We got the Murasaki Set for $90…read more Food was great! My favorite were the appetizers that came with the set. The service was great. They sat us at the sushi counter at late notice. Definitely would come again! For the price, it's hard to beat!

Came here for lunch on Saturday at 1130 and it wasn't busy. It's located at warehouse looking…read morebuilding but inside was a cozy restaurant. The service was good and the food were amazing. We liked all the bites we had at sushi murasaki. Also the food came out at good pace as well. I highly recommend for date ideas and would love to come back!

Good as always. Expensive but some great beef tongue. Love the thick cut…read more Ask for red pepper flakes if you want to spice up your food.

Located inside the Mitsuwa Marketplace, Gyutan Tsukasa offers charcoal-grilled beef tongue at an…read moreaffordable price. Staff were friendly, and I got my food 10 minutes after ordering. There is plenty of seating in the food court for a quick sit down meal. I opted for the 12-piece Gyutan set, which cost around $35. They offer a generous portion of rice, served with their gyutan soup. Their pickled veggies were a nice palette cleanser. Onto the beef tongue, it was delicious. I wish the pieces were thicker slices. Whether they give portions by weight or just pieces, it was disappointing when some pieces were drastically smaller than others. Flavors were pleasant with the beef tongue taste, but lacking a touch of salt. Overall, Gyutan was good! Would definitely come back to enjoy quality beef tongue. The meat was tender, and the meal was filling.

fiancé and i wanted a quick snack before meeting with friends and this was exactly what we needed!…read morefood: we tried 4 different yubus and they were all fresh, seasoned perfectly, and the soup was warm. you can ask for soy sauce but we knew from the first bite, we didn't need it. they offer more than just yubus (rice bowls, nigiri, etc) but we weren't super hungry. staff was friendly and welcoming! it was our first time so they helped us order on the kiosk. The menu on the kiosk has photos. dining area is clean, about 10 seats inside and 4 seats outside. restrooms are clean. would def recommend and we'll be back!

Absolute banger, already looking forward to our next visit. We ordered takeout, decided to be…read morepiggies and ate there. So glad we did because ended up ordering a few more! Our favorite was the seared salmon yubu but honestly... you can't go wrong, it's all good. The service and the staff were really friendly which made the experience very pleasant. Great job Yabuya!

This was our second visit and the location is excellent with large windows looking out over South…read moreCoast Plaza proper. It is located on the third floor of the Crystal Court next to Oliver Peoples and Nike. It has both inside seating and Outside ( which is really inside but an area exposed to the mall at large while the inside seating is a more enclosed and private room. You usually have your choice. The salads are excellent prepared. The service is impeccable and excellent you notice this right away. It has the demeanor of a very fine restaurant but seems to maintain a casual and comfortable atmosphere and ambiance. The sushi is served and exemplifies the great care and detail that is used to prepare every dish. Even Tempura which is very hard to arrange and present with any artful arrangement is delicately cooked - no hint of oils and always very fresh vegetables. The soup is something that is very difficult to excel at - how can you enhance a miso soup? They do - the taste exceeds expectations. We plan to return and explore the menu. Thank you Yoseph for an excellent experience.

We stopped by because the ramen shop had a crazy line. The space is beautiful with a spare, modern…read morefeel, tastefully decorated with light green chrysanthemums and small contrasting flowers. It's a bit more upscale than my usual lunch spots, but overall I'm glad I went. It was quiet with a beautiful view of trees, birds, and people. The service was friendly and attentive. And the food was more authentic than I expected. I ordered the tempura bento. The sesame dressing salad was standard for a Japanese restaurant, accented with raspberries. The miso soup was also pretty good, with tofu, shiitake, and daikon cut into tiny pieces. I was pleasantly surprised to find a sprinkling of furikake seasoning over the rice, and happy to find cucumber pickles and hijiki (black seaweed) with finely shredded carrot. The ensemble tells me that the people running Hamamori care about Japanese food, which is not typical for sushi restaurants. The set came with spicy tuna roll, which was delicious, accented with avocado. The tempura included asparagus, eggplant, shrimp, lotus root, sweet potato, and kabocha. The tempura was nice and crisp, if slightly doughy. My tempura came with salt rather than dipping sauce, as one might find in some tempura shops in Japan. (My mom's came with dipping sauce, but she said that the sauce did not add much. Although she did eat all of the tempura, my mom thought that the eggplant skin was too thick and the lotus root was undercooked.) My mom ordered nabeyaki udon, which came with nearly the same tempura I had. The udon noodles were fresh, but slippery. My mom thought the broth was a little flat, and did not taste like it was simmered with bones or something else that gave it depth. (To be fair, she was comparing the broth with her mom's. And this is a sushi shop, not an udon shop.) My spouse and I thought the broth was fine. And my mom ate most of her food. My spouse enjoyed his plain soba. When I first saw Hamamori a few years ago I didn't think I would ever visit because the prices exceeded what I would normally spend. The lunch specials we ordered today were more reasonable (under $30). Someday I might try the more expensive prix fixe lunch special ($50+) for a very special occasion.

Special omakase experience at 「Hana re」…read more The multi-course omakase meal is seafood-centric, with just one meat dish (A5 wagyu). It is a wonderful culinary journey being able to see Chef Yokohama meticulously put the final touches of all the dishes in front of us so definitely recommend the sushi bar (chef's table) seats. The omakase starts at $250+ per person, and the menu varies depending on season and available fresh ingredients. I've been to multiple omakase places in OC and sometimes the chefs seem reluctant to socialize, other than simply explaining the dishes. Chef Yokohama stood out because he is professional and yet friendly, making this omakase meal engaging and enjoyable. I lucked out and was treated to this delicious meal by a friend. :) But, if I had to make a comment about the value, this omakase is probably on the pricier end. The high-end ingredients definitely commanded the price tag. However, I think a "shime" (締め) dish after the round of sushi, like a mini rice with pickles or small side dishes or noodle bowl would be a better signal to end the meal. It was a bit "abrupt" going from sushi straight to dessert. Overall, can't complain being treated to such a nice meal here. Thumbs up for quality, presentation and service.

