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My friend and I were craving yakitori, so we decided to check out Sumiya. I was excited because this place has been around since 2008! Plus, the Yelp ratings looked promising. WAITLIST Sumiya uses the Yelp waitlist, so I joined about 40-45 minutes early to be seated around 7:30 PM on a Saturday night. The check-in process went smoothly; I checked in with the host when I received their text, and I got a second message once the table was ready. ORDERING There's a QR code at the table for ordering, with options to keep the tab open via third-party ordering site. FOOD We ordered several items to share, including yakitori, appetizers, and other small plates. Honestly, the food didn't quite meet expectations, and nothing really stood out. Most of the yakitori grilled skewers tasted good and were of decent quality. However, I'd avoid anything "fried" because it was disappointing and lost its crispiness--probably due to the busy vibe and quick turnover. RECOMMEND - Salmon Tataki - Kalbi x2 skewers -- added a third for extra +$. - Butabara (pork belly) - Tsukune (meatballs) - Eringi (king oyster mushroom) - Pote Mochi (potato with yakitori sauce outside and melted mozzarella cheese inside) - Nagoya Style Calamari -- these were delicious. I appreciated the pepper and sweet dressing. Perhaps, better as a dipping sauce on the side because it did affect the crispiness. DO NOT RECOMMEND - Chicken Karaage -- large pieces that aren't crispy at all, with soggy parts and not much flavor. - Sumiya Potato Fries -- deep-fried potatoes that were undercooked. - Kawa (chicken skin) -- the outer parts were grilled to crispiness, but since the chicken skin was folded on the skewer, the inside wasn't grilled or crispy. This prevented the fat from rendering, resulting in a chewy, soft texture. I prefer my chicken skin crispy all the way through.
This place always has a wait, even on weekdays but honestly, it's for good reason. One of the best izakayas I've been to in the States. Most of the staff are Japanese and it feels really authentic. The meat is smoked perfectly!! so flavorful and tender. Great spot to come with friends, grab drinks, and just hang out. I especially love the heart, tsukune (meatballs), and gobo fries. Bonus points for lots of parking, which is rare and appreciated. Definitely worth the wait.
We were able to make a res for dinner and our table was ready to go when we got there. They have great combos to choose from and a la carte. The skewers were delicious. Loved the fried potato ball appetizer, forgot what it was called. The other fried appetizers were also nicely fried, crunchy and delicious! The yuzu sake we had was amazing!! I need to find where to buy it. Ordering was easy through qr code. Service was friendly and quick. Definitely a good spot for dinner. It can get busy and is smaller so for sure make a res if you can or get on the wait list on your way there!
Came here on a Friday evening after work, came just in time before they got super packed. It is a little cramped, they do have seating that goes all the way in the back. The workers were really friendly, I got this combo meal, and I thought that it was perfect for the price you pay. I was stuffed. The food had good flavor, everything was fresh from what I could tell. We ended up getting dessert and would recommend getting the creme brulee.
Excellent food and relaxing ambiance . Excellent service. We made a reservation and also came early ( before 7 pm ) .This restaurant is always busy . Three of us ordered 3 different combinations with skewers . The skewers we have beef tongue , chicken thigh , chicken soft bone , beef short ribs , etc . Side dishes we got chicken karaage , agedashi tofu. The combination bento has salad with dressing , rice with raw eggs , toasted seaweed and rice . Good place to eat skewers and have a beer .
Bento skewer is a good combo you will leave full and satisfied with quality food for $20. We also ordered a larger carte beef tongue, chicken gizzard, and chicken heart. I really like beef tongue and gizzard so I am glad we did. Udon isn't anything special. Nice place, doesn't take too long. I have and would come back.
Located in the same plaza as Stan's donuts and Safeway, you won't have issues finding parking. We came for lunch on a weekday so there was no wait. You order with the QR code. We sat near the door, ambiance was fine. We were seated right away and given water. I decided to get the salmon ikura don lunch set and my partner had the soboro don lunch set with tonkatsu. He enjoyed his meal and had no complaints. I think it's nice that you get an appetizer and salad, good value. The karaage was very nice, a little greasy but it's fried food, so that's expected. Flavors were good. Salad was nice, I asked for dressing on the side so I only added a little. I wasn't a fan of the salmon, that's not on the restaurant, I just learned that I don't like seared salmon. I think I prefer raw or fully cooked, not something in the middle. The middle of the salmon was warm and raw and I guess that texture and temperature didn't vibe with me. In the future, I'll try something else! The ikura was good! The portions are generous, I wound up taking half of it home for later. Would come back and try something else in the future! The skewers look interesting!
