“Tiny restaurant with a smattering of tables and a chefs counter. Definitely try for the counter if you’re alone or a party of 2 (or 6)Do not attempt to walk in at least on a weekend; saw 2 or 3 couples make an attempt only to be sent away“
“Located in busy downtown San Mateo, this is an outstanding Japanese restaurant! Traditional preparation and high quality seafood. Be sure to try call in for a reservation, as this place is very popular. In fact, we had a 5:00 pm reservation and learned that the fresh oysters were already sold out(fortunately, they spared one order for us). Highly recommend their 8 piece sushi omakase. Loved their agadeshi tofu: fried tofu in warm broth. Their chawan mushi is another great starter, steam egg with chicken, fish cake.“
“Last night, I had the pleasure of dining at Wakuriya in San Mateo, and I must say, the experience was quite remarkable. From the moment I stepped in, the serene and welcoming ambiance set the stage for what was an exquisite culinary journey.The service at Wakuriya was impeccable. The staff were attentive and knowledgeable, ensuring a seamless and enjoyable dining experience. Each course of the kaiseki menu was presented beautifully, showcasing a blend of traditional Japanese culinary artistry with subtle Californian influences. The highlights for me were the braised sea bass with its delicate yuzu gelee and the perfectly cooked Wagyu beef, which was both tender and flavorful.However, while the food and service were exceptional, I have some reservations about its Michelin star status. The quality and presentation were top-notch, but I felt that the overall experience, while delightful, did not fully align with other Michelin-starred restaurants I’ve visited in terms of creativity and culinary innovation.Additionally, considering the price point, I found Wakuriya to be slightly overpriced. While I understand and appreciate the quality of ingredients and the skill involved in preparing such dishes, the cost seemed a bit steep when weighed against the overall dining experience.In conclusion, Wakuriya is undoubtedly a great restaurant that I would recommend for those seeking high-quality Japanese cuisine in San Mateo. The serene atmosphere and meticulously prepared dishes make for a memorable dining experience. However, if you’re looking for a Michelin star-level experience, you might want to temper your expectations slightly, especially considering the price. Nonetheless, Wakuriya remains a gem in San Mateo’s culinary scene, and I am glad to have experienced its offerings.“
“There are so many options on the menu, and I just wish I could try them all someday. Every single dish is nearly perfect, with some tasting even better than those in the original country.The food here is accessible even for first-timers and those who have never had Asian food before.I’ve heard that the chef is an expert with extensive professional experience in Japan, which reflects in the choice of ingredients that perfectly complement each dish’s flavors.Not to mention the high quality of their service; all the staff are prompt and friendly, well-trained, and equipped with knowledge and experience, ensuring customers have a comfortable and enjoyable time during their visit.It’s the perfect place to recommend, invite, and gather with your friends and family at any time!“
“Sashimi is generally good quality here though I had a large bone left in my sashimi piece last time. Tempura is good ingredients with crispy coating but lacking a lot of lace. Dining room is very small with the tables very close together. Sometimes that’s fun, sometimes not. Menu specials are a good bet for fresh, unique dishes.“
“DASH has been a favorite of ours since before they moved from behind the theater. The food is consistently good, the service is good, and while it's pricier than some of the lower end sushi places it's still a good deal for what you get. My wife picked DASH for my surprise 40th birthday party and they accommodated 8 of us easily.“
“Cute packaging, very good quality fish, beautiful presentation. Omakase box comes with 10 nigiris for $75, which is a pretty solid deal. Pick up from a ghost kitchen - parking might be challenging, but they had it ready during the pick up window. One feedback I would give is the rice separated a lot from the fish, couldn't tell if it was supposed to be sushi rice or brown rice or some other rice with some sauce - it was grainier and harder than the typical omakase nigiri rice, and honestly the temp of the rice was quite cool even 1 hour after pick up. Nevertheless, really enjoyed the meal and might try something else next time.“
