My daughter and have tried this location 3 times now. While I love the downtown Boise location, this one has been a disappointment . Every time we have been there, we always waited for the chefs to make enough rolls to keep up with the demand. The rolls are very basic, and come smothered with mayo. The service is also very poor. It might be ok for the casual "sushi" fan, but we won't be going back. read more

We noticed that their sign on the door said they open at 5pm. It was 4:51 and the door was unlocked so we went in. Before we could walk in the chef rudely said ''we don't open untill 5''. Really? We couldn't wait inside for 9 minutes? Horrible customer service in my opinion. We ended up going someplace else and won't be back. read more

Unfortunely, we had a terrible experience here. I wanted so much to enjoy the food and atmosphere but the service was so bad, it just couldn't be compensated for. I will also mention that Shige in downtown Boise is my favorite sushi joint in the area so that makes this an even more difficult review. Don't waste your money or the two hours you will sit (hungry) here. read more

Chef was nice and friendly so there's where the 1 star is coming from. The sushi was horrible. Too many mayo slathered and deep fried rolls. The tuna tasted way old. Mackerel was tougher than boiled chicken. I don't believe there is a concept of freshness. Kids loved the boats though. I won't be visiting this location again. read more

Oh my this place has gone from barely mediocre to down right shameful. I completely agree with the other user who said if there are more than 6 people - LEAVE. You won't get served and/or they can't seem to make enough food to get out to all the hungry people. Went in for lunch, they open at 11:30 - we got there at 11:45 and were the first ones there. It took another 20 - yes TWENTY minutes before there was food on the boats. After 35 minutes I decided McDonalds would have to do. I am sorry to say were just done. read more

1/2 star at best. Went once and never again. Sushi was subpar and limited. Had to sit there FOREVER for a somewhat better selection to be made and placed on the boats and it was all disappointing. The idea of sushi as an "express" meal is a fail. read more

This was a great place that my dad enjoys on lunch break. I came from out of town and its first place I wanted to go to eat and I'm so glad we did. I didn't have a bad piece of sushi!! They make it all fresh so of course you have to wait lol. The cute little boats are a neat idea and they were good to place sushi all around the room so you got to try all the different plates as they floated by. $1 and $2 is a great price per plate, I only wish we had this in Orlando!! I definitely recommended this place! read more

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I absolutely love this restaurant. Everyone is friendly and the chef is prompt on sushi delivery despite a large demand for only one chef. The sushi is good along with everything else and I will continue to come back. The only problem is it can be a bit slow when there are more people, so just don't go on a Friday or Saturday night ;) read more

We go once a week for lunch. Love the sushi chefs and sushi is delish for great price at lunch. Thank you, Shige!

The food was great, but the service lacked greatly. They had to run across the street to refill our sodas, and I finally got so thirsty I just ordered water, which came with 3 pieces of ices and three floating "unknown" objects. Their sushi-boat concept is a cool idea, but they don't explain it to you so we didn't know how it worked until we had spent the money on rolls. I'm not a sushi expert, but I guess I was supposed to know how it worked. The service was slow, and there was nothing telling us what each roll was on the boat. I would NOT suggest this for a lunch-hour, you won't get in and out in your hour. read more

It's a hole in the wall, that much is sure. Taste-wise it wasn't bad. The service is slow, which makes sense because you literally wait for the boats to come around with the Thing you want. Deece read more

If I could give it 0 stars I would! This is the second time that I have been here and after today I will not be back. the spicy tuna roll was easily the worst sushi(if you can even call it that) I have ever had. Mushy rice and a tiny piece of Ahi that you could barley see let alone taste. There was nothing else in the roll either so you get a full mouth of disgusting rice for $10. We also ordered the teriyaki salmon which was overcooked and again the amount of salmon was laughable. The service was awful as well. Don't waste your time, money, or craving for japanese food on this restaurant. read more

If there are more than 6 people in the restaurant.. LEAVE! The their staff can only handle a few patrons at a time.

