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Akane Japanese Restaurant
- Hours:
Tue-Fri 11:30 am - 2 pm
Tue-Sun 5 pm - 9 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
190 reviews for Akane Japanese Restaurant
Review Highlights
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"I just get too full after all the yummy sushi." In 109 reviews -
"Dragon roll was flavorful and super tasty." In 13 reviews -
"The fish is very fresh, and the prices are reasonable." In 5 reviews
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190 reviews in English
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Review from Andrew W.
4/16/2012 3 Check-ins Here
Akane is one of the best places for sushi around. It is very small. The restaurant is fairly unimpressive with regard to its interior design. But, they have top quality, fresh fish. Avoid rolls or anything that doesn't require the best fish. If you are budget conscious, the chirashi is the way to go. You get large slices of fresh fish over rice. It is a real value. The fish has wonderful fresh texture and very clean taste.
Another good option is the seafood salad, which essentially replaces the rice with lettuce. The miso dressing is great and you get huge slices of fresh fish.
If you really want to spoil yourself, go omakase, which is essentially the Japanese term for chef's choice. You get one dish after another of the best fish prepared pre-seasoned with hand made sauces like fresh grated wasabi. This is the best way to enjoy sushi at a great restaurant. You get the best parts of the fish prepared by the expert behind the counter. It is a bit pricey. But, it is totally worth it.
This is not the best sushi that I have ever experienced. The knife work can be a little inconsistent. And, the setting is underwhelming. But, the fish is top quality and the price is reasonable. Overall, because of its price and convenience, I have to give Akane 5 stars. This is one of the few places in the south bay that I would go to for omakase. -
Review from Lauren G.
5/4/2012 1 Check-in Here
This place surprised me. It seems every restaurant in Los Altos I've been to thus far has been completely over-hyped and lackluster. But not this one. This one actually merits the crowds that come in the door but I think they get overwhelmed at their own popularity.
Primarily, the staff members all look frazzled at the beginning of dinner hours on friday nights. What's up with that? Maybe it stays busy all day? Oh wait, that's right....they close between 2 and 5 pm! They need to take a siesta in that interim period! Everyone from the host to the waitstaff was curt or borderline sullen.
Prices were a little hard to swallow. But I guess we should expect that in Los Altos.
Good stuff: whoever is making that tempura need not listen to anyone else's advice and just keep on keeping on. That tempura was DELICIOUS. It was worth a trip alone.
Other than that, I think we just got boring stuff. Salad that came with the Bento Box was straight out of the valu-pak and the dressing someone "whipped up" was bland and watery.
Spicy tuna/avocado roll was tasty but nothing extraordinary.
All things combined: would come back but definitely not going out of my way -
Review from Minako A.
San Jose, CA
4/15/2012
Good Japanese sushi place.
Must-have:
- sashimi/nigiri: decently fresh and good sized pieces.
- chawanmushi: very smooth texture. a little too much broth though, but good flavor.
Good to try:
- grilled cod: tender. but nothing spectacular.
- potato croquette: good flavor. nice crust. nice filling.
- agedashi tofu: good broth. tofu just ok.
Overall:
food: good
service: good
price: normal pricey japanese meal.
atmosphere: nice casual japanese restaurant feel -
Review from Jennifer C.
Redwood City, CA
Updated - 5/20/2012
I have been here more than a handful of times now. Every time I've come here (except for the first time) it's been very consistent. Fresh, great quality sushi and friendly staff. They are a little slow but I totally expect it since it's what I'm used to. They have gluten free soysauce but be careful who you ask. The first guy we asked goes "we don't have anymore" and repeated himself 3 times. I was a little peeved cause clearly he didn't understand what we were asking for. We just said ok and he walked off. The next person we asked goes "yes, let me get that for you". HELLO!!! *shakes head* Aside from that mishap, the food has been consistent and the waiters are friendly so I'll keep coming back.
2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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5/1/2011
Ok! I have to up the star status based on tonight's feast!
My good friend suggested that we go and… Read more »
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Review from Shirley C.
