Ariake Japanese Restaurant

4.0 star rating
209 reviews Rating Details

Categories: Japanese, Sushi Bars  [Edit]

5041 Geary Blvd
(between 14th Ave & 15th Ave)
San Francisco, CA 94118
Neighborhood: Outer Richmond
(415) 221-6210
Hours:

Mon-Fri 11:30 am - 2:30 pm

Mon-Thu 5 pm - 11 pm

Fri 5 pm - 12 am

Sat 12 pm - 12 am

Good for Groups:
No
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Attire:
Casual
Price Range:
$$
Good for Kids:
Yes
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
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes

Review Highlights   

  • user photo
    "I particularly loved the Hamachi Mango and the Ms." In 14 reviews
  • user photo
    "Super-fresh fish and very friendly service." In 16 reviews
  • user photo
    "the Firecraker Roll and Toro are to die for." In 20 reviews
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209 reviews in English

  • Review from Marti G.

    • 0 friends
    • 1 review

    Palo Alto, CA

    5.0 star rating
    5/17/2012

    I've been in New Zealand for awhile, but NEVER miss a meal at Ariake when I come back to San Francisco.  I used to be here every Friday night when I lived in town.  Jin has an amazing source for his fish--the hamachi is buttery and flavorful.  I've never had better hamachi, even in Japan!  Try the grilled hamachi kama(cheek)--wonderful.

    The place is small and casual, but delivers big in the way of incredibly fresh and delicious dishes.  The 49er roll is THE best ever--Jin makes it with japanese herb in the middle (shiso), and paper thin lemon slices on the outside of the salmon.  Also, the tuna tataki is AMAZING.  I could go on and on...

  • Review from Jade W.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    5/4/2012 2 photos 1 Check-in Here

    came here on a random father-daughter day outing. Dad was craving some solid sushi and decided to meet up with his only daughter in the City.

    ordered:

    edamame

    hidden treasure - a chef special with some fresh raw fish and shrimp and shizo leaves and with a simple clean taste. I would have loved some heat added but then it would have been a ceviche and totally different

    Ariake roll - a 3 spicy tuna combo covered in seaweed salad - spicy tuna and seaweed salad can't go wrong

    Dragon roll - crab meat and prawn tempura w/ cucumber and eel - solid!

    inside out roll - tuna inside and out - solid!

    and tempura - solid

    Overall very attentive service, everything tasted fresh and clean and I will def be back!

  • Review from Lloyd B.

    Los Angeles, CA

    4.0 star rating
    4/10/2012 2 photos 1 Check-in Here

    Super friendly, my to go order was promptly brought out in less than 15 minutes. The food, the ambiance, and the service was authentically Japanese. So much so that it was a little difficult to communicate to our waitress in english. Nonetheless, I can't wait to try more stuff here.

    I was so hungry and in such a hurry i almost forgot to take a picture of the to go order of spicy tuna and spicy yellowtail rolls. Wow they were super delicious. I didn't even dip them in soy sauce or wasabi. The masago that covered the rolls had a light and salty taste to it. They were perfect.

    I'm definitely going back for a full meal the next time I get a chance.

    Prepare for street parking and a possible wait for a seat.

  • Review from Melissa M.

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    4/9/2012

    DELICIOUS sushi
    INCREDIBLY slow/inattentive service

  • Review from Sina O.

    • 109 friends
    • 82 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/6/2012 4 Check-ins Here

    If you want amazingly fresh high quality sushi in the city without a super high price tag, this is it!! Their kitchen food options are a good too :} and so is the service

    Shima Aji, must try! And all the other fish, sake, hon hamachi, is great n fresh.

    Get the large portion of tuna tataki and it's huge! (for tuna tataki, not talking hungryman tv dinner here) Not the best tuna tataki I've ever had, but decent.

    Lion King roll was it? With salmon and lemon zest on top, simple but wonderful.

    The Ariake roll, spicy tuna roll with seaweed salad on top, is also priced nicely and is a staple to my orders. Of course not too much mayo in the spicy tuna roll that the roll looks more orange than red like the shat sushi joints.

    I also love one of the sushi chefs, talked to him briefly bout his nutty times in Miami in his youth. He was sad when he told me he wished SF had parties that went all night long, boy was he in for a surprise.

    He'll make it public that the Shima Aji from Japan is his favorite (mine too), as he can't resist to slip a piece in his mouth he exclaims "esss soo gewwww"

  • Review from Judy X.

