50 Best Japanese Restaurants near Ladera Ranch

“Delicious food, fun and inviting atmosphere, excellent service and the friendliest owners Key and his lovely wife Grace. Our local reliable go to.“

“OniGuru was such a pleasant surprise. I came in looking for something quick and fresh, but the food ended up being much better than a typical casual meal. Everything tasted clean, flavorful, and thoughtfully prepared.

The onigiri had a great balance of rice, filling, and seaweed. The rice was soft and fresh without being mushy, and the fillings were generous without overpowering the whole bite. I really liked how each flavor felt different instead of tasting the same. You can tell they put effort into both the ingredients and the presentation.

The service was also excellent. The staff was kind, patient, and very helpful, especially if you are not familiar with all the options. They made the ordering process easy and welcoming. The food came out nicely prepared and looked just as good as the photos.

The atmosphere was simple, clean, and comfortable. It’s the kind of place that works well for a quick stop, a relaxed lunch, or even grabbing a few items to share. I also appreciated that the portions were satisfying and the food didn’t feel heavy afterward.

Overall, OniGuru is a great spot for anyone who enjoys fresh, tasty, Japanese-inspired food. I would definitely come back again and try more items from the menu. Highly recommended.“

“Fast ... very friendly... great foods and great prices... A+++++....“

“Super Bowl Express has been one of my go-to spots in San Clemente for years and after today I had to leave a review.

Not only is the food consistently amazing, but the people there genuinely care about their customers. Joo, the owner, is one of the kindest business owners I’ve met and went completely above and beyond for us today. Martha was also incredibly welcoming and took amazing care of us.

The spam musubi is hands down the best in town, the beef bowls are unreal, and the Korean ribs are always a must order. Everything is fresh, flavorful, and consistent every single time.

Highly recommend supporting them if you haven’t been already.“

“This place is adorable. We've been here a few times now. Food is good and drinks are great. I mean who wouldn't like googly eyes on their sandwich bun and coconut drink?!“

“Jerk chicken ELL eggs Tantan udon Kaisendon Everything“

“Pretty good sushi place, fish tasted fresh. The rolls are on smaller side but tastes good. They have bento lunch specials. I would recommend they invest in a better menu book with photos. It will help their business and make it more enticing for customers to purchase more menu items. I was recommended to try the Romeo and Juliette Roll and it was light and delicious. Bonus, there’s a huge Tesla Charging Station on the other side of the strip mall.“

“Bro they have really good food and such a big potential to remodel that spot for a spot of culture with outside cozy spot, big parking lot and location is perfect. Just a little hand and marketing can make this place so great. Although it’s great as it is“

“We have been there many times and love it! One of the best sushi restaurants I know! I prefer sashimi and the presentation is beautiful and mouthwatering!“

“We have been going to Niko Niko for 10 years now. We love the restaurant and the community and the friends we made there I would definitely recommend this place, the food is amazing and the owners are very accommodating to the costumers needs. Love you Niko Niko family. My youngest daughter was so in love with their miso soup that they named an specific to go order with her name. “Christiana style”.“

“The food is amazing!!! Knee is the best waitress ever👏👏👏👏🥰🥰“

“Today was first time dining here with my wife and what a surprise very nice place with very delicious food , great service and some charm to it . We were in the area shopping in Trader Joe’s and went on google maps to see if there was any food near by . Kotobuki came up and we just headed straight there . We ordered bento boxes and everything I mean everything tasted fresh and amazing. We will be back !“

“Best poke! So much variety, tuna, salmon, spicy tuna, albacore, octopus, shrimp. tamago, and tofu. Delicious add-ons and lots of toppings!“

“Needed a healthy option for my daughter and this is her favorite.

Super fresh ingredients and tasty quality I expect of sushi and bowls. The teriyaki chicken bowl is very tasty and enjoyable.

