Very close to Central Park and some important musuems. This restaurant was great and reasonable. Thank you.

Here's the deal: Tenzan has had a C rating on the NYC Health ratings for a little while, with some 31 violations. They still have a "Grade Pending" sign in their front window. I can understand a business owner being scared about this kind of rating but, dude! You serve sushi and you have a C rating and you don't post it. Not Cool. read more

They're doable when it comes to their regular sushi rolls, but I am so disgusted by the $5.50 per piece Uni. It looked dry and I was already wary, but opted to eat it anyway cause.. starving, duh. Well.. GROSS. NOT FRESH. And I had two pieces to make matters worse. If you've ever had bad Uni (literally Uni gone bad), then you'll know what I'm talking about. I can't believe I let myself eat the second one to see if it was just one piece, or both. I treated myself to two sushi rolls and two sewage water sushis today. Yay.. hope I don't poop my brains out later. read more

Blech! This place is pretty awful. Don't be fooled by the decor. The cuts of sashimi were way too thick. With some pieces, I felt like I was eating rubber. The tuna also seemed still frozen. The shumai are easily recognizable to anybody who's patronized an Asian market: they're from the frozen food aisle and completely unacceptable. read more

Been here couple of times, live right across the street. Excellent food, very fresh, very tasty. Nothing special, nothing that blows your mind - but that's not the point/purpose of this more vanilla, down-to-earth Japanese place that doesn't try to be a Masa/Gari/Nobu. It's all about the simple, regular food here that's fresh and reasonably priced. Hits the spot whether you want a cooked dish, sushi & sashimi combo, or one of their special rolls. Rightfully so, it gets quite busy on most Friday/Saturday nights and it gets hard to get a table, but if you're a small group you can always just sit at the counter. Either way, they take reservations and seat you quickly. You don't get an 'experience' at the counter i.e. Sushi Yasuda or the fancier Japanese places, but you get great food nonetheless. Highly recommend their sushi & sashimi combo that's more than filling if you're hungry, as well as most of their special rolls. Hand rolls are bit small and disappointing. Cooked dishes are excellent. All in all, perfect if what you're looking for is a regular, medium-priced Japanese meal, not something too special/unique. read more

This place can be summed up in one phrase: Not worth the money. Don't get me wrong. The food is great. The only problem is that it isn't worth $13.50 before tax for some tempura. But let's not forget, we need to order appetizers too which just adds more on to the price! read more

My boyfriend and I stumbled upon this place after having purchased tickets to the American Museum of Natural History (http://www.yelp.com/biz/american-museum-of-natural-history-new-york) and realizing that we probably needed some lunch before we invested three hours of our day into the museum. All I had for restaurant requirements was a place that had a lunch special and didn't seem touristy. Tenzan fit the bill! Friendly waitstaff greeted us and immediately seated us. The hot green tea was free (you have to ask for it), and we ordered the sushi lunch special ($12.50) and the chicken teriyaki lunch special ($9.50). Six pieces of fresh nigiri sushi (my favorite = toro that just melted away) and six California roll pieces with your choice of miso soup or salad was quite filling. And this chicken teriyaki just blew my mind. I was just expecting your run-of-the-mill, Americanized Japanese food, but instead, I got nice quality chicken breast with a light teriyaki sauce on a bed of sauteed onions. I couldn't stop eating the short-grained rice that came with it. Oh, and the miso soup? Executed perfectly: perpetually cloudy (unlike my homemade version where the soy just sinks to the bottom). The verdict: Tenzan is the word if you are hungry and need some energy before tackling the huge natural history museum nearby. What a pleasant surprise! read more

I have my favorite Japanese spots in terms of taste and ambiance, and Tenzan ranks up there but isn't as high as some of the finer places such as Bond Street or Morimoto. But when I'm hungover, or need a meal that will just hit the spot, I don't think there is a better place to do it. The specialty sushi rolls are amazing, the wait staff is super friendly, and there draft beers come out amazingly cold. Some of the food that I find pretty darn goood: - Red Lady Roll: Tempura on inside with spicy tuna - Special Dragon Roll: Tempura on inside with avocado and eel on outside - Spicy Tuna Roll: Not too spicy, just enough kick. - Tempura: Really cooked in an interesting way... crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. I'm becoming a regular... read more

