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serika is near the orinda theatre. upon entering, one is greeted by an hello kitty and the sushiman who is frantically looking for a waitress to seat you since a posted sign says "please wait to be seated."
the sushi station is in the middle of the eatery, surrounded by 2 concentric rows of wooden tables. the right and left walls have bamboo windows, recreating an aura of dining in a japanese inn. subdued lighting creates a romantic/intimate atmosphere.
once seated, one is presented with check off lists for nigiri and rolls and a lunch or dinner menu.
music: japanese instrumentals
sampling
sushi moriawase (chef's choice, nigiri) (13.50) lunch menu
-one each of tamago, ebi, saba, sake, tuna, white tuna, hamachil most servings pretty generous save for the hamachi which was very small. overall, the fish was fresh but not super fresh.
--nigiri rice kept falling apart, wasabi applied under fish onto rice.
temaki
-with 2 servers at lunch and only a few tables, service seem slow or was it leisurely?
-courteous thank yous when one is leaving.
-limited lunch menu, no chirashi offered.
-tea cup was very oversized. be very careful and get a good grip!
My favorite local sushi place. They offer authentic Japanese foods. I have been eating here for the last 10 years. In my opinion, their sushi is better than Kirala's in Berkeley.
This is an all means of traditional Japanese place. I'm not a big sushi fun but meals are ok. Girls have to obey their male boss.
I went to the place with my family on Saturday. We enjoyed their dinner until a sushi chef started yelling at a server for no reason. We didn't understand their language but it seemed he cursed at a server. She looked like a nice person to explain something to her customers while he yelled at her. He was on and on to make them (and us) feel uncomfortable. We felt sorry for her working with such a jerk.
We didn't want our kids to see this... He completely ruined our dinner time! We later knew the guy was the restaurant's owner. Lots of employees left the restaurant because of him.
PROS:
Nice Japanese decor
Sushi bar available
Nice dishware
CONS:
Rude staff
Long wait
Slightly overpriced for quality
These people are really rude!!!
The 5 stars is for the Salmon & Tuna anything-amazing, fresh, addicting, wow. The best sushi this side of the tunnel by far. Down side, for me is the hours. Closed on Sunday night? Crazy. I want to eat there right now, and it is Sunday....
Need to set the stage a little bit: OK- Orinda is a sleepy town. Things don't stay open late. But there is the Orinda movie theater that does show movies at night (they show good movies for the most part in a nice art deco theater). Fair amount of restaurants within the block of the theater. Restaurants might want to consider catering a bit to the movie crowds.
Our Saturday night, 7pm movie got out at 9. We walked over to Serika and it looked pretty empty. We asked if they were still open. They said yes. They sat us and then told us we had 5 minutes to order. Why, why, why didn't I go with my gut and walk out? I don't like it when restaurants tell you you have to do things fast. I'm paying them, right??
So we order in 5 minutes. As we are waiting for our food they start putting all the chairs on the tables and basically closing shop. Sorry- restaurants-you can't have it both ways. If you want my money and tell me that you are open, you have to keep all appearances of being open until the last customer leaves. Our food came and we felt like we had minutes to shove it all down. I hate that! The food was really good-but the experience left a bad taste in my mouth.
Serika redefines the meaning of sushi for me. After traveling all over the far east, where sushi is a way of life for many folks, coming back here to the Bay Area and to Serika, where Kimi, the head chef makes the best, freshest, and most imaginative sushi is like coming home.
Ask the regulars who come here frequently and have sampled sushi from many locations and they will tell you why they continue to return.
Pricing is not the reason, the quality and flavor and freshness of the sushi is. Yoshis in Jack London square comes in a distant second to Serika.
I have been back 4 or 5 times since the first review, and found the sushi to be consistently excellent and satisfying. A tab of $35 without alcohol will fill up the heartiest eater.
Please note that there is abundant FREE parking in the lot below the square during dinner hour. Daytime, Serika offers validated parking in same location. Folks who have not discovered this need to walk around the block and find out where they are at. The elevator takes your right up to the front door of the restaurant (level 2) from parking lot below.
