This is our first time in Austin and we were really looking for some delicious food - sushi junai certainly fit that bill got a delicious Japanese meal! The restaurant itself is tucked in a small little area with multiple businesses - they don't have that many tables, but most of their seating is around the sushi bar since they do have Omakase offerings. Although we did not have the time for a full omakase experience, we were able to taste the delicious sushi here. I recommend the salmon donburi with large cuts of salmon sashimi and ikura - slightly seasoned and just perfect bites. The yellowtail lover was also delicious, and although it is drenched in sauce it is not your typical eel sauce, but a perfect marinade bringing out the best of yellowtail. Negi toro roll was delicious too, although some bites could use a little bit more fish! Alas, I'm not too picky. We would definitely come back here for a meal soon! read more

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The ratings are correct. Excellent sushi and excellent staff. My waitress was well informed about their menu and made some tasty recommendations. read more

Food was really yummy especially the sushi! It was so fresh and had the perfect fish to rice ratio. Service was also amazing, I forgot to pack the sauce for my leftovers and the server came running out in the rain to make sure I had it. Thank you Sonny! Overall 10/10 experience with nice ambiance and music too. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Sushi Sampler - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

At first we thought this place only served omakase, but when we got there we saw that they have an ala carte option too which is great! We were lucky enough to make it in time for happy hour and they had some great deals for their sushi moriawase. We got 5 pieces of sushi for a super reasonable price. All the prices for their sushi were super reasonable and not to mention the sushi was super fresh and tasty. We will definitely go back to try other dishes. The service was great and the sushi chef was super friendly and nice. It was a great place to chill after a long day of meetings and enjoy delicious Japanese food. We like the cool vibe of the sakura tree in the restaurant. The place was very clean and nice. Thanks for an awesome sushi dinner in downtown Austin! read more

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The food was fantastic and the service was super friendly. It's very small with only a few tables so we sat at the bar and it was perfect. Everyone- including the chefs - were friendly. Great place- will definitely be back! read more

Great food, high quality! The variety of fish on the omakase was also very good. The ambience though was a bit loud and it is not a tradicional omakase where the chef prepares and serves one by one. It's more like an a la carte service. read more

We chose this place on a whim and so glad we found it. Sonny was our server and he was great. His suggestions were top notch. We had the salmon bite he suggested and 3 rolls to share. The White House, Starbucks, and I love tuna. They were all fantastic. Highly recommend this place read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Sushi rolls - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

Sushi Junai Omakase is a hidden gem that I absolutely love. Located on Congress Avenue and directly above the famous Jazz bar, Elephant room, it is shocking how I I am always able to find a table quickly at this place. As far as sushi goes this place is top notch and wont break the wallet! It is also open late, midnight on most days which is a huge plus. This inside is very intimate and feels as though you are being transported into a Japanese zen garden with cherry blossom trees inside the restaurant. Food wise, sushi always tastes incredibly fresh and high quality. The rolls are also a good size so you could be more than satisfied after a few of them which is great. I ordered the Starbucks roll which is one of my absolute favorites specialty rolls. It is colorful and bursting with flavor and wonderful texture combinations with nothing overpowering anything else. I also almost always order 2 classic rolls as they are simple, delicious and very cost effective. I ordered the unagi or eel roll as well as the spicy tuna. From my experience the classic rolls are superb and really quench my sushi craving. On my last visit, the server recommended we try this particular salmon nigiri as it is something they are known for. I typically go more for rolls as I have a big appetite and want to be satisfied but I must say this recommendation was one of the most exquisite bites I have ever had. Salmon has never tasted so decadent and it absolutely melted in my mouth. Safe to say I will be ordering every time now. Edamame here is also very good and always a great way to kick off a meal. Staff is fantastic at Junai Omakase as they are always helpful, kind and attentive. I have sat at the bar several times and interacted with chefs and they are also great, even giving us small fried crabs to try once. Overall, I have been to Junai Omakase many times and will continue to go. It is one of my favorite spots in Austin hands down. Amazing quality sushi, great price, open late, cool vibe inside and great staff. What more can you ask for!? read more

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My hubby and I had dinner tonight at this restaurant. The food was great, the chef was very nice but our server seemed very inexperienced and didn't really answer our questions with confidence. The host was nice and welcoming. However it appeared he took his break at the bar and was talking to chef about someone that pissed him off. Not a very professional manner to carry himself at a prestigious restaurant. Back to out server; She said, I'm not sure" a lot. She never took a plate away to clear some bar space while we ate. We believed she went to break because she was nowhere to be found, so Lauren was nice enough to check us out at 10:05pm. Anyway, my husband still tipped her 15% and also tipped the chef $10. We will be back with the hopes of a better experience. Date 7/22/33 10:05pm. Table S13. Customer Copy #40050. read more

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The fish was fresh and great choice of sushi options. Liked the variety on the menu too.

