Buddha’s Favorite is such a great sushi spot! I met up with a friend for dinner and we really enjoyed everything we tried. The atmosphere was relaxed, the service was friendly, and the food was fresh and flavorful. Highly recommend the crispy tuna — it was a standout!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
william warden
excellent food but... had to wait 30 minutes for seating on a Sunday night,reservations made well in advance. was told inside seating only was available. it's really loud inside. had to wait 50 minutes for the main entrees. great place for casual dining if you have a lot of time. wait for outdoor seating
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 3
Lisa Hernandez
Great setting overlooking the water! The sushi rolls and drinks were great! The service was great as well! We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Katie Kim
I’ve never felt the need to write a review until now, but this restaurant left me completely infuriated. I made a reservation for my birthday dinner at 7:30, only to be told to wait when I arrived. Fine—I waited. After 40 minutes, they finally came over to inform me that the only seating available was at the sushi bar and that if we wanted a table, it would be another 20 minutes. That is absolutely unacceptable for a confirmed reservation.
To make matters worse, during this time I watched at least three parties of three and two parties of two get seated ahead of us, even though their reservations were at 8:00. The only reason? They seemed to be acquaintances with the servers. That kind of blatant favoritism is unprofessional and shows zero respect for paying customers.
We ended up leaving without even eating. This was our very first impression of the restaurant, and it will definitely be our last. If management cares about customer experience, they might consider training their staff on professionalism—or at the very least, honoring reservations instead of playing favorites.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Nathan McAfee
Had a reservation, still had to wait an hour with little acknowledge. This is the second time this has happened there. Waitress was nice but stretched way too thin. Food was good but there are just too many options in the area to put up with the frustration.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 2
Alex Gómez
So so so disappointed. Have been to Buddha’s 5+ times and love it and had the worst service ever tonight. I made a reservation a week in advance for 7:30 and we arrived at 7:25 and were not seated until after 8 with little to no apology from the hostesses (except for the awesome lady who may be the manager/main host and helped us decide what to order while we were still outside so thanks to her). We ended up sitting at a 4 top w 5 people which is fine, except for the fact that we watched multiple 4 tops be seated before us that came after us. When we sat down we literally watched a group we had arrived at the same time as LEAVE because they were done eating. We ordered immediately after sitting down because we had so much time to decide earlier. Food came out quickly but in a seriously atrocious order: rolls and main dishes before ANY of the apps (most concerning was a full poke bowl served three courses before miso soups), which imo is really weird and I have never seen before at a sushi restaurant. The servers didn’t clear any of our dishes as we ate, never filled our waters, and our soy sauce was empty (see photo attached). I was eating with my friend who is a hostess at a different restaurant and she said at this point they would’ve taken stuff off the bill. As people who have worked in the service industry, I ALWAYS tip 20% and today couldn’t justify tipping that much on a $200+ meal with honestly subpar service and hosting. Wanted to show my friends from out of town my favorite restaurant in Newport and am thoroughly disappointed. Food was great though (see photo attached LOL we did clean the plates)
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Isabella
This sushi restaurant perched on the pier of Newport Beach’s Lido Peninsula is a must-visit. The waterfront marina views are stunning, especially at sunset, and outdoor seating comes with heaters. The atmosphere is dimly lit and intimate. Reservations are recommended. The sushi was excellent and surprisingly affordable. Service was a bit slow, but maybe understandable with a large group.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Kip Williams
Amazing atmosphere and the people working were so nice. The sushi was great, and the chicken dish plus vegetable tasted amazing. 10/10
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Aeden Oveson
Ordered sushi first day in California. Got food poisoning from it and was sick my whole trip. Would not recommend.
This is a "must" when we are in Newport Beach! Some of the best sushi around! The Buddha roll is unique and delicious. The service is always on point. We love the atmosphere, simple and casual. We like looking at the harbor and the boats.
Parking: It was a busy summer evening and we had no problem with valet parking. Dropping off and retrieving the car was easy and efficient.
Made reservations for 7:15 for dock and dine got there and there was no place for the boat they double booked. They squeezed us in at the end. Left us there for 40 minutes with out taking our order. Another 30 to get the food. Once it got there portions were tiny but tasted ok. Over all service was terrible except for the 1 gentleman with a mustache. Won’t return here will try something else next time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
Alice zzz
good food good ambience
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jim Dietrich
Great food and service, had a wonderful dinner there. A hidden gem...
