1.) This is the best sushi in Charleston but that doesn't say much because there aren't many places to choose from. 2.) Worst service ever! We made reservations for a party of 12 at 8 pm. There was another party of 12 there that didn't have reservations. I think they thought that party was our party...so we had to wait 40 mins to get a table that we had reservations for. At the end of our meal, out of everyone at the table, my check had a 20% gratuity added and no one else had that added. I asked the server about it and she said that was "normal". Well, if it was so normal, then why wasn't it on everyone else's?? I would not recommend O-ku, nor will I be going back because of the horrible service. Even though the sushi is good, it's not worth it. read more

My fav place for sushi!!! They are well prepared and the environment is beautiful at night. read more

O-Ku - Sushi Bars Near Me - Charleston, South Carolina

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Great sushi and outstanding service. Very nice atmosphere. We met Victor, the manager and he was terrific. Stopped by the table several times to make sure everything was to our expectation and top off our wine glasses. I would highly recommend O-ku! read more

We were blown away by this place! My new favorite roll is the salmon and lemon - WOW! Drinks were delicious, food great, but what really set it apart for my husband and I was the staff. Our waitress was wonderful. She gave recommendations about the food and entertained us with our Charleston Tourist questions.... she even let me get the name of her hair product! Loved her. We were also blessed to sit at the sushi bar where we talked and watched the sushi finishers. I felt like we were watching Food Network live! The two men were very good at their job and even allowed us to ask questions about what they were making. If we didn't live in Chicago, I would come back weekly, if not daily. Love this place! read more

get the potato roll you wont regret it i promise also- great customer service and really cool place. read more

Sushi was good. But when we went to second time, we had to wait over 20 mins even though we could see there was seats! And when we asked them before we leave there, a reception woman said" we will call you in 20 mins!" They lied to us about the wait time read more

Amazing food I use to work at a top sushi restaurant in savannah that was going to be featured in the food network. Server was down to earth new all the ingredients down to the core detail give her props. Fresh is how I taste and know that it'a a legit atmosphere and beautiful design of the restaurant. Great first experience I'll and many back soon. Thank you so much read more

O-Ku - Sushi Bars Near Me - Charleston, South Carolina

The food is ok. They used masks but the waitress don't used gloves and touch the food with the fingers and that's very nasty.

Shea made it an over-the-top amazing evening! As an avid Sushi fan, I've tried every other place in Charleston at this point so I was excited to FINALLY see what all the O-Ku hype was about. The evening definitely did not disappoint! Definitely recommend the Jasmanian Devil, The Harvest Roll, The Dapper Snapper, and the Green Tea Mochi's for dessert. (Hands-down best sushi rolls ever!) The entire evening was absolutely terrific, and Shea deserves most of the credit for that! I will request her every time I go back to O-Ku in the future! :) read more

Visited O-Ku for their happy hour (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays 5-7pm) and was extremely pleased with their service and food overall. The restaurant is conveniently located on King St and stylishly decorated with a modern Asian theme typical of most higher-end sushi restaurants. For anyone who is not familiar with O-Ku's happy hour, I highly recommend it. They offer half off sushi rolls, as well as $3 off all signature cocktails and a selection of sake. I arrived slightly early for my reservation, and was offered a seat in their lounge area along with a menu to peruse while I waited for the rest of my party. The hostesses were very attentive during my wait. However, I did feel I was approached too many times to ask if I would like anything while I waited. Though my party and I were familiar with the menu, our waiter seemed willing and able to aid in our dinner choices (even teaching my friend how to say a dish in a helpful manner). We began our meal with a round of delicious and refreshing Strawberry Basil Lemonades. These cocktails may have been on the pricier side at $9 apiece if it had not been happy hour. Our waiter surprised us with complementary edamame and our meals followed soon after. I received the scallop roll, which was a decent portion and fresh. Unfortunately, when we ordered another round of drinks, my friend found a long hair in hers and sent it back. Our waiter apologized profusely and returned almost immediately with a new drink and apologies from the bartender. Aside from that mishap, the atmosphere was comfortable and casual, despite the fancy décor, adding to our pleasant experience. The service was more than satisfactory and I believe if their prices were always at the happy hour rates, I would certainly visit more frequently. read more

Salmon tartare, salmon + lemon roll, and veggie tempura roll were so insane that my sister and I ate there two nights in a row! Yup. That happened. ;) Hey! We were on vacation. Very BUSY scene, so don't go there if you are already hungry. And be sure to miss happy hour. Unless you like happy hour and like waiting an extremely loooong time for your food. It's worth it. But it is a wait. Grab a seat at the bar. The gals running it are sweet + attentive. read more

O Ku is never a disappointment. No matter what time or day, the sushi always is amazing. I normally get the potato roll while my boyfriend gets either the spicy tuna crunch roll or the tuna tataki. They also recently revamped their cocktail menu. My favorite has to be The Killa Feeling. Whether you're a local or on vacation O Ku is always a good choice. read more