Third time coming here, never again. Drink service was terrible and I walked up to the counter to pay since we never got a drink refill or a ticket. Wasabi was brown and crusty, lots of empty boats. We ordered a roll and ate off the meager selection of boats. Left $50 poorer and still hungry. One highlight was the taco (octopus) salad. Grabbed several plates of that. read more

Some friends and I met for lunch. We had not been before, and it was halfway between Nampa and Boise, so it was convenient. When I walked in, I thought the sushi boats were a cute idea. Then I realized a couple of pieces were $1 & some plates with a piece of tuna were $2. I could see how lunch could add up really fast. We opted for sushi combos, but I was not overly impressed. I still thought the plate was overpriced compared to other sushi places in the area. Overall, the place is cute, but did not seem like the staff was great about cleaning off tables or tidying up. The restaurant appears to have regulars, and while the service was quick for us, I'm not sure I would return. read more

We went to dinner last night and really enjoyed it! There were two chefs and while we waited for some delicious hand made rolls, we snacked on some sushi going around in boats and some miso soup. The atmosphere is casual, which we like. Everything was really tasty and the staff was friendly and helpful! We will definitely go back. read more

We were looking for some good local sushi and I wandered in here. I tried the Idaho girl which is super fun because it is chef's choice. Friendly staff and delicious sushi. This will be our go-to for our takeout sushi in Meridian! read more

Waste of time which is sad because the Shige downtown has been fairly decent for a number of years...limited "express" selection and somehow I ended up being charged $8 for a glass of boxed wine. Will NOT be back!! read more

I have been patronizing this establishment for years (it's conveniently located to work) and sadly, have seen a significant decline in the quality of food they put out. I love chef Herman but today (Herman's day off), I ordered the Bonzai roll; yellowtail, shrimp and scallop with spicy mayo. No where in the explanation did it say "cucumber roll topped with the throw away garbage pieces of fish which somewhat resembles a seafood salad". I didn't want a cucumber roll. Thank goodness I don't have an allergy to cucumber because the description doesn't even say the roll contains cucumber. To their credit I was offered to return and they would make something else but with a 30 min. lunch, that was not possible. I know good sushi; grew up in So Cal and I know bad sushi. I am regretful that I paid for this, honestly. If I could have returned it for my $$ back I would have. read more

2nd time trying this place, and I think it's definitely worth more than it's 2 Star rating. With friends that are pregnant, moved away, busy, or those that simply do not like sushi; I decided to come here alone tonight to fill in my long-last cravings. I've never dined alone before and I gotta say, it-is-MARVELOUS. The staff treated me so exceptionally well. They gave me my space all the while making sure I was content. The sushi chef checked up on me a few good times to make sure I was also receiving sought-out delicious pieces of sushi while server--KC (one of my favorite persons working in the Meridian area, who I also love as my cashier elsewhere), was very hospitable on my water refills. 5 Stars, 2 Big thumbs up! AND! I love the variety of sushi that is made including other foods (poppers/mushrooms/deserts/muscles/etc). read more

I have to say I use to love, "sushi boats"... use to... But I also have to say "the magic is gone." My mom and I use to visit it when it first opened... and it was great, no one was in a rush, but no one was slacking. Two men stood behind the moat making sushi, and unless a boat sank, everything ran smooth, and with a price of 1$ a plate (50cents a roll) Nothing could go wrong. Right? Well it's been 1 year, and I wanted to go to my "favorite" restaurant. To my dismay, It was a complete buzz-kill. The boats were jammed 4 times in 15 minutes, and with only one chef behind the moat, he was in a frantic rush, and the stuff he was putting in the sushi looked like it might be a day or two old (Which wouldn't bother me, if I hadn't seen it out) the sushi looked like it had been made by a one-armed-bird and not the two chefs that were there before. Of coarse I wasn't going to let the trip be a complete bust,I waited for the orange at the end... The orange looked dried up and unsavory... to add to it people were leaning on the bar beside the boats, and coughing on the exposed food. O_O I wont be going back... ever. (I understand that you can't control some people, but that was just the strawberry on top of the orange) I'm sorry Shige, but what happened? read more

