On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Loading...
wow. my husband and I stumbled upon this place one random Sunday afternoon while we were in the area and wanted to eat, but we had our dog with us and didn't want to leave him in the car while we ate. Not many of the restaurants on Convoy have outside/patio seating that will accommodate a dog. Or if they do, they were closed on Sunday. Finally we find this little place with two outside tables. What a great find!
I ate the Yakisoba which was really good and authentic. The portion was not huge and it wasn't greasy (two pluses in my book). My husband ate some sort of fish soup that smelled, well, very fishy. But it tasted better than it smelled. It was full of all sorts of fish bits in a rich broth. He really enjoyed it, me...not so much. I was glad I ordered the Yakisoba. We will be back.
I returned for a more legitimate dining experience. Chirashi is excellent, but I was interested in trying some of the more authentic dishes: Chawanmushi, Monk Fish Livers, Chicken Karaage, Asparagus rapped in bacon, etc...
Still impressed. Even the dishes that were unfamiliar to my palette were enjoyable. A MUST-Go-TO place if you're looking for an unforgettable eating experience.
Almost unspeakably impressed. I saw the pictures of the Chirashi slapped all over the place on Yelp.… Read more »
After 2.5 years coming to San Diego and eating crappy food, I've pretty much given up.
Thanks to my coworker, I now know of a place that is *ACTUALLY* good and *ACTUALLY* authentic. Amazing.
I had the Japanese curry with fried chicken and we shared the mackerel with miso and green onions - amazing! Yes, people, Japanese curry is a little sweet. It's not an Indian curry. Just because you don't like a cuisine - that doesn't mean that the restaurant is bad.
Great experience, great real Japanese food and very low prices ($23 for 2 people for lunch)
There were so many rumors about this place. Some of my coworkers mentioned it's one of the most kept-secret spots in San Diego, they're not even having a "Restaurant" sign on the outside. Others rolled with their eyes and said I won't get served because I don't look Japanese enough.
Well, I can't change that but at least try out that mythical place. After finally finding the entrance (it's next to the Pancakes Restaurant) I wondered that this mythical place was almost empty on a weekday at lunch time. But anyway, the Japanese girls who served my table were really nice and helpful, and I actually felt less mythical. It looked like a pretty normal Japanese restaurant in San Diego, with a Sushi bar and lots of seating.
I left Udon noodles, Teriyaki Chicken, and Unagi-don aside and ordered Shrimp Curry- it wasn't bad, but far from stunning and nothing exciting. From what I can tell, the menu is very authentic and offers lots of different things to try. Tako wasabi? Check. Pirikara Maguro? Check. Or Tempura Shishitou Peppers? Check.
I actually printed out a picture of a soup I found here on Yelp but the very nice waitress told me they only have it for dinner. Bummer! But no problem, I will come back again in the evening for sure - with my print out.
I came in early for lunch to meet Seb, thinking it might be busy for lunch from the ratings of this place and didn't want to wait for a table. I was wrong there are plenty of tables and no waiting! The girls greeted me in Japanese, Sorry I don't understand!
I sat down at a 4 top, checked out the cut and paste menu. It was cute and bubbly. I wanted to try some different dishes besides eating only raw stuff. I couldn't decide on anything and some of the names I have no idea what they all mean? The Uni Pasta...Fried Yellow tail... Curry...sounds delish....let me just order the fried mackeral and a soda to start.
I continue to wait for friend, I look around the small restaurant. Nice to see I will be having lunch with Marilyn Monroe & the lil boy picking his butt. I laugh out loud... the lone girl next to me looks over like I am some crazy nut, we made eye contact I smiled and she was just expressionless I was going to share with her why I was lauging... gosh so anti social.
By this time I made up my mind, never tried Japanese curry before, and saw some of the pictures of the dish on here, I went for the fried chicken curry to increase my cholesterol, not intentionally. But everything fried is so good!
I expected the curry to be spicy, but it was on the sweet side. The portion was pretty big, didn't eat all of it. It was not as flavorful as Thai or Indian. The combo came with miso, salad, and a slice of watermelon in your salad. I think that should be separated. My fruit tasted like dressing. The fried mackeral tasted like a filet o fish.
Overall I should stick to the raw stuff and soups. I plan on coming for dinner. Maybe the 4th star will be my sashimi rating.... we'll see!!!
On my initial visit, I had trouble finding this restaurant. Unlike most other restaurants, Izakaya Sakura has no sign; there is absolutely no way to discern that this is a restaurant of any type. But rest assure, Izakaya Sakura is not part of the military recruitment center -- which is located adjacent to the restaurant.
As I entered, I was greeted by the friendly staff.