Sumiya - Direct Fire, Discipline, and a Taste of Old Tokyo Sumiya isn't a binchotan temple. It's something rarer in the Bay Area: a shop that actually understands direct-fire grilling, salt seasoning, and timing. The world doesn't need more "cute" yakitori places. It needs places where cooks watch the fire, listen to the fat, and pull a skewer at the exact second before the flavor collapses. Sumiya is one of those places. THE GRILL - WHERE DIRECT FIRE BECOMES A LANGUAGE People romanticize binchotan because it's forgiving. It heats evenly, bathes meat in infrared, keeps moisture, and gives a fragrant edge. Direct flame is much harder: * heat spikes * mistakes multiply * bitterness appears instantly * dryness comes fast * surface color lies to you Which is why what Sumiya does is so rare. The meat tells the truth: * Pork belly came off the grill exactly when the fat turned glassy - not burnt, not rubbery, just aromatic and clean. * Chicken (tori-kushi) avoided the one fatal flaw: bitterness. With chicken, overcook it by 10 seconds and a thin oxidized "bitter line" appears. Here, it never showed up. Surface amber, inside juicy. * Beef tongue was the real test. GYUTAN - THE JAPANESE BENCHMARK In Japan, regardless of method - direct fire or binchotan - beef tongue is the exam. Gyutan is expensive. You overcook it you lose money. You serve it badly the customer disappears. Every yakitori shop in Sendai, Osaka, and Tokyo knows this. Sumiya's tongue passes the test: * edge char for aroma * center snap intact * heat stop precise * no dryness, no powdery protein breakdown This is not luck. This is direct-fire mastery. THE SALT WORK - PART OF THE ARCHITECTURE Sumiya is a salt shop, not a sauce shop. Salt-forward grilling only works when the cook controls fire at the micro level. That small ring of char you see on the skewers? It's intentional - the third note after: 1. meat flavor 2. salt bloom 3. char aroma Any more than that and it becomes bitterness. Any less and it becomes flat. Here, it's calibrated. THE RICE - A SURPRISING DISPLAY OF DISCIPLINE Most yakitori places treat rice like background noise. Sumiya doesn't. * grains stay separate * surface gloss intact * portioning is intentional * rice + fat + tare + topping ratio is considered, not random When a yakitori shop respects rice, it tells you the chef isn't just grilling meat. He's building bowls. SQUID LEGS - A FLAW THAT STILL WORKED The only technical miss of the night was the fried squid legs. Thin batter, lightly coated - good. Uneven in spots, part of it broken off - less good. But the ingredient quality was undeniable: Thick-cut. Shockingly sweet. Zero frozen odor. Seafood has one unforgivable flaw: freezer smell. Once that odor appears, the dish is dead on arrival. Here, the squid was so fresh, the imperfect batter barely mattered. A flawed exterior with a great ingredient inside. Honest food beats polished food every time. IKURA DON - MOTHER & CHILD DONE RIGHT The ikura here was impressive: * large pearls * translucent * clean pop * minimal curing * no salt-burn * no oxidation Paired with thick-cut salmon, it becomes the seafood version of a 親子丼 (oyako-don): mother (salmon) + child (ikura) A level of ingredient harmony rare in yakitori shops. And the rice beneath stayed perfectly separate - the sign of a kitchen that cares. THE SAKE WALL - MORE SERIOUS THAN EXPECTED Most yakitori places in the U.S. push sweet, entry-level sake. Sumiya didn't take the easy route. From the bottle wall: * Hakkaisan (including higher polishing ratios) * Kubota * Dassai * Kokuryu * real shochu, not novelty drinks In Japan, strong binchotan aroma limits sake pairing. But in the U.S., with Sumiya's clean direct-fire profile, their sake selection actually makes sense - a rare advantage over traditional shops. THE ROOM - NOT CURATED, BUT REAL The place is loud. A little cramped. A little chaotic. A lot alive. Smoke, salt, laughter, skewers moving down the line - It feels more like a Tokyo side-alley than a Silicon Valley concept restaurant. No theatrics. No neon. Just cooks working. Sumiya isn't perfect. The squid batter proved that. But if you want: * real direct-fire grilling * proper salt technique * gyutan cooked with respect * chicken pulled at the exact second before bitterness forms * rice that matters * ikura that's actually fresh * a sake list someone clearly drinks * and an atmosphere that feels earned, not staged Then Sumiya is absolutely worth coming for. 4 stars -- earned through fire, timing, and an honest understanding of the craft. - Dr. C Only writing for what truly earns the stars.
