Sono Bana

This little strip mall experience was neither great nor bad. It was all good.
The problem with «good» sushi is the price. Bad, good and great sushi typically carries the same price tag. So, with better options available why eat just good sushi?
The staff seemed friendly, the beer was cold and the place seemed clean.

The service was great and the place has some charm to it.
The food is terribly bland. Their teriyaki chicken tastes like boiled chicken from a can. The portion size is generous but more sauce and flavor is desperately needed. What irked me more than anything is that their water tasted awful.

Very disappointing. The eel was very gross and the rest (geisha roll, rainbow roll, Alaska roll, and red and white roll) were just okay. It wasn’t gross, just not that good.
The service, however, was great. Our waitress was very nice, prompt, and funny.
About ½ of the rolls had mayonnaise on them. I don’t know what that is about.

Boyfriend and I went for lunch. We were pretty much the only ones there. Service was friendly, but there were a lot of messy handwritten signs hung up that detracted from the experience. The water we were served smelled funky, faintly of tires. The meals came with salad or miso soup. The soup was good, but the salad dressing was too pasty thick and vinegary for my taste.
I ordered the sashimi and hiyashi wakame (seaweed salad). The seaweed salad was as I expected (thin strands of seaweed in a sesame oil dressing), but it was tepid, as if it had been sitting out. The sashimi was okay, but only three types of fish, cut thick, with no pickled ginger on the side (which I crave, so I considered this a more serious transgression).
Boyfriend got the teriyaki chicken. It was mediocre at best, dried out meat and not very flavorful.
We thought this would be a good choice for a decent sushi lunch, but I think we could have chosen better. Probably won’t be back.

Great Japanese food, my favorite in Boise by far. The fish is fresh, there is a surprising variety of non-​sushi items, and the service is super nice. If you like super Americanized «deep fried and doused in spicy mayonnaise» Japanese food like you’ll find at Fujiyama, you’ll probably dislike Sono Bana and vice versa.
Take the two one star reviews with a grain of salt: If you look at Kanae K.‘s history, she rates every Asian restaurant she visits as one star, always beginning with «I’m from Japan…» and going on how it was a huge disappointment. Yeah, we get it Kanae. You’re from Japan, good for you.

All I had on this trip was the Chirashi, a bowl of sashimi (slices of the chef’s choice fish, usually consisting of yellowtail, tuna, and salmon amongst some other fish) over sushi rice, so this isn’t really going to be a complete review. The menu was quite extensive so it would be unfair to grade this place on one dish.
Positives: The fish appeared to be fresh, the yellowtail was almost perfect, and the dish was filling.
Negatives: The rice seemed a bit bland and some of the fish slices were a bit cold.
I will return to try out the cooked dishes. More later!

I’m from Japan. So I know the deal. A HUGE disappointment.
Very disappointed by overall quality of foods at the restaurant.
Sashimi was not fresh at all, and looked & tasted old.
Kaki (Oyster) fly was ok, but everything else was just not the quality that should be served and charged at the restaurant.
I can cook better most of dishes they serve at the restaurant.
The only good thing was a server was super nice. (I didn’t get her name.)
I’ll never go back there.
Fujiyama is 100 times better.

The food was bad. This was the first salad that my son had to spit back out from any sushi place we’ve ever been to, and he loves that salad. The chicken in the Bento box looked terrible and the noodles were overcooked. The food looked very unappealing. We left without finishing our meal.

Super great service, they made exactly what I wanted, we were all very happy.
We loved the friendly service, our requests were happily accommodated. We’re back again today! Second time was ok, I like the one by Target on Milwakie better.

This is Where You Get Sushi in Boise.
Really.
It doesn’t need much explaining.
It’s where maguro sushi actually tastes good as sushi (it really only belongs in rolls otherwise), with that zipper-​pull iron taste (not in a gross way, I promise), and cool freshness.
The hamachi/​buri has a buttery, full flavor.
The rice is exceptionally fresh.
The salad dressing is light and wonderful. You don’t even care that the salad is just lettuce.
Most US sushi, as I have experienced, is only good for all-​you-​can eat, but not here. You won’t need that here.
(Side Note: if you’re not a fan of wasabi, I’d ask for it off just to be safe; I think they put it on by default.)

Miso soup was all broth… a few teeny bits of tofu and onion.
The sushi sampler looked like it had been sitting out too long, and the rubbery texture confirmed it. Very little flavor to boot. Certainly not worth $ 13.
Tea was OK… pretty much the highlight of the meal.
Not much in the way of atmosphere… had the feel of a place that gone way too long between remodels.
Doubt I’ll be back — plenty of other better sushi places in Boise.

I seldom come to Boise on business without stopping here at least once. This is by far my favorite Japanese restaurant in Boise. It used to be called «Tsuru,» meaning crane; the food as just as good under their current name.
Their sushi is superb for an inland community. The sashimi is always very fresh, and loaded with flavor. They have plenty of non-​sushi options on the menu as well. Their bento dinners are essentially combination plates. If you’re really hungry (and I always seem to be), my favorite is the Special Bento, which features both steak and chicken teriyaki, tempura, tonkatsu, and sushi. It also comes with miso soup and a salad. It is a great introduction to Japanese cuisine for a novice.
The ambiance here is outstanding. They have a nice sushi bar, and a quiet sit-​down area with very authentic Japanese decorations. It is apparently a romantic place; I see young couples dining together every time I come. The waitresses are very helpful and attentive. They often bring you an origami (folded