I ordered sashimi and steak. The steak was served with miso soup and salad. I also ordered rice.
Everything was prepared very well; I enjoyed my meal.
Sushi prices are generally below $10. Entrée prices range between $15 and $27 (approximate).
I love Sakura! It became one of my favorite Japanese restaurants in San Diego ever since my friend recommended me two years ago.
Environment: Izakaya Sakura does not have a restaurant sign, so it'd be somewhat hard to find at first. The inside of the restaurant is usually dark in day time as they tend to use the natural sunlight from the outside. It gets hot inside the restaurant at times when the restaurant becomes crowded, but a cup of cold ice water and the fans will be enough to keep you cool.
Lunch (~$10-15pp): Broiled salmon, omelet rice with hashed beef sauce and the uni pasta are my personal favorites! Besides eating it raw, salmons taste the best when they are broiled :) The broiled salmon combo includes a bowl of rice, miso soup, and a salad. All these only cost $8.5! The stuffed cabbage is also a good choice for appetizers.
Dinner (~$20-25+pp): I don't usually go for dinner as the dinner menu is a little pricey. However, Sakura offers the best chirashi bowl in that area! It is the same price as the mixed sushi but has a much larger variety of sashimi (Yum!). Compared to the chirashi bowl, the Uni don is a bit disappointing. Some of the uni tasted really bitter and had sand in them the last time I tried it.
Service: All the waitress are Japanese, but they know English well enough to provide good service. All of them are really polite and carry smiles when serving eaters :)
the first star is for their white rice, the best that i've ever had
the second star is for the awesome salmon that they have inside their bento
some reasons why im not going back to this restaurant:
1. no sign board, which made me circled the area for at least 15 minutes looking for this restaurant.
2. menu presentation is very confusing
3. the waiter there aren't that knowledgeable about the nigiri sushi menu today, she has to ask the chef whether they have certain kind of fish for today. i mean, is it really that hard to write down on the menu "fish of the day"??
4. the menu that my friend recommended (nigiri sushi and meatloaf with ponzu sauce) tastes average. the sushi mix costs 20 dollars while we can't choose the fish at all. furthermore, there's nothing special about the nigiri sushi over there. the tuna was butchered, rice falling apart quickly, and yes, they were THAT stingy to just give me a tiny portion of wasabi. obviously, there are better places for sushi outside this restaurant. we loved the bento though, it's written on the menu that they only serve 12 bento per day, i ate there at 1pm and they still have it, so am i lucky or it actually doesn't sell well?
5. they don't accept card for purchase below 15 dollars, i'm lucky to come with my girlfriend today that we paid 52 dollars for 3 item, but if i have to come back by myself? i never carry cash in my pocket.
so yeah...
it's just not worth it
Sakura is an "izakaya" or Japanese pub, although it doesn't look like your typical "izakaya" like in Japan. If you live in San Diego and you do want to eat a authentic Japanese lunch, then definitely come here. I have lived in Japan for 2 years and have traveled numerous times back and forth since my family lives in Ibaraki. One of the dishes that I order tastes like my mom made it. It really feels like you are getting cooked a traditional Japanese meal.
Now, don't expect a Japanese feel in regards to environment. Your not going to see a maneki nekko (cat statue waving) or see Japanese scrolls with Cherry blossoms. What you will see is several Japanese women servers wearing an apron and talking to the chef in Japanese and to many customers in Japanese. They will say "Irashaimase" which is a common greeting in Japanese.
They have many traditional dishes for lunch such as "Buta Shoga" AKA "Ginger Pork", grilled salmon, unagi don (Eel over rice), "Katsudon" (Breaded Pork over rice), "Tonkatsu" (Breaded Pork served with Tonkatsu sauce). I always order the "Buta Shoga" and I am always happy that I do. The ginger pork is very tender. It is served with a salad with a yellow dressing which is usually made out of carrots. Also, my meal is served with a vinegar rice that is delicious. I'm still trying to find out what the name of this vinegar type rice is because it is so delicious! If I am not mistaken, you do get miso soup as well. I usually order a pot of green tea to keep me happy.
A word of wisdom, bring cash for lunch. I think that if your bill is under $10, they don't charge or debit. So bring cash. Also, if you are short on time, DO NOT GO THERE if you have a 30 minute lunch or less. As for your dish coming out on time, its hard to say. It really fluctuates. I always go there when I don't have time restrictions. It does take time, but the time is worth it. Go there when you have leisure time. It is a mom and pop shop and I appreciate it for what it is. It's so mom and pop that there is not a visible sign on the outside. A lot of it is by word of mouth. It is in the same parking lot as the "Pancake House" and the Army Recruitment center.
