Nikka Japanese Market is truly a gem in Goleta and the surrounding Santa Barbara area. A perfect, cute shop featuring groceries and other Japanese goods, it is magical! I must mention their prices are also super fair and you can get a great deal on high quality items!! I am not from here, but I am a frequent visitor. I have always had a difficult time sourcing Asian grocery items until I discovered this spot. Their store holds so many surprises within its aisles. From dozens of varieties of soy sauce to specialty frozen foods and ceremonial fruits, Nikka has it all! I was looking for ingredients to make Lu Rou fan, a Taiwanese traditional braised pork, and was struggling to find the ingredients elsewhere. I came in looking for 2 types of soy sauce, shiitake mushrooms, and vegetables. They had it all! A very wonderful, kind woman assisted me and pointed me to exactly what I needed. We also had a sweet conversation about taiyaki, which I was also able to buy from here. I'm so sad I didn't get her name! If you are reading this, thank you for the help!! I have been back a few times since my first visit and each time I go it is awesome! If you are looking for specialty items or just want a new place to get groceries, stop here!!! :) read more

Nikka Japanese Market - Fancy melon! - International Grocery Near Me - Goleta, California

I would not have survived my time in Santa Barbara without this shop! Such a good selection of holy grail items for asian cooking, and the staff are beyond friendly on top of that. read more

Love this place. Everyone is always so welcoming and helpful. Our go to place for when we need ingredients for our blended family!

They have what you need! Cleaner than its competitors you might think Nikka would be more expensive. They're not. Friendly family who will take time to answer any questions you have. Large saki and soju selection, frozen, fresh, canned and jarred. They probably have what you need for your next Asian inspired dinner, less the fresh fish. Nikka is my go to Asian market in the Santa Barbara area. It should be yours too read more

went to go buy some stuff to make some homemade miso soup and the amount of selection for the price you pay is worth every visit. I am a Santa Barbara native born and raised and have been here with friends and family. If you are in town visiting or just a local, make sure to stop by because you wont be disappointed, there's something for everyone. Lets just say if you came empty handed you sure aren't leaving that way. read more

Store clerks are usually friendly but they often made mistakes at the cashier especially when more than one college-student-age clerks were working together. Customers should double-check if the prices or number of the items are correctly input. read more

Idk what happen to my review, however, the prices are what disappointed me the most. There were item that was double or even tripled the price. The sashami I looked at was double the price. Not okay. Also the gochujang paste, tripled the price, I can get this for about $5-$6, what's the deal. Even the soy sauce was near double the price, SMH. read more

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A great find in Goleta! Lots to see and explore to purchase. Very friendly store associates. Hope to be back.

We enjoyed stopping into this market. Staff was welcoming and friendly. They have a huge selection of Japanese items we have wanted to try. It's a lot better than ordering from Amazon. Plus I would rather support a local family business. read more

I'm new to the area and wanted to find a grocery store that carried Asian goods. Unfortunately, there are no Ranch 99 or H-Marts so I decided to check out the Japanese market in the same plaza as Trader Joe's. I was surprised to find a lot of my favorite childhood snacks and goodies. I also found a wide variety of noodles-- instant to fresh. They have frozen foods and produce. I will definitely be coming back. The lady was super sweet and it was nice to see stuff I can only find in Hawaii. read more

By far the best local Japanese market, there is nothing like this place around. Also, some non-Japanese items that you might like. read more

Excellent selections of sauces, condiments and noodles. Very high quality. Friendly and helpful staff.

I have no idea why I haven't written a review about Nikka yet. This is a great market! I like that it has a lot of Japanese items such as produce (where else are you going to find yamaimo, for example), including a large variety of natto. They have a lot of different Asian products as well, so if you're not just shopping for Japanese items, you can probably find what you need here as well. During the pandemic, I like that Nikka limits the number of patrons in the store at the time. It's a small space, but it definitely makes me feel better that there is strict enforcement of both mask wearing and number of people in the store. read more

Being from Hawaii its hard to find certain types of ingredients and brands I like to put together a nice Hawaiian style meal. Once I found Nikka Japanese market is was such a blessing. Made that home sick feeling go away for a sec. A lot of Hawaiian style dishes I like have Asian influence. So it was such a pleasant surprise to find a spot. Also, everyone there is always super kind and helpful. Thank you all for being open throughout these strange times!! See you soon!! Aloha!! read more

Nikka Japanese Market - a hand holding three packets of food - International Grocery Near Me - Goleta, California

