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Ahn Sushi & Soju
Categories: Restaurants Sushi Bars Restaurants Japanese Restaurants Korean Sushi Bars, Japanese, Korean [Edit]
177 Eddy St(between Mason St & Taylor St)
San Francisco, CA 94102
Neighborhood: Civic Center/Tenderloin
(415) 929-1118
- Hours:
Mon 5 pm - 12 am
Tue-Wed, Sun 5 pm - 1 am
Thu-Sat 5 pm - 2 am
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Trendy, Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
106 reviews for Ahn Sushi & Soju
Review Highlights
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"I loved the Apple cups for my Soju." In 12 reviews -
"I definitely recommend it for kimchee fried rice lovers." In 13 reviews -
"My favorite roll is the summer roll." In 8 reviews
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106 reviews in English
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Review from Wendy T.
2/18/2012
Pros:
- sushi was great
- they have a karaoke private room in the back
- 300 total tab limit to reserve the back karaoke room to stay as long as your party needs to.
- Fits about 15-20 ppl back there.
- The bill can be split also and the $300 minimum tab can easily be met between at least 10 ppl as long as everyone eats and drinks there.
- Apples are used as soju shot cups
- Variety of Soju flavors
Cons:
- none that I can think of. -
Review from Erica T.
3/2/2012 1 Check-in Here
My Way Roll ($14.95): Very light and crunchy from the cucumbers. I would order this dish again.
Beef Ramen ($9.95): Wasn't a fan of this dish, kinda reminded me of putting beef Ramen in a pot of boiling water, tossed in TINY strings of beef, onions and other things and serve. I can make this at home.
Spicy Tuna Roll ($5.95): Like any spicy tuna roll.
Rainbow Roll ($12.95): what else to say? it was a typical rainbow roll.
Service: ok but not good or great.
I would come back to this place if I ever go to Pandora to sing k and order food from my room. I think the food comes out faster if you are singing. I see the waiter go in and our more often than the waitress coming to our table with food. Also, note for next time... try out their fruit sojus! They looked soo good but I wasn't in a drinking mood that night. -
Review from Andrew P.
San Jose, CA
2/10/2012
Came here with a groupon to try it out. I was not impressed.
The fish didn't seem fresh. The uni was okay.
I recommend sushi time, still the best sushi in town. -
Review from Mercy D.
1/31/2012 1 Check-in Here
The apple cup rave is definitely an awesome concept! It went great with the peach soju.
Took the girls here for dinner on a Wednesday night to use a groupon for $40 worth of food. Even on a weekday night parking in this area was bad but I guess that should be no surprise since this is so close to union square. There's a parking lot across the street but it closes at 9, which kind of sucks if you're not starting dinner til after 7 and want to hang out a little longer afterwards. But guess what - Powell street bart is super close so taking bart is perfect.
We stuck to the Japanese menu the night we came and ordered edamame, agedashi tofu, dragon roll, caterpillar, oishi roll, hennesey roll and the pear soju. Everything was an excellent choice and satisfied the taste buds! I especially liked the oishi roll a lot - it had just the right spice for me.
Service, at first, was kind of slow. My friend said she walked in a little before 7:30pm and no one greeted her for at least 3 minutes! But towards the end of our meal, service got better - that may have been because a few more waitresses were working. Overall, the waitresses who served us were all very friendly. -
Review from Arthur Z.
San Francisco, CA
4/22/2012
Nice to have quality food in the heart of the TL. Come check these guys out..
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Review from Jean Y.
1/4/2012 1 Check-in Here
The fried chicken and ramen dok bok ki are satisfying. Even better during or after a drunk karaoke session. (A friend was able to bring food from Ahn into Pandora once.) The sushi is decent.
Ahn was able to accommodate a large group fairly quickly last time I was here. Quick service and no dropped orders.
No need to go out of your way to eat here, but if you are in the area, Ahn is not a bad option. -
Review from Annie O.
San Francisco, CA
12/20/2011
After reading good reviews on the place, I bought a groupon to try it out. We try 4 sushi and 2 rolls. It was far from exceptional. The sushi are not hand roll but they use a mold. The sushi have too much rice and not enough fish. The fish was okay but nothing tasty. The quality is just okay. Rolls have too much rice on it as well. They were not tasty. For me, it is a no for sushi place.
Also the area is not the most pleasant to walk to.
Service was okay. -
Review from Angela S.