We generally get to-go. The eat-in option are basic tables and chairs.“

“Ordered for the entire office!
Ive had the chicken bowl and the tempura plate. It has been consistently great in service and quality! I recommend it for anyone looking for delicious fast and healthy meal- their portions are very generous as well!“

“Why did I wait so long to come here? I've seen Pepper Lunch around and I never tried it. The food was so good! Reasonably priced for the quality. Also, I have to say that the staff in the front was very attentive and they keep the place spotless. Seeing a clean dining room is always impressive.“

“When we searched for the best sushi place in San Clemente, Malulu Sushi came up first on the list.

Good things come in small packages, right? Well, this is a small place, but it doesn't matter because the food & service are excellent.

To me, service is very important!!! At Malulu, the Japanese hospitality is on full display. Then, the food came, and we realized that we had found our favorite sushi place in SC.

Everything we ordered was tasty. And to our surprise, the female sushi chef made the best spicy yellow tail handroll. It reminded us of a sushi roll that we could only get at a sushi restaurant in Laguna Niguel (sadly, the chef moved to Japan).

We are already planning to go back this week & bring some friends along.“

“This is the ultimate sushi spot. We have been coming here for many years for date nights and also nights with the family to celebrate and enjoy a special occasion. Everyone here knows us and we are always welcomed with big smiles and “come in, come in!” The staff and chefs here make this place feel like home, like this is our spot. It’s a very small restaurant, hole in the wall, which I absolutely love. We’ve sat at tables inside, the bar, and the tables outside are great too! They have enhanced the outdoor area with umbrellas and heaters, candles and table lamps. We always ask about the specials - go with the specials! They have sake, beer, sodas, tea - we usually get a large Asahi and share it, or ask for a recommendation on sake. The oysters and monkfish liver, when they have it, are incredible! Any and all of the nigiri is our go-to, can’t go wrong with any of the rolls too (we usually do sushi when dining in and get rolls for take out). I love the uni and unagi, chu toro and buri toro (all the toro), hamachi and kanpachi… I honestly love it all. The kids always get udon and karaage chicken with a side of white rice. This is our special place to celebrate, so grateful to have this kind of spot to go to that’s close to home. We love it here.“

“Craving some udon while we were passing through the area so we decided to stop here for a quick early dinner on a weekend. It was quiet and service was quick.

Set up like a Chipotle and Subway. You order your main dish and you move along to customize it by adding tempuras (extra fee), vegetables (extra fee), green onions, or tempura flakes.

The udon soup base and noodles was good. The tempura batter on my shrimp tempuras was too thick and not light and flaky. I wanted to add vegetables to my udon and wish they were cooked first or cooked with my soup. Dumping uncooked vegetables into my soup just cooled everything down right away.

There was a lot of seating inside and on their large outdoor patio. The place was very clean.“

“all of it was delish! great service as well.“

“Had a really good experience at GU Ramen Taps & Tapas recently. The ramen was flavorful, the tapas were perfect for sharing, and the drinks selection was solid too. We went during happy hour and the atmosphere was super fun and relaxed, definitely a place we’ll be coming back to.“

“Best Sushi/Japanese spot I’ve been to in OC. You know the food is good when my Mother “75 year old Thai” and my two children “8 and 9” love all the food. The waiter/manager was extremely accommodating, and everything was fresh, timely and satisfying. Will come here again!!! Highly recommended. A+++++++++“

“There are restaurants that chase perfection and there are restaurants that simply make you happy you walked through the door. Miyabi falls squarely into the second category.

No, this isn’t the best beef I’ve ever had. If you’re hunting for the most exclusive wagyu or the rarest cuts imaginable, there are places that will happily charge you two or three times as much. That’s not what Miyabi is trying to be.

What it does, it does exceptionally well. My wife and I came for the lunch special and by the time we left we both looked at each other and said the same thing. We’re definitely coming back.

The value is outstanding. The meat is fresh, beautifully sliced and generous. The broths are clean without being bland. I went with the kombu while my wife chose the yuzu and both were excellent in completely different ways.

The real surprise was the ponzu. Most ponzu leans too sweet or too salty. This one somehow lands perfectly in the middle. Bright, balanced and exactly what I wanted with every bite of beef and vegetables.

