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Tataki
Category: Restaurants Sushi Bars Sushi Bars [Edit]
2815 California St(between Divisadero St & Broderick St)
San Francisco, CA 94115
Neighborhoods: Lower Pac Heights, Pacific Heights
(415) 931-1182
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 11:30 am - 2 pm
Mon-Thu 5:30 pm - 10 pm
Fri 5:30 pm - 10:30 pm
Sat 5 pm - 10:30 pm
Sun 5 pm - 9:30 pm
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
Jazmine S. said: "The happy hour here is AMAZING. $3 wine and champagne? Yes, please. The food is also very good. We tried the pizza margarita, the mussels, and the calamari. The prices are great - everything was around $5-7. The only thing i don't…" read more »
680 reviews for Tataki
Review Highlights
"The extinguisher roll knocked my socks off."
(in 52 reviews)
"The arctic char seriously melts on your tongue."
(in 85 reviews)
"All the sushi is sustainable and delicious."
(in 262 reviews)
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679 reviews in English
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Review from Bulent K.
Petaluma, CA
1/17/2012
Went here about 3 weeks ago with my girlfriend. We were really hungry looking for a sushi place and waited until 6pm on a Sunday for the place to open.
Luckily enough we were able to sit and order immediately. We started with Miso soups which were great as expected. We shared an order each of the Rainbow, Shrimp Tempura and Dragon Roll. Now the rolls we ate here stood out immediately as we started chewing. We had been eating at various sushi places frequently. Tataki's fish is simply fresher than fish at any other sushi place. Its texture is more natural and its taste perfect. Especially the Shrimp Tempura roll...It came with some sort of shiny-red crumbled batter which was excellent.
After dessert we paid less than 50 dollars with a generous tip.
I have been relying on yelp extensively to find places to go, so I decided it was my turn to give feedback. I'll go as far as to say that Tataki is the best sushi I hade in SF so far. -
Review from Raina B.
San Francisco, CA
2/1/2012
Definitely one of my top sushi go-to's. Vegetarian sushi, though simple in concept, is really damn hard for places to master. Tataki does a really good job with their vegetarian menu (and all my friends like the non-veg stuff as well).
Highly recommend:
Spicy Tofuna Roll (I wish every sushi place had this roll. I envy those of you that eat the spicy tuna)
Ratatouille Roll
Reggae Roll
I wasn't a big fan of the Cold Tofu starter, pretty bland. I can't remember what my non-veg friends had but it was some of the specialty rolls and they loved them.
Don't go here with a big group though, it's tiny. And call in advance as there can be a bit of a wait so make sure you are willing to wait. -
Review from Ad K.
San Francisco, CA
1/31/2012
The two stars are for the sushi. It is delicious and sustainable!
The service here leaves me with a bad taste though. I have come here often, yet I do not believe I have ever seen any of the servers smile. Not at me, not at any customer, not once.
I get it. It is a small restaurant, it is popular, it is busy and to be a hipster you have to have a certain "façade." But really? Their attitudes are ridiculous.
An overly eager, fake or excessively bubbly attitude is not expected in the least. However, there is something to be said about enjoying some great sushi and conversation with friends, yet receiving the vibe that your server hates their job, hates life or just hates non-hipsters and therefore your table gets treated like dirt: Kekkou desu! -
Review from phillip w.
San Francisco, CA
1/18/2012
Always drive by Tataki and one night we decided to give it a try, the place is small so expect a bit of a wait.
The thing that makes this place stand out is the fact they care a lot about the fish they are serving...sustainable as I've seen others put it. What I also noticed is that they are good at what they do. A lot better than most places in the city.
The main thing about this place is their "tataki"...pretty much seared fish marinated with a sauce afterwards, which is pretty simple. Here at Tataki they do it a little bit differently. They serve a variety of fishes served in that manner, seared with a sauce/vinegar and some garnish. We had two different ones..the kurodai and the char. I preferred the char much more with the yuzu sauce.
Just for kicks we had the extinguisher roll, that comes with a nice little fire on the side. Just salt that has alcohol lit up next to your sushi. The roll was good and I enjoyed it. I've always enjoyed eating rolls with avocado and such. Its an american thing hahaha, because my mom prefers just eating sashimi/nigiri.