San Jose, CA
4/13/2012 1 Check-in Here
One of the better Japanese restaurants in Los Altos, we frequent there when the Hawaiian in-laws are in town. They love the fresh tuna they have there, apparently the seafood there is of "Hawaii" quality. Our regular orders include:
-akane roll - the tempura batter crunch that the roll is topped off with is sensational
-amaebi - love how you get it 2 different ways, raw shrimp body then you get the fried shrimp heads. Akane's uses smaller shrimps that are sweeter than the bigger shrimps and they are generous with the portions, I've had 5 shrimps in one serving before.
-agedashi tofu - warm fried soft tofu, how I love you so! The sauce it not too salty like some other places and the tofu is so soft it often falls off my chopsticks and I'm a chopstick ninja!
-dinner bento: teriyaki chicken and tempura served with miso soup, salad, and rice. Generous portions, often times we can split 1 bento between 2 people.
-sukiyaki - love the broth the goods are cooked in, just the right amount of sweet and savory, love it!
Service here is always excellent servers are always friendly. One thing to be aware of is they do charge for tea, which is different from many other Japanese restaurants in the area.
Overall: great local Japanese restaurant. Sushi is top notch! -
Review from Mike F.
Chandler, AZ
5/11/2012
Four stars with Five star potential. Great fish. The tombo and the chu-toro were amazing. And the three different kinds of halibut. Usually halibut is more of a starter to whet my appetite. This time, they were delightful. As I get to know the chefs, we'll see if Akane has anything special up its sleeves.
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Review from C L.
Mountain View, CA
Yum! Decided to splurge on lunch and get chirashi since it'd give me more fish for the $ than if I bought 3x nigiri separately. Still feel tt it is a bit pricey but I guess u pay for what u get! Fresh fish :) wldve preferred fresh salmon over smoked tho! And not such a fan of octopus.. The squid was yummy. And so was the egg! Love tamago.. Seared tombo (? I think) was delicious. $20 for chirashi now, not $18:(
2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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11/30/2011
I think the bill here adds up pretty quick. Also feel that it's more of a nigiri/sashimi place than… Read more »
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Review from Nancy M.
San Jose, CA
3/4/2012
This is definitely a five star restaurant. The sushi is absolutely amazing and the service is good.
It's pricey, but you once you taste their Uni and their oysters, you understand why and is really well worth it! Their Nigiris is truly a delicious form of art and especially watching their sushi chef prepare it, is fun too. He's so focused and really fast, faster than anyone I have ever seen!
The service is great, the ladies here are really nice and they are nice to their employees. I always wondered why waitresses always act entitled when the back is the literally the backbone of the business.
I definitely recommend everything here, it's delicious but pricey, like I said you get your money's worth! -
Review from Trinity G.
Fremont, CA
Updated - 3/2/2012 1 Check-in Here
Came here again last Friday night and was blown away (and I am a sushi snob, meaning I rarely do rolls). Had the amaebi, maguro, hamachi, tombo, uni, tai, aji, mirugai. And to wash it all down, tenth degree Jinju. Best sushi experience to date! Be ready to drop $100 a head, but trust: it's totally worth every single hard-earned penny.
Thank you, Chef Shin! You're amazing and your staff rocks!Listed in: Bay Area Eats
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/26/2010
When I want good quality sushi, this is where the beau and I go. The sushi bar, to be exact. So that… Read more »
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Review from Mark M.
2/1/2012 1 Check-in Here
Had dinner with one of my foodie friends here, who said that this place is supposed to be better than Tomi Sushi in Mountain View... The verdict? Sorry...I still like Tomi better.
However, I do have to say that the quality of fish here is really excellent. I ordered toro (tuna), albacore, and hamachi, and all of them were excellent fish. My only complaint was that for toro, I could not taste the flavor of the fish fat, which was a bit disappointing for me. But the sushi here really was fresh and the flavors were clean to the palatte.
I also ordered the sukiyaki as it was a cold day. The beef was cooked perfectly, and they used choice beef. The taste was a bit too sweet and salty for my taste, but I think the flavor was authentic - just like I had it in Japan. Overall very well done.
A very very good Japanese restaurant here in the South Bay. There really are few that would stand to compete. Come here if you are looking for fresh fish!!! -
Review from Kit W.
1/10/2012
The first time I went to Akane, I made a typical mistake. Sat in the dining room, ordered some generic bento box and got exactly what I asked for, unremarkable food. Bland and kind of boring, competent but clearly not worth returning to. Solid 2.5 or a low 3...
