13 Best Japanese Restaurants near Alabaster

“Absolutely wonderful experience at Mizuwa! The food is delicious. We’ve been coming here as a family for a while and it never disappoints.
What truly sets this place apart, though, is the service. We always try to visit during quieter times with our young children (3 years old and 8 months old), but on this visit our little one woke up early from his nap and was quite fussy, making it hard for us to enjoy our meal.
That’s when our server Madi stepped in and completely saved the day. He offered to take our 8-month-old and gently carried him around the restaurant for at least 20 minutes so my husband and I could actually eat in peace. Madi and the rest of the staff were also wonderful with our 3-year-old, playing with her and keeping her entertained.
This kind of kindness and genuine care is rare. It turned what could have been a stressful outing into a relaxing and memorable one. Thank you, Madi, and the whole team—we’re so grateful and will absolutely be back!
Highly recommend Mizuwa for families!“

“Absolutely delicious! 😋 Everything was super fresh and flavorful — you can really taste the quality in every bite. The presentation was beautiful, and the service was excellent! 💯 Highly recommend this place if you love sushi and poke. I’ll definitely be back! 🍣“

“Masa is our absolute FAVORITE place to eat! Our kids LOVE it and the owners treat us like family with warm smiles and big hugs when we come! The food is always excellent with a HUGE sushi menu, we still haven’t tried it all yet but we have loved everything we have tried! Our 6 year olds ask for it all the time! Masa is like our home away from home when we need an excellent meal and don’t feel like cooking!“

“excellent food and service. highly recommend! food is fresh and well prepared and they offer a nice variety of dishes.“

“OSushi was a wonderful experience. My husband had sashimi that he said was fresh and delicious. I had chicken (i am not a fish eater), it was delicious too. I will not mind going with my husband at any time! Service was great, atmosphere was beautiful.“

“Food was good. My husband really enjoyed the sushi with the exception of the 'white tuna'. Not sure that was actually tuna. My husband stated the texture was a little off so maybe it was the fake tuna, the escolar. But other than that, all the other fish he had was excellent. I had the steak bento box and I guess I should have expected this with the rise in beef prices, but it did seem like there was way too much broccoli hidden under the steak pieces. The vegetable tempura was perfect. The young man that waited on us was super nice and the service was excellent. I think my biggest complaint was how the staff started sweeping up around us as we were trying to finish our food. We arrived about 8 PM which was an hour before they are scheduled to close. They turned the televisions off and started cleaning and sweeping about 8:45. Yes, we were the last people there, and I realize they wanted to leave and get home to their families, but imagine trying to eat while people are stirring up dust all around you by sweeping. We were finished and out the door at about 8:55.“

“Indoor shopping mall food courts usually have a hibachi styled one and this is exactly it. Been visiting for a few years now and the quality is still as good as it gets. Prices aren’t too bad and the serving portion is pretty big. Recently I tried their steak and it’s pretty good (medium rare). Their sauce is mostly on the sweet side so don’t ask them to put extra if you’re not a fan of that. Service is pretty quick but a queue builds during rush hour.“

“Went for lunch with a new friend today and the food was SO delish!! Our server, Payton, was super friendly and attentive! All around great lunch. We’ll be back!“

“I have a mixed review. The Crab Rangoon and Hot/Sour soup were excellent; hot and fresh. Bang Bang chicken and egg rolls were cold. I ordered takeout in person at the restaurant at 11:10 am shortly after opening. The restaurant wasn’t busy, yet I was told it would take 15 minutes. That’s standard for all takeout orders so no problem. However, with the wait I expected EVERYTHING to be hot and fresh. To end on a positive note, the flavor of everything was good, even the cold items once heated. 2 egg rolls, bang bang chicken appetizer, hot and sour soup and crab Rangoon (5) totaled $32…a little pricey for a Chinese lunch.“

“Great food and a cozy atmosphere. The sushi was fresh and service was friendly......“

“It was delicious food our family enjoyed. It was fresh and hot food. We will definitely be back.“

“Hostess service was extremely slow. So I was worried the rest of the experience would be bad too.
Once you get seated at the Hibachi grill everything was phenomenal!!
The Chicken and Scallops were perfectly cooked and the fried rice was second to none! Best rice I've ever had. Portion sizes were impressive. I haven't stopped craving Stix since I went. Definitely planning multiple trips back. Best restaurant in Hoover in my opinion“

“My friends and I went to SUMO sushi to celebrate a birthday. We were met with such personable staff members. Joy, our waitress, was so precious and often met our comments with an enthusiastic "yes." The food was delicious and the value for quantity was wonderful! An entree meal included a protein, a salad, a soup, noodles, vegetables, and rice for around $24. Thank you SUMO for the wonderful experience!“