    • 48 friends
    • 13 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    4/7/2012 2 photos 1 Check-in Here

    My bento box was quite worth the price. I had the tempura with salmon sashimi. This place serves one of the freshest sashimi I have eaten in San Francisco. However, the reason why I didn't give them a four star rating is because I find it a rip off ordering the Sashimi Combo A. Although I wasn't the one who ordered it, I felt really bad for my friend who did. They barely give you anything. It's so not worth $15!

    Service was okay. The chef said, "hello" so I responded back with a "hi." After that, he didn't say anything so it just made it very awkward sitting alone at the table as I waited for my friend to arrive.

  • Review from Taylor S.

    • 65 friends
    • 30 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    3/19/2012 1 Check-in Here

    Okay. This place... I can't even... just -- go there. The exterior does not at all betray the cornucopia of deliciousness that resides within. This is a true-blue hole in the wall restaurant. The staff is adorable and incredibly polite. The owner, Jin, imports fish a few times a week. If he's working the sushi bar, you can ask him what's fresh/what he'd recommend and he will go into obscene detail as to why, say, the tuna is the best that night.

    I've been here a few times with a friend and her husband, and the food has never failed to be anything but incredible. First off, we have ankimo. Monkfish liver. Those not seasoned in sushi may cringe at the thought, but this stuff is SO AMAZING. It's buttery and smooth -- not at all what you might expect from well... liver. If you're brave enough, give it a go -- it's definitely not the cheapest thing on the menu, but very much worth every penny.

    Next, hamachi kama. This is the cheek/neck of Yellowtail, and Ariake does it right. The meat falls off like it was placed there by hand, and each bite is like a miniature megaton of flavor.

    They have kuramoro oysters with a great house sauce. This is a great place to start if you want to try oysters! The sauce compliments the flavors of oysters, which are surprisingly sweet -- not briny, and not at all what I expected.

    In terms of rolls, the only ones I've had are the Ariake and Moon Dog. I... probably won't even bother trying anything else, because those two knock it out of the park.

    Now if you're in the mood to spend a bit of money, and you're a fan of sake, indulge in the Narutotai. It comes in a 700~ mL steel bottle, and it is likely the best sake you will find on this side of the Pacific. I've rarely appreciated notes of flavor in sake (as it was usually going down with a Kirin or Ichiban in a sake bomb). Narutotai is AMAZING. The stuff is imported, however, and comes at $65 a bottle.

  • Review from Kassidy P.

    • 30 friends
    • 26 reviews

    Oakland, CA

    5.0 star rating
    2/3/2012 1 Check-in Here

    The sashimi melts in your mouth.  The Ikejime Tai, yellow tail, maguro, and fatty tuna was some of the best I have ever had.  And the bill came to $70 for 2 people.  I was very impressed!! The service is quick and not bothersome.  What a great joint!

    Its a small place, but you feel very welcomed as you enter the door.  The sushi chef is a really nice man and I felt like he was really crafting his art into his pieces.

    Oh yum.  Nothing like great sushi after a hard work week.  

    Ok the rolls:

    cherry blossom-YUM

    Spider- YUM YUM

    Rainbow- 3X YUM all fresh fish.

    The Nagiri looked great too will try that next

    I will go back!

  • Review from Lekan W.

    • 0 friends
    • 23 reviews

    Palo Alto, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/26/2012

    Some of the most flavorful sushi and sashimi I have ever had. Top rate ingredients, very creative specialty rolls, and great presentation and service, as long as you're willing to be just a little proactive and ask for what you want.

    I'm also very conscious of sustainable fishing, and Ariake had a good selection of great rolls (including the Ariake Roll) that was both delicious and reasonably sustainable.

  • Review from Anastasiia G.

    • 0 friends
    • 9 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/25/2012

    Best sushi place in the city! The fish is always fresh, and anything I tried here was a-ma-zing! It has been a must-visit-at-least-once-a-month-place for couple years already!

    My favorites: Tuna Tataki, Cliff House, Moon Dog!

  • Review from Larry V.

    • 6 friends
    • 32 reviews

    Daly City, CA

    4.0 star rating
    3/6/2012

    This is nice japanese restaurant.
    We had a few bottles of sake and the owner gave us good suggestions.
    The food was good and reasonably priced. I would definately go back.

  • Review from Julianne H.

    • 33 friends
    • 26 reviews

    El Cajon, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/7/2012

    This is my absolute favorite sushi restaurant in SF. I used to live in Outer Richmond, and when I found this place in Inner Richmond, my whole view of sashimi changed! I love the LOVE Combo - my gf and I would always order it. The service is great, the chill atmosphere, the great pure sushi....aaahhhhh......LOVE it :)

  • Review from Patricia P.