After carefully sifting through the reviews, I realized that I was missing out on one of the better sushi bars in the area. This time my wife and I sat at the sushi bar and ordered directly from the itamae. We took several recommendations from him and all were fantastic.
Tombo tuna is normally boring and sometimes mealy tasting, but if you order from the bar, apparently, you get the super fresh and tasty pieces, cut perfectly, thick enough to be indulgent but thin enough to be tender.
The tai was gently salted with a thin sauce poured over it. The hamachi had a thin peak of ground ginger and a slight sauce over it, just like the high end places in japan. Both were ultra fresh and amazing tasting.
I am not normally a fan of saba, but the saba they served us was sweet with a harmonious flavor that I've never had before. Loved it and ordered a 2nd order.
The basic and boring sake was cut perfectly, with the grain of the fish perfectly aligned over a small piece of rice, sliced long (as is the custom of itamae here) and thin. Melted in your mouth with a clean and clear flavor.
Definitely not cheap, but a worthwhile experience! be sure to sit at the bar and go at an off time so the itamae has a chance to talk to you. -
Review from Mona W.
Finally returned to Akane after a long break. I am glad it is as good as I remember. I really like their nigiri - always a long slice of fish elegantly placed on perfect bite size sushi rice. Here at Akane, you are always guaranteed an authentic sushi meal from a skillful chef. Just remember the rule of thumb for sushi eating - order as much as possible from their daily special or fresh catch. My only complaint is that their whiteboard special often seem rather ordinary. Uni? Hamachi? Tai? Those are pretty much standard fare. I wish they have more exotic and rare selection. Having said that, they did have some really good quality sanma last time I was there. It was not super fatty but has an unique crunchy texture that was very likeable. I fell in love immediately. The chef even fried the remaining parts for us.
Can't go wrong with their nigiri. If you are a fusion roll lover you might be disappointed. They have a decent selection of maki but most are still very traditional and not entirely innovative. Cooked food and appetizers are good but not great. Chawan Mushi was smooth but too watery. Agedashi Tofu is not crispy enough. If you don't want to go broke ordering just the nigiri I would recommend getting their chirashi. It was nothing fancy but the fish is of good quality and it was very reasonably priced. Unfortunately their sushi rice is not as good as Kitsho or Sushi Tomi.Listed in: Sushi and Sashimi
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Review from Anthony V.
Hayward, CA
4/2/2012
Great place to get some sushi at. The food here is fresh and always pretty consistent. Service here is good and very quick. I come here all the time with my coworkers and we always enjoy the lunch Bento boxes.
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Review from Ann L.
11/4/2011
It's been on my bookmark list for a long time so I finally tried Akane Japanese Restaurant in Los Altos. It's on 3rd St & Main, behind Los Altos Grill & near Walgreen's.
Had reservations for 7pm on Fri 11/4/11. Place was busy & loud. Our table was ready so got seated quickly.
Warm towels to wash your hands/face. 2 small pickled sprouts given before meal. Tea is extra - not sure the cost.
We ordered 8 things:
Spicy scallop handroll $6. This was tasty, just one piece.
Live scallop $12 - it's just called that, not moving or anything. I thought it was ok, B. liked it more.
Saba dinner $17. You only get soup OR salad, not both. Not cool in my book - other places you get both. Salad too much dressing, nothing in it besides lettuce & dressing. 2 big slices of saba cut into 4 pcs & side of rice. Thought it was fine, nothing special.
Eggplant $4.80 - 2 big slices - tasted ok.
Unagi maki $6 - 6 pieces, not that good.
White tuna nigiri aka Tombo $5 - not fresh tasting
Ikura nigiri $4.80- Not the freshest tasting.
Ankimo $6.80 - maybe 6 tiny slices. I liked it fine.
Separate bathrooms in the back - One for each sex.
Charged it $62.40 + $5.15 tax = $67.55 before tip.
Maybe ok if you lived nearby, not worth the drive from Fremont. Wish we ate at Los Altos Grill across the street for the same cost & leftovers. -
Review from Fanny W.
Belmont, CA
1/23/2012
We went to Akane because of the high rating of Yelp. Well, I guess that people tried this restaurant are mostly from this area where you cannot really find too many authentic Japanese restaurant. Overall, I am disappointed.
