I decided to give this place a try recently and will not be going again. My wife ordered Chicken teriyaki and honestly I have no idea what they gave us as there was no resemblance of any chicken I had ever seen. It was as if they took all the fat and soaked it in teriyaki. We just threw it out. I ordered the $45.00 omakasi which was supposed to be 1 roll and sashimi. I asked for sushi instead. For that price i received 1 roll and 5 pieces of Sushi. I would have been much better off ordering my own items. read more

If you're looking for an authentic sushi spot, this is the place to go.. delicious and very friendly staff, most of them.. Might be a bit of a wait on weekends and rush times.. I usually get the Shunka roll, king salmon sushi, and rainbow roll.. hard to go wrong with anything on the menu really.. I would recommend the bar for sure, better experience.. read more

We went on New Year's Eve around 6 p.m. and it was an hour wait. Worth! GF and I had the 8 piece omakase + handroll that was 45/pp. It lived up to the hype. Each fish was fresh and flavorful in its own way. Each piece was creatively crafted and no two pieces tasted the same. Truly a worthwhile experience. We added a few extra pieces of sushi (salmon belly, yellowtail belly, chutoro) and there no were no complaints. We also added soft shell crab appetizer and monk fish liver, both complimented the meal very well. 100% will come back! read more

I tried the Shunka Omakase (8 piece sushi + 1 handroll). I was excited from Yelp pictures that their fish have garnishes or are maraniaded. (Cons) But it didn't really taste that impressive (not like Sushi of Gari in NY, but it's also a different price point). Perhaps it was because the size of the fish was on the small side. (Pros) My 4 star is based on the freshness of the fish and the excellent service (friendly and responsive). (Neutral) Cost and value is subjective. Still getting used to inflation. But I felt it was reasonable. The ambiance was ok. Small restaurant, clean and well lit. read more

I love sushi and have been to all of the popular sushi places in OC. This was my first time at Shunka and I sat at the sushi bar with Chef Juro, I highly recommend sitting at the sushi bar any time you eat sushi!! I forgot to take pictures of some of the items because I was so hungry, but everything was amazing and fresh. Chef Juro was so nice and kept a steady flow of food coming and brought all of the items we requested out so quickly even though the restaurant had a few other parties. My favorites were the black cod, sweet shrimp, Japanese uni, Japanese octopus, and hamachi. We ordered around 10-12 rounds of nigiri plus 3 hand rolls and an appetizer and was so surprised when we got the bill and it was only $160! For the price and the service I would definitely visit Shunka again! read more

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I went there with the family. I wasn't a fan of the ambiance. It didn't feel very personal. We usually prefer sitting at the sushi bar for a kore personal experience. The fish was fresh. It was Just a little blend for my taste. The service was good. In my personal opinion from going to many many sushi place this will not be on my top 10 of sushi place. I tried Soft Shell , Crab Sea Bream, Salmon Belly Roll, toro sushi, Live Scallops, read more

Absolutely insanely delicious. Excellent sushi, and the rice has the perfect texture. You can even get fresh sushi from Japan, and the Toro is highly recommended. Great specials and the sushi chef is very talented, making the sushi and rice with perfection. read more

While the food certainly featured a good taste for the most part, including the delicious chawanmushi, the scallops handroll, and the sweet shrimp nigiri and their warmly tasty fried heads in particular, some parts were less tasty than expected such as the ikura nigiri which honestly tasted rather foul and nothing like I've ever tasted in Tokyo or anywhere else in Japan or in Honolulu where we often get fish flown in from Japan, and the california handroll and the california cut rolls both tasted a little bland and the entire inside was like a puree that was molded inside the roll which I'd never eaten even in Honolulu where the california rolls actually taste phenomenal with strings of crabmeat, lots of mayonnaise, long cucumber stalks and slices of avocado. Most surprising was the enormous price increase from the menu that we had found on their website shortly before visiting -- as in, the $20 chirashi now cost $30 and green tea costs $3 rather than being complimentary as we see in Japan and Honolulu. We were hoping that this restaurant will match our Honolulu favorite, Katsumidori Sushi, but alas, despite costing almost twice as much at the end the flavors we encountered throughout our dinner were rather sparse and overshadowed by the attention to customer service we had received. I have great respect for the people who run this seemingly authentically-oriented sushi establishment and hope that they may soon find a way to bring the explosive joy of sushi as eaten in Japan and Honolulu to their homeplace in Orange County. Please keep us apprised of new changes on your website, thank you!! read more