Benicia, CA
1/29/2012 2 photos
We came here last night to redeem a Groupon coupon and i'm glad we did! We ordered the My Way Specialty Roll, Dok Bok Ki, Bokumbab (Fried Rice) with chicken and spam masubi with egg and everything was good..my favorite was definitely the My Way Roll..you want to know what's in it? Here's the description: Salmon, tuna, albacore & tobiko, snow crab meat, avocado and sprouts wrapped inside a thinly sliced cucumber.....the fish was fresh and the cucumber wrapped around it made the roll refreshing and delicious...to top if off we ordered yogurt soju and was given apple shot cups to drink from..how fun was that..it was sooo cute! We will definitely come back again without a groupon coupon..the service was friendly and the food was great....Yay! I'm a FAN!
P.S..neighborhood is ROUGH..hahha..we (3 girls) were glad we opted to wear flat shoes................................ :P -
Review from Esther Y.
11/5/2011 1 Check-in Here
Got one of those daily deal places for this place (if you're a new and good restaurant, I guess those things actually work! Especially since people tip on the pre-deal amount) and came here on a rainy Saturday night. The club/karaoke bar Pandora underground was half-filled, but Ahn had only one other patron at the time we arrived (7 pm). Still, I was impressed by the neat Zen-like ambiance, with its bamboo lined walls and dim yet elegant lighting. Not a huge restaurant, but nicely designed.
I checked Yelp's review summaries from my iPhone and found the summer roll highly recommended. When I read "mango, avocado, cucumber, tuna, and macadamia nuts" under the description of Summer Roll on the menu, we ordered it immediately. I've never had mango in sushi before, and it was a great idea. The bf had a few suggestions for improvement, but overall we really liked this roll. Great presentation too, but the roll itself is slightly on the small (and therefore expensive at 13.90) side.
Then everyone talked about soju being served in apple cups, so of course I had to experience this too, even though it was $19 for a "bottle." I'm slightly allergic to apples, but as long as I don't eat the actual fruit I'm fine. The waitress (who was really nice and friendly, to boot) told us that only the watermelon and pineapple sojus are served inside their respective fruits. Makes sense...I don't know how you serve mango soju inside a mango, that just sounds messy. Or yogurt soju, for that matter. We opted for the watermelon soju since that's one thing I haven't tried before. Fruit juice soju is not a new thing with mango soju and pineapple soju and yogurt soju being all the rage, but watermelon soju is a combination I never thought of.
The watermelon soju came in a small watermelon hollowed out but with some chunks of the fruit floating in the soju. It was actually quite a lot of soju (a bottle + watermelon juice) and definitely enough unless you're trying to get drunk. We ladled the soju into our apple cups, which were cored and had the tops and bottoms chopped off so they would stand on the plate. The stem on the top cut-off makes for a nice handle on a lid. How often do you get served a beverage in a cup you can consume afterwards? The only other time is when I went to the IceBar in Korea where they served your drinks in a cup made of ice...
Picking the second entree to share was a little more difficult, as I really wanted something Korean but I couldn't decide between dolsot bibimbap and jabchae (which I had read a good review for). We asked and found that people usually order the bibimbap, so we got that. When it came, it LOOKED small, and we nearly ordered another item on the menu, but decided to eat first and decide later. Good thing we did. We ended up taking 1/3 of the bibimbap home. Turns out that eating the apple cups will fill you up pretty nicely...mmmm fibrous fruit.
Back to the dolsot bibimbap, it had a lid and a freshly broken egg on top, and the bowl was SO hot that it instantly crispified (I know I know) a good portion of rice. It was great -- I've never had such a large quantity of crispy rice in my dolsot bibimbap before!! Love.
Just a quick comment on the bathrooms -- they were clean and smelled good too, so for people who hate public bathrooms, this might actually be ok for you. ;)
Apparently you can order food from Ahn while you're underground at Pandora. That's a great combination...karaoke + sushi + soju + sake! -
Review from Tiffany L.
San Francisco, CA
12/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
hmmmm....
I don't really want to say anything negative because I should have known not to venture into a place that serves both Sushi and Korean food. I will say that the soju in the apple glass was really cute, and the sushi rolls were MUCH better than the Korean situation.
The one thing that I would come back for would be the service. Our waitress was really sweet, and didn't rush us and suggested the yogurt soju which I wasn't sure about but complimented the Fire Cracker roll perfectly.
Doubt that this will make it into my weekly rotation, but I will definitely come visit again for the waitress, soju and sushi. -
Review from Melody L.
Irvine, CA
3/7/2012
I LOVE this place! It's always kind of empty and the menu is on the expensive side, but the food I've ordered is really yummy! I've gotten the "pizza sushi", and the octopus-on-wakame dish. BUT, the highlight is definitely their soju, which comes with hollowed apples to use as cups (and the watermelon soju comes in a hollowed out watermelon)! Unfortunately, they can't put other flavored sojus into the watermelon ):
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Review from Julio L.