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hand Roll, Tuna, Garlic Edamame, Rolls
Great food and service, also a fun vibe.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Buddha’s Favorite is such a great sushi spot! I met up with a friend for dinner and we really enjoyed everything we tried. The atmosphere was relaxed, the service was friendly, and the food was fresh and flavorful. Highly recommend the crispy tuna — it was a standout!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
excellent food but...
had to wait 30 minutes for seating on a Sunday night,reservations made well in advance. was told inside seating only was available. it's really loud inside. had to wait 50 minutes for the main entrees.
great place for casual dining if you have a lot of time. wait for outdoor seating
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 3
Great setting overlooking the water! The sushi rolls and drinks were great! The service was great as well! We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I’ve never felt the need to write a review until now, but this restaurant left me completely infuriated. I made a reservation for my birthday dinner at 7:30, only to be told to wait when I arrived. Fine—I waited. After 40 minutes, they finally came over to inform me that the only seating available was at the sushi bar and that if we wanted a table, it would be another 20 minutes. That is absolutely unacceptable for a confirmed reservation.
To make matters worse, during this time I watched at least three parties of three and two parties of two get seated ahead of us, even though their reservations were at 8:00. The only reason? They seemed to be acquaintances with the servers. That kind of blatant favoritism is unprofessional and shows zero respect for paying customers.
We ended up leaving without even eating. This was our very first impression of the restaurant, and it will definitely be our last. If management cares about customer experience, they might consider training their staff on professionalism—or at the very least, honoring reservations instead of playing favorites.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Had a reservation, still had to wait an hour with little acknowledge. This is the second time this has happened there. Waitress was nice but stretched way too thin. Food was good but there are just too many options in the area to put up with the frustration.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 2
So so so disappointed. Have been to Buddha’s 5+ times and love it and had the worst service ever tonight. I made a reservation a week in advance for 7:30 and we arrived at 7:25 and were not seated until after 8 with little to no apology from the hostesses (except for the awesome lady who may be the manager/main host and helped us decide what to order while we were still outside so thanks to her). We ended up sitting at a 4 top w 5 people which is fine, except for the fact that we watched multiple 4 tops be seated before us that came after us. When we sat down we literally watched a group we had arrived at the same time as LEAVE because they were done eating. We ordered immediately after sitting down because we had so much time to decide earlier. Food came out quickly but in a seriously atrocious order: rolls and main dishes before ANY of the apps (most concerning was a full poke bowl served three courses before miso soups), which imo is really weird and I have never seen before at a sushi restaurant. The servers didn’t clear any of our dishes as we ate, never filled our waters, and our soy sauce was empty (see photo attached). I was eating with my friend who is a hostess at a different restaurant and she said at this point they would’ve taken stuff off the bill. As people who have worked in the service industry, I ALWAYS tip 20% and today couldn’t justify tipping that much on a $200+ meal with honestly subpar service and hosting. Wanted to show my friends from out of town my favorite restaurant in Newport and am thoroughly disappointed. Food was great though (see photo attached LOL we did clean the plates)
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
This sushi restaurant perched on the pier of Newport Beach’s Lido Peninsula is a must-visit. The waterfront marina views are stunning, especially at sunset, and outdoor seating comes with heaters. The atmosphere is dimly lit and intimate. Reservations are recommended. The sushi was excellent and surprisingly affordable. Service was a bit slow, but maybe understandable with a large group.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Amazing atmosphere and the people working were so nice. The sushi was great, and the chicken dish plus vegetable tasted amazing. 10/10
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ordered sushi first day in California. Got food poisoning from it and was sick my whole trip. Would not recommend.
Food: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
This is a "must" when we are in Newport Beach! Some of the best sushi around! The Buddha roll is unique and delicious.
The service is always on point.
We love the atmosphere, simple and casual. We like looking at the harbor and the boats.
Parking: It was a busy summer evening and we had no problem with valet parking. Dropping off and retrieving the car was easy and efficient.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Stinky, Salmon Candy, Buddha's Favorite, Rolls
Made reservations for 7:15 for dock and dine got there and there was no place for the boat they double booked. They squeezed us in at the end. Left us there for 40 minutes with out taking our order. Another 30 to get the food. Once it got there portions were tiny but tasted ok. Over all service was terrible except for the 1 gentleman with a mustache. Won’t return here will try something else next time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
good food good ambience
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food and service, had a wonderful dinner there. A hidden gem...
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hand Roll, Tuna, Garlic Edamame, Rolls
boat to sushi perfect
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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