1. Tempura - the batter was wrong, and the oil must be reused. Because it was hard and in dark brown color. it tasted more like a battered western batter. It would be okay if they called it a different name - but NOT A TEMPURA
2. Sushi rice - NO rice vinegar and NO sake wine added - perhaps, they did, but very very little. The rice was NOT moist and not evenly cooked. Who would like this sushi rice.
3. Service - they are short of staff. We basically had no service, even though we ordered three simple dishes - Chirashi Don, O-Nigiri mixed sushi and tempura
4. Quality of fish - very fresh but the selection of fishes or seafood were very limited. It is another western-Japanese restaurant.
If you live in the nearby area, you don't have much choice.
But I will not come back here again, and will not recommend anyone who wants to enjoy the authentic Japanese food in the bay area. -
Review from Ed G.
Incline Village, NV
2/22/2012
Good sushi is a dime a dozen in the Bay Area (actually more like 2.50 a piece), but great sushi is hard to find even here. Akane is GREAT sushi, great ambience, good service, and fish so fresh you expect it to flip around. Had Sukiyaki once and it was as good as the one I make (which is the best around).
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Review from Ginger K.
San Jose, CA
10/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
It was really weird. It was like they washed the fish until it has no flavor at all. I dont care for fishy mind you, but the texture was peculiar and there was no flavor whatsoever. Same for the radish served with the sashimi. Their miso soup was decent. Mochi ice cream was over melted. The place was slow and the servers were hard to find. Prices were on the high side.
I came here because I was in the neighborhood and the yelp reviews were high. This is one of the few occasions that yelp fails me. -
Review from Flora C.
Seattle, WA
This is a very busy place.
Sitting at the sushi bar is a hustle and bustle business. The chefs are too busy making orders and have limited action with sushi bar customers.
We were not given a menu at the sushi bar, just straight order to the chef.
Food: Very good with wide selections
Environment: Busy and authentic
Price: Average High
Party of three with any alcohol at the sushi bar, our bills for the night was about $134 before tips.
Reason for 3 stars is I am not a fan yet. I felt like I am missing the traditional link with the chef. -
Review from Eeway H.
Stanford, CA
10/31/2011
The fact that it's closed on Mondays is a bit frustrating. However, each time I've been here, the fish has been extremely fresh. The service is speedy. The hot dishes are well made and delicious. It's seems to be generally a bit crowded.
The sushi chefs at the bar are a little less attentive than the ones say at Sushi Tomi.
The price a bit high, but the food ends up being worthwhile. -
Review from Matt G.
Mountain View, CA
Updated - 11/27/2011
I've been back to Akane a few times since my last review and though I should mention that they fixed one of my 2 mild critiques - they tastefully updated their interior - the decor is much nicer and more relaxed than it was. Food remains fantastic - I'd add the spicy scallop roll to my favorites now.
Great place, and now nicer interior. And they didn't noticeably raise prices to cover it, which is also a big bonus. I remain a big fan of Akane.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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5/28/2010
Some of my favorite sushi in the bay area. Everything there is good - especially the Akane II roll… Read more »
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Review from Amy W.
7/18/2011 2 Check-ins Here
This place has very fresh fish. My boyfriend and I went for dinner on Sunday night. This restaurant was recommended to us by a woman we met while waiting for a table at Kahoo Ramen. She said that Akane has the best chirashi! So, we had to try it. We shared the seafood salad (tombo, which is a seared white tuna, and crab over lettuce with miso dressing) and a chirashi.
First, the seafood salad. Wow, was this good! There were big, thick slices of tombo layed across the salad alternated by crab meat from crab legs. It was served with a lemon wedge and dressing on the side (my favorite - I hate overly saucy salads so I prefer to control the amount of dressing). It was very fresh and perfect for a beautiful summer day.
The chirashi was a very good combination of fish. There were generous portions of maguro, tombo, and tamago. There was also hotate and saba. There was only one piece of sake and one piece of hirame. The hirame was surprisingly the best. It was incredibly fresh. Also, the sushi rice had very good texture.
Definitely a place to return to. Overall, it was $40 for 2 of us including tax and tip - not bad for a Japanese restaurant in Los Altos! -
Review from May B.