O-Ku - Potato roll, spicy tuna crunch roll, and tuna tataki. Behind was their specialty roll for national sushi day - Sushi Bars Near Me - Charleston, South Carolina

Came in on suggestion by a friend-- visiting from LA. Was told to ask for a roll by ACE. Ace is by far the best sushi chef I've had the pleasure of meeting. Ace actually came out in person, introduced himself, and asked what my favorite fish was. The rolls came out and were phenomenal. So fantastic, would recommend Ace and O-Ku to anyone I know. Will definitely be back next time I'm in Charleston. read more

I'm not sure if the "O" is for Over Rated or Over Priced... Check out Osaka in West Ashley instead. read more

Great nightlife and could accommodate our large bachelorette party! Drinks were kind of pricey and in cheap plastic cups, but the DJ was amazing and made up for it. read more

Really? What is with all these Japanese-fushion restaurants with a club vibe that offer ok quality food.... This is one of those places. Sure it's cool. Maybe even sexy. But I need good food at restaurants. I don't mind paying for decor and beautiful table settings, but the food HAS TO be good. At O-Ku their sashimi was sub par, and so are their nigiri. Their service was terrible as my order was messed up twice. Will not go back. read more

We happened to walk by this place last night for my sisters bachelorette party. The DJ they had was bomb! We had such an excellent time! We stayed till last call and would definitely go back again. Drinks were strong and cheap read more

My husband and I went to dinner here for the second night of our week-long vacation, which just happened to be New Year's Eve. Thankfully we had reservations. We arrived before they opened but they let us sit on a sofa while we waited. The first thing I noticed about the restaurant was the atmosphere. It was very modern and trendy, which is unlike any sushi restaurant I've been to. I welcomed the change. The severs and hostesses were all dressed very nicely. I'm not sure if this was for the holiday or if they dress like this daily, but it was a nice touch for the restaurant. My husband talked me into ordering the tasting menu along with him. I'm glad he did. I had some of the best-tasting sashimi I've ever had. Each course was the perfect size. My personal favorite was the blue fin tuna sashimi. Both the owner and the chef checked in on us during our visit, which is always good. I also tried mochi ice cream for the very first time. Excellent flavors and textures. We will definitely be returning the next time we are in town. read more

Walked up and had my temperature taken then told the hosted I would be right back as I had to put money in my parking meter. Literally, 30 seconds later she was shouting across the restaurant telling me I couldn't sit down and had no recollection of our previous encounter. The place had only 8 ppl. But must be nice going through life with the mind of a gold fish just terrible for business. I'll take brains over beauty all day...especially when they are all wearing masks. read more

I have waited a day to allow the full experience at last night dinner to set in. O-Ku is our friends favorite restaurant in Charleston so we made a reservation with our two families and went to dine last night. Our reservation was for 9 people at 8:45 on Sunday July 2nd. We sat and our friends started to order a few apps, first Edamame, waitress came back and said sorry we are out. Our friends also ordered seaweed salad.. waitress came back a few more minutes later and said, sorry we are out of that as well! We ordered some Dim Sum, that came out after a little while . We then waited for about 20 minutes for waitress to take dinner order! Then we waited and waited and waited for dinner. Our dinners were not served until 10:30! One hour and thirty minutes after we sat down! The food was fine.. but the wait was over the top bad. The manager after being prompted by our friends took $79.00 off the bill... at the absurd level of this dining experience the entire meal should have been compt, or we should have walked out. read more

This. Place. The sushi is ridiculously fresh, well presented, and paired with fresh herbs and all sorts of yummy stuff. I want to eat here every night. read more

When you walk in ... it smells like they moped down the entire front of the restaurant with a non bleached bacteria laden cloth. The host and server were great so the service makes up for the smell. The food was actually good except for one of the White fish crudo with olive oil. Had to send it back as it tasted and smelled fishy. The rest was alright and for a southern sushi place ... I guess it was ok even though the token Japanese guys in the back I'm sure were for show LOL! read more

Squeezed into two seats at the bar and they were slammed on a Sunday night. Started with some edamame and saki, both were great and though our bartender was super busy she was very friendly and helpful with the saki selection. Our entre order took a little long but both our bartender and the manager stopped by us to apologize nicely for the delay, which honestly wasn't that bad considering how busy they were. I had the Tuna Tataki roll and 431? Roll, both were just what I've been craving for, fresh tasty sushi and avocado!! I've been here 3 times while in town for business and always have a great experience! read more

This place is not great. The sushi is not authentic by all means and lacks the tasteful combinations and bounty of fish that you expect for the price. Came her on my birthday and it was not a good experience at all. Cocktails are good. Just don't go there expecting amazing sushi. Also, our waitress had a personality of a mayonnaise jar. read more