San Jose, CA
9/16/2011
We were eager to try a sushi place in the Union Square area but didn't know where to go. The Yelp reviews were descent for this place so we thought we would give it a try. We have been back 3 times, enough said.
The sushi rolls, although not particularly fantastic, they were very good! The service is prompt, friendly and eager to ensure that you are having a wonderful time. We ordered the watermelon soju, unknowing that it would arrive in a carved out small watermelon with carved out apples as the cups. Yes, it's true...we were sold. The atmosphere was intimate with other venues available including banquet room and karaoke downstairs although, we have only dinned in the dinning area. I absolutely recommend this place.
What's wrong with walking by an adult nickle theater, some panhandlers singing Beyonce "who run the world" at the top of their lungs....it's San Francisco. Enjoy it! -
Review from Maile N.
9/11/2011
Truth be told, it's a little scary getting to this place through the Tenderloin, even in the daytime. We had a Groupon so I pushed to try this place. It's nice that you can choose between Japanese or Korean food, a little of both or one or the other. We chose to stick with Korean food.
They bring you kimchee first, which was gooood. When I go to Korean restaurants, I'm used to getting all the little vegetable dishes banchan, but I understand since this is a combo Japanese and Korean restaurant, it may not feasible.
Right away, since we had the Groupon to spend, we got the Bulgogi (broiled sliced rib eye in house marinate, amazing flavor, big pieces though, I wish the beef was cut a little more into smaller pieces, we couldn't finish it and they tasted even better as leftovers, mmm!). We also got the vegetable soft tofu (enoki mushrooms, zucchini, onions, radish and bean sprouts - yum, hit the spot, loved it, healthy and light yet a little spicy) and the seafood pancake (lovely fried, tasty with seafood, very filling).
Nice service, and they came around to check on us and filled our hot tea cups and water glasses often. We packed up our leftovers and happily headed home - had the leftovers for dinner the next night - yum!
The location worries me though with the elements on the streets. They do deliver so if I'm in the mood for tasty Korean food, this is a great option. I will definitely keep this in mind! -
Review from Sean S.
Woodacre, CA
3/16/2012
Really, really good!!!
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Review from Denise W.
San Francisco, CA
12/5/2011
Amazing sushi, one of the best I have had in awhile. The rolls are super fresh, tasty, and creative. The table loved the summer roll...so much that we ordered two! We also couldn't get enough of the carved apple we used to drink the flavored soju with. It was just so adorable looking!
The neighborhood is not exactly a stroll through the park with green grass and daisies. Let's just say I was glad my car was still intact when I returned, so be sure to park extra close to the restaurant or have a buddy to walk with.
Despite the neighborhood, I will definitely be back one day for the delicious summer roll. In fact, maybe I'll just make it a quick pick up and go. -
Review from Heather H.
Chicago, IL
9/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
Ended up coming here for my husbands birthday dinner. We had reservations at Nopa, but decided we were probably too drunk to enjoy it. Oh, did I mention we were in Sonoma all day wine tasting?
So, what do I remember about this place? I remember when we went to walk in, a HUGE bouncer guy stopped us. WTF? Oh, you think we're going to some crazy thing in the basement and you want to frisk me? Nope, just going *right through those doors next to you* to dinner. Odd.
I need to give them props though. I'm a vegetarian, so no seafood. They made me some veggie Ramen soup which I happily slurped down. Probably way too happily, I think we were getting looks from the table next to us. The birthday boy had some sushi, a maki roll (maybe it was a combo, I have no idea). He said it wasn't the freshest, but he didn't complain. He equated it to getting sushi in Chicago in a divey place, where you don't expect it to be super fresh.
Would I recommend this place for a birthday dinner? No way. Would I recommend this place when you're pretty smashed and need some sustenance so you can wake up the next morning to make your 10am massage appointment? Hell yes.
I love vacations...Listed in: When I'm cravin asian, San Francisco from a…
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Review from Thomas M.
Oakland, CA
9/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
Groupon wins!
I came here for my birthday. I really like this place; the style and the modern look it carries. It's a small joint but it's serves it's mission. The staffs here are polite. Very friendly customer service that handle with care...haha. I was amaze by the soju drinks that serve inside of open fruits. I thought that was pretty thoughtful and creative. The food is delicious, no complaints. Price is reasonable and the dish portion is about just right. This place is located in the TL ( I think?), so outside might be scary, or maybe not. Depend on your fear level, being me...nah. Downstairs has a karaoke place called Pandora, which this restaurant accommodates also. Last food orders are 11pm? If I can remember the sign (Too many drunk nights there). Both own by the same owner according to the beautiful lady working at the front. I will return. -
Review from Nancy S.
