The best authentic sushi in Tacoma. Friendly staff and always amazing quality food. We have never been disappointed come here!

This is my favorite kind of restaurant, a non franchise mom and pop like shop with great food and service. The quality, portions and price were just right. I am definitely going back. My son and I ordered sushi, and my wife ordered tempura shrimp. The sushi was great, the rice did not fall apart and was so well plated that I almost didn't want to use soy sauce and wasabi for fear of muddling with the chefs work. The tempura was nice and not too greasy, made with fresh oil and was good and crunchy. The miso soup and the soy based salad was really good and unique. read more

This is an amazing restaurant. The fish is amazing even if it takes a while to get home. The service is great. Its safe to walk there from my home. And I'm a woman so if I was safe then you should be too. You should definitely go here. read more

Fantastic service... reminded me of being in Asia. Like how they make their own Konnyaku. Is that why Japanese are all so fit? It seems this is a joint that's been there for a while and well liked by the locals. Suggest to build a website and load a menu here. The only thing is that the wine is undrinkable. I know this might not be the place to ask for good wine- but even grocery store cheap wine tastes better than that.:( read more

So good and so genuine! This place is amazing for service and quality. Always fresh and worth the price for sure.

I am blown away! The sushi rice is incredibly spectacular! I couldn't use enough adjectives to describe how happy I am that this delicious place is near our first house. Even though I am not eating fish due to being pregnant, their California roll cured my need for sushi despite usually being all about sashimi. The prices were really great, and I was able to speak a little bit of the Japanese I know because the staff is from Japan. read more

Me and the Fam LOVE us some sushi and I've driven by this place a billion times but never made it in until now. Looking at reviews and hearing about this place I decided to call and make reservations just in case but it didn't help.... We pulled up and the parking lot was empty, yippee, so we thought. We were seated immediately and as we waited to be served the restaurant became full and we noticed that the one waitress was pretty much sprinting around the tables trying to get orders etc and she was the only one. Along with the 1 waitress was, 1 Itamae so we were very skeptical at that point on service. Looking at the menu, I realized this place is MORE than just sushi. They had alot of authentic Japanese dishes that you can't find just anywhere. Being that we were wanting sushi, that menu was not as plentiful as we would like, but the we aren't picky and started ordering away. Over an hour later our food finally arrived and we were so hungry we couldn't even enjoy the freshness of the fish as we shoveled the food so fast, we sat there thinking that's it? Disappointed to say the least, our waitress apologized for the time it took but over an hour? it was awful, did I mention I have a 3 year old and teenager.... enough said. read more

WOOHOOOO!!! FREE PARKING!!! Always a good start to a review, especially one of off of 6th Ave. Really cute place. When we went it was dinner time. The wait time for service was a little longer than I expected but we had time to kill so we were in no rush, which was good since they only had one chef and one waitress (from what it looked like). We ordered the "JYO" combo, a veggie roll and a spider roll. It came with miso soup and salad and our total came out roughly to $30 bucks altogether and fed all four of us! Sushi Tama, I'm definitely coming back!!! read more

While sushi restaurants are appearing all over Tacoma, Sushi Tama remains one of the more enjoyable and consistent ones I've had the pleasure of frequenting. The key thing about Sushi Tama is how fresh their fish is. Portions aren't as big as other places in town but the rolls are a good deal. Try the North Sea roll...awesome. read more

I wanted to like this place, I really did. It is such a cute little spot on 6th Ave. with plenty of free parking. And the sushi isn't bad, either. I was just so disappointed with their service, or lack thereof. They seemed very short staffed or something. It took FOREVER for our server to get our order and for our food to arrive. No bueno. read more

Very authentic hole in the wall casual Japanese restaurant with excellent service and tasty food. Pricing is cheap to reasonable. Everything is handmade and delicious (down to the wasabi and ginger!) Will be back. Highly recommend. read more

I don't usually order sushi takeout but it was a busy day and I am so glad that I decided to try Sushi Tama for the first time. We haven't had a lot of luck with sushi in Tacoma since relocating here from Portland over a year ago but Sushi Tama definitely satisfied. I ordered the rainbow roll, spicy tuna, spider roll, salmon nigiri and yellowtail nigiri. Wow! Everything was incredible. The fish was fresh, perfectly cut and rice excellently seasoned. On top of the delicious sushi, the service was warm and very friendly. I will definitely be back. read more

This is my neighborhood sushi joint. Been going there regularly for years. 100% consistent, always fresh fish, and a very good kitchen also. Their katsu donburi is one of the best in town. No originality in the sushi menu, just your traditional fare, but done at a reasonable price. My only complaint: in winter, the deep fryer oil smell can be strong in the restaurant. It's not a rare problem for small Japanese restaurant, but it can be a pain. read more

I've been going here for years. I used to live about ten blocks away and frequented this place often. They have awesome food and good service. I highly recommend it here. read more

