Lily Z.

I really wanted to love TBD! My husband made a reservation after seeing so many great things about this place on TikTok, so we came in with pretty high expectations. Unfortunately, especially considering the price point, the overall experience was a bit of a mixed bag for me. AMBIANCE Definitely one of the highlights! The space is beautiful and has a great vibe for a date night or a fun dinner/hangout with friends. It feels trendy and upscale without being overly formal. SERVICE Service was okay, but I was a little disappointed by the lack of knowledge about some of the dishes, especially for a restaurant at this price point. For example, we originally ordered just one tsukune slider because I don't like egg yolk jam. I specifically asked how eggy it was and was told that it was not eggy. Our server kept asking if we wanted to order another, and eventually I cracked under the pressure . Unfortunately, when they arrived, the sliders were absolutely slathered in egg yolk jam. It was very egg-forward and bitter to me, so that ended up being a rough way to finish the meal. Also, a little heads-up: the hot tea isn't complimentary. Our server grouped it into the conversation about water, so I assumed it was included until I saw it on the bill. Not a huge deal, but something I would've appreciated knowing beforehand! FOOD There were definitely some hits, but quite a few dishes didn't work for me. Kakuni Mochi -- Loved the crunchy texture, but overall it lacked flavor. Potato Salado -- This was probably one of my bigger disappointments. It contained boiled egg, which wasn't mentioned in the menu description. Since I don't like eggs, I wouldn't have ordered this had I known. Hot Karaage -- Presentation wise, this was really cool! Unfortunately, the flavor didn't match the presentation for me. The exterior was crunchy but had a bitter taste, while the chicken itself lacked seasoning. The yuzu sauce also didn't work for my palate; the combination had an oddly cleaning product like citrus flavor that reminded me of Lysol. Tsukune Slider -- Unfortunately, way too eggy and bitter for my taste, especially with the amount of egg yolk jam. There were a couple of dishes I really enjoyed, though! Salmon + Kanpachi Sashimi -- Fresh, simple, and delicious. I especially appreciated the fresh wasabi. Assorted Set -- Probably one of the more interesting parts of the meal because there were so many different flavors and textures to try. I especially loved how crunchy the chicken wing was! OVERALL TBD has a beautiful atmosphere and some genuinely interesting dishes, but I left feeling a little underwhelmed. With the amount of hype surrounding the restaurant and the higher price point, I expected the food and service to feel a bit more polished and consistent. There were dishes I'd happily eat again, especially the sashimi and assorted set, but there were also several that I wouldn't reorder. I'm glad I finally got to try TBD, but for the price, I was expecting a little more.

Avery M.

This may be one of my new favorite spots. Cozy, but really well thought out interior. Beautifullll plating, delicious dessert. Love that it's prepped in front of you!

Gem P.

Dined here yesterday for a lovely dinner. I think the thing I appreciated the most was learning about some new ingredients. I cook and try lots of different restaurants so I'm always tickled when something is put in front of me that I've never seen. Enter kinome leaf, used as a dusting powder on chicken thighs giving it a really unique flavor! Overall good dining experience for a weekday dinner. Warm interior and lovely ceramic settings.

Caitlyn M.

Came for a weekday dinner, made the reservation online easily. We were sat at the bar. The decor is cool and vibey. It's a bit eclectic. We ordered the tuna tataki, kakuni mochi (2x), hot kaarage, Wagyu Wellington, the veggie set and kawa set, and the chazuke. Overall everything was tasty! The favorites were the kakuni mochi, the hot kaarage, and the veggie set. I definitely recommend getting a mochi for each person. It can be sharable with 2 people but it would be a small bite. The Wellington was good too but a little underdone for my liking. The hot kaarage was nice and crispy, the hot sauce it came with was also flavorful. The milk tea tiramisu was a good dessert to end the meal with. I would come back to try more dishes! I like their creative approach to classic Japanese dishes. I also adore the decor. It's a bit moody so would be an ideal place for an intimate dinner date! The service was also nice too.

Rehab K.

Came here to celebrate my anniversary and it was good but nothing to rave about, especially at the price point: Service: This was the most disappointing part. Our server dove straight into what we wanted to order upon getting seated and never asked if we are celebrating anything, want to drink anything or walk us through the menu. She was clueless every time we asked a question and for a relatively upscale restaurant, it diluted the overall experience. Ambiance: Vibey and nice! Food: We got the crudo which was phenomenal, tuna wellington and chicken three ways were also very good. The karaage was disappointing unfortunately - it was overcooked and had an unpleasant rice flour after taste. They were trying to do too much with it and it missed the mark. Overall, I'd be back for bites at the bar only but I don't think the experience lived up to my expectations.

