50 Best Japanese Restaurants in San Francisco

“I went to KEN for my birthday and it was absolutely phenomenal. The fish was delicious; so many new flavors and combinations; the chef was superb - talented and entertaining, with great attention to detail. The service was impeccable. I cannot say enough good things!“

“What a treat! Highly recommend“

“I love Yoma cafe, the food is amazing, great price, the owner is always so welcoming and nice to everyone.“

“Best Japanese Curry in town !“

“Taniku Izakaya is a great spot for skewers and a solid casual night out. I really liked the spicy scallop hand rolls and the takoyaki, and the food overall was worth the wait. It does get busy, and there was a line since reservations are only for a couple tables, but we only waited about 20–30 minutes. The vibe was lively, and everything felt well worth it.“

“So it was my birthday, and I really wanted sushi. There is no dearth of quality sushi restaurants in San Francisco, however almost all of them are omakase – and to be honest, I am not a huge omakase fan (and I speak Japanese, have lived in Japan, and have consumed sushi all over the world – omakase does not necessarily mean better). Kuma’s execution and fish quality is some of the best I have had in the US in a long time. I dined with my mother, who is a Hamachi kama fan, and she said it was one of the best she has ever had. The atmosphere is no frills, and there were only two staff working the floor, one was I believe the manager – but service was attentive. Overall, this is probably my favorite new place to have non-omakase sushi in the city. Definitely recommend, and you definitely need a reservation.“

“Best authentic Japanese restaurant in town.“

“FUN. We had a great date night here. Delicious flavorful food, nice ambiance - I wanna say laid back, with sexy divey vibes. Love their music choice, good volume level. We walked in and got seated at the bar. I felt comfortable, people were having fun around us. Shout out to Phillip for the great service!“

“awesome a must try, this is a hidden gem“

“Best Omakase in town.“

“If you want the freshest fish downtown has to offer.... go to Sanraku“

“Excellent Japanese cuisine, service and staff are wonderful and helpful“

“The ingredients, the flavors, they're all top-notch.“

“Quality is key with any meal. Roger-San is all about quality. Sit at the bar if you can!“

“The ramen tastes very good, the soup base is rich and the noodles taste great“

“friendly service and tasty food“

“Simply the best. The staff were incredibly friendly and made the whole experience feel so special. My friend and I had such a great night here. You can really tell they care about the quality of the meat, and they shared so much knowledge about how everything is grilled and prepared. Amazing food, amazing service, and such a memorable experience.“

“I have been meaning to write this review for years. Apologies for Jimmy and Ron for not writing it sooner.

First, I have to write about the people because they are the reason I love and will always love Kibatsu. Then, I'll write about my favorite dishes and the food.

The People:
I have been going to Kibatsu since 2014 so 12 years now. Before Kibastu, they were Sugoi Sushi in the Mission. I discovered them because they did catering for University of San Francisco. My college roommate and I befriended the young sushi chefs that came to the university, hung out with them once the sushi bar had officially closed and they encouraged us to come visit their Sugoi Sushi location.

Eventually we did and it became our Friday or Saturday night routine. Sometimes, we would splurge and go during the week (which for us as college students was a lot). But we loved them. Calvin, Ronald, (so sorry, I am totally blanking on the third guy's name but I see his face in my mind!) and Jimmy. The first three were the sushi chefs and Jimmy was the waiter - he always made room for us and always saved us our favorite booth in the front of the restaurant, closest to the windows. He remembered our classes and asked us how school was going. He always treated us to on the house mochi ice cream after each dinner. We would spend hours and hours there, camping out and chatting or doing our homework in the mood-lit, rustic, tastefully interior-decorated intimate setting, amid the hubbub of conversations and people enjoying the sushi. I remember Sugoi and those times really fondly - it was our safe space, our home away from home (dorm). Other times, we'd bring our friends. I can't even count how many people I and my roommate recommended this place to or brought there.