The night time scene is completely different from lunch. At night they only serve izakaya style food which is like tapas (small portion foods) like kara-age (fried chicken pieces) or edamame, sushi etc....It's a lot noisier and there is a lot more drinking. The activity at the sushi bar bumps up as well. The prices are more expensive, there is more of a wait and the food portions are smaller.
If you know some Japanese words, try to converse with the servers. They do have a menu in English and one in Japanese. Good practice! Luckily I speak Japanese so I'm happy when I get to order in Japanese. Feels like the old days in Japan.
I do kind of wish that they put up more of a decor regarding Japanese culture, but the food makes up for it. Lunch time at Sakura! The lunch specials are great. My meal is around $8.00 and it is a good portion. If you want to try more traditional dishes, then go for the lunch bentos that they have. I think the price bumps up to about $10, but its a good taste of Japan.
Itadakimasu
A typical Izakaya in Japan serves dishes a la carte to accompany sake, soju, beer, or whatever there is to drink. Instead, Sakura serves full meals good for lunch or dinner (that can also accompany whatever there is to drink). Although Sakura is not what I would call an official Izakaya (unless the environment is different at night), they do have an authentic Japanese menu and the taste is fantastic. We ordered the Unagi-don and Pork Cutlet Curry and both exceeded my expectations.
If you're looking for Sakura, make sure you know exactly where to go because there are no signs out front to signify its existence. However, it was fairly busy for a Saturday lunch so I don't think the lack of street signs affects their business. Like I mentioned about Tajima, my mom taught me that you can find a good authentic Japanese restaurant if the people inside are all Japanese (same goes with any ethnicity). The boot definitely fits.
Had to search for "no name japanese" in "San Diego" on Yelp to try to find this place to review. It's not too hard to find once you know the general location. It's in the Original Pancake House center and there's white lights outside.
One of my favorite Japanese restaurants in San Diego. I moved from SD over a year ago so I'm having a hard time remembering what I ordered here - I just remember it was good! Sushi quality is fresh here and I'm a big fan if izakaya style Japanese food.
Lots of specials written in Japanese on the wall, so try to go with someone who can read if you want something a little atypical. I saw someone order sukiyaki there too (special on wall, not on menu) but I've always been too intimidated to ask.
One of my favorite restaurants in SD, check it out!
I rather enjoyed eating here.
To begin with, if you're looking for it by name you will never find it. It is between the armed reserves enlistment center ("Armed Reserves Recruiting") and this office named "Army" which I assume is army recruitment. There is an 8.5x11 sheet of paper outside the door with the name of the restaurant on it. It is in the plaza with "The Original Pancake House" and is on the back, far right side of that plaza.
Good food, friendly service, quiet. Kinda hole in the wall, but that is what I would expect of a good Japanese place. Not that I would know, but it seemed really authentic as well (and my friend agreed).
We started off with the tempura crab with a side of dichon radish and a miso dipping sauce. Really good, crunchy outside, soft and flavorful inside. The crab inside was delightful. We went on to share the Uni pasta, which was sea urchin and sea urchin eggs with buttery pasta. It was delicious and the pasta was perfectly cooked. We also had the miso marinated sea bass with a mini potato salad on the side, It was great! The miso marinade was sweet and made a crispy skin on the sea bass that sealed in the juices. The fish itself was tender and really flavorful, but still lacked that overcooked fishy taste. Wonderful job on the sea bass. I also really liked their hot tea. It was ridiculously hot out today but I still ordered it, and it was really flavorful and nummy.
Definitely keep in mind that most of the dishes will be tapas style. The only one that was really "dinner" portion in our order was the uni pasta. The sea bass was supposed to be my entree but we wound up just sharing everything because it was so small.
Overall? Really good, solid food.
Good stuff! Been here 3 different times and had a good time each time.
Dinner prices are quite expensive, but food is decent. Yakisoba is pretty good for its price, as well as some other dishes.
Other two times I came at lunch - once with the Chicken Curry, which was nice and tasty though a little on the oily side, and the other with Ginger Pork, since my friend recommended that to me. The pork was really good!
The atmosphere of the place is pretty calming - it can be a bit lively, but not overpoweringly noisy. The only cons I can really think about this place are that from the outside, there's no physical sign or light or anything that says "Izakaya Sakura" so you have to search for it, and that in the restaurant, it is very dimmed/dark especially at night (lunch is okay if outside is somewhat bright).
Sakura's food is a bit pricey (don't tapas always creep up on you?), but I suppose it's worth paying a premium for authenticity. We were the only non-Japanese speakers there.
The geso karaage and fried oysters were not only perfectly cooked, but very fresh. I especially loved how the suction cups on the squid tentacles were a crisp golden brown.