11/15/2011
Ahn is ok, not your greatest sushi, but better than expected. I didn't have high hopes for this place but my friend's cousin owns this place, so we decided to eat here and go down to the karaoke bar after.
Walking here was literally awakening since you would need to be aware of your surroundings. It is literally in the TL, about a block away from the police station, which makes it that much better and safer.
We all ordered a bento box and some special rolls. We ordered some soju, which came out so cute since we had an apple for our shot glasses. We ordered the lychee soju to start off with, which is always delicious and got a complimentary honey dew soju from the owner. The soju literally came out in a whole honey dew and had chunks of honey dew in there. Strong.
Food and dinner was fun and left me well satisfied. This place deserves more of a 3.5 star. I'd come back again. -
Review from liz c.
11/13/2011
Ahn Sushi was a solid "A-Okay" eating experience.
If you're driving, parking in the Tenderloin, is obviously the first consideration. We parked a few blocks away and walked over to the restaurant. I would have been a bit cautious about the walk if not for the presence of my friend's fiancee.
I felt fairly neutral about the service, though I was happy there wasn't a long wait to be seated. Our water glasses were filled hastily.
Our waitress was friendly though she forgot my friend's order of ebi (sweet shrimp).
I think my mistake was ordering the Summer Roll. I knew right off the bat that this place was likely Korean-owned (possibly meaning the sushi wouldn't be as authentic) because of their large selection of Korean dishes. But I ordered a roll that involved macadamia nuts and mango anyway. In hindsight, I have no idea why I felt the desire to order that roll. Real sushi doesn't have those ingredients.
It was a tiny roll for the price (almost $13) and not very filling at all. My friend ordered the Rainbow roll. I guess the slivers of fish aligning each roll qualified as their version of a Rainbow roll. Her BF had the yukejang, which he said was good, so I'm happy he enjoyed his meal. The ebi was also incredibly tiny...
I don't think any of us will come back unless we're hungover from doing karaoke next door. But it was worth a try! -
Review from Katie M.
8/18/2011
Ahn is pretty much amazing - I don't think I've ever enjoyed soju (and accompanying food) as much as I did here.
Some friends and I came in pretty late on a Tuesday night and ordered the Watermelon Soju. If you haven't figured it out from the photos already, they serve it in a watermelon, and your cups are cored out green apples. How exciting! Granted, the soju tasted worse and worse with each passing shot, but I don't think that was a surprise...
Between the three of us, we shared the Ramen Dok Bok Ki, Seafood Pancake and Sushi Pizza Roll. The dok bok ki was really spicy and delicious, and I loved the seafood pancake - it was really thick and had lots of veggies inside. Definitely the best seafood pancake I've ever had. Even the weird sushi roll was good with its fresh salmon and melted cheese. Everything was freshly made and perfectly seasoned, and wasn't as heavy as I expected (for Korean food). Portions were really big, and we were all stuffed by the time we finished. Then we started eating our apple cups.
The staff was really friendly and the food came out fairly quickly. There were only a couple of other customers when we were there, but I'd imagine it to be a lot busier on the weekends. They have a decent amount of seating space, and they also serve food to Pandora Karaoke & Bar downstairs. I'm definitely coming back whenever I get the chance! -
Review from Tatyana K.
San Francisco, CA
8/6/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Straight out of my dreams, this restaurant easily combines all my favorite foods: dolsot bibimbop, 49'er rolls (that Sushi Boom doesn't make anymore!), and fruit soju. The neighborhood is rough but the doorman helps to keep out the crazies and the food and service are completely worth braving the TL for. I want more!
Definitely try the fruit-flavored soju, it's served in carved out apples! Be warned though, a bottle for two is no small feat to finish. And if you're feeling adventurous, go for the sushi shot.Listed in: A Piece of Heaven in the…
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Review from Lanya B.
San Francisco, CA
1/8/2012
This place is housed in a shitty area with bums and derelicts swarming the sidewalks. Made the walk there enjoyable and harrassment free. Once inside, the place had no pulse and the food was mediocre. Came here on a groupon and ordered plenty. Yellow tail cheek, 2 sushi rolls and the eggrolls. Could all of it really have been just so-so?! Yes sir it was! I digress, the free kimchi was decent. If you are craving sushi, you'd be happier to swing by whole foods and pick some up out of the cold case. Just sayin.
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Review from Jenny L.
10/12/2011
10.07.11
Pre-karaoke dinner.
Chicken karaage - good portion, nicely seasoned and deep fried. Get.
