Everything at Yoshi's is wonderful EXCEPT for the food. It's time to update your DINING ROOM menu. It's very boring and so outdated. I attend shows on a regular basis and I enjoy everything except for the food!!! Do better Yoshi's. It's time! read more

My husband and I went last night to see Musiq Soulchild. First off, he was AMAZING (from what I could hear). So that was the only good part. We ordered 2 drinks and were charged $40, but the menu price stated $14 for each drink... That doesn't add up to $40! It was our first time here so we weren't aware of "the rules" if you dine you get a reserved table. We got there and it was so jam packed, we asked for a table and got sent away up the stairs.. no room to walk everybody packed together, it was horrible. We got a table with another couple and couldn't even scoot our chairs back half an inch because it would bump the person next to us. Safe to say we won't be back! The money we paid was not worth it. This experience was horrible! Won't be returning! read more

I am a loyal Yoshie's fan Love the ambiance amd warm atmosphere here. The food is wonderful Yet the last two experiences I have had during the concerts were horrible!! The waitress and waiter were lazy!!!! I have never in my 15 years sat with a full table of dirty dishes. When I asked them both on two separate occasions to clean the table they instead brought the check without cleaning the table. What a drastic decline in their customer services It's so sad to add gratuity to someone who literally did little to no work at all. I'm not going to stop coming yet I will eat at the rest and never order food while watching the entertainment again Do better at hiring good help. As of lately it's deplorable. Dr Constance Cooper The two concerts were Rather Devaugn And Terrance Martin Two different people same disgusting service!!!! read more

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Yoshi's jazz club is the place to go for good eats and entertainment. I have been there a few times for different venues of classic rock, jazz and other music. Will continue be checking on their venue schedule and booking more shows in the future. read more

Gotta go, entertainment is always good and food and appetizers are great too. An Oakland gem! Especially if you like live music!

Went there for a jazz concert, the jazz venue is comfortable and intimate. Better than blue note New York! I only ordered desert and drinks. The sorbet due was good with many berries! The edamame portion is pretty big too. What surprised me is the food volume/quality vs. price was reasonable! read more

Yoshi's - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

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The waitress was so bad. There were only three of us. When we asked and ordered, she didn't give us good advice. She didn't even remind us of the portion size read more

Yoshi! I dig it! The ambiance is totally cute, romantic, date-kinda place. I'm glad i wore socks, because we had to remove our shoes and sit cross legged on the mats. I don't like toes, or people looking at my feet. They freak me out. lol I dated a guy named Jason a few years ago that was really into feet, I just don't get it. Anyway..... The service moved at a glacial pace. The food took a long time to come out...Almost annoyingly so. I ordered Sashimi and I didn't think it takes that long to cut some fish and put it on a plate, but apparently it does. Good thing there had some awesome Red Rocket Beer! I ordered the High Note sushi set $30: Sashimi was thickly cut, and pretty standard. It wasn't amazing, but it was solid. The hamachi was kinda stringy and cut kinda strangely which was disappointing cause hamachi is my favorite. 3.5 stars http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=-cqxNep8S8faBCaAm5unSA Comes with an assorted nigiri as well. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=v8O4ONUHmDlThmlLJ0EdmA Kariage Shrimp fritters $13: These were awesome! Fried fritters filled with shrimp and crispy potatoes! It came with seasonings and salts to dip with on the side. It was delicious! 5 stars! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=tMbtrYFFQNXwMGKiUo7WZg American Wagyu Top Sirloin with a side of White beans and corn $32: This was my favorite dish of the night! The meat was tender and juicy, cooked to perfection with a savory sweet asian. The white beans and carrots came sauteed in garlic and olive oil. Quite tasty. 5 stars! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=j0fKnJ6VVCXYVVo_nufQOw Dishes that weren't very good: Miso marinated salmon $28- meh forgettable. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=SLMTF7q7VVndhxKn7C1tvA Organic chicken $18? BLAAANNNDDD :( http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=UoPUVAvnsE4UipY8-N7iFg Spicy Dragon roll $14: Meh waste of calories. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=C73CsXfiR_MpgUlMdk0RVg Spider Rol $12l: Gross http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/zbRDS3sABX_kcnLHbg8doA?select=CnqR2PEeIQhM8xJMf7PGRQ Overall I would give this place a 3.5, but I bumped it up because I really thought it was a cute venue, and on the other side they have a jazz bar, where they have a show that you can buy tickets to go see. It was a bit expensive, but every now and again it could be quite a cute date place or something special. read more