Best sushi in CM! Not a ton of specialty rolls so they focus on the quality of the fish more than all the bells and whistles. If you like "American" sushi, this probably isn't the place but if you like great tasting fish, you can't beat it read more

I took my wife for a pre-mother's day dinner, because of their #21 ranking on the OC Register's list of top restaurants. I will never go back. Based on the stellar reviews, my wife ordered the Shunka Omakase, and I ordered the Chef's Omakase. Eagerly we waited and waited and waited for food to come. 35 minutes passed before we each received our first two pieces of fish. We were expecting an elaborate platter after the wait, but no, just two pieces each. I don't know what they were, because the waiter mixed them up. 20 minutes later, two more mystery pieces of sushi arrived. It went like this for the whole night. After 2.5 hours my wife had only 8 pieces of sushi and a handroll. I got 13 pieces of sushi (no handroll though; I was too hungry and already planning to finish dinner at McDonald's). Everyone else seemed to enjoy themselves. The table next to use turned over twice, I witnessed guests at the bar with beautiful pieces of sushi, elegantly prepared, while we sat twiddling our thumbs. I assume we got choice pieces, but one couldn't tell from looking at them. This is the first time in my life that I did not tip for a meal, but we were treated horribly. Our drinks were only refilled once, and only after we asked. The bill would have come to over $200 with my typical tip. I can eat too; I was prepared to spend $400 on omakase. Everywhere else I've placed faith in a sushi chef, I've been treated like a VIP. Shunka blew it. read more

Good not great, but definitely would return. Australian Uni was a disappointment. Toro was excellent. Opted to eat outside on curb, which wasn't very nice, but didn't want to wait for inside seating. Staff are very nice and fast. read more

Dined here on a Saturday night at the sushi bar. Ordered the 10 piece omakase. Overall the experience was fine, not bad but just middle of the road. There were some decent pieces of sushi but a couple of them were really bad. Ended up spending $170.00 after tip, overpriced for a subpar experience. read more

The hubby took me here for my bday and we opted to do the omakase and OMG what a treat! The server explained each fish to us and how to eat it and it was amazing! I can't believe I've been around this area for so long and never tried this place. The prices are a bit on the high end but trust me, it's definitely worth your money. They have quality well cut sushi. The Sea Bream was good. If you're into tuna the Chutoro and Otoro just melts in your mouth. I'm starting to crave it all again just writing this review. They don't overload the nigiri with wasabi like some places do they just add in the perfect amount. The place is on the smaller side and I would say it got packed around 6pm so try and come by early. They don't take reservations and it's first come first serve. Enjoy! read more

Very authentic Japanese vibes (fresh wasabi). Pricey but fresh fish. Liked the privacy of the booth tables. Service was great never waited for a server. Will come back to try more of the menu! read more

Sushi Shunka - Grilled squid, unagi sushi, tuna cut roll, salmon sushi, albacore sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

My neice and I had dinner here tonight. SUPER!!! Sushi great and outstanding service. Out new Go To place. read more

Food was great the sushi chef was great so why the 1 star the manager was a a complete jerk I've never seen a manager this bad in my life after I was done eating my food I paid for the bill and I even turned the check over to signify I was done. She followed me outside the restaurant saying I did something wrong I checked, and I didn't, but then she started pointing to the tip and I was confused because in my country people don't tip too often after saying, there was nothing wrong in crossing out the tip section. She gave me back the check. Asking saying I didn't write the full amount So I wrote down the amount of the bill without the tip, and she glares at me and says some pretty rude things to me. The food is good but if you want to spend $200 on a tip. read more