There needs to be a way to leave 0 stars. When we came in, there was only two other diners in the whole place and everything took so long I didn't even get to eat one thing. Staff was discourteous at best and completely incompetent at worst. Took 10-15 minutes to get wasabi and two slivers of ginger to each of the 6 of us in our group then as he comes to the end he tells my (male) friend that he is going to give HIS wasabi and ginger to two girls who just sat down. The waiter didn't even ask if that was alright, just very matter of factly told him "I'm gonna give this to them" after we had been waiting. I watched the "chef" grab pre-made room temp rolls out of a stained, broken, plastic bucket then cut and serve on the boats. The rice on the sushi that was on the boats when we arrived was hard and room temperature. Google "sushi worms" then come here to see them in action! The Fried rolls (my favorite) were thick with the breading(?) and they were actually serving the end caps that had no fish in them as a piece. The worst part about the whole thing was when we noticed that the table top display fridge that stores the fish, was leaking water onto the counter top that the chef was slicing on. Hands down the worst dining experience I've ever had. Go to the downtown location this place is an unhealthy joke. read more

Love this place and the price is great to I seriously come once a week its my favorite place its not fancy but I enjoy it

I've gone here 2 times and I have loved it. I don't see why people would give it such a bad rating. I went in there a little after they opened and had to wait a few minutes as expected, they were just barely opening. The Sushi is great for how low the price is. It's obviously not going to be top notch or else you would be paying way more money for the already great food you are getting. The Sushi you get and quality is based on the chef you get, which makes sense speaking that they are not the same person. But both times I have gone, I have absolutely loved it, when I couldn't eat anymore I just had to go ahead and stuff myself for just one more piece because of how much I liked it. I think this store deserves at least 4 Stars, but I'm giving them 5 because the service was great. I never mentioned it until the end when we were paying, but it was my birthday today when I went and they respected me and kept up on my drink being filled. And getting sushi onto the boats very quickly. Then when I mentioned it being my birthday, the lady up front said "Happy Birthday" to me which even though it's a small thing, it made me smile and just be that much happier. Thank You Shige Sushi, for giving me great service! read more

This review focuses on the sushi at Shige Express. Two words: fast food. Much of the sushi rolls here follow the notion that more is better. It seems that there are 2 kinds of sushi fans: those who prefer simplicity and those who prefer complexity. The boat offerings ($1 per plate) lacked variety and appeal. The majority of sushi contained shrimp or cooked fish and a mayonnaise-based sauce. My date and I found ourselves mid-visit without anything to eat. PROS: --Sushi chefs were relatively friendly --Ample seating CONS: --Too few servers on duty. I ordered Miso Soup and never received it, probably because the one server was overwhelmed. --Disappointing sushi rolls. The rice was not short-grain and wasn't true sushi rice (also not slightly sweet which is key). If you like your sushi to pack a punch and leave you with a gut bomb, you'll probably like the decadent offerings here. I ordered a roll for $10.95 which was described as having multiple types of fish, avocado, and roe. Nowhere in the description did it state that the entire thing was deep fried. It arrived looking like a funky burrito. The two sauces drizzled atop over-complicated its flavor profile. That raw fish I was looking forward to? The deep fryer cooked it. Also, the avocado made only a brief appearance--I could hardly detect it. An overabundance of rice (probably to cut costs) made the price unreasonable. --Sushi boat offerings lacked appeal and variety. My search continues for authentic sushi in the Treasure Valley. read more

