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    Koya

    4.8 (24 reviews)
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    Recommended Reviews - Koya

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    Best uni ever
    Christy H.

    I feel like after living in Japan and NYC, I've been very, very fortunate to have had some incredible culinary experiences. My husband and I really appreciate/value an expertly crafted meal.. Koya in Tampa absolutely blew us away. We came here for an early birthday dinner. I often speak in superlatives, but I truly think this was the best course meal I've ever had. They absolutely deserve at least one more star on top of the one they already have. The fish was so tender and flavorful. So often the rice can be overlooked, but not here. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned. I thought I didn't love uni or soup broth. My husband thought he didn't like raw squid or raw scallops. We were both proven wrong. I honestly think I can say I've never loved a meal as much as this. (I'm so sorry to all the places that have come very close.) I can't wait to go back, and if you ever find yourself in Tampa Bay, please go here. It's worth it. On top of all of that, the service was excellent. Koya has a small team full of friendly and knowledgeable staff. Once again, absolutely incredible. The vibe is of a typical sushi bar, which fits the ambiance well. However, you can feel relaxed and not on edge. It's the best of both worlds. Have I adequately expressed how obsessed with this place I am?

    A5 wagyu
    Kristen W.

    Koya is such an awesome intimate dining experience with a level of food quality that is unmatched. The ingredient sourcing alone is just fantastic. Add thoughtful presentation and skilled preparation and your meal is destined to be one of a kind. We enjoyed everything placed in front of us and even made new friends in our intimate space. I definitely recommend Koya for any omakase, high end food lover. You will enjoy the food and the experience.

    Ika
    Jason Y.

    Food was amazing! The chefs were knowledgeable and explained in great detail of each course and the origin. Very small intimate 8 seat counter, great atmosphere and ambiance for an anniversary dinner or special occasion with friends. My top pieces were definitely the Uni on the milk bread. The Maguro and King salmon, the Ika (squid dish), Hokkaido Uni with the pasta, and of course the orange passionfruit ice cream. Basically the entire course! Definitely would come back again for their winter menu to see what they have to offer!

    Katie J.

    Koya is in my opinion, outstanding on all accounts. The chic intimate interior is stunning. All the staff are honestly one of, if not the best I've ever had. They explained everything in detail and were so knowledgeable, kind and honestly funny. Calling the food served at Koya "food" doesn't do it justice. It's a true work of art that I honestly felt kind of bad eating because of how stunning it was. And of course everything was delicious. This restaurant is perfect for a special occasion or just a nice dinner. All in all a great place that I without a doubt hope to return to.

    Elle L.

    They are both creative & yummy dishes! Have been a few times and will continue to be our favorite omakase spot in Tampa! Definitely deserving of the Michelin stars!

    Travis S.

    If you're looking for the most authentic and highest quality Japanese experience in Tampa look no further. I have been to this restaurant several times now and it just keeps getting better. If you are a little weary about going to a Japanese restaurant where it's omakase style where you leave it up to the chef and you have no idea what the menu is until you show up don't be afraid. Take a chance and try this wonderful cuisine to its fullest. Or if you know what you're getting yourself into then you will be very pleased with everything. Everything is flown in straight from Japan. Chef Eric and Adriana and their team are very experienced and operate a the highest of levels. Don't let the price scare you away. Treat yourself and save this for a special occasion.

    Famous and popular uni
    Jon L.

    Honestly some of the freshest creative sushi around. We did the seasonal tasting NOT the nigiri tasting and it was full of delightful varieties of delectable treats like the famous compressed melon and a triple corn panna cotta with corn sorbet and popcorn! The most amazing waygu "steak sando" and of course their famous UNI. Worth the Michelin star and the hefty price tag and my wife opted for the reserve sake paring which was a real treat and sensory experience. Service was impeccable and the atmosphere was a simple, intimate 8 person tasting counter.

    Toro and caviar
    Peter C.