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This is our go to for date night, especially when there is a good artist performing. This trip, we had the pleasure of seeing Kenny G. Awesome night of food and entertainment read more

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We had an amazing time at our birthday dinner for our friend. We got a last minute reservation an hour before we got there and I'm so happy we did! The food was incredible and generously portioned, the ambiance was great too. The entire staff was approachable and hospitable. Our server Nic( or Nick?)was so attentive, kind, and made our experience comfortable. It was our first time at Yoshi's but we will definitely be coming back and asking for Nic again! Thank you so much, Yoshi's! read more

Yoshi's - Please try this Yuzu Crème Brûlée!!! I was too full but couldn't stop eating because it is delicious! :,) - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

As you enter Yoshi's, the Jazz House is on the left and a large upscale Japanese restaurant is on the right. Note that performance venue and the restaurant are in the separate rooms, so if you are eating at the restaurant, you will not hear the Jazz performance. You could enjoy just the restaurant or go there just for the performance, but I recommend eating dinner and going to the performance afterwards. RESTAURANT: After reading numerous negative reviews on Yelp, I came here prepared for the worst. It turns out that the food was not horrible; however, it was not impressive. What made up for it were the nice atmosphere (huge restaurant) and the show afterwards. Our Japanese waitress recommended Big Eye Maguro ($22), which was a lightly grilled tuna with shiso ratatouille. It was good, but not something I would want to try again. Big Band Nigiri Sushi combination ($23) was not as bad as I expected, but 'neta' was the usual lineup (salmon, tuna, cooked shrimp, hirame, white tuna, ikura, and hamachi) and taste of their sushi rice was mediocre. JAZZ HOUSE: Wow, $10/person plus $1 service charge is a great deal for such a wonderful night out. Of course, I ended up spending $90/two at the restaurant, but I felt that the entire experience was excellent. While I am no Jazz expert, music was great and the venue had excellent sound control. Since many of the tables are for 4 people, if you go as a couple, you will likely share a table with a stranger, which was not an issue at all. Drinks are $5-10. While the Jazz House bar offers some light food items (like Okonomiyaki), atmosphere was good for drinks but not to chow down, so I was glad we ate a full meal at the restaurant first. TIPS: Order show tickets on the phone ($1 service charge), oppose to On-line purchase (much higher service charge). There are usually two performances per night. I recommend later show so that you could eat at the restaurant first. Show your tickets to the server and he/she will reserve the seats at the show. This is the only way to reserve seats, since there are normally no reserved seats. I look forward to their new location on Fillmore Street. 5 Stars - Jazz House. 3 Stars - Japanese Restaurant. 5 Stars - Overall combination. read more

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Intimate, classy, a small venue, these adjectives would be the first words that come to mind when describing Yoshi's. Other venues just don't compare when it comes to sitting close to the entertainment/shows, and there are no bad seats in the house. There's plenty of positive things to say about Yoshi's. The food is decent. The service is good for the most part. Usually there's at least one show every other month that I want to buy tickets for. The Food: Halibut cheeks: these little appetizers were delicious, tender pieces of fish. So good we ordered a second order. Nigiri set: decent nigiri but on the pricy side for sure. Specialty rolls: my humble a opinion is I prefer to stay clear of these because many of them have mayo slathered on top which isn't right on sushi. But if you like mayo on your specialty rolls then it's great. Drinks: my wife likes the Honey Suckle Martini. She orders it every time we come to Yoshi's. The bad: if I were to nitpick on anything, because it's such a small venue it can get cramp in the seating which can be uncomfortable. Overall however there is no venue better for a show. Excellent location in Jack London, even better that I live two blocks away. read more