My husband selected our dinner location, and he chose Shige Express in Meridian. I was hesitant based on my past experiences here, but was pleasantly surprised at how much they have improved! Maybe it was mostly due to the sushi chef (didn't catch his name -he wore a slouchy beanie and was AWESOME), or maybe because it was a Thursday afternoon instead of a busy weekend - whatever it was, the dining experience was greatly improved! We arrived right at dinner opening, and while we waited for the sushi to be prepared for the boats, we were asked for our drink orders, offered miso, and even apologized to for the wait for the sushi. The boats were stocked with a good selection of both white and black plates (unlike past times when it seemed like there were two roll selections over and over). The host/waiter made sure our drinks were filled, so that was a welcome change as well. The sushi chef seemed keen on making sure his dining patrons were satisfied as well. I will now be going back - for now, I am sticking with 4 stars - if they remain consistent with how they were today, I would consider 5 stars. Thank you, Shige Express, for stepping up your game! read more

In the beginning it was okay for the price, but anymore the boats are always lacking and the service it not so great, particularly the attitude of the head chef. Ask him anything about the rolls, wasabi, whatever and he will curtly refer you to the wait staff. He comes across a little friendlier to the younger generation especially the ladies as my husband pointed out but clearly comes across as put out by the rest of us. Well message received loud and clear we will never grace Shige's Meridian again. We will stick with Shige's downtown. read more

Unfortunately the amount of boats you have to eat to get a decent amount of sushi makes the deal not a cheap option. At most all you can eat sushi places it is about $18 at lunch and for dinner its about $25. That may seem pricey but if you think that when you order from a all you can eat you get a couple of rolls at a time which normally have about 8-10 pieces per roll. I know when we go eat we eat about 3-4 rolls and a couple of orders of nigiri ( we skip a couple of meals to fit it all). So that's about 30-40 pieces not counting the nigiri. Divide that by two ( you get two pieces at a time for a $1 at Shiges) and that's about $15-$20 already maybe adding about $5-$10 for the nigiri that is $20-$30 ( which they had no nigiri on the boats the entire time we were there). So now you can see the prices may look the same during dinner time at shiges vs. all you can eat but during lunch its obviously not. Adding to that the quality is completely different...Shiges use a ton of rice and very little fish in their $1 sushi vs. IOU uses more fish and a normal amount of rice. IOU you can choose your rolls and nigiri where at Shiges you can ask for something there but it is not a full roll and no nigiri. So I guess it depends if you want a few pieces of sushi for $1 then this place would work and you can order rolls for regular price which are slightly pricey but we ordered one and the rice vs. fish ratio seemed better and tasted fine. Do not go to stuff yourself up with sushi you will spend more then you would at your typical all you can eat. Something I would like to mention though is they have the best customer service from any place that I have gone to including non-sushi places. Customer service is very important to me considering I go out to eat nowadays as a treat and don't like having to deal with bad customer service. So yes I will go back to eat maybe not for the $1 boats but for a quick roll or order from the Shige Teriyaki which they will deliver over if you rather have that ( which the food there is very good). read more

I wish there were a way to give no stars. This place has awful food and even worse service. I have always been impressed with Shige's downtown but I think I will never return to either because I have little respect for an owner that does not require franchisees to maintain the same standard. Meridian has ruined the Shige name!!! What a shame. read more

This place was recommended by a friend. When during a relatively slow time. It was 10 minutes before any boat even containing wasabi came around. There was no sushi in the boats. We were there for 40 minutes and almost the entire time there was nothing in the boats. When there was it was only a couple of rolls at a time which didn't cover the small amount of guests they had. It was mostly California rolls when there was sushi available. Bottom line go to Sushi Ya if you want to leave full. Incidentally the friend who recommended it was with me today and he will never go back either. read more

First and LAST time to this place. It didn't appear to be very clean, but we decided to give it a try and not judge by appearances. We chose to sit at a table and order rolls because the boats did not look fresh or appetizing. When I sat down my chair almost fell over because a leg was bent or broke. My cup had something sticky on the rim and the tea wasn't very hot or good. The first rolls that were brought to us were so dry it was like having sawdust in my mouth that tasted like old fish (yes, I'm worried I might be sick). I wanted to cancel the other rolls that we ordered but the chef was almost finished making them and we figured we'd see if they were any better. They were, but just marginally. I'm so disappointed and irritated that we were only offered an apology, not a break on the bill for horrible food. With so many other wonderful places to eat in the area, don't waste your money, or risk getting sick, at this place! read more

