On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Categories: Sushi Bars, Japanese [Edit]
Neighborhood: International District
Loading...
I have eaten here a couple of times and have never had any problem with the quality or freshness of the sushi. I'm not a big raw sushi eater but my boyfriend tells me their seafood is always fresh and of very good quality. The udon here is very good. The noodles are never overcooked and the broth is always very light and fragrant. $8 gets you a large, steaming bowl of veggie udon, $6 at lunchtime!
I agree with most of the reviewers here, the decor inside the restaurant is unexpected because the outside is kind of tacky. Inside however, it is dim, but not too dark, and the walls are decorated with a beautiful koi fish painting.
I had a problem with one of the sushi chefs here (whom I no longer see when I come btw) because I caught him yelling at a child once. But the other sushi chef, a plumper, happier guy, is a real gem. He made an extra (expensive) sushi roll and when he realized his mistake, he gave it to us anyways! The waitress/ owner didn't seem too happy about it but gave it to us anyways. (There was a smudge on the order sheet and it looked like it was marked, honest mistake.)
All in all, I would say this is one of the best sushi restaurants I go to. It may be a bit pricey ($2 for one piece of ebi (cooked sweet shrimp) sushi?) but the quality of the sushi, generous service, and semi- romantic atmosphere is well worth a venture.
The decor is dark with brilliant red accents that include an enormous painted octopus, and two beautiful koi fish.
J, the young and extremely talented owner and sushi chef is friendly, and personable. He is passionate about sushi, and will recommend and tell you anything you want to know about his craft.
We ate a delicious scallop sashimi, teriyaki shrimp hand rolls, a catapillar roll, edamame , hamachi, and saki.
I had to tell Jay that he may have ruined me for any other sushi place.
I recommend this hidden gem whole-heartedly. It would be a great place to go with a small group of friends.
Update: Tonight the chef Dave was on, and we let him choose our dishes for us, "I'll take care of you." He clearly loves his craft, and made us very interesting and tasty pairings. He finished it off with a "dessert roll", which was wrapped in a soy sesame wrap with unagi, rice and sweet egg inside. Then he made a mackerel sushi for our pup waiting in the car. The whole family was happy!
Okay, so this is my first Seattle yelp review! After moving here from Atlanta I was really look forward to having some really good sushi! Based on other yelp reviews we decided to check out J Sushi before heading to the night market.
We walked in and the space was beautifully painted. We sat at the bar and J asked us what we wanted. Based off other reviews we tried the scallop... one word AMAZING. We had two because it was so good. We also ordered the spider roll and the spicy tuna. Everything was delish! J told us that they buy the fish fresh every day which is always a good thing to hear.
We had such a wonderful dinner, were making it our local sushi spot. I highly recommend it!!
You want funky decor.... stop here! I found this little treasure after walking from Pike Market... NO JOKE! My friend and I were looking for a cool resting spot, and we found it! The ambiance is funky and cool with dark red walls and hand paintings of cool funky fish... kind of swanky down to earth feel. But the coolness of this spot is reserved only for the decor... the family that runs this business is very warm and friendly. They even let me use their laptop to check my bus schedule since the seafair parade had closed some of the streets and the new light rail (2nd free day) stopped running at 6pm!... very cool of them =D
On the menu we found a tastey sushi roll "Hawaii" with mango, chives, seared tuna, and albacore... very tastey and nicely rolled. We also tried the salmon teriyaki plate with fresh salad, orange slices, steamed rice and a lovely piece of salmon. Rather large portions, but very reasonable. We also had the chicken teriyaki plate that was not as good as the salmon because the skin of the meat was left on with bits of fat... but pull it off and it was also very tastey!
Nice, cool, funky, clean environment with friendly people! A definite return for me!!!
First of all, J Sushi gets major points for the fabulous sea life mural on the walls.
I thought the food was pretty good, but a little on the expensive side -- but so is most Japanese fare in Seattle. We made the mistake of ordering the fresh (and very large) katsu to follow our sashimi, california, and tempura rolls -- I always forget that sushi is SUPER filling. So, my date and I felt bad that we had to take the bulk of our katsu home -- which made it feel like a little bit of a waste. But still good!
The service was swift and friendly, though we visited at a time when the place was totally empty so that made for a little bit of an awkward meal.
I headed to the ID with a friend in search of Sushi one Monday evening. Our original destination was Maneki's - good basic sushi, right. Well, they were closed and, as we wandered, we realized that most all Sushi places were closed on Mondays -Why?