My husband got us reservations here for our 20th wedding anniversary and it really was something…read morespecial. It takes about a month to get a booking btw. It is omakase - so keep that in mind when considering cost ($250pp) plus anything additional if you want to order alcohol - our bottle of sake was great - as well as tip. We had a midweek 5p reservation and showed up early as we do. It's located in such a weird spot, the Anti Lab, and has no markings on the exterior. Thankfully google maps shows the exact location and their health rating on the window shows the name haha. We got to shop a bit though before they unlocked the door right at 5. Inside is so cute, and smaller than expected. Just about 3-4 table tops, and then the 8 seat counter, where we sat. We were the only guests for our whole 2 hour meal! It was weird but also great because we got to know the waitress/hostess and chef. I asked if they allowed photos which they did, but honestly I only took a few because I wanted to be in the experience. And it was awesome. So many dishes I lost count, and he would adjust when he saw we really liked a certain piece of fish. I honestly got full and the husband was happy since he got to eat my pieces until I recovered. Each dish was delicate and intricate - from the ingredients to the dishware even! It was a great way to celebrate our milestone anniversary.

Great sushi and even better quality fish. I was on a date and was talked into trying sashimi, and…read moreI'm so glad I did because the fish was incredibly fresh. The rolls were amazing too. I wish I had more photos than just the menu, but what's a girl to do on a third date? You can't exactly stop to photograph every plate. I'll definitely be back!

Budget-friendly Omakase, but not quite what I hoped for…read more My friend and I were looking for a budget-friendly omakase in Orange County on a whim during this heat wave, and found Sushi Shaka because they don't require reservations. It's a quaint, casual sushi spot with booths and a sushi bar -- definitely nothing fancy, but cozy and laid-back. While we waited, my friend ordered shishito peppers. I had one when I arrived, and somehow every single one was spicy! We ended up ordering edamame to help with the heat. We all ordered the 10-piece omakase for $65, which is a reasonable price for Orange County. I was hoping for more of a traditional omakase experience, with each piece served individually, but all 10 pieces came out at once. The server did explain each piece, which I appreciated, although it was hard to remember all 10 descriptions at once. The sushi itself was just okay. I was not particularly impressed with the fish quality, and the pieces were warmer than I personally prefer. I know sushi is traditionally served around room temperature, but I would have enjoyed it more if it had been slightly chilled. The service was excellent -- friendly, attentive, and not overly busy during our visit. We also enjoyed some cold sake, which was especially refreshing on a hot afternoon. Parking was the biggest challenge. The shopping center is very popular, and finding a spot on a busy Friday afternoon was tough. Overall, I'm glad we tried it, and $65 for 10 pieces is a decent price. But if you're looking for a more traditional omakase experience or standout sushi quality, I'd probably keep exploring. I will not be returning.

This is my new ramen spot! Ordered my ramen with wood ear mushrooms and corn. My boyfriend ordered…read morethe spicy ramen and said it was extra spicy. He was sweating! Gyoza was really good too. Ordered gyoza, 1 beer, 2 ramen bowls with extra wood ear mushrooms, corn, spring onions. Total was $76. Felt it was a bit expensive for what we ordered from all the add ons. But it was worth it

Fast and friendly service. The thin noodles were very nice and bouncy, just how i like them. Great…read moretexture. The koku broth was rich and flavorful. Added spicy spice in the tonkotsu which was good and spicy. Indigo cow ice cream was pretty solid but some areas were a little icey. But flavor was very milky. Chocolate wall was the perfect add on to balance the flavors. Ambiance is nice and spacious with plenty of seating when we got there. Plenty of parking which is also great.

This place is a gem. Reservations only!! Dont go without a reservation!!…read more Small space inside. But i think this allows them to keep better quality control for their food. Service was wonderful and the food was bery fresh and delicious. Glad we found this place and will be coming back.

Honestly, I don't understand why this place is so popular or has such a high rating…read more We came here on Saturday night, August 31st, because we had heard so many good things about this restaurant. Unfortunately, the experience was a major disappointment. The service was technically fine, but the attitude of the servers was very average. There wasn't much warmth or friendliness, and overall it just didn't feel welcoming. As for the food, honestly, almost nothing we ordered was good. The Tako Wasa was especially disappointing. We've had Tako Wasa many times before, but this was completely different from what we expected. It didn't even taste like the same dish we were familiar with. We also ordered some fried items, including the black pork tonkatsu, which we saw recommended online. Unfortunately, it was extremely bland. Even the fried coating seemed to have almost no seasoning, making the whole dish very boring. The yakitori was another disappointment. The meat had a noticeable gamey/fishy smell, which made it difficult to enjoy. Out of everything we ordered, the only things we actually enjoyed were the clam soup and the cut roll. Overall, I really don't understand the hype. The restaurant being reservation-only makes it seem like it's supposed to be a special dining experience, but in my opinion, the food simply doesn't justify it. For us, it was absolutely not worth the effort or the price. If I had to choose again, I would much rather go to Honda Ya or Habuya. Both are better choices in my opinion. Very disappointing experience, especially considering how highly rated this place is.