Just got out of the buffet. My grandmother and I came here before going to the beach and we were kinda excited. However the food was not as good as we thought. The meat that we tried(teriyaki, pork, steak) were either soft but tasteless or hard to chew ! Absolutely ridiculous. The only good thing here were probably the dumplings and the California rolls. Did buffet didn’t even have any kinda of bread to eat with the food. Also has less food choice.The price is way too expensive for a poorly made food. I do not advise to come here, not worth spending $60 for two in the end! Never coming here again.
Darian K
It has been many years since oir visit to this place. Well, glad to visit this place and dine in for the 1st time since the outbreak. The food quality has suffered a little but still enjoyable dining with others around us. Kids loved the food since they were getting tired of eating home.
Christian West
Food was delicious and fresh. Great selection. I recommend getting there early. There was a line before they opened, but they got everyone seated quickly... and definitely worth the wait.
A Google user
As of October 2021, Saturday dinner is $33, and $30 for seniors. The food is just as good as pre-Covid. Lots of roll variations. There are a variety of drinks for ~$2, look at the drink menu on the table. Dessert was surprisingly good (they're usually bad in buffets). Service was great. It was bustling at 6pm, but got quieter at 7pm. They close at 8:30pm. You can pay at the cashier by the door after you get your bill.
Edward Esparza
An awesome spot to fill up.Right off the 405 freeway in the beautiful Irvine, busy body district.Seafood for days, that's all Japanese cuisine.Often grilled but also served raw as sashimi or in sushi.A great spot for the fam to fill up and make memories.
Rory C.
Its been a long time since I've been to a buffet. They didn't have a big selection but everything was well made. They had lots of different sushi and nigiri to choose from. The value in sushi alone was amazing. Hot items included tempura, teri chicken, kalbi steak, salmon, ribs, decent salad bar and to order hand rolls and saimin/ramen. I didn't eat one bad thing. Lots of value and all items are high quality. The servers were friendly and kind. I love this place. I wish they had something similar on Kaua'i.
Eric K.
Considering the about $30 price, it's just enough to eat. Although there aren't many kinds of food, it looks relatively clean. It is recommended rather than the shabby buffet around.
Len C.
Like the Las Vegas Makino, the Irvine quality and extensive choices of Japanese food choices is spectacular but fortunately not as massively packed with long waits. If there is a food feast heaven, Makino is one of them. Great choices and great prices on weekdays. Custom made sushi and hand rolls are a definite favorite while you wait. Also custom made noodle soups from regular ramen to udon soups in miso, sou sauce, and white creamy pork tonkatsu are excellent. Desserts are beautifully made like the vast variety of sushi and FRESH (emphasis added) sashimi and are incredibly good and of high quality. Makino is a must visit chain that is popular for a reason. It brings back fond memories of the former Todai Japanese buffet chain, but the quality here is definitely superior.
luismP9508AJ
Be extremely carefull, please. I ordered yesterday night and sushi smelled so bad that we put it on the bin. This is a health concern, please be carefull with this place.
Amalia P.
Spectacular experience at this little all you can eat spot. Sushi, ramen, seafood, meat assortments, salad bar, and dessert! There is so much variety it's honestly difficult to choose what you want to eat. The sushi tasted really fresh and the spicy miso ramen soup was one of my favorite dishes, simply because I was so surprised by how good it tasted! The authentic Japanese decor was also really lovely. $25 lunch & $30 dinner on weekdays, $30 lunch & $32 dinner on weekends. I can't believe this place has been open for 5 years and I just recently discovered it!
I loved the selection... buffet style all u can eat sushi. I liked how u could try the roll without having to order an entire roll. Really makes a difference. Desert table was nice and plenty of options to choose from.
Santikul S.
Great place for all you can eat sushi. Clean and inviting. Highly recommend this place if you're hungry, just be prepared to wait 1-2hrs for a table.
Traci F.
