We've been to this location and the West End one. This location is more classy. The decor is more upscale. The service is understated and prompt. The food is great. I can't help comparing it to Wasabi since we'd been there 2 days prior. Raku was way better on decor, food quality and service. We had the miso soup (pretty much the same everywhere), avocado salad (bigger than I expected with almost a whole avocado chopped on top), the salmon and avocado rolls, Philadelphia rolls and the sweet potato tempura rolls. All of the rolls were rolled tightly and didn't fall apart when we lifted them like the Wasabi ones had. I was surprised that there wasn't a tea list. I just ordered green tea and it didn't seem like there was more than one variety. Bottom line: great quality all across the board. read more

This is a beautiful restaurant. Food is very good. Recommend the salmon teriaki. Service is a bit slow but courteous.

Long story short, everything probably comes from a box. The "steamed" dumplings were square-shaped and frozen solid in the middle, the Chilean bass was fishy, and the sushi was on par with grocery store delis. This place is an expensive way to serve food you probably buy in a box at Trader Joe's. Tried for the first time when everything else was closed on July 4th and will not be back again. read more

After hearing over and over again how cool the 50th and France area is, I decided that I had to head over and explore over the long July 4th weekend. Luckily for me, and my hungry belly, Raku was open and I was able to get a table immediately. After reviewing the menu (which has a decent selection for sushi and non-sushi eaters), I ordered up some seaweed salad and a roll. Both of these were really yummy. The only downside of the restaurant is that there were probably 4 different waitresses serving my table at one time, so they all kept getting confused about who should take my order, if I had ordered, etc-but, this wasn't a deal breaker and I will be back again. read more

Rolls and sashimi were fresh and good quality. There's plenty of much cheaper places in the metro though with just as good or better sushi and plating (Aji Hopkins for one) . Won't likely go out of my way to go here. Yumi's in excelsior has similar high prices but better plating, location, and service. read more

The sushi was quite good, but the place is seriously lacking in atmosphere. Also, our server was not attentive and we sat without soy sauce for far too long. He also reeked of cigarette smoke. Gross. Next time we will go to our fave twin cities sushi joint, Fuji ya, even though it's a 15-20 min drive while this place is about 3 min from our house. Not quite sure how Raku is still open. read more

I have been there for many times, with family, or with friends. We always enjoyed it very much. The variety and taste is the winner. They serve cooked food for people who doesn't eat raw among many sushi and sashimi options. read more

An overall great experience. The decor is nice and simple and the waitstaff are friendly and competent. We had three different sushi rolls and liked them all. The sake selection also had pretty good range. read more

Decor and food are good but lately the service has been terrible. Same server every time, she is the most disinterested server I can remember. Not even remotely pleasant and totally disengaged. If you don't like refills or prefer warm tap water with no ice, perfect. You will watch her online shop while your sushi sits on top of the bar. It's a shame, moving to different spots from now on. We used to love coming here and had them deliver often. read more

Slllloooowww service around lunch time had one lady inefficiently running around serving 18 or more tables. Water glass never gets filled. Lunch sushi and bento box deal is good tho....worth the wait normally if u have time and lots of patience price is economical. read more

I really want to like this place, but they have some work to do. A lot of reviewers commented on their poor service, but our server was very nice attentive. I tip solely based on the quality of the service, and he deserved a good one. The food on the other hand... The worst part was their ramen: it's horrific. It was overcooked noodles in what tasted like won ton soup. I asked the server what kind of broth it was, and he said chicken and later asked the kitchen (they said pork). Hmmmk... Whatever it was, it had no body or flavor at all. I took one bite of the noodles and a few sips of the broth and sent it back. I rarely send anything back, but it was straight up terrible. The sushi we had was okay, but they have a tendency to really smash the rice until it's almost mochi. Easy with the Hulk hands! They seem to be rather popular and busy, so I hope we caught them on an off night. We'll give them another shot with the sushi, but I'll probably avoid the ramen. read more

Reliable Japanese option in Edina. Captain crush roll is a favorite. Always tastes fresh.

I went here for dinner and I could say that this place has its ups and downs. What I should put out there first is that their service was very good and the place seemed very clean and tidy. Now for the food I Had ordered the Uni and it was pretty good it had tasted fresh and overall looked very neat as well. The second dish I had gotten was the play boy, that dish was very good and the presentation for it was amazing. For the last dish I ordered was the Ramen and that dish wasn't the best thing I had ordered like it had its ups and downs like the egg seemed as if they just had it sitting in a fridge and put it on the ramen when it was time to serve, and the pork that is supposed to come on top of the ramen was kinda buried by the egg and onion so you couldn't really see it until you dig around a little and also there was only about three slices of pork but they were also a decent size, but the thing that saved the ramen from being bad was the broth because the broth was nice and hot and had a really smooth taste to it. So to end this review this restaurant is a really good place to eat but also mind your self some dishes may not be to your expectation. read more

The ambiance is cozy and good presentation is pretty. Food is like other Japanese restaurants. The 1 entree we tried was good. Service is good. read more

