Sushi Kara is one of those spots that really doesn't get the credit it deserves. It has a very homey, comfortable atmosphere, the staff is always friendly, and the sushi chefs are genuinely entertaining guys who make sitting at the bar part of the experience. I've been here for lunch, dinner, and even the occasional "sushi, beer, and whatever game is on TV" afternoon, and it's consistently a good time. It's casual enough to stop in whenever you feel like it, but the food and service keep me coming back. The prices are also very reasonable for the quality. If you want good sushi without breaking the bank, friendly service, and a laid-back neighborhood atmosphere, Sushi Kara is an easy recommendation. read more

Sushi Kara - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

I hardly ever give out five stars because I believe there's always room for improvement. I cannot in good faith give this place 4 stars as 4 stars does not do It justice. Realistically it's a 4.8 for me which is saying a lot. Let's begin with the service; the service is great, no complaints. The ambience is nice, the World Cup was playing so win win. Food: Edamame: warm and seasoned well California roll: made to perfection Spicy tuna crispy rice: WOW the cilantro and raw jalapenos is chefs kiss- this is a must Yellowtail roll: elite, every bite felt like a breath of fresh air, I was genuinely impressed Soy paper salmon: a unique roll that taste like a proper Oceanside appetizer I am genuinely impressed. As an LA girly, this place blew every sushi place out the water for me back home. Can't wait to be back. read more

See all

First, the beer was not chilled at all, despite the fact that Japanese restaurants typically serve very cold beer ("hiyashi") in their culture. I ordered a spicy seafood udon, but it only contained two pieces of mussel, a few tough, dried calamari rings Finger size), a couple of tiny scallops about the size of baby fingernails, and three pieces of baby shrimp. The soup lacked any seafood flavor and had an overly salty, unappealing red color. The price seemed unreasonable compared to the quality of the food. It's no surprise that they only had two tables occupied on a Saturday afternoon at 1:30 PM. I recommend they consider changing the restaurant's name from "Sushi Kara" to "Kara Sushi." If they are truly Japanese, they would understand the significance of this. read more

It was so funny. My sister and I were standing in this plaza and I told her, we have been here before. She asked how? This is our first to San Juan Capistrano. It turned put we were in Dana Point and was looking for a sushi place and ended up here. It is worth another visit. We had the sushi special and the sashimi special, volcano roll and garlic edamame. Good service, good food, simple decor, not fancy but good. read more

See all

This was a nice surprise. Better than average sushi in the area. We enjoyed the ambiance and service was good. read more

Sushi Kara - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

We came here for lunch and were seated right away. They weren't too busy. The menu has a lot to offer and we all found something we wanted. My daughter had a salmon baked roll, taiyaki which was pretty good. My husband and I shared sashimi plate which was fresh and delicious. The restaurant is located in the Marshals shopping center. All in all we had a pleasant experience and we will come back again. read more

Wonderful fried tofu yaki udon this time. Loves the flavor and texture of noodles with veggies. Good service, nice upbeat music and plenty of seating available today. read more

See all

Decided to try this place again and this time it was sooo good. I came during their weekday lunch special Mon-Fri ~3.00 pm. I asked for some recommendations and ordered as followed--- The 10 piece sashimi combo ($32.50) , katsu curry ($16.50), and two orders of salmon sashimi ($9.00 x 2). The sashimi combo was chefs choice and comes with pretty standard sashimi options and was fresh tasting. The curry katsu was tender which was a good sign of fresh chicken because sometimes katsu can dry out. The manager told me the salmon was high quality and was cut that day so I ordered some extra and it was very soft and fatty tasting. As for the ambiance, it wasn't too crowded during lunch and was quiet + clean; so if you enjoy quieter places for lunch or do study it would be a good fit for you. read more

Sushi Kara - Chicken Katsu | Sushi or Sashimi Combo (10pieces) - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

Very fresh sushi. Great presentation on plates and also wonderful waitress. Every roll we ordered was wonderful . However for a Friday night they do close hella early so make sure you hi well before 8 and we hit there at 8 and by 8:15 pm they wanted to get last call. Felt rushed a little bit but now we know for future . They do have almost every roll with artificial crab so if you are health conscious also if you are sensitive to gluten make sure to ask them to remove it or replace if for a fee as otherwise almost every roll includes it . Clean place and quiet for a Friday night . We could be in peace and talk was very nice . read more

