50 Best Japanese Restaurants near Harbor City

“Delicious authentic Japanese Hibachi. The most expensive, Filet Mignon Bowl ($18) has a very tender and savory meat with a delicious sauce that pairs with rice. Meal is restaurant level good. Price is reasonable for the portion and quality. Will definitely come here again. Food is from a food truck and you can call to order ahead of time. No seats provided outside of the truck, still worth it.

Parking: Food truck is parked inside of a parking lot next to a gas station. Plenty of parking available.“

“I’ve been going to 3 brothers since high school and that’s almost 17yrs ago. I’ve since moved out of state back in 2020 but every time I get back to Cali I always have to stop by. Their sweet and sour chicken dinner is always my go to and never disappoints. It’s also nice that the owner still remembers me.“

“I got the oyakodon set and it was such an elaborate meal, I felt like a queen. The oyakodon was so comforting and I really enjoy the fresh fish and tofu/beef sides!! I was also in a rush but the servers were kind enough to get me in and out in a jiffy :) Will be back!!“

“An adorable, cozy sushi restaurant with INCREDIBLE fresh fish. We got the special and regular omakase, and the special is absolutely worth the extra $20 because it comes with an amazing toro collar and tiramisu, along with more sushi, soup, and a carpaccio. Some memorable bites were the monkfish liver, fresh oyster, toro collar, daikon marinated red snapper, golden eye snapper nigiri, and the AMAZING housemade tiramisu.“

“Excelent food ! Great place !“

“Good taste noodle, great customer service! interesting old Torrance neighborhood.“

“Ramen is so good I cried.“

“LOVE the poke bowl options including the gluten free/lo carb noodles!“

“Kotohira Japanese Restaurant in Gardena is well-known for its incredible udon and hearty combination sets that pair a steaming bowl of noodles with a delicious donburi (rice bowl). It is located in a vibrant plaza alongside popular dessert spots like Honeymee, It's Boba Time, and Northern Cafe. Because the parking lot is massive and spacious, it draws a steady crowd but remains incredibly convenient to visit. 🚗🍜

This was my second visit here, and I went with the Mini Katsudon Set. The menu describes it perfectly: crispy pork cutlet, eggs, and onions simmered in a semi-sweet sauce over rice, paired with a bowl of hot tanuki udon. The udon noodles are perfectly chewy and the broth is exceptionally clean and flavorful. The overall food quality is top-notch, and the portions are incredibly generous and filling.

The rest of the table loved their meals as well. My wife ordered the Nabeyaki Udon with an Ume Onigiri, and their nabeyaki udon is absolutely delicious—packed with flavor and served piping hot. My brother-in-law tried the Unagi Don Set, which was also fantastic. For an appetizer, we shared the Garlic Shrimp, which featured large, juicy shrimp tossed in a rich, deeply aromatic garlic sauce. It was an excellent way to start the meal! 🍤✨

The ambiance inside feels just like a cozy, authentic local restaurant in Japan. It is the perfect spot for a casual lunch or dinner with a small group of 3 to 4 people. While the layout might make it difficult to host massive parties, they have about ten comfortable 4-person booths available. If you are looking for authentic, comforting Japanese cuisine in the South Bay, this place is highly recommended! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐“

“Saloon Osaka is an exceptional Izakaya.
Highly recommend this El Segundo gem!
From the nigiri, rolls, unique flavorful salad options, even the top grade caviar! Thank you Chef and staff, we had a wonderful experience and cant wait to be back soon.“

“Went to Yamashiro for the first time today! I have to say this is probably one of the best sushi places I have ever been to. The fried oysters were delicious! We ordered three different rolls and all of them were just beautiful from a presentation and artistry perspective, but tasting them was even better! The volcano roll was served on grapefruit slices, which made them very colorful and the scallops were cooked perfectly. The Yamashara roll was not only beautiful but it's the first time I have ever had mango with my sushi rolls and it actually added a really nice dimension of tropical fruit to already super fresh tasting tuna and avocado. The crispy roll had fried onions that were somehow not greasy, which was surprising. I'm wondering if they were air fried? But really great addition to texture for the rolls. We also had the yellowtail collar, which was cooked flawlessly. Oftentimes, yellowtail collar can you overcooked so part of it can be fairly dry. This caller was moist all the way around, perfect pockets of fish fat, and a very light unami salty flavor. The last thing we had, which I think was very fortunate because they don't always have it, was the Japanese tuna Ono which was cooked in a wonderful miso sauce.

