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Kikusushi Japanese Restaurant
Categories: Restaurants Japanese Restaurants Sushi Bars Japanese, Sushi Bars [Edit]
1655 S De Anza BlvdSte 7
Cupertino, CA 95014
(408) 725-1749
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 11:30 am - 2 pm
Mon, Wed, Sun 5 pm - 9 pm
Tue, Thu, Sat 5 pm - 9:30 pm
Fri 5 pm - 10 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- 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:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
143 reviews for Kikusushi Japanese Restaurant
Review Highlights
"Me and my sister love love love their salad dressing."
(in 20 reviews)
"The crazy roll was flavorful and had a nice spicy kick to..."
(in 14 reviews)
"I always get a dinner box or an udon."
(in 3 reviews)
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143 reviews in English
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Review from Graciela D.
Santa Clara, CA
10/3/2011
Hands down my favorite sushi in the bay area.
The place is always clean, the staff is always attentive and kind, and the sushi is to die for! The fish always tastes fresh and you can watch the chefs prepare it from most tables.
This is a bit of a drive for me, but I am always up for making it because I know what I am going to get. Try the spicy scrunchy tuna and the special crazy roll! -
Review from Kristi S.
Sunnyvale, CA
12/23/2011
Congratulations, Kukusushi, you're by far my most disappointing Groupon experience yet.
The service was BEYOND AWFUL. After we placed our orders, we waited 45 minutes before getting any sushi! The server was curt and didn't offer any sort of explanation for the wait or even acknowledge it. If it weren't for the Groupon we had already paid for, we would have left.
The food didn't make up for the wait. The rolls were falling apart and the sushi didn't taste very fresh. It was soggy and oddly colored. Blech. -
Review from David H.
San Francisco, CA
11/23/2011
This use to be my favorite lunch spot when I worked for Apple.
Its not fair at best.
Even their fusion rolls pales in comparison to others.
Prices are comparable though. -
Review from May B.
Los Altos, CA
2/7/2012
Good food. I use to come here alot with my friend Roger who loved the service here. We enjoyed the special attention from our friend Maki who is terrific! It's a little more americanized Japanese food. I liked ordering their oyster specials from time to time :) I would come back to visit friends who work there for sure :)
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Review from alan r.
Cupertino, CA
Updated - 2/3/2012
I had sushi which was fresh, couple of Kirin and just had a great time. I know it is consistent and they come through for us consitently. Scott is a rock star took great care of us! Thanks to Joe for my wife's drinks and beers had a good time and ran into friends
5 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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10/31/2011
had a nice dinner tonight with gracious service from Maki and Joe poured the drinks. Had Hirame,… Read more »
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Review from Ivy C.
San Jose, CA
1/28/2012
A Google Offer tempted us to try Kikusushi. We were pleasantly surprised with the quality of food and their reasonable prices. The restaurant was also kid friendly which was nice for us. We would go back in the future.
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Review from Natalya H.
Los Gatos, CA
9/13/2011
Seriously.... Spent $70 for 2 people and left
Hungry, did not wanted to order anything else
Because it was really bad, not good sashimi at all
Tiny slices, maguro was socked in water for days...
Not fresh...not many choices of rolls, nothing Japanese about this place!
This place I'd going down the hill.
Would never go again there...
Safe yourself a trip and go a really good place, there are so many! -
Review from christina c.
Cupertino, CA
7/5/2011
This was going to be a 2 star review but as my husband has since been experiencing food poisoning symptoms, I have no choice but to drop this to one.
I have ordered food here to go before and was excited to purchase the groupon deal of $20 for $10 here.
The hostess tonight was definitely not very warm or welcoming, nor did she say goodbye as we left.
The worst experience was with the Special Crazy Roll. The spicy tuna that was rolled inside seemed cooked. It was not the bright, dark pink color that most spicy tuna looks like and the texture in the mouth felt like cooked fish. I asked our waitress if it was supposed to be cooked and she said no and explained that because the shrimp tempura it was next to is hot, that it cooks the fish and that's how people like it. I found that a strange response as I've had fresh shrimp tempura in my rolls before and never have they cooked the spicy tuna it was next to. So I looked on the menu and mentioned that it doesn't say, "Cooked spicy tuna" and she said, "Well it doesn't say cooked or uncooked." Then I reminded her that she just told me that it's supposed to be raw, to then she offered to take it away and off my bill for me.