Stayed in Dana Point for our anniversary and saw this place after scouring Yelp. The reviews do not lie! This place was absolutely phenomenal, some of the best sushi I've ever had no doubt. The waitress was informative and helped us make tough decisions deciding between rolls because everything looked so good. Ended up getting sunshine roll, oh my garlic roll, blossom roll, and bamboo roll. 5/5 stars each roll hard to pick a favorite all were delicious. Enjoyed it so much we're going to go tomorrow for lunch lol Only negative was we came here at 8 at night, it closes at 9. As soon as we ordered at 810 a different waitress came to us literally right after we ordered and asked us if we wanted anything for last call bc the kitchen was closing..... at 810? When you're open til 9. Just slightly annoying especially in our situation because we did want another couple rolls after we finished our first four..... Other than that minor hiccup, everything else was top notch. Highly recommend. We're avid sushi eaters and this place did not disappoint read more

Sushi Kara - Aren't these the coolest cups ever? Came with our order of hot sake - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

Food, service, ambiance all top notch! Sushi slices are generous...the fish to rice ratio is proper! The chicken teriyaki excellent and again generously portioned! Great value. Great food. Lovely service. What's not to like !? read more

Sushi Kara has turned out to be a step above Oeeshi, which had been here for the 20 years before it. The décor was updated and improved. It is lovely and welcome. The rolls that are offered and the sushi selections are better. They have several snow crab selections and several no rice rolls. These are really, really good. We have been very impressed with the quality of the sushi. The prices are higher, but I expected that for a new sushi place and for the level of quality they offer. We are getting to know them and so far, so good. We are happy they are here in SJC. read more

See all

Came here for dinner on Friday. 5:45 was the perfect time because we beat the dinner rush. This place can get busy but that's how you know it's good! The service is also great. The staff is very attentive even when it's busy. The sushi was delicious. You can't go wrong with whichever you use. I especially enjoyed the popcorn lobster roll. They also offer no rice rolls so there's plenty of options depending on what you like! They also give you a generous amount of ginger which I prefer. read more

Sushi Kara - Baked Salmon Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

Excellent sushi! The dishes are so beautifully and elegantly presented. The miso soup is so tasty and yummy. I went with my siblings and we each ordered different rolls and we collectively agreed that it is the best sushi we'd all ever had. We do plan on returning. Their prices are also average and on point. Excellent service too. read more

Quality of the fish, fish wasn't that cold it was kind of warm. Never had that problem before , I use to go there before new owners took over read more

Ordered via Uber Eats. The salmon sushi was low quality and half our order was missing. The receipt with what we ordered was cut off. So hard to try new sushi places because most of them aren't good. Was not worth the price. Spicy tuna had roll was gross and the salmon was the lowest quality. read more

Sushi Kara - Receipt cut off, price cut off for some reason - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

First time trying new place and they blew it out of the matter. Lucas was our sushi chef and he gave great recommendations and even ended us with an Off menu item. HALIBUT FIN!! If you're looking for a new sushi spot check this place out! We will be back! read more

Sushi Kara - Halibut - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

I ordered the $21 cucumber roll via DoorDash today and basically got an imitation crab roll w very very little actual fish inside... read more

Sushi Kara - Actually what I received... - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

This place is the real deal. Their fish is SO fresh! My boyfriend and I discovered this hole in the wall a few months ago and can't ever look back. Every roll we get is incredible. Flavor is on point, sauce is on point, fish is SO good. I recommend Sushi Kara to all of my friends, even those who don't live in San Juan. I cannot say enough good things. If you are craving sushi, PLEASE do yourself a favor and come to Sushi Kara!!!! read more