Been here a few times always expecting a better result. But the fact still remains... Good food, horrible service. I heard if you know the guy G then you will get more then you pay for. But unfortunately I do not know him and its hard to get to know him. He is very rude and seems to always be in a bad mood unless you are a good looking women BC then he smiles, laughs, and makes them special food. I heard ppl calling him EeOr like off Winny the Poo which fits him perfect. But enough about him, when they have fish or food off the menu things are good but I constantly hear, "we are out of tuna, or we are out of everything you want!" Everyone who works there seem embarrassed when I go down the menu and they are out of just about everything... Seems like horrible management. I asked to talk to a manager and I was told the owners wife was there. I was surprised it was the lady I had seen smoking in the kitchen when the blinds were up. She was also the lady who stood behind me like I wasn't there yelling at 1 of her employees for putting a roll on the boats when I guess they should have charged me full price for the California roll I asked for. But that's still nothing compared to the smoking during working hours in the kitchen! I have called the BBB and I hope they look into that and the numerous other disgusting things like the bathrooms where you have to dip your hands in the soap dispensers since they are broken to get soap. The pee stains on the floors at their teriyaki restaurant and boat restaurant is also pretty disgusting. To sum it all up, they need new management and I am sure things would be better, but for now I give it 2 stars BC there are some employees who actually feel bad that they can not give out excellent service due to having to have to work with what they have. read more

I am sorry to say that this was the worst Sushi Bar I have ever been to. It looked like they cut the top and the bottom of the Maki Sushi roll and put the scrap Sushi's on the boats. The boats had poor choices of sushi, including some Octopus that probably have been going around the conveyer belf since early am... Ofcourse, if you want the true fresh fish Sushi such as Tuna, Salmon, Roes, it will cost $3 and above for 2 pieces. Did not care too much about the atmosphere of Shige Express either. The chef's acted like we were bothering them on their lunch break..like it was a hassel to be serving the customers. When asked what each sushi dishes contained as my husband has allergies to shrimp, he had to ask another chef for he was not sure what the sushi contained! When asked about another boat, he didn't know it contained a Chicken dish. Not very kid friendly place either..my 12 year old felt uncomfortable and wanted to get out ASAP. Did not know until we paid our bill that we could've ordered from Shige Teriyaki menu. We will probably never go back to Shige Express again. read more

I used to be a HUGE Shige's fan, but after my experience today in the Meridian branch, I will never go here again. When we arrived at about 12:15, we sat down and there was the chef behind the counter doing his thing and he was friendly and great. I was disappointed by price change in fish, considering the $1 white plates were all primarily made up of faux shrimp, lettuce, cucumber, and rice (ie. the cheapest ingredients they have) and the $2 plates had a single piece of sushi with a small amount of fish in it, but we still tried to find things that looked good. The boats were not kept stocked, despite it being their lunch time. The chef disappeared from behind the bar at about 1 o clock and did not return for the rest of our duration, despite 95% of their boats being empty. I commented on this to the waitress, who did not even keep our water filled, and she told me she could get me a regular menu so that I could order something off of it and then proceeded to count our plates in front of us, despite me being clear that we were not done eating. I do not come to Shige's to order a roll that costs $15 that would cost me $6 if we ate the same amount of food off of the boats. Me and my two dining partners felt bullied into leaving and that they were trying to force us to order something off of the menu. Sad thing is, when we normally come in here, we usually spend about $60 on boats alone and probably would have again if they hadn't given us such poor service and practically pushed us out of the door. We all left hungry and dissatisfied, as did quite a few people around us. read more