Their uni pasta was a unique change of pace, but pretty expensive at $15. We went here specifically to try this dish, and it delivered.
The eggplant au gratin was a mistake. Stay away.
I'll return to Izakaya Sakura, but only when in the mood to drop $20 pp.
Pretty much the same review as most of the folks here. Great neighborhood spot with no sign.
The staff is super friendly, atmosphere very quaint and food is delicious. From everything to the top notch sushi sampler ($30 for some stellar fish), to uni pasta, duck, miso seabass or any off their menu really is great.
I've found myself visiting this place for just some appetizers, beers & saki to a full fledge family dinner with friends. It never ceases to disappoint if you're looking for an authentic japanese izakaya.
Lunch review only, I was never here for dinner.
They have great curry over rice. Uni pasta was awesome. One noted that it's kinda pricey, but if you go to another place and get the same thing, I doubt you can even taste uni for their $10 dollar uni pasta, so $15 also means they are using the right amount of ingredient.
Oh, service is also kind of slow. I don't know whether they just want to perfect everything, or what. But I don't care if it is good food.
As for the no sign, urban legend tells me that the owner was tired of idiots coming to eat not knowing what is awesome food, so he took the sign off, and only try to do returner's business.
Parking gets bad during lunch hour because there is another well-known restaurant around, Original Pancake House (or something like that), so be ready to fight for your spot, or simply, park on streets or the other lots next door (the Curry House lot, but DON"T go there, it does not worth it)
I love this restaurant! I lived in Japan for a year and a half so I know what authentic Japanese food is and this place sells it!
Right when you walk in the door the staff greets you in Japanese. The menu is in both Japanese and English. Ive been here for both Dinner and Lunch, and prefer dinner just because they have more items on their menu. BUT if you go for Lunch, they give you like this whole set with salad, miso soup, and pickle veggies. Yum!!
They sell everything from Sushi to Soba to Okonomiyaki! Delish!
Oh yeah! You know its authentic when your the only person in the place who is not Japanese!
Draw back? Its kinda a pain to find the place since there isn't a sign on their restaurant.
Came here for Mother Day and was very pleased with our experience..
I love that they serve small plates so you can try various things. They definitely have a different menu but it has a really good variety of everything ranging from seafood to meat. It reminded me a bit of Yakatori in Hillcrest but more variety.
The staff was Great and super attentive.
Will be back to try the sushi bar!!
It was a little hard to find though because they don't have a sign and the suite # is not visible either, but we found it and it was worth the search!
There is no noticeable sign except for an 8x10 placard by the restaurant hours. The restaurant decor is simple (random artwork on the walls, strips of paper with menu items written in Japanese, black lacquer tables). The staff -- colleged aged Japanese students? -- is welcoming and attentive.
Despite the homely ambience, the food is flavorful, creative, and effortlessly good. The tapas ($4-7 for small plates, 2-3 plates per person) consisted of many fried seafood offerings served with rich mayo. This is not Long John Silvers! The fried oysters and fried squid legs were perfectly salted and fresh out of the fryer.
Although the focus is Japanese bar food, the $15 sea urchin (uni) pasta entree was creamy with hints of basil and spinach topped with salmon roe and seaweed flakes. I wanted rice or bread to dip in the remaining sauce! I actually used my spoon to sip the sauce. I would've licked my plate if there were less people in there.
Thanks to our new friend Mosh, we found this wonderful Izakaya. Omakase was soooooo great!
Uni pasta was amazing! It was the first time I had San Diego Uni. I like it more than Santa Barbara Uni.
Chicken cartilage was awesome.
Sashimi was excellent.
It's a hole in the wall, but one of the best Japanese meals in my life.
During my short trip to San Diego I was able to eat at Sakura again for lunch on 2/23/09. As I didn't particularly enjoy the Mabo Tofu last time, I figured I would choose something else. I didn't want to choose curry, because it's rather common, but it sounded the best to me on that Monday afternoon. I ordered the eggplant curry and the gratin korokke again (since I loved it last time).
The curry was just right, good meaty, veggie and fruity flavor with a nice consistancy. It didn't taste like package curry by any means, but I have tasted better curry in my time. The eggplant was delightful. It was still firm, not floppy, and it bursts with bright, delicate flavor as you bite it. The eggplant is a great foil for the hearty flavor of the curry. The rice it was set on was nicely cooked and served as a good vehicle for the curry.
As usual the lunch sets come with a salad and miso soup. The salad was fresh. However what I noticed this time - the miso was rather good! I wonder if my memory was bad last time, but the miso didn't seem like packet at all this time. There were only 2 pieces of tofu in it, but they were amply cut and tasted of high quality.