We got seated at table 4 as it was clearly marked on the glass. I found that strange as most restaurants have their staff memorize table numbers.
Anyhow, needless to say, I will definitely not be coming back here. -
Review from Linnea E.
8/15/2011
I think they've changed ownership or something? not sure what happened, but the place really isn't very good anymore. we go quite a bit, but went this weekend, and noticed it was very different. portions were MUCH smaller, and service was terrible. we had to actually ask another server to find our waitress, because she never came to take our order, and we had been there at least 15 minutes already. food was ok, but nothing special.
moving it off my list of regular places to go. there are too many other options in the area to deal with inferior quality. -
Review from Peggy S.
7/10/2011 2 Check-ins Here
I got the Groupon, so I came here with my family, and the whole experience was a little disappointing.
Let me first say that the wait staff and the hostess were all working very hard. I think their business definitely boosted after they rolled out with that Groupon. I really appreciate them running around and getting our food to us.
However, the food was very "meh".
My mom ordered a bento box, I ordered a yosenabe, and my brother ordered a spider roll and a Cupertino roll.
The bento box was standard, filled with nigiri sushi, tempura pieces and other goodies. My brother's spider roll was TINY. The soft shell crabs tasted stale and the batter was on the cold side. The rice was too sticky and it fell apart easily. Instead of getting a full soft shell crab, it was only half of one.
My yosenabe did not have any wow factor, but it was a solid dish nonetheless. The broth was light and filling, and there were a lot of noodles in the soup. It came with three mussels, some shrimps and clams, and fish cakes.
It took a long time for the Kiku of Cupertino Roll to come, and when it finally arrived, we were almost full. It was six sloppy slices of fried sushi. The roll contains white tuna, tuna, tobiko, avocado, and light fried salmon. I think the entire roll was lightly battered and fried, and the salmon chunks were not neatly cut because some of the slices had huge chunks of salmon and some of them were tiny.
The Cupertino Roll fell apart upon attempting to pick it up with chopsticks. Not much flavor except you could taste the oil it was fried in. The roll was mushy and soft, and not worth the money.
Oh well, at least now I know and next time I will stay away from this particular roll... if there is a next time. -
Review from Kevin L.
5/7/2011
Relatively cheap for lunch and it only takes 15 minutes for them to prepare if you're taking out. However, the environmentally friendly side of me tells me that it's not good because use way too many containers for just one bento box - I understand, but less containers would be friendlier to the environment.
The lunch bento boxes are pretty decent, especially the salad and the dressing (not sure what it is, but it's really good!). Skip sashimi because it's not fresh. Everything else is alright. -
Review from Brandon Y.
San Jose, CA
The Japanese food place to go to around my area for my family :) We love to get their combos (I think my fave is G - beef teriyaki, tempura, sashimi). At the average price for Japanese food nowadays, you get large portions of really good food! With tender beef, crispy tempura, and fresh sashimi, in addition to well-put-together sushi, just talking about it makes me want to go back soon :)
The restaurant can seat a lot of people, and we often have family gatherings here with the immediate family. In fact, one of the rolls is named after my second cousin, who used to be a sushi chef here! -
Review from Neda S.
Saratoga, CA
9/21/2011
I was so excited to try this place but was very dissapointed by the service. They were absolutely horrible and know nothing about customer service. We waited over an hour for our food. Noone came by to apologize or explain why the food was taking so long. The worse part is when we got up to leave, they didn't even offer to give us a discount or even a simple apology. Will never go back.
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Review from Anh T.
San Jose, CA
3/4/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Yummy yums in my tummy. Came here one night and it was crowded. We sat at the bar so it was up close and personal with the sushi master. He treated us like royals so customer service had never been better. Although there was no waitress present, it was still a good night. We order a variety of things so it's hard to recall what was the best - it was all that great. The salad was to die for and the spider rolls will rock your socks. I looked at the sashimi and it looked pretty fresh. Nothing happened during the night that would have made a spoil night. Thanks Master Sushi Chef!!!!
Dessert. Where to start? Green tea cheesecake? Really. Yes. It was pretty good, you can actually taste the green tea. I also had the red bean and green tea ice cream. Man, where those superb too.
Best part? Stamp card! -
Review from Chelsea B.
San Jose, CA
1/15/2011
I'm probably biased because I've been going to this place since before I could probably use chopsticks, but I really do love this restaurant. Slightly pricey, but not ZOMGWTF expensive. Roughly $10-$20 per person depending on what you buy.