“We provided BentoSprout bentos for our guests at our wedding in Mill Valley and our families and friends LOVED their bentos (of course we did too bc we chose it duh lol)!!! TLDR: if you’re looking for delicious, balanced, beautiful, healthy, authentic bento boxes for your event (wedding, birthday, other celebration, office gathering, etc) AND want to support business that is Japanese-woman owned, we highly recommend BentoSprout! If you want to make the bento boxes fit a more formal setting, you can have it in wooden boxes that are compostable and also add a furoshiki cloth (locally and support an AAPI-owned business if you can) for a very reasonable additional cost. They look so nice while being minimalist. It was the perfect amount of food for a wedding for everyone and for those with a bigger appetite, it would be totally more than enough with a few appetizers.My husband is Japanese and it was so important for us to reflect his culture in the food we offered at our wedding and it needed to be delicious and perfect, which Mireille’s bentos were. His family have very high standards for food and they enjoyed their bentos wholeheartedly and were emphatic about how skillful she must be for the dishes in the bentos to have come out as perfectly as they did. Her bentos are beautiful and so thoughtful, as well as balanced, and above all so incredibly tasty. We had a tasting for her bentos and we were so impressed then, and hard to believe but it was even better on the day of our wedding!Mireille is so easy to work with and extremely communicative and accommodating. We had a number of guests with dietary restrictions and preferences and she was so careful and meticulous in ensuring that she understood them perfectly and then prepared them without issue and our guests really enjoyed their meals.Mireille, thank you so much for making our day extra special with the love and care you put into your bentos and food. Thank you for all the emails you exchanged with us and double checking, as well as the thoughtful and generous touch you did for our bentos given our budget. It made us so happy to see how much our families and friends enjoyed our food, and we of course loved our own meals that day thoroughly!Photo credit: Photography by Vee“
“On the cheaper side for food, and it's amazing. Haven't tried their ramen but tonkatsu curry is great.Takoyaki is more on the soft side, and karaage isn't crispy— but good. It's a different style— liking it would be preference.“
“really happy i took my mom out here, she’s a picky one and this was up to her standards. a lot of great Japanese dishes and fishes, hamachi kama (collar) was meaty and rich, and takoyaki wasn’t wet and soggy (iykyk). ended it with warabi mochi which is my absolute favorite!“
“We go here for Sushi. The fish tastes fresh and they have a good variety of classic rolls. Usually the staff are pretty attentive and orders arrive as expected.Parking: I usually park at the parking structure on 3rd and B street and walk over. S.Claremont St. Sometimes there is street parking depending on what time of day you go.“
“I don’t normally write reviews but this place I just HAD to. I didn’t take pictures of all the food but we got the black truffle edamame, uni nigiri, sweet shrimp nigiri and the 20 pc sashimi. All of the food was too good! I was very very impressed, the sashimi melted in your mouth and perfect texture and the uni was just perfect. When I tried the edamame I was very impressed and it was very reasonably priced! I will say going into it I was definitely a little annoyed since we waited a lil long ngl and so was my mom due to being really hungry but the staff was still very sweet and accommodating, she even gave us free shots and tried to get us a table asap !! I will definitely be coming back and recommending this place to my friends :) it was raining really hard and super windy when we came as shown in the video but still definitely worth the meal.“
“So excited to come back here after 3 years. Their cheesecake is fluffy and light and delicious. However, their highlight is the matcha with cheese foam! It's strong, dark, bold, and earthy! This is the only location that I know serving matcha and green tea. I even ordered a matcha drink without ice so I can save it in the fridge for my caffeine fix in the next morning. Other locations need to be consistent and serve these drinks as well. Original cheese tart is legit!!! The shell is crispy without being crumbly after the first bite, and it has subtle sweetness. The filling is generous, creamy, light, and perfectly sweet! It pairs perfectly well with my half sweet matcha drink.“
“Whoa! 5☆ Excellence! Great Fresh Fish on a Monday, let me tell you: When you order something CRUNCHY here, it is! No cold, soggy dish room tempura or deep-fried - it is HOT and CRISP - crackle in my mouth GOOD. So excellent here - fantastic bar service, great comfy vibe and deeeelicious sushi. I will be back fo' sho'!“
“Небольшой японский ресторан. Часто бываю тут после тренировки и заказываю обычно ланч с сашими. Свежая рыба и доброе обслуживаниеParking: Mall outdoor parking“
“4.5 stars, rounded up.Thumbs up:- Very tasty food- Hearty portions- Very affordable (for Bay Area) prices- Strong selection of food and drinks- Not a long wait, even on a Friday nightMeh:- Service wasn't the most attentive- Really really loud :(. Hard to have a conversation“