I ordered udon ( only $12 dollar ). Pretty good price Also ordered some sashimi. Food is very clean & fresh & delicious . Thank you a lot read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Delicious sushi - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

If I asked you in theory where is the sushi better Texas or Florida? You would think Florida especially the coastal towns with access to fresh fish daily: Wrong !! The best sushi I have ever had to date was a place in Dallas and this place. A simple salmon roll to spicy tuna roll are elevated to sheer art here. We also had a spider roll and, California roll and a Stonehenge roll ( shrimp tempura based roll) all were bursting with flavor. There are only few tables so you are bound to sit at the sushi bar. In this place it's very comfortable and roomy with a good view of the sushi and regular chefs. There is tasting menu that couple near us got that I will try on my next visit. Really worth a visit when in austin. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - The tasting menu - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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One of the best sushi places I've ever eaten at... the quality is world class, the sushi guys are just awesome...I tried the seared a5 wagyu, it just melted in your mouth, the toro trio ( tuna from the coast of Spain) again was just special, the care and artistry they take is a thing of beauty. Since I love sushi I had them prepare some tako, the slightest touches they add made it yummy Comparable in every way to any high end place, except the cost IMHO read more

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Great Sushi and fats service. The Stonehenge roll was amazing!! Would recommend this place to anyone looking for killer sushi.

Omakase roughly translates into "You decide what is best". It's my favorite way to eat at a Sushi restaurant because you throw caution to the wind and let the experts take care of you. The chefs at Sushi Junai pull this off with adept execution and a creative mixture of flavors that will leave you giddy with anticipation as you patiently wait for the next surprise. The $150 price tag is worth every dime. The portions were just right. The variety and quality was on point with high end Sushi places. More importantly, the flavors in each bite sized dish were simply delicious. The 5 stars are well deserved. Service was prompt and friendly. read more

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I was very disappointed with my visit here at Sushi Junai since I was so excited to go after reading all of the good reviews. Since it was a last minute decision to dine at this restaurant, we decided to come in for their happy hour and a la carte menu rather than the omakase. Their happy hour ends at 6:30pm, and we arrived maybe around 6:10pm hoping to squeeze in our order. The night started off strong when we saw how affordable their happy hour nigiris were and were pleased with the selection of items on the menu. The first bump in the road was when someone at my table wanted to confirm if they also served chopped scallop to which our waitress replied "I've never heard of that before, so I'm going to say no." which was a bit off-putting of her to say, but we just kind of brushed over it. Another friend made his order of items off the happy hour menu but wasn't sure if he wanted more items that were not happy hour. The waitress then said she would move on and then come back to him to give him time to look. After she took the last person's order, she left and didn't come back until we were able to call for her as she passed by our table. My friend then asked if he could finish up his order, but if she was busy then she could come back when she was ready. She said it was okay and proceeded to take his order. At this point in time, it was 6:33pm and another friend asked just in case if this would still be considered happy hour pricing. She told us that it was technically past the time but to go ahead. We added a bit more to the order and midway through she mumbles "You guys are really giving me a hard time now." It was our bad for trying to order a bit more after happy hour but if it was going to upset her that much, she could have just told us from the beginning that we could not order from the happy hour menu anymore. But she also failed to finish up the orders in the first place when she said she would come back around. When our nigiris came, all of our orders were combined onto some long plates which made it difficult to differentiate exactly who ordered what. I wouldn't say this is a big enough problem to dock rating but just a little something to note. Lastly, by the time we finished eating all of the food that came out on the table, we realized that there were still some nigiris missing (specifically 4 pieces of engawa, 1 ikura, and 1 unagi). Our waitress came and asked if we were ready to finish up yet. Also to note, our waitress did not come by to check up on anything since we finished taking our order. We notified her of the missing food, and she said she was going to check up on it. She takes maybe about 2 steps away from our table and comes back to say that actually, the engawa we were missing was actually the same thing as hirame which came out earlier with the first couple of plates. This was confusing since on their a la carte menu, hirame was $5 and engawa was $6. We each specifically ordered a certain number of hirame and a different number of engawa. If they were considered the same thing for them, why were we not warned of this ahead of time while we were ordering. She basically just said that it is what it is but will go check on the ikura and unagi. After that interaction with her, she never came back and was replaced by another server. I have no complaints for the server that came in because he tried his best to help us resolve the misunderstandings and get us the remaining missing pieces. Overall in terms of food, it was great, and I really wished we had better service to begin with or else my review would have been the complete opposite. This was such a disrespectful dining experience. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Sushi & Sashimi Menu - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