Well, thank God that all those places were closed becasue it lead us to J Sushi. The place ROCKS! The sushi was generous in size, the staff was fantastic and attentive and the owner(I'm assuming), who was the sushi master, was fantastic. He instructed us to not put anything (soy, wasabi) on the scallop and we followed his suggestion. It was the most phenomenal scallop I have ever eaten. So fresh, and lightly sweet - Amazing!
You must check this place out. It's a wonderful spot to take some time, leisurely enjoy your meal and catch up with a good friend...or just go alone and binge. Either way, it's well worth the trip!
So one long night my girlfriends and I decide to chuck the spot that we were at, and get some food in the ID....... so looking around we had our top four choices
1. shanghai gardens.. we will get a slammin' deal since our friend owns this place... but then it would be awkward to expect free food without over tipping.. so no to that..
2. maneki's but it was closed
3. honey court.. but we didn't want the runs.....
4. a new spot maybe crawfish king? no.. let's try j sushi... since I've been meaning to try this place out a million times it was due time to go..
was I disappointed or happy? well let's just say I was happy.. very happy.. slightly surprised, and entertained...
Why entertained, well j, the owner of this place is freaking hilarious... everyone kept saying, go there when the other sushi chef is there because j is chinese, and owns the place... I am kind of snob with places that aren't "authentic" and it kind of bothers me.. but to be honest, it was delicious, and he made us laugh and reintroduced me to uni.. I HATE UNI.. LIKE HATE IT, NOT MAYBE LIKE IT A LITTLE BUT HATE IT!! but he was like a I won't charge you if you don't like it, and so I had to try it one last time... and I did, and I loved it!! freaking loved it, and the scallop's were to die for here!!! So authentic or not, it wasn't even relative at this time....
let's say this place is awesome, and I will be coming back, but don't eat the regular food it was not good at all, and the rolls were very boring..... but do try the sashimi, and the nigiri :) tell j this little yelper named nina told you to come on by :)
I cant keep any semblance of cool when I eat good sushi. I do a little happy shuffle dance with my body. I catch myself doing it and try to stop but my body is just so happy that its not being fed vodka.
I actually hated sushi for the longest time, maybe its because I am a Pisces and something just seemed wrong about eating other fish.
My assistant director was leaving town and wanted to eat sushi and they wanted to eat it here. THANK YOU! This place made me love sushi.
David I believe is the chef you want when you go. He is the owner and has been blessed by the Gods of sushi.
If I could give 4.5 stars I would. I would mark off half a star only because the restaurant is not located in my kitchen.
I walked in 30 minutes before lunch ended, so it was empty of other customers and the staff was watching something on the television.
Someone quickly appeared to seat me, hand me a menu, and get me some water. I ordered the Bento Box (with nigiri and salmon teriyaki) and spent a moment checking out the art on the walls. The long wall had octopus tentacles painted on, there were koi fish painted above the door, and there was a big painting of a koi fish above the sushi bar. Cool.
First came the miso soup and it was warm and tasty.
Next came everything else:
+ Nice salad greens with a thick dressing. They said they make the dressing themselves and it just contains vegetables. Salad was good but kind of bland.
+ The nigiri pieces were small and easy to eat in one bite. This is good because, while I like getting more bang for my buck, I try to eat nigiri in one bite and it's kind of annoying when it's too big. The fish was soft and moist, but it wasn't anything special in the flavor department.
+ The salmon was a small steak. It was also kind of bland, but it was so SOFT. I was wondering if I should be asking for a knife... and then realized I could easily break off pieces with my chopsticks. Nice!
+ Rice was warm and good.
I probably won't be back because I'm just about never in the I.D. and there are plenty of other places to try when I am, but.... it was an okay experience.
Get the spicy tuna roll!!! It is so delicous!
Small, cozy establishment. Some original creations, including a roll with fresh mango. Menu also had many of the expected sushi rolls and nigiri. Would like to see the udon selections also have some originality to complement the original sushi rolls.
Sushi chef (owner?) was honest about the freshness of his ingredients for the rolls - a characteristic that you don't see a lot of.
Prices were on-par with sushi houses.
Food= AMAZING! I've never had better sushi than here.
Service= The worst service ever!
And actually, it's not all of the service that's bad. It's just the one waitress. She's the only waitress there since it's a small place. But she's always confused and you have to go to her if you want anything. She always mumbles and speaks quietly so I never know what she's saying either.