Tuna Tango - ahi tuna, mango and cucumber wrapped in seaweed, flash-fried, served with spicy garlic sauce. Get.
San Francisco Roll - chopped spicy albacore, cucumber, topped with yellowtail, jalapenos, spicy and ponzu sauce. Super get.
Nabeyaki udon - in broth with shrimp tempura, grilled chicken, squid and eggs. Get.
Kimchi fried rice. Get if they add salt/additional seasoning. Warning, this is a HUGE portion!
The restaurant is clean and the waitresses are friendly and extremely competent. Checked in on us frequently and our glasses were never empty. Like!
Total damage for five: $90 -
Review from Rufus D.
San Francisco, CA
1/8/2012
Went with a groupon and had the ahn's sushi combo, two rolls, soju and beer... food and soju were delicious.. service was very prompt and friendly... totally worth the tenderloin adventure on a saturday nite... passed on the male adult entertainment establishment further along eddy though, but maybe next time... a stomach and bloodstream full of sushi, beer and soju adds so much fun to walking downtown!
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Review from Lindsay M.
San Francisco, CA
8/11/2011
We live near by (union square-ish) and wandered over to Ahn last Friday in search of a casual, late dinner. Ahn exceeded our expectations and we had a great meal! For those concerned about it being on the fringe of the Tenderloin, take the least messy route of Cyril Magnin or Mason (from Market) to Eddy...and stop by 50 Mason Social House on the way back for a drink and some great music!).
Located adjacent to/inside Pandora Karaoke, Ahn serves up Japanese and Korean dishes. The service was ace - everyone is super friendly and attentive. The sake menu was great and the sake was served in a neat "generosity pour" style.
I had a bento box ($14): miso soup was very good - flavor, not salt - sashimi was fresh, nicely cut and generous, saba w/perfectly crisp skin was DELICIOUS. Rice is not Japanese style, but good.
Ahn is not trying to be a straight-up sushi joint; it's trying to be a fun, casual place with a fun mixed menu that is available late...and it is great! -
Review from Michelle L.
Tucson, AZ
10/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
I am a Portland native who moved to Tucson a short while ago, and I've suffered a lack of good sushi in my life ever since. So the first order of business on my arrival in San Francisco was to gorge myself on delicious fresh sushi. Ahn came through for me; I was dining alone at the bar and the sushi chef made me feel very welcome with good conversation. I can't remember what I ordered but I remember it was delicious and satisfied my cravings.
There's a karaoke bar downstairs that's filled with regulars belting out a variety of songs; I was welcomed into the fold after showing my chops, and had a great time chatting about San Francisco life.
I highly recommend both for a fun night of Japan-tastic culture. -
Review from michelle m.
San Francisco, CA
9/22/2011 1 Check-in Here
This place is a real bummer. The soju prices are twice what they are at other sushi bars & soju bangs around town. Couple that with the stunningly mediocre to poor sushi and you get one star. Dry fish, sweet sauce on everything-even if you ask for them to leave the Unagi sauce off. One of our rolls, that we specifically asked for no sweet sauce applied, was made and then kept on the counter for our entire meal until someone else, they were hoping, ordered it. It was still sitting there stewing in its gloop when we left. So sorry for whoever they served that to!!
Karaage was serviceable as was the edamame. I like the location. So overall two stars. very spendy for the quality/value. -
Review from Anita C.
Just A-OK. The food and drinks were too expensive for the quality, but the service was good.
Came here for dinner last night and split the kimchi fried rice and the Fire Crackers specialty roll with a friend. The waitress said their best rolls were the Fire Crackers, My Way, and Hawaii rolls.
Kimchi fried rice ($9.95): a very, very generous portion. The flavor was pretty mild and there was an egg on top. I wish there was spam in it to add more flavor. Also, for the hefty price, I would expect a little meat or something, but it was just kimchi and rice. For chicken, beef, or pork, the rice is $12.95, which is just too expensive for fried rice.
Fire Crackers roll ($13.95): The roll has shrimp tempura in it and is topped with seared albacore. It's accompanied with a flavorful spicy aioli sauce. While the flavors worked well, the albacore didn't taste very fresh. Also...$13.95 for a roll? Ehh.
We also ordered 2 watermelon sojus & two bottles of soju to split between 9 people. I ended up paying $27 after tax and tip, and this was AFTER my friend applied a $40 Groupon to our party's bill. Way too expensive for a meal that wasn't amazing.
One note about service: our waitress, Stephanie, squeezed fresh lemons for us when we asked for lemon juice for our soju. She spent 15 minutes squeezing them - very good service! -
Review from Ada C.