+Sashimi is always fresh
+the katsu sauce doesn't taste like ketchup
+MISO SALAD DRESSING FTW
+miso in general just kind of rocks here
+the udon is legit. nowhere else I've been to has noodles this soft
Obviously less crowded on weekdays, but if you're going to go weekend, do Saturday. It's less crowded than Friday.
PS - Shoutout to Scott. Hi!!! -
Review from Stephanie R.
San Jose, CA
2/19/2011 1 photo
This place is awesome.
I Love how they can accommodate a lot of people here.
It was a full house and we came in with 5 people. We were seated quickly.
We had a few appetizers and they were all good. I don't think you can go wrong with anything here.
My main dish was the dinner box A, which was sashimi, chicken teriyaki, and tempura. The picture in the menu made the box seemed like it contained LESS things. When we received them, OMG it was filled, I couldn't finish it! The sashimi is tuna only and the tempura contains 2 shrimp and the rest vegetables. Everything was pretty good.
I didn't really get to try many rolls, but I had the Gary roll, which was good and some crazy roll, which was also good.
I'd come back for dinner all the time. They really fill you up there! -
Review from Philip h.
San Jose, CA
8/2/2011
This facility gives off a very family oriented, and traditional vibe versus the more modern Japanese restaurants. It was extremely busy on a Monday night, but i can see why! I'm from the San Jose area, so i rarely visit this restaurant, but my first impression was definitely great!
First off, Parking was fairly early (They have more parking in the back if it gets too full in the front), and i was greeted by 2 hostesses. One was a female, rather small Asian girl with long hair. and another fairly skinny and tall Asian guy.
I ordered The Chicken Teriyaki Dinner with Miso soup, and the Charlie Special. Both were cooked to perfection, and seasoned properly. The charlie special was very crispy and deep fried, very delicious :) Our server was Maki, and she was very attentive to our needs and made us feel very comfortable. She really put in the effort to answering all our questions.
After we got our checks, the hostess picked up our checks promptly instead of most restaurants where they take forever to recognize you. Another perk was how they had mints at the table on your way out, that was definitely a plus (little things like this make your visit!). I think they should be complimented on the overall friendliness and genuine hospitality. Overall, my experience was very pleasant and i will definitely be coming back. regardless of the drive! -
Review from Veronica C.
San Jose, CA
10/3/2010
Was reaaaallly craving some sushi and decided to try some place new and nearby.
Went to pick up some sushi to go, and was disappointed at how small the portions were! I ordered a rainbow roll and a leonardo roll. The fish itself tasted okay, but just the fact everything was so small made it very unsatisfying.
When I went in to pickup, the hostess was really courteous and the restaurant itself was full, but I wouldn't come back to this place. Just not worth it. -
Review from Chers S.
11/28/2010 3 Check-ins Here
Good food for a decent price. A 3 item bento box is about $14-16. The sashimi is fresh and they have a variety of sushi rolls.
Avoid coming here with a large party. My family and I sat in the semi-private room and the waitress kept forgetting about us. The waitress was also overwhelmed with the size of our party and forgot to bring multiple items we asked for. The food was not timed well with a 15min gap in between the first person's bento box and the last person's bento box. -
Review from Joce M.
Los Gatos, CA
2/11/2011
My family and I have been coming to Kiku's for about 14 years now ever since it opened in its old location down the street. Even though they have switched owners, Kiku's is still a great place that we frequent at least once a month. Their salad dressing is amazing, and their chicken teriyaki is the best around. I always get their Dinner Box A which comes with a generous portion of chicken teriyaki, sashimi, 2 types of tskemono, salad, miso soup, and rice. Plan on taking food home because they give you a lot! You definitely get what you pay for when you eat at Kiku's.
I recommend their meat/rice dishes over their sushi plates. The sushi here is alright but it is not their specialty. If you do order sushi, I recommend their Spicy Scrunchy Hamachi Sashimi. -
Review from Louisa L.
Sunnyvale, CA
5/22/2010
I would say 3.5 stars. It's located in a pretty random plaza. I've lived in Cupertino for so long and never noticed this place. It's definitely considered a hole in the wall, but I really like the ambiance inside. It's a pretty casual yet intimate setting. Gives you a pretty japanesey feeling, nice place to go chill with your close friends or family members at.