This is one of our favorite sushi spots to go to. The chefs all have characters and quality that's unique to their own personality. I highly recommend the omakase option with the chefs choice and let them know if you don't like certain fish. They will be creative in making different sushi and cuts of fish to entertain your taste buds. We've sat with all the chefs and it's been great experience in their own way with the chef. You get to conversation with the chef and really cater your menu to your liking while the chefs pick out the freshest fish of the day for you. I do believe that other than Chef inaba enjoys a bit of drink with their customers and I highly encourage it. (They might give you a nice surprise). read more

Sushi Shunka - Owner chef Yuki and chef Seigo - Sushi Bars Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

Been coming here for years and have rated them 5 stars but my visit tonight was unfortunate. I thought about not leaving a negative review but I think it's fair given that I spent good money. So first thing first the quality and taste is nowhere near how it used to be. The akamutsu sushi is usually oily and fatty in a nice way but tonight was bland. To boot it was $16. Next thing was the size is like half the size like pinky size. Even the sushi rice just wasn't the same. Normally the sushi bar is packed but tonight was empty and there was only two other tables. So sad. read more

Love this place!!! Best sushi restaurant in orange county hands down!!! Will be back!

Great fresh sushi! Great service! We will come back again. A Japanese friend recommended this place as the only spot he eats sushi.

Highly authentic, fresh, simple sushi as it should be with excellent service and delicious green tea. I can't think of anything to criticize about our lunch. it may look like a humble little restaurant with no frills, but if you want sushi the way it should be - this is the place. A little sad they ran out of one of the fatty tunas when we got there, but even the medium fatty one was just UGH, SO GOOD. read more

The restaurant had a nice ambience. The sushi was delicious. I didn't have a favorite dish though. The service was great. The price is decent. read more

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Its sad that they dont have to go orders anymore.i would still recommend this place for authentic sushi.The only reason i gave 3 stars coz i can't dine in during weekdays. read more

This place was absolutely amazing. I've been meaning to come here for quite sometime and I am so happy we finally did it. It's a cute quaint little place and as soon as we walked in we could tell it was going to be authentic and good. We got 4 rolls and 1 order of sashimi and everything that was recommended as the top choices were solid. The fish was so fresh and every roll was made with perfection. Def my new favorite sushi spot and I will def be back. read more

One of my favorite sushi spots in OC! Quality fish, great service, and nice ambiance.

This restaurant will not disappoint, the quality is some of the best I've had in Orange County. Some of our favorites were the fatty toro & the sumo roll. Everything from service to the food was top shelf & I'll definitely be back. read more

My wife and I returned here a little over a week ago after a 5 year hiatus. It is still just as good now as it was back when we used to be regulars and going every other weekend. I did notice the sake menu has been updated and there is a better variety of cold sake and higher end sake. The service is great and the staff is very attentive. Also I wanted to point our that my wife and I were the first ones seated the same night "Jack and May S" were there (See their review on 12/22). They were seated right after us. My wife and I were a little dismayed at how they disrespected the staff and acted like little children because the restaurant has a rule to not seat a party of more than 4 for omakase at the bar. The staff was very respectful and offered them a large booth to accommodate their needs but they continued to act childish. What a shame. read more

So I have a favorite sushi place but to be honest it feels like the quality of that place dropped in the past year. So... to a new one. My friend recommended this place, as HER coworker (a sweet old Japanese lady) spoke highly on Shunka. Lived up to our expectation and went beyond! We got the omakase-- I liked the rice, but you can taste it for sure, so if you don't want to taste rice you might not enjoy the nigiri. Most of it was preseasoned though a few the chef told us to have it "with soy sauce." The fish was excellent!!! This might be my favorite saba ever, and a few of the fish that I normally am so-so about were much better here. Overall I think the seasoning was both lighter than I normally prefer on some fish, and heavier than expected/desired on others. They did have a very interesting green tea salt blend. But, the quality and consistency were really, really good for the price. Hooray. I'll be back. (Also, the Aladdin yuzu sake was super sweet and only $17 for the bottle!) Oh, and I got Chef Seigo, who .. oh my god, seriously looks like a clone of Taeyang. Now, I happen to be in LOVE with Taeyang so I was like !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOD. I wouldn't go back just because a chef is attractive, but it doesn't hurt. read more