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- Check in with Yelp to get free edimame beans + - Ordered Snow monkey (Snow crab, tempura, torched salmon, tobiko, spicy sauce) ++ - Ordered fried chicken (happy hour) + - Beer on happy hour - Stella on tap Maybe I'll give it another try. read more

Yoshi's - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

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Oakland Restaurant Week is what prompted us to revisit Yoshi's Oakland. We have always enjoyed Yoshi's, but it's been quite some time since our last visit. Our last time was when Mr. M's mom was in town and we wanted to take her for some Japanese food that's a little different than she can find in Fresno. All of the service was excellent. Our server Justine was super sweet and helpful. As were all the other folks who came to our table bringing food or removing dishes. We looked over the Restaurant Week menu, but in the end, the items on the regular menu tempted us away. Whoever heard of ordering seafood risotto in a Japanese restaurant? Not us, but the description sounded wonderful and Justine vouched for it. So that's what Mr. M (somewhat of a snob, especially with Japanese food) ordered. He loved it. He cleaned his plate quickly and wished for more. It seemed like a substantial portion, so I asked him if he was still hungry. "No. I just want more." The kids' meals were amazing. There was only one option, but it had a little of everything: Miso soup, soba noodles, teriyaki chicken, rice and fresh berries. Really wonderful. I had the black cod, which was also delicious. After ordering dessert, a gooey caramel cake and ice cream concoction, Mr. M ran across the street to grab some "groceries" at BevMo before they closed. The dessert came quickly, which really tested our devotion to Mr. M. We each tried a small bite. It was amazing... so ono. And then texted Mr. M to hurry up. Then we sat and stared at it until he returned. Watching the ice cream start to melt... Thankfully, Mr. M quickly returned and we devoured the remainder of the indulgence. In summary, our dining experience was excellent. As always. read more

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Very cool ambiance, delicious food and friendly staff. Was there for a concert and had dinner prior. The gentleman at the will call was most helpful, kind and friendly. Didn't get his name (curly hair). Will definitely dine here again. The place is packed as it's pretty popular it appears. read more

Update: Jan 20, 2009. I've attended 100's of Yoshi Jazz shows. I've eaten here at least 50 times. It's convenient to do so. Well, the food from the Kitchen has improved! The Steak House American menu is gone. Sushi, Sashimi, and those combo rolls are back. Thank you! Bambie & I had 4 courses of mostly very good fish, grilled vegetables, hearty miso soup, and nutty flavored, perfectly cooked brown rice. I was happy with the flavors. I HATE the new seating reservations system for the jazz club The $11 convenience charge to buy tickets on-line is ridiculous. Who's wicked and mis-guided idea was that? Fire that person. read more

Whenever my boyfriend is in town (or whenever I'm in LA), there are usually 3 things we try to do - (1) eat dim sum, (2) walk/ride public transportation to our destination, or (3) eat Japanese. It was his last night and I was just hours in taking him to the airport so I was feeling a bit sad. So what better way for him to try to cheer me up by going to eat Japanese. We were walking around Jack London Square and saw this place. We haven't had Japanese for a while and we've never been to this establishment, so we went ahead and gave it a shot. My first impression was that it gave a nice ambiance and the venue was nicely decorated. Since it was Monday night and we were there for an early dinner (around 6:30pm), we were seated right away. We were also asked if we wanted to eat "with or without shoes on." Naturally, my boyfriend chose "without shoes." He's a big fan of those "sunken" chairs (I don't know the proper term). We ordered the Tempura Roll, Yoshi Roll, and shared a plate of Shrimp Tempura with a side of Brown Rice. The rolls were decent. In fact, it was a little bland. The tempura was served with a creamy sauce rather than the typical tempura sauce. The creamy sauce was alright, but I'll take the tempura sauce any day. Last, the brown rice was dry. In retrospect, the food was nothing that left me wanting more. I didn't get the "Wow, I need to come back here" effect. Last but not least, this place is not for my "penny-pinching" Yelpers. It was expensive (rolls cost twice as much as other places) so if you're watching your food budget (like myself), I would deter from this place. However, I did learn that this place offers a great venue for jazz music, but I don't think I'll come back to see one... at least not with an expensive food bill. read more