Sumiya has great quality Japanese meat skewers (yakitori). The beef tongue (gyutan) is a thicker cut and more chewy but still tasty. You can choose salt or negi sauce to top off most of their meat skewers. I'm a big fan of their cherry tomatoes skewers. It adds extra flavor as you eat it with the skewers. The eringi, or king oyster mushrooms are the definition of umami. They use an online ordering system based on a QR code, or you can ask for a physical menu. The staff do very well with clearing empty plates to avoid a cluttered table. When they get busy, however, there tends to be reduced communication with those waiting for tables. You can see the chefs cook and the restaurant feels intimate with the low lights. Definitely recommend checking in to their waitlist through the Yelp app.
3.8 stars. I LOVE skewers and was so excited to see this trend increasing in the Bay. Fast and friendly you can use Yelp to get on the wait list. A good sake collection I'll have to come back and try. And they have both hearts and cartilage skewers so it was a must try. We came in for lunch and when I say this place is fast, we were seated, fed and paid in 50 min. I have to say this raised a bit of an eyebrow because to get the slow roasted and charcoal infused meaty flavor of a skewer you kinda need time. For them to pump it out this fast means there's some pre-cooking being done. Skewer come hot very warm but not that nuclear hot that comes from spending several minutes rotating over the grill. The meatball was good, the right texture but could have been more crispy on the outside (sauce dunk followed by more grilling would have got it there). The thigh needed more pre salting, the hearts were good but also needed more salt. All of the elements are there and I'll be back for dinner service and sake to see if the night vibe changes the technique and time/attention.
2 years ago
Our group of 6 came on a Saturday night around 6pm and entered the waiting list once the shop opened at 5:30pm. We'd highly recommend entering the Yelp waitlist the moment it opens - especially if you're a larger group. We waited roughly about 20 minutes before we got through (keeping in mind we waitlisted as soon as they opened). Upon seating, you are offered either water or hot tea. You will also order and pay straight from the QR code/online - with the option to keep the tab open or closed. My partner and I shared a variety of dishes: set B don buri (came with 3 skewers, 1 choice of appetizer, and small sides such as rice) and a la carte skewers. I must recommend the galbi and beef tongue skewers - I could probably eat those endlessly! Their yuzu sake was also quite delicious - I'd recommend getting to share with 2-4 folks. read more
1 year ago
I absolutely love Sumiya. It's already been reviewed so I just wanna focus on the best parts. If you come, the things you absolutely must get are the scallops, chicken skin, and the duck breast skewers. They were are incredible and I would probably come and just get a couple of each of those. I also enjoyed the pork belly skewers. They weren't anything special but the green onion on the skewer added to it for me. The karaage was alright but a nice shareable appetizer. The bentos themselves were also decent but not mind blowing. read more
3 months ago
3 months ago
Sumiya is probably one of the best places to go for Japanese yakatori. We've been here several times and it has always been very good. They have large variety of yakatori, combo bento's and donburi bowls. Service is quick and efficient, they now have you use QR code menu and your first order of meat sticks comes out pretty quick, usually within 15 minutes. Suggest that you come early as it does fill up by 6PM , if you arrive later expect a bit of a wait. read more
7 months ago
We started coming here 20+ years ago and it is still good for the states. Yakitori is still better in Japan, but this can be a fix for your craving. I would not suggest ordering the chicken breast, it was dry. The chicken thigh could use a little more salt. Otherwise the food was good. read more
Upon arriving at the plaza, it can get very busy during the weekends so please come a bit early! The inside is dimly lit if you are seated near the bars/kitchen area. It did take a while to receive the skewers, and I did have to wait. As for food, there are plentiful yakitori options and full-set meals too. It can get a bit pricey over time if you order several dishes. Pork belly, duck, beef tongue, and kalbi with ponzu were ordered! I would say the kalbi with ponzu was my favorite as it had a zesty and juicy taste which I like. The udon was delicious too but would probably not order more meals after as it can settle. The ontama bowl was simple yet filling. Overall, I would visit again but in an earlier time when it is less busy. read more
