I've been wanting to visit Kanpai for a couple of months now, ever since they started advertising…read moretheir AYCE option. I'm a sucker for sushi, and Jinghe has been my favorite spot for the past two years, until now. I never set my expectations too high when it comes to AYCE sushi, since you're basically sacrificing quality for quantity.
My friends and I went on Saturday night, and paid about $65/person after the 20% automatic gratuity for party of 6. I was nervous about the limited sashimi options compared to other AYCE spots in the DFW area, but I still wanted to check them out. Kanpai offers a few limited nigiri options like wagyu, chutoro, otoro, foie gras, and uni. Those are usually $10-20 a piece at regular restaurants, so I was excited to have them included with the meal. Of course, they are limited to one per person, but that's still a huge plus compared to other AYCE spots.
We started off with the limited nigiri and almost all of the appetizers. The one thing that made the experience frustrating was the limited amount you can order per round. Yes, the rounds are unlimited, but each person can only get 5 PIECES of nigiri per round, and I think 3 orders of sashimi? We actually never understood the exact limits because each waiter seemed to give us a different answer. That said, the food came out SO FAST despite it being a busy Saturday night. The restaurant is small and cozy, but most of the tables were already filled. We were all surprised with how quickly everything came out, especially considering the good quality as well.
After trying various appetizers, I was super impressed. This place doesn't even taste like an AYCE sushi restaurant; it feels more like an izakaya, which I guess it should be since it's in the name. The tako karaage, fried oysters, spicy tuna poppers, soft-shell shrimp, beef tongue skewers, tempura shrimp, hamachi kama, miso salmon, mazemen, and more were ALL SO GOOD. The batter on the shrimp tempura was flaky but not heavy. The extra options like ramen, skewers, grilled fish, and rice bowls made it easier for everyone to find something they liked instead of just eating sushi. Not everyone in our friend group likes sushi, so it was really nice that the appetizers were actually solid. The edamame was amazing too; not like those overboiled, soggy ones we're used to. The only downside is that their 5 orders vs 1 order of edamame is basically the same amount, just served in one small straw bowl.
After devouring all the appetizers, it was time for the main course. I wasn't expecting much since the appetizers were so good, so I assumed the sushi would be mid-tier at best. The uni nigiri was actually HIGH QUALITY, along with the foie gras. The wagyu was so-so, and the otoro/chutoro had some good and bad cuts, but overall, the fish quality passed my normal expectations for AYCE. My favorites are scallop and black cod, which are my go-to orders at Hatsuyuki, so of course I ordered a couple of pieces to try. The scallop crudo sashimi was mouthwatering (I'm still thinking about my meal while typing this), and the salmon truffle and salmon belly were definitely my favorite dishes of the night. I think I ordered about 4-5 plates because everyone kept grabbing a piece here and there.
The rolls were really good too, like... ?!?! We mainly focused on nigiri and sashimi to make our money's worth, and got a couple of rolls to split. The Maverick Roll was really solid, and they used the same flaky, soft shrimp tempura in the roll. The sushi rice could be improved, though. It was very dense and heavy when paired with the good-quality fish cuts.
They also offer AYCE Happy Hour drink specials for $15 with your meal, but the downside is that everyone in the party has to get it. It sucks because one of our friends really likes drinking beer, but the rest of the party aren't drinkers, so he had to pay out-of-pocket for his drinks. We joked and told him to move to the table across from us so he could just drink happily haha. Maybe if they can be more flexible with the AYCE drink rule, along with allowing more items per round, I think this could become the new popular AYCE spot in the DFW area. They're already charging for leftovers, it would be reasonable to increase the limit from 5 pieces to maybe 10 per person each round.
I was scared about the 70-90 minute time limit, but we were all full by the 60-minute mark because the service was so fast. I think we ordered about 6 rounds total, but only 3 of them were actual big rounds. I'm lowkey hesitant to post a positive review because I don't want it to be super packed the next time I visit, but I also don't want them to go out of business either. If you're like me and come in with medium expectations, I think you'll be happy. Don't expect Uchi or Hatsuyuki quality, but it's definitely good enough to satisfy my sushi cravings for half, or even a third of the price.