Los Altos, CA
2/6/2012
I use to come here for lunch alot with my friend who knows the owner and we always managed to get seated pretty quickly even when it does get busy during lunch hours. Very good sashimi. Yummy uni, my favorite, and they make good tempura udon. Friendly and attentive staff. Nice find for Los Altos :) I like their unadon too. Free green tea ice cream always is a nice treat ;)
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Review from Danny K.
7/12/2011 1 Check-in Here
Akane is an excellent restaurant hidden away in downtown Los Altos Hills. First, let me tell you it was a pain in the "behind" to find this place. Luckily, we came on a late Friday evening while the downtown area was being prepped for the Art and Wine festival (so the entire area was closed off to cars). The restaurant is hidden away between 3rd and 2nd off of Main. If you see the Walgreens, it's to the left of it (several stores down. It's around one of the bigger parking lots in downtown).
Once you get there, you won't be disappointed.
What did we order:
Spicy spider roll - a must order if you're a fan of soft shell crabs. Not overly spicy but gives the overall flavor a nice kick!
Akane roll - 50/50 chance you'll like this one. I liked it but other folks may find it a little too fishy. Again, not overly spicy but enough to give it a better flavor.
Spicy scallop roll - A fantastic roll and a must order. Definitely the spiciest out of the three rolls I ordered.
Beef and Asparagus - I've ordered this dish in many restaurants and I must say, Akane's is by far the best. They actually make it into a roll and wrap the meet around three asparagus peaces. The meet, asparugus, and sauce went perfectly together. Remember to get as much of the sauce on each roll as possible!
Hamachi Kama - I've also had this in many othe izakaya restaurants and Akane definitely gets top votes for taste, quality and quantity. Another must order!
Oysters - good overall , I LOVE OYTERS!
Halibut - interesting taste and good for an appetizer.
Can't wait to visit again!!! -
Review from Tiffany C.
Los Altos, CA
12/17/2011 2 Check-ins Here
MMMM.....came here tonight and had the best toro ever. First of all, I grew up with raw fish, so saying it's the best ever means a lot. The toro is really amazing, just melts in your mouth. The uni, has rich sweet taste. Bottom line: Fish is amazingly fresh. The sushi master tastes every piece of fish before he buys it. He is unwilling to compromise quality for price and it shows.
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Review from Rebecca K.
Redwood City, CA
1/28/2012
I have been to Akane a few times now -- solely for sushi so I cannot speak to their other food -- and have been happy each time.
The fish was not only fresh but the texture perfect (not grainy or mushy) and the rice was excellent on the rolls -- not gummy at all.
With my office just around the corner this is certainly becoming a go-to place. -
Review from Chloé N.
Mountain View, CA
It took me a while to find this restaurant--don't know why, maybe because of my map, maybe it's just hard to find :P
Overall their food is not bad--A bit more expensive than the restaurant at the same level, but I didn't taste the extra I paid for it, and not make think "Woow it's so good, I love it!"
Beef Asparagus roll--this is my favorite dish there so far. Not that hard to make I believe, but don't see it very often.
White tuna tataki--I'm glad that they give me the option to get half order of it. The whole order is like $16, not really the amount that I want to spend on a not-special-appetizer. It's okay, but most places that I have tried have better ones.
Deluxe Nigiri--According to the menu, it's $18 & up, since the chef picks the fish, and depends on what the pick is on that day, the price varies. I got it for $18 with Salmon, tuna, hamachi, salmon egg, toro, eel, shrimp, and nigitoro maki (I think there's another fish, but forgot the name.). I think it's a pretty good deal considering what I got. They gave big pieces of fish, fresh, little rice--I'm pretty happy with it.Listed in: Restaurant
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Review from Betty N.
4/2/2011 1 Check-in Here
**SASHIMI-LICIOUS IN LOS ALTOS**
FINALLY! After so many bad sushi restaurant experiences, dinner at Akane was a welcome respite.
We arrived at 8:30PM on a Tuesday night and the kind staff accommodated us with open arms.
The setting was serene and service was low-key but quite attentive.
We sat at the bar, where the action was. Our server brought us warm moist towels for our hands.
ORDERED:
*CHEF'S SELECTION SASHIMI - Delighted by the freshness and textures presented on the wooden tray.