    • 0 friends
    • 1 review

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    5/10/2012

    I've lived around the corner from this place for years.  They have been open now for 13 years, and the first time I tried it was a few weeks ago.  It was the BEST sushi I've ever had.  I went last night for dinner and again today for lunch.  This is no fluke, truely amazing sushi!!!  I highly recommend the tataki salad, AMAZING!

  • Review from Ty W.

    • 27 friends
    • 20 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    3/29/2012

    The food is amazing, the value is sublime, everyone is super friendly, and it didn't seem too crowded.  My favorite sushi place in SF right now.

  • Review from Diane L.

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    3/14/2012

    Came here for lunch. Got a bento box. Small portions, left feeling hungry still.....maybe I should've gotten the rolls instead.

  • Review from Vanessa S.

    • 21 friends
    • 12 reviews

    Civic Center/Tenderloin, San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    3/13/2012

    Officially my favorite sushi place in the bay.  Nice variety of standard and specialty rolls.  I like how they use lemon on some of the rolls.  Also, the firecracker is awesome.

  • Review from Jackie M.

    • 119 friends
    • 139 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    10/19/2011 1 Check-in Here

    Been here a couple times and have always had good service and good food. The last time I went here it was more entertaining than usual because the sushi chef was serving up sake to the drunk people at the bar while a cop bitched and moaned about life at the table behind me. Haha. This place definitely gets its share of characters. The other times I have came it has been really calm and intimate so I guess you will just have to take a chance in coming here.

    The rolls are yummy. I've gotten the Lion Kind like twice and it is so huge and filling. Def worth trying! The spicy tuna is always a good choice. The dragon roll is one of my faves. The fish here is pretty fresh which earns this place 4 stars. -1 star for its overbaked sushi rolls. I felt there was more batter than sushi in that thing... forgot the name of the roll, but overall I will def. be returning.

  • Review from Caroline M.

    • 0 friends
    • 7 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/22/2012

    This is the go to place for sushi for our family.  Jin is wonderful and his fish is incredible.  The 49er roll, shima aji, firecraker, and tataki salad are terrific.  It is really hard to eat sushi anywhere else because it rarely competes with Ariake.

  • Review from Dilys S.

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    10/5/2011 2 photos 1 Check-in Here

    Ariake and Koo are officially my favorite Japanese restaurants in San Francisco now. Both authentically Japanese. Ariake is quite innovative with its premium rolls - Hamachi Mango rolls are highly recommended, flashy and pretty in presentation as well as taste and originality. Ariake roll though on the other hand is too fish with the seaweed.
    The Ikejime Tai sashimi special is extremely good, fresh, and melts in my mouth.. the crystal texture and look is also very appealing. I made sure that i carefully chewed each piece.

    The street parking is stringent, very busy and somewhat tricky geary street, back street parking are slightly better. Walking 2 blocks on a weekend is normal. Restaurant is very small and crammed.

    Service is average, considering the restaurant is quite busy, it is okay. Focus on the food!

  • Review from Jackie C.

    • 0 friends
    • 2 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    4/13/2012

    I love their sea urchin sushi.  It's called the uni..  I love the sweet gooeyness in the mouth feel.   I wish we also tried the Ariake roll,  We chose the lemon avocado salmon roll, but I think the Ariake roll would have had a more distinct flavor.

  • Review from Annette J.

    Dearborn Heights, MI

    4.0 star rating
    6/28/2011 2 Check-ins Here

    MMMM TORO!

    Yes, every so often I will splurge on this delicate fatty tuna and every single time I will LOVE it. This time was no exception. I've had toro at other spots where they charge and arm and a leg and only give you one itty bitty piece. Here the serving came with two very healthy slices of buttery, fish goodness. Well worth the price and then some.

    Everything else I shared here with my buddies was also delicious. The rolls themselves were fanftastic and (relatively) inventive, the shashimi was fresh and melt in your mouth good. I particularly loved the Hamachi Mango and the Ms. Vivian. We also split a couple of appetizers like the Yaki Saba, a grilled mackerel which was also very tasty.

    The waitstaff was very attentive, refilling my tea regularly and quickly. I was in the start of a head cold so I appreciated the never ending stream of tea! The restaurant itself is not very big but not uncomfortable and there was no wait on a Friday night which my hungry tummy appreciated.