Came right at opening time (5:30pm) on a Friday and was seated immediately. The wait got pretty long early on. The two of us shared the chicken karaage and skewers. My personal ranking of the skewers is as follows: 1) chicken cartilage 2) gizzards 3) pork belly 4) beef tongue. Chicken karaage was so delicious! Meat was so juicy and tender and went amazingly with the kewpie mayo. Pieces were huge. Food came pretty quickly and skewers were cooked nicely. I do wish that the bento combinations were customizable or had more variety. It'd be nice to pick the skewers you want for a bento. Restaurant isn't too big, feels bustling and cozy. read more
Sumiya is a must try if you like tapas style sharing. Great grilled flavors of meat and seafood over open charcoal tubes. Flavor is on point and so is the service! If you get a chance...try out Sumiya's sister restaurant, Gaku. read more
The food here was pretty good, I especially liked the white tuna bento and the garlic gizzards. A special shoutout to the potato mochi!! Very convenient with the QR menu and online payment option. Service was fast and the dark restaurant creates a pleasant atmosphere for dinner. read more
A nice intimate yakitori restaurant in a strip mall by Stan's Donuts, Armadillo Willy's BBQ, etc. Nicely decorated, modern decor in this narrow restaurant. The service is nice, friendly, and attentive. We only tried a few skewers. Kalbi, beef tongue, pork belly, chicken thigh, and chicken skin. Along with a salmon donburi. read more
10 months ago
I love Sumiya! Their skewers are the bomb. I'm originally from Japan and this place just reminds me of those izakayas in Japan. Highly recommend. read more
Food is great, value is ok, service is minimal. We ordered some appetizers and grills (see photos), most are great. The grills in particular were done beautifully: tender, juicy, flavorful. Would highly recommend the beef tongue, chicken wings, and (for those who love chicken gizzard) chicken gizzards. The fried calamari and grilled mackerel were also really good. The white tuna tataki was ok, no complaints, but also not impressive. Bill for two came down to $100+. It's definitely not a bargain. We were joking the same food would probably cost less than half that in Japan. Typical Bay Area. Service was a bit lacking. After we sat down no one asked us about water. Empty dishes weren't taken away timely. Ordering and checking were all done on the phone, hence "minimal". It's quite busy (packed) on a Friday noon read more
Last night was the 2nd time I've been to this restaurant. Both time was a very pleasant experience. I love every dishes we've ordered. It's not a big place, but it felt very cozy and the staffs were all super friendly ! I highly recommended this little gem. It's a bit of long drive for me, I don't mind at all since the food was really delicious. I'll try their bento box next time. My friend had it last night and it looked very delicious !! read more
1 year ago
This one is a hit or miss. Some dishes came out too salty (mostly the ones with a sauce) and some dishes came out too bland (the ones we asked for only salt as flavoring). Service was good, they kept filling out our water. I ordered chicken wings too but was too bland as well. I didn't like the food too much, so I wouldn't go back. It was definitely a disappointment. read more
2 years ago
Sumiya is so good! The place itself is pretty small, so be prepared to wait or come early. We came on a Sunday night around 6 and we waited about 30 minutes for our table. At each table there is a QR code to scan that brings you a menu on your phone. You place your orders and check out on your phone. Some stand out skewers were the salt chicken skin, salt chicken thigh with skin, king oyster mushroom, pork belly with green onion sauce, scallops and chicken gizzard. The only skewer we didn't care for was the beef short rib. We also ordered a bento box and the tonkatsu was cooked perfectly. Servers were friendly and service was quick. read more
10 months ago
Sumiya is such a gem in the South Bay and I'm glad I finally made time to visit for dinner. The inside of the small restaurant is inviting and intimate. I chose to sit at the bar so I could see the chefs grill all the skewers like they do in Japan. We were seated immediately by the friendly staff and prompted to access the menu through the QR code and to order directly through our phones. There are plenty of skewer options to choose from, all reasonable priced. Most skewers came in a set of two and would arrive one order at a time. We also ordered their new ramen, the salmon ikura don, agedashi tofu, and a side of saba fish. I really liked the grilled beef short rib and the pork belly skewers, both being tender and flavorful. The salmon ikura don was also tasted fresh and was a good pairing to all the skewers we were ordering. We enjoyed our meal and I can see us returning for their lunch sets or for a fun dinner experience again. read more