Sushi was nearly warm, hard to eat. Hamachi Kama was good. Yakisoba with beef was good, got charged for shrimp. Didn't want to bother explaining this. Wife was served a much cheaper wine than ordered, then given what was ordered after complaint. Could not receive Open Table points and use Groupon at the same time even though Groupon requires a reservation. My recommendation is to skip this restaurant, not worth the money. So many better sushi places in the metro. read more

I ordered quite a few sushi items on the menu. such as salmon, scallop, escolar, and ika (squid). Only salmon was fresh and good. The rest was awful.. be careful don't get sick there. read more

I came back several weeks later with the same Groupon and I finally got to try the tuna pizza appetizer and it was amazing! Tortilla on the bottom, guacamole/crab mixture with strips of tuna on top with spicy mayo and spring onions...I am drooling just talking about it! Their gyoza is fine. It's hard to mess up fried gyoza! Shumai was steamed so it had a funny, soft texture. Flavor was good though. We had the Manhattan roll and the Snow Thrill roll...both delicious! read more

Service was slow, the food was rather disappointing. Scallops were incredibly overcooked - almost as tough as steak. The steak that others ordered was plain and boring. Nobody had sushi at the table and it seems that many people like the sushi here. I wouldn't recommend this restaurant unless you like overcooked food. read more

Delicious and fresh. Very slowwww service.

Just okay ... Was really excited to try this place! We finally got a couple different rolls to go and they were just okay. Miso soup and ginger salad were okay but I've had better. Had a Philly roll, Boston roll, spicy salmon roll and a Fire roll. Obviously nothing to crazy ... like to go with some of the basics the first time we try a new sushi place. The Fire roll was the wildest we got ... also happened to be the best of the bunch. So also worth noting ... I got mine to go but when I was there to pick it up (Valentines Day), they were running way behind on reservations. The girl at the desk wasn't all that friendly. One guy wasn't happy that he had a reservation at 6 but he was number 4 for a table and it was already 6:15. Her response was "I don't know what to tell you, it's Valentines Day and everyone has reservations." She's right ... but man, there is a totally different way to handle that! Again, okay sushi but not as good as some of my favorites (Kiku in Aurora, IL, Katsuya in L.A.). We will try some others in the area before we go back. I'd give the sushi 3 stars and the hostess with the attitude 2 stars. read more

I was excited to try this place but it failed in every way possible. I was so disappointed in this place for many reasons. More than anything, this place had very poor quality sushi comparable to a Chinese buffet with a side of all-you-can-eat sushi. The tuna tasted like it came out of a can. It's definitely not tuna slices when the roll is supposed to be topped off with tuna. Also, they were stingy with the fish such as eel. I couldn't even see the eel in the eel avocado roll. The service was okay. I won't be returning to this place. read more

We were here celebrating my daughter's grades in her Japanese class. The food was great, and they brought out a special dessert to celebrate for free, which was nice. Expensive, but a nice treat. read more

Service was terrible. I think we got about 10 words out of the staff. They dropped our plates off without looking at us or repeating the name of the plate like is usually done by waiters when giving you your plate. The food tasted great but the Megu Sashimi was too soggy/mushy. Upon receiving the bill, we got an "ok thank you" with no eye contact and started laughing from how bad the service was. Nice decor, terrible service, and fairly good sushi. read more

I have a favorite sushi roll here but I have recently stopped going here's why. The service here is awful! They act like they don't want you there. The don't offer the happy hour unless you ask. I came in at 9:05 and they reminded me 4 times they were closing at 10 after I ordered at 9:10! They service is just terrible here they make you feel unwelcome. read more

This is my new favorite restaurant! The price matches the quality for this delicious sushi. The special rolls have the perfect balance of flavors and the drinks compliment whatever dish you choose. I highly recommend the Italian Side Car. Furthermore, the customer service is excellent. The waiters where on the ball and had whatever we needed in seconds. I gave this five stars because they exceeded in all aspects of service and quality. read more

I thoroughly enjoy Raku! I have been to many sushi restaurants and find the presentation of the sushi as well as the flavor mix a wonderful combination. Sushi should be a treat for the eyes as well as the taste buds - it can make or break my experience at a sushi restaurant. Thankfully, I am never at a loss here. I generally go to Raku during evening hours in the work week due to my business. The restaurant is never packed, but there are always customers inside. I always order "Special" rolls. It is part of the experience to see new creations! I have never ordered a roll I didn't like. Playboy is excellent - as well as the presentation. If you are at a loss, ask your waiter for recommendations. They will point you in the right direction. Just a note, if you are not a fan of sushi, but are willing to try - always select a Special roll. A con for me - in the winter I can't seem to get warm enough when I'm inside, but that could just be me. Try it! read more

I love Raku! I went in on a Saturday night, no wait, attentive staff, and delicious sushi! I ordered the sun kiss roll, which I would highly recommend. The fact that it's local is also a plus. Perfect place for family and friends of all ages. The sushi rolls were filling and not overpriced, something not most Japanese restaurants can attest to. I can't wait to come back soon! read more