    My three buddies and I ordered a crap ton of food and a couple of beers. We held our breath when the bill came around and while it was not cheap it wasn't quite as break-the-bank painful as we had anticipated, especially considering the quality of the food. I'd happy drag myself back here and eat my self silly any day of the week! If my checkbook could afford such regular indulgences!

  • Review from Karen T.

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    12/22/2011 4 photos 1 Check-in Here

    I was craving sushi and my friend brought me here. They get a solid 3.5 stars. All the specialty rolls were good, tempura was ok and the chicken skews were ok. Bummer, they don't have butterfish!!

  • Review from Wes W.

    • 11 friends
    • 29 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    2.0 star rating
    2/4/2012

    I've been here many times and the sushi is always excellent.  My last experience, sitting at the bar with 3 friends, waiting 2 and a half hours and not getting half our food, was not excellent. The service is beyond pathetic.

  • Review from Tiffany C.

    • 93 friends
    • 6 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    2/10/2012

    Everything is so Fresh!!! When in season their Wild Salmon is so good. It literally melts in your mouth. Every time I go, the special fishes are amazing. I will go back whenever I'm in the neighborhood.

  • Review from Cindy W.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    7/10/2011

    We were cold and hungry and Ariake innocently offered open seats as we dropped in for an early dinner.

    Once inside and warmed with steaming green tea, we were prepared to eat.

    We started with rolls to share:
    - Hamachi Mango ($12): Alternating slices of sweet ripe mango and yellowtail striped across the back of rice, with more mango and asparagus rolled inside, with some tasty sauce and tri-colored roe in orange, green and black on top. The mango tended to overpower the fish but pretty presentation.

    - Double Albacore: This was one of the chalkboard specials. Fresh albacore sat on top and inside the roll for a creamy mouthful.

    - Firecracker ($7): You get 4 pieces of tempura shiso leaves which serve as the carrier for spicy tuna mix with a little seaweed wakame salad on top. This was my favorite with its various textures and heated flavors.

    We also shared some Nabeyaki Udon ($9.95) which had deliciously flavorful broth, chewy udon noodles, and the usual fixings of veggie, chicken, and tempura shrimp inside.

    Friendly service, frequented by regulars, and well priced to invite you back for more. (3.75 stars for hitting the spot and wallet.)

  • Review from Patrick S.

    • 60 friends
    • 10 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    9/23/2011 1 Check-in Here

    Stunning.
    Get the damn Toro you cheap ba$%#$d. You only live once. Sit at the bar. Always get the specials, ALWAYS ask for "off menu" recos. And yes drink some Sake too. DUH!

    Seriously, the more I spend here the better it gets.

  • Review from Misha T.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    7/9/2011

    They use pretty damn good fish I must say. Our O-Toro, was indeed the buttery strip of perfection that I had hoped for. The hon-hamachi was great as well.

    Would be a good place for a sushi happy hour type deal.

  • Review from Jonathan W.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    3/17/2011 2 photos 2 Check-ins Here

    Being on a low carb, sugar detox makes eating out a lot harder. I am not saying the diet is hard for me, just trying to figure out what i can eat out that doesn't have added sugar is hard. So why not eat raw fish! Can't go wrong with that ;)

    Ariake is a Korean owned Japanese restro with a touch of modern kick in their sushi and sushi rolls. After a hardcore workout, my mind only leads to one thing: PROTEIN!!! i need to restore that protein. My workout buddy and i were trying to find a place to eat after being at the gym 2-3 hrs one Tuesday night. Took out the trusty ole yelp app and found Ariake cuz the first thing that came to mind was sashimi.

    The one thing that caught my eye and would be enough food for two people were the sushi and sashimi dinners.  Which are priced starting at 53-63 bucks. Seems like a lot of money but its totally worth it. You get a giant plate of sashimi, and about 8 nigiri and a sushi roll. They have 3 different sushi and sashimi dinners FAITH, HOPE and LOVE. Another time when i came, i got the combination plate which is essentially a 21 piece chirashi equivalent. Once again the fish was very fresh. Awesomeness

    Their sashimi is very fresh and the portions were awesome, i was content. Mission Complete. PROTEIN restored.

  • Review from Jane L.

    • 169 friends
    • 180 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    2/24/2011

    Understated. Straightforward. Mild-mannered.

    Simply put, Ariake is great. No frills, fresh fish, and no rolls heavily doused in saccharine sweet-mayo. Similarly, the ambiance is no frills and clean.