The service's redeeming grace is the hot sushi chef. I don't know his name, but he recognizes you when you walk in. He always recognizes my friends and I when we go in- and even if we go in without each other he always asks how the other one is doing. His food is amazing and he offers great suggestions on how to enjoy the food.
For example, I love getting the Half Baked roll which is sushi topped with a mix of of spicy sauce, fish and onion. He brought it over and said that dipping it in soy sauce would ruin the flavor. And alas, he was so right!
The great food is worth dealing with the crappy service. It's a small restaurant and sometimes we're the only guests when we go! But it's in a good part of the International District- lot of other stores and restaurants around. But parking is always easy so that's a definite plus in my book!
Based on yelp reviews of sushi places in the ID, a friend and I decided to give J Sushi a shot... and we're both really glad we did. We went on a Saturday night, a little on the early side, and were the only customers when we walked in. The murals of sea-life on the walls were really incredible... I loved the giant red octopus. Although I'm always a little on-edge when I walk into an empty restaurant, the staff were so warm and attentive they quickly assuaged my uneasiness. We sat at the bar, right in front of our chef J (also owner? co-owner? not sure...), who, after giving us some time to chat and sip our beer and nibble on warm salted edamae, graciously offered some suggestions from the menu.
He suggested the scallop nigiri, which was absolutely delectable... "Don't use soy sauce or anything, eat it like it is"... I obeyed his (friendly) command and was not disappointed. It was sooo buttery and smooth... I've never had scallop like that. My date... errr, friend... had a different nigiri that wasn't on the menu, but J reccommended it and he really loved it. We also shared hamachi nigiri and a dragon roll (SO delicious and huge!), and J whipped up a spicy shrimp tempura hand-roll for my friend that was gigantic and had a perfect amount of heat... yummy! We finished off the meal with some friendly conversation with J about the murals and the artist who did them, and about Yelp and the importance of formulating your own opinions...
All in all, I'd have to say J sushi really impressed me. The food was delicious, the prices reasonable... and the service (especially J) really made the whole experience. We will definitely be back!
Bleh, I must have gone on an off day or something because this place seriously turned me off to sushi for weeks it wasn't pretty folks.
I started with some miso soup, it was good lots of tofu and green onions, the broth had a nice flavor, I was happy until the rest of my food arrived.
I ordered one roll the Hawaii 5-0 roll which was described as having albacore, seared tuna, mango and green onions in it. Wait I think I need to back up a little. We were the only table occupied in the place so we didn't think there'd be much of a wait since our order was the only one the sushi chef was working on. Wrong our order took longer than Mashiko's on a super, busy night. OK back to the Hawaii 5-0, the tuna was seared with a blow torch and tasted like it, a blow torch is something I expect to see being used at Sushiland and Blue C to and a place like J Sushi. Anyways the roll was not what I expected there was no fresh mango like I thought but a mango sauce smothered on top of the roll, it killed it for me, it was way to thick and way to sweet and didn't mess well with either the seared tuna or the albacore.
I also order an order of the albacore and it was on the dry side and not buttery or melty at all like a good albacore should be. The unagi I ordered looked good but was cold, it was cold like it had just been taken out of the refrigerator and flopped on top of some rice, bad, bad, bad.
The funniest part of the whole evening was the vegetarian who was with me order two rolls and his 2 rolls cost more than my part of the check, now please explain to me how veggies cost more than fish? I don't get it nor do I want to because I won't be back here.
If a place turns me off to sushi for any length of time they don't even deserve one star but yelp insists I must give at least a one star.
Had dinner here last night and came out of it pretty stuffed.
Sign of the times: I saw one person there other than us. Friends of workers were there as well.
Nice decor and utensils.
Scallop was terrific and large. Tuna was fresh. Large portion of Tako. Flying Fish roe was good and popped all over inside the mouth. Spider roll was good but the crab was small, barely any meat. Shrimp Tempura roll was not worth it for $7. Overall, sushi was fresh and tasty but tuna slice could have been bigger. The rice on the sushi is quite small too... maybe to have you order more of it.
Beef udon was delish. Love the thick and chewy noodles. The shitake mushrooms melt in your mouth. Flavor of the broth was nice.
I only ate sushi here, and it was quite good. So good, I'm giving it four stars. The salmon was so good, we had to get more. And we're not always of the raw-fish-eating kind. Our friends, who are much more food-savvy than we, rhapsodized about the scallops, which our server suggested. We also had the J-roll, some spicy tuna, some eel, some other stuff.
Don't know, but I would happily have made a whole meal out of that salmon.