We have been on the hunt for a "go to" sushi place near us. We initially tried popping into another spot nearby but they took themselves too seriously and weren't allowing for walk-ins on a Friday night, so we went here instead. We were welcomed with open arms despite them being busy and only had a marginal ten minute wait. Our favorite dish of the night was the 12pc chef's choice sashimi platter. It came with blue fin, yellowtail, Scottish salmon, albacore, ono and seabass. We enjoyed it all but what stood out was the scottish salmon, a fish I've never seen on the menu before. It was super fatty melt in your mouth, almost like toro! Our second favorite dish was the spicy tuna crispy rice - one of the most noteworthy ones we've had with fresh jalapeno slices on top and cilantro! They have a plethora of sushi rolls and for a visualist like me I appreciated the small picture associated with each roll leaving out the guestwork. The only reason I did not rate this place five stars is due to ambiance. Though no doubt cozy, their sushi bar is sterile (we love sitting at the bar) and you're blocked off from seeing the sushi guy work his magic behind the scenes. read more

See all

We are frequent visitors to this plaza for the tea shop next door and just noticed there was a sushi place. We had picked up a menu to browse their options a few days before and decided to stop into lunch to check this place out. We found the lunch special most appealing, but it is only available on weekdays, Monday - Friday. There's good value in the meal sets if you happen to be in the area on those days. For our lunch, we decided to venture into their rolls. I love salmon anything and husband has been on an unagi kick, so that definitely informed our selections. Here's what we got: - Surprise Roll (spicy) under Special Roll ($15.00): Filled with spicy tuna, cucumber and steamed shrimp with salmon and avocado on the outside. Seasoned with a mustard soy sauce. - Dragon Roll under Special Roll ($18.00): Deep fried shrimp, spicy tuna and avocado inside, freshwater eel, avocado, eel sauce, and sesame seed on top. - For simplicity or the basic bee in me, a salmon cut roll with avocado ($6.50). The salmon wasn't as buttery smooth as I had anticipated and had a slight aftertaste that I was thrown off guard. I made a mental note to self that maybe I don't order salmon tings here or only get the saucy ones. Both special rolls were quite tasty and see us re-ordering these as staples. I'm curious to venture into the no rice rolls and their entrees. Until next time. read more

Sushi Kara - Front to Back: Surprise Roll / Dragon Roll / Salmon Roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

Fish has been mostly good quality both times I've ordered delivery. Girlfriend said that one of her items was off, but I thought it was good enough. -1 star for deceptive delivery item photos. Two of the rolls I've received were roughly half the size of those pictured. read more

Sushi Kara - Extremely small rolls. Tasty though! - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

Went for a hike and wanted my usual sushi afterwards. Found this spot on Yelp. Called in an order for lunch, wait time was 20 minutes. My order was ready when I arrived. Free plaza parking in same complex as Marshalls. Ordered a simple sushi lunch set, was only $13.50! Came with miso soup. When I first walked in, the smell of fish hit me, but the place seemed clean. Staff were nice. My sushi was delicious, would definitely come back when in the area. read more

Sushi Kara - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

Incredible find - Incredible Service - Incredible Sushi - Incredible Value Freeway close near Marshalls between I-5 and Camino Capistrano in SJC. BAKED GREEN MUSSELS & Baked Garlic Roll and life is wonderful thanks to SUSHI KARA!! read more

See all

Average sushi for fair prices, nothing extravagant but go value for the price and not too heavy on the sauces

Nice place. Fairly modern decor. Friendly and attentive service. I got there at around 4:30pm and I was the only customer. I got blue fin tuna, yellowtail, salmon belly, ono, and eel sushi. All were excellent. Especially the ono. I really like the chili on top. I also got the grilled yellowtail collar and it was very good and a generous portion. Will return for sure. read more

See all

Bless the yelp Gods for recommending Sushi Kara to me. I was blown away by their food. Obviously expectations for sushi in California are high and they knocked it out of the park. Started with the albacore sashimi. The cuts were THICK which was a nice surprise and the quality was outstanding. I could've ordered 10 of these. All the rolls were incredible. I particularly liked the oh my garlic roll, it was good enough to keep eating it even while I was stuffed. Highlight of my meal was the uni. I think my eyes rolled back when I had my first bite. It was melt in your mouth buttery. I would book a flight back to California JUST to eat this again. Overall, the food was just incredible and now I'm hungry thinking about it. Andddd debating booking a flight back to California asap. read more