Their nigiri/sashimi were fresh and we stuck with the chef specials instead. And they laid out a nice display of fish for us.
I think we had 2 bottles of sake and a couple beers, I don't remember exactly but my face was heating up. By the time we finished everything, we noticed the rest of restaurant was empty...we were the last ones! I felt so bad, but they didn't rush us and allowed us to take our time. But of course, we finished our bottle quick so we wouldn't hold them back from closing up.
Overall, Tataki was a good call. Though we had a bit of a wait, but that was already expected. Food and service was good, I would come back again. -
Review from Alex k.
San Francisco, CA
2/8/2012
Very nice sushi place. Not much of an atmosphere though but we were there for fresh fish and it did not disappoint. I had an ocean salad and sashimi deluxe. Fish was very fresh and a portion was generous. Unfortunately the service was as attentive as I would want although polite. We were lucky to get a table right away as we walked in. But be prepared to wait.
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Review from Jake A.
San Francisco, CA
2/6/2012
My date and I went here on Saturday. We got there at about 9:30 or 10, so we missed the dinner rush, which was nice.
The waiters were nice. They seemed to be knowledgeable about the fish.
I had no clue this was a "sustainable" sushi joint. I only came here because my friends girl friend recommended it.
Being "sustainable", some of the fish I requested, they obviously did not have. Which was fine, because there has not been much sushi in my life that I haven't liked (unless it's not fresh of course). I prefer my sushi either sashimi, nigiri or hand rolls. Not a big fan of cut rolls as i feel it takes away from enjoying the fish and its texture.
-The pole-caught albacore was delicious and fresh. Had that nigiri style and a hand roll.
-We ordered several different Nigiri. I preferred the wild Spanish mackerel to the Atlantic mackerel.
-Nigiri - pole caught skipjack tuna was tasty.
-Kodai - wild tai snapper, was delicious.
-the oysters were great, fresh.
I forget what other food we had, but it was all very good and fresh.
I don't really care about the whole sustainable aspect of it, but I will go back based on their fresh fish. And it being pole caught, i thought was really cool.
We also had some hot sake and beer.
Total cost was only about $75 or so. -
Review from Rachel Z.
San Francisco, CA
1/12/2012 3 photos
Highly recommend the sashimi deluxe. A good variety of fresh fish that is apparently caught sustainably. The plating is artistic but not overwhelming, and the portion is quite big.
The arctic char roll is also my favorite, especially with a bottle of half priced Sapporo beer during happy hour ;)
No waiting time for both of my visits, no complaints about that :p. Will definitely go again. -
Review from Rob M.
San Francisco, CA
1/28/2012
This is my favorite sushi place in SF. I've been here several times, and everything is always amazing! All of the food is simply great quality, well prepared, and to top it all off, it's sustainable!
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Review from Nho H.
Been back here so many times that I've pretty much eaten everything on their menu. This is my favorite sushi joint in SF so far. Never fails and always fresh.
Get the sashimi deluxe; 20 pieces of melt in your mouth fresh fish. I could die happy after eating this. Some other favorite rolls are early bird, ratatouille roll, rainbow, spicy tuna and so much more my tummy is yearning for.
GO and be merry. The staff is also great and plays awesome music :D1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/1/2011
Sustainable sushi? What does that even mean? Being sustainable, they have good choices seafood and… Read more »
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Review from Rice C.
San Francisco, CA
2/4/2012
Tiny place that fills up quick. Service is generally ok...sometimes it seems the staff leave tables open a while even though a wait. Sushi is nicely prepared, fresh, good roll variety. Prices are ok, but if you can hit happy hour there are a few deals. Some of the best calamari I've had!
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Review from Anthony M.
San Francisco, CA
1/17/2012
These guys are putting the most sustainable fish you can get in SF. The place is small but the food is great. The Servers are always fast and friendly. I don't come here all the time but it's one of my favorite Pac Heights spots
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Review from Amavi Designs I.
San Francisco, CA
1/5/2012
Have zero clue why anyone thinks this place is great....if your in college...great if you have any taste palate for food and wine....run. I know sushi well..this place is about sauce so much rice that dont get to experience the true taste of the fish and salt...eewww..no person need extra sodium! Stay away!!!