Seems like I arrived at a bad time or perhaps they always have one server for the whole place. Either way the server was very nice and the sushi seemed pretty fresh but didn't have much flavor. I don't know how that happens but it did. The portions were very small for the quality and price. In fact I think it was overpriced for the portions I got. read more

my family and i have been coming here ever since i was little we know the owners now they are so nice the food and sushi is great and is authentic. i will forever come to sushi tama. read more

I have been coming here for 20 years and have never gotten past sushi rolls, which are awesome. Tomason and his wife do an excellent job of serving up the freshest ingredients. All the rolls are always perfect. Today we tried the ramen and I have to say it was nothing short of amazing! read more

what a great authentic japanese feel. The small use of japanese language, and the courtesy of the waitresses was amazing and the sushi chef was very nice and also japanese and quaint. All in All great restaurant great ambience great food, try the northwest sushi roll for the best xperience. read more

Surprisingly nice on the inside. The sushi is really fresh and there's a wide variety of sushi/sashimi on the menu. I also liked the sukiyaki dish I got last time. read more

My son says its the most delicious food he's ever tasted. The only place I'll go for sushi in Tacoma.

As far a sushi restaurants and Japanese places go in the Tacoma area, there are multiple options. I have found Sushi Tama to be consistently near the top for many years. Recently numerous sushi places have opened in the area and I must say that they tend to offer a multitude of dished from many places. It is not uncommon to find Chinese, Korean and even Thai and Vietnamese dished all in the same place that serves sushi. I am of the opinion that it is better to do one things great than to do many things mediocre. Sushi Tama consistently offers high quality traditional sushi. Some of you may have never actually had traditional sushi and so you cannot be faulted for not knowing how it is different that these new "super sushi and everything else Asian" food joints. It comes down to freshness, flavor, texture and consistency, all things you find at Sushi Tama. I recommend you go there and allow the staff to recommend dished for you to try. Open your mind and open your mouth, because it is in for a treat. Very very, good, 4.5 stars. read more

One of the few Japanese Sushi places in the area (most others are Korean, a slightly different style). They also have natto!

I have mixed feelings about this place. I wandered in with a craving for some good sushi. With the word "sushi" in the name, I thought I was walking into a place that would satisfy this craving. When I started looking over the menu, however, disappointment set in. Their menu contained a very limited offering of sushi and nothing unique about the offerings. I went ahead and tried a few rolls and was still not blown away. There was nothing special about it - just average sushi. On a positive note, the staff was absolutely fantastic. Another positive was that it looked like their menu offered a wide variety of other Japanese cuisine. I'll give Sushi Tama one more visit to try some of the other menu items, but for sushi I will go elsewhere. read more

I will start out by saying that the sushi I ordered was very delicious, that is where I have anything good to say ends. My friend and I arrived at around 7 for some sushi and a dinner entree. It wasn't very busy so we thought we would get our food in a reasonable amount of time. After the waitress gave us menus we didn't see her again for 20 minutes. Then we waited 15 more minutes just to get our salad (We never did get the miso soup that was promised with our dinner selection). After our salads were clear we waited another hour (and this is no exaggeration) to get our sushi. My friend and I thought it was just one of those restaurants that it takes time to get food and is really geared towards people staying awhile and socializing. We started to realize however that people who were seated after us were getting their food and leaving before we even got our entrees. We finally decided to just finish our sushi. The waitress realized that we finished our sushi and started clearing our table and asked us if there was anything else we would like. My friend, flabbergasted just responds, "How about our dinner?" She the proceeds to practically throw the plates back on the table and run back into the kitchen saying "oh right your dinner". Some more time passes, and I have to say it was getting close to 9 and the place closes at 9:30! We finally get our dinner and we eat. The food was not very good at all. The sauce they put on my chicken was way too sweet for my taste and my friend had similar complaints for her beef dish. When we get our check the waitress brings out a bowl of mango sorbet free of charge for taking so long with everything. It would have been a good gesture but the sorbet was so cold we could barely get our spoons through it to get any of it. Overall, sushi was good, dinner entree and the HORRIBLE service just ruin the whole thing! On top of all this the food was way over priced for the quality. SAVE YOUR MONEY!!! GO SOMEWHERE ELSE! read more

Everything I've had from this unassuming little place has been superb. They have a fairly large menu, but not a huge variety of sushi. Which is fine, since the rolls they do are great. Lots of good veggie options too. Their seaweed udon soup is on my "I would eat this every day if no one was watching" list. Update 4/1/14: They have downsized their menu a bit. I'm crying salty tears as the seaweed udon did not make the cut. read more