Love that they sell a lot of Asian food like udon and hot pot ingredients. It is a little expensive (which is why I'm giving it 4 stars), but it's definitely convenient and they have a lot of yummy desserts too -- like this ice cream! read more

Nikka Japanese Market - International Grocery Near Me - Goleta, California

This market is the cutest market and has a variety of EVERYTHING. You can literally find most asian sauces here and ingredients. I love how they have many different snacks and frozen pastries! They even have fresh produce. If you need utensils they have it as well along with shampoos and lotions. Variety of Sake too! Well worth the visit! read more

It's hard to find a decent Asian market in the Ventura County or Santa Barbara County area. I'm so glad I found this little gem on Yelp! This is a cute Japanese market that sells produce, snacks, ramen/noodles, sauces/ingredients, dishes/cups, and other Japanese items. The prices are definitely higher than what you'd expect to see at Mitsuwa/Tokyo Central/99 Ranch Market. However, I'm thankful that I can come here to get the asian ingredients and snacks I need without having to drive all the way to LA or South Bay. The Japanese lady who owns the store is always very nice and sweet. read more

Cute, clean store. Had everything I wanted. They have a great frozen section of fish, fresh produce, and a huge selection of Asian sauses, spices, and mixes. read more

The employees (a family, maybe) were all very nice, welcoming, and helpful. It's a small space, but packed with a lot of great items. I would definitely recommend this place. I will be back. read more

Very impressed with this market! Solid inventory of quality groceries and goods, and reasonable prices.

Such a gem!!! Found this place thanks to YELP!!!! They have everything I want here. Nikka market is very well stocked, and they have almost everything you would need for authentic Japanese cooking. They have the maeda mochi ice cream for $4.99 a pack, shrimp, frozen dumplings and more. There is an isle for sauces, snacks , and four freezers in total. One of the freezers is for desserts and Japanese sake and drinks, another is for seafood, a third is for dumplings and other frozen food, and there is another at the counter for ice cream. There is a whole isle dedicated to sauces, curry power and more. They also have some cute sake dishes and plates here if you wanted. I love this market place because i can get my authentic snacks here, and walk down to Trader Joes to get anything else I need or want. Employees are very sweet and hardworking! read more

This is a terrific Japanese food market. It's small but they make very good use of the space. I came here with a shopping list that included gyoza wrappers, soy rice crackers, and dried shiitake mushrooms. I found everything I needed and had a dose of nostalgia from my childhood seeing snacks that were similar to ones my grandmother would send us from Japan. There is a good selection of mochi by the register. I'll definitely be back. read more

Awesome Asian market! They have everything you need in a small store. Granted we weren't doing a primary shop and were just visiting town, however we were well impressed with everything on offer :) read more

My favorite market in Goleta. Of course, you can't get everything here but they have great deals on mushrooms, bok choy, suki yaki, shabushabu, sometimes mizuna, etc. They employees are always nice and helpful. read more

They have everything you need at this Japanese Market and do not have to drive to LA. The staff are super friendly and helpful at reading labels. It is more expensive, but you are saving the drive. There is so much cramed into this store. I love the bean curd pockets :P read more

I'm rating this place a 5 relative to the location. Of course it's not nearly as large as a Mitsuwa or Marukai, but given we're in Goleta, this place deserves a 5! It's located right in the Trader Joe's/Albertsons marketplace. I am half-Japanese and just moved here from Hawaii. My roommate told me about this place. I needed to pick up some kamaboko for some yakisoba that I wanted to make. I walked around the tiny shop and was surprised by it's fairly wide selection of not only Japanese products, but HAWAIIAN as well! Li hing mui candy and seasoning packets! Nikka also has natto, fresh fish, daikon ... Some products seemed a little pricey whereas many products I felt were maybe even underpriced. Either way, I wouldn't mind coming here to pick up a few needs when I decide to make a Japanese meal. The girl at the counter was very friendly and helpful! read more

I really enjoy this little Japanese store, wether it's going in for a quick college instant ramen dinner, to a strange new food you don't see in your typical American grocery store. This little store has a large variety of foods that always seem fresh from my experience and it's high quality, there have been far and few things I have not enjoying from this store. The owners are sweet and helpful if you have questions and have even helped me decide which of their products I would like more. If you're in the area just swing in real fast I think you'll enjoy it! read more