    Unique dish - monkfish foie gras? (aka fish liver) Imagine consistency of amateur foie gras with a slightly overwhelming fish flavor.

    Must have - Sashimi - melts in your mouth. Conducive for dates as this eliminates fish-hanging-from-mouth-as-you-try-to-bite-through -it potential. Bite right through, sista.

    Noteworthy - Hamachi Mango Asparagus roll - refreshing flavor, delicately dressed with sauce, artistically topped with sparkling roe gems.

    $$10-15/roll

  • Review from Rachel Y.

    • 10 friends
    • 1 review

    Outer Richmond, San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    12/30/2011

    This could be the best sushi place I've ever eaten at. The fish is fresh, tasty and well prepared. Their special rolls are awesome and the service is top notch. The only draw back is that it's a very small place and fri/sat night there is a long wait.

  • Review from Ariza S.

    Dallas, TX

    3.0 star rating
    5/25/2011

    We stopped by Ariake for dinner around 8:30 PM and were lucky to grab one of their last tables. This place is tiny which I loved and had a cozy vibe.

    All the ladies ordered Sapporo and we started with their seaweed salad which was cool and fresh. The rolls we split included the cherry blossom ($12.00), fire cracker ($7.00), dragon ($12.00), spider ($9.00) and one more other roll I couldn't remember and they were all decent.

    I wasn't wowed but enjoyed the good company I had and atmosphere more than anything. For a sushi place their prices are fairly decent but their rolls are also much smaller.

  • Review from Alisa g.

    • 52 friends
    • 69 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    5/26/2011 8 photos

    Tried hamachi kama and it was very good but small and expensive! $28 dollars seriously? I am never ordering that from here again! Everything else is still awesome!

    I will make this review short. Everything was really good and the price was about right. I will be back and try the hamachi kama!!

  • Review from Meredith R.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    4/7/2011

    Awesome sushi spot and totally worth the drive if you don't live nearby. Service is lovely.

    One of the best bowls of miso I've ever had (there needs to be a perfect balance of miso and salty - they mastered it).

    I loved the Hamachi Mango and Double Albacore rolls. Apparently the Moon Dog is *the best* but the good lord gave me shellfish allergies. Tons of awesome shellfish rolls on the menu, too. Everything else we had was super fresh; yummy Maguro and Toro sashimi.

    Note: He's currently getting his fish from Greece which says something about his conscience and his concern for the health consequences of his customers. Kudos to him for thinking about this during a time when most people wouldn't realize why this is so important...

  • Review from Kristen S.

    • 358 friends
    • 614 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    2/27/2011

    Tiny portions.  Horrible service.

    We ordered the lunch bento box with three items: salmon teriyaki, salmon sashimi, and tuna sashimi.  The waitress (who later turned out to be the owner) said no, "you can only choose one sashimi item.". OK, no problem, since bento boxes are set prices, so she's probably trying to keep the cost down.  "We can pay you extra." "No, sorry," came her polite but stern reply.  WHY NOT?  I just don't understand people who leave money on the table.  

    The service aside from that was equally lacking.  We had to fetch our own menus, and ask for hot tea.  What's next?  Wash our own dishes?

    It's not even an one hit wonder.  It's an one hit miss.  Goodbye Ariake.

  • Review from Katherine B.

    London

    UK
    4.0 star rating
    1/4/2011 1 Check-in Here

    A solid 4 star sushi joint. After moving to London, when I came back to SF, I was DYING for some sushi-- too $$$ in London, (or rather, £££) which is more like $$$$ with the exchange rate...

    The great thing about Arikake that they are open Mondays, which seems to be the collective off day for every other sushi place in the area.

    Rolls/nigiri devoured:

    -Arikake roll (spicy tuna w. seaweed salad)
    -49er roll (their take on Ebisu's roll... lemon, salmon, tobiko)
    -hamachi
    -tomago
    -halibut (I forget the japanese word)
    -Spicy piku? (spicy scallop roll)

    My favorites were the hamachi, arikake, and 49er roll, though I like Ebisu's version better.

  • Review from SFMom O.

    • 8 friends
    • 86 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    4/23/2011

    We ordered both "cooked" items (tonkatsu, beef teriyaki) as well as sashimi and rolls. In a nutshell: AVOID the cooked items altogether and focus on the raw fish.

    The tonkatsu was gristly, fatty, and chewy....absolutely inedible. I left the entire thing on my plate. The beef teriyaki was also very fatty but we could at least masticate it to the point where we could swallow it.