*SPIDER ROLL - Plain Jane-ish. Nothing special about this roll.
*AKANE II ROLL - Popular roll and it was my favorite. Fresh and flavorful.
Dinner was NOT cheap. $70 for a Tuesday night dinner was steep for this recessionista.
RECOMMEND FOR LOS ALTOS.Listed in: IN THE LOS ALTOS HOOD
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Review from Juliana C.
San Jose, CA
7/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
Yummy! Spicy scallop roll, hamachi kama, beef and asparagus roll, raw oysters, and spider roll were delectable.
Could have done without the halibut and ponzu sauce, though(chewy skin gave me the creeps and halibut was too mild for my taste).
Overall, a cute place! Though the location is a little funky (kind of in the Walgreens shopping center - was hard to find using Google maps). -
Review from Dennis D.
Palo Alto, CA
3/24/2012
This is a great restaurant! We had the gyoza and guyant (beef tongue) for an appetizer which was great. However, the beef tongue was a bit on the chewy side. It should be nice and tender but the flavor was awesome. We had a couple different rolls and assorted nigiri. The Uni was really good. This is up there with Fuki and Masa's. I will definitely come on back! A bit pricey though but well worth every penny. Oh yeah....we had excellent service as well.
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Review from Vb L.
Here's a BIG Yelp thank you to all those folks that gave Akane a good review. My daughter and I came here for dinner and it was awesome.
The location is a bit funky - buried behind a closed-up building with the entrance down a strange alley, but once we found the front door it was magic. The servers were very friendly and the decor not what you'd expect from the sometimes stuffy Los Altos restaurants. All of the guests were smiling which said that we were in for a treat.
They first brought us little trays of pickled sprouts that weren't too heavy on the vinegar. The wine list is simple, but good. I had the half bottle of J Lohr Seven Oaks that was a reasonable $16.
We ordered California Roll (for the teenager), Rainbow Roll (which wasn't on the menu, but they were excited to make for us), and a modified Dragon Roll (the kid doesn't like eel). All were very fresh and delicious.
So happy to have found a good, reasonable sushi place in Los Altos and we'll definitely be back for more!Listed in: ROTD
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Review from Wayne K.
Mountain View, CA
SUMMARY: Sushi preferences tend to be highly personal, but Akane is my favorite sushi restaurant in the South Bay and I will be back for years to come.
THE GOOD:
I love sushi and I'm a snob about it:
- My regular order here is the Deluxe Nigiri, which is around ~$18. Take a look at the many Yelp pictures to see what this looks like. The fresh fish, the nigiri construction, and the presentation is executed spot-on at a fairly affordable price (I love when it comes on a wooden board that I'm always tempted to karate chop).
- I usually pair that with an Akane Roll II, some buttery, melt-in-your-mouth fish sprinkled with crunchy panko coating. It's a great filler when you're slightly hungrier and nigiri isn't enough to fill you up.
- They execute well on other Japanese restaurant staples like chirashi don, tempura udon, and tombo tataki. The chirashi is my fallback when I'm not in a nigiri mood.
- My friend Henry speaks highly of the nigiri hand roll.
- Their sukiyaki is noteworthy. If you order it with at least one other person, they bring out a pan with some sizzling fat on a hot plate, a plate of meat, and a plate of veggies and you cook it up yourself at the table... a fun spectacle. It doesn't compare to Little Sheep hot pot, but it's a great alternative when most of the group wants sushi but a couple people don't want to eat raw fish. Don't do a solo order; it just comes out pre-cooked.
- Excellent toro nigiri, though super pricy at $15/pair, so I've only gotten it once.
- It's a minor thing, but I like how they bring out hot towels to wash your hands before the meal begins, and everyone gets a free small bean sprout appetizer.
- Classy decor which got even better when they remodeled recently.
- Plenty of water/tea refills.
- Easy to park.
DOWNSIDES:
- Hot tea isn't free... it costs a couple bucks.
- It's impossible to have a group larger than 25 here, as much as you'd want to, and it's hard to bring any large group if you don't have a reservation. They're awesome about accommodating groups up to that size though with a reservation.