Good restaurant. Nice and friendly servers. Great quality fishes and fresh. I am very picky but this is my most favorite restaurant read more

This is my favorite sushi place ever! I have been to a 1 Michelin star sushi restaurant and I would say that this place is even better than that! I always like to get the omakase. This place does the omakase different than most places however. Rather than getting everything at once, the sushi comes in waves varying from 2-3 pieces of sushi each wave. The sushi will keep on coming until you tell them to stop. My favorite sashimi here are the sea bream, sea perch, and the baby red snapper. I really enjoy this place and I definitely recommend the omakase. However, sometimes the dishes take longer to come out than other times so don't come here if you're in a rush. read more

What stood out to me about this restaurant was their service. The place is quite popular on a Saturday night, with people ordering to go or waiting well over an hour for a seat. I noticed that the hostess tried locating each party a few times in person and through phone calls. Although at first, I didn't see the efficiency of this method, I came to admire her dedication and fairness. When it came to our turn, we decided to sit inside vs. outside due to the cold. The hostess advised us that our request can be tricky since they just seated all but one table moments ago. The expected party to go was still enjoying drinks. She let us what in the car and called when our table was ready. She didn't give up our table when we missed the call by a few minutes. The omakase was worth the wait, fresh and tasty. They had more than enough waiters to ensure an enjoyable experience. read more

Not impressed. Service is just so-so. Their menu doesn't explain their sushi and when we asked our server to explain what the different rolls were it seemed like we were annoying him. How hard is it to print up a menu that describes their specialty rolls? Seriously. I don't mind paying for great food but their prices are a bit high for the quality of the sushi. Most of the rolls had some flavor to them but nothing that "wowed" is. I won't be returning and I won't be recommending this place to anyone. read more

My favorite to go place for a sushi date night. Love the sushi chefs at the bar and the ambience here. I always sit at the bar and we always meet new people there. Service is always great and the food is always amazing. Been here many times to get the omakase, and I've never once ever been disappointed. Would recommend to my friends and family that's traveling to OC area. read more

Sushi Shunka - Omakase - Sushi Bars Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

The omakase is the way to go! The bar is omakase only but the chef's are great, fish is fresh - combinations are unique. Worth it and one of our favorite spots in Costa Mesa! read more

Absolutely HORRIBLE service!!! I didn't even make it past the 2 waiting seats!!! If I could I would give a -10 STARS. I'm a VERY reasonable person but that hostess needs to see past my nationality, you will see why in my review. I discovered this location via Yelp and it was actually our 2nd resort because my kids wanted to eat at Kura Sushi which closed. Keep in mind that my kids are SUPER hungry coming out from their TKD class after being in daycare all day. We enter the restaurant and SHE wrote my name and number on the wait list (I was the only name at that time for a party of 4) vs allowing me to do it myself. I asked how long because my kids were hungry and she said 10-15 min. That was a reasonable wait time for hungry tummies so we stayed. People started arriving for dinner and writing their names on the wait list themselves except for the ones who were dining at the sushi bar (age restriction so my party was not eligible). Now it's PAST the 15 minute mark and my youngest wasn't liking the extra wait because now his stomach was growling. I told him to be patient because they were busy. Then the hostess walked by us and got the party who signed up below us on the list. They got sat instead of us, a party of 3 caucasian adults probably in their late 50s to early 60s. The hostess knew I was upset but simply ignored me. My kids asked, "why did they get to go in before us when they got here after us?" I didn't have a response because I was upset and they noticed. They then said, "lets leave mom because it's taking too long and we're hungry!" At that moment I was still being courteous to her, but deep inside I was fuming, and made it known to her that we're not waiting anymore. She then explained to me that the party of 3 that she just sat "paid for their table already so they don't have to wait," REALLY? It states NO RESERVATION lady so don't lie to your customers. And if that was the case, WHY did they put their name on the wait list? You got caught lying to me!!! I know my party of 4 Asians with 3 kids will not eat as much as your party of 3 Caucasian adults but that was flat out DISCRIMINATION period!!!! Whether its because we were Asian or will eat less, you DON'T profile your customers and treat them less than another. You are in this business to FEED people so get them sat according especially if your yelp site states clearly that theres NO RESERVATION!!! This review has NOTHING to do with their food. I never got pass the waiting area! read more