11.10.2024. Dinner for my significant other's birthday~ thigh+sauce. 8.50. skin+salt. 9.50. butabara (pork belly i think)+salt. 9.50. Shishito. 7.50. kalbi+sauce. 14.00. gyutan(beef tongue)+negi(green onion sauce). 12.50. thigh+salt. 8.50. All of the yakitori was done really well. I think everything was yummy. The shishito was a little too salty. The peppers themselves had salt but coupled with the bonito flakes was more salty than desirable. The thigh+sauce was my fav but I also liked the negi sauce on the beef tongue. The negi sauce wasn't too overbearingly green onion tasting, rather it was quite refreshing. Overall, spent about $50pp and we were both content. read more
7 months ago
Sumiya is a chill izakaya with high-quality skewers for a steep price. My friends and I went here for dinner since one of us had been here before. We signed up on the Yelp Waitlist early, and we were in after one and a half hour wait. The vibe was top notch and was one of the highlights of the restaurant. It had wooden Japanese decor, and you could see the chefs making the skewers. We ordered on our phones, and the food was brought rather quickly. I got the Yakitori Bento B, which consisted of three skewers (chicken thigh, pork belly, and beef short rib), an appetizer, rice with a poached egg, and salad. I exchanged the rice for more salad and chose agedashi tofu for my appetizer. I like this bento because it offers a large variety of items for a reasonable-ish price ($22). The ume miso salad was good as it was fresh and had a flavorful sour taste. I didn't get tired of the salad and finished it. It also went well with the salty yakitori. I won't recommend the agedashi tofu was a bit dry and didn't have that much flavor. The egg was runny and had a nice seaweed flavor, making me wish I kept the rice. The chicken skewer was my favorite due to its classic grilled taste and chewy texture. The pork belly skewer was dry and salty, with a decent texture. The beef short rib skewer was honestly a letdown as it didn't have much flavor and was difficult to chew. Despite the high prices and long wait list, I still believe Sumiya is a great choice to wind down the work week with your friends. The vibe is top notch and the food is still pretty good. Next time, I'll also get a beer, and maybe that will enhance an already great dining experience! read more
We went out for a work lunch for some Japanese food. We wanted some sushi, but my co-worker picked Sumiya, which was a Japanese Charcoal Grill restaurant. All good, I am definitely opened to trying something new. I got the Bento B. A 3 combination skewers (chicken thigh, pork belly & beef short rib) on top of poached egg rice, Tonkatsu & Shiitake dressing for a fresh salad. The meat tasted great and I loved the beef short rib the best. I loved the crunch on the Tonkatsu. Service was good and the place is a nice cozy spot. It gets busy at lunch, so arrive early. read more
1 year ago
Second time coming, great skewers and food. Udon wasn't the best but service and atmosphere were great. Great yakitori. read more
Great salad, great rice base, great markeral, great poached egg, great kalbi ... I liked this very much for a DoorDash on a rainy night. If I had a bit pick, it would be another skewer of kalbi but this is the economy these days. I was full when finished so I am willing to say it was 5 stars for takeout. read more
9 months ago
3 years ago
Came here at 6pm on a Friday, and there was a big waitlist on Yelp. Luckily we got offered to sit immediately at the bar. I noticed there were takeout orders too. You order using the QR code! The service was great. We appreciated the servers giving us updates on our orders. We got the: - free hojicha: it's dense! Strong tea flavor and free refills - Seared tuna bento: Perfectly cooked and went great with soy sauce + wasabi. - Chicken karaage: so juicy! The focus is more on the meat than the batter for sure. We ate this with rice. I'd recommend! - Skewers bento: This had meats like pork belly that I normally don't rave about, but the way the meat was cooked was so tasty that I could eat an endless amount of it. The charcoal cooking style is the star of the show. - cartilage and duck skewers: Both so delicious. The charcoal flavor stood out once again. All in all, a great place to get Japanese skewers and other foods within SJ rather than traveling North. I'll always remember the softness of duck meat and porta belly. Highly recommend! read more