Delicious sushi! For lunch I had 6 different pieces of nigiri and all were perfectly balanced bites. The portions were great and filling. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Toro Trio Sushi - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

Ambience - we came as a group of 4 so we were seated at a table to the side. I think the experience might've been more interesting if we were at the sushi bar being able to view the sushi chefs and their creations. The space was a bit larger than expected but it was also pretty loud overall, I expected it to be more quiet and intimate. Still, it made the experience more loose, and we didn't feel like we had to keep our voices down or anything. Omakase - 3.5/5 - We didn't really know what to expect from the omakase, I'm used to a more traditional omakase with mostly classic nigiri options. There was a nigiri board, but before it came a bunch of appetizers. For the most part, I enjoyed the appetizers, and felt like they were quite filling. The combinations and flavors were more interesting and experimental than usual, so that could be hit or miss for some folks. My main gripe was some of them had too much going on and a few seemed a little oversalted or overlflavored. The palette cleansing soups in between some of them were really nice though. Yokoi boat - 5/5 - We got a sushi boat as well between the 4 of us, and to be honest, the value of this boat was better than the omakase. It was a little cheaper than the omakase and had a lot of fresh sashimi and nigiri of different varieties (with two rolls of your choice)! Since I prefer traditional sushi over the fusion stuff, this represented a better value in hindsight. Service - the waitstaff was very friendly and attentive, they seemed to have more of a casual vibe and I think we appreciated that actually. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience, but I feel like I'd prefer other omakase spots in town when it comes to the sushi style itself. read more

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Omakase course r quite satisfying. Love the Scallop with caviar and the unagi nigiri best. Everything is quite tasting. No reservation is needed except for the center bar seats. read more

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I'm a bit of a sushi snob and this is one of the best, if not the best, places I've ever been too. Fresh seafood shipped in 5 days a week, expertly prepared by the chefs right in front of you, and top notch service. I took my friend there this go around and he agreed...best he's been too. When a place has all the cuts of a fish listed on a menu and you are seeing a freshly unpackaged tuna quarter being divided then you know this restaurant means business. I will come back here every time I'm in Austin. read more

The food was really great and staff were nice, but the ambiance & environment was really bad. We got the omakase, and they served items that are very different than every other omakase in Austin. That was great. But just about everything about the environment made it feel like nobody cared. Specifically: - the floors were sticky - bathroom was dirty - and worst of all, we sat at the counter and promptly at 9:25pm with at least 20 minutes to go in our meal, they started cleaning sushi prep area right in front of us, including mopping the floor, taking out trash, etc. We had to eat our final omakase servings while smelling purple Fabuloso cleaner, which is gross. read more

I came here around 11:10pm (I was jetlagged) when they close at 12am. It was walking distance from my hotel. My boyfriend and I were sat at the bar. The sushi was really good and perfect portions for 2 people. I also had seaweed salad that was good and more than enough for 2 people. I loved being able to watch the sushi be made in front of me. The sushi chefs were very nice. I'm glad I didn't feel rushed even though I came in close to closing time. The vibe was good to people watch. The only downside to this place is their waitress (white girl) she was horrible. She was literally talking about doing cocaine with other customers and getting their number. It was really weird. Luckily the hostess (girl with curly brown hair) noticed and helped us out with paying. Other than the waitress it was a great experience I would return when I visit Austin again. read more

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I have to give 5 stars for the service and delicious -simple (done well classics) food. Sushi Junai is located in the same building as the elephant room. I came here yesterday after the 9pm show. The waitress kindly accommodated my party even thought they were about to close. Food came out quickly and tasted great. I'm always looking for new sushi places to try out in Austin and this one is pretty good (and affordable) the menu was vast! I can't wait to come back again and have a full meal! read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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Amazing Omakase and the best service I've had at the sushi bar. Shawn was incredible and the staff has been amazing!!

My favorite sushi in Austin! The variety of sushi available during Happy Hour is amazing and well worth the price!