A favorite with the kiddies (they dig the bento boxes and California rolls).
I'm a bit surprised by some of the reviews of surly service; sometimes when they are very busy, service can be a little slapdash. But they have always been friendly, and we've been there a LOT.
Lurv the miso soup.
I have been coming to this place since high school and the food/service has always been great. Our family has gotten to know the owners and they are absolutely the nicest people. We usually go during dinner time and I love their teriyaki. Absolutely the best Japanese in town!
I've been to Serika at least a dozen times when I used to work nearby. I recently revisted the place after a few years and was rather disappoiinted with the quality of food. The menu has not changed much from the time the restaurant opened in the early 90's and there has been no change in ownership. I attribute the downfall to the location since it is hidden inside an enclosed square surrounded by offices on the second and third floor. Parking is difficult since the three levels of parking are reserved mostly for Bart commuters.
On the day I visited Serika, I had the yakisoba with chicken and my friend had the combo bento. The yakisoba had volume but lacked taste and the chicken was dry. I'll try the restaurant again when parking is more accessible and when there is an increase in business in the overall square.
Quite surprised at the reviews on yelp. I've been a regular since it's opening 15+ years ago and still consider this place the best place for authentic sushi in the East Bay (as another reviewer suggested, it's not "Americanized").
Having lived in Japan for several years, I believe the fish is as fresh as can be expected (Japan still gets the best cuts due to their willingness to pay a steep premium). I usually ask for the "special" sashimi where I pick the fish I'd like and I'm quoted a price by the chef. The Chirashi is also a good bet with the traditional assortment of sashimi and garnishes. The tempura is light and delicate as is the age-dashi tofu. That said, I definitely prefer the sushi since it's their forte and what a traditional sushi-ya should specialize in.
I can't say I've experienced any of the difficulties with the service, save for the occasional delay in orders when the staff is obviously busy.
Parking isn't an issue since garage parking is validated. A little out of the way in Orinda, but certainly a first-rate sushi-ya worth the extra effort.
I was compelled to write my first review after stumbling on this review for Serika. Though I no… Read more »
When I moved to the East Bay, I lived in Orinda for a year and Serika became my favorite sushi place. I have not found a comparable restaurant close to home. I still drive over there when I get the urge.
The sushi is great, even though they don't make spicy tuna rolls. It's always fresh. The appetizer yakatori is one of my favorites; no one makes it as good.
The service can be slow at times but I have been going for so long that I know what to expect.
Went to this place for another periodic lunch with a friend who goes there somewhat regularly. No problem walking in on a weekday just before noon and being seated immediately. Street parking isn't impossible, just requires a short walk.
I had the assorted sushi for $12 or so, which included mostly seafood, as well as the inevitable tamago/egg. Everything was fine and the service was good, certainly better than what some here have reported.
After reading Yuki's 12/13/07 review I had to visit the men's toilet, which was spotless, as you might expect. I also checked the Contra Costa County Health Department reinspection record at http://decadeonline.co... as of 8 Aug 07. The first recent inspection had 4 major violations. The reinspection had one. I haven't seen enough inspection reports to know if this is good, bad, or indifferent.
Decent food, the worst service!
We ordered some appetizers and sushi. After the appetizers, a waitress brought us a check. We had to ask and wait for the rest of the food.
Asked for two glasses of water. Another waitress brought one glass and gave a huge sigh when I reminded her politely! that I had asked two.
I liked the food but will never go back to be treated like this.
This place is rated from 1 to 5 stars, quite a range. I believe this range is at least partially due to expectations. If you want Japanese food primarily fish this is a great place. If you want sycophantish service go to Applebee's . I believe this has a Japanese taste.
The decor from the shoji to the counters to the tables was all handcrafted by the owner. This offers a traditional yet individualistic ambiance.
While the waitress did not speak Japanese i found the service to be excellent. Lunch (obento) may not be the same as dinner. Menu needs to be updated.
This review limited to sushi, sashimi and vegetable tempura.
The miso soup was excellent with pieces of tempura batter in it.
The salad was typical Japanese.
The tempura was cooked in fresh oil very light and tasty. The sashimi was limited to tuna but fresh and delectable.