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Review from Ali G.
San Francisco, CA
11/26/2011
Love the arctic char roll and the double double roll - original and so delicious!
Extra star for serving sustainable fish in all their dishes while keeping prices similar to other sushi restaurants in SF.
They also have lunch specials and a happy hour if you want to spend less $. -
Review from David H.
Fremont, CA
Updated - 11/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
Sat night. 9pm. Open table for 2. And my gf and I are told we can't sit there because they have to plan for the other groups??! Yea... No. (And this was after we waited 15 mins for one of the two hipster servers to notice we were waiting.)
As far as the food goes, eh. I've had better, I've had worse.
They'd have gotten 3 stars had it not been for some shitty attitude from one of the servers.
(This was my second time - and I'm not really shocked to see the service hasn't improved)1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/21/2010
Ok, so it's apparent that this location has a great rep amongst the yelping elite...bravo.
I'm not… Read more »
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Review from Jem Q.
San Mateo, CA
1/9/2012
I have eaten here a number of times and this place never fails to satisfy! I love that they are a "sustainable" sushi place and hope that more restaurant owners follow suit soon! I have never had a bad meal here, my favorites are Extinguisher, Tataki, Spicy Tuna, and all of the nigiri I have tried here. Service is always very good as it's a small space and they try to turn over tables as quickly as possible.
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Review from Fanny W.
San Francisco, CA
Sustainable sushi, just great!
Upon arriving around 6:30pm, the restaurant was a bit empty. Small space, not too noisy, parties bigger than 4 is definitely not suggested as that's their largest table. Had a party of 3, but one of my friends was late and so they were unable to seat us immediately. We had to put our name on the sign in sheet, no biggie, I understand. There's a small sushi bar that seats about 3-4 people.
Our waiter was awesome, knew the specials and so glad he let us know! I guess we came on the right day because they had the special Lion Roll (that's what the tab called it), which is made of wild salmon, available 2 weeks of the year!
Lion Roll ($14/8 pieces) - served warm and fresh on a piece of foil. my favorite roll of the evening! must try if you get the chance.
Extinguisher Roll ($13/8 pieces) - Albacore tuna, avocado, habanero masago (which is what??), spicy aioli. I'm gonna be honest, the flame was what caught my attention (saw it on Yelp before). The sriracha sauce is WHOOOOO! SPICY! But it was a tasty roll for sure! Another favorite.
Mix It Up Roll ($11/8 pieces) - Spicy albacore tuna, crab, avocado, citrus sauce. It was good, but not my favorite. It might have been the citrus. Wasn't anything spectacular.
Overall, great experience and good food! I would certainly come back! I do consider this expensive sushi, but I don't mind once in a while. Per person, about $25-$30. For college students, definitely steep and not a place we would frequent.
Oh, and they put cucumber slices in your water, I can digg it! -
Review from Jillian P.
San Francisco, CA
12/4/2011
Sustainable sushi at an affordable price? Yes, please!
The arctic char roll is delicious and less than $5! The girls I was with are a huge fan of the extinguisher, but I can't handle that much heat.
The only downside to this place is the size of the restaurant. They don't take reservations, so you'll need to arrive early. But if you're open to eating early, you can take advantage of their happy hour that lasts until 7PM. -
Review from Susie R.
Sebastopol, CA
12/27/2011
Three stars because they are trying to be sustainable and they have pretty good service.
The fish is meh, the nigiri is meh. If you've had the best sushi the north bay has to offer (let alone better sushi in San Francisco), it's really hard to appreciate anywhere else. Our party was also large, so we had to sit at a table as the bar was small. Pretty much every time we ordered sushi, the waiter would bring us everything at once, regardless of how long the sushi would have to sit on the bar counter before he picked it up. Not many people know this, but the difference in quality changes drastically for a piece of nigiri in just minutes. It's only good freshly made which is why I never get take out sushi anymore. Tataki is really doing themselves a disservice by letting the nigiri sit on the counter for several minutes as it may actually be better than what I tasted. The sushi rice was too sweet and had a very grainy texture. One plus is that I got to try arctic char, which is very much like salmon. The udon was pretty good, but how hard is it to stick meat, noodles, and veggies in a salty meat-based broth, really?