8/1/2011
Just a bit disappointed with the place. I came here for a friend's going away party, and they were kind enough to give us the private room. First impressions were great! The private room was set up very nicely and we even had our own karaoke machine. We ordered the mango and watermelon soju's which tasted amazing, and they were served inside the fruit and then poured into apples!
It went down hill shortly after this, though. A few of us ordered beforehand while we waited for the others to arrive, and an hour later we still didn't receive our rolls even though the rest of our party that came later got their food. We asked about it a few times and still it didn't come out. Another half hour passes and then they finally address the situation and say that the kitchen was a little confused and our food would come soon. It took a total of about an hour and 45 minutes to get 3 rolls, which in the end were not even that good! I ordered the hamachi and spicy tuna rolls, and neither of them were too flavorful. When the bill came they of course gave our late rolls for free, along with a few bottles of soju, there were still a few problems with our check. We had to go through it one item at a time to make sure we weren't being overcharged.
To be fair, we had a very large group and it must have been very confusing for them with our orders, but I just don't think they were fairly organized on their end as well. I believe I'll give this place another try, but just for their soju since that was the highlight of the night; I'll go somewhere else if I have a Japanese/Korean food craving. -
Review from Peter D.
7/15/2011 1 Check-in Here
I think I can safely say that this is the finest sushi establishment I will ever eat in after essentially stepping over a sleeping crackhead to enter.
I dragged a group over to Ahn on a friend's* recommendation. Everyone was a bit skeptical of sushi in a neighborhood that was alternately referred to as "up-and-coming," "hip," and "terrifying," but we all enjoyed our meal from start to finish.
We started out with the complimentary kimchi (very solid), the wings (tasty, but I probably wouldn't revisit), and the ill gyoza (up there with the best I've had; delicate, light, and absolutely delectable).
In order to keep our bender going, we tried an order of the pineapple soju. This tasty treat came in an actual pineapple, and we were pleasantly surprised to each receive Granny Smith apple cups as well. You can't go wrong with things that are served in fruit, to be distributed into other fruit. That's a law of nature.
There's no shame in Ahn's specialty roll game, and we tried several. The Firecracker was a favorite around the table, and I enjoyed the Spice Girl as well. I probably wouldn't revisit the Oishi; it was much smaller than the other options, and the mango sauce accompaniment was cloyingly sweet.
Happily enough, I think I enjoyed the simple yellowtail-scallion roll more than any of the crazy combos. The fish actually did melt in my mouth, so I think that bodes well for anyone that prefers to let the fish stand on its own and get into sashimi and the like.
If I had any criticisms, it would only be in terms of price. Everything costs just a bit more than seems reasonable. The specialty rolls will run you nearly $15-18, and there wasn't enough soju in the pineapple to be worth the $18 we paid (although it did come with a lot of fruit). But although the check might not be commensurate with neighborhood Ahn is in, the quality is there, and I'd do it again.
_________
*You caught me. I have no friends, only Yelp.Listed in: san francisco treats., san francisco eats.
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Review from Albie F.
10/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
We did not mess around with the Korean food as we were exclusively here for the sushi and soju; we had a plan when we came. I was very impressed with the quality of their sushi as we dined on three rolls: rainbow, summer, and San Francisco. All were beautifully prepared and you could definitely taste the freshness in each roll. I especially enjoyed the San Francisco roll which had a combination of spicy albacore, topped with yellowtail, and some cucumber/ponzu sauce added a nice blend of textures.
The peach soju was surprisingly expensive at $19 but was enough for a group of people (note we only had two people at our table). It was served in small apple cups; first time I've seen that done before. It was pretty fun, even when trying to figure out how to utilize my apple cup efficiently when I found out it had a tiny hole at the bottom which presented some challenges.
Going to Ahn Sushi can be a bit sketchy depending on which direction you're coming from and how late at night you're arriving, but if you're coming from the Powell Station BART, it should be relatively painless. Once you get there, you'll be pleasantly surprised how clean and nice the environment is inside.
I'll definitely make the trip back to Ahn Sushi after work every so often to get my sushi fix. -
Review from Joanna W.
8/30/2011
I was excited to try this place when I saw the http://restaurant.com certificate and checking reviews on Yelp. 4 stars + savings = SCORE!!... or so I thought...
I came here with two other guys and good thing I did. I was scared shitless walking from the car to the restaurant (about 3 blocks away). I've never came here if I was by myself even if it was in the daytime.
This is your typical Japanese restaurant with regular menu items and a few Korean dishes. The food was just okay - nothing was wrong with it but it didn't taste great. The rolls we ordered came out looking better than it tasted. They also forgot a roll. We thought the sushi chefs were busy with the other orders but when we turned around to look, both of them were just standing there talking to each other. The waitress didn't even offer any apology when we told her about it. There was no refill for water even though it was empty for half the time we were there and visited by the waitress at least 3-4 times.