It's okay. My friend and I arrived when the Yelp tablet had a waitlist so I was about to sign up, but the host saw us outside and ushered us in so we were seated immediately. We got B Skewers and teriyaki chicken don, with edamame and potato mochi as the sides. The salad dressing ended up being ume miso and yuzu citrus. Everything was very filling, there was a lot of rice in the teriyaki chicken don! I do wish the bowl was larger so that I could mix the sauces and chicken/rice/vegetables together evenly, it was almost overflowing so I had to sort of awkwardly stir it to make sure nothing would fall out. The chicken was good, the edamame is expected quality. Potato mochi was an interesting appetizer, the glaze must have had some sugar in it because it was a tad burnt but everything else was good! The cheese was delicious and went along well with the taste of the potato (reminiscent of a Korean potato & mozzarella cheese hot dog, haha). My friend said he preferred the chicken thigh skewer the most, that was best to him. The pork belly was good too, but the beef short rib fell flat to him. My friend and I are both not very big izakaya people, but in the future if we came back (since he lives 5 minutes away, it's convenient) we'd order something else to try. Nothing really stuck with us this time. read more
Coming back couple years later and still did not disappoint. I remembered their skewers like how it was before, amazing! This time I also got their Paitan ramen and wow it was delicious! The broth is thick and salty, which isn't bad, but I enjoyed it. It was very flavorful! Their noodles are really chewy too. They garnished with chashu woodear mushrooms and bamboo shoots which all compliment the broth well. Service was great! It was fast and they were attentive. I like how you can order through your phone using the QR code they have. Will definitely come back. read more
Great yakitori place! Came here with a group of friends for an evening dinner. The menu was all scanned via QR code on our phones, and we ordered our share on the app separately. My favorite was a bunch of chicken hearts that I really enjoyed. My boyfriend and I also shared a matcha creme brulee. Great dinner here! read more
The food is not that good and very expensive! We felt like we just had 4 meat balls and the bill is $67!?!?! With the price we can get 2 lobsters somewhere else!! The meat is dry, the pork has too much fat. I don't know I don't think it's worth the price at all!!!!!!!!!!! The service is on your phone. read more
9 months ago
Incredible food! Everything we got delicious, fresh, and flavorful. You order through the QR code and service was fast. It's average size with an open kitchen, which was pretty cool. Highly recommend! read more
Delicious bento for lunch. Always get the set B which has 3 skewers from chicken, pork belly and steak. It comes with an appetizer of your choice and egg of your choice. You can also customize to have more salad and no rice. I don't mind paying $1 extra to get the sashimi tataki as an upgrade to the appetizer. Among the 3 skewers, chicken is the most juicy and tender. Pork belly is a bit dried and burned. They tend to get busy at lunch and require full party arrival before seating since it's not a big place. They do have outdoor dining with heat lamp. Service is minimal since they are so busy, so try to flag them down. read more
This place is the best yakitori place in the area! Super small restaurant space and super popular, so expect long wait times. There is a Yelp waitlist though. The portions are all very generous and I love their Bento sets and bowls. We honestly haven't had a bad dish here, and there is a pretty wide variety to choose from so a little something for everyone. The grilled Saba was a standout! Service was quick and efficient. Would definitely recommend this place. read more
3 years ago
My partner and I are huge yakitori / izakaya fans. We came with some friends here as soon as they opened and they were already a full house. We ordered the Combination Skewer Bento B and Negi Tan Skewer Bento. We added Kalbi, Mi, Gyutan, Yaki Onigiri, Tsukune, Butabara and a few more. The bentos were delicious~ Admittedly, it was a bit of a bummer that the karage side only came with 3 pieces but the yakitori truly shined. Service was decent, they were efficient with the online ordering and it took a while to get their attention for drink refills. The hype for Sumiya is real and it is a must to eat here especially if you love yakitori and izakaya. read more
5 months ago
11 months ago
Business owner information
Ryuji U.