I know I keep going on about this spot, but these rules were truly unique and I eat a lot of sushi, lol! Did I mention that we had a wonderful server, which I didn't get her name, but she's a Japanese woman that may have been the owner. I'm not sure, but her spirit was so respectful and refreshing and we loved her kindness and attentiveness. Really great service! I can't wait to go here again next time I visit the Redondo Beach area!!!“

“蕎麦、日本食　最高 !“

“The service was really good and fast. The staff was friendly and made sure we had everything we needed. The food tasted great and the portions were worth the price. Overall, it was a nice experience with good food at a decent price. I would definitely come back again.“

“The atmosphere inside is a great homie and warm feeling! Takes me back to Japan in a nostalgic way. ORDER THESE 2 DISHES IF YOU COME:

1. Scallop kiwi - super refreshing and smooth. Great for summer
2. Miso black cod - Amazing flavor with the miso. Super tender fish and great assortment of vegetables with it.

Only knock is the sushi bar was a bit slow to make the sushi, but it was also packed… for a Monday night, which was also impressive in its own right“

“This place is incredible. I’m honestly shocked it doesn’t have more reviews or a Michelin star. My wife took me here for Father’s Day and it was just fantastic food. We eat at places all over the world, and we’re in Japan in March, and this was still a super special experience. Thank god it is 10 minutes down the road haha“

“They offer a wide variety of dishes, ranging from traditional Chinese cuisine to creative Western cuisine, and there are many surprising combinations. In addition, the restaurant pays attention to the selection of raw materials and the innovation of cooking techniques to ensure that each dish can bring you the most extreme taste experience“

“A hidden gem! Very fresh and tasty“

“A friend who frequents this establishment brought me for lunch today with another friend. Being a vegetarian I was impressed by the selections I would love to try. I ended up ordering the salmon, scallop, spinach cream pasta with capers. It was delicious! My friends ordered the pork katsu and hamburger combo and it looked awesome. The portions are so generous and it comes with soup and salad for the combo and mine came with a small salad and homemade bread. And the family run restaurant is very service oriented, friendly and a very clean and comfortable place. Highly recommended“

“yummmmm so good. highly recommend“

“One of the best restaurants in Long Beach for Peruvian, style, seafood, ceviche, and Sushi. Family owned and operated with a friendly vibe and amazing service.“

“I've been to several Marugame locations, and I like this one because it is very spacious and in a great location. Service is always consistent.

That said, I'm glad that I came back to a lovely surprise. For a very short period of time, the Nikutama Curry Udon, a huge customer favorite was taken off the menu. I'm happy to say that it has returned after much customer feedback. Thank you to the CEO for listening to the uproar and for reverting the menu to include this dish again. There were enough fans of that udon bowl who were ready to choose violence, so I hope it returns permanently.

If you haven't tried the Nikutama Curry Udon, it's a must-try at least once. You will not regret it.“

“Japanese style pasta is it's own category, not to be compared to Italian pasta. As is the Japanese way, they take something great and do their own excellent interpretation.

Food 10/10
We tried the
Wagyu Meatball in Brown (bolognese) Sauce 10/10
Wagyu Meatball in Red (marinary style) Sauce 10/10
Both were super tasty and full of umami

Also ordered the
Katsu Curry Bowl 10/10 - Tender Juicy panko chicken katsu served over perfect rice (I mean every grain is perfect) and the most delicious home made curry sauce.

I believe that it is take-out only (which is what we did) hubs did the pick up and said there isn't really space to eat in.

Street parking, or municipal garage across the street

A high quality fun take on Japanese pasta in Manhattan Beach!

Would highly recommend to others!
Will for sure be returning again!“

“I love the quality and quantity of food you get. Their Portuguese Sausage is amazing and their fried rice is always delicious“

“We don’t visit the South Bay often but when we do, it’s a must to Yelp and find someplace new to eat. In search of a Japanese restaurant that offered a menu loaded with options and was both fast and affordable, we lucked out when we discovered Hoka Hoka Express. This place is everything Japanese wrapped all into one - food, beverages (leaded & unleaded), snacks, porcelain teacups, tote bags, cute collectibles, you name it!