It was okay; the service was great and their heart is obviously in the right place, but the food is mediocre. -
Review from Michael D.
San Francisco, CA
12/16/2011
I like to think I've seen some stuff in my 24 years of life, but NEVER have I seen avocado draped spicy albacore brought to me whilst fire also populates the plate itself. Damn. That's some serious culinary confidence.
Listed in: SOOO Sushi
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Review from Le D.
San Francisco, CA
1/4/2012 2 photos
We went here last week on a weeknight and still waited nearly 40 minutes for a table, but it was worth it. The place is tiny so waiting for a table is almost inevitable. We ordered the sashimi deluxe and the fire extinguisher. The fire extinguisher was impressive with the fire on the plate, but the taste didn't quite live up to the presentation. The sashimi was superb, very fresh and clean. I would definitely come back, but only on a weeknight since I can't imagine waiting for a table on a weekend here.
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Review from Johnny W.
10/16/2011
Deciding to try Tataki after being tasked with the responsibility of finding a place for dinner, our grouped headed up the street from Utoepia, not expecting the hour wait that lay ahead. The two Asians in the group were getting fairly hangry towards the end, with myself convinced that the food would not be worth the wait (those who know me know that I usually will only wait up to 20 minutes for food).
Finally being seated, we decide on getting the garlic edamame, poke, scallop tataki, extinguisher and golden gate rolls, kin-sangria and a glass of umeshu, only realizing as we noticed the fauxnagi on the menu that Tataki focused on serving dishes using sustainable ingredients. The garlic edamame (garlic-y and vinegared), and the golden gate rolls were both excellent. The poke was served three ways (sweet, savory-sweet, and savory), with the savory-sweet style with the vinegared seaweed being tasty, but the other two presentations, the tataki, and the extinguisher roll (which is lit on fire when served) were good, but much less noteworthy. The kin-sangria also failed to impress, being, for the most part, underwhelming and bland.
So, while their food is not bad, and wait-aside, would warrant a 3.5 stars from me, the lack of reservations, coupled with long waits (the space is tiny and only has ~10 tables, with most being two-seaters), knocks them down to a flat 3 stars. Showing up earlier for dinner, especially on Mondays and Tuesdays, supposedly greatly increases the chances of being seated more quickly. Prices are, admittedly, a bit higher than usual, with our total bill after tip coming out to $100 (~$70 without alcohol) - we were, however, comfortably full at the end of our meal. Do note that they have a restriction of a two credit card max per table, so be sure to bring cash if you're splitting! -
Review from Amanda T.
San Francisco, CA
1/21/2012
I usually like this place for their Happy Hour and fresh, sustainable fish; however, I went here on a Friday night with a friend to try and make it in time for Happy Hour, and the service turned me off so much so, that I have no plans in the future to spend my money here.
When my friend and I walked in, the small restaurant was busy. The hipster servers seemed frazzled. There was a wait list. We proceeded to wait almost an hour, staring at two tables that were left un-bussed for 45 minutes (mind you, the tables were not set after they were finally bussed). At some point, an ill-natured, vapid woman (who seemed to have traveled from over the Divisadero hill to eat at this place) was waiting with us. Her attitude towards anyone in the cramped near vicinity of her made us long even more so for a table, as we needed to seek refuge. During our wait, my friend and I were not acknowledged at all by any of the servers. Can I underline the "not"?
I have worked in food service before, and at every restaurant I worked at, the servers were always told that they should acknowledge a waiting customer, no matter how busy the place got (even if it was just to thank them for their patience). Perhaps, someone did not show up for their shift and these servers were overcompensating, but I doubt it. When I finally asked, very nicely may I add, one of the servers if we could simply sit down at one of the tables that had been cleared, but not set, he snapped at me that they were trying to get it together and that I needed to wait. We waited another 15 minutes. Still not set, still no one seated. There was a long wait on the list now. Well, as my friend and I watched other customers sitting at their tables, waiting to order for the same amount of time we were waiting for a table (about an hour), we realized we probably wouldn't even get served our food for quite some time once we got seated. Thus, we went to Godzilla Sushi in the same area; it had the same amount of servers and, they were just as busy, but the service was so much better. -
Review from Anthony S.