See all

My wife and I decided to try Sushi Kara for lunch and we're glad we did! We both ordered the 8 piece sushi combo for lunch. The sushi was first rate --- melt in your mouth fresh. And beautifully presented too. The miso soup that was served with the meal was also very good. The service was excellent: friendly, helpful, attentive. The decor is simple, nothing special. But the ambiance is that of a friendly, neighborhood sushi restaurant that serves great sushi --- the best that I've had in San Juan Capistrano. The price was very reasonable for top flight sushi. This is a place I'll visit again. read more

Sushi Kara - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

See all

I came here for lunch and ordered the 8-pc Sushi Combo. Each sushi item was served fresh and succulent! Service was nice and friendly. The restaurant is perfect for a very casual meal. Will definitely come back for their lunch specials again! read more

See all

Good quality sushi fish, the sushi rice is delicate, pleasant staff, quiet late lunch hours; overall a satisfying experience. read more

See all

Fabulous! This place is the best in Orange County. We have eaten at number of sushi restaurants and this one exceeded our expectations. We came in at 3pm on a weekend and the service was so quick. The server recommended the oh my garlic roll and it was great (if you like garlic). The crispy rice was fantastic and the large salad was phenomenal. I absolutely loved the dressing and avocado. Since taking over this location, they have renovated the inside of the restaurant, making it look much newer and enlightening the menu. They are closed on Mondays! I want to come here to try the lunch special next because the lunch specials on the menu look fantastic for a decent price. I look forward to coming back here soon! read more

See all

We had lunch there. Food was okay. But they said their credit card machine was slow and wanted to get paid cash. I ended up paid over $100 cash. Not everyone carry so much cash nowadays and I need to go to the ATM to get more cash after it. On top of it, it's a business expense and it'd so much easier to pay by my business credit card. I felt they just want to get paid by cash and made up the excuses, read more

Overall great experience. Ambiance: I went in and was the only guest. Personally I loved it. Sat at the sushi bar and got to truly unwind. Quite a few people came in for take out orders and I'm sure they get busy, must of just made it before the dinner crowd Food: sushi quality was decent. Asked the chef for a recommendation and he suggested uni, it was good, however if you're gonna recommend something you might want to disclose it being $23, don't mind paying for good quality a heads up would've been nice Service: they let my plates stack up, even though as stated I was the only one In the building, when the shift change occurred the brew server was prompt on clearing my plates and checking in Sushi Chef: was nice and accommodating, even treated me to an extra bite on the house. However finishing with imitation crab after eating uni just didn't leave a great taste in my mouth. I'd return... overall 3.5 stars, could use improvement but definitely worth trying :) read more

I randomly tried this place for the first time a few days ago and was pleasantly surprised. It was clean, the service was fast and friendly, the sushi chefs were very nice and the fish was fresh. The fish to rice ratio was good also. I definitely want to go back and try some more items. read more

Delicious food, inconsistent business hours! Walked in 45 minutes before closing to order takeout and I was refused bc they had already closed their kitchen. Pulled up today to find they're closed for business due to the Super Bowl. Terrible. read more

What a sleeper pick. This place is so good - whatever that spicy tuna roll on the specialty roll list was called was one of the best rolls I've ever had. Yum. They seem to make their own spicy Mayo which seems trivial but Jesus it made everything so bomb. 10/10 going back tomorrow for breakfast (they're closed but I'm still going ) read more

Sushi Kara - Spicy boy - Sushi Bars Near Me - San Juan Capistrano, California

Not pictured - fatty yellowtail Everything I had was absolutely amazing. Extremely fresh. The Amaebi is some of the best I've had. So buttery and delicious. Real wasabi which is always important. I did not get a roll with crab but I asked and they do have real crab, also very important. Great service. Great prices. I will definitely be back. read more

See all

I love this place literally never had a bad experience or meal here. The staff is all friendly and awesome. Even Jason came back from Florida!!! Everyone needs to know about this place and I will tell everyone I know! Love it. All my plates were empty again so I won't post more pictures. lol read more

5 stars! My sushi roll was amazing and so was the service. The servers were so kind and accommodating to my gluten intolerance. Very knowledgeable and a very impressive selection of sushi rolls! Over 40! I recommend this place to anyone who loves sushi. You'll certainly love this place! read more

This restaurant is AMAZING!!! Fresh fish! Delicious food! Great environment and friendly service. I wish I had discovered it sooner. One of today's specials is bluefin from Spain! YUM! Highly recommended! read more