After hearing about all the rave & stellar accolades this restaurant has been generating from my fellow Yelpers, I had to give it a try for myself. I stopped by on a Thursday night, and was immediately seated at the sushi bar. I started with a bottle of chilled nigori and after the first few shots, I was good to go! I was offered the Omakase and opted to throw caution to wind and allow the chef to wow me and wow me he did. The first piece of sushi was glorious! It was buttery soft amberjack that felt like velvet on my tongue. After the first bite, I knew I was off to a great start. Next up was the Japanese red snapper. The flesh was supple fresh and exhibited an extraordinary mouthfeel. The blue fin tuna followed soon after. You really can't go wrong with bluefin. It was the special of the evening, and boy oh boy was it something special. Perfectly fatty with a rich buttery texture, phenomenal! Ponpona - a whimsical dish served with nigiri sushi and a whole deep fried crispy fish that tasted like a light & crispy salty chip. Another inspiring plate that had me pining for more! Akanutsu was one of my favorites! It was soft, smooth and exhibited an incredibly tender and irresistible texture and flavor. A stunning piece of premium sushi. Mejina - a japanese snapper crowned with sautéed shishito peppers. This was one my favorites! The delicate & silky flesh of the snapper coupled perfectly with the flavorful shishito peppers! A literal flavor explosion in my mouth! Other notable plates followed like the Tachiuo and Buri. At the end of the meal, I cleansed my palate with fresh plump juicy grapes and I was on my way! Service was friendly fast and efficient. They had my water tapped off the entire night and the sushi chef kept my belly full and satiated with masterfully crafted dishes. That being said, I'd highly recommend the omakase to anyone looking to enjoy fresh delicious sushi in a warm and comfortable setting. Kanpai and Happyeats! read more

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A very appropriate 500th review! It is with my utmost confidence to Chef Juro San that I highly recommend surrendering your meal to his whims and expertise. Omakase is the way to go! Let all your cares fly out the window as you sit at the bar excitedly awaiting the work of art that'll be laid out in front of you. Do take heed of his instructions if each course is to be dipped in soy sauce or not. It makes all the difference. Reservations are no longer taken so it's best you arrive right at opening to secure a spot across from the sushi chef of your choice. Being the first patrons on a Sunday night, we took the premium seats of the house and were spoiled rotten. Service was stellar with everything served promptly. Even the cadence and progression of our nigiris were exemplary. The specials of the day are posted on a chalkboard, mostly imported from Japan. Here's what the husband and I indulged our palates in until we said no more: KANPACHI - imported from Japan; a great culminating dish SEA BREAM - imported from Japan; not normally a fan but was pleased ME DAI - the roasted garlic with spicy oil pairing was outstanding BONITO - this had a good amount of ginger rendering a lovely pucker GIANT CLAM - rubbery just like a clam but with an acquired taste AKAMUTSU - very rare fish from Japan; skin was torched which yielded a robust smoked flavor. 2nd fave of the night. JAPANESE BLUE FIN TORO - I can eat this all day! The rich velvety texture and buttery profiles were outrageous. Best thing we ate here. NEW ZEALAND KING SALMON - superb! I mean who doesn't like salmon?! HOKKAIDO UNI - no fresh ones available from Sta Barbara but these boxed ones were perfectly executed for us uni fanatics HOKKAIDO SCALLOP - slightly torched revealing hearty and buttery notes; definitely up there! GRILLED SCALLOPS - 1st time having yakitori during an omakase; a pleasant surprise MONKFISH LIVER - requested for this as the finale to the savory course; earthy and subtle flavors made for a scrumptious ending WATERMELON - a conclusion we didn't expect but was nonetheless sweet and refreshing Expect to spend about $60 or so per head but the splurge is well worth it. There is absolute truth in the ravings and accolades Shunka has garnered that I would go as far as saying this is truly one of OC's best places to eat sushi. read more