I'm a korokke fan, and the gratin korokke again were very delicious! However you only get 2 pieces, and thats makes them about 2$ per piece, which I think is rather poor value.
I was much more pleased by my lunch at Sakura this time. But then again, it's kinda hard to go wrong with curry and korokke haha. I am certainly going back to Sakura, because while it's nothing very unique (unique, but not very unique), their lunch sets are a good value.
I ate at Sakura for lunch on 12/17/08, at lunch time Sakura offers lunch sets of Japanese comfort… Read more »
I'm Japanese. Its authentic Japanese food so don;t expect to go there and eat sushi rolls. I love going there to drink some hot sake and eat salmon misozuke (salmon miso favor SO GOOD!) with yasai itame (cooked vegie) and some tako wasabi (octopus with wasabi) to chase my sake. If you love IZAKAYA you will love Sakura.
If your starving don't go to Sakura, go to Mitsuwa and eat some Santoka Ramen. Then go to Sakura to get drunk and munch! :D
The service is great and I heart their staff :D
Walk inside Izakaya Sakura and you're happily greeted at the door; you'll smile at the pleasantry. As your waitress/host walks you to your seat, you realize that all the tables are colored black and wrapped in clear plastic, your smile inverts at the unsettling feeling that your meal could be a messy affair.
"Fear not! Your fellow Yelpers who gave such glowing reviews would not let you down!", I assure myself, but the cynic in me says that the reviews of Izakay Sakura could be an instance of irrational exuberance setting in.
Well, I'm happy to report that Sakura is good in terms of food which certainly eclipses the look and feel of the restaurant itself. Although, I would take exception to that former sentence If I consumed a shot of sake or tumbler filled with soju with my food order I think it would be a five star event. I think to fully immerse yourself into the experience, it is almost obligatory to order drinks with your Japanese tapas or more accurately "Izakaya".
Enough of my rambling, here are the three Izakaya dishes I found absolutely fantastic: the Buta Kakuni - slow cooked pork, very tender; the Ika somen - thinly sliced raw squid in a cocktail glass; the uni and unagi Nagiri. The other Izakaya I (or my girlfriend) ordered ranked a little lower was the fried avacado cheese rolls, the asparagus wrapped in bacon and the friend garlic. The cheese rolls tasted like something boxed, the asparagus bacon thing was salty and the friend garlic was great but I had to toil to pry open the main bulb and clove skins to get to the garlic hearts.
Word of warning, if you come to Izakaya hungry expect to pay between 40 to 50 bucks which amounts to 10 Izakaya items. That may sound a lot but each dish is designed for one person and the portions are expectantly small. If your there to drink then you may only spend about 10 bucks for two Izakaya and the rest of your money on drinks. I think the latter is a situation that matches the atmosphere and purpose of the Izakaya Sakura anyway. So load up!
I did my homework before arriving in San Diego. I looked all over yelp in search of a few good Japanese restaurants. I bookmarked them too for future reference. But when we left in search of such food, I didn't bring the list. Blah on me.
Driving around, we came across this plaza and saw the sign for Tsuruhashi Japanese BBQ. As we got out of the car, the Big F was distracted by another restaurant across the way. There was no signage, but he could see patrons inside. His interest was piqued.
A handful of customers were inside on this Friday evening and so we sat down. (I also noticed what appeared to be a non-English menu that another patron was holding, this definitely piqued my interest as well!) As we looked over the menu, I inquired the name of this establishment - Sakura.
Tea and water were requested and soon brought over. The tea was a bit on the lukewarm side, but by the second round, it was much better.
We could see by the menu that this place was an izakaya and proceeded to order a variety of small bites.
* Ankimo ($5.00) - Good monkfish liver.
* Agedashi Tofu ($4.50) - Lightly deep-fried tofu was okay, it was missing something though in the taste.
* Uni with Ika - When is uni and ika not good together?
* Shishamo ($4.50) - Smelt fish order came in three, it was just okay.
* Salmon Sashimi ($12.00) - Five piece order was good, enough to order another one.
* Chawanmushi ($6.00) - "Savory steamed egg custard with assorted ingredients." It was a tasty dish with shrimp, enoki mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms. It reminded me of something I actually make at home already.
* Pirikara Maguro ($6.50) - "Diced raw tuna with spicy sauce." Sesame oil-based, which is a good thing.
The food was good, but not exceptionally great. I guess it's based on our experience with our favorite izakaya - Ichiza in Vegas. Some good stuff and some just okay things. I wish we got to try more items, but it just didn't pique my interest enough. (I'm sad I missed out on the uni pasta I had read about and the photo of the Uni Don looks yum too!)
Service was alright. We had to ask for refills for our tea and they don't give free refills on sodas.