    I had an amazing Omakase experience at Koya and was blown away by the level of creativity behind many of the dishes that were served. There were too many dishes to recall each perfectly but I will go through some of the highlights: Scallop with passionfruit in some type of cream-based broth. Lovely blend of flavors here, scallop tasted very fresh. O-toro tartare with caviar on the side. A simple dish, but one of my favorites I tried tonight. Uni on toasted milk bread. I loved this concept! Milk bread being so sweet and savory, and the richness of the uni adding to that was next-level. King crab in some type of crispy roll. Delicious and I'd devour a second one in an instant. I was very impressed with their dessert dishes as well. I appreciate the blend of contemporary French and American in a traditionally Japanese setting. The service was immaculate and our host/server was always ready to refill our drinks and replace our dinnerware. This place definitely meets the service criteria for a Michelin star establishment.

    "A little variety please"

    Toro take out, sooo yummy. The takeout is limited days only, I can't wait to for the next one!

    Timmothy T.

    Very intimate atmosphere. Only 9 of us there for the evening. The chefs were great, had some good conversations with them along the way. Definitely suggest doing the alcohol pairing with the tasting. All the dishes were small but had so much flavor. It was a very relaxing and enjoy experience. Parking is easy, which is on the side or back. Expect to pay close to $600 a person if adding the pairing to the tasting. Everything was phenomenal, so fresh and so flavorful.

    a small piece of food on a white plate
    Rodney E.

    Amazing atmosphere, outstanding chefs who explain everything to you perfectly and interact with you throughout your tastings, highest of quality fish and meats, perfectly matched and balanced flavors, warning will leave you with super high expectations from any other Japanese restaurant!! Couldn't ask for a better experience.

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    2 years ago

    Great food, service, and ambiance. Best sushi in town. Great prices, we had a bit of everything on the menu.

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    3 years ago

    Amazing tasting menu, service, and experience. Although I do wish the portion sizes were bigger.

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    Haiku Tampa - Braised Pork Belly

    Haiku Tampa

    3.8(522 reviews)
    0.8 miDowntown Tampa
    $$$

    Recently visited Haiku for a friend's Birthday Dinner and had some items I loved and some that I…read moredid not care for. To start the crab cake was amazing. Didn't need all the micro greens for garnish on top but this could be overlooked because taste and flavor was amazing. The tuna tartare was super tasty as well and I would definitely order this again same comment for micro greens on this dish - didn't need this and found myself moving it off the dishes to actually enjoy the item. The two not so favorite dishes for me were the fried rice topped with fried chicken. While chicken was very tasty the rice was extremely basic. Could have used eggs or other ingredients to elevate this dish. Also the Volcano roll was extremely disappointing. Normally the volcano topping is cooked or (torched) and this topping was cold and very unappetizing. Would not recommend this roll. Overall this place is a hit or miss. Service for our large party wasn't bad and everything came out pretty quickly!

    Terrible from start to finish. Waited 25 minutes at hostess stand without anyone coming to help…read more Ended up seating myself and waiting another 15 minutes for a waitress to help. Food is terrible - they even forgot the egg as a part of my ramen and brought me a frozen egg when I mentioned the missing item which was disgusting. Octopus is so tough and chewy. Terribly cooked from frozen. Mango sticky rice is absolutely horrendous. Nothing like what you expect. Temperature is terrible - they don't use A/C so it's incredibly hot and humid in restaurant. Avoid this place at all costs.

    Photos
    Haiku Tampa - Lobster Tamaki Roll

    Lobster Tamaki Roll

    Haiku Tampa - Haiku Uramaki

    Haiku Uramaki

    Haiku Tampa - Crab Maki, Haiku Uramaki, Lobster Tamaki

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    Crab Maki, Haiku Uramaki, Lobster Tamaki

    Ro Hyde Park - King salmon

    Ro Hyde Park

    4.1(294 reviews)
    0.5 miHyde Park

    Excellent experience. Sit at the sushi bar- they are so engaging and hospitable. Logan and Ameer…read moremade the night entertaining and made the evening worth it. When you spend good money on good, it ought to be worth it. It is certainly worth it here. The food was fantastic, the decor and environment was so high end. I will be back. Highly recommend!

