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Sushi Raw
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
13 reviews for Sushi Raw
The menu is enormous. A novella, and well bound. Good size Sake list complete with pictures, they have hot and cold food, or shall I say raw, cold and hot food. The staff are very sweet and answer any questions you might have.
The food was really good. The fish was clearly fresh, (caught this morning) the presentation was lovely. The Lovers Roll is aptly named. Delicious!
The grand opening prices are very good.
It was really hard to hear in there, the ambiance was a bit tense, but I loved the art. Very surreal. I'll be going back for more.
Sorry Hanabi...
Perks:
10% off for grand opening + buy one get one free beer
Attentive Service
Decent sushi
Drawbacks:
Humorously awful ambiance. The lighting is terrible. Decor is quirky bad. And there was 70's soft rock music (eagles, phil collins, lionel richie) that I almost thought was a joke.
When my wife and I first moved into the Lower Haight, we went to the nearest sushi restaurants, hoping to find a place we could regularly blow a disproportionate amount of my salary on raw fish.
I love sushi; when I was a kid, my mom would take us out for it, like, twice a year, and she would make me eat a sandwich at home first. Because otherwise, I could eat the month's family food budget in one sitting as a teen.
So the local place needed to be good. Not great, but good. First came Hanabi. The tuna was eh, the salmon was less than eh, and the halibut actually turned my stomach. The interior feels dilapidated, a little dirty, and definitely old. Bummer. Never went back. Next was Amasia's Hides, which has the distinction of running a 50% special on sake. Every day. The fish was all eh. I remember getting the tobiko and feeling like it tasted like finely ground gravel. Never went back.
Next up were Sushi Time and Domo; both are fantastic, among the best in the city (up there with Shimo, thank you Danny Ronen).
Sushi Raw is the middle ground. It isn't as fabulous as Domo, but that restaurants (and Sushi Time and Eiji, another great one) each seat about 12 people, max. Sushi Raw seats closer to 50. The waitresses are really cute - the first time I went it was Halloween and they were all in ears and tails. The fish is good; I had excellent Salmon last time. The spicy tuna is a little too much on the spicy and flavorless side. The 49er roll is good. The double hamachi has too much mayo. And its probably less expensive than Domo, about the same as Sushi Time.
The interior is nice, the service prompt (and cute), and this place beats the s%&t out of Iraqi food. I mean, what the hell was that place, anyway? So to review, in Duboce/Lower Haight/Hayes Valley/N. Castro Sushi choices, it goes:
1) Domo
2) Sushi Time
3) Sushi Raw
4) Barracuda
5) Amasia's Hides
6) Everything else in walking distance
7) Hanabi
Its worth going to.
Irrashaimase!!
My boyfriend and I got a craving for sushi and wanted to find it fast. After work, we hopped on the J and found our way over to Haight. They're still running their Grand Opening special at Sushi Raw, but we didn't want 2 for 1 (or even 1 for 1) hot sake. The bill was 10% off, though, which I basically just gave back to the restaurant in the form of extra tip... er... anyway. I tip generously, maybe compulsively so.
Our waitress and all other staff were friendly and attentive. I love the metal binding on the menus. Just noticed on my way out that it matches the doorway, too, and some of the other restaurant decor. Industrial chic seems like a strange contrast with cherry blossoms, especially for a Japanese restaurant and in this neighborhood, but hey, if it works for them, right?
I sipped some miso soup. It's ordinary miso soup that you would get in most restaurants, but it's yummy. (I'm glad whenever they don't give you a spoon. You're supposed to sip it from the bowl like a giant tea cup!) We split the dragon roll and the spicy salmon roll, which were both your fairly standard westernized rolls, but done very well. We also split a stunning Eclipse roll that stood up in an impressive arc shape on the plate. The special rolls aren't that expensive here, and the chefs put a lot of effort into the presentation (as it should be, right?).
I accidentally startled a waitress who brought us the bill too early, because I had ordered tiramisu and I was confused when she brought me something other than food. I felt so bad for bluntly interrupting her! She looked so sad =( I found the tiramisu forgettable, but it's not my favorite dessert, so I don't really want to hold that against them.
