I like the old town of Richmond but always scares me when it comes to finding a good place to eat. Yes I am not familiar with the area and run down stores & restaurants are not very promising. On this particular day when I was craving for just a simple sushi and hot green tea, Sumo San came to the rescue. With my trusty Yelp app, I typed Sushi nearby and boom just like that it appeared before me. Conveniently located near the Main St train station, I walked briskly and was the first customer. Ordered miso soup, green tea and sumo attack special. I liked the quality of the green tea and its richness. Miso soup was tasty. And sushi was pretty good. California rolls were tightly packed with little bit of rice and every bite was a full flavor of cucumber and crab meat. Sushi was fresh and tasty. First bite into the salmon is usually a good indicator. I saw the customized rolls but was not able to try since it was just a party of one. My next trip will include more exploration into the mystery of Sumo San. I really liked the atmosphere and the decor. I sat alone by the window, ate a belly full, sipped on green tea of pleasure and relaxed. Friendly staff and full of female customers. Now women are definitely more picky about food and if you want to find a good restaurant then see how many women are in there. Just a tip for the future. read more

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Went to Sumo San when I was in town for work with a coworker. We were both craving sushi and it really hit the spot! I had a sushi/sashimi mix and he had two specialty rolls. Everything was great. Service was good and prices typical for sushi. I only gave three stars because I didn't think it was incredible sushi, but I would definitely go back. Seems like they have excellent happy hour specials. read more

Sumo San - Hot Night and Rockin Sumo Rolls - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

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A great Sushi option in the Bottom. I go here often for lunch if I need a Sushi fix. The sushi is consistently fresh and delicious. They also have a great selection of salads and entrees for lunch as well. The interior is funking, and eclectic. On Wednesday and Thursday (I believe -- double check this) from 5-7pm they do a sweet Happy Hour that includes $2 beers and Cheap Sushi. It's a lot of fun, and a great value. I don't get there enough! read more

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I'm no expert at sushi, but I know good sushi when I taste it, and this did not cut it at all. In fact, you could tell that the sushi was NOT of top-notch quality by just looking at it. The spicy salmon roll was a very very dark color, which is simply unacceptable at any high-rated sushi place. That was my boyfriend's meal; I ordered the steak. I guess i can't be TOO picky about it, since this is a sushi joint. However, the steak was cooked too well-done and was drenched in teriyaki sauce (that tasted like it came from a bottle). Overkill. Sad to say, our appetizer was the only decent tasting part of the meal (fried vegetable tempura). And it came out at the same time as the sushi. And although she was kind to us, only one server was working the whole floor. We waited an absurdly long time for even my miso soup to come out (30-40 minutes). I don't understand all the hype about Sumo-San. I went here for a date, expecting a great time since the reviews were so high. This is one of those times when, unfortunately, the reviews I read on Yelp did not reflect the dining experience I had. There are much better and cheaper places to get sushi in Richmond. read more

This place was pretty awesome. I went with a large group during happy hour and we got a ton of sushi and drinks and the prices and food quality was an A+. The only thing that I wasn't very impressed with was the staff. There where a few people from the staff that were very friendly and some that seemed a little grumpy. I also did not like that the clock was 10 minutes fast in the store compared to my phone so I was not able to take advantage of the happy hour like I would have liked to. All in all, this place is perfect for happy hour on Thursday or Wednesday night. It was fun for a large group and the restaurant was very accommodating for the large group that I was with. I would definitely go back again. This place is definitely one of the better sushi places in RVA. read more

Ordered the Crouching Tiger Roll to go from here and it was spectacular! Glad to have this restaurant as an option in the neighborhood. I will certainly revisit! read more

Sumo San - Crouching Tiger Roll - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Let me start by saying that the service here was great. The staff were very friendly, and the location had a lot of charm. I am also not an expert on sushi. This was probably the worst sushi I've ever had. It wasn't that the fish was bad. It just had no flavor. Neither did the miso soup or the rolls for the most part. I think the eel sauce was the most distinctive taste we got. We spent $100 on a meal that neither of us enjoyed or finished. So I cannot in good conscience recommend this for anyone. Please, Sumo San, invest in some better fish. read more

Love this place. Best sushi in town! Great vegan and drink options. Deep friend avocado is life.