Food-wise, they're not bad. My friend and I shared the:
+AGEDASHI TOFU: cooked pretty well, soft and tasty
+CHICKEN KARUGA: a bit over-fried...could have been softer, but still decent.
+SPECIAL CRAZY ROLL: very delicious. pretty much a dragon roll with special sauce
+KIKU OF CUPERTINO: has all kinds of sashimi inside, fried overall. very tasty!
+OYAKO DON: pretty yummy...but a little too much food overall.
Ordered 6 things and came out to be around $50, which isn't bad. I think it's a nice sushi restaurant to go to in the cupertino area, esp since I didn't know of any really good ones before, but wouldn't say that it's the best sushi i've ever had. -
Review from Steve S.
Saratoga, CA
8/18/2011
We have enjoyed going to Kiku for years. However, something has changed...for the worse. Gone is the friendly staff. You are greeted by youngsters who act as if they are doing you a favor by letting you in the place. No "hello", "my I help you", just attitude.
Forget to-go orders. I have never had a problem getting something to take out until now. Apparently no one there cares anymore that what you ordered is what they give you, so what you get home with is not what you paid for.
As the for food, although the menu is the same, it seems that nothing tastes as fresh or attentively prepared. The uni last night was on its last legs...yuck. Perhaps the surly attitude of the hosts and wait staff have infected the kitchen as well.
Too bad, a former favorite local spot is now off our list. -
Review from Aubrey C.
8/7/2010
Kikusushi has some very good rolls, but the caveat is.. I'm a person who doesn't go in for sashimi that much, so what I'm talking about are the rolls with things that I do eat -- tempura, eel, veggies, etc. Lots of selections for a non-sashimi wimp like me.
Another plus is that they have pictures of all their rolls.. which is essential. Sushi rolls generally have nondescriptive and whimsical (or nonsensical, depending on your opinion) names. So it really helps to have a picture to see what you're getting.
Other things that are good include the chicken kaarage and soft-shell crab appetizer. Both are very tasty.
However, the rice bowls (dons) are less impressive. Nothing bad about them and they're quite filling, but nothing extraordinary. They also have too many veggies in them for my taste. An oyako-don should just be chicken and rice with egg on top. There might be some onion in the egg, but nothing else.
But overall, pretty good food at the standard, slightly-expensive, Japanese-restaurant prices. -
Review from Linda L.
Mountain View, CA
10/3/2010 2 Check-ins Here
This place is great for good sushi and a place to hang out with the friends or family. They also have a great to-go service. So whether, you are at lunch for business, doing take-out or dining in, this place is wonderful. Major props to the staff for letting our group eat at the restaurant for a few hours, without giving us the typical hints to leave. This place genuinely encourages good eating with great company.
Highly recommend this place to everyone! -
Review from Ken K.
2/22/2007
Does Kiku mean flower, or to the effect or something artful or beautiful? Sadly this is NOT the case with Kiku Sushi. I believe this restaurant was under Japanese ownership many years ago with actual Japanese chef(until the past 3 to 4 years or longer), just like Mikado in Los Altos, but now under new Korean ownership that has turned this place into Pseriously Pseudo (I really should ask Nobu K for permission to use Pseudo term as he trademarked it! ).
EDIT: For you haters out there who like to misinterpret, I have nothing but great love for Korean people and their food. It's just that I am not a fan of BIG A$$ $TUPID NAME ROLL$ that many of you seem to enjoy especially when they FUG it up like this place after screwing up nigiri. It's also no secret that a lot of Japanese restaurants are now Korean run and if you ask the average Korean who knows Japanese food well, even they prefer to eat at Japanese run establishments. I've been to WAY BETTER Korean run Japanese restaurants. Whether Kiku is Japanese run or not anymore, I can name places that are way better.
How do you say rotten stinky flower, the kind of "rose" that you would want to give an ex-spouse, ex-significant in a past relationship you wish you never started (yes I'm talking about biches and mo pho's).
When I try a new Japanese restaurant and sit at the sushi bar, I try to order a few pieces of nigiri to sample, and if that goes sour, I move to the fancy rolls (how hard would it be to phuc those up) just to fill up my stomach. I think I spent at most 15 to 20 minutes in this place, because order after order, eveyrthing was just wrong. Poor quality fish, terrible rice for sushi (not fit to be called sumeshi) and shari? It was just a little rice pad.