Yoshi's - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

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I love Yoshi's and I love the music, what I don't love is the service in the club! If you eat in the restaurant, order a bottle of wine, take it to the show in the night club, you will not get served!!! Three visits in a row, asked for water, one visit asked for a glass of wine, but, because I /we had a bottle from dinner we were ignored! My last visit was Jon B, there was one server/man, serving the booth section was Fantastic!!! We watched him bring (3 times) tall glasses of ice water with straws, to every booth, they received drinks and food quickly, I was so impressed, I gave him a tip even though he was not our server, the rude woman who served our section (right above the booths) I left a note, "you could of received a 5.00 tip for just bringing us a glass of water, here's your tip..Shame On You"! She asked 3 times if she could bring us anything and 3 times we requested, Water! Now my question to Yoshi's club, do you train your servers to not serve guest from the restaurant? read more

I always wanted to see some form of musical entertainment at this Yoshi's years back, but somehow never seem to get there. Well, on the evening of March 17, 2015, my husband and I finally made it into this venue for a performance by a group of some extraordinary high school and middle school students (under the tutelage of Ms. Helena Jack) known as the Oakland Eastside All Star Ensemble. It was an awesome performance in an awesome venue. The ambiance is intimate and very comfortable. It is a perfect venue for a date with the ladies and/or one's significant other - dinner and jazz under one roof! A yelp check-in brought us a bowl of edamame. My husband didn't like them, which was fine with me...more for me and it was a healthy snack...ha! Marlon B., our server, was cordial, helpful and a very nice gentleman. I have to admit he was pretty busy in the area where we were sitting and a consummate professional in handling all of us patrons. The food was pricey, yet quite enjoyable. The cocktails were wonderful, especially my ginger blossom (ginger beer, cherry juice, lemon and a dash of bitters). I should have ordered another one. They must have done the margarita right; husband had two Mambo margaritas. (If the margarita wasn't any good, he would have said something or offered up a constructive criticism.) All I can say is whatever was in that mambo margarita, it left him feelin' good, as he got up and started "mamboin' and/or partyin' to the sounds of Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and the Parliament. I started to give Yoshi's a four star rating. Then the thought of my giving Capone Speakeasy a four star rating last year convinced me to give Yoshi's a top of the line rating...5 stars for a better sound system, better service, better food, and overall, a better atmosphere with one of my favorite music genres - jazz. Finally, domo arigato to the lovely owner of Yoshi's, Ms. Yoshie Akiba, for having a top notch venue for dinner and mellow jazz. read more

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Came last night with my sweetie & got a FREE edamame appetizer just for Yelp check-in! Great way to start dinner with a glass of red house zin (very good). BF had the spicy geisha, very good and I had the pan seared peppered Maguru salad with arugula, feta, tomatoes and a wonderful wasabi vinigarette. Great presentation and it got me full. Then we saw Leon Russell after dinner. If you eat there, then they get you the best seats possible for the show. The show was awesome but I have to take away a star for the seats. They suck really bad. Everyone slides off of them because they are a very slippery vinyl and people like me with short legs have a hard time doing a balancing act to stay on them since they are high barstools. Everyone was complaining about them and I remember having this same problem last time I was there. Other than that, I had a good time. read more