The vegetable bar is another thoughtful touch. Extra greens, scallions, grated daikon, garlic and everything is there whenever you want it instead of waiting for someone to bring it over.

Service deserves its own paragraph. They somehow found that balance that’s harder than it looks. They’re never hovering over your table, but they’re never impossible to find either. Water stayed full, empty plates disappeared and whenever we needed something, someone was already walking over before we had to ask. That’s good hospitality.

The restaurant itself is comfortable. A little darker than some shabu places, but clean, relaxed and somewhere you actually want to linger. We happened to catch the World Cup on the TVs, which somehow made an already enjoyable lunch feel even more relaxed.

If I had one criticism, it’d be the rice. It was just a touch firmer than I prefer. Still perfectly edible, especially with their crispy chili topping, but not quite as soft as I’d hoped.

Don’t skip the hot drops. It brings serious heat without overwhelming the food. Spicy enough to wake everything up, but never so aggressive that it masks the flavor of the broth or the beef.

Miyabi isn’t trying to be the flashiest shabu restaurant in Southern California. It’s trying to serve a genuinely satisfying meal at a fair price with attentive service and thoughtful details. Mission accomplished. I’ll absolutely be back.“

“Fresh fish expertly prepared by friendly chef with equally cheerful service staff! We will be back“

“Love our little sushi spot. Best sushi! We get no rice rolls and we cannot find the selection elsewhere. They r fantastic with kids“

“Food: Sushi rolls were excellent and pretty competitive prices. My favorite was the caterpillar. Fish quality was excellent. Avocado and cucumber was fresh and sushi didn't taste like it had sugar in it which was excellent.!

Service: Sucks. They are impatient, rude, and quick to walk away and pretend they didn't hear you. For example I asked if a waiter could remove a plate. He ignored me and signaled at the busboy to pick up the plate instead. Even the busboy realized that was odd.“

“The service was very good, and the overall taste was impeccable; the food was delicious and well-balanced, but it lacked the authentic and refined Japanese flavor. It was also unusual that the rolls fell apart. They gave us two eggs with the oden... The bonito broth tasted exactly like the one from Lawson convenience store, haha. The sake-steamed clams really tasted strongly of sake! The sukiyaki was quite impressive, a huge bowl! The only downside was the lack of a raw egg accompaniment, which felt like something essential was missing“

“First time here and I absolutely love this place!! I’m very particular about sushi - I love my sushi to be very fresh tasting And this place here had nothing but High-quality Sushi.

I ordered the blue fin toro & Salmon Nigiri. Also got the yellowtail, Crunchyroll.

So delicious, easily became one of my favorite Spots!“

“My family and I usually love Jizake and have been to this place multiple times over the years. However after last nights dinner not sure if we will come back. The first issue is that the server forgot to bring us 3 of our appetizers. I also noticed that my hot sake wasn't very hot and that they have trimmed down the size of their rolls. During the meal it became obvious to all of us outside that they were using a wifi speaker and whoesever phone it was hooked up to must have been moving around since the music was going in and out. Lastly while asking for the check I instructed the server to take the appetizers off our bill since we didn't receive them. He said he would and when he came back I was given a hand written bill with the break down. To his credit those appetizers were shown but not charged. I totaled up each line item and everything seemed correct as the subtotal was $170 with tax total should have been $183.17. However after taking my credit card he came back saying they totaled our bill incorrectly and apologized. Our new printed bill after charging my credit card didn't show the pricing break down for all the items but it appears that they added back in the money for the appetizers as with tax it came to $196.11 plus tip. By this point we just wanted to leave. After getting home we started not feeling so well. We don't usually have any bad reactions to sushi so maybe it was some sort of cross contamination issue. Either way I would caution everyone while eating at this establishment.“

“The vegetarian rolls are so flavorful and the staff is super friendly! Definitely going back.“

“A favorite restaurant for our friends and family. Food is always consistently good and the atmosphere is fun!!!“

“It's my favorite lunch spot the service is consistently great, and the food is absolutely fantastic. Their lunch specials are a steal, and the regular menu items are delicious too. Plus, they can accommodate large groups! Highly recommended!“

“Sashimi is a sushi restaurant located at the corner of Lake Forest Drive and Dimension Drive. It appears to be run by a Korean family and is a popular spot among the locals. They have a sushi bar, but we opted to dine at a table. Steve greeted us and was not only friendly and helpful, but his service level enhanced our overall dining experience.