$90 for three
It wasn't until after we left and I went online did I realize that I had bookmarked Izakaya Sakura already! Duh!
3.5 stars
(Photos posted!)
This place isn't as lively as other izakaya places I've tried and has a more sedate feeling. There isn't as many adventurous offerings as some other places I've been to, but what they do have is solid. Went here with a couple of friends for a late dinner where we tried several of their dishes including some fried dishes, assorted pickles and notably their ikura spaghetti. As with anything deep fried it's hard to go wrong. The assorted pickles were all too salty for our tastes and not refreshing at all. The ikura spaghetti was interesting, but also found it to be too salty... the sauce was also a bit too runny to really stick to the spaghetti.
Overall it's a nice little gem of a place, but certainly not my pick for izakaya style dining. Also, the last time I went there was no sign to the restaurant.
I'm a regular here enough to where they have facial recognition of me, I don't whether thats a good or bad thing.
Great service, always great service. Foods not bad either.
Few things to try:
-Hamachi Kama
-Ikageso karaage
-Chicken karaage
-Zaru soba
-Saba Miso
-Korokoro steak
Sushi and sashimi were decent, and if you want a few laughs when the sushi chef Kazu (sp?) is working keep buying him drinks, its customary for him to take it, usually he comes out to your table and shares a toast with you, good times.
It's a great place to go late at night for some good food and good beer.
Haven't been in a couple weeks though, about time I head back.
Visited for maybe the fourth or fifth time a few days ago and was reminded of why this place is great:
The sushi rice is unreal, making any fish laid upon it a masterpiece.
The lunch special menu deal-things are a great value. Chicken katsu curry (you have to make sure to mention the curry part before she wanders away) is amazing.
I will continue to secretively describe a special place I know of with no sign on the door and bring people here.
I just got back from eating here... Overall I really liked my experience here... I went during lunch time with some co workers.. we got there about 12:45... surprisingly it wasnt that crowded, I was really worried it would be super crowded but there was plenty of seating.. No waiting, walked straight in to our table.
We sat at the back table and I was up against the wall with no room to move back, the table was really low or maybe really thick so I couldnt fully scoot under the table because my thighs were too big... It wasnt that horrible though.
I ordered the Tuna Don and the Natto... The tuna don was out of this world, I loved it... came with lots of tasty toppings on the tuna.. it was served with miso soup a green salad, and a couple little sides.. I was very impressed with the freshness of the tuna and how tasty the tuna don was on a whole.
It was my first time trying natto, I wont judge a restaurant on my first time trying a dish but it was pretty decent, Im not sure what to compare the taste to.. I wasnt totally blown away so I dont think i'll need to eat natto again.
The service was friendly and thorough..
At the end when we paid, we all tried to pay with credit cards..
BEWARE: $15.00 CREDIT CARD MINIMUM.
I really enjoyed eating here and i'll definately be back!
First of all, wonderful service. I was greeted warmly by two waitresses, "Irrashaimase!" Came in for lunch, only one other customer there. I ordered off their rather small lunch menu but still got what I wanted: katsudon and chicken karaage.
Their karaage was perfect, wonderfully fried, light and crispy.
Katsudon was great too, came with salad, pickles, miso soup and a little noodle salad. I really enjoyed it, and the waitresses let me practice a little Japanese with them. I's love to come for dinner.
What's it like eating at San Diego's Hidden restaurant? At first its a bit nerve racking....you arrive at the non-descript restaurant and wonder: "Is this the right place?" You double and tripple check the location and decide to take a peak. But your instincts tell you something is fishy.. there is no sign... you look in and see see a bunch of older Japanese Businessmen and you can't help but wonder if this is a Ganster Hangout.....
Take a deep breath, rack up your courage, and take a plunge into my favorite restaurant. This place is well known for its Izakaya but I actually enjoy eating the Sushi / Sashimi here as well. Try to Aji Sashimi.. they'll serve it to you in neat little slices and later deep fry the bones for a wonderful second course. I've always found the Chirashi Sushi to be quite the value at only $30.00 but includes some very top end choices!
I feel guilty like a used-car-salesman for promoting this place... as they have no sign and obviously don't need anymore business.... but I can't help but love this place... I actually pondered giving it 1 star just to keep people away!
After the close to sickening meal we had at lunch time I had a splitting headache and my stomach felt so unwell that I had to take a nap so I could even muster the thought of dinner. I ended up looking on yelp for a Japanese restaurant and then calling Sakura to make a reservation for a late dinner.