San Francisco, CA
11/5/2011 5 photos
Great Sushi with unique plates and good flavor .... very small place so if a reservation is not made you might be waiting for some time ...
My girl and I got lucky when we arrived and were seated almost immediately ... it was some time ago so most of what we ordered I forgot .. I do remember the extinguisher ( sushi with a cool salt flame burning ) seaweed salad .. ok fun texture ... sashimi, crab coquettes, and some other rolls ...
From what I remember everything was great .. I will definitely go back again ... -
Review from Athena L.
Sustainable sushi? Delicious + Sustainable sushi?! I'm hooked!
Came here for a friend's birthday, and I didn't really know what to expect. But let me tell you now, I've been wowed and I can't wait to come back! The five of us (girls) tried practically half of the entire menu!
First off, the Sangria was yummy. Real fruits and real sweet--just the way I like it.
Next we had Calamari and Crab Croquettes for starters. Both were done to perfection! Not too fried, but OH SO Delicious!!
We wanted sashimi so we opted for the Sashimi Deluxe platter. It was a gorgeous plate. But not only was it pretty, it had substance! Everything on there was super fresh. A must-have if you love sashimi everything.
Now for the rolls...I can't remember all of the rolls we ordered and the online-menu doesn't seem to be updated. But I'll do my best: the Extinguisher was on FIRE! Literally! So pretty and tasty. Double Double, Golden State, Green Dragon, among other things were all mouth-watering. I have no complaints and loved absolutely everything I had that night.
The only thing is that the restaurant is a little small, so arrive early...or late! -
Review from Andrew W.
10/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
I am a fan of their food only, NOT their prices. For $$, I really expected affordable fulfilling sushi. But I do have to applaud them on their fish, simply fresh and delicious.
We ordered:
kurodai (6 pieces) - seared black sea bream, avocado, jalapeno-ponzu sauce, masago
tataki - 5 varieties of seared fish, cucumber, avocado, tobiko, sweet sauce
extinguisher - albacore tuna, avocado, habanero masago, spicy aioli
49er - masago, avocado roll topped with arctic char and lemon
golden state - spicy scallop, minced apple, seared albacore tuna, avocado, yuzu tobiko
Both the kuroda and tataki were delicious but were not special. I wish I read the menu more closely because I would not have ordered the kurodai if I had read seared. And the tataki had four different kinds of tobiko and not 5 varieties of seared fish. The extinguisher was cool since there was a side of fire but the roll was average. My two favorite were the 49er and golden state. The 49er was refreshing and the artic char was excellent. I actually thought it was salmon until my girlfriend corrected me. And the golden state was so simple but so good. My only problem with the rolls, is the lack of rice. Rice = full and I was not full. Too bad my wallet could not handle paying for more rolls.
What I recommend:
-- an dish with arctic char
-- golden state
-- 49er -
Review from Helen L.
12/16/2011
Cute and sleek little place tucked into lower pac heights. Ordered the nigiri sampler and it came with uber fresh arctic char, tuna, hamachi, etc... Food is good, but best of all - this is sustainable sushi! Welcome to San Francisco.
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Review from Ryan J.
San Francisco, CA
10/16/2011
Good sushi. Everything is sustainable here so be prepared to try some new fish and it is absolutely delicious.
The arctic char was really good as well as a bunch of other fish that I couldn't get the name of. We ordered the nigiri platter and got no explanation on what everything was which was disappointing. It was all very fresh, unfortunately they only gave us one nigiri of each kind so my date and I couldn't try the same fish together. The interior is small and cozy with 4 spots available at the sushi bar. The chefs were helpful but I felt bad after asking them what every fish was that i got so I spared them and shut up after a while.
It can get busy (at least on weekends) so be prepared to wait. Service was good except for the lack of explanation and the puddle of soy sauce that was originally on my stool. That was easily taken care of by switching stools with the one next to me but the couple trying to sit down a minute later weren't too happy.
It's a little on the pricey side but Tataki should definitely be included in your sushi bar rotation, and if you don't have a rotation yet get one! -
Review from Zoey S.
If it's not from a plastic container, is sushi for lunch taboo? Nothing about Tataki is taboo! From their sustainable fish to the laid back atmosphere, Tataki is probably the only place you could eat amazing fish in your pajamas and not stick out. And who doesn't want to delight in slippers and raw fish simultaneously?