Then after we graduated, in 2018, they moved to the Haight and invited me to their opening night omakase which was a gift to everyone they invited. How sweet, thoughtful and amazing is that? Between Sugoi and Kibatsu, my partner and I met and Jimmy always remembers my partner and his two boys and asks about them when they're not with me. The boys love it here because of the large portions and how nice everyone is.

On my birthday this year, I decided I wanted to spend it at Kibatsu and Jimmy (who is now a sushi chef!!) and company went out and got me a birthday cake and brought it out before the rest of the dessert as a surprise. I almost cried. This is why I love Kibatsu and those who work there.

The Food:
The starter we always go for is the tataki dish which is albacore with delicious fried onion. The gyoza is always also a great way to go. We always get the omakase which is a true omakase with the different small plates, sashimi and nigiri. I love the salmon and umimasu nigiri as well as the negi salmon. Something special that Kibatsu does is they always surprise you with little gifts from the sushi chefs. For this past new year's they surprised us with a whole tray of steak and jumbo shrimp - a gift on the house. Their kindness never ceases to surprise us!

So there are some of our top favorites food wise and why Kibatsu has a special place in my heart. I hope you go and I hope you love it as much as I do. They work really hard, are so extremely kind and deserve the best.“

“Service feels a bit chaotic and the tables are a little too close together but the food is good! Prices are a bit higher than some menu photos here - $40 per nabe now. Good portion size though, would come back. Make a reservation if coming on a weekend night“

“The best omakase and multi-course dinner I’ve ever had. We came to celebrate our anniversary here and a great time. The atmosphere was perfect and the food/fish were literally hands down the best I’ve ever had. If you want high quality omakase where every bite is the perfect blend and diversity of textures and flavors you must go here.“

“My favorite sushi spot in the city, and the service is fast and friendly!“

“Don't let the quiet, quasi-suburban neighborhood fool you; this place is a true gem! We had a delicious, reasonably-priced omakase and it was delightful. All of the fish was fresh with unique preparations. We loved that they gave us multiple options to add more food beyond the basic - which we did not need. Service is very friendly, and of course there's a very good menu of sake and wines. Ambience is placid but not chilly; a great place to actually talk to your date in a calm setting.“

“First time.
Friendly staff in a casual spot. Table and booth seating.
Lots of options and we chose 2 rolls (Toro & Scallop) and a bento 3 item option (Salmon, Shaba, and Kaki).
For the rolls, the tuna and scallop was fresh and melts in your mouth. The bento fishes were moist and good portioned. The kaki (oyster) was plump and nicely fried.
Overall, a wonderful meal and a place that we will visit again. A solid option for all.“

“It’s easy to find sushi restaurants with high-quality fish these days, but good shari (the rice) is still hard to come by in San Francisco. The moment the chef told everyone to eat the sushi right away, I knew he really knew what he was doing. Sure enough, when he placed it on the plate, the shari gently sank - perfect texture. Saw someone complaining that the rice fell apart… you belong at a place that serves edamame and California rolls 👋 lol“

“Food was amazing and happy hour were very decent prices. I'm definitely coming back to try more, especially the beer! Service was super fast.
I had oysters and takoyaki both were so good, perfectly cooked takoyaki ❤“

“Great food and great ambience � � love it so much“

“Great place food is super salty tho.“

“Its Order to Go. No seating inside but a nice bench sitting area outside for anyone worked well for us. Checked the menu..its ONLY what is available nothing more..nothing less. Fresh sushi done well. Would love more options but what we had was good. Would not hesitate to eat here again when I am in the area and like a quick bite. Liked all my orders of Hamachi Donburi and mixed sushi..salmon aka saki which I hardly eat these days was fresh and on point. I really enjoyed the scallops hand rolls.“

“Eating is a kind of happiness, taste is a kind of interest“

“A small, family-run spot tucked between Broadway and the Transamerica Pyramid delivers the kind of honest, soul-warming lunch that’s increasingly rare in the city. Run by a lovely older couple who treat every customer like a regular, this no-frills counter serves up comfort food at prices that feel like a time capsule.

