Banbu Sushi Bar & Grill

Server messed up taking our order and he asked if we wanted our fried rice and noodles with our main entree or before and we told him it would be fine to serve it with our sushi rolls. Upon serving our rolls he asked if there was anything else we needed. I said yes, our 2 fried rice and our noodles. We were almost done with our rolls 10 minutes later and the sides of fried rice and noodles showed up. And we had ordered noodles and served us ramen instead. My daughter wanted her roll without jalapeño and it showed up with jalapeño and she picked them out of her roll. It was really a bad experience and no discounts were offered for the mistakes.

Went here recently to celebrate a birthday.

We were seated quickly because it wasn't busy. The patio area outside is very pretty. Despite the lack of diners this night, all tables were in very close proximity to each other. This made the area feel claustrophobic and gave little privacy for conversations. Even though it was colder and in the evening, we needed to request that the outdoor heaters be setup.

We ordered four green teas, but only received three. Unlike traditional sushi restaurants, you will not receive a pot of hot tea to share. Only cups of hot water that you must steep yourself with a bag. Honey was provided as a sweetener. We waited a long time between refills of hot water, owing to the lack of a shared pot, and this made the dining experience a bit awkward.

We ordered one appetizer, which was the "toro" tartare. We were assured by our waitress that the portion would be big enough for our table of four. However, after a while of waiting, we were informed that this particular appetizer only has three small servings. We had already been waiting a while, and decided that one of our table would need to just split one of these servings.

When the "Toro" tartare arrived, I realized that it was actually ground up Maki tuna, like what you would find in a low grade tuna roll. This was not toro, as the name sake for this appetizer implies. It felt deceptive, especially considering the price point for this appetizer (three small morsels) was nearly $23.

We continued onto our mains. One of our party ordered a tempura plate, which I'll touch on more later. Another a dragon roll, and again another a crunchy roll. The last item we ordered was a sushi and sashimi combo. The combo itself was beautifully plated, with some quality cuts of fish. I have no complaints about the quality or portions. However, if you're paying nearly $60 for this combo, it seems rather insulting not to be given the choice between fresh and fake wasabi. In this case, the $60 combo is served with fake wasabi. I'm at a bit of a loss why the owners would try to serve food at this price point (in La Mesa of all places), while failing to execute on some really standard things.

Back to the tempura. Our sushi mains came out, but the fourth member in our party needed to wait an additional 20 minutes for their tempura course. We were informed that this was normal as they were all prepared in different kitchens. No, I'm sorry. Nothing about that is normal. It's literally standard business practice to bring mains out at the same time. Yet again, if you're going to charge $25 minimum per main, they better come out together. I can't over emphasize how disappointing this was.

Overall, the quality of the ingredients was good, except for the fake toro appetizer. However, the execution is just not there to warrant the astronomical prices. You're charging like this is a New York Michelin starred Sushi spot and still serving standard California sushi fare. Nothing is innovated on here. This wasn't a profound experience. Even the execution of standard things like fresh wasabi, tea, and mains coming out together is botched.

Justify your pricing or just stop being so pretentious. Any number of places within ten minutes drive of here will serve you similar quality, similar dishes, with better service at almost half the price point.

All in all, not worth it.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 3

Service: 3

We have come here often and unfortunately the food has not been consistent. This last visit for my birthday was disappointing. We order 6 different items and only two things were great (Lemon Roll & Seaweed Salad). We also had to wait 30+ minutes to get our sushi’s after ordering which was not cool considering it wasn’t that busy. We order a small fried rice and a roll as appetizers which our waitress got to us quickly. They said there was a big party in the back which was the reason for the long wait. Everything looks but rice and flavors were not good this trip. I won’t be visiting for awhile as it’s too pricey for Inconsistent food quality.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 3

Recommended dishes: Sushi

I had a terrible experience "the worst night ever". I made a reservation for my friend for her birthday and so excited since they ask me what is the occasion and they might do a little surprise. We arrive at the place and sitted. We ordered some drink for started and the disappointment started my friend drink was wrong even if the server repeated the order two times. The next thing would be our order which we usually get some sushi and nigiri's nothing that would take long to be served. But we waited an hour for our food to arrive and the server Jade trying to tell us that is the usually wait for the order as if we don't know and trying to keep us waiting by keep on telling us 5mins more it felt like a never ending 5mins. We were sitted outside and we saw two tables were served and finished dine before our food even arrived even if we were got there before those guest. The two of us were totally let out and our orders was forgotten. Servers passing by not even asking anything even though they saw us sitting without any food for a long time. Long story short the food was mediocre considering the price we paid , service was horrible, not so pleasant attitude with the server. And the surprise they keep on mentioning was not even served. I felt they totally are not organized and prepared. It was just an ordinary night. Considering this was a WEDNESDAY NIGHT. Not busy. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone especially if you are celebrating any occasion!!! They are ripped off!! Bad service!