Came here fore lunch the other day and was very impressed by the specials. One spicy tuna roll, albacore sashimi, and one side salad later, I was feeling pretty happy and ready to leave, BUT WAIT, not until I check out the restroom. A nice restroom, approximately 1/3 of the size of the restaurant. I highly recommend reveling in the uniqueness of the sink.
Great prices for great fish! Hate waiting for a table here for dinner? Avoid the line and come midday! -
Review from Misha T.
9/20/2011
I don't know if it's really expensive or my low wages are just making me touchier about it but tataki makes some solid rolls and apetizers. Especially the poke salad, which as an avid poke fanatic (sort of sounds like i'm really in to pokemon which i guess i still am) it's not really poke like you'd get in hawaii but it's pretty creative and tasty.
Pass on the fancy edamame. It's one of the rare things i've eaten that I will declare as being much too salty. -
Review from Benjamin L.
San Francisco, CA
10/20/2011
It was great, I dig the sustainable thing, and it becomes a topic of conversation, because there's bound to be someone in your party that wants something, they just don't have. I think that's cool, and the staff is very polite about it.
The presentation is excellent, and the happy hour makes it all worth while.
Give it a try, and put your destiny in the Chef's hands and see what they come up with; you won't regret it! -
Review from Connie W.
San Francisco, CA
7/28/2011
ATTN sushi lovers: eating here is the best decision you will ever make... and it's good for the planet. How can you say no to that?
Let me begin by saying I'm a total sushi snob. I live for Sushi. Before discovering Tataki, I was a complete newb when it came to sustainable sushi. I discovered it with a DJ friend who had just met one of the owners, a true crusader for the sustainable seafood movement. After meeting him, learning all about sustainability and more responsible choices, I was inspired to follow in the same pursuit and be more conscious of what I ate from then on.
Everything they serve is either Best Choice or Good Alternative on the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch Guide so you won't find normal Sushi items such as Hamachi, Toro or Unagi, all in the Avoid category either for inhumane catching methods, being overfished or harmful to eat. Some of the alternatives they offer taste and look exactly like, or even better than, the other stuff, you can't even tell the difference and you won't miss it - I promise. The fish I've had there has always been fresh, juicy and delicious. I love the poke sampler, a sweet, savory and spicy trio; my favorite is the spicy, it's fantastic. Also try the tataki roll and extinguisher roll, the flame on the plate adds extra pizazz! And if you're feeling ace, order the "V.I.P. roll", it's not even on the menu! Did I mention everything is delicious?
I'm really glad I discovered this place and the movement. Now I'll never eat farmed, overfished or inhumanely caught fish. I know this sounds really tree-hugging-hippie, but I swear... all the cool kids are doing it :) -
Review from Emmy D.
9/2/2011
Love sushi...we were planning on heading to Sushi Ran but a women who we met in Mill Valley that lives in Salslito suggest we go here instead.
This place is Michelin recommended and what.... sustainable sushi that sold responsibly sourced, environmentally friendly seafood. Yes there is such a thing so we had to check this place out in Pacific Heights.
We started off with oysters...miagi. Then I ordered Uni. We almost ordered the sashimi deluxe but instead ordered the Tataki deluxe. I think its the same thing but the Tataki is Chefs choice of seared fish, 20 pieces, but a selection of dipping sauce for each fish $32. My hubby is Mr. sauce guy so he enjoyed all the different varieties he got to dip his sashimi in. The portions a good size and cut well. We washed this down with Kin-san-gria $5 which is house sangria made with Riesling, Sake and fresh fruits like strawberries, blueberries and leche.
I enjoyed this place and will have to come back cause it made me feel guilt free. Will have to try some of their rolls as they were very popular. One of the rolls were on fire when it was served to you...pretty cool. Do not go here with a big group...max would be four to go with. Really a cute small place but worth the try. -
Review from Audrey B.
8/7/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Things I love about this place:
1. They serve a roll that is accompanied by flame. Super cool.
2. The food is delish
3. The bathroom is like 1/4 of the size of the restaurant and is really fancy and cool.
4. You can drink at Solstice next door while you wait for your table.
5. All the fish is sustainably caught.
6. The tataki roll.
I keep traversing the city to visit this place, not because there are no good sushi places in my neighborhood, but because this place is just that good. Would love if they had a bigger restaurant and less of a wait, but like all good sushi places in SF there's high demand for their good food! -
Review from Etienne D.