I would definitely come back here. Located in the quaint UWS, I was pleased with the restaurant atmosphere upon walking in. After sitting down, my friend and I were handed a perfectly heated damp towel. The appetizers came out quick - the seaweed salad and oshinko were nothing special but always a safe starter. For 3 girls we ordered 3 rolls: Spicy Girl Roll, Dragon Roll, Red Lady Roll - DELICIOUS and aesthetically pleasing. Good eel on the Dragon, good amount of spice on the Spicy Girl, and a soybean wrap around the Red Lady roll to make it memorable. Loved it. If I go back again, I'm going to try to pair the right Sake w/ some sashimi. read more

So A-OK might just be the perfect description here. It is not amazing, but not bad, the service is kind of bad/awkward, but the portions are huge. All in all had a pretty good meal, not amazing for New York sushi, but if you are in UWS for some awful reason, you could do worse for dinner. read more

This was one of my favorite meals I've ever had in NYC, no doubt about it. I wanted sushi, and of course I always want it to be awesome (less than awesome raw ANYTHING just isn't worth the trouble.) We walked by Tenzan on the way back to the hotel, and it looked inviting. I liked the second floor booths that looked out over the street. I checked out some Yelp reviews when we got back to the hotel and thought it would be a good bet for dinner. We got a reservation immediately on a Saturday night, and were seated in the very second floor booth that I had my eye on from the street. Nice. The staff was very friendly and efficient, although our service was a bit slow upstairs. The sushi was very fresh and beautifully presented. My sushi deluxe platter was huge, and included a better-than-average starter salad. The dinnerware is attractive earthenware. The only downside to the second floor was the noise. It's a pretty tight space and when the loudest party on Earth took over the center tables, it was difficult to ignore them. But at that point I was so happy with the experience it didn't matter. In fact, I wish I was there right now. Yum. read more

This being the closest sushi restaurant from my apt., I am inclined to go here. After a dozen or so visits, I find that the sushi is not consistently good. Sometimes it is average, maybe a step up from supermarket sushi and other times, it's better. Went there in early fall, and the spicy tuna was warm and mushy. Sometimes the rolls fall apart too easily, too. The downstairs is a lot quieter and a nicer setting than the cramped, always loud upstairs. For an informal, everyday sushi place, it's okay. The factor of convenience for those who live in the west 70s around columbus ave. is a big plus. read more

Ok so the decor is a bit cheesy and the rolls were not very compact and properly rolled - however I have to say that was due to the vast amount of tuna, yellowtail and salmon that were in each of my maki. Personally I would have liked to taste slight more rice becuase if not I would have simply eaten sashimi... but overall good food. My friend order the Katsu and that was yummy. Also I was pleasantly surprised by the complimentary soup (choice of miso soup or salad) and even more surprised when they accidentally brought 2 soups instead of a soup and a salad, that they simply gave us an extra salad. Overall a nice place to catch up with a friend over sushi! read more

Finally, someone has heard my cries of TOO MUCH RICE every time I order maki rolls in this city. Tenzan is sushi the way it should be. ((My only criticism is that the spicy rolls should be spicier, but innocent bystanders who don't consider pain an integral part of a good meal should probably ignore me. I'm a bit of a masochist when it comes to spicy grub.)) Portions and presentations are good. The atmosphere is casual and bright. It should be noted that when we walked in, you could have heard a pin drop, but thankfully they read my mind and turned the music up a bit so we didn't have to whisper right after we were seated. Pretty healthy crowd for mid afternoon on Sunday. Good service as well. Wait time for the rolls was reasonable and the staff was courteous and friendly. Definitely the best of the UWS sushi I've yet to sample (especially since I've been too cheap to hit up Gari). read more

A few of my best friends have made this a regular Friday night place. Really fresh and delicious fish, plus some very unique rolls. We like the Salmon Special sushi/sashimi combo and always get the Spicy Girl roll. One friend ordered chicken teriyaki recently and it was a ton of food. I always share when I'm here so the price ends up being reasonable, but otherwise it would be slightly higher than my norm. Still, the quality is high, so I rarely notice. Definitely make a reservation, and I recommend sitting upstairs to avoid the crowd of people entering and trying to get seated. The service borders between very attentive and a little rushed. It's not the server's fault this place is so popular, just don't plan on a long leisurely meal. read more

I guess that there isn't much good sushi in the UWS, but I left this place with a bit of a stomach ache and a bad taste in my mouth. They gave an almost gross amount of spicy tuna that was leaking everywhere and impossible to eat with the tiny amount of rice. mind you: this is supposed to be sushi. And if you're going to overload on the fish, at least make sure it's good. The other roles (Philadelphia, shrimp avacado, and california) were fine, but the exterior rice was kind of mushy and sloppy, with the roe mushed kind of grossly into the rice. I wouldn't go again...for dinner at least Sushi Hana @ amsterdam between 82nd and 83rd is a billion times better. read more

