outdoor. Takeout is available and delivery is an option too, I think. The staff was very nice and welcoming. I ordered a curry pork katsu and my bf ordered a beef katsu sando. The curry wasn't too thick or too thin and it was flavorful. I loved it. The pork katsu, was fried to perfection, wasn't overly fried, perfect crisp and the amount of breading coated on the pork was perfect. The beef sando was amazing too, thick meat in between the bread with the katsu sauce was perfect. The packaging was so adorable as well. I will definitely come back here again ! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - This is their packaging, too cute !!! - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

I ordered the kurobuta tonkatsu curry rice. Not a huge portion but you'll be full after eating it. I'm always weary of ordering katsu curry when I can't find many pictures of it on Yelp, but I was slightly disappointed when I received my dish only because I thought there would be vegetables in the curry based on the pictures I did find. The veggies weren't necessary, the dish was pretty tasty any A well seasoned, well cooked, thick and juicy cutlet with a crispy panko breading. A flavorful curry sauce was ladled over top with delicate fresh shredded cabbage and a slice of lotus root underneath, all over a bed of rice. The pickled veggies on top are like a palate cleanser, helping to cut through the salt and fat of the pork. They add just enough curry so that the cutlet doesn't get soggy under it. Overall a good dish, though I wouldn't mince time on the overly salty miso soup. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Katsu Curry Rice - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

Delicious food and excellent customer service.The robot will deliver yr food order to your table, very cooleasy street parking and causal clothes, over all good ambiance and good for friends and family read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Roman Soup - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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I love having options for easy takeouts, especially during the pandemic. I have been eyeing their Kurobuta Katsu Sando, which initially I thought was a little pricey. But it comes as a set of 4 and can easily be two meals in one. The bread was nice and soft which contrasted with the crispy katsu. It also had a lovely sauce that fully enhanced the flavor of this sandwich. I would definitely return for it! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

Koharu is one of the restaurants located within SAGA Kitchen which operates Koharu, Sachi Sushi, Wok Chi, and Yue Club. It may be confusing at first but you can order from any restaurant menu when you're there, they also service coffees. The restaurant is decked out with Supreme which gives off a pretty hipster vibe. Parking isn't hard and there is plenty of street parking on both sides of Lincoln. I came here for a Yelp Elite event and opted for Koharu's meal which included a crab cream croquette, kurobata (chicken) Katsu sando, beef Katsu sando, Japanese style spaghetti, and chicken karaage. I liked the variety of everything and it was enough for someone like me to get full, but I get full pretty easily. My favorites of the meal were the beef Katsu sando and crab cream croquette. I've never had a Katsu sando before so I have nothing to compare it to but I liked the texture of the meat, it was a little chewy but it didn't taste as dry as the chicken Katsu sandwich, I thought there was a good amount of dressing and crunch. I also thought the crab cream croquette had a lot of flavor too. The japanese style spaghetti kind of reminded me of like a drier filipino spaghetti, and the salad didn't have any dressing. The tempura and chicken karaage was also good too. It was pretty cold outside and I decided to eat in my car but it was all still really good. I definitely want to check out more of their menu when I'm back in the area in the future! read more

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I think this is a new business. So I didn't expect much. I was a little confused on where this was located. Apparently, it's in this store called 'Saga Kitchen'. They have a fabric sign on their window, pinned up. At first glance, there's no major sign sticking out for 'Koharu.' It seems they share with two other business? I'm not sure, but there's a dim sum and chinese food business along with Koharu inside. They do walk-in orders, but you can order on grubhub. I originally wanted to try their Japanese Humburg, but turns out, they didn't even have it in stock. So.... I opted for the garlic grilled chicken. Yum. Sounds delicious, at least. Also got the Beef Katsu Sando, for its portion, I thought it'd be bigger for its price. Once we got our order, Inside the garlic grilled chicken, there were a few pieces of vegetables, pickled cucumbers, i think. I found 1 hashbrown under the chicken, it was soggy. Pretty sad about that. Taste just like a hashbrown though. The chicken itself was kinda dry, didn't have much flavor, and i didn't taste any garlic either. The picture advertised there's garlic pieces in them, but I didn't find any in mines. It also came with Miso soup, it's not bad... kinda too salty for my taste. Rice portion is plenty for me, but I didn't end up finishing the food. The sando wasn't too bad, it seemed overcooked? Was it suppose to be well done? I'm not sure, but the taste could of been more. I had my fair share of sandos from many places, and by far, this isn't it for me. Everyone has different taste, so it might be good to others. Don't knock it until you try it, I suppose. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Garlic Grilled Chicken - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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4.5 for food/taste 4 for packaging/wrapped in a red ribbon 3.5 for price & meat portions Ordered their soboro don w/ ebi fry (2 shrimp) and soboro don w/ cream croquette (3 croquettes)...both came with side veggies, meat & scrambled eggs over rice, with miso soup on the side. The food was delicious, including the 2 dips/sauces that come in each container. Cream croquettes were slightly too creamy (likely personal opinion) and boxes, although very beautifully packaged and organized, were mildly flimsy due to it being more of a paper container (vs plastic container). The tasty food will fill you up (largely due to the rice), but the meat and scrambled eggs were spread very thinly across the top of the rice so I was a bit dismayed. Going to try their katsu sandwiches next! We have UberEats & DoorDash pass, and ordering through Doordash is slightly cheaper ($3-4) due to the service fee...prices for items are the same. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