The worst was the rolls. Once the raw stuff fails, how bad can cooked food with rice rolls be? Oh man was I wrong. Shrimp tempura roll I had was the worst. Tempura was soggy, maybe too much oil and not enough crisp. To make matters worse the sweet sauce Kiku Sushi used to brush over the rolls that other places would normally use for unagi, spider rolls, tasted nothing like at other restaurants (I wouldn't even call those sauces the proper term nitsume or tare). In fact this sauce was not dark color and sweet, it was disturbingly light, and it had an off flavor to it that it makes my ass hairs stand trying to remember it.
Basically that tempura roll ruined the rest of the meal and I couldn't wait to get the phuc outta there. Service was ok up until the point I was trying to ask for the check. The restaurant was not full, quite empty rather, and it was impossible to find a waitress. I was getting impatient, and thoughts entered my mind of how fast would I be able to run outta the place, get into my car, and on the freeway a block away w/o paying and driving off like OJ leaving his wife and her boyfriend on the ground. You would think that a place like this would WANT your money and right away, but no....
There's better nigiri sushi up the street at Sushi Kuni, even Kitahama does it way better (only open for dinner though). Don't waste your money here. If you like fancy rolls, there are better Pseudo Japanese restaurants that make fantastic rolls worth the double digits (even if their nigiri is not very good).
This place, along with Yakko in Mountain View (Yuckko), and Mikado in Los Altos, are the Three Stooges of Pseudo in the South Bay/Lower Peninsula. Can't make nigiri and fancy rolls properly. They're better off turning the place into Korean BBQ, Soon Tofu, Bibimbap, or serving some hardcore Korean dishes that no mainstreamer will eat, like dog meat or cow dung bugs (like at Jeju island off the coast of Korea). -
Review from EB L.
Oklahoma City, OK
9/17/2008
MISO PRETTY.
I just wanted to say that for really no reason.
Anyways. Chicken teriyaki is borderline Miyake's, beef teriyaki is really beef teriyaki jerky. Almost could be a dog treat. Almost. All the fish tanks around make me nauseous. Not appropriate for a SUSHI place, don't you think? For all YOU know, you could really be eating that damn goldfish floating around in that algae infested water.
But thats just a "what if". -
Review from Lubs Y.
San Jose, CA
7/27/2009
Came here for dinner with my mother, who's first reaction after seeing the menu was that it was pricey. Of course, I roll my eyes because this is coming from a lady who doesn't bat an eye at dropping over five grand on a purse. What can I say, she is crazy.
The dinner boxes average around $15, but you get a ton of food and meat with your meal. My mother had the chicken teriyaki and saba combo, which she claimed to really enjoy, but proceeded to unload everything onto my plate as if I was a starving child. Like I said, she is crazy.
I ordered a crazy roll and a spider roll, which were both pretty good. The crazy roll was flavorful and had a nice spicy kick to it. I would definitely order it again!
Service was quick, probably because there was a high ratio of servers to customers. Interior was large and spacious, with many flat screens all around showing different sports channels. -
Review from B B.
Bay Area
3/29/2009
I love eating here for lunch. Love their bento box options & love the fact that they let me make my own combo if I don't want to stick to the ones that are on their menu!
Service is always prompt & the staff is super friendly. They keep the restaurant clean & thankfully they also do the same for their restrooms.
I avoid this place for dinner because it can be a bit pricey. Under $10 (generally) for lunch though. -
Review from Tina N.
12/20/2007
I'll admit, I'm biased.
People who don't enjoy this place are people who come and stop by once and they never see them ever again. This place has been around for a long time. If you're a "kiku regular" (they have a notebook that has orders of regulars) or come here enough, you really do come to appreciate what they're all about - great people.
I'll admit, the food's not Masa-In-NY quality, but the owner, Masa, is a total DOLL - sweet, shy, quiet but friendly. Plus, the price isn't bad for what you get. I mean seriously, I think the prices pretty much stayed the same for the past decade.
The salad dressing is homemade and so good! You can buy a container of it too! What's sweet is that they have kid's meals, even hamburgers and chicken nuggets, just in case your toddlers aren't too fond of sushi or teriyaki.
Don't expect this place to be a pompous, snobby kinda place - it's anything but. Great for groups and birthdays! Get your drink on and eat some food while mingling with the people around you - awesome.
PS. The bartender, Joe or his brother Richard, if you're lucky to catch either one of them, are the nicest guys ever, and know how to have a good time...AND pour you a stiff one ;)
FAVs:
Karaage with the spicy sauce - gooood beer food!