We were wondering how this place got 4 stars... it's only 4 stars after you make it to and from the restaurant by walking through the ghettos alive to write the review. Or maybe it's only 4stars because it's the only Japanese/Korean restaurant in that part of town. -
Review from Julia Z.
7/7/2011
I might be the first review to say that the service wasn't as amazing as it usually is (based on reviews) but it did not hinder the overall dining experience. They were short staffed on the night of July 4th so food was coming out slower than normal but all tables were compensated with free edamame and even a sushi roll for the table next to us.
I'm very pleased that this stellar sushi spot has opened up since it's very close to the downtown shopping area. We ordered two rounds of soju, watermelon and yogurt. The watermelon flavored soju actually came in a a real watermelon with hollowed out apple to be used as cups! Very cute but the apple cups did leak.
We tried the seafood pancake from the Korean section of the menu and it was very well made and thicker than most places. Then we had the My Way, Summer and Spicy Scallop rolls. Thoroughly enjoyed the uniqueness of the ingredients like fuji apple and cilantro pesto in the Summer Roll along with tuna, mango and avocado. My Way had salmon, albacore and tuna with crab and sprouts wrapped in cucumber.
I will definitely come back to try more as I am always downtown. This is a good spot to eat at before you get over to the movies or karaoke which is right upstairs. -
Review from Karen Y.
San Francisco, CA
8/16/2011 3 photos
Please take my advice and park as close to the restaurant as possible! I think anything more than 1.5 blocks is much too far because the walking time may allow a random crazy to leap out at you. To be serious, I felt very unsafe in this area not only because it looks sketchy, but we got people verbally fighting at the top of their lungs in the streets right next to boyfriend parks his car (one block away) and then another guy that hit on me and literally tried to pounce on me with arms wide open. He then cussed my bf out and tried to argue with him when the bf guarded me. It was too much pre-dinner stress that ruined the mood until the food/soju came out, which luckily didn't disappoint.
We went with a simple order of the Korean fried rice (w/ kimchee & chicken) and the My Way roll. The fried rice was extremely delicious and mildly spicy (no surprises there). It came in a very generous portion with a lightly fried egg on top and crunchy kimchee. I definitely recommend it for kimchee fried rice lovers.
The My Way roll was a surprise because there is no rice or seaweed- rather, it was : "salmon, tuna, albacore & tobiko, snow crab meat, avocado and sprouts wrapped inside a thinly sliced cucumber" (taken from their website). The flavors were slightly bland on its own but the roll was saved by this salty-sour sauce that came with it. It's definitely something different to try.
The fried rice went very well with the watermelon soju we ordered. I was extremely excited to see them carry out two carved out apples that were used as cups and the actual watermelon that was used to mix and contain the soju. Fruit soju that is made with real watermelon juice and watermelon "meat" while not skimping out on the alcohol- much loved. -
Review from kelly c.
8/5/2011 1 photo
For some reason, I thought this place had happy hour specials but apparently, I wasn't reading things correctly on yelp and came here to find out the specials run only from 11pm-1am. But hungry people must eat right?
Why 4 big stars:
I love how you can have Japanese or Korean food at the same location.
Waitresses were super friendly and let us know we can get discounts off groupon or http://restaurant.com to make up for the happy hour mishap and save $25 off our bill (sweet!). Waitresses here actually SMILES.
We ordered the ramen bok ki, which is a spicy ramen dish with rice rolls and tofu. Delicious!
Best seafood pancake I had! Crunchy bottom crust with plenty of veggies and seafood on top.
Watermelon Soju actually came in a small watermelon and edible apple cups. It was strong just the way I like my alcohol.
Hot Sake and Beer - the usuals. $7.50 each
Total bill was over $60 but we had the discount which was much needed. I would come back again =) -
Review from Jeanne L.
7/21/2011 1 Check-in Here
Korean + Japanese restaurant.
Korean restaurant staples (that I've noticed other reviewers have found impressive for some reason):
- free kimchi as a starting snack
- metal chopsticks
Started our meal with edamame, which was missing salt. I prefer my edamame with the giant crystals of sea salt on them, but I'll also accept them boiled in salt water. These had no salt whatsoever. We mentioned this to the waitress, and she brought over a dipping dish of table salt. It didn't quite work out so well.
We ordered a number of sashimi. Of the ones I remember:
- The salmon was so-so in freshness.
- The blue shrimp (which was the chef's recommendation) was amazing.