Evanston, IL
8/9/2011
SF's take on sushi: small restaurant, incredibly tasty, sustainable fish with a twist of originality.
Food: 4 stars
Service: 4 stars
Ambiance: 3.5 stars
Price: $$
Food: 4
Fish was fresh, with great plating/presentation and attention to detail. Everything was great, without being too much. What you would expect for sushi. Selection is not as large (don't expect Yellow Tail), but once you read about fish sustainability, you won't be wanting it anyway. Not a fan of the tataki roll, but personal preference. Rainbow was exceptional, tobiko really good. Edemame had a hint of butter which made them incredibly tasty.
Service: 4
You sign in and might have to wait because of the size, but they are good at giving you a heads up and inviting you to grab a drink next door while you are waiting. Waiter was good, a little dry but really efficient. Rolls are served as they are ready, which is good and bad. Don't expect a large plate with everything on it, so if you like to end with a last bite of (name your roll here), you'll have to save it. Our last rolls came a little too late and had lost our eating momentum (and it was the Tataki which we didn't like as much, so dinner didn't end on the strongest note)
Ambiance: 3.5
wood chopsticks, small place, nice tables. Not your typical japanese place, in a positive way. No carpet, decent decoration on the walls, a little too bright for the size.
All in all, great date night, fun place for 2/4 people especially on a slow night like Monday. -
Review from D T.
Burlingame, CA
9/7/2011
Tuesday night. I came here as a party of 4 for a friend's birthday. I wish I got here earlier. Probably got here around 6:25pm, parked by 6:30 (got lucky with parking), and waited about 40 minutes to get seated. This place is SMALL. I wouldn't recommend coming with a large party unless you come super early or super late.
To start off, the service was only average. For such a small place, I would've expected more attentive service. There was only one waiter and a lady who filled up water. We were served non-iced water with a slice of cucumber inside. Friends got some beer. Wanted to get the sangria but missed the happy hour after waiting so long, so... forget it.
The portions here are small. If we didn't order a platter of sashimi deluxe, I don't think we would've been full. The rolls had "6 pieces" or so, but they are so bite-sized! I guess being sustainable is more costly... ): but I didn't taste that much of a difference in the fish than other japanese restaurants of this pricing.
We started out with the garlic edamame appetizer. It was okay... kinda sour, which was weird. Don't recall finishing the dish.
We ordered:
Rainbow roll: YUM! I liked how they didn't throw in the shrimp as the orange color (like other places), but it was all fish (and avocados) on the top! I'm not a fan of california roll, so it was kinda nice to have a small roll with little imitation crab (:
Divisaderoll: I liked it cause it was just albacore, avocado, and masago (I don't like all those extra cucumbers and stuff in my sushi).
Tataki roll: Very interesting! Wasn't a big fan of the sweet sauce, but the fish was seared just the right amount and the assorted tobiko was good presentation.
Golden State roll: Not my favorite. I thought it would be better, but the apple was weird.
49er roll: I liked this! I'm kind of a fan of lemon complimenting fish on sushi because of the kick of flavor, but the strong hint of lemon may be a way to hide other flavors, like "not fresh" fish
Sashimi deluxe: I wish I knew what everything on here was. There was the deliiciouuss sweet shrimp, the salmon was FRESH, there was skipjack tuna (weirdly dry? and flavorless), scallops, albacore tuna, artic char (tastes and looks similar to salmon), and some dirt tasting sashimi... seriously i was like wtf is this? i ate a mouthful of dirt (it was wrapped all fancy)
California roll and spicy tuna roll: Both pretty basic rolls, but they did throw on some crunchy stuff on top to make it "special".
I did appreciate how they did not throw everything on the table at once. They brought things out as we finished another dish, so we never had a cramp table from too many dishes presented at once.
All together with a sapporo and an asahi beer, the meal was $160 (+t&t).
Don't feel like I'd come here again if I just wanted to get some sushi. -
Review from tammy h.