Sushi bar salad - see above.
Crazy roll
nikutataki - the sauce is soo addicting! -
Review from Mercy B.
Milpitas, CA
3/6/2008
We just happened on to Kikusushi while driving down DeAnza Blvd. one evening thinking about what to eat for dinner...
If not for the sign on the street - we never would have found this place as it is set back a ways from the main drag. The parking lot is large, but dimly lit - so, ladies, please keep a watchful eye out!
S and I ordered the nigiri special platter, Victoria roll, agedashi tofu, and the salmon kama. The portions were very generous and the fish was fresh. Our server was very attentive, although we did have to flag her down a couple of times to get refills on our tea and water.
Our experience was favorable that if we're on the troll for some decent Japanese food on this side of town, we'll be sure to drop in. -
Review from Sayaka T.
Boston, MA
9/9/2008
I usually don't like writing bad reviews, but this place was truly disappointing, at least for its price point. I'm shocked it has 3 1/2 stars on average.
The sashimi platter and chirashi combo had fish that was lukewarm and had gone slightly mushy, rice that was not properly seasoned and too sticky, and a strange ambiance somewhere between Chinese restaurant and Hawaiian BBQ, nowhere like the clean minimalism that authentic Japanese restaurants observe.
Two very difficult dishes to master can usually sniff-test the authenticity of a Japanese restaurant: the tamago and the uni. Tamago tests preparation technique, and uni tests freshness of ingredients used. The tamago at Kikusushi is one of the worst I have ever tasted - fairly tasteless and slightly watery (!) and after the chirashi sampler I dared not try the uni. -
Review from Red Tail H.
Sunnyvale, CA
8/20/2010
Best. Udon. EVER.
I got the plain udon, which is just noodles, broth, and the radish looking item that goes on all udon. The flavor was the best I've ever had. Spouse said it tasted like the soup he'd had in Tokyo.
Our waiter paid enough - but not too much - attention to us.
Portions (at least the Udon & the Edamame) was right sized. -
Review from Steve S.
San Jose, CA
8/22/2009
Housed in what looks like a national park lodge, Kikusushi is probably the quietest Japanese restaurant I've ever been to. I'm so accustomed to being yelled at when I enter a Japanese restaurant, it caught me off guard when the sushi chefs worked in silence, greeting no one as they entered or left.
Tried Art's Work Roll and the Hawaiian Bagel Roll. Art's Work was chicken teriyaki, cucumber and avocado, and Hawaiian Bagel had salmon, cream cheese, macadamia nuts and a fourth ingredient I'm forgetting. The rolls were good - not too much rice, flavorful, appropriately sized.
Also sampled the agedashi tofu and nabeyaki udon. These dishes were not still ok, but a notch below the sushi. Udon was cooked well but the broth left something to be desired. Hot tea served up with the meal was a disappointment. A friend of mine told me that you can always tell a good Japanese restaurant by the quality of their tea. If that's true, then Kikusushi has some room for improvement.
On a positive note, you can get American Airlines miles by dining here. Just register your credit card on the AA site before you go, and then use that card to pay. It's an easy way to keep your miles from expiring. -
Review from Eve K.
1/28/2008
I've been going to this restaurant for 15 years and I'm disappointed to say I feel the quality has gone downhill since the move. :-(
I love their box options and the fact that unlike so many places, they don't use mayo in their california rolls. Their tempura is good, but not as fresh and it used to be. The teriyaki items are the ones that disappoint me the most and are of variable quality. The last few times I got the teriyaki chicken, it was overcooked and almost rubbery.
I'm not a big fan of the new location--it feels more like a warehouse: impersonal and has less personality than the old space.
I still go back once in a while hoping that it'll be what it once was, but it's not my favorite anymore.Listed in: I think I'm turning…
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Review from William S.
Philadelphia, PA
2/28/2010
This place... is just ok. I remember coming here once or twice back in high school when I was just starting to appreciate sushi in all it's raw glory. And back then I just wanted to get my hands on anything from the ocean that was rolled up in seaweed. I wasn't picky. And Kikusushi was fine.
Now I am a man. Sort of. And I came here with my sister's family for dinner and.. welll... it wasn't stellar. The fish wasn't the best quality, the rolls were small and unimaginative, and the cutlets were mostly breading and not much meat. I dunno, I feel like in the bay area there are plenty of great sushi options, so this place needs to step it up to stay in the game! -
Review from Maryanne R.