On a Friday night and not a huge space, we got seats right away, which was great. There were obviously some regulars there and while they were a bit, well, happy, it's obvious Jay the owner is getting a following.
Speaking of Jay, he came over and talked to us for some time. He says that we need to come back and sit at the bar, and just tell the chef to make us something special. I look forward to that.
I think Dave is great, and I love this joint.
I was recommended by some friends, and no offense I generally trust my asian friends esp the Japanese ones for sushi recommendations. I had low expectations and I was blown away. I would love to go there more, every time I have been at J Sushi it's been delish and super fresh.
I'm such a sushi and food snob and it's lived up to my expectations.
The scallop was amazing, I love scallops and the fact that I could just eat it as is and have it taste that way was great.
Love the food!!
But the Chinese server was really slow, it seemed like she was preoccupied each time I was there, so sit at the bar where the service is quick!
As a new restaurant to the ID I have to admit I pretty much dragged my friend to this place cause I wanted to be the first to yelp this place. In any case, I do have to admit that I was also a little skeptical because its a sushi place that's not located near all the other sushi places in the Japanese section of the ID and well I was also put back a bit by the stainless steel chopsticks (this is a korean thing - not japanese).
In any case, the sushi was pretty fresh and the prices are pretty reasonable and beyond sushi however there is a decent selection of donburi bowls and other more traditional dishes.
Regardless though the food was pretty good and its definitely a place that might be a budget alternative for those who like sushi, but don't want to wait at Maneki or don't want to pay the higher prices of places in belltown.
*** UPDATE ***
Let me also add that the Katsu curry and Oyako don are quite tasty as well.
After eating at just about every sushi joint in Seattle, this just took a spot in the top 5! The meal got off to a rocky start when we were steered away from the sushi bar and the edamame came out looking shriveled and not fresh, but that was soon forgotten when the sushi and sashimi came out. The wait staff was quite friendly and every suggestion was spot on. I'm not traditionally a fan of mackerel or scallop sashimi, but it was excellent! Neither were the least bit fishy. Also the albacore, maguro, aji, uni, and salmon were all on par with the best in town. For only having been open for 7 months, these guys have really got their act together. Highly recommended.
Update 5/16/08
Been several times since and this place is still amazing! Once even, Super Dave was out with a broken arm so J was filling in as the sushi chef and didn't miss a beat. Bravo J, bravo! I still don't think I've had anything out of the kitchen except the chicken waffles (which are delicious), so I can't really comment on that aspect, but I don't frequent sushi joints for the kitchen. Keep on keepin' on fellas!!
Until I popped into J Sushi for a quick lunch a week ago, I had never sent an unsatisfactory dish back to the kitchen. What's doubly strange is I was forced to complain about undercooked fish at a sushi restaurant.
So, why would I bother to give three stars to a place that served me salmon teriyaki that was still raw in the middle? When I reluctantly complained, they apologized profusely, brought me a new dish and offered some complimentary nigiri as a way to apologize. It's clear they care about their customers, which actually made me want to go back.
Aside from the food, this is an uncharacteristically stylish-looking restaurant. I'm not going to get mad at a restaurant with a giant tough-ass octopus mural on the wall. They comply with the Every New Restaurant Must Have a Flatscreen TV law in the most comical way possible by mounting a 12-inch LCD that looks to be intended for use in car headrests rather than the walls of a sushi joint, but that's just too adorable to hold it against the restaurant.
While I'm not terribly enthusiastic about recommending the food, you could certainly do worse than pick up an inexpensive lunch in a cool room where the staff genuinely cares that you have a good experience.
The food is totally forgettable. This makes me sad, since the space is adorable. The walls are painted with giant koi and the music is nice. It seemed like a pretty slick little hangout. I had a bento box: some nigiri, a salad, and salmon teriyaki. The sushi was pretty good, but nothing to write home about. The salad was awful, covered with this white bland dressing. The teriyaki was tasty, but again, nothing special.
I might go back to see if their other fare is any better, but I won't get my hopes up.
I know what you're probably thinking.... 5 stars, really? YES!
The sushi was OUTSTANDING! I read the other reviews, and don't understand what you all are talking about. The quality and freshness of the fish was top notch. Ask for the "chicken and waffles." It's neither chicken nor waffles, but you'll know what I'm talking about when you taste this treat. Also, the big mouth roll is hard to beat. The scallops and pot stickers were notable too.