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"so what's fresh" That shouldn't be asked in a Japanese sushi bar or on a date. Unless you had to pay your date "roses/donation". I can't help but think that every time I eat sushi, and I hear somebody ask the sushi chef "so what's fresh"? I know the person usually saying it, is probably thinking that's the mark of a connoisseur of sushi, but I immediately think "what a douche" because if it's an authentic Japanese restaurant like Shunka, everything is fresh to an extent, otherwise they wouldn't be serving it (even TGIF is capable of this...most of the time). Besides, it's not like most of the crap you eat elsewhere is always fresh. Chef mic(rowave) and the walk-in fridge see to that. Go to a non authentic restaurant and you may have to ask that, but you're probably not going to get an honest answer back at those places because 50-80% off, AYCE comes at a cost. Also most of the patrons couldn't tell anyways with eel, teriyaki, crunchy, spicy orgasm sauce poured all over......shhh, ancient Chinese secret. The only metric for sushi isn't just freshness, and I often read "it didn't melt in my mouth". Well you don't say? So that's what good sushi is all about? Well, there's a little more to it, and this is what I suggest you look out for: 1. Sushi shari (rice/gohan): Unlike one delusional Japanese Yelper who thinks she knows sushi, sushi rice is actually served slightly warm, not cold. The rice is also washed so that the kernels aren't broken as to not release starches which makes the rice too sticky. After it's cooked, it's mixed with shari su: rice vinegar, salt, sugar, and kombu (natural producer of MSG) in a hangiri (wooden mixing bowl). The forming of the nigiri (rice) should also break apart when you eat it. It shouldn't be overly sticky/chewy. 2. Accenting/sauce: the sushi I've had in Japan is usually always very simple, and when I was in Tsukiji they served a lot of the nigiri sushi with nikiri which is a soy sauce, sake, mirin mixture that they swipe onto your sushi with a brush - no need to dip in shoyu (soy sauce). Most of the places in the U.S. tend to resort to mostly "ponzu" which I find over powering and over used - it's usually served with aji along with momiji oroshi (grated daikon with hot sauce), and negi (green onion). Variations include a layer of sweetened kombu or myoga which is like a ginger/shallot which I really like. With white fish or lighter flavored fish such as tai or hirame, simply adding salt or lemon is a really nice touch, but if you're just going to let the rice chillax in a pool of soy sauce.... forget anything I just said. Also slap yourself in the face just cuz. 3. "Neta". This is whatever topping that goes on the nigiri, and due to all the fatties, most sushi chefs won't prepare the cut of fish to the amount of rice accordingly, and instead they'll just do it the American way which is to simply go big. One example of this is, if it's fatty tuna, it'd be preferable to cut the fish thinner because of the fat content doesn't necessarily "melt in your mouth" if it's too thick - unless heated by a torch to melt some of the fat (chu/oh! toro). I'm not saying that Shunka exemplifies all of this, but I'm merely saying that there's a lot of details in the simplicity of nigiri sushi to really enjoy. In fact, I'd probably rate Shunka a 3.5 to a 4 because as of now, they're decent to mediocre on the details/preparation, but they also don't have an expansive variety of fish. I'm hoping that changes which is the reason for bringing all this up because I'm hoping this place won't have to solely succumb to doing rolls because Newport/Costa Mesa doesn't necessarily have that many stand out places, and I just hope more people grow to appreciate the simplicity of nigiri sushi over volcano rolls which is also a lot healthier. That should resonate really well with a lot of hot girls, women, mistresses, cougars, milf's in the area. Other big pluses is the interior which is very nicely done in a red/black, samurai sword, dragon muraled sushi bar that stretches across the entire backside like some stereotypical tatt on some hot dragon lady. Aside from everything else, the waiter/waitresses/service probably knock this place up to a solid 4+/5 star mark because they're friendly, and Chitose (Sp?) is teaching me nihongo, and I can't wait to learn how to say "so what's fresh" in nihongo cuz that'll be great line on the ladies when I hit up the bars in Japan. How do you say "douche" in nihongo. read more