I was in the area going to Blender's with my gf and I spied this place out of the corner of my eye. Needless to say, my curiosity got the better of me. Inside was a wall to wall plethora of Japanese goodies. I was expecting a lot less so I was pleasantly surprised. I found quite a bit of cooking ingredients that I'd been having a hard time procuring. The cost wasn't that bad, I had to remind myself that I wasn't in Hawaii anymore and that there's extra cost involved in shipping it an extra 2,500 more miles to reach it's destination. So, after laying down $36, I left happy with my purchases and was already putting together recipes in my head. Thanks Nikka, I'll be back. read more

I love this small Asian market - I come here to pick up sauces and treats. The store is small so don't expect a huge selection, but they have all the basics and some specialty things too. Staff is friendly and speaks Japanese fluently (the times I've been in). Prices are fair and the products are good quality. Check it out!! read more

I love this place! They have a great variety of foods and drink and really good prices. I love all the fun little Knick knack and decor they have too. Very cute and worth the visit, you never know what you may find! read more

Cutest little Japanese store. The owner is so sweet and helpful. My husband and I where blown away by just the culture. They have it all. I wanted to buy all the accessories. Definitely recommend for Japanese food and more . read more

Not sure what we would do without this market which carries so many Asian items. Great people own it and great people work there. Always a pleasure to do our shopping in this shop. read more

Ten years ago, when this was my only home, this was the place I head to for my Japanese fix. Nikka is a small store packed with a lot of Japanese goodies. There are VHS rentals of Japanese shows, cooking utensils, rice cooker, and anything from snack and candies (Milky's), substantial foods (frozen gyoza, unagi), to beverages (Calpico, aka Calpis). Now that I'm back here to study, I checked Nikka out again, but realized that the prices are quite high. I suppose since there really isn't any competition close-by, no reason to charge reasonable prices (plus its probably shipped here from LA). I will just wait and stock up whenever I head back to the Bay Area. read more

This is my favorite little market... they have super fresh veggies, a small but totally decent selection of Japanese candies, matcha, and VERY tasty champagne mangoes (when they're in season), and very friendly people working there. I have found that you can rack up a bill pretty quickly (but this could just be me since I tend to grab at all the candy on my way to the little checkout stand). read more

Not the cheapest Asian market around, but when you need ingredients, they are my go to. Lots of different sakes to choose from. Lots of sauces, condiments, soups, veggies.. Neat place. read more

Happy to have found this market! I buy my daughter boba here for her to make at home, along with milk tea which she loves. Selection is great. Minus one star because I get followed when I'm here and my curiosity in products seems to arouse suspicion. read more

My one-stop shop for all my Japanese product needs! After living in Japan for 5 months, I came back craving all the foods and treats I'd come to love. I really appreciate the selection and service they provide, especially since SB isn't a giant city with lots of access to Asian groceries. Though this shop can't carry everything, they do have some staple snacks of mine: sweet bean buns, melon pan, the squares of mochi, furikake, "cheesecake," udon noodles and fresh vegetables, curry, milk tea... A friend of mine really enjoyed the fresh locally-caught uni she bought when it was in stock. And of course they carry the typical Pocky sticks and the like, but there's lots more to explore with an abundance of other Asian foods and condiments as well. read more

I was able to find all of the ingredients to make traditional okonomi-yaki at Nikka, including mountain yam (yama-imo) and Japanese pork belly. They also have an excellent selection of premium Japanese sake. The staff there are extremely kind and helpful. We are fortunate to have such an authentic grocery in Santa Barbara. read more

Nori, daikon radishes, meats, gyoza, mochi, soy sauce, sake, tofu, miso, japanese hair gel, hair dye, shampoo, S&B curry (the best), green tea ice cream, red bean ice cream, edamame frozen and fresh, traditional japanese dolls, dried fish, dried squid, wasabi, sashimi lunches... Oh my!! They have everything. There is not a crevice, niche, or corner that this small store did not utilize to store and display all their goods. Watch out! Don't step on their cute little bento trays cuz they lurk near the floor! Follow them and it will take you to the aisle of beautiful Japanese dishes, bowls, and chopsticks! To top it all off, they have the most charming little lady at the register that greets everyone in Japanese. But fear not, she speaks English flawlessly. read more

I couldn't survive without this market. The staff is so friendly and helpful and always have a smile on their faces. I love to come here when I need sushi rice, miso paste, wasabi, sake, Japanese beer, noodles, shisitio peppers, etc, etc. The best japanese/ Asian market there is! read more