This is my go to Sushi place. Excellent menu variety, the Manhattan roll is my favorite. The food is awesome but the service is so slow. I'm never greeted when I walk in and usually have to wait a few minutes for someone to walk in from the back to seat us. When it's a busier time there needs to be more staff serving. Again had to wait awhile for someone to take my order. read more

Worst sushi place ever. Service 0 : had to flag a waitress down after waiting over 20 minutes to order and after several other parties that arrived later than us had already ordered. No one checked even once to see if we needed water or other refills. Groupon was refused even though we had called ahead to ask about using one. Manager even came out and raised her voice at us saying we could not use the groupon she herself had said would be no problem over the phone. Food 2 : sushi rice was hard. Not sticky, just hard as in way overcooked. Soup was tasty but lacking in seafood. Sea bass was.....disgusting, coated with miso paste? Really? Who cooks like that? Filet mignon was dry and hard. The only partial saving grace was the salad, which was pretty good, but hey, I could have made that at home. Bottom line? Don't waste your time. There are so many better choices in the twin cities for japanese food! read more

We left even before the server arrived as the host made it very clear that we were not welcome by trowing menu cards and other specials on the table without any comments or any welcome gesture. read more

I just had my first visit to Raku for lunch. I was excited about their wide ranging and imaginative menu. Everything from delicious new sushi creation to more traditional Japanese dishes, everything was excellent. I can't wait to get there again! read more

The food was tasty. Had the hibachi lunch combo with steak and salmon. And ordered a few rolls. However the atmosphere is quite gloomy during lunch. That's why I give it only 4 read more

Came here for lunch one day. They have unique sushi rolls that taste great. Ambience is quiet and calm. Service was good (the restaurant was also empty). Prices were a little high. read more

I live in the area and went here craving a sushi meal. I like traditional sushi and am not fond of rolls, but ordered the Marine Sushi combo plate anyway which includes a tuna roll. I asked the waiter if they could include a couple of my favorites, and he replied, "It's chef's choice." I hoped he might pass on my request anyway because there were only six tables in use at the time and the restaurant was clearly not busy. The presentation of the food was attractive. I started with the tuna roll to get it out of the way, and discovered it was identical to tuna salad in a roll! Except it had little or no flavor! Just mushy tuna. Yuck! On to the sushi. The fish pieces were large enough, but there was every bland-flavored variety they had. There was no evidence that the waiter had passed on my request. There was nothing interesting or remarkable in any of the selections. The only words I can think of is Bland and Blah! When the waiter presented the check, I politely tried to express my thoughts about the selections, and --believe me, this is true--the waiter just turned and walked away in the middle of my sentence! So, is there any inducement to ever recommend Raku? Absolutely not. Is there any reason to ever go back to Raku? Absolutely not! read more

while making a reservation, my wife and I both noticed the place reeked of turned fish. we won't be keeping our reservation.

We have been there for both lunch and dinner. The food and service are both great. Lots of interesting and tasty sushi rolls. Lunch is a tremendous bargain. Probably the best sushi and Japanese restaurant in the Twin Cities. Also, free parking right behind the restaurant. They are also very kid friendly. read more

Captain crunch roll was great but don't waste your money on the appetizers they are very very tiny picture appears big not so

What happened to Raku? We have been here before and enjoyed it. Last night service was slow and unhelpful. We had questions about the menu and instead of explaining the items the waiter asked if he should come back later when we were ready. Maybe this is the management's fault for not having enough waiters on a Friday night. More unsatisfying was the overcooked scallops on eggplant (normally good) and the overcooked Sea Bass with Udon Noodles (a great fish usually). I am not sure if I will take a chance here again. We were with good friends and enjoyed out time together but I wish I could have a do-over on picking the restaurant. read more

I have been here over 10 times, 2 times it was good, others ok, yesterday inedible. Plate actually had a huge chip in it, seaweed couldn't chew, and fish was mushy. Service was slow. Ick!! read more

Great Food, Great Service. Recent blogger/reviewers have lambasted Raku in Edina for aweful service. I've only been to Raku 3 or 4 times over the past few years, and never had terrible service. Last night the service was outstanding. Heidi did a terrific job - attentive and knowledgable. Food came when it was supposed to come, and it was delicious. The Playboy Roll is still our favorite roll. Not only are the flames fun, but most importantly the roll itself is a big hit to both lovers and nonlovers of sushi. I opted for the Crazy Chicken and it was delicious (I don't usually order chicken). My wife had the tilapia, and although I thought maybe it was a bit overcooked, it had great flavor and not nearly as dry as it may have appeqared when first presented. Another of our dining companions had a California roll that she thought was among the best she's ever had, and the other had a bowl of the signature soups -- it was ENORMOUS, and she said it was very, very good. So I don't know what's going on with the service, but on a Thursday night in November, service was terrific. And the Pineapple mojito was outstanding! read more