Zen Japanese Izakaya

Found this hidden gen off Shepherds just last Thursday, and today we are back for Mother’s Day lunch. Zen Japanese Izakaya has the best tasting rolls and freshest sashimi in Houston. The Japanese style decos are beautiful, service is excellent.
My husband loves the Otoro. They a little pricy, but so fresh and melt in the mouth.
I ordered sushi lunch special, Salmon & Salmon, Spicy Tuna. All are excellent.
We ordered two bento boxes for our 10 year old kids, they love it. So it’s great that we can bring the kids here even though they are not fun or sushi.
The food was beautifully presented too.
We will be back.

Don’t let the outside appearance fool you! Zen Japanese Izakaya resides in an older strip of mostly vacant businesses on Shepard, but it is a diamond in the rough! Authentic Japanese cuisine awaits you inside with excellent service! I recommend you give it a try.

Excellent. Delicious.

[Only bad is you have to pay to park!]

They have a lot of high quality and lesser known fish cuts flown in from Japan. Everything tasted great. Their chawanmushi was prob one of the best I’ve ever had. It’s a cozy small atmosphere and the service was kinda lacking for me, my table didn’t get refills and the next table was getting their food out so fast vs mine, idk if each table is assigned a different staff member or what 🥲

The champong is delish!

Unagi hitsumabushi is delicious, sashimi are fresh, high quality with fair price, highly recommended!

The food was delicious!

I was disappointed with my experience. The food was underwhelming in both taste and quality, especially considering the high prices. Additionally, the service was lacking—our waiter was inattentive and slow, making the experience even less enjoyable. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend this place based on my visit.

We stopped last night to try this restaurant and we loved the decor and the environment. We did not received our menus after 10 minutes later. We ordered and the drinks came quickly but the appetizers didn’t. We received our first appetizers but the second never arrived. We ordered our food and it was amazing. We ordered some sushi rolls and they never came either. We never got refills on our drinks, so we asked for the check and then the waiter said that our missing food was ready. We took it to go but I am not sure we will be back. Other people from other tables left because they were not given drinks and they sat for a long time as well. I hope they hire more than just 2 waiters because on a Friday night the place was packed.

I truly enjoyed my experience at this restaurant. The interior design is beautifully done, incorporating Japanese cultural elements that create a serene and authentic atmosphere. The sashimi was incredibly fresh, and the food presentation was impeccable, showcasing great attention to detail.

My only minor complaint is the portion sizes, but I understand the high operational costs in this area and the ever-increasing labor expenses. The staff’s passion and attentiveness, however, more than made up for it. It’s a fantastic spot for a special meal, and I would gladly return.

This is a small and pleasant restaurant. If you come in big numbers make sure to reserve a table. I like it that when you order hot green tea, it comes with free refills. What drew me to this place was the list of Japanese fish that they fly into Houston.

Apps
1. Takoyaki: These are okay. 2 pieces of octopus inside a soft doughy ball. I’ve never been a fan but it should be tried at least once.
2. Hamachi we’re okay. It’s a little too light for me.
3. Karaage were decent size and crispy. Nice flavor.

Sushi
1. Kinmedai has a light sear to it that brings out the smokiness and fatty oils that brings a distinctive and delicious taste.
2. Anago is a cooked sea eel that is tender and delicious.
3. Otoro is the fatty tuna belly which is always the best.
4. Chutoro is a mixture of lean and fat and is also delicious.
5. Kanpachi has a subtle clean sweet taste.
6. Aji has a slight briny umami flavor. It has a firm texture.
7. Shimaji has a light buttery taste. It has a firm chewy texture.
8. Salmon & Ikura Don: salmon is fresh and clean. I love the briny taste of the Ikura.

Desserts
1. The Yuzu cheesecake is my favorite. Lemon & lime like flavors that punctuates with every bite.
2. The salsa dango is hard chewy rice cake with a red bean paste inside. The rice shell is too hard and chewy for my liking.
3. The Matcha Chestnut cake was soft and tasty. Chesnuts really come through.
4. The mango mochi was a soft and easy to chew texture with sweet mango ice cream.

Overall, it was a good meal. I’d come back again.

The Kaarage, and Hamburger steak are the biggest game changers! You’ll never want a cheeseburger again! If you’re a fan of Eel they have a phenomenal meal for you!!

Went here for lunch. The restaurant was stuffy/warm and service was slow and not up to the level of the food. I felt bad bc the only 1 waitress seemed busy and flustered with too many tables. I had the sashimi lunch bento box which was a lot of variety. Delicious pickled veggies but as others have noted the eggplant was very oily. However everything was flavorful. I might go back to try another lunch special.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 5

Service: 3

The sushi chef is always friendly, music is not loud so that's perfect, the pork miso and chicken karaage are the best in town.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Matcha Chestnut Cake, Spider Roll, Fish, Renkon Hasamiage, Sushi Lunch

Food is fresh and delicious ?.
I love the way they decorate the plate.
The art is beautiful.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5