- I admit not being a huge fan of their assorted sashimi dinner. The sashimi itself is great, but just repeats 4 kinds of fish. I like my variety so I usually go with the nigiri or chirashi, which have fewer pieces of different kinds of fish, plus they're slightly cheaper.
- Not open for lunch on weekends.
- The service is reasonable but not amazing. Also food comes out when it's ready, not necessarily in a sane order or at a sane pace.
- You frequently have to share menus since they don't have enough.
- The "live scallop" is kind of a ripoff. I didn't find it that much awesomer or larger in portion size than their scallop nigiri (hotate) and it's considerably more expensive.
All in all, I highly recommend Akane. Thanks, jfrank, for recommending this place to me years ago! -
Review from Anne C.
Mountain View, CA
1/15/2012
This place is a staple of downtown Los Altos. It is family owned and run. Everyone who works here is extremely nice and attentive. My family likes to have dinner in the small private room with sunken in seating and doors that close. The sushi is fresh and well cut. The rolls may lack imagination but when eating sushi/raw fish the quality is what really counts! FYI they have great lunch time bento boxes where you can do a combo of cooked Japanese food and sushi rolls.
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Review from Anne P.
Sunnyvale, CA
In my opinion, the perfect chirashi would contain the following ingredients:
*multiple slices of sake, hamachi, saba, hotate, maguro, unagi, amaebi, tamago, white tuna
*ikura (salmon roe)
*slices of sweeten braised shiitake mushroom
*pickled radish or daikon
*seaweed salad (optional)
This restaurant's chirashi had the following pros and cons, relative to my notion of the perfect chirashi:
Pros: Fish was very fresh and was of proper portion size (not too big or small). It came with a few of the usual suspects (maguro, hamachi, sake, tamago, saba, white tuna), and it even came with hotate!
Cons: For the price ($18), i'd expected it to be a step above the mediocre. It didn't have ikura (or even tobiko), pickled radish/daikon (though it did have some brined cucumber, i think), braised shiitakes, wakame salad or even unagi, which i would expect any basic (non deluxe) chirashi to have. I consider uni (which i don't care for) and amaebi to be somewhat 'higher-end' ingredients, so i wasn't surprised it didn't have either of those too.
Overall,i thought the chirashi was just okay. I suppose my expectations were set pretty high based on reading chirashi reviews from other Yelpers and based on the generally very good rating of this restaurant. Oh well - the search continues! -
Review from Firas A.
Santa Clara, CA
12/26/2011
The sushi was very fresh and the service is great. All fish variety was excellent. I'll definitely be going back.
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Review from Thomas C.
Stanford, CA
7/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
After reviewing all the positive comments regarding Akane, I figured I give it a try. My special company and I went there and it is not as hard to find as many have mentioned here. We arrived at 5:40 and to my disbelief, the place was quite empty. We sat down at the table, the sushi bar seemed a bit small and intimidating with 2-3 chefs up there and only 6 or so seatings.
We ordered the a spicy scallop which was not too spicy but had a great seasoning flavor to it. We also ordered toro which came as 4 pieces, 2 slightly seared and two raw slices. The two slightly seard was different but I can see why they served it the way they did, for contrast. We ordered the infamos beef wrapped asparagus and the taste was shockingly amazing, just the right hint of saltiness and not very overpowering.
We ordered a few more dishes and including a bottle of J Lohr Chard, the bill came out to $95. Not bad for a sushi night and we will most definitely come back. -
Review from Sina O.
San Francisco, CA
1/14/2011
HORRIBLE SERVICE
OK sushi
high price
Every single time I've been here I've received horrible service. I don't know what it is. Is it because I am on the younger side and differ than a lot of the clientele? (Los Altos Families, tech CEOs with trophy wives..)
*Note looking through other reviews I see now shitty service is not rare
I am a mature and polite 23 year old man, respectable. I am an experienced sushi connoisseur. But whenever I've come here I have got no respect, crappy service, pure apathy. There are not too many waiters here, so I've got the same one a number of times. It is a very senior woman. She is the worse one.
On one occasion coming here, I had came by myself and was seated at a table (bar was full). When one comes by themselves, they are obviously hungry, but not only that they don't have company to talk to or anything of that sort to distract them, especially at a table. Knowing this, the the waitress makes me wait literally 20 minutes just sitting there staring at the wall before she even came to take my order or anything......next time I went there, she did it again!!!