I can’t say I’ve ever been to a restaurant that offered a menu item like the Normandie - salmon, spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, spicy ponzu, spicy mayo and served over your choice of base. I went with the Half & Half which was a mix of sushi rice and spring mix. So good! The only reason I didn’t award a five star was due to the service. The woman who was working the counter was not overly friendly, so maybe she was new or was having a bad day. Regardless, I highly recommend a visit to Hoka Hoka Express for all things Japanese!“

“Really liked this place. It offers quick prep moderately priced sushi that tastes good for moderately priced sushi. The only weakness was the shrimp nigari which was skimpy on the shrimp. My meal included miso soup, salad and roll, wrap & funnel sushi. I had 2 bites of the roll and drank some soup before I took the picture. I was hungry!“

“So fun! love the HAPPY FISH! Going to see him tonight!“

“Some of the best food ever!!“

“The staff are friendly. We enjoyed the Kitchen boat. The garlic fried rice with chicken was very good and tasted similar to hibachi fried rice. Brought my young nephews and they enjoyed the beef and chicken teriyaki. Will definitely come again and will try other sushi and noodles dishes.“

“Authentic, high quality yakitori restaurant with a large Japanese clientele. We arrived at the restaurant at 6:45pm on a Sunday and the restaurant was full except for the 1 table we had reserved. We tried most of the chicken yakitori selections, and a few of the beef, pork and fish ones as well as the vegetables. They were all good and comparable to the high end yakitori restaurants in New York City. The service was friendly and efficient, considering there were only 2 people covering the entire restaurant. Overall a good yakitori restaurant.“

“Came here with my partner after seeing this place on Yelp and it did not disappoint. Ivan was awesome and welcoming. Service and food were phenomenal. I highly recommended the uni truffle and mentaiko with shrimp. The shrimp was the best shrimp I’ve ever had. Enjoy everyone!“

“Delicious, great value, and great service. Katsu Bar is an Asian fusion fast-casual restaurant with a bunch of well-priced options for lunch and dinner. We had the chicken katsu curry udon, the tteokbokki, and the rosemary pork katsu sando. Portion sizes were solid as well.“

“Cherrystones catered my brother's celebration of life memorial last Sunday at the Toyota Meeting Hall in Torrance. We were about 120 people. The food and presentation was excellent. We opted for the Kalua Pork and the Teriyaki chicken, both delicious. Loved the broccoli salad and Mac salad. Our guests raved about the food. Cherrystones catered my dad's memorial in 2016 and the food was excellent then. I would not hesitate to use them again if I needed a catering service. Thank you Cherrystones for doing my brother proud.“

“I saw this place while driving and saw a line waiting for their food, so I decided to give it a try.. Ì asked those in line, what was good there.. The answer was either the teriyaki bowl or plates, and the teriyaki burgers.. I got the teriyaki chicken bowl.. it looked and smelled great driving home.. After eating it, I didn’t understand the line of people waiting.. It was okay, but in my opinion, no big deal.. I’ll be honest, I did eat it ALL, and the serving size was BIG, so by no means was it bad.. To be fair though, I’m gonna have to try again, and see what I missed the first time..“

“Have eaten here about 10 times . This restaurant doesn’t disappoint. I’ve tried all there’s sushi roll which are always fresh and delicious.“

“Indoor👍🏼👍🏼we opted for it but was surprised when they ushered us to the back portion of the restaurant. It makes you feel like you really are in an authentic Japanese Izakaya restaurant.“

“Nice portion and delicious! The portion is very big, sharing is better but if you are dining alone, you might need to pack some back. The tempura is nicely fried and teriyaki beef is nicely cooked too. The food comes really slow and the Japanese waitress look really tired even though we understand it must be tired for her to serve such a busy restaurant.

I ordered tongue and gizzard chicken but it’s not that great because the gizzards are too hard and it’s doesn’t taste fresh or nicely cooked or rather overcooked.

Overall, u might need to wait 10-20 minutes but worth it with such a price and portions!“

“We love Yanagi. Fabulous and fresh sushi, great service and there always seems to be a table for us. My tiny humans, age 10 and 7, love their sushi. At Yanagi, they are always well taken care of.“

“I visited this restaurant with my date for dinner, and we were welcomed with a pleasant attitude and seated immediately. The atmosphere was nice and inviting. We were fortunate that there weren’t many guests that evening, which made the experience very peaceful and enjoyable.

We started with two Asahi beers while deciding what to order. We chose the A5 Wagyu Set, which included tongue, ribeye, short rib, chuck flap, and tenderloin. The set also came with a salad, kimchi, and bean sprouts, and we ordered a few bowls of rice on the side.

Our server was very friendly and even gave us helpful tips on which cuts of meat to start with. Although there was a button at the table to call for service, she would occasionally check in on us to see if we needed anything or were enjoying our meal, which we truly appreciated.

All of the meats were phenomenal, and the portion size was very satisfying for both of us. To end the evening, we ordered Wagyu sushi—one piece served raw and the other cooked—and both were absolutely delicious.“

“Why Kagura?
- Affordable and quality
- Grab it after visiting Tokyo Central

Food 4/5 = Solid choice not to mention always busy
- Katsu sando $12
- Loin Demi tonkatsu set $16.50

Not dry perfectly cook and no issues for a simple quick bite.
Tonkatsu Marushichi is still #1 though pricing but AMAZING!