I told hubby we should go earlier in case we couldn't find parking, but it wasn't parking that got us, it was the lack of signage. Stupid me! I had read about this on the reviews but forgot as we were searching. The GPS kept telling us "you have reached your destination" but we couldn't see it. In fact, we had driven through the strip mall twice and failed to locate it. I kept calling Sakura and the woman who answered just didn't quite understand what I was saying. Finally, she told us they were located in the same complex as Tsuruhashi so we tried for a 3rd time to find it. Of course it was right next to the Armed Forces Recruiting Center without a sign.
We sat at the sushi bar and I was glad we did. The lighting was pretty good and I didn't have to break out the flashlight to take some pretty decent photos.
Kazu-san was behind the counter. We asked him if he did omakase and he said 'what if yes'.... I replied 'if yes then that's what we'll have'. He immediately informed me "we don't make rolls" to which I replied "I don't want rolls". Hubby said it was because of him that Kazu-san said that -- LOL!!!
Hubby and I ended up having omakase and lil guy got some edamame, agedashi tofu and zaru soba (surprise surprise). We started with a variety of sushi interspersed with some cooked dishes.
Kazu-san was not stingy with his cuts of fish that's for sure. Well, I don't know if that's usually the case or whether it was because hubby offered him a drink of his choice and he chose sake. Hubby had Asahi. Turned out the sake the chef chose was $18!!! I later said to hubby it's kinda like going to a strip club and buying the stripper a drink so the house can make some money and they pick the most expensive drink they have. OH WELL!
I liked almost all of the sushi: hamachi, kampachi, mirugai, maguro, aji, albacore, salmon, uni, cod roe hand roll -- although, the maguro wasn't all that exciting. Hubby also got an oyster shooter which he proclaims was really great.
Cooked dishes included: fried seabass, meatball soup, uni pasta. I probably would've liked the seabass had I not had the sushi. The meatball soup was light and flavorful. It came with shiitake mushrooms, tofu and napa cabbage. The uni pasta tasted like it was under seasoned. The uni just didn't work well in the pasta because after heat was applied to it, the texture of the uni was hard and lost its creaminess. Maybe if the uni was mixed in AFTER the dish has finished cooking it would retain its flavor and creaminess. There was also ikura which was a great enhancer to the flavor and was the star of the pasta in my book. The addition of shiso leaves kicked it up a notch. Otherwise it didn't knock my socks off.
Lil guy's zaru soba was definitely very overcooked. It was too mushy and lil guy didn't even want to finish it. Agedashi tofu was outstanding though.
Our food cost came to $126 total which included the omakase for 2 and lil guy's food. I thought the food cost was reasonable because generally, omakase is around $60/person. Quality was good too -- not perfect, but still, very good!
Still enjoy the food here! We took some friends who know a lot of about different kinds of food and are familiar with the Izakaya style. Service was a bit slower and uneven, but we still enjoyed our meal.
I definitely recommend the Uni Pasta - nice and salty but not overpowering. Yum!
This is a great little find on Convoy. It's a small-plates japanese restaurant. I went with three… Read more »
Let's NOT go crazy here folks. The service was three stars alone, great attitudes, beautiful servers...but the food? Second rate, man the hype is ridiculous. I spent a lot of time in Tokyo, this place is par with a lot of the cheap, reasonably priced places I used to haunt and will probably haunt next month when I go out there again.
Boring, bland, spicy Tuna Don was "not sooo much".
I was truly impressed with the staff and the cleanliness of this place. Not worthy of five stars or even four for that matter, give me a break...
Pretty authentic jap food. Everyone calls it Sakura, it doesn't have a sign, so look for the Arm Forces Recruiting Center next door, and the place itself always has plastic patio chairs outside.
My favs there are their oyako-don, omelet rice with mild tomato sauce, gratin croquette, grilled lamb chops [at night only], tako-wasabi and other small plates of munchies to go with booze... never had sushi there, so I can't tell you if its great.
The staff there are very friendly without being pretentious. Prepare for very slow service when it's packed- like during lunch hour or dinner hour. Personally, I think the food is worth the wait. Opens late some nights.
I really like this place- I'm not super familiar with authentic Japanese food, but given that I always feel like I'm surrounded by Japanese people when I'm there- well, that's a pretty good clue. I really like going there for lunch, when their specials are easy to order and well priced. I've eaten here for dinner twice, with sort of different impressions each time.
First of all, dinner is sort of served in small plates- sort of like Japanese tapas. In my experience, you need something like 3-4 plates per person- which gets pretty spendy for the amount of food you're actually given. I've spent about $25 a person here, and still left feeling a bit empty. HOWEVER, if you aren't a quantities person (or you have the cash to burn), the food is terrific in quality and taste. So let's see... my favorite dishes here were the albacore cold plate (don't remember the name) and stewed pork. Oh, and last time I went we ordered a Yellowtail collar, which was the best I've ever had. I guess another comment I'd make is that it's helpful to have some knowledge of Japanese food before you go- a lot of the names are in Japanese and not explained in English, so I had a hard time knowing what to order.