Sushi was good with great rice and fresh fish.
Restroom Clean.
Parking insufficient.
Beverages limited to one brand of beer and one brand of wine
I'd come back to this place...
The tuna pieces tasted fresh and were generously cut. The rolls were standard and nothing fancy, but they were good. It is pricey. I think it is better than Blue Ginko, the only other sushi restaurant I've been to in Lamorinda.
I'm the first to admit I don't know jack about japanese food and had no idea what to order (Meesh - teeeach meeee!) I totally planned on following porsche's lead when ordering so as not to embarrass myself, but ever the high-end auto, he said 'ladies first'... (then looked who he was with and said "uh, you go ahead") I did my best, which couldn't have been too bad b/c he followed with a laugh, toss of the head and "I'm getting the same." Tasty little piles of salmon, rice, veggies. Service seemed a bit off - indifferent, but not completely horrible.
Mediocre food served by bored waitresses and chefs.
Once a coworker had a cockroach on the tray, and the complaint was met with indifference.
Go if you absolutely must, but it's a waste of time and money.
I really enjoy this restaurant. The sushi is excellent. The sushi chef, Kimi, is one of the nicest people I know. He is very friendly (provided he isn't swamped) so sitting at the sushi bar is a very pleasant experience.
The serving staff does leave something to be desired, however. They're not very friendly, and are often completely frantic. So based on the food alone I'd give this place 5 stars but remove 1 for the less than great service, so my rating is 4/5.
Great sushi - family run business so it can get a little laggard in service when it's busy.
Best sushi in Diablo valley.
As for the complaint the sashimi is too thick - lady, you want LESS food for your money - okay, yea whatever - the sashimi at Safeway is thinner - try that.
I've tried many a Japanese food restaurant in the bay area since having returned from my year in Japan and this place is unique in that it carries some very traditional, authentic dishes that I have yet to find on a menu outside of Japan. Segoi yo. Oishiiiiii. An elegant Japanese setting tucked away in tiny little Orinda's Theatre Square, a friend and I stumbled upon this place after learning that Shelby's is closed on Mondays. I managed to order a great deal of food here, and paid accordingly(!), but thought the yudofu was especially delish.
My favorite thing here was the miso soup and the tuna sashimi. The fish is surprisingly fresh and the food overall not bad at all. I didn't try any of the rolls so I can't say much about that.. but the bento boxes are a good deal.
The restaurant itself is very cute and has a lot of Japanese decor. The waiter was a little weird but friendly. Since it is in theatre square, it's not in a well-trafficked area, but I would go back again.
I was born and raised in Japan. I was always disappointed to the Americanized Japanese food. This restaurant totally changed my mind. One day, I was attracted to the Japanese themed decoration of this restaurant, and I ordered Sukiyaki. Excellent beef and sauce. Whenever I visit Orinda, I decided to stop by at Serika. Their workers are 80% Japanese. It is not like Chinese or Mexican people imitating the food. This restaurant will definitely survive even if they opened the business in Japan where the food industries are competitive unlike other Japanese restaurants in USA need to close their doors. If you know the taste, you will likely to repeat this place.
cute little tucked away place and the sushi was good. thats about all it has going for it. its quiet with good ambiance and the fish is better than ok. but its not mindblowing. and expensive, and the service blows. i mean really blows, as in one member of our party got his meal a full 15 minutes before anyone else and it was actually a cooked meal so his choices were a) eat now alone or b) wait for who knows how long while your soup becomes tepid. we told him to eat after 5 minutes of polite waiting. we asked for water refills for so long that my uncle actually got up, found the pitcher and refreshed glasses for us. they do have childrens meal options, but with the long wait for food, im not sure how many kids have the patience. the 6 year old with us certainly didnt...
i just dont think 8 pieces of nigiri and a tekka roll is worth $19.50 when there are options like ichiro in downtown oakland...
there is no excuse for being completely ignored for a solid 30 minutes after asking for basics [water refills, for example] when a restaurant is less than half full, especially at these prices. food was ok, but definitely not worth being treated like you were ruining the staff's evening by making them walk around occasionally.
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