Cupertino, CA
4/23/2007
My husband has been eating at this restaurant since he was in high school - for over 20 years. And over the past 12 years, he has turned me into a big fan of this place as well.
I love the bento boxes - I almost always have J box. They come with soup, salad and rice and are a good value - especially at lunch time. The salad dressing here is amazing. I've come in just to buy salad dressing. It tastes like peanut butter and jam, which I know sounds weird, but it's soooo good. My husband thinks they have the best hamachi around.
This is also a good place to bring kids. They have a bunch of fish tanks around the restaurant and always try to sit the kids right next to them. They also offer a kid's menu option and kiddy chopsticks tied up with rubber bands. Service is efficient, friendly and quick - all of which are key when you're dining with wee ones.
The ownership has changed over the years and we really like the current owner. He has done some really nice sprucing up on the interior of the restaurant. -
Review from Lawrence L.
Covina, CA
5/29/2010 6 photos
Been here before, both times with my sis and bro-in-law, the sashimi is decent for a decidedly suburban Japanese restaurant.
The regular sashimi fish like the maguro tuna, the salmon, and the hamachi were fresh enough... but we also got to try this evening the white toro tuna which was velvety smooth, melt-in-your-mouth tender. Wifey and I each had the chirashi which had each of these fish in it. We also ordered a chicken kariage appetizer and that was crispy and had good texture. My sister and her husband shared a sashimi platter and ordered a Crazy Roll, one of their signature rolls. All told, we were all pretty satisfied with the quality of the food.
I wanted to mention something that tripped us out too. Before we walked into the restaurant, we mentioned that there are alot of Japanese restaurants now that have non-Japanese sushi chefs working behind the bar. Well, my bro-in-law told us that this place has Japanese sushi chefs... we were sitting within earshot of the sushi bar when the sushi chef said something that really sounded CANTONESE! I looked at my wife... she looked at me... we looked at my sis and my bro-in-law... we all started cracking up... did you hear that too?... oh well... so much for that! (lol!)... It didn't matter, we all liked the food.
For our latest experience, a solid 3.5 stars, but a bump up to 4 stars for the white toro sashimi which was excellent. -
Review from Amy L.
San Francisco, CA
5/14/2006
This is one of my parent's fav places to go and like Jan we've been going here for a very very long time. They are consistently good in quality, have both tables and booths, can accomodate moderate-sized parties in their back room, and have quite a selection of sushi. The only reason for me not giving them a full 5 stars is that the atmosphere is nice but nothing special. I guess I'm looking for the "wow" factor here. :) And, granted, I have never been here late at night so the atmosphere might have changed. Anyways, check them out! They are just north of the Hwy 85 / Saratoga-Sunnyvale Rd exit!
Times visited: 50+ -
Review from zu w.
San Francisco, CA
8/1/2009
I loved coming here it was a great place for dinner and lunch with a friend or even a big group. I moved so far away now that I haven't had a chance to come back in a long time.
I recommend the spicy scrunchy tuna roll. SOO YUM! their dinner salad dressing is a must have and their combo dinner boxes are beautifully presented and tastes as good as it looks.
I really like to get the potato croquet they are filling but it's great for sharing and it's like having deep fried mashed potatoes with peas, carrots and corn. It's like comfort food with a twist.
The staff is friendly everyone there really does a great job taking care of the customers. They do get busy sometimes and it may seem like "bad service" but it's obvious that they are trying, unlike those places where people just stand around and look busy...and does not give a sh*t.
The only thing that could be improved is their fish quality. It's not top quality like I'm used to but it's not bad. I am a sushi snob tho and so if you're looking for top quality fish you're probably not going to be satisfied. -
Review from Karen O.
San Jose, CA
4/8/2009
Had lunch here the other day for the first time.. The Cupertino area has so many asian restaurants to choose from, I need to try some new ones..
Got here at noon, so no wait and nice table right next to the tropical fish tank. I ordered two items..Sushi Bar Salad which consisted of cucumbers, onions, crab meat (imitation) on top of some tempura flakes and some spicy sauce mixed in. It was supposed to have avocado but noticed it was missing right before I scarfed it down. It was good though, would get it again. Also, some special rolls with chicken teriyaki, avocado, cucumber and a teriyaki sauce drizzled on top..very good!
They have a nice variety of items on their menu, not just the standard you get in most Japanese places.. Can't wait to try more of them!