This was the first buffet we've been to post Covid so we were pretty excited to try this place during our trip to Irvine. They are only open for dinner on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights ($34.99) But they are open for lunch every day. They provide disposable gloves which I've always thought was a good idea because I never liked touching buffet serving utensils. This is a seafood and sushi buffet but they also have lots of other options to choose from. There is a wide variety of fresh sushi. You can also order hand rolls made to order. There is fresh sashimi, raw oysters, steamed clams, baked mussels, and shrimp cocktail. Sadly there are no crab legs. They also have several types of ramen made to order, My favorites were the California roll sushi, shrimp shumai, kalbi ribs, seafood dynamite and the tempura. For dessert my favorite were the thin almond cookies. We left feeling sooo full. We definitely ate our money's worth!
Lindy K.
This was the best buffet experience in OC I've had in a while. There's something so nostalgic about handpicking food at a sushi buffet versus being served AYCE sushi. The nigiri here is better than the majority of Asian buffets in OC as well as AYCE sushi places we've been to. The fish was fresh, and though there wasn't as huge a selection as say, a Las Vegas buffet, Makino really nails what they serve. You can tell they strive for quality over quantity, and I can respect that. The whole atmosphere was deeply pleasant with the 80s/90s Japanese bops (please send us the playlist!). It was also surprisingly, instantaneously fun. Makino taught us there's a visceral difference between handpicking your desired goodies onto your plate versus filling out a form and waiting for AYCE sushi staff to serve your food. It made us reminisce for a simpler time, whether it was the days before Covid or as a kid, eating out at Asian buffets with family. Service was stellar. The salmon was going quick thanks to us, and the chefs were prompt with restocking the plate. You can also make personal orders for ramen, udon, and hand rolls, which will be brought to your table. The wait staff were kind and went above and beyond to make our meal that day special. As we fought for the check, my partner revealed it was my birthday, and one of the waitresses brought a tiramisu (which wasn't being served during lunch). Though I don't usually like cakes (more of a pie person myself), I thoroughly appreciated the dessert as well as the thoughtfulness of the gesture. I'd say it's worth the price ($25), as it's what we'd be spending at AYCE sushi joints anyway. There was no line during lunch, and we were immediately served. Can't wait to come back on for Friday or Saturday dinner; the waitress told me they serve sashimi then.
Ginny Williams
This was our first time at Makino. It was amazing! The food was great!!
Just got out of the buffet. My grandmother and I came here before going to the beach and we were kinda excited. However the food was not as good as we thought. The meat that we tried(teriyaki, pork, steak) were either soft but tasteless or hard to chew ! Absolutely ridiculous. The only good thing here were probably the dumplings and the California rolls. Did buffet didn’t even have any kinda of bread to eat with the food. Also has less food choice.The price is way too expensive for a poorly made food. I do not advise to come here, not worth spending $60 for two in the end! Never coming here again.
It has been many years since oir visit to this place. Well, glad to visit this place and dine in for the 1st time since the outbreak. The food quality has suffered a little but still enjoyable dining with others around us. Kids loved the food since they were getting tired of eating home.
Food was delicious and fresh. Great selection. I recommend getting there early. There was a line before they opened, but they got everyone seated quickly... and definitely worth the wait.
As of October 2021, Saturday dinner is $33, and $30 for seniors. The food is just as good as pre-Covid. Lots of roll variations. There are a variety of drinks for ~$2, look at the drink menu on the table. Dessert was surprisingly good (they're usually bad in buffets). Service was great. It was bustling at 6pm, but got quieter at 7pm. They close at 8:30pm. You can pay at the cashier by the door after you get your bill.
An awesome spot to fill up.Right off the 405 freeway in the beautiful Irvine, busy body district.Seafood for days, that's all Japanese cuisine.Often grilled but also served raw as sashimi or in sushi.A great spot for the fam to fill up and make memories.
Its been a long time since I've been to a buffet. They didn't have a big selection but everything was well made. They had lots of different sushi and nigiri to choose from. The value in sushi alone was amazing. Hot items included tempura, teri chicken, kalbi steak, salmon, ribs, decent salad bar and to order hand rolls and saimin/ramen. I didn't eat one bad thing. Lots of value and all items are high quality. The servers were friendly and kind. I love this place. I wish they had something similar on Kaua'i.