Cash/venmo only so you know it's fire“

“1000/10. This place is hard to get a table at because it only seats 20 people. They only do one serving, but this was one of the best meals I’ve ever had in all of San Francisco. The menu constantly changes so you get a new experience every time you would come. We’ll be going back.“

“awesome service and amazingly fresh sushi! open from 4:30 to 9:30. on Geary near masonic“

“Watermelon 🍉 Roll; no rice, refreshingly good Fried seafood chips appetizer; I wanted it as a meal it’s a different yum 😋 Ice cream sandwich wow!“

“It has a very interesting menu, I really enjoy the food.“

“Blown away! Sitting at the chef’s bar was an outstanding experience. The chef made recommendations; he is a true artist of his craft - what a delight to watch. The nigiri/sushi is classic with no frills, relying completely on the quality of the fish and the expertise of the chef. What a local gem!“

“We had a wonderful meal at Cafe Okawari before the Giants game. It’s a great location that’s 1.5 blocks from the ballpark, and very close to the Caltrain station. The restaurant was full when we got there, but the food still came out soon after we ordered.

We had chicken katsu curry, korokke curry, and a menchi (fried ground chicken) sando. The chicken katsu was among the best I’ve ever had, super juicy inside and crunchy outside. One of the greatest quick bites I’ve had in recent memory.“

“The food smacks and the music they play always slaps.“

“Emma ,Julio and staff great!“

“I had a great time over there. Delicious food 🥘“

“Abby was super kind and gave great service!! Unagi skewer was insanely good, but a lil on the sweet side but that’s just my prefance. The Yuzu lager was refreshing, could definitely taste the yuzu, its on the rotating draft menu though.“

“Fantastic atmosphere & fantastic food. We had the bento for dinner (not an option on the dinner menu, you have to ask for it). The sashimi is especially stellar and is honestly better than a number of omakase sushi I have had at much more expensive places. Portion was great - We came in very hungry and left very satisfied!“

“Great food & ambiance! Ron & Jennifer have done it again! ❤️“

“Really quality ingredients, friendly service and good vibes. We came around opening with a reservation made yesterday. Meat options were superb, lamb was not too gamey. We did the all you can eat, two rounds of noodles, veggies, and four rounds of meat. Plus the ice cream. Will come back, thank you!“

“Good fresh comfort food, warm friendly family business“

“Another night, another sushi craving so we stopped by this place just down the road from our place. We each ordered the nigiri dish with 10 different pieces to sample , a hand roll(not pictured), and an extra order of the scallops because they were so tasty.
This place is a little pricey but well worth a visit for a date night special treat“

“Tom and his staff is the best you can find, the sushi is to die for, always the best ingredients, presentation of food is creative and second to none. I go often as it is the best in San Francisco. Thanks Tom.“

“Just went here our first time on valintines day and although I did not have any noodles we had spicy spring rolls the Katsu chicken and chicken teriyaki skewers and everything tasted so good thin cuts of chicken lots of flavor all under thirty bucks we will definitely be back“

“Sushi was great and Ti the owner was very generous.“

“Exceptional service. Delicious, artfully presented omakase at a reasonable price point.“

“We had a great experience here! The tuna was fresh and buttery and everything we ordered was delicious. Prices were very good for the quality.

We also tried the chef’s Japanese sushi set. Not every type of fish was our favorite but it was a great way to try a variety of unique fish we hadn’t had before!

The eel hand rolls were another highlight absolutely delicious!

We came during Happy Hour so it was an even better value. The food came out quickly!
We made a reservation in advance. When we arrived there was a tablet to check in but we were seated before we even had a chance to use it haha. Fantastic experience and we’d definitely come back!“