There are half a dozen Japanese restaurants on Castro Street, this is the only one I frequently went to for dinner with family or for lunch with friends. Unfortunately, it does not have outdoor seating, otherwise, it would be much more popular during lunch hours under the dreamy California sunshine ☀️ cheers!
K D
The peaceful cozy ambiance that the elderly Japanese server/owner creates is wonderful and makes you feel like your friend's Mom is serving you a home cooked meal. Now is the Mom a good cook?We prefer the raw fish here over the cooked food. Sashimi was pretty fresh even during the pandemic.The pork belly pot was too fatty for us, and Udon at nearby Udon mugizo is better. But the tempura was a tad better than Udon mugizo. Meat quality tends to be not so fresh. The agedashi tofu was ok, but grated Daikon garnish was lacking. The deep fried baby octopus is better at Daigo.This is one of the pricier options in MV downtown, and we personally don't think the quality of the food reflects that. But if you want to pay a little extra for that authentic Japanese 'diner/casual eatery' ambiance, look no further.
Huong D.
My first time at this place and I was quite lost at the long menu, so I just picked out the Nigiri set to try out the quality of sushi here. The fish didn't look very appealing, but the taste was spot-on. The sushi was prepared professionally with the right amount of rice and fish. The rice texture was perfect and the fish cut was diligent. The fish was actually fresh and delicious (for 36 dollars I wouldn't expect super quality and rare type), and I even liked the egg sushi very much. I would say that this place is quite authentic. The Japanese chef talked to the Japanese customers from his station, so the atmosphere seemed traditional to me. 1 star off because I felt a bit neglected at the beginning. After giving me the menu the waitress didn't offer me any water but did so to a table next to me and they came after me. Perhaps they asked for water but it's still weird. Later on, she tried to make it up by giving me more tea. I guess it's very busy and a lot of work for 2 waitresses so they may not always be attentive. I think the service can be better and I wanna come back to try something else. Ah the tea was very nice and it's free.
Jackie O.
They used to have a sushi lunch menu but not any more. Despite of the price, we ordered 9 piece Nigiri in the end expecting to eat a wonderful sushi. Toppings were nice and fresh, however, rice was dry, hard, and some grains were undercooked. The shape was uneven too. It was not Nigiri, just a tiny ball of rice. Even kids can make something like that. Miso soup was watery and lukewarm. Absolutely terrible. Service was lacking of details and not friendly at all. It was very expensive and definitely wasn't worth paying for this bad quality. It was so disappointing and we will never come back.
Katrina C.
My girl friends and I met up for dinner at Kappo Nami Nami. We planned to meet around 7pm on a Saturday night. One of our friends got there before us, so she put her name down on the waitlist. By the time the remaining of us arrived (15 minutes later) we had our table. The good thing was that we didn't have to wait incredibly long to be seated, however we were situated all the way in the back corner of the restaurant. We were neglected often. Even the guests in the neighboring table sympathized with us and tried to grab the attention of the wait staff for us. In general, I felt that our waitress just wasn't present. We specifically asked for warm sake, for example, but she came out with clear shot glasses and cold sake. She disappeared for a while, so we had to flag the first waitress we could garner attention. Food was fine and pretty standard. I ordered agedashi tofu and a shrimp/veggie tempura platter.
Michelle Wang
Had the salmon ikura Don and it was good. However it did have a scale left on it. I didn't bother mentioning it since it doesn't bother me. I also had the matcha Mont blanc. That was tasty as well
Lesley Z
Sushi is good. The chicken karage and the pork belly soup are not impressive at all.
Patrick R.
The portions are really small for the price but everything was pretty good and the service is really fast. If you're in a hurry for some quick sushi I'd make this place a last resort. I'm not sure why the average 4 star when there are places in the same price range with bigger roll portions that taste the same.
Jessica H.
My new favorite spot to go to for lunch on Castro street! Everything we ordered tasted great. There are a lot of options on the menu, will definitely be back regularly.
Daniel X.
Sushi is fresh and well prepared! Monkfish liver was probably my favorite here. Perfect lunch and cute ambiance inside.
The service is nice and original japanese chefs! It is simple delicate and a definitely a go to place for sushi! Kappo meaning they both serve raw and cooked dishes!
aq xin
delicious authentic food. the ochazuke and grilled mackerel were great comfort foods. good ambience and very clean and cool space. decent prices and hope to return to try other things.
Seven Q
Service is good and food is above average. I like the black cod saikyo yaki most. May come back for the bento.
Greg J.
We came here last month and all three of us agreed that the sushi was really just not very good. I can't remember the previous last time I ate sushi and didn't like it, but none of the rolls were good.
Linda Taylor
I visited with a friend. I had the hot pot with shrimp, scallop, chicken, tofu, and cabbage. The large pot came piping hot and the food was wonderful. A light fish broth and everything tasted fresh. My friend had a rice bowl with steak, along with miso soup and salad. The salad was tiny bit good and the miso soup was excellent. The beef was done perfectly and really good. Prices were reasonable. Meals ranged from a low of $12 on up to $20+. My hot pot was $15 and the steak rice bowl was $20. Sushi seemed to be a popular choice while I was here but I did not try it Would definitely recommend!