    Had a fabulous dinner at Ro while visiting Tampa last month with my sister! We were both craving…read moresushi and this was the perfect spot for a girls night out. We also love Hyde Park and it's just so nice to walk around that area before or after your meal. We started off with cocktails -- I went with the pomelo (nikka coffey gin, aperol, grapefruit, szechuan peppercorn) and she got the shinshun (sparkling sake, yuzu extract, & honey). We both really enjoyed our drinks. For appetizers, we shared the wagyu gyoza and I also got a couple pieces of nigiri -- Hokkaido Hotate (scallop) and the otoro (fatty tuna belly). Yum! We both ordered sushi rolls (maki) for our mains. I got the Ro signature roll which has spicy tuna, avocado, and hamachi. My sis got the classic tempura shrimp roll topped with crispy potato chips which was a nice twist. We definitely got our sushi fix! The end of every meal comes with a complimentary sweet surprise and I'm so glad we saved just enough room for dessert. They make their own ice cream in-house and have fun rotating flavor combinations. I can't remember the exact flavor we had, but it had a passion fruit ganache on top with some crumble topping and it was phenomenal! Some of the best ice cream I've ever had. That alone is worth going back for.

    Photos
    Ro Hyde Park - Interior

    Interior

    Ro Hyde Park - Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice

    Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice

    Ro Hyde Park - Sitting at the bar, looking behind you

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    Sitting at the bar, looking behind you

    Wagamama - Kare Burosu Ramen

    Wagamama

    4.0(425 reviews)
    1.1 miDowntown Tampa
    $$

    Popped into WAGAMAMA, a popular WATER STREET restaurant for dinner and it did not disappoint…read more My server Veronica was on her A-game. I started the evening with their chili Margarita. It's a spicy one but adds a nice kick to the meal. Tonight I enjoyed the pork potstickers and for my entree, I had the steak Bulgogi. Love, love, love the dining experience tonight and can't wait to be back!

    We were really hoping to find a spot with a great atmosphere, awesome vibes, and tasty food for our…read moreSunday night dinner. We checked out a bunch of different restaurants, but they were all booked up. So, we ended up booking Wagamama for our dinner on Sunday night. After finding roadside parking near the restaurant, we checked in at the register and were shown to our table. Our server greeted us and provided us with menus. Following a discussion among ourselves and with our server, we began our order with a lychee martini and a coconut drift for drinks. For appetizers, we selected the Bang Bang Cauliflower, which our server highlighted as a very popular option, along with chicken pot stickers.For our main courses, we ordered the chicken pad Thai, Karage Chicken Strips for our toddler and the chicken firecracker dishes. Our drinks arrived first: a Lychee Martini and a Coconut Drift. The Lychee Martini contained a significant amount of vodka, so much that my spouse could only manage two sips. The Coconut Drift was better, but it still had an excessive amount of sugar. We got our Bang Bang Cauliflower appetizer. However, upon tasting it, we found it wasn't cooked properly. It tasted like they simply coated the cauliflower with sauce without properly cooking it. We were disappointed to have to return it. Following that, our chicken pot stickers arrived. The chicken pot stickers were just okay, without anything particularly noteworthy about them. They weren't even properly cooked around the edges. Both appetizers we ordered turned out to be disappointing. Our dinner arrived and included Pad Thai and Chicken Firecracker. Both dishes were just alright; they could have been better. Compared to how other reviews described them, they didn't live up to the expectations set by those reviews. We couldn't get the Chicken Karage Strips we wanted for dinner. We ended up having to comp the whole thing because even though the restaurant wasn't that full (only about 70-75% empty), we had to wait a super long time for the food to be ready. Our visit to Wagamama was so disappointing that we may not return. We were unhappy with the food, the service, and the atmosphere.

    Photos
    Wagamama - View from booth on side

    View from booth on side

    Wagamama - Bang Bang Cauliflower

    Bang Bang Cauliflower

    Wagamama - Mushroom panko eggplant bao

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    Mushroom panko eggplant bao

    Koya - japanese - Updated August 2026

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