Camilla M.

I had dinner here more than one month ago but I forgot to do my usual review. Everything we tried was delicious...the pancake was very good and the hot karagee was perfect! We were seated at the bar, so it was nice looking at the chef preparing a few items event though the space was a little bit tiny. Overall was a very good experience.

Frank L.

Personally a 4.5 for me but we'll round up since everyone had a great time and generally loved the food! And the service was also great! Been to many an izakaya and it's def one of my fav types of Japanese restaurants due to the interesting dishes available. This spot was a lil pricey but the food leaned more upscale rather than casual. And it had some cool unique dishes you'll prob never see elsewhere Food: King crab okonomiyaki- Didn't quite taste the king crab as much as the fish roe and sauerkraut but it was delicious nonetheless. It's not a traditional okonomiyaki at all tbh. In fact it looks like a puff pastry so much so we thought it was the donut. This was one of everyone's favs of the night Crudo- Also delicious but prob the most basic dish of the night. Everyone's got a crudo these days. That bath said, I did really like the flavors and the crunch from the puffed black rice. Kakuna mochi- Again delicious. Melt in your mouth goodness. Hot karaage- Chicken came out juicy and yet mega crispy. The crisp is different from your run of the mill fried chicken. The skin was so crispy it was almost like a chip. Flavors were on point. Tuna Wellington- Wow. I dunno how they did it but this was one of the best Wellingtons I've ever had. The pastry shell perfectly flaky. Inside juicy. Tuna still medium rare ish. This dish is a must try! Assorted chicken sweet- good but nothing mega special compared to the other dishes. Chicken oyster- Pretty good. Comes with this interesting foam on top. The chicken was super tender. Tsukune- so this isn't your trad tsukune at all... Tricky tricky haha instead of comes in slider form. While we all appreciated the creativity, I think we all felt the dish tasted a bit underwhelming. Like a chicken meatball should be close to a patty so I get what they were tryna do but for me it wasn't really there. I kinda felt the egg yolk flavor clashed with the wafer or what I imagined the slider should taste. I'd still try it for the funsies but prob wouldn't get again Hojicha tiramisu- cool flavor you can really taste the hojicha. The tiramisu could be better but it was solid and a nice little dessert to end the night Overall, def recommend to check this spot out and looking forward to hopefully new dishes the next time I have the pleasure of coming back

Sylvie P.

My friend wanted to try this place together and we had a good experience overall. The service was nice and explained to us the menu. We ordered a few things and I would say the flavors are there and it's tasty. I'm not sure if it really blew me away and for the price and value, I'm not sure it aligns. I can respect their concept and creativity. Beautiful presentations. It has an intimate ambiance inside.

Mike L.