This is a great sushi spot! A little bit pricey but tasty food. Go here if you are looking for something more high end. I liked how they brought all of our rolls on one plate.

We went here before going to a concert at SDSU. It was really easy to hop on the trolley across the street and ride a few stops t the venue.

Parking: Parking directly in front of the restaurant is a little hit and miss but there is a structure right next door that MIGHT allow restaurant parking, I got lucky so I didn't need to look.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Sushi, Roll

Awesome sushi place! Pretty outdoor area with a firepit, which is enjoyable from inside through the large windows. Service is great. Plenty of seating at the sushi bar. I had eel nigiri, octopus nigiri, salmon nigiri, and a dragon roll. All were great! Good selection of sake, cocktails, and Japanese whiskey. I think my only complaint is that the appetizers all looked a bit pricey, but I enjoyed the pork gyoza. Highly recommend, I'll definitely be coming back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The food Banbu is excellent and the staff is always friendly and helpful. My goto order is the Baja Splah roll, a side of steamed rice, and the sautéed shrimp appetizer.

Parking: There is a parking structure 50 feet away from the restaurant with spaces dedicated to restaurant diners, so don't be dismayed by the parking immediately by the restaurant, which can fill up quickly.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Lemon Cilantro Roll, Sushi

This is one of the few surviving sushi restaurants in LaMesa. To be fair it is not a spot to find good quality sushi prepared in a traditional Japanese fashion. This place makes what I would call VERY expensive shopping mall sushi. It looks like sushi drowned in multiple sauces, dips and whatever they found colorful and creative. We ordered two rolls and both were completely drenched in a sugary sauce that made them nearly inedible. Actually I did not eat mine so mostly inedible would be a better description. The “Bluefin Tuna looked and tasted like Ahi, not the more expensive Bluefin. I ordered Yakisoba or at least that’s what it was called. Being a lover of Yakisoba from Japan, I know it’s tough to get it right but this tasted like Raman noodles with three packets instead of one. I’m sure they wouldn’t substitute without telling us would they. did throw in some fresh veggies and that made it edible. I like Raman I just don’t like paying $28 for it. The chicken in the soba was as dry as a tea biscuit. We removed them and set them aside to show the server. Our server was uninformed, cordial, clueless and very unhelpful. That’s not much different than most servers these days but at least she was cordial. I do not recommend this eatery if you are looking for good food and good service.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 2

Service: 1

We had such a great time at Banbu. The service was amazing and the food was delicious. We were sat in an area that was more private and that was so nice! Loved it!! Thank you to the staff.

This is just the place to go for sushi! Everything is so yummy and the service is amazing. The server Nia is the best! She went above and beyond. Food is also served so fast. I am never disappointed when I go there. Thank you Nia for your amazing service. I will be coming back forever

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great selection and amazing flavors.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Sushi, The Ultimate Hamachi Roll

We sat at the sushi bar. Our server was attentive but perhaps too attentive as we were constantly interrupted while talking. When we were ready we would have flagged her down. The bar was mostly empty. The sushi chef handed our orders to us rather than setting them on the ledge in front of us. This too was an interruption as we had to stop talking, put our drinks down to take the plates from him. Not traditional Japanese sushi service. The food could have been fresher. Some things seemed as though they had been sitting out too long. Rolls and nigiri were ok but a bit bland. Not bad overall but we probably won't go back.

Great atmosphere. The food was good even though it was a little too pricey for what they had to offer. Service was cordial an polite.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 4

Very good service and delicious.
A little pricey

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Salad, Edamame Spicy Garlic Style

Great experience! Service was spot on. Food was tasty and visually appealing! A hidden gem, definitely.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Edamame Spicy Garlic Style