    By contrast, the uni and ikura we ordered were absolutely fresh and delicious. If we come back, it'll be specifically for the sushi. Service was responsive and courteous.

  • Review from Tina T.

    • 235 friends
    • 188 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    1/4/2011 4 Check-ins Here

    There's something about tobiko that makes me crave for it. The crunchiness of the tobiko as it pops with flavor is weirdly entertaining.

    With that being said, if you love tobiko, get the Hamachi Mango Roll. The tri-colored tobiko was soooo good. Spicy flavored goodness.

    The miso-marinated black cod and uni nigiri were great picks, too. Unfortunately, after I ordered the Hamachi Mango Roll, I wanted more tobiko but their tobiko nigiri was fishy and rubbery.

    Next up, Moon Dog!

  • Review from Rosalind S.

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    Updated - 12/5/2010 3 Check-ins Here

    My boyfriend and I were excited to come back here after an afternoon of shopping downtown.  We strolled in to a 3/4 full restaurant around 6:30pm and sat at the bar since we didn't call ahead.  We ordered the exact same thing we got the first time we were here, Maguro and Hamachi Nigiri and the Moon Dog and Ms Vivian rolls.  It was good but let me tell you about a few red flags we saw tonight.

    Apparently they made an incorrect order of hamachi nigiri because we saw a plate sitting on the sushi bar counter for over 5 mins. The sushi chef realized his mistake and took it off the counter and continued to reuse the fish to make ours!  If you've ever seen Top Chef you know that Gordon Ramsey would flip out!!!  You DONKEY!!  But we figured that it wasn't out for thaaat long so we didn't say anything.  The pieces were kinda warmer than we would have liked and the maguro wasn't cut around the ligaments and was stringy.  We also noticed that the refrigerated door for the fish was frosted so we couldn't see what the sushi chefs were doing.  What are they hiding back there anyways?

    The rolls were definitely NOT as good as the first time.  Maybe they were having an off night.  We wouldn't know; this was our 2nd time eating here.  After paying the bill, my BF watched one of the woman behind the counter make a roll topped with raw salmon.  She reached into a tupperware container filler with what looked like left over salmon pieces and proceeded to top this roll.  This container was sitting out on the counter the whole time we were there.  This was not kept in the refrigerated area with the other raw items.  

    I don't know if the incidents we witnessed tonight are "normal" in the restaurant business.  I think if I were a restaurant owner I would at least want my staff to recognize these are things to NOT do in front of customers.  We won't be coming here again.  The waitstaff was friendly but the food didn't meet the standards they set for themselves the first time around.  I expected higher standards from a restaurant that received such high Yelp reviews.

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    1 Previous Review: Show all »

    • 4.0 star rating
      8/23/2010

      I came here based upon your yelp reviews and thank you yelpers, this place is yummy and the service… Read more »

  • Review from Cath M.

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    1/18/2011 1 Check-in Here

    **3.5 STARS**

    After riding in and around the Presidio... S.O. was getting a tad bit grumpy b/c he was hungry.

    He started reading all the restaurant signs when we were on Geary... thus I asked him if he wanted to eat. Instead of answering, he literally just pulled over and parked... right in front of this place...

    OK... I guess we're eating a late lunch.

    This place was tiny... I could definitely see this spot getting packed on a busy night!

    Friendly...  and prompt. And they have a lunch menu on a weekend. That caught me off guard... most places only honors their lunch menu on weekdays. That was cool.

    S.O. ordered a Beef Teriyaki with a side of veggie tempura. He inhaled all of it. I didn't bother to ask if I could try... grumpy...

    I ordered a shrimp roll... kapa maki ... and tomago... two out of three was decent but the tomago... egg tasted funny. I finished it for principle sake.

    Anyway... the NFL playoff game was on by the bar so that helped ... Not sure if we'll be back but since the sis lives around the area... possibly!

  • Review from David A.

    • 119 friends
    • 325 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    9/19/2010

    We wondered in to Ariake while walking around the neighborhood last night and were very impressed with the quality of the food.  In somewhat typical SF sushi tradition, this is an establishment where the "book" is much better than it's "cover."

    The salmons both regular and the Scottish special were excellent, as was the toro and red sea bream.

    We had two rolls which were also very good although one of them had a "special sauce" that was a bit too "rich" and we wiped off the roll.

    In short, Ariake is worth the trip.  Note that we spend over $100 for 2 of us (including 2 beers - Koshihikari Echigo which is excellent and not that easy to find) so it's not the cheapest place in town, however.

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