So the brief version: great food, best with Japanese cuisine knowledge and credit card in hand! =)
Letting the sushi chef choose what you will eat is a really good concept in my book. I've learned to just trust them to give you what they think is reflective of the restaurant.
Since an izakaya isn't known for sushi, I was glad that the chef gave us samples of other dishes from the menu. The sushi was very fresh, the salmon was the best I've ever had, it just melted in my mouth.
I also enjoyed the seabass and the uni pasta. The oyster shooter I got had 2 oysters in it, maybe because my wife doesn't eat oysters so I got double. Who knows, but it was awesome!
I am sorry for giving 2 stars. I know everyone in San Diego loves this place. But the food is just okay. I understand you have to pay more if you want to eat foreign food, but their food quality does not meet its price.
I lived in Japan too long, and have certain image of izakaya, like tapas bar in Spain. I just don't feel like the price and portion is right.
3 stars
The famed hidden Japanese restaurant off of Convoy. . .
Let's get one thing straight before I begin this review. This is an "Izakaya" joint which basically is Japanese appetizers in a bar or restaurant that serves lots of alcoholic beverages. Some may translate Izakaya dishes as the equivalent of Japanese Tapas.
Sure, Izakaya Sakura serves a limited variety of sashimi and chirashi sushi don (sushi topped on rice in a bowl) but it is NOT to be considered a sushi restaurant as many have posted in both Yelp and Chowhound.
For good consistent sushi in San Diego, go to Sushi Ota in Pacific Beach. There has also been a tremendous amount lot of talk and praise about Kaito in Encinitas and another place in Chula Vista that supposedly caters more to local Japanese Nationals.
In any case, back to the review of Izakaya Sakura - I went for dinner and the place had a lot of Japanese patrons. Like others have mentioned, It is a very unassuming and casual place. After perusing the menu, I got excited because they had a lot of the comfort Izakaya type of foods you could find in the Izakaya's in Japan.
My friend and I tried:
The salmon and tuna sashimi - Although above average in freshness, it wasn't as great as others have made it out to be.
Chicken Karaage (Fried chicken) - The skin was too crispy and the meat was a little on the dry side.
Asaparugus Bacon - My friend and I liked this dish. Perfect amount of flavor without the intense saltiness.
Au Gratin Korokke (Croquette) - A bybrid between the regular potato korokke and a creamy crab korokke. The Au Gratic Korotte needed a little more flavor though.
Yakigyoza (fried dumplings) - I was very disappointed with this one. I specifically asked the waitress in Japanese to avoid any confusion if the dumpling skins were hand made (tezukuri) and she said yes! When it came out, the skin tasted store bought. *Sigh*
Sausage - I was expecting the Yakiniku style minature hot dog style sausages. Instead, I was brought out a Polish style sausage!!!
Drinks - I ordered several of the sochu mixed drinks. The drinks tasted like watered down juice.
Overall, I was pretty disappointed with this place, especially with so many great reviews from my fellow yelpers and a fun Izakaya menu to boot. 3 stars because of the many items on the menu. 2.5 to 3 stars for the actual execution and taste of the dishes that I tried.
( HAIPE )
Good that I used Yelp before coming here or else I would have been lost.
As far as food goes, I think they're more of a 3.5 restaurant but not a 4. If you like the "izakaya" atmosphere then this might be a good place to check out.
We ordered the usual karaage, agedashi tofu, sushi, and other plates. It is definitely a good place to go if you have a large party.
If you want authentic Japanese food other than the typical sushi rolls and if you're curious about what Japanese food is all about, then Sakura is the place for you. At first, I didn't know what the name of this restaurant was called because it had no signs of the name! So folks, this no-namer restaurant is located in the same plaza as the Original Pancake House, in case you need to know. The portions are small (like tapas style) and a bit expensive, but it's great when you come with friends and share the small plates together. You cannot go wrong with any of the items here. It's just an all-around good Japanese food. If you're still curious about what to try, go for the seabass. The slimy thing slithers in your mouth, not in your hands :)
Neighborhood: Kearny Mesa
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Mission Hills
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Kearny Mesa
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Kearny Mesa
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Kearny Mesa
Category: Sushi Bars
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
Hype alert! Why is there so much media buzz around…
Just a little Yelp when you're in America's…
Places that are close by...both good & bad. I…
Whether you want to eat, hang out, or dry clean-…
that can cost an arm and a leg...(Tiffany's being…
Born and raised amongst wonderful cooks and…