The sushi takes forever to arrive, I don't understand, its sushi...not slow roasted pork. One time they forgot one of our orders. English is very limited here (not referring to names of the food/dishes in Japanese as I know all of that, but just in general) to the point that when I ask about the sushi that did not come, the employee mutters a stereotypical not-understanding-a-word-i-just-said "hehehe" with smiles.........!??!?!??!?! i give up
I'm not coming here anymore (I have not for many months in fact). The sushi quality is decent but for the price and horrible service its no good. And I deserve to be treated wit respect. Even if I don't have a trophy wife or two 5 year old kids fencing with the chop sticks.
Sushi Tomi is wayyyy better if your in the MV/LA area. The fish is better, and the sushi chefs are of a higher skill and esteem while being personable, with great service to boot. -
Review from Kym L.
Los Altos, CA
8/25/2011
We've been going to Akane for years now. We love this place. There was a time where we would go every other day....literally.
Shin, Ryan and Chu-san are the best. Frances has always been warm and friendly as well as the wait staff.
The saki nigiri is awesome and we LOVE LOVE LOVE the spicy tuna hand rolls. We've taken numerous friends here and everyone...I mean everyone has LOVED it.
If you want to give it a try, I would suggest sitting at the sushi bar. But, be aware...these chefs are Japanese (except for Ryan) and have been trained in Japan...so, they assume you know what you want and will order when you're ready. If you need more assistance, you'll need to let them know and they are more than happy to oblige.
I read one of the reviews where the main concern was bad smelling and tasting sushi. This was a complete shock for me to read. I've been to this restaurant enough times that I've seen the health inspector come in and check the kitchen, sushi prep area and the fish storage area. Guess what? He made a comment of "looks great, guys...one of the cleanest I've seen".
I know not every place is going to have fans like me. But seriously, this place is one of my favorites and I'll continue to go back and bring my friends there because the food is great, service is awesome and the experience has always been top notch. -
Review from Wendy K.
12/22/2010
Finally got to try Akane last weekend. Was so happy that my friend called ahead to get a reservation, as we didn't have to wait at all.
Loved the atmosphere of the restaurant, and it was quiet enough to hear each other talk.
We started with a large hot sake that was reasonably priced and tasty -- it definitely did the trick of taking the chill out of a cool rainy night.
I got an order of spicy tuna and avocado maki, unagi maki (that was supposed to only contain unagi, but came with avocado, too -- I liked it with the avocado, but I would have preferred that they gave me what I ordered), and hamachi nigiri. I have to say that the hamachi was some of the best I've ever tasted. It melted in my mouth and tasted a little like butter.
The only thing I would have changed was that just as we were finishing up, the table next to us ordered one of the smelliest dishes EVER! It assaulted my nose, and I'm so glad we had already paid and were ready to head out.
I'm looking forward to returning! -
Review from Shinny L.
2/19/2011
I can't speak for the sashimi, as I'm generally not a fan. I've heard good things about it though (ironically I heard them the very same day I ended up accidentally trying this place)
we ate here because of our problems at Los Altos Grill (not getting a table despite having made reservations). The food was decent, the decor and service were lovely.
If i lived in the area, I might come back.
I had:
Combination salmon teriyaki and tempura vegetables
Dragon Roll (it was very cutely decorated with seaweed dragon ears, but the unagi was only ok, not terribly fresh)
Potato Croquette: pretty good, run of the mill.
Not sure if all of that was worth the $30 or so that I paid in terms of taste and qualify, but I did bring a bunch of stuff home for a second meal the day after. -
Review from Jennifer B.
Los Angeles, CA
5/3/2011
I had the Oyako Donburi today and it was pretty, pretty tasty. It tasted just like when my mom makes it. The price was super reasonable (only $8.50) for lunch in Los Altos.
On other visits, I've tried the tonkatsu and teriyaki chicken -- both pretty standard, as is their tempura. The miso soup is a little too thick for my liking.
The rolls/nigiri/sashimi, on the other hand, are fabulous and always fresh. There isn't much variety in terms of rolls, so expect the standard. I think the pricing is fine - averaging $6 for a plate of six, and .80 for inari! I love those little bean bags.