Was a little sad that I didn't go to Baghdad Nights while it was still open, but psyched about another Asian joint within walking distance. Overall, the fish quality and service exceeded my expectations. So glad to have another option in the area besides Hanabi (which is decent, but not fantastic).
A more detailed breakdown:
Great:
"Lover's roll" (spicy tuna with albacore on the outside): 5 stars. Albacore was melt in your mouth delicious, and overall the balance was very nice. They even did black/orange alternating roe for Halloween :)
Two for one beers - awesome
Service - attentive and generally good
Not too bad:
I felt like someting heartier too, so split a chicken teriyaki rice place with the bf. The chicken was a little bland, and nothing to write home about, but serviceable. (Miso, salad, etc. was nice)
Rock and roll -- not as good as the other roll, a little tiny bit chewy.
The ambiance was a little bit weird, though welcoming. It's a great space, with a slightly elevated mezzanine beyond the tables in the front and the bar. I say weird because they have some beautiful Asian decor, like a huge cherry blossom branch behind the sushi bar, but then an eclectic collection of paintings on the wall leading up to the mezzanine. I can only describe the paintings as some sort of collective pop culture subconscious run through a Salvadore Dali filter.
Anyway, overall very impressed and looking to coming back again. (prob just stick to beer and more sashimi-heavy fare next time)
Perfectly good sushi, reasonably priced. Perhaps the welcome was a bit overly friendly.. the staff greets arriving guests with a hearty yell. Some of the many paintings on the walls (presumably by local artists) were interesting. Nice paper lampshades over the sushi bar.
New and so needed in the Lower Haight area.
Huge dining space - would be good for large groups. The staff is attentive and very friendly. The owner and head sushi chef, Simon, knows his stuff and obviously takes a lot of pride in what he's serving and how he's serving it. Well-rounded menu of sashimi, nigiri, rolls, and lots of great hot plates and soups! Everything I had was delicious. Really affordable lunch specials too. They are having a 2 for 1 hot saki and beer deal to celebrate their grand opening right now. I think this place will end up being a local favorite. Me like.
I was so excited to see another sushi place open in the Lower Haight that I created an Yelp account just to write a review of Sushi Raw's Haight Street location.
Yummmmmmmmmmm. I went here with two of my girlfriends and had a GREAT experience. The prices were super reasonable, the sushi was yummy, and the wait staff was kind and attentive. We shared several rolls and hot sake between us and ended the night with green tea and mango mochi (my favorite part of the meal). The rolls weren't huge so next time I might order a little bit more food to share.
If you hurry over there now you'll get to take advantage of their "Grand Opening" 10% discount and 2 for 1 Beer and Hot Sake specials.
I will definitely be back here and might even bring my picky-eater of a boyfriend who hates sushi but could benefit from Sushi Raw's noodle and teriaki dishes for those not as keen on the raw fish.
Definitely not authentic, but definitely not bad either. Not my style, but I do believe it is a roll lovers paradise.
Ended up here after we found the restaurant we wanted to go to was closed for some reason. I had beef Udon for the very first time and an Eclipse roll. The Udon was very good, very light, good beef, the roll was equally as delicious. Service was good and the prices are fair. Next time I'm in lower Haight, I'll be going back for sure!
I ate here last night for a friend's birthday.
The fresh sashimi blew me away.
The eclipse roll is delicious. YUM.
I love this place.
Another sushi restaurant in Lower Haight...Woohoo! My bf and I stopped by Sushi Raw for their Grand Opening. I was kinda skeptical when we walked up to the door because the restaurant looked empty. It turned out that the back area was packed with people. They have a wide selection of food both cooked and raw. The sashimi and sushi rolls were very fresh and tasty. They have a 2 for 1 beer night... even better!
The sushi bar seats about 12 and there's plenty of tables too. If you're looking for a semi-quiet dinner I would suggest you stay in the front area. The back seating area can get quite noisy.
Surprised to find this in the Lower Haight. Pleasantly surprised. The live uni was off the hook. When I asked the sushi chef to make a "super hot" roll...holly crap did he make it HOT. I'm not sure that was a very good idea, with my system being tore up from a couple of brews eariler at Molotov and a couple more at Sushi Raw. Final verdict: Food was excellent and service was wonderful. Very nice folks, both servers and chef.