There are half a dozen Japanese restaurants on Castro Street, this is the only one I frequently went to for dinner with family or for lunch with friends. Unfortunately, it does not have outdoor seating, otherwise, it would be much more popular during lunch hours under the dreamy California sunshine ☀️ cheers!
The peaceful cozy ambiance that the elderly Japanese server/owner creates is wonderful and makes you feel like your friend's Mom is serving you a home cooked meal. Now is the Mom a good cook?We prefer the raw fish here over the cooked food. Sashimi was pretty fresh even during the pandemic.The pork belly pot was too fatty for us, and Udon at nearby Udon mugizo is better. But the tempura was a tad better than Udon mugizo. Meat quality tends to be not so fresh. The agedashi tofu was ok, but grated Daikon garnish was lacking. The deep fried baby octopus is better at Daigo.This is one of the pricier options in MV downtown, and we personally don't think the quality of the food reflects that. But if you want to pay a little extra for that authentic Japanese 'diner/casual eatery' ambiance, look no further.
My first time at this place and I was quite lost at the long menu, so I just picked out the Nigiri set to try out the quality of sushi here. The fish didn't look very appealing, but the taste was spot-on. The sushi was prepared professionally with the right amount of rice and fish. The rice texture was perfect and the fish cut was diligent. The fish was actually fresh and delicious (for 36 dollars I wouldn't expect super quality and rare type), and I even liked the egg sushi very much. I would say that this place is quite authentic. The Japanese chef talked to the Japanese customers from his station, so the atmosphere seemed traditional to me. 1 star off because I felt a bit neglected at the beginning. After giving me the menu the waitress didn't offer me any water but did so to a table next to me and they came after me. Perhaps they asked for water but it's still weird. Later on, she tried to make it up by giving me more tea. I guess it's very busy and a lot of work for 2 waitresses so they may not always be attentive. I think the service can be better and I wanna come back to try something else. Ah the tea was very nice and it's free.
They used to have a sushi lunch menu but not any more. Despite of the price, we ordered 9 piece Nigiri in the end expecting to eat a wonderful sushi. Toppings were nice and fresh, however, rice was dry, hard, and some grains were undercooked. The shape was uneven too. It was not Nigiri, just a tiny ball of rice. Even kids can make something like that. Miso soup was watery and lukewarm. Absolutely terrible. Service was lacking of details and not friendly at all. It was very expensive and definitely wasn't worth paying for this bad quality. It was so disappointing and we will never come back.
My girl friends and I met up for dinner at Kappo Nami Nami. We planned to meet around 7pm on a Saturday night. One of our friends got there before us, so she put her name down on the waitlist. By the time the remaining of us arrived (15 minutes later) we had our table. The good thing was that we didn't have to wait incredibly long to be seated, however we were situated all the way in the back corner of the restaurant. We were neglected often. Even the guests in the neighboring table sympathized with us and tried to grab the attention of the wait staff for us. In general, I felt that our waitress just wasn't present. We specifically asked for warm sake, for example, but she came out with clear shot glasses and cold sake. She disappeared for a while, so we had to flag the first waitress we could garner attention. Food was fine and pretty standard. I ordered agedashi tofu and a shrimp/veggie tempura platter.
Had the salmon ikura Don and it was good. However it did have a scale left on it. I didn't bother mentioning it since it doesn't bother me. I also had the matcha Mont blanc. That was tasty as well
Sushi is good. The chicken karage and the pork belly soup are not impressive at all.
The portions are really small for the price but everything was pretty good and the service is really fast. If you're in a hurry for some quick sushi I'd make this place a last resort. I'm not sure why the average 4 star when there are places in the same price range with bigger roll portions that taste the same.
My new favorite spot to go to for lunch on Castro street! Everything we ordered tasted great. There are a lot of options on the menu, will definitely be back regularly.
Sushi is fresh and well prepared! Monkfish liver was probably my favorite here. Perfect lunch and cute ambiance inside.
Restaurantji Recommends
The service is nice and original japanese chefs! It is simple delicate and a definitely a go to place for sushi! Kappo meaning they both serve raw and cooked dishes!
delicious authentic food. the ochazuke and grilled mackerel were great comfort foods. good ambience and very clean and cool space. decent prices and hope to return to try other things.
Service is good and food is above average. I like the black cod saikyo yaki most. May come back for the bento.
We came here last month and all three of us agreed that the sushi was really just not very good. I can't remember the previous last time I ate sushi and didn't like it, but none of the rolls were good.
I visited with a friend. I had the hot pot with shrimp, scallop, chicken, tofu, and cabbage. The large pot came piping hot and the food was wonderful. A light fish broth and everything tasted fresh. My friend had a rice bowl with steak, along with miso soup and salad. The salad was tiny bit good and the miso soup was excellent. The beef was done perfectly and really good. Prices were reasonable. Meals ranged from a low of $12 on up to $20+. My hot pot was $15 and the steak rice bowl was $20. Sushi seemed to be a popular choice while I was here but I did not try it Would definitely recommend!