We tried a number of dishes during our visit. Among my favorites were the Veggie Tempura, Salmon Nigiri, Lake Forest Roll (I appreciate that they allow substitutions so I subbed spicy yellowtail in place of the spicy tuna) and Special Carpaccio S. The Spicy Salmon cut roll was nothing special and tasted more like a California Roll. The Yellowtail Cheek was good, but it was more meaty and less tender than I've enjoyed at other Japanese restaurants. My wife ordered the Pink Lady, but I prefer my sushi with rice. All in all, we enjoyed our Sashimi experience and I'd recommend checking it out if you're in Lake Forest and in the mood for raw fish at a reasonable price.“

“Robata Wasa is a gem — cozy vibes, perfectly grilled skewers, and staff who clearly love what they do. Every dish felt thoughtfully made and beautifully presented. Highly recommend for anyone craving great Japanese grilling in a warm setting. I’ll definitely be back!“

“I love � fukada“

“I’ve visited several times, and each time I’ve tried different dishes. Every staff member is very friendly, and the food never takes too long to be served. The food is authentic and delicious, and you can really feel the chefs’ dedication in every dish. It’s hard to find another Japanese restaurant with such great quality and value!“

“Best Pokee in the Irvine location. I highly recommend this place.“

“Nice atmosphere and the food was very tasty 😋“

“I’d rate Soba Izakaya Minami one of south OC’s best izakaya. Their small portion (Japanese tapas) are delicious and served very fast. Don’t forget to order the Orion beer draft if you’re a beer lover!“

“DELICIOUSNESS! healthy, tasty and great prices“

“It's one of me and my fiancé Denise's favorite place. We go there all the time and it's always awesome. I highly recommend it to anyone that lives in the area. We absolutely love it and they take care of you like family.“

“Oh My Sushi is a hidden gem tucked away in a strip mall in Laguna Niguel. They serve incredibly fresh fish, beautifully presented in both classic and creative sushi rolls. The Toro Tasting is amazing. The décor is modern and inviting, the drinks are inventive, and the dessert selection is a sweet surprise. Their sake list is impressive — don’t miss the sake flight, it’s a must-try!”“

“good food on the go. plenty of seafood options.“

“The service here is so nice and fast. You can’t beat the lunch special deals! ($10-13 for entree with soup and salad) I love coming here for lunch, I want to try all their deals haha. If I didn’t make it for the lunch specials I would definitely try one of their specialty rolls!“

“We sat at the sushi bar and Joe-san was our sushi chef. He was fast, efficient and everything was tasty. We chose the Oh My God roll towards the end and honestly folks? It is OMG spectacular! And so was the Queen Imperial with yellowtail and mango. Great service!!!“

“We ate dinner here last night. Probably the best sushi we’ve ever had. The staff was great as well.“

“came here for the first time last week and honestly wish i’d found it sooner. the guy behind the counter was super friendly and helped me pick out something good since i couldn’t decide. definitely gonna be coming back, its my new favorite spot in the area.“

“The staff member that helped me (purple hair and a nose piercing) made my first visit to Poke Tiki so pleasant that I want to go back. Their communication was clear and they helped me make such a delicious poke bowl! We need more customer service and kindness like this person—they made me feel welcomed. The bowl was tasty with fresh fish and great toppings. 10/10 would recommend if you like a relaxed food spot with nice people around.“

“Incredible experience! My family & I went on our vacation and we could not have had a better time. Wonderful food & service - our waitress gave us amazing suggestions & helped us try all of the right things! The fish was very fresh. This place is a must visit!“