Craved for Koharu's beef sando again, and it didn't disappoint. So full and satisfied today! They have their own app now (search for Saga Kitchen in App Store) and they offer 20% on your first order! read more

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Beef and egg were quite dry but ebi was tasty even after being in the box for the 15 min drive home. This is the second time I've had the soboro don, the first time (few months ago) the beef wasn't as dry and jerky-like. I don't really know what's going on in terms of quality control... I wouldn't order again this again but it's edible so three stars. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Soboro Don & Soboro Don with Ebi Fry - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

Fantastic food with great service. The robot delivering the food made it even better. Sushi in a well lit dining room . Take out order came really fast on a night when I was tired and just wanted to go home. Having a delicious meal and going to sleep fixed the bad day for the better. read more

Great food tastes like it's homemade. I think they might get a little bit overwhelmed with all the dinner rush, I ordered their pork katsu sando and a bento box but got 2 sandos instead, they were both delicious and we were lucky me and my friend both liked it but I guess gotta go back and order the bento box to try it out. I'm glad I found a Good new pick up spot nearby. Pork was nice and tender and cooked really well. Could have used just a bit more sauce so every bite could have sauce in it. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Pork Kurobuta Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

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Every week or so, I'll have a craving for Japanese food, whether its some rolls, bentos or ramen/udon. I was glad to hear a new spot opened in Alameda. Better yet, they even have Katsu Sandos! I placed an online order through UberEats for a Kurobata Katsu Sando, Beef Katsu Sando and the Garlic Chicken Teriyaki. The food was ready for pickup fairly quickly at Saga Kitchen, which houses a collection of start-up restaurants (Koharu, Yue Club and Wok Chi). While I was picking up my order, I chatted with Gilbert who said they expect to add sushi and beverages to the mix soon! Food: Kurobata Katsu Sando - The pork was crispy on the outside, tender on the inside. The milk bread was pillowy and good. Good levels of katsu sauce. There was even a side of greens/salad! This one was my favorite. Beef Sando - Similar to the katsu but I thought the beef could've used a bit more flavor. It's a bit unfair the last time I had beef katsu was in Japan! Garlic Chicken Teriyaki - The chicken was pretty decent. The chicken quantity was easily overwhelmed by the huge box of rice! More meat and veggies would be ideal. Overall, a really good start for a brand new restaurant. With me working from home for the foreseeable future, I know I'll definitely be trying more of the menu. The food is out quickly and the menu very much favors a lunch crowd. Bonus points to Koharu for using paper packaging where it makes sense (i.e. sandwiches). read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Kurobuta Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

Yubu in SF was my go-to spot for katsu sandos, but they stopped offering them recently. When I googled this spot, I was curious since they're part of something called Saga Kitchen. I'm glad we found this spot! So far, we've tried the Kurobuta Katsu Sando, Beef Katsu Sando, and Soboro Don and we were not disappointed. Everything was cooked well and flavorful. *I'm also a sucker for their cute to-go packaging. We'll be regulars whenever we're in the area! read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Top to Bottom: Soboro Don with Ebi Fry; Kurobuta Katsu; Sando Beef Katsu Sando - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

I ordered the Soboro Don with Ebi Fry. The meat is sweet and savory that reminds me of bead meatloaf. For the price, there's sure a lot of rice and not enough meat and egg. I also ordered the black salty egg yolk bun. The bun is puffy and soft on the outside and the yolk is just enough of saltiness, more sweet than salty. The packaging was A+++. I told my friend that he can prob reuse the box to wrap gifts. read more

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Be wary of the other reviews, as this place often run influencer events to generate positive reviews. I know because I was stuck in the middle of an event and my food order was completely forgotten and then it took nearly an hour and a half to get my food. DO NOT ORDER FROM THEIR WEBSITE, use doordash instead. They can't seem to manage orders from the site properly across all the restaurants/menus. I get it, my family used to own a restaurant, the kitchen gets slammed some times and wait times a long. But the attitude and service of this place is completely ridiculous. First, they completely forgot my order. They then told me it would be roughly a 15 minute wait. After waiting 30 minutes, I was told it would be another 5 minutes. I watched them placed my katsu sando on the counter, before waiting nearly 30 more minutes before my donburi was done. I told them I no longer wanted the sandwich because its soggy just sitting there covered and they lied and told me it was just finished 5 minutes go. I called them out on their BS and they gave me a bunch of shit for it. They treat people horribly, especially the doordash delivery drivers. I told them their issue was that they were not setting expectations properly, that my 15 minute wait turned into over an hour. They also told people quite a few orders after us that it would be 10 minutes even though they knew it would take 30+ minutes. The cashier didn't care because they were not customers, just "doordash delivery", not being considerate that people are making a few bucks waiting for an hour. Food was somewhat okay, as we ended up eating just the donburi that was decently hot. It was missing sauce, utensils, napakins, and topping because they were in a rush. This place is a mess, I don't recommend coming and I certainly won't be back. read more