Good selection of Japanese beer. Delicious fried rice with chicken! Try the 'Hot Jujuyaki!' read more

super nice employees. food was not great. London roll was fishy. spider roll had a weird flavor, rainbow roll and crunchy shrimp were okay but not great. i won't be returning. read more

Very good sushi not a fancy restaurant as usually japanese are but the food is very good the service is good and the owner is always there the prices are the best we go there for lunch at least twice a week from our office and the lunch special are under 10 dollars read more

Sumo San has such tasty and filling sushi. Y'all ever eat sushi and then are hungry like an hour later and it just doesn't make sense??? Not when you're eating Sumo San. The owner is the nicest guy, gave me a rose when I picked up my food. Had an awesome selection of beer and wines at the front of the store at a tempting price. The pot stickers are so good and come with this white sauce that I just want to dip my whole face in. Get your next sushi takeout from this gem of a palace. read more

Sumo San - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Delicious food, I highly recommend potstickers, garlic fried rice. The sushi was also very well put together and combined nicely. All of the sushi tasted fresh. The service is very welcoming. read more

Great food at a great price! Very friendly owner and lots of specials going on right now, highly recommend and make sure to check their Facebook page for daily specials read more

First time coming to Sumo San last night for dinner to enjoy the sushi happy hour!! It was great, awesome prices and a pretty good variety in selecting which rolls you would like under the happy hour specials. I ordered with my stomach... And got sweet potato tempura roll, avocado roll (which ended up being my favorite), spicy tuna and spicy salmon as well as a shrimp two-piece roll. Obviously had a ton of leftovers, but I am not complaining about that! I wish I could come back every week for happy hour!! They also have a great selection of beers, as well as Crispin cider (which is delicious) it is a cool atmosphere and I will be recommending to friends/family! read more

For sushi lovers, this is the place to go! We went during their happy hour on Thur and it was a good way to save money, cuz let's face it, you dont usually just order 1 or 2 rolls. Their happy hour roll menu was also fairly expansive. Dont forget to check out their app menu...we had the avocado tempura and it was divine we also split an order of their garlic fried rice, which was delicious and will keep vampires away for at least several days. The ambience was cozy, staff were friendly and super attentive, their menu expansive and a good combo of familiar rolls with some unique ones. They also have a corresponding happy hour for drinks ($2.50 Kirin can ain't a bad deal) though I understand that to be Mon-Thur where sushi is just Wed and Thur from 5-7. Not sure what happened to those folks who gave this place bad reviews, but too bad I cant give Sumo San a rating of 6 stars PS: pro tip for anyone not familiar with this neighborhood...parking can be tricky since it is mostly parallel parking, odd hours/arrangements of street parking sign restrictions and less than mindful drivers. Not a deterrent, just be super attentive to the signs to avoid a ticket/getting towed. Or save the gas & check out the GRTC bus system, it has improved a lot recently. read more

Ordered takeout and had the rocking sumo, caterpillar and hot night rolls along with sunomono salad. All fish was fresh and presentation was so beautiful! The sunomono (cucumber) salad was a nice crunchy side. Looking forward to trying their hot food read more

Been coming here for years. Service used to be awkward and hit or miss. Servers and the chef behind the counter used to barely speak or look you in the eye so I ordered 'to-go for awhile... Lately; over the last year service has improved. They seem to want your business more. I think this happened before the sushi restaurant across the street opened but I can't remember. Annnnywayyyys...the sushi is banging. Whenever I order party platters I let the owner recommend something to me and the platters are always a hit! I hardly ever get any at the party so I order my own private roll to eat with the hubster after everyone leaves. The Richmond roll, all the way and whatever chef recommends read more

Sumo San is one sushi option on this side of town. It's nothing special and I'm surprised that it has as high of a rating as it does. The service was slow even though the place was empty and all I ordered was sashimi. How long does it take to prepare sashimi? I'm not sure, but I waited almost 30 minutes. I saw my waitress only a few times the whole night and wasn't impressed overall. Good thing I brought my phone to play games while I waited. When my food came, some of it was good, some of it was okay, and one part was plain bad. It was part of the sashimi sampler, drenched in a soy sauce soup with a gross texture and no flavor. I asked the waitress what it was, but she had no idea. Next time, I'm driving to Akida. read more

With my job, I have vendors coming in from all over the world to test in my facility. As a born, raised, and educated (VCU GoRamsGo) Richmonder (well, I grew up in Varina) I feel obligated to recommend local places to eat and drink. My normal recommendations are typically Rappahannock or Mama J's, but this week I had a vendor from Vegas in and they brought along an engineer from Japan. The Vegas guys have seen it all and tasted it all...so I had to think outside of the box. When a casual conversation of theirs centered around Saki-Bombs, I knew the place to take them to. We went to SumoSan on a Thursday evening, and at first the guys were suspicous of the place. It was early, not a lot of people in the place, and Shockoe Bottom was pretty dead. We walked in, and I encouraged them 'Trust Me', (a la Sushi Nozawa) and proceeded to order. We ordered a little of everything...octopus, salmon, tuna, spider rolll, crouching tiger roll, and other random sashimi pieces. The food quickly came, and we proceeded to eat. I have been to SumoSan many times before, along with Sushi places across the country but this was the best sushi I've had in years. It was extremely fresh and flavorful. Even the engineer from Tokyo said it was the best he has had in the States. Then the fun part came. I ordered 4 sake bombs, and when the waitress came to wisk us away to the 'station' the rest of my party was highly confused. When she put on the bike helmet they were even more confused. She banged her head on the table which drops the sake into the beer and we took the shot. The entire party loved it. The engineer from Japan then recorded another shot we did and was amazed. Even the next day he was still talking about how much he loved it. Overall all, Sumo San is a Richmond gem. Service was great, and the sushi was outstanding. read more