Also, the murals on the walls of huge coy fish and a 30 foot octopus really set a hip trendy tone. The music was perfect... a wide variety of genres that made me think I was at a trendy lounge. I'm a HUGE music fan, so for me, music makes or breaks a place.
We sat at the sushi bar and got to know owner and sushi chef, Dave Makamura. He's a third generation sushi chef and proud of it. When my boyfriend and I sat down, Dave turned to my boyfriend and said, " I know you from somewhere... I never forget a face." Less than a minute later, they figured out that it was from the sushi bar at Maneki. He even remembered how much my boyfriend liked unagi, and made a special one for us on the house.
Ok this is getting long, so I hope you get it by now. TRY J SUSHI! Just go there... order the "chicken and waffles" and you'll leave happy.
This place was suggested by a random person at a comic book store. The walls have fishes painted on which I suppose is to create the feeling of being in a fish tank. So, the fish are eating you? I've only been here twice, both on weeknights, and it was not crowded.
The food is good but UMI is better. I like spicy food and when I order a spicy tuna roll, I like it to be spicy. Yum, it was spicy unlike other places. The sashimi is good too. Very fresh tasting.
PS The chef's blowtorch scares me.
I wish J Sushi success and want to do my part to contribute to it. It's about time there's another option in the I.D. for sushi.
Sometimes, I'm out and about, by myself, and just want some sushi. Maneki isn't an option because it's still an hour wait even if I'm a party of one. And if I get in, the restaurant matriarch just isn't that into me. My presence is a pain in the ass. I can handle her indifference sometimes, but when the polar opposite is available, why not take it?
Dave, the sushi chef and manager of J Sushi will be into you, guaranteed. In fact, if you don't want to chat, stay away from the sushi bar and make sure you're not the only person in the place. But, if you're up for it, Dave can be quite entertaining and will answer any question you have. ANY. 'Bout sushi, 'bout football, 'bout disco or David Copperfield. Just throw out a topic, I dare you.
But more importantly, the sushi is quality at a reasonable price. Some of the best Albacore I've had in this town. And it's presented really nicely. Where else do you get a banana leaf plate liner and ginger placed like a flower just for one plated roll (that doesn't cost your left arm)? In addition, Dave will make up anything you want even if it's not on the menu. He's a pleaser that way.
I ate at a sit-down restaurant alone for the first time of my life at J Sushi. And I'm happy it was at J Sushi, because I didn't feel so alone after all.
So, yeah, I've never eaten at a sit-down restaurant alone before. I'm 21 and have always been graced with the presence of my friends while I dine. But not this time. I was in Seattle on business and knew no one. I wandered around to the International District, asked for a Japanese recommendation, and "Tom" from a video rental store told me to hit up "J Sushi" and ask for "Dave."
So I did.
And it was great. Dave is awesome at chatting with you and at preparing your sushi. He happily made sashimi for my bento despite it not being on the menu. And it was prepared with care. Did I mention it was fricken' good? The food was good, the environment was nice, and it was hella (yeah, that word is from the bay area, which is where I'm from) cheap. Sweet.
Next time I'm in Seattle, I'm coming back to say hi to Dave and to eat his sashimi. Dave (and people like him) may very well be one reason why I may decide to move to Seattle.
Damn, that's a good compliment. Anyway, try this place out for, at least, lunch. Won't be disappointed.
I was in from GA and wanted some sushi and a good atmosphere. We were at the right place! We sat at the bar and defered to him for our food choice. The tuna poki is great. Then we had an assortment of sushi and some sake bombs. He finished us off with a dessert eel sushi. Sounds weird, but I recommend it. All in all a great experience, and I will be back.
The sushi is great and the price is great. The staff has always been friendly and helpful. It's the first sushi I had since moving to Seattle and I keep coming back here.
One thing that seems different to me about this place's sushi is the seaweed is a bit tougher than I'm used to. It's not so tough it ruins it, but it makes the sushi a little chewier. That's not such a bad experience since it tastes so good.
I've been to J Sushi several times in the past couple of weeks and found the quality both consistent and high on each visit. In terms of bang for the buck it doesn't get any better in Seattle. I encourage you to say hi to Dave (the sushi chef) and ask him for his suggestions he's extremely friendly and very helpful.
Liberty Loves You!
Neighborhood: Capitol Hill
Happy Hour - $3 and Up…
Seattle, WA
Neighborhood: International District
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: International District
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Downtown
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: International District
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: International District
Category: Japanese
Well, maybe my title over sold this, but this list…
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
The good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to…
Some of my favorite places to dine in Seattle's…
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