Can't speak for the sushi but I had a really below average chicken dish here. Kind of slimy and undercooked. Also, I had to take a giant doo-doo immediately after eating this chicken and there was only one small bathroom on each floor. read more

I love this place. Fresh food, great service and good atmosphere. The tvs at the bar area are great. And theres a great bar selection. read more

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I love this spot for lunch specials. They have generous portions and their shumai is amazing, the best I have had in the upper West side so far, their rolls are very good, free tea is always nice. I didn't appreciate their tofu as the pieces are too big and flavorless but I go there anytime I crave shumai read more

Weh... so sad, prices were good, service was quick (for a super late night delivery) but sadly the sushi was a nono. I had a spicy salmon and spicy yellow tail roll, and also the avocado peanut. Spicy salmon and yellow tail are my go tos! I was craving them so badly that night, but what a bummer was it to have bland, not really spicy rolls (salmon was really mushy and soggy) But alas, there is a glimmer of hope! The avocado and peanut roll was suggested by the nice person I spoke to on the phone, and it was pretty good. Perhaps I will give Tenzan another shot and try some more veggie rolls... read more

Tenzan is standard industrial-sized sushi cut by Chinese proprietors. Real sushi chefs would roll over in their graves if confronted with the slabs of fish that this restaurant serves. Here, sushi is not an art -- it's a way of stuffing yourself. Recognizing Tenzan for what it is, the offerings are well priced and service is efficient. There are also fish specific entrees (salmon, tuna, or yellowtail) for those wanting to satisfy a certain craving. So, among Chinese-owned "sushi" restaurants, Tenzan delivers a fairly good product. read more

BEST SUSHI ON UWS! I got my food delivered and it came fresh and tasty each time. AMAZING rainbow roll, great spider roll, California roll and peanut avocado roll too I had sushi-gasims the whole time order the tempura cheese cake if you want a treat ;) read more

Been to Tenzan UWS on several occasions since I live close by. The atmosphere is probably the best part. I don't get cable so sometimes I just go to watch games at the bar. Nice big TV's and attentive service. Great prices for Japanese food in NYC and the food is above average. The sushi is more often a hit than a miss and the noodle soups are good portion size. I went once with a large group and the staff was very accommodating in moving around tables to sit us. I am not sure that I would travel far to go here, but if you're in the area, you could do a lot worse. read more

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I stumbled on this restaurant while I was waiting for a friend to meet me. Very open restaurant space with a sushi bar on one side and a bar just for drinks on the other. It was very fairly priced. I ordered a spicy tuna roll and udon. They gave me a kind of great side salad to start and the spicy tuna was a much bigger portion than I expected (which was awesome). The broth for the udon noodles was rich and flavorful. Service was super friendly and attentive without making me feel weird that I was enjoying a meal alone. read more

One could not find a better date restaurant on the Upper West Side. Located near Central Park, the Museum of Natural History, and all of the Upper West Side nightlife, this restaurant is worth the check. The service is very accommodating, and the fish is fresh and tasty. Definitely make a reservation, and request to sit upstairs to get away from the crowd. Feel free to try something new; each dish I have tried has satisfied. read more

There was so much wrong, that it was hard to decide where to begin. Decor: The walls are covered the same tile as the floors, adding up to a slightly dingy institutional feel. The lighting was too bright to create a sense of intimacy, but too dim to read the menu without aid of iphone flashlights. Service: The servers never seemed to remember what stage of the meal we were in, repeatedly reached across diners to clear extra items, in the middle of eating! They made no effort to answer questions. Once our food arrive we had to asked for every condiment, individually. Food: Bland. The ingredients of the udon seemed to have been thrown together minutes before arriving at the table. There was no seasoning whatsoever, except for the plain chicken broth. Everything was unceremoniously plated. Our salad arrived as a icey pile of bland greens, with a pad of some very thick unrecognizable dressing, and an enormous amount of shredded, tasteless carrot on top. The tempura was greasy and tasteless. Drink: None of the simple cocktails we ordered were made properly. The olives in the martini were so foul they couldn't be eaten. This place seemed to be one of the better ranked Japanese restaurants on the Upper West Side, but enough was wrong that I couldn't help but think our experience wasn't a fluke. Are Upper West Side restaurants just that bad? read more

Sushi is fresh and flavorful. Only complaint is that the booths in the downstairs room must've been made for BIG people - bench is so far from the table that both my husband (5'11", not so small!) and I had to sit near the edge to feel comfortably close enough to the table. read more