I love this place. I went here for a date that I was stood up on and the negative associations from that didn't even turn me off of coming here. Lots of creative rolls, the fish always tastes reasonably fresh and the service is great. There's a waitress here who has a beautiful smoky voice and I'm positively in love with her. The lunch specials are really cheap and my mom tells me that the chicken teriyaki was great, not too sweet or jelly-like as it frequently is here in the US. The only problem with Sumo San is the great number of rolls with cream cheese in them. Why would you ruin a perfectly good sushi roll with cream cheese? There's one that sounds pretty passable, it's something tempura roll. I always forget that I don't like it. When they say tempura they mean that the whole roll is dipped in tempura and fried. Hot sushi is kinda ick, but hot, battered, fried sushi with melted cream cheese is horrible. read more

Great little Asian spot on Main St. not too far from downtown. Friendly service, exceptional quality food, and more than reasonable prices. Not sure what the sushi scene in RVA is but I'd imagine this is a fairly good choice if you're in the area. read more

The atmosphere and staff are all wonderful, but the food (the most important thing) wasn't. The rice was too sticky for my liking and the portion vs. the price is unreasonable. read more

Sumo San - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Was better than expected. There's some good details with sushi presentation. Sat at the sushi bar and the sushi chef was attentive and overall our dinner was a good bargain for a sushi night on a Friday night read more

The place was pretty dead but it was a week night so it's understandable. Started off with the vegetable tempura. There was asparagus, onion, sweet potato, carrot and zucchini all deep fried to perfection. I then got some miso soup which was also great. I finally decided on three roles. Caterpillar, rainbow, and spicy tuna hand roll. The hand roll was my favorite and the Caterpillar roll was the bombdiggity. A little on the expensive side but totally worth it if you wanna venture to uncharted sushi territories. Sushi so fresh you can taste it. Sumo San, if you're reading, you can use that. read more

This was my first trip to Sumo San, after this trip I will definitely return! Reasons why: 1. Parking is crazy in Richmond but it was surprisingly easy to find street parking close by. If I spend more than a half hour looking for parking that's enough to discourage me from returning to a restaurant even if it's amazing. 2. Love the service! They're both friendly and attentive. They even explained the significance of the 1000 cranes arrangement above the bar. 3. There menu makes me want to go back :D Tried the Ahi Poki Tataki Salad, Yellow Tail, Rainbow Roll, and a different sushi roll hadn't tried before. read more

I went to Sumo San for sushi happy hour on a Wednesday. The restaurant wasn't very busy but they staff was filling a ton of takeout orders. Most of the sushi rolls are 3 dollars except for a couple. I order the California, spicy tuna, vegetable tempura, and sweet potato rolls. All of the rolls were good. The sushi rolls wasn't the best I ever had nor the worst. The sushi happy hour is good bang for your buck. Also, Sumo San has good happy hour drink specials as well. My waitress was very attentive. The employees were friendly. Sumo San is a decent spot for sushi happy hour. I'll be back if I'm having a sushi craving during sushi happy hour since I live in Downtown Richmond. Parking is hit or miss depending on the time and day. I give Sumo San a 3.5 rating. read more

Sumo San - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Such good sushi for a great price! Recommend sitting down and eating rather than takeout. The experience sitting down and eating is well worth it and very nice staff. I tried sea urchin for the first time and the sushi chef made sure it was up to par for me! Thank you guys! read more

Compared to other sushi places I have tried, hands down Sumo San has made it to the top of my list. They have a great happy hour special, that gave me the opportunity to try many different rolls. The best part about ordering 4-5 rolls is when you are hungry late at night, they make for a great snack. Their eel and spicy salmon were by far my favorite. read more

Sumo San - Happy hour rolls - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Meh. This place is totally over-rated. Hubby, kids and I ate dinner here back in February after making a big move from CA. Checked this place out after reading great reviews here on Yelp. I'm originally Los Angeles... so I know what good sushi is. Fish wasn't bad at all, but could have been fresher. Over-priced and really small portions. The ambiance was nice but our server was not friendly at all. Maybe I'm just spoiled since I'm used to having quality top-notch sushi joints to choose from in L.A. Either way, won't be going back here again. read more