San Francisco, CA
8/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
Guilt-free sashimi, AMAZING-- for the mind And body! This was a first for me, I walked out of there feeling like I just donated to charity (which I did last week ;)).
Real quick--
**Place is small, don't plan to throw a party here (unless you can arrange to rent the whole place out). I counted... 26 seats, including the bar. Also, you will not be seated unless all guests are present.
**Waiter was par. We arrived an hour prior to closing. Got seated 40 minutes later. It was very obvious that we were delaying him for his evening ahead. He was not rude, just very apathetic.
**Artic char, what is it you say? It's most similar to salmon a.k.a. sake. But it tasted... better! Could have been a conscience thing but I really liked it. Was fresh enough and thick enough.
Because the venue is quite petite, we waited a while for seats. However, being that it was my first time there, I used the time to read the articles on their wall. I learned a lot! Each table has a small information card that tells you about different sashimi pieces and its' source.
After my dinner here tonight, I am going to (try my very, very best to) stop ordering (Oh-)Toro, (Fat Belly) Bluefin Tuna at other restaurants (they don't serve it at all here, it's being fished to extinction). I always felt bad, as I chewed its' yummy, tainted, goodness. I never knew there were ethical choices for Japanese food until now; I'm so glad I found this place through Yelp!
The service has room for improvement, and it is there that Tataki falls short of what would have been a 5-star review.
I love the business ethics (and most of items of food)! Most because: my oyster on the half shell was room temperature-- my expectation was for it to feel chilled on the palate. The Pacific Sunrise specialty roll was also room temperature; it has 4 types of raw fish in it, kind of 0_o when it's anything but chilled.
Again, love the business ethics and the prices are reasonable! -
Review from Jamie J.
San Francisco, CA
6/9/2011
Let me keep it simple: The sushi here really is buttery-melt-in-your-mouth-fresh-and-delectable, and may be my favorite sushi in all of San Francisco, but both times I have been here each person at my table including myself has spent over $30, and left still feeling hungry.
The problem is: the sushi is so good that you crave more. You want to order more. You do order more. You spend a lot of money, and still feel unsatisfied.
Last night I ate here and it was amazing:
-Sashimi sampler (6 pieces, 3 types of different fish, all delicious)
-Salmon sashimi special
-Scallop tataki
-Divisaderoll
-Two house hot sakes
I wanted more but we had already racked up quite a bill.
So, we did the next best thing: we left and went to Safeway and bought brie cheese, sourdough baguette, and wine...and went home and devoured that.
But, still, I think it's worth it.
Come here if you are a sushi snob, an environmental fish activist (it's all sustainable), if you want to go big, and/or if you aren't starving. -
Review from Jackson Q.
San Francisco, CA
7/24/2011 3 photos
Let's just get it out in the open that I'm wary of any place with Caucasian male sushi waiters- it's just strange (you know what I'm talking about). But for Tataki, I'm gonna let it slide.
I mean, the place was obviously hip enough- with its cucumber-infused water and indie electro music, my experience with places like this growing up in LA were usually a sign of bad things coming- but SF usually does it right, so I'm still on board.
Our appetizer comes- spicy shrimp ceviche. Scrumptious and zesty, a little messy but a great start. One thing I really hate however is when they serve sodas in a CAN WITH A CUP OF ICE ON THE SIDE. Just...no.
Ordered what I'm imaging are two very popular rolls: Tataki roll and The Extinguisher. The latter was a primary reason for checking this place out to begin with- a little portion of the plate is on fire! I'm all for drama.
Both rolls were exquisite, a touch small but made up for it in flavor. Especially the extinguisher- the title is well earned because that sucker is H-O-T.
It's no Ryoko's, but it's more than a suitable alternative for the hungry Pac Heights sushi fiend- wherever he or she may be. -
Review from Brad Y.
10/30/2011 1 Check-in Here
Great place with sustainable sushi. On the smaller side so sometimes it can be a challenge to get a table. But if you can get here for happy hour sometime you won't be sorry. Only thing is that you definitely don't get full for the amount of money =/ But food with a message is always worth trying.
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Review from Francis M.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2011
A place to go when you have time and in the neighborhood.
They are somewhat small (~30 seats) and do not take reservations.
With that said, the food is good especially if you like spicy rolls.
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