Yoshi's - Pan Seared Peppered Maguro Salad - Delicious! - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

Cannot express how happy to be able to dine at this amazing place again. Just reopened two weeks ago and we were invited to come over and enjoy this incredible Japanese jazzy place again. We have been a fan since the late 80s when located on Clermont Avenue in Berkeley. So many memories and amazing cuisine. Staff is extremely attentive to make sure you are being taking care. Food is consistently delicious. Best sushi and incredible service. I wanna specially thank the manager Ryan and Server Robert and this great soul of my Hal Santos for making my evening so enjoyable . I do recommend this fantastic restaurant to all who wish an incredible evening out. Well done guys. Never disappointed. Can wait to go back!!! read more

This is a review for the Kim Waters show. Kim played for one hour. Started 15 min late with warmups and sound issues. He's good but disrespected his fans after paying $40 bucks a pop. I really didn't like Yoshi's requiring a minimum tip of 18% for average service. read more

This is the best place in the area to hear both local and touring acts from other major cities. The other amenities other than the music, the staff, cuisine, and beverages are all tops. Can't go wrong, choosing to visit Yoshi's for an evening of Music. Can't wait to come home and see another show there. read more

Ok, this is not a review of the food. We had sushi and sashimi at our table during the show, Robert Kray. It was fine. The problem was that we had general admission tix. Now, I'm fine with being in the back of a venue like that, away from the performers. But I have to be able to SEE them. I mean that's part of the performance experience, right? Instead we were seated in the back toward the right of the stage at a low table. In front of us were reserved seats, with bar-type of seats so that the people in front of us towered above us. I couldn't see the performers at all. All I could see were the backs of the people sitting in front of us. I felt I was ripped off. There was no warning that certain seats had no view of the performers. Considering, with fees, I'd spent more than $200 for these two seats, I expected at least a distant view of them. No. Finally, I complained to the ticket checker at the entrance that I felt ripped off, and he let us sit at an unused table toward the front for the last 20 minutes of the show. It was something at least. I think that Yoshi's should be compelled to disclose that some seats have NO VIEW AT ALL. Anyway, I'm not saying stay away. Just do your homework on seat locations and pay extra for a reserved front seat. Don't get stuck like we did paying $200 to view the back of a big person in front of us sitting on a seat at least 8 inches taller than our seats. read more

This review is based from the ambiance, drinks, and apppetizers. Shinmai was way too crowded so my friends decided to come here. This was also my first time at Yoshi's. First impression, they are crowded. However, I don't think it interfered with their service. We sat at the bar for a little bit and got seated pretty fast. We only wanted to do drinks and appetizers. Therefore, we told our waiter and asked for recommendations. Our waiter was very friendly. He took the time to explain and took the liberty to recommend some items for us (in case if we were interested). We ended up ordering a drink for each person and 4 appetizers. We got agedashi tofu, tuna tartare, 2 beef skewer items. Aegdashi tofu was just normal. Tasted like how I expected to be. Tuna Tartare - This was one of my personal faves. The Tuna tasted fresh and it came with avocado and cucumber with wonton chips. Talk about a nice blend! You get carbs, fibers, and protein. Skewers - They were also very tasty. It's not a lot but enough to want more. Next time, I'm coming back for lunch or dinner. I wanna try more than just appetizers and drinks. read more

First time at Yoshi's and it was a great experience. Good drinks and we had the Oakland A's roll...it was delicious. I'm looking forward to my next visit. read more

5 stars for the ambience and show. 2 stars for the sushi. No one comes for the food though lol

Fantastic, unique, fun & funky venue with a huge variety of EXCELLENT MUSIC!! The restaurant is pricey but has good, interesting food & drinks. Service is reliably good too. Definitely a perfect date night & special place to have fun with friends. read more