Even though they curiously haven't garnered many Yelp reviews so far, TBD has managed to capture a fair amount of buzz and praise, not the least of which came from mutual friends who had recommended to my friends and I that we come here for dinner. As such, I know my review is going to be in stark contrast to most of the ones already on here. However, while I don't take any pleasure or joy in writing this, I certainly don't have any doubts given all of the issues with our meal here. Although I hadn't actually heard much about TBD before my friends chose to come here, I was certainly intrigued after hearing how much some of our other friends enjoyed their meals here. Looking at the menu, it was definitely intriguing - lots of izakaya staples, but with gussied up takes. However, while their spin on classics like Yakitori, Chicken Karaage, and Okonomiyaki are unique, they also come with a price tag to match, so be aware since things can add up fast and some dishes didn't seem as worth it as others. -- KAKUNI MOCHI - Slow-Braised Pork Belly over a Mochi Donut with Cured Egg Yolk...$10 Ehh...this was fine, I guess. The mochi donut didn't have the kind of texture that I expected and the cured egg yolk seemed to get lost, but the pork belly wasn't bad (and may have overshadowed the egg yolk). -- OKONOMIYAKI - King Crab Pancake, Sauerkraut, Kewpie, Aonori, and Smoked Trout Roe...$17 This was a miss for me. While the crab, aonori, and trout roe were pretty good, this wasn't crispy like we expected and was actually quite thick and cakey. Also, the sauerkraut was a bit overwhelming. -- HOT CHICKEN KARAAGE...$25 Presumably TBD's signature dish, and it's undoubtedly eye-catching, but the taste of this was just okay. The batter was crunchy and the sauce was decent, but the chicken felt more fibrous/tough than juicy. -- OFFAL SET - Gizzard, Liver, and Heart...$16 Easily my least favorite dish of the night. Of the three, the gizzard was best, but, even then, it was really plain. The same could be said for the heart, but the liver was by far the worst and almost felt undercooked. -- KAWA SET - Crisp Chicken Skin Trio with Ikura, Bonjiri Tail, and Karasumi...$18 On the one hand, all three cuts of chicken skin weren't too shabby, especially the one with ikura. On the other, the cuts were pretty small and, aside from the fattiness, two of them had similar flavor profiles (floral). -- CHICKEN OYSTER with Duck Liver and Ponzu...$18 Solid, but nothing spectacular. Despite how the chicken had a nice bit of browning and how the duck liver and ponzu complemented it well, this wasn't as juicy as I would've thought and the foam felt excessive. -- TSUKUNE - Chicken Meatball Glazed with Tare and Egg Yolk Jam Served with Monaka Wafer...$10 Nothing bad, but hardly memorable. While it was decently plump and the tare glaze on it was good, the meatball wasn't particularly moist, I didn't taste much of the jam, and the wafer was tasteless. -- HOJICHA TIRAMISU - Homemade Ladyfingers Steeped in Hojicha, Mascarpone-Yogurt Whip, and Honey Cream...$11 The best dish of the night and the only one I'd genuinely consider good anywhere. The ladyfingers soaked up a lot of the hojicha yet weren't soggy, the mascarpone-yogurt whip was light, and I liked the honey cream. As underwhelming as the food was, what really killed the experience for us was the service. At the start of our meal, everything was fine - the servers offered some helpful tips and our order started coming out relatively quick. However, as one of the workers tried to take one of the dishes out of the serving tray for the Offal Set, he accidentally spilled the last piece of Chicken Liver and Toast onto the table. Now, I don't know why he was so pressed to take the tray, but, regardless, rather than offer to replace what he dropped or even just apologize, he said something along the lines of, "You can still eat it off the table - we wiped it before you sat down". Presumably with the same towel you use to "clean" the messes from other tables? Awesome. In addition to that unfortunate incident, it also felt very much like they were trying to rush us out. Granted, I have no idea if that was actually the case or not, but it might explain why our server seemed annoyed when we asked about ordering dessert and why she started clearing our entire table as soon as we signed our check. And, for the record, we weren't loitering around, except for when we were waiting for our friend to return from the restroom, and there wasn't a crowd waiting at the door when we left either. Based on taste alone, this probably would've been three stars with a couple of highlights and a lot of underwhelming dishes. However, it's hard to ignore how our meal felt light on value, the aforementioned service issues, and how they may (or may not, to be fair) be the reason why all of us got food poisoning that lasted for over a week. Maybe it was a good thing he dropped that last bit of food.

Sylvia S.

This is a lovely izakaya with a focus on chicken. I would say their best stuff is the chicken from the grill- other stuff is good but not as standout. Over the course of two visits, I got Pork mochi- this was good but a little too bready Fried chicken leg- very tasty!! Spicy and delicious. Chicken oyster- sooo good. Great ponzu flavor Veggie set- the tomato and corn were amazing. Zucchini was a little bland, would recommend though Chicken offal set- very tasty and variety Chicken skin set- it was good but kind of similar. Don't think I would get again Chicken set- mmmm! Nice variety and very juicy Chawanmushi- delicious soup, and the sashimi is fresh Chicken soup- I think this was not particularly interesting. Definitely prefer chawanmushi Wagyu wellington- they had this instead of the tuna that day- the sauce was nice but the spinach was a bit overwhelming Service was nice and prompt, the chef comes out sometimes

Mark O.