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"Under the sea. Under the sea,. Darling it's better. Down where it's wetter,Take it from me. Up on the shore they work all day. Out in the sun they slave away. While we devotin'. Full time to floatin'. Under the sea" It was an unplanned birthday date night for the hubs. A Wednesday! No reservations! We were seated in a jiffy...no wait! Woo hoo!! We were back and forth whether to go omakase or free hand our selections. But, the unknown scared us and we went the safe route. I'm happy to say, we chose some pretty darn good fishies! Phew. Rolls: SHUNKA ROLL: seared salmon on top: smoky and melted in our mouths. FAVE part of the night. Wrapped with rice paper and tuna inside. Great combination and our #1 CRUNCHY ROLL: real crab and shrimp tempura inside with tempura flakes all over. Drizzled with eel sauce. It was good and fresh! Though a generic roll, Shunka offered much more to the plate w/ real crab instead of imitation crab...loved it. Now onto the IMPORTED fish from Japan: AKAMUTSU: I realized tonight that I really appreciate seared and smoky fish. This was so good and a rare treat. MUST HAVE! TORO (medium): a "hearty" piece of fish. Good, but didn't melt in our mouths as much as we expected. KANPACHI: gotta admit, I can't remember too much about this one. Starters: BAKED GREEN MUSSELS: a good ratio of topping to mussels. Salivating just thinking about them. SALMON BELLY: ooh lala! fresh fresh. Another favorite. SWEET SHRIMP: One plate for the fried heads and another for the plump sweet fish. Fresh and "sweet" as a shrimp can be. Be careful when biting those heads, I got clawed. SERVICE: I snuck into the back to inform our waitress that it was my hubby's birthday. She gave me the WINK. Then before she brought out the dessert, she went to the table and whispered in my ear, "what's his name?" haha! The lights dimmed and the whole resto was singing HAPPY BIRTHDAY (can you say embarrassing!!!). While singing, the waitress took my phone and proceeded to take a picture for us. Little did she know that the phone was on video record. Let's just say it made for a good laugh. Though not as discreet with the surprise, she was super sweet and helpful. TID BITS: 1) Located in the same plaza as Plums Café 2) Booth, bar and table seating 3) Casual and moderately quiet ambiance. Not the best resto for rowdy kids. 4) Pricey, but well worth it "Since life is sweet here. We got the beat here. Naturally (Naturally). Even the sturgeon an' the ray. They get the urge 'n' start to play. We got the spirit. You got to hear it. Under the sea" read more

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This sushi bar has been on my must-go list since I read a wonderful and reliable yelp review on them a while ago. I had an opportunity to do lunch in OC; my mind was firmly set to get this restaurant off the list. The restaurant was very clean. There was a little Asian fountain in the entry. I also saw a list of today's fish from Japan in the back of the sushi bar. I ordered Chef's Omakase and also ordered Uni separately. Omakase consists of an appetizer, miso soup, 7 pieces of nigiri, 1 hand roll, and a dessert. The appetizer was a great starter; lots of diced sashimi and vegetables (like poke) were mixed with flavorful dressing (couldn't tell what it was), and a tiny wooden spoon was placed on the same plate to eat with. The presentation was pretty and it was delicious. The nigiris were fresh and the rice part was very small, just like the way I really like. Sashimi was fresh and sliced beautifully. This was very refreshing to me since I eat a lot of fusion sushi lately. I was afraid that my taste buds might have been contaminated by eating fusions and that I might have forgotten what authentic sushi should be. But, once I ate the first piece, it brought up my memories of super fresh sushi and sashimi that I ate in Tokyo years ago, and thought that it tasted pretty close to them. Sushi at this restaurant was sort of a mix of the traditional and modern Japanese sushi. The presentation of each plate was pretty and some of them were delicate. Although the Omakase was delicious, I have to take one star off because of the Uni that we ordered. It was good and generous amount of Uni was on the top of sushi, but the temperature of the Uni was uneven. Some part of the Uni was room temp but some part was very cold. It was still good but I would have given the perfect score if I didn't have to taste/feel the super coldness in my mouth. The dessert was ice cream. They asked to choose a flavor. They had black sesame, green tea, and vanilla, so I chose black sesame. This was so delicious and made me decide to bring .5 star back on the review. The service was great. The waitress was attentive. The food was excellent. I will come back again. 4.5 stars. read more

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