We came to Yoshi's for dinner and to see Jon B live last Saturday night, Mothers Day eve. Service was excellent. Food was ok, a little over priced for the quality. The sushi roll we had was very good, it was called Snow Monkey. We had fried oysters, I wasn't as big of a fan of those as I like mine chewy and well done basically. The calamari was good, kind of like the beer batter style. Once inside watching the show we also ordered this certain type of fried chicken fingers with a sweet marinade on it. They were pretty good. We'll come back for sure. read more

Yoshi's - Pablo oysters - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

If you love live music together with fine food, then Yoshi's in Oakland is the place to go. This place is close to the harbor, so parking and walking are very do able. This was jazz night for us, so we decided to secure dinner first and then a show. It was so easy, because management went ahead and secure nice seats for us once our reservations were made. I was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was; especially the variety of sushi Fresh and lovely grades . The entertainment was top notch as well. This can be an ideal setup for a celebration of any sort with groups or for 2. The range of performers is quite varied as well. read more

Yoshi's - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

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My spouse and I came last night to see Euge Groove. The show was amazing. We purchase tickets 2 months prior to the show in person. We were in line for dinner @ 5:30pm. Dinner and drinks were great. Service was wonderful as well. I kept inquiring about our seating with the front desk and our server. Tables all around us were given their seating locations prior to us even though we were the first in our area to be seated. So to make long story short we were given seats that were not my choice or what I thought we should have received. What a big disappointment. We were there 2 and a half hour prior to the show so that it not happen and it did!!! I was not happy with my seats for the show. read more

Ambiance is nice and all. Was there only for the food not any of the music or comedy shows that night. The food is just very over priced for what is it. Bathrooms are clean which is great but all and all it's not that worth it for what you spend. The beef carpaccio is good. The kids meal are really big portion :) read more

We arrived at 9:05 pm for 10 pm show and had dinner and asked to have 2 reserved seats for the show. The host said we were 5 minutes too late even though the 8 pm show had not concluded... meaning the new reserved tags on the 10 pm show could not have been yet placed. Asked to speak to mgr. Nashtansa? who was rude, unaccommadating and attitudy for otherwise long time customers. We may not come back. Up your service/hospitality game! read more

I love Yoshi's. Always here for a great show some food. Even with no show, it's a good spot to sit and have small plates and a drink.

This world is a better place because of Yoshi's. My favorite place in the whole wide world. It's classy, it's fun, it's got character, it's filled with love always Yoshis read more

We came to Yoshi's for a good show and great cocktails! The sushi is far too pricey for my wallet and my taste buds! So we skipped dinner and just hung out at the bar before our show. The ambiance is superb and I'm sure so is their sushi. During the show, we ordered appetizers and drinks. The garlic fries and Peach Sake were pretty tasty! Thanks Yoshi's for a classy fabulous time! We enjoyed our experience to the max. read more

Yoshi's - Jazz Lounge - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

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We had a wonderful evening at Yoshi's! First, we went to dinner at Yoshi's. I ordered the Halibut Cheeks (tempura) and a spider roll. It was very well seasoned and very good. I also had a taste of the soba noodles with seaweed salad which was probably the best soba noodles that I've tasted thus far. My friends ordered the pork chop which they said was really good! Second, the service was also amazing. Dave, was attentive to our needs, he articulated his answers well regarding any of our inquiries and he had a very pleasant personality. Definitely a huge plus. After dinner we watched Keiko Matsui's final performance during her U.S. tour. Wow...phenomenal!!! Over all great ambiance, food, performance and evening! read more

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This a really nice elegant restaurant. This was my 1st time eating here. All the food was delicious. Drinks was great. All is worth the money. Loving the ambiance and great customer service. I highly recommend this place. read more

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The food and service were both incredible. I really enjoyed the plum wine and it even came with a plum in the bottom of the glass! Excellent night and place! read more

I love the intimate setting of this venue. Great place to see your favorite performers. Restaurant inside is Japanese. Good sushi, tempura....full bar too....dinner and a show, bonus! Parking garage right next door. read more