I go to their restaurant typically once weekly since about 2010 as Sushi Tama has excellent Japanese food. Their fish selection is good and always fresh. Occasionally they will have special fish or shellfish that they usually do not carry (ie Geoduck). Both sushi chefs are very professional and happy to strike a conversation with you if you choose (at the counter). If you are unsure of what to order for sushi, I always recommend the 'Jyo' sushi assortment. It will give you a bit of everything mainstream. I haven't found a 'bad' roll at Sushi Tama, but I am a particular fan of their avocado (avocado lover) and spicy tuna rolls. Their spicy tuna roll is much different that your typical one as it is not just tuna doused in Sriracha sauce. The way they make it allows you to enjoy the tuna favor accented by some Japanese style spices. If you like Egg/tamago nigiri, this is the place to have it as it is home made and great tasting. I like to have all kinds of nigiri on occasion. All nigiris are good portioned and fresh unlike some other restaurants. For those that are not sushi lovers, Sushi Tama also has a good selection of other Japanese dishes. Appetizers I would recommend that Karaage (fried chicken) with some soy sauce or ponzu sauce. Another would be the spicy gyoza, yummy. The avocado sashimi is also very good. The Salmon Croqutte (potato cake) is very good as well. Their tempura appetizer is also top notch! For an entree for the first timer,, I'd recommend the steak/chicken shioyaki (light with ponzu dipping sauce) or teriyaki. I particularly like the steak shioyaki!! If that isn't what you are looking for, the combinations would be another good choice. Both are full meals and very tasty. Winter time I'd recommend the sukiyaki or yosenabe. Both warm and fill you up! I have tried all the other local Tacoma Japanese restaurants, but I have to say that Sushi Tama has the best all round food, service and atmosphere. read more

The owner's are actually my Bachan's friends.. for those of you who didn't grow up Japanese - Bachan is my grandma. So I do want to say I am approaching this a little bias, but honestly it is really good sushi, not only sushi but Japanese food. The roasted Mackaral (saba) is superb. They are a little on the pricey side, but it is Authentic let me repeat Authentic Japanese resturant. It's not those wanna be Japanese places on South Tacoma Way owned by Korean people (no offense I love Korean people) but those places think teriyaki is chicken chopped up in 3 inch strips w/ a sweet surupy glaze.. yuck! Tama Sushi has real homeade like my bachan used to make teriyaki. One downfall, don't wear your Sunday best or plan on going on a hot date afterwards as you will leave smelling like fried foods. I literally had to wash my jacket when the next day my whole car smelled like a vat of frying tempura. Other than that - no complaints. read more

Firstly, the waitress was so sweet! I hate to give a bad review, but the food needs to be good as well. There are so many great sushi restaurants in Pierce County, no need to put up with ingredients that aren't up to par. I received my green salad at lunch, and the lettuce was brown in spots and old. Strange dressing with an odd texture. I had Chicken Katsu curry. The chicken was tasty, but the sauce not very warm and also an odd texture. I am not a texture freak, so when a texture bothers me, there is a problem. Old lettuce really turns me off. That is just being ultra cheap! read more

Based on sushi alone, this is a 2 star sushi bar. They were friendly albeit slow and the sushi wasn't good. Their sushi menu was very basic and something was missing here although I couldn't pin point why I wasn't liking any of their sushi. read more

Absolutely delicious...and a great sushi atmosphere with polite, quick service.

After having a bad meal at another sushi place I was hesitant to try Sushi Tama. The place is small and unassuming but what a pleasant surprise-the sushi was outstanding. From the nigri to the rolls everything was fresh and delicious. My friend, who also has had bad experiences with sushi in Tacoma was thrilled as well. The service was good too. A wonderful mom and pop stop for Japanese food. I will be back. read more

The decor and ambiance at first glance needs some improvement BUT the service is exquisite. The waitresses are polite, prompt, and very attentive. The man who makes the sushi is very funny, I recommend sitting at the table to watch him. He makes great recommendations and the best part? I used to never eat sushi solely because I can't eat seaweed and many places in leu of seaweed use rice paper and at an extra charge. Here, they can make any kind of sushi sans seaweed! And they bring many extras (small appetizer, salad, and soup) with your entree. read more

Its a little pricey but has good food. The service is great! It is also a really small place so dont go there to gossip about last nights hook up! The sushi chef is really adorable as well! :D read more

The fish was fresh but limited. The chef at the sushi bar was skillful and personable. But the atmosphere for doing a nice sushi night disappointed. read more

Amazingly fresh everything. Miso soup is perfect. Maguro & ikura are always the best! But the fried oysters & their sauce are addicting & to die for love y'all ! read more

Good sushi in Tacoma. Not the BEST ambience, but really good, fresh fish.

The food here was pretty good. Only reason I gave it 3 stars is because the sushi menu wasn't as big as I expected it

I love this place! I adore the curry with katsu /pork cutlet. It is to die for. The sushi is good As well. The outside looks nondescript but the inside is clean and homey. The service is excellent. I would definitely go again! read more

I was expecting a little too much based on other yelp reviews. The sushi roll list was quite short, and although it was cheap, the quality was awful. The menu listed the California roll as including imitation crab meat..... If that tells you anything. The service was good and they brought out free edamame and an additional free appetizer which was quite tasty. I just think there is probably a billion other good sushi spots here. Given the proximity to the ocean I would hope to get fresh fish. Live and learn.,,. read more

Been here twice. Both times the food was stellar. Had to wait a while the second time because the shop was so busy. But the food was well worth the wait. read more