Considering the about $30 price, it's just enough to eat. Although there aren't many kinds of food, it looks relatively clean. It is recommended rather than the shabby buffet around.
Like the Las Vegas Makino, the Irvine quality and extensive choices of Japanese food choices is spectacular but fortunately not as massively packed with long waits. If there is a food feast heaven, Makino is one of them. Great choices and great prices on weekdays. Custom made sushi and hand rolls are a definite favorite while you wait. Also custom made noodle soups from regular ramen to udon soups in miso, sou sauce, and white creamy pork tonkatsu are excellent. Desserts are beautifully made like the vast variety of sushi and FRESH (emphasis added) sashimi and are incredibly good and of high quality. Makino is a must visit chain that is popular for a reason. It brings back fond memories of the former Todai Japanese buffet chain, but the quality here is definitely superior.
Be extremely carefull, please. I ordered yesterday night and sushi smelled so bad that we put it on the bin. This is a health concern, please be carefull with this place.
Spectacular experience at this little all you can eat spot. Sushi, ramen, seafood, meat assortments, salad bar, and dessert! There is so much variety it's honestly difficult to choose what you want to eat. The sushi tasted really fresh and the spicy miso ramen soup was one of my favorite dishes, simply because I was so surprised by how good it tasted! The authentic Japanese decor was also really lovely. $25 lunch & $30 dinner on weekdays, $30 lunch & $32 dinner on weekends. I can't believe this place has been open for 5 years and I just recently discovered it!
Restaurantji Recommends
I loved the selection... buffet style all u can eat sushi. I liked how u could try the roll without having to order an entire roll. Really makes a difference. Desert table was nice and plenty of options to choose from.
Great place for all you can eat sushi. Clean and inviting. Highly recommend this place if you're hungry, just be prepared to wait 1-2hrs for a table.
This was the first buffet we've been to post Covid so we were pretty excited to try this place during our trip to Irvine. They are only open for dinner on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights ($34.99) But they are open for lunch every day. They provide disposable gloves which I've always thought was a good idea because I never liked touching buffet serving utensils. This is a seafood and sushi buffet but they also have lots of other options to choose from. There is a wide variety of fresh sushi. You can also order hand rolls made to order. There is fresh sashimi, raw oysters, steamed clams, baked mussels, and shrimp cocktail. Sadly there are no crab legs. They also have several types of ramen made to order, My favorites were the California roll sushi, shrimp shumai, kalbi ribs, seafood dynamite and the tempura. For dessert my favorite were the thin almond cookies. We left feeling sooo full. We definitely ate our money's worth!
This was the best buffet experience in OC I've had in a while. There's something so nostalgic about handpicking food at a sushi buffet versus being served AYCE sushi. The nigiri here is better than the majority of Asian buffets in OC as well as AYCE sushi places we've been to. The fish was fresh, and though there wasn't as huge a selection as say, a Las Vegas buffet, Makino really nails what they serve. You can tell they strive for quality over quantity, and I can respect that. The whole atmosphere was deeply pleasant with the 80s/90s Japanese bops (please send us the playlist!). It was also surprisingly, instantaneously fun. Makino taught us there's a visceral difference between handpicking your desired goodies onto your plate versus filling out a form and waiting for AYCE sushi staff to serve your food. It made us reminisce for a simpler time, whether it was the days before Covid or as a kid, eating out at Asian buffets with family. Service was stellar. The salmon was going quick thanks to us, and the chefs were prompt with restocking the plate. You can also make personal orders for ramen, udon, and hand rolls, which will be brought to your table. The wait staff were kind and went above and beyond to make our meal that day special. As we fought for the check, my partner revealed it was my birthday, and one of the waitresses brought a tiramisu (which wasn't being served during lunch). Though I don't usually like cakes (more of a pie person myself), I thoroughly appreciated the dessert as well as the thoughtfulness of the gesture. I'd say it's worth the price ($25), as it's what we'd be spending at AYCE sushi joints anyway. There was no line during lunch, and we were immediately served. Can't wait to come back on for Friday or Saturday dinner; the waitress told me they serve sashimi then.
This was our first time at Makino. It was amazing! The food was great!!