And of course, since this was also a Korean restaurant, we ordered some kalbi and chicken wings. Both were good. However possibly too salty, since I guzzled at least two full glasses of water at the restaurant, but felt a huge salt-hangover (translation: thirst & headache) a few hours later. (Maybe it was for the best that I had my edamame unsalted.)
The service was good. The pricing is on the low-average side. Maybe I would eat here again if I was in the area. -
Review from Greg B.
Updated - 8/3/2011
The folks at Ahn Sushi were very nice and gave me an opportunity to try their delivery service again. This time I must admit the delivery was very fast - about 20 minutes in fact. Overall, with the exception of forgetting part of the order (see below), it was a good experience; I'd say 3 stars given the missing food; and since the first experience was 1 star and Yelp takes the last rating (not an average), I'm averaging it for them and giving two stars.
The sushi was also a bit better this time (perhaps because it was an hour fresher). We ordered the following:
-- Spicy Tuna Roll (1 star - very spicy, but seemed to hide bad fish)
-- Negihama Roll (4 star - tasted very fresh, and loved the scallions)
-- Rock 'n Roll (4 stars)
-- California Roll (1 star)
-- Sake Avocado Roll (3 stars)
-- Spider Roll (3 stars)
-- Oishi Roll (3 stars - tuna was so so, but loved the cilantro and flavors)
-- Seaweed Salad (4 stars - yummy)
-- Chicken Teriyaki (1 star - freezing cold when it arrived)
-- Gyoza (1 star - also quite cold and not crispy at all)
I actually feel bad for Ahn, since I could tell they were really trying to improve after my last order and, as I mentioned, the service was very fast. But, after I opened up the order, I realized they had charged me but forgotten to include the chicken teriyaki. They rushed it over, but even so, by the time it got here it was quite cold. They had already given me a discount on the order, so I can't complain too much, but it would have been nice to comp the chicken teriyaki.
Good delivery sushi is hard to find, especially at places open late (Ahn is open until 2am), so I'll probably give Ahn one more try; but I've learned my lesson - don't order when hungry and don't order any hot foods like Gyoza or Chicken.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/27/2011
Second order from Ahn sushi was just as bad as the first. Sushi is medocre at best and delivery… Read more »
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Review from Chrissy H.
San Francisco, CA
9/15/2011
I wouldn't call this "excellent" or even necessary particularly good Korean or Japanese food. Both times I have ordered from here, I had teriyaki salmon, which was reasonable--I would say a bit firm / overcooked, but I also prefer my fish on the more tender / raw side. The sashimi is decent but not amazing. The saba also shared the problem as the salmon.
Overall, I like to be excited by what I'm eating. This was neutral...definitely not something to get excited about. I don't think I would bother coming back here. Oh last thing--I tried my friend's bibimbob--not good. He is native Korean and couldn't even eat it because it was so unappealing. The egg white was probably the worst texture you could probably cook an egg--I don't even know how they managed that. -
Review from Betty H.
San Francisco, CA
6/15/2011
As a transplant from LA, I always find good Korean food hard to find. Ahn has both good Japanese AND Korean! The prices are reasonable, service amazing, and the food is legit. Try the jabchae (authentic and delicious), soju (comes in an apple!), and bulgogi...you will not be sorry.
The late hours also make it easy to drop in and there's always parking on the weekdays.
Downstairs is the #1 rated Karaoke bar in town and the rooms are rediculous! They're themed in various alcoholic companies, characters (Hello Kitty rm), but my fav is the Giants room. I highly recommend eating first with friends and finishing the night off with Karaoke...or vice versa. -
Review from Maygan A.
Vallejo, CA
7/8/2011
My first review! I am writing this because I was uber impressed with this place for the following reasons:
1. Being open til 2 am
2. Having exceptional food until the latest hour
3. Great service (no rush despite our late arrival)
4. Lovely ambiance
5. Fancy silver chopsticks
Maybe I'm ecstatic about this place just at the fact that it has fulfilled my fantasies of late night sushi after a long night at the club. And those random cravings I get at midnight some nights.....
I would take yummy sushi over nations any night. Anyway the service was good, not great, but we had a nice waiter. My only critique is that she wasn't very nonchalant about reheating my miso soup in the microwave. For some reason that's a pet peeve.
Anyway, we only ordered 2 rolls (Dragon and Philadelphia) but they were exceptional and had a seemingly fresh taste despite the fact that we came an hour prior to closing.
So yeah it's obvious that I am easily impressed. And maybe I'm simple simple. I have had my share of good sushi and I can honestly say that this place is a nice posh spot to eat exceptional, reasonably priced sushi. As I close this review I am sad to say that the late night cravings have started up. Boo.