I was visiting my friend on 73rd St near the restaurant and we decided to try this place. We were hungry for Japanese. When I saw the restaurant, I knew that I would not have authentic Japanese. When I walked in, two sushi chefs in white were preparing behind the counter. We decided to try Sushi. We had four rolls - one tuna, yellowtail & scallion, eel & cucumber and spicy salmon. To my surprise that simple like just tuna was good. The fish was fresh enough that it worked even the rice portion in the roll was a bit less. I am talking about the balance. Other good roll was eel & cucumber. The cucumber were cut as strings and sweet creamy taste of eel worked nice. Other two rolls were least of my liking. They were both mushy and mixed with scallion or hot spice to disguise none freshness of fish. I could enjoy better if there were more rice in the rolls (Here again, I am talking about the balance). Each bite, the mushy fish came off from the roll. I liked the small salad came with. Threaded carrot on top and simple crunchy greens with carrot-ginger miso dressing. I wouldn't miss their Chinese-sushi from downtown. read more

Tenzan was a fabulous find and I look forward to going back! It's fun, nice but still casual, great sushi and great service. It's nice that there are different options for seating depending on what people want. There is a bar type area with Tv's as well as a more typical table area and there is also seating up above in a loft area. It's an easy and good dining experience for not a ton of money. read more

I have only done delivery with them - fresh fish, huge pieces of fish on sushi (great tuna), big sized portions of the cooked dishes (which are ok). Delivery man is always adorable, woman taking order over the phone always sounds stressed/distracted. But the sushi... Stick with the sushi, expensive but worth the price. read more

It's one of the few places to get good sushi on the upper west side. It's been a local favorite for years. The prices are reasonable, they deliver, and their dinning room is comfortable. Definitely should be the first place on your list if you want sushi on the UWS. read more

I've been a loyal Tenzan fan since it opened its doors on the UWS 5 years ago. When I moved to the UES, I was relieved to know they opened an East side location. Now that I've moved downtown, I would still rather take the train here than eat locally in FiDi. While I don't think it's the ultimate BEST sushi I've ever eaten (I'll always have a special place in my heart for Mickey's in Forest Hills), it is definitely consistently great, reasonably priced, great portion size and terrific service. The UWS location recently underwent renovations and it's really become a lovely restaurant for all occasions - date night or family dinner. (The upstairs, remnants of the original restaurant layout, is more intimate.) Their regular sushi rolls are excellent; their specialty rolls are all terrific; the maki combinations are a great value. The house salad, the seaweed salad and the pan-fried gyoza (veggie) are excellent. Their shrimp tempura roll is huge and fresh and comes with the delicious eel sauce. (Get the Special Dragon roll for an exaggerated version ... shrimp tempura wrapped in eel.) Rainbow rolls are so fresh and you can actually taste a differentiation in the fish. Highly recommend Tenzan! read more

Very satisfying sushi and sashimi. High quality food, and the price is right. The service was excellent too. We walked in and it wasn't very busy, but it got packed fast so I'd suggest to make reservations ahead of time if you're worried about not having a seat, but it should be fine. read more

Tenzan - Miso Soup & Crunchy Maki Combo - Sushi Bars Near Me - New York, New York

This review will be short: Up there with being some of the better sushi in New York City; food, decor, service A+. read more

I usually judge the quality of a sushi place based on their ability to make a spicy salmon handroll. Tenzan's had a lot of fish but could have been a little more spicy. I like to lose a few taste buds due to spice, but NYC doesn't really rock it out that way. AND they put more fish than rice in their rolls, which makes them extra yummy. Everything was really good and the prices are in line with other sushi places of poorer quality. So far my favorite sushi place on the UWS. read more