Hi Nat,…
I don't really understand how Sumiya is so popular-- on a Friday night, waits can be up to 2 hours and they limit your dining time to 90 minutes (but they were kind of hinting us to leave around the 60 minute mark), but thankfully I joined the Yelp waitlist 30 minutes before I arrived. The restaurant was small and there was barely space to walk. Even though Sumiya is an izakaya known for its skewers, I think it's overhyped after trying their kalbi skewers. Here's what we ordered: Kalbi Don (3.5/5): the grilled beef short rib skewers were unfortunately not as tender as I had hoped and it was pretty dry. The cabbage, kimchi, seaweed and egg topped on the rice was decent-- nothing too special. The portion was fair for the price you pay was pretty fair. Potato mochi (3/5): an interesting concept but it just tasted like a potato with a chewy outer layer coated in some very salty sauce. read more
More info about Sumiya
2634 Homestead Rd
Santa Clara, CA 95051
Directions
(408) 973-0604
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http://www.sumiyakitori.com
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Ask the Community - Sumiya
What is the corkage fee?
$25 for regular bottles (720ml or 750ml) and $50 for large bottles (1800ml)
Tried to make a reservation by calling but no one picks up, don't see an option to reserve thru Yelp or website either, how can I make a reservation?
There is waitlist option which you can use in Yelp. Only available when restaurant is open though.
Do you only offer take out option after 8?
Thank you for the inquiry. You can order through our website, www.sumiyakitori.com, using ChowNow. You can order for pick up usually from 5:30 or so. Once the restaurant gets too busy, however, we close the takeout portal to concentrate on in-house…
Do you serve sushi?
No sushi but they serve white tuna tataki, yellowtail carpaccio, and salmon carpaccio. Highly recommend white tuna tataki or yellowtail carpaccio!
Does Sumiya still offer happy hour?
Does Sumiya have lunch special?
At this moment, we don’t offer lunch specials. Thanks!
Are dogs allowed for outdoor seating?
No unless it's changed since I was there July 5
Are you guys back open for dining on weekdays?
Yes, but with a smaller menu. You can put your name down online through Yelp Waitlist from 5:30 pm. Sometimes the Waitlist closes before 6:30 pm when there are too many groups waiting already. Thanks!
Do they offer outdoor dinning yet? It's 2/22/2021 everywhere is doing outdoor dinning again, but Yelp page says no.
We’re starting Outdoor dining tomorrow on 2/26 (Fri). Outdoor dining hours will be Fri, Sat and Sun only lunch (11:30-1:30pm) and dinner (5:00-8:30pm). Thank you!
Are you currently offering outdoor dining?
Not yet. Most likely from 2/26 (Fri). Only for Fri, Sat and Sun lunch & dinner. Thank you for your patience.
Is there outdoor seating now? or only takeout/delivery
SUMIYA only has take out and delivery. However, Gaku is open Tue - Sat 4:30 - 9:00 pm for outdoor dining. www.gakurestaurant.com
Can I make a reservation for three adults at 6pm tomorrow?
We made a reservation for a party of 7 when we visited.
Edit: Got my reservation:))) Are they open during lunch on friday? Currently it is Friday 12:57 PM and no one answered the phone. I wanted to make a reservation for saturday night :(
Sorry about not being able to answer the phone. Can you call now and I can answer the phone. Or you can leave your number for me to call you back. Thanks!
Do they still serve lunch bento with selection skewers like it used to be?
We serve Bento A with chicken skewers (Mi, Sasami, Teba & Tsukune) and Bento B with combination skewers (Mi, Butabara, Kalbi & Tsukune).
Is reservation an option there?
You must call to make a reservation and you only get 90 minutes per seating.
Do they still serve chicken skin skewers? Don't see it in their menu on their website.
Yes they do. Just order it with the server.
Why does Yelp recommend reviews?
82 reviews that are not currently recommended
The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.
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Sumiya - japanese - Updated July 2026
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