Service 4/5
- Quick ordering and moves pretty fast

Parking 3.5/5
- Free parking but can get really busy during peak hours due to ppl shopping.
- Parking lot is the entire perimeter of complex

Try Go Go Curry next to Kagura is you're open to trying curry!“

“Excellent in every way. Perfect!!!“

“As near to an authentic upscale Japanese izakaya one can find in Long Beach. Greeted by an attentive and professional staff, seated promptly (make a reservation), and drinks came immediately. The flavors and styles of food transported me back to my time living near Tokyo. Truly a unique and delicious experience and I cannot wait to go back.“

“Friendly environment. Fast service, Fresh food, clean. love the Poke there.“

“ad an amazing Sunday lunch here and honestly — this was the best sushi I’ve ever had. Every single bite tasted premium. You can immediately tell the quality of the fish and ingredients are on another level — incredibly fresh, clean flavors, and perfectly prepared. Sitting at the sushi bar made it even better because you can actually see the freshness and care that goes into everything being made.

I ordered the green mussels, spicy garlic edamame, the WTF Roll, Wagyu sushi, and the Tuna Lover Roll — and every dish was outstanding. The Wagyu sushi completely blew me away… I’ve never had Wagyu like that before. It literally melted in my mouth. The presentation across the board was beautiful and showed real attention to detail.

Huge shoutout to Ugo at the sushi bar — incredibly kind, welcoming, and passionate about what he does. He even let me try a roll I was curious about, which made the experience feel personal and memorable.

If you’re looking for top-tier sushi with premium ingredients and an amazing atmosphere, this place is absolutely worth it. I’ll definitely be coming back“

“it was yakitori and izakaya place. it was sooo nice and good. it's pricey though, but that's what fine dining is right..!? so i think it is pretty good, to come with famz or colleagues 😃👍🥰“

“A joy to be at Rice, the staff so attentive, a celebration of small plates filling our table for three. A perfect sunny evening shared.“

“Food is amazing and the prices are actually very good for the amount of meat you get. Love that they are healthy conscious, they had a list of some menu items and their protein and sodium content as well as other measurements which made making a selection so much easier. Will return, staff is very friendly and the food was made fresh and quick“

“We ordered the signature bone-in chicken, the brussels sprouts, the fried spaghetti appetizer, and the matcha tiramisu. Everything was super yummy except for the fried spaghetti, I don't think it was worth it, it looked like a cup of raw spaghetti but the sticks were crispy. The bone-in chicken was very juicy and flavorful, and the brussels sprouts tasted great with the mayo. The matcha tiramisu was delicious as well. The waiters were friendly and attentive, the only complaint I have is that it was very noisy inside and a bit hard to hear each other talk. Other than that I have been looking for a chance to go back!“

“I have been enjoying meals at Okane Umi since 2016. They have always been excellent in every category of service. The restaurant has had its share of ups and downs but I am happy with how strongly Okane Umi has powered up its menu and added some wonderfully flavorful genuine Japanese dishes. Im pleased they have reinforced their sushi, sashimi, chirashi offerings - I love this restaurant.“

“On a Monday night with no leftovers at home, I decided to check out Komatsu in Torrance after a friend recommended it. I headed there straight after work, but I would highly recommend making a reservation for your visit. They only seem to operate for about three hours for lunch and another three hours for dinner. The restaurant is run entirely by a Japanese husband-and-wife duo—the husband cooking and the wife serving—so things move a bit slowly, but you just have to be patient because the food is incredible! 🕒🍱

The place smells amazing, and the cozy interior feels exactly like a local neighborhood restaurant in Japan. The menu is quite diverse, mostly focusing on comforting Japanese teishoku (set meals) served with rice. It honestly feels like the kind of meal a Japanese grandmother would prepare for you, where every bit of the experience relies entirely on amazing, authentic flavor. Just a heads-up on the service: they are definitely not unfriendly, but do not expect the typical, hyper-friendly American style of service. They let the food do the talking. 🏡🥢

We ordered the #6 Hamburg Steak with Demi-Glace Sauce Combo, the #15 Black Pork Cutlet Combo, the #19 Black Pork Steak with Stamina Sauce Combo, and the spicy tomato appetizer. Not a single dish disappointed us. Everything was absolutely delicious, and the Stamina Sauce on the pork steak was a massive highlight. I am already looking forward to returning soon to try their Oyakodon! 🥩🍅“

“muy sabrosa y delicious la comida lo recomiendo y sobre todo El servicio muy bien“