-Miso soup: This.. was not miso soup. It was bland, had no miso flavor, and had unconventional toppings like fried onion. -Veggie tempura: Good for the most part, although a couple pieces were greasy and soggy. -Octopus: A bit chewier than I'm used to. -Spicy tuna hand roll: Yum, but spicier please! -Alaskan roll: Pretty bland, nothing memorable. -Caterpillar roll: This was by far the best thing from my meal. Prices are reasonable, but both the appetizers and sushi left a lot to be desired. read more

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Came here for a little date night with my boo. We were looking for a new place to try out & enjoy a good vegan meal. We ordered the fried avocado and tofu to start. The avocado was amazing- basically just like eating exactly what you think it is- breaded avies. Who doesn't like that?? But the tofu...it was basically boiled/raw tofu with breading. It wasn't the best but we nibbled on it. When it came to meals I ordered the teriyaki with tofu and booboo got the garlic noodles with tofu. I was really disappointed in my meal. The tofu again was soaked in teriyaki for maybe a whole second before being served. The teriyaki sauce was watery and thin with little flavor. HOWEVER the staff is FANTASTIC. They were so nice and so accommodating. Also they have $1.50 PBR which, to be honest, is why we'll be going back- that and it's walking distance from our apartment. read more

Sumo San - Fried tofu - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

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Attention sashimi gluttons, this is your place. Never, ever have I seen portions of sashimi this big. I'm used to three pieces in an order of sashimi. The first time I came, I ordered salmon sashimi. When it arrived in front of me, I said "Excuse me, I only wanted one order of sashimi." There were eight regular-sized pieces of sashimi. The server explained that this was indeed one order of sashimi. I didn't argue. Fairly ordinary other than the sashimi orders. Friendly service, a bit dingy, good music selection. I'll keep going back and ordering sashimi. Haven't tried any of the weird-ass Jedi mango-and-whipped-cream-and-Jello rolls, so don't ask about those. read more

My favorite sushi place in Richmond, best of all it's walking distance for me. I go here pretty often because they always have fresh fish. Happy hour Wednesday and Thursday 5-7pm for $3 a basic roll or $2 sashimi. Also drink specials 5-7pm all week long. I've only gotten sushi here though, had the lunch special once and it was tasty. Usually pretty quiet and empty but I have seen it almost full, so I've learned to come before 6:30pm. It's the same sushi chef all the time (and he's really good) unless it's busy then the owner shows up. Cool origami decoration, city themed booths, waitstaff is nice. Kind of a hip/trendy feel because of their music selection, which I love. Glittery tables. read more

Amazing restaurant. Great food, great service, great atmosphere. We had the Crouching Tiger (my favorite) and the Rocking Sumo. Both sushi rolls were excellent, and I'm definitely very picky when it comes to sushi. The Crouching Tiger is a shrimp tempura roll with just the perfect ratio of meat, rice, veggies, and spicy mayo. The Rocking Sumo was equally amazing, especially for the milder palette. As far as service goes, this overall experience was second to none. The owner came out and did sake bombs with us, the "traditional" way. He's great; definitely recommend asking him or the staff to demonstrate if you haven't seen a sake bomb done correctly. The servers and bartenders are very helpful and super knowledgeable of their menu. This is my first time in Richmond, and will definitely come back here next time I'm in town! read more

This was my first time at Sumo San. I, of course, came for their sushi happy happy hour! I love sushi and had no idea that such thing existed. The sushi happy hour is only on Wednesdays & Thursdays 5-7pm. I got the unagi roll and spicy salmon roll. I usually like cooked/fried rolls but the unagi was definitely my favorite! Wish they had some of their specialty rolls on the happy hour menu. Next time I do want to try the Alaska roll. read more

Sumo San - Sushi Happy Hour at Sumo San. My favorite was the Unagi Roll! - Japanese Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Richmond, VA Food was not bad here with what I ordered. chicken and Cali rolls. :-) good food for the long bus ride! read more

The best chicken teriyaki in my whole entire life. God bless sumo san. Also my wife's salmon belly was 10. Should be higher rated. Easy 4 1/2 star read more

The sushi here is great. I have never had bad food or lame service here. Victor- the head sushi chef- makes the experience so much fun. One time, he thought my friend and I were too quiet, so he flung a wad of wasabi on our table- which was across the restaurant from him. He could've taken an eye out! Or at least burnt one a bit. The drinks are strong and big. I always get some kind of "fancy drink" while I'm there. A few of those and your night will be great. Check out the table tops- so glittery. And there are Sumo decorations from World of Mirth all over the place. Have to love that... read more

I went here for the first time the other day (Jan 20, 2017). It was a wonderful place with a great atmosphere. We sat at the bar....And ordered California roll, spicy tuna roll, sea urchin (which was so fabulous and fresh). We had happy hour drinks which was a great deal. We also got the sushi roll combo which was absolutely delicious. The staff and the owner are also super friendly and very knowledgeable about their food and ingredients. High recommend this place for friends or even dates. read more

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