Wait staff was very knowledgeable and encouraging of atypical American choices (my words, not theirs) which led to my best sushi experience ever! The Black Magic box style sushi was amazing--possibly the yummiest sushi I've ever had--and comically left me with black teeth for a few minutes from the squid ink rice! read more

This is literally the worst sushi restaurant I have ever been to. Granted, I've lived in Hawaii the last 3 years, but that also means I've been to A LOT of sushi restaurants. We were seated quickly. The waitress had a snotty attitude which I found amusing. She incorrectly corrected my husband's pronunciation of words like tobiko, which was funny because she was slaughtering the pronunciation. We ordered several rolls and a sake flight to share. The flight came out first. It was the worst sake we've ever had. The quality was dismal. Then came the sushi rolls. Presentation was average, no complaints there. The fish tasted a bit old on the rainbow roll. The fried rolls were already cold. I'm guessing the prepare them ahead of time, or they had just been sitting. I didn't even finish my rolls. We've literally been going place to place in downtown Charleston all day trying food and drinks. I recently finished a fitness competition and was ready to indulge. I've enjoyed every single place today except here. Soooo disappointed. The price was par for the course for a sushi place but the food was awful, and the staff had terrible attitudes. The waitress wear all black and you can tell they are encouraged to show some skin, there were a lot of cheap black mid-drifts and open back tops. As a fitness girl I embrace girls showing some skin, but I definitely don't applaud the mean girl attitude. Maybe it's just their Thursday afternoon staff, but they definitely lost a customer here. read more

The flavors and sushi are great - much better than other places I've been and actually had some unique flavors - not just a bland roll or bland piece of nigiri/sashimi. The only negative is the ambiance - it's nice, but incredibly noisy and not conducive to conversation at all. read more

A restaurant that is trendy, dimly lit and simply out of place in charleston. Rolls are okay. Service is okay. But if this was located in almost any other city this would unlikely be in business. Everything is okay. read more

The ambiance and service was outstanding. The food is delicious if not slightly expensive. Our server was Shea who was very attentive, and made great recommendations for our first visit. The hostess was very engaging as well. This was our first time as we were visiting the area and will definitely come back the next time we are in town. read more

Love everything about O-Ku! We make sure to have Shea as our server, she is very knowledgeable of the menu and super sweet! You will not be disappointed with anything you order from O-Ku. They take pride in what they do. read more

O-Ku - Seaweed Salad, Edamame, and Sashimi Tacos - Sushi Bars Near Me - Charleston, South Carolina

Only 5 stars for the awesome bartender. Servers quality with a smile. Thanks Lindsey! read more

O-Ku - Nice pick Linsey! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Charleston, South Carolina

Potato Roll is life. Happy Hour 5-7 MWF, half off sushi and featured sake bottles, see you there..

Good service, very friendly staff, and the food was SO. GOOD. We ordered edamame, a rainbow roll, and a surf & turf roll. Our meal was $38. The fish was exceptionally fresh. The decorations are really cool and it's a perfect date night spot. Loved it! read more

Best app ever pork belly. I had Kani roll and surf & turf rolls they were great kani roll absolutely phenomenal. I would come back for sure. Charleston is my favorite food town in the southeast read more

One of my favorite places for great Japanese food in charleston. The staff was great and so was the GM. I ended up taking a shot of some sugar and fire drink and fell in love. Overall I would recommend to my bar guest if they are ever visiting charleston. read more

Really fun atmosphere! Definitely a great place to get dressed up with a group of friends. They have a great selection of cocktails and the sushi is the way to go. The potato roll is a must try, and the spicy tuna role was really good too. Also, the poke bowl was incredible, lots of really great flavors. This is the place if you're looking for a fun atmosphere with great sushi! read more

Sauce dominant sushi restaurant that should rely more on their high quality fish. Word to the wise... avoid the Harvest Roll. No business being on a sushi menu. read more

Went here for happy hour and Kirsten, our server, made our night. Not only did she provide excellent service but she provided us recommendations for places to try while on our first visit to Charleston. The food and drinks here was great and we would recommend to all in town. read more

Hands down the best sushi in Charleston! The green eggs and hamachi is my favorite roll if all time. Happy hour Monday Wed and Fri is half price sushi. It is a lively atmosphere. If you go late night they occasionally have live music. Oh and don't forget to try the rock shrimp salad appetizer, yum. read more

Attend dinner at O-Ku on 4/1/19 with my wife and 25 year old God Daughter. Ordered the $100 sushi/sashimi platter that was supposed to serve 4 people. While the fish was fresh and good, the amount of food would not have feed 2 people. After we finished the platter which was more like an appetizer, we had to order 3 additional rolls. The rolls were only 5 pieces. Overpriced and disappointing. Not many options for sushi in Charleston, but I think I would skip it in favor of a traditional Low Country meal. I would not recommend to family or friends. read more