My sister and I went to Tenzan after an opera matinee - she's eaten there several times and loves the place. We got there an hour or so before the dinner rush, but I can't imagine there being much of a wait anyway. The place is huge. It's got 2 stories above ground, and at least one more seating area downstairs. I think each one has its own sushi bar, too, so I'd expect food service to be reasonably fast at any point in the day. We started out with miso soup and shumai. For the main course we got 4 different rolls: 2 press box (Hakozushi) rolls - one of them was called Toro, I forgot what the other one was called but it was riceless. I'd been hearing about press box sushi for a while and I was dying to try it. We ordered one specialty roll called the Pink Lady and a spicy, crunchy scallop roll. Lastly, we had green tea moochi for dessert. Now let's break it down. Miso soup did a lot of good on a cold evening. They didn't skimp on the seaweed or tofu either, like a lot of other places do. The shumai was (were?) good, too. They came with a mild mustard sauce that I've never tried before. It was a good contrast of flavor and added a unique touch to the appetizer. Our sushi was excellent all around, from flavor to presentation (note: apparently the owners of Tenzan operate a fish market in Chinatown and take the best of the catch for their restaurant). Everything tasted very fresh and the unique flavors of various fish/seafood really shone through among the other ingredients. The press box sushi was fantastic. This was the first time I ever tried Toro (the fatty belly of tuna) and I still don't think I could've found a better dish. It was topped with a small slice of roasted garlic that added a little extra something. The other box sushi was just layers of fish. I remember there being salmon, whitefish and tuna, but I don't remember what else. It held together well and was surprisingly easy to eat. The Pink Lady roll was interesting; shrimp tempura and mango wasn't something I'd normally wrap up in pink sushi paper, but it worked. My favorite by far was the spicy, crunchy scallop roll. I'm partial to scallops to begin with, but the natural sweet flavor of the scallop worked well with the spicy sauce, and its softness contrasted with the crunchy tempura in a good way. Finally, the moochi was moochi, same as it would be anywhere else. My only complaint was the service. We sat around for about 5 minutes before I had to ask for menus and water, and our waitress was a little slow and disorganized. However, I don't think that my experience was typical. They recently finished an expansion that roughly doubled Tenzan's original size. They might have been a little short staffed, our server was waiting on tables both on the floor above and the floor below us. After the appetizers she started trying hard to make sure that everything was out in a timely manner, but it took us a little while to get the check. The bottom line - I hope that they adjust to their new size soon, I'm definitely coming back here. read more

We elect to sit at the Sushi bar. Do as they do in Osaka and order a cold bottle of Sapparo beer to start. First up, one of Japan's humblest foods, a steaming hot bowl of Udon, the thick, chewy wheat flour noodle soup. This version contains shrimp, barely opaque and assorted garden fresh vegetables cooked al dente. The fragrant steam that emerges from the bowl is heavenly. It is accompanied with large tempura prawn cooked perfectly, crisp and golden brown. We ceremonially dip them in the accompanying sauce and delight on the start of our dinner. In their pristine white uniforms and caps, the sushi chefs perform a ballet of movement behind the impeccable counter displaying an array of fresh seafood. One chef slices Mackerel, Kanpachi and Salmon. Then without turning an eye, he gently grasps a handful of rice and manipulates into shape, a touch of wasabi is adorned on top and then the fish. Artfully arranged on the plate and chopsticks in hand we dig in. The is wickedly good food and we savor every bite. With beer consumed and a yen for wine we order up a bottle of Japans national alcoholic drink. What catches my eye on the list of Sake selections is an Organic one produced by Takare in Berkley, California. It make a great pairing with our sashimi. While Tenzan offers a fine selection of Sushi and Sashimi, one should not overlook the varied option of rolls. Dragon Roll is prepared with eel, cucumber, avocado and masago, a smelt roe. Sliced and fanned with overlapping pieces it beckons you to enjoy its noticeable flavors. A must have is the Tuna Tartare. It is presented in a cylindrical manner topped with fried, thinly slivered onions. The plate is lined with a creamy piquant mayonnaise complimenting the fish and creating a lively buzz on the palate. Additionally, another sauce with mild, subtle hints of red curry augments the dish. Venture to Tenzan and you will be rewarded with Umami at its best. read more

Please note, it's a first time I'm writing bad reviews after very uneasy experience with sushi at this place. When we walked out we felt bad that we actually paid for such a disaster. Bad, bad, and very bad rolls! Mushy and not fresh sushi. anyone without proper sushi making experience could make better rolls but let not dwell on visuals. Their crunchy rolls tastes the same and look the same. But most importantly salmon smelled bad... it was very off and definitely far from being fresh. like really bad... I pray that I will not end up in the ER tonight. read more

I typically come here during lunch break as they have an amazing lunch special-- a bento box is around $14/$15 which is a very fair price especially given the amount of food you get. Restaurant is very large -- 2 floors, and is always crowded during lunch time but given the large space, I never am waiting long for a table. Really great Japanese restaurant read more

First of all, the Upper West Side. The land is a sushi desert, nor does it generally impress with its lunch special offerings of any ethnicity's cuisine. Nor does the neighborhood blossom like a cherry tree with Asian influence. So when you think of combining the three, Tenzan is exactly what you should expect. Slightly worse than average: sushi (all), ginger/wasabi Average: prices, katsu, service Slightly better than average: shumai, portion size, decor, seating room, spring rolls It's fine. Really, it's fine. But if I go back, it's probably because someone really wants to go and I don't have a stronger opinion that day. read more