Came on a Sunday evening and it was pretty empty. The interior of the restaurant is filled with supreme photos and items. It felt like a very clean and warm environment. There are 2 indoor sitting areas. Parking was pretty easy, found a spot right in front of the restaurant. There are 4 restaurants (Dim Sum, Ramen, Sushi, and Bento Box/Japanese Curry) inside one. Very simple menu. We ordered: 1. Tonkatsu Curry Bowl (2/5) 2. Kurobuta Katsu Sando (3.5/5) The Tonkatsu Curry Bowl was not too flavourful and the curry felt watered down. The tonkatsu was pretty good. The katsu sando was pretty good, with a thick slice of meat in between the bread and the sauce was good. It was definitely a bit pricy for the amount of food you are getting. There were also no veggies (which was shown on their photo on yelp). Wait time for food was longer than expected. read more

Amazing food and the service is wonderful. Super clean... I came back twice after my first visit the food is that good. Very reasonable too!!! read more

I had the opportunity recently to try almost all of the menu from Koharu. My pickup experience was a bit inconvenient, as my order was missed and I ended up needing to wait an additional 15 minutes while my food was prepared. But the employees were all very polite, and I believe it was only an honest mistake. Besides, the food was worth a little extra wait. We ordered both of the katsu sandos (one pork and one beef), and surprisingly I ended up liking the beef better. These were one of my favorite snacks when I lived in Japan and it was nice to get taken back with a staple that isn't quite as common here in the states, the way that curry, ramen, and sushi all are. The bread was fantastic, and while we had an hour drive that left the katsu less crispy than we would have liked, there was still a lot of flavor packed into the little boxes. We also ordered the beef and egg over rice with the added creamy crab croquettes. I enjoyed the beef and eggs okay, although I could have done with a bit more seasoning (we solved that with a little curry. Yummy!), but the real star here was the croquette. My girlfriend was quick to point out that they had a strong crab smell, which personally doesn't bother me one bit, but these bad boys are absolutely delicious. Crispy on the outside and creamy and delicious on the inside. The smell and taste of the crab is pretty strong, but if you're into that then these are absolutely perfect. I think they were my favorite thing out of all that we ordered. Finally we got the curry rice, which was also quite tasty. It comes pretty plain, which is nice, because we used it to complement our other food, but there are some carrots and potatoes in there as well. Flavor was good. Very rich, very tasty. Not a lot to say about this one. Overall I was extremely excited to try this joint, and it did not disappoint. I often miss some of the great food that I grew to love abroad, and it is nice to revisit it from time to time with friends and family. Koharu really did help take me back a bit, and I'll return the favor by bringing myself back here again soon. read more

In the world of only pick-up/take out, I've found my new lunch spot! If you're like me and ordering delivery is getting difficult because you've tried almost everything from caviar and Uber eats, Koharu is a refreshing and welcomed change! Menu items are simple and easy compared to others that try hard to offer everything and the kitchen sink! Koharu focuses on a few items and they do those extremely well! From prep to packaging it's all well thought out. Ordered the curry with tonkatsu and had to order the tonkatsu sandwich since it reminds me of my travels to Japan! Curry is rich in flavor and just the right thickness to dip your tonkatsu in and mix with the rice. The tonkatsu itself is lean and juicy and the breading is light and not oily. This applies to the sandwich too btw. This is SUPER important as with a lot of places they give a cheaper cut of pork and they either fry it so long that it's inedible or all the oil soaks in and it's bleh. Koharu know what they're doing and because they focus on a few key items they provide the best quality you'd expect! Really hope they do well here and looking forward to trying their other items soon! read more

My food didn't taste good. I was sad. My scrambled egg wasn't fluffy like in the picture they advertise. The meat taste like it got microwave. It was dry and flavorless. I will not come back. The Ebi shrimp taste like fried in old oil. Don't waste your money here. read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Soboro Don with Ebi Fry - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California

During COVID time, their to-go meal is really neat. I tried the katsu curry, it was very good. The portion was also generous, because I felt full before finishing all the meat and rice. The owner/staff are friendly, it was a rainy day so they brought the meal to my car. I will definitely go back if I have a chance. :) read more

Koharu Japanese Cafe - Japanese Near Me - Alameda, California