“My first time here and I always wanted to try it. I finally had the opportunity and it was great! It’s located in a tiny lot, surrounded by 7-11 and zen noodle (which is great too, if you want to try them). There was plenty of parking when we went. The restaurant was clean, they had a lot of seating and I thought it was pretty spacious inside for their size. The restaurant has bar stools, a few seats outside, and tables inside. There is a large menu above and 2 tablets to place your order. The employees were busy making food. We took a while to order because there were so many good options. We finally ordered two flavors of onigilly, to try: one miso nasu which is fried eggplant with miso sesame and green onion, and hijiki which is braised seaweed, carrot, tofu and edamame. I got a salad bowl with mixed greens, seaweed, red cabbage, shredded carrot, edamame, and onion. It includes three proteins: I chose unagi, krab salad and spicy miso beef. My sister ordered a poke bowl: ahi tuna, mixed greens, seaweed, krab salad, cucumber, corn, shredded carrot and red cabbage. We both chose the sesame dressing, however, we didn’t use it. There was so much flavor in our bowls already that it really didn’t need it. Everything was delicious and so flavorful. Definitely worth it and I can’t wait to come back and try other items.Vegetarian options: Poke, rice, tofu and salad bowls, eggplant, and so much more.Parking: Tiny lot shared with other businesses.Kid-friendliness: Brought my 2.5yo niece just for take out but it is family friendly.Wheelchair accessibility: There are no stairs, or steps, so you can easily access the restaurant. There is also accessible parking.“
“Off the main strip of downtown San Mateo, tho rivals the more popular stops there (ex: Sam's)House sake was delicious Speed of service was fastRolls are big, so take this into account when ordering. We did 3 rolls for 2 ppl and had leftovers, which is unusual for us. Interior is not the nicest / most aesthetic, so if you're in search of a cute date spot, would look elsewhere.“
“My fiancé surprised me with this for Valentine's day and I couldn't be happier! He ordered the omakase box & the tuna box and both were impeccable. The flavors were so unique, the fish was so fresh, and the presentation!! Literally gorgeous. Pick Up: They have pickup locations in San Francisco, San Mateo, and Hayward. The SF location is in the Sunset district! They were on time & super easy to find. Pickup was seamless :) Tuna Box: There were so many new flavor combinations in this box that I haven't tried before and that work so well. For example, truffle and parmesan on tuna!? Both parm & tuna have such strong flavors and I was worried it wouldn't mesh well together but it was so delicious. One of my favorite pieces! One of the pieces had this pate on it, it was perfectly salty and creamy. The otoro piece - SO BUTTERY. Literally tastes like the quality of tuna I had in Japan. Omakase Box: I loved the variety in this box!! It was my first time having raw mini octopus and it had the perfect chew to it. I loved the uni w/ ikura piece, the uni was so fresh and creamy and the ikura burst with flavor. Both boxes come with freshly grated wasabi and a cute soy sauce bottle. The pieces honestly didn't even need soy sauce because they had so much flavor. We'll definitely order from here again!“
“Cannot say enough great things about Tokie’s! We find ourselves coming here more and more. Everything here is just done right. It has the dining area with bar seating, frequently playing sports. But it’s sectioned off so it doesn’t impact the diners. Cocktails are great, the sake is great, the food is great, the prices are great, it’s all just great! Our service is always fantastic (Sho is the best) and you can tell the owner not only cares about his establishment, but also his community.“
“Awesome people with good quality food at a reasonable price. Alex and his family have been serving great food for years now and they haven't cut any corners even when produce were at a ridiculous 3x price hike. This establishment is a local favorite and they're worth every dollar.“
“Great Japanese BBQ restaurant. Food is always fresh and consistent. Service is quick. Love the atmosphere too, everybody working is so upbeat and nice. Try to come during their happy hour, good deal and less crowded. Great value all around, always fun experience and our go-to place for family gathering.“
“We had spicy tuna rice cake and both types of Ramen. Shoyu Ramen was better than Tonkotsu, though a bit more oily than we enjoy. Tonkotsu was very bland - it required more salt and spiciness. Crispy rice with Spicy Tuna was great.They do have 16% service charge.“
“Delicious vegan options. We tried the garlic tofu, spicy vegan eel sushi, and the tofu katsu curry. We loved them all and will be coming back to try more of the menu.The woman taking orders was incredibly friendly and gave us hot tea while we waited for our order.Would highly recommend if you're looking for a takeout meal.“