Bozu Japanese Restaurant

Amazing sashimi and yakitori. Service was quick and friendly. Everything came out to be very reasonable!

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 4

Excellent food, service and selection. A bit pricey but worth it.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The best and most authentic Japanese sushi restaurant !

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Hands down best Japanese restaurant in Oahu!
Highly recommended !

Decided to give this restaurant a try with friends from out of town. I was fortunate to get a table for 4 at 8pm just by calling earlier the same day, and the establishment was full when we arrived. We didn't mind waiting a couple of minutes while they set our table since popularity is a good sign. We did not hesitate to order whichever looked good to us from the extensive menu. Every dish tasted great, and a couple of them ordered based on recommendation by our server, also turned out to be delicious.
For the flavors and food quality I felt Bozu is priced competitively. The place was more on the casual side which suited us. My new friends were impressed and we will certainly be back for more, even though I am usually not a fan of McCully Shopping Center because parking stalls are insufficient and very tightly spaced.

The nigiri 10 piece was fantastic. Very filling and flavorful. The service was great. Loved the liveliness of the restaurant.

Tucked away in a plaza, this restaurant seems to thrive on reservations and a local crowd. Many diners appeared to be regulars.

The food was solid, though not particularly memorable. Rather than a traditional izakaya, it feels more like a cozy mom-and-pop spot with izakaya-inspired dishes. The skewer selection felt pretty limited, but the menu offers a decent variety overall.

Portions are on the smaller side for the price, so don’t expect to leave stuffed. It is a relaxed, casual spot, best enjoyed with a group to try more of the menu.

The food here is exceptional. The spicy tuna cut roll is absolutely amazing. Just the right spicy for me. The miso sea bass is absolutely heavenly. The food is as fresh as you can get it. We were visiting for a week and came back here 3 times. Highly recommend this place. And by the way I am not a sushi lover. I eat it very occasionally. Can’t wait to come back to Oahu to eat here again.

Great izakaya and sushi. Very friendly people. Prices to be expected near Waikiki. No happy hour anymore. No bathroom. Everything is made to order

5 stars for food, service and environment! Don't let this bustling casual restaurant fool you - they serve delicious food and good quality sushi! We tried a variety of dishes and enjoyed most of them! One thing that I loved about this place was how much garnish they used whether it be nori, green onions, shiso, radish or whatever. It just adds more depth to any dish.

My favorite was actually their agedashi tofu. I can't remember the last one I had that tasted right before I tried Bozu's. The batter was good, the sauce was amazing, and it came with a lot of green onions! I also enjoyed their baked rolls. Their fish was fresh and buttery too so you can't go wrong with the assorted selection.

I had high hopes for their beef tongue and cold chawanmushi, but turns out those were my least favorite. I prefer the egg hot, but I get it because they put uni and ikura on top so the egg had to be served cold. So I think I'll just prefer having the seafood on sushi and not steamed egg. The chilled steamed egg just didn't have the smooth silky texture like hot steamed egg.

The beef tongue was too chewy for me. I'm not sure if it's the cut or the thickness of the tongue. Beef tongue dish tends to be a hit or miss item from my experience. Other places do it better.

If you could get a counter seat, do it! The sushi chef was nice and friendly, and it's always fun to see how the food is made.

There's extra parking at the back for free if the front looks a little chaotic.

Delicious authentic Japanese place. We sat at the bar. First time trying monkfish liver (great), jellyfish (not great). Sashimi was amazing. Kyoto beer.

My mama doesn't really do sashimi or raw fish due to getting old and the weaker immune system. So I told her it's a must try and when she had one bite she went for seconds and third.
.
This spot is little more of small bites to accompany wine sake and beer. But even just enjoying it without drinks is truly an experience.
.
We got the wagyu beef with uni wrapped around a crunchy daikon. The texture was slimy from the wagyu and the uni is fresh seafood taste and crunchy from the daikon. It was such a good refreshing bite. I loved it.
.
Chirashi - star of the show. 45 a bowl but brought me back to Japan without traveling to Japan. It's soooo fresh and a good combo. All the fish was fresh and barely needed soy and wasabi. The sushi rice on the bottom was amazing. Mama couldn't stop eating it after she initially say no first. Then the freshness to her was like yesss more bites after the first.
.
Yakitori - I got 2 sticks one is the chicken thigh and one beef intestines. I thought they were ok but nothing too much stood out.
.
Beef tongue - it was a good portion. It was presentable. The flavor was great. It was a little over cooked for my liking. It was ok. I like the texture a little more soft and moist, some parts was getting hard so that's how I determine over cook.
.
Overall we loved the chirashi and was both shooked it was that good. We initially came for vday and they turned us away with no reservations. So we got a reservations for the day after vday. So yes reservations is highly recommended due to this spot being popular and small inside. Hope this review helps and thanks for reading. Have a yelptastic day.

It’s rare that a restaurant can offer a big menu while delivering on every item. This was the case at Bozu. We loved these dishes: hamachi kama, chirashi bowl, eggplant in dashi, fried flounder, and shrimp and papaya salad. We didn’t like the dinner options in Honolulu too much, but Bozu stood out as the best by far.

Extremely quick w the seating & food coming out which we all love 💕!!!! 10/10 will be coming back

One of the best places we ate at on our trip. We did not make a reservation (believe you have to call) but showed up right at opening and was able to get a spot at the bar. Will saw it can be a bit on the pricey side, but it's worth it!