One goal in life is to be successful enough that I can go to a sushi place like this and splurge on the $150 Omakase 11 course sushi experience, but alas, I am not at that stage in life. My life coach Charles P. Thompson said if I pay $500 for a seminar, I can reach that point in life, but I'm starting not to trust him. Anyway, I digress. Despite getting reimbursed to pick up takeout here, I chickened out and went with a few standard sushi rolls. But, still delicious! I was thrilled that this restaurant was within walking distance from my hotel, so I placed an order over the phone and walked over to pick it up. The area is lively and fun to walk around in. I got a spicy tuna, spicy salmon, and philly roll and brought it back to the hotel to eat. It was packaged very neatly and I thoroughly enjoyed it! read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Spicy tuna, spicy salmon, philly rolls - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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Food was amazing. Service was also amazing. We got to try a variety of different foods which were unique and interesting as well as delicious. The food presentation was beautiful as well. Ambiance was very soothing! Will be back read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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The best sushi restaurant in Austin. Reasonable prices for delicious quality food. A bit tucked away on Congress but it's a great vibe. Music isn't too loud, lights aren't too bright, food is cleared quick, and servers don't hover. read more

Best sushi I've had in Austin, the salmon sashimi may have changed my life! Looking forward to coming back just to have that salmon again

The happy hour is totally worth it! Definitely get the chef selection of sushi. The seaweed is delicious too with a variety of fishes in it. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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I had been a longtime fan of Sushi Junai since first going to their Lamar location maybe 7 years ago. For years I'd go at least once a week, usually convincing a friend to come along, but even going alone and getting my fix in by myself if necessary. Great memories of it, and it was really my go-to way of treating myself. Recently moved back to Austin, and am thankful to have discovered Sushi Junai Omakase. I went for my birthday dinner, and it was really the most top-notch sushi meal I've had. Period. My partner and I each got their 18 course Omakase, and the entire experience was phenomenal. Getting to see the masterful sushi chefs up close, and having the honor of tasting their works of art. All of the courses had depth, pops of flavor, interesting eating methods...everything I'd hope for. They also went above and beyond to accommodate my multiple food allergies (gluten, dairy & eggs), which is not an easy feat. I also went with my partner who is insanely seafood adverse, literally won't even touch shrimp....and tonight he ate uni, oysters, octopus, multiple types of roe and nigiri....None of which would have been possible if it weren't for the quality of fish presented. He not only tried so many new types of seafood, but finished every plate. Great experience for everyone. read more

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The service was super nice and always paid attention to us. Food was great, not expensive and good quality. The water had a little weird taste though. Restaurant was very clean. Overall great restaurant and would definitely come back. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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Great service. Incredible menu and the food was amazing and on spot. Servers knew the menu and suggestions. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

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Amazing! Highly recommend the omakase experience. Get seats at the bar to watch the talented team in action. 9 courses- each one beautiful and delicious. Fresh oyster & uni, roasted brussels sprouts, chawanmushi, sashimi, abalone, flavorful broth palette cleanser, 8 slices of nigiri, and white chocolate-ginger creme brulee. Every single bite was delicious. It's a lot of food, but thoughtful portions and pacing. Worth the splurge at least once. read more

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I ordered tempura shrimp ramen and sashimi sampler. The ramen soup is too sweet. The sashimi is ok with very pretty pretty presentation. But the freshness is just okay. read more

Yelp didn't fail me! This place is the bomb. The sushi dinner and hot saki really hit the spot. Nice end to eclipse day. read more

Sushi Junai Omakase - Sushi Dinner - Japanese Near Me - Austin, Texas

Some of the best sushi we have ever eaten!!! Plus, it was happy hour so we had tons of food for only $60! Highly recommend this place for freshness, friendliness and an incredible experience read more

Simply the best sushi we've ever had. Fresh, flavorful. Great atmosphere. Sit at the sushi bar and enjoy. Wish they had one in Houston. read more

Are you tired of setting alarms and joining waitlists months in advance for booking an evening out? In the setting of Austin rising in the omakase scene filled with hype and social medial presence, Sushi Junai stands out to me for being the best kept secret (for now at least)! I've dined here 4 times over the last 2 years and found the courses, service, and ambiance to be solid and consistent. Also, easy peasy to secure a reservation 1-2 weeks in advance through Yelp! For $150, you'll be treated to 15 courses consisting of (generous) bite sized luxuries like wagyu dumpling, fresh steamed abalone, uni topped oyster, amazing cuts of fish for nigiri. They switch up the menu from time to time to depending on the season. I find the pacing of food and menu development of hot/chilled dishes to be very thoughtful! You'll spend around 1.5-2 hours here for the full experience Most importantly, you leave feeling full- which should be your basic right with paying the price tag Executive Chef Alex Kim and his team take care of us every time! Thank you for all you do! read more

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Fun and adventurous. Love the omakase experience. The chef and servers were very attentive.