Dinner review. Upscale izakaya. COLD Tuna Tataki 18 seared bluefin tuna, garlic, chives Sasami 16 chicken tenderloin duo- cherrywood-smoked jerky/medium-rare tataki with ponzu-wasabi HOT (Highlight) Kakuni Mochi 10 slow-braised pork belly set over a mochi donut, crowned with cured egg yolk Okonomiyaki 17 king crab pancake, sauerkraut, kewpie, donori, and smoked trout roe (Highlight - Best) Hot Karaage 25 chicken leg, honey-butter chili glaze, sesame-nori furikake (Highlight) Tuna Wellington 60 tuna, nori, baby bok choi, and shiitake-negi duxelles in puff pastry, with beef tare and wasabi butter YAKIMONO Kawa Set 18 crispy chicken skin trio-ikura, bonjiri tail, karasumi Assorted Set 20 wing drummette with shiitake, cheese, thigh with tare and sansho, negima breast with Tokyo negi Tsukune 10 chicken meatball glazed with tare, egg yolk jam, served in monaka wafer DESSERT (Highlight - Also best) Hojicha Tiramisu homemade ladyfingers steeped in premium hojicha, layered with mascarpone-yogurt whip and honey cream Overall, very good/craveable chicken, but the hojicha tiramisu is definitely "as good as it gets."

Raymond N.

TBD is an izakaya spot which opened up fairly recently less than a block away from the Chinatown Gate. For whatever reason, there is no signage outside but look for a blue storefront right below the Irish Bank sign (perhaps this plays into the story behind the TBD name). The restaurant itself is not that big but there is a bar by the entrance and a separate area in the back which could hold private dining parties. When I arrived the lights were on, but when food started coming out the lights were dimmed "for ambiance." Parking is usually tough but right before my weekday 6pm visit there were plenty of spots right in front of the restaurant as well as around the corner. My table of six tried plenty of items on the menu and each item was meant to be shared, though hungry eaters could enjoy them individually. In order of arrival, we had Sashimi, Tuna Tataki, Crudo, Potato Salada, Caesar, Veggie Set, Kawa Set, Kakuni Mochi, Okonomiyaki, Hot Karaage, Chicken Oyster, Tuna Wellington, Chazuke, and Hojicha Tiramisu. The raw pieces of fish in the first three dishes were very fresh, but on the smaller side. I enjoyed the potato salad and it had a good amount of small cuts of lobster dispersed throughout. The Caesar salad wasn't too memorable and I didn't taste much of the miso dressing in it. We probably could've done without the Veggie Set and Kawa Set since the summer corn, early girl tomato, zucchini and crisp chicken skin trio (ikura, bonjiri tail, karasumi) both looked nice but portions were small and didn't really provide anything substantial to the overall meal. The rest of the courses really impressed me. The Kakuni Mochi combination of slow-braised pork belly over a mochi donut and crowned with cured egg yolk sounded odd but really worked. Of note, the mochi donut was more like a crunchy Chinese donut and not like the typical mochi donuts composed of mochi balls. This was served on a metal pig statue which I thought was unique. The Okonomiyaki was not like the traditional ones from Japan since it was very dense; at first glance it looked like a mini donut with sauerkraut and smoked trout roe on top. The presentation of the Hot Karaage was fun with a huge chicken leg sticking out of the dish, reminding me of a hand reaching out of a grave on Halloween. I ended up taking this piece and there was meat at the opposite end of the claw, so don't waste this! The chicken oyster was small and didn't taste like much under all the foam. The Tuna Wellington was prepared perfectly; the puff pastry was flaky and crunchy and complemented the tuna baby bok choy, and shiitake inside very well, though each serving only provided half of the Wellington split in half. Chazuke was a nice end to the savory part of the meal with the same madai provided in the sashimi course. For dessert, I had the Hojicha Tiramisu and I thought it was the perfect end to the meal. I normally don't like tiramisu since I don't like coffee, but I love anything hojicha and this definitely had a strong hojicha flavor with all the hojicha powder generously sitting on top of the mascarpone-yogurt whip and honey cream. To drink I had a yuzu sparkling drink and it was light and refreshing without too much yuzu overpowering the drink. Overall, I was very impressed with my dining experience at TBD. The waiters explained each course upon delivery and kept checking in on the table. Some dishes fell a bit short but I still enjoyed my meal and would definitely come back. My only real critique is I wish the dining area was kept lit up so my food pictures would turn out better since the mini lamps on the table could only brighten up the table so much.

Chris H.

This is really an amazing hotspot right now. I loved every dish. Especially the tuna tataki which epitomized what the chef does exceptionally well. A certain harmony amongst the flavors that still allows the centerpiece to shine through. Super fresh fish. Limited as a result but whatever you get it's going to be great. The karage is really much more than a gimmick with the leg still on. The leg screams look at me, the balance of flavors with an amazing crispy flavor bomb encasing the chicken meat screams eat me... and put some of that house made hot sauce on me while you're at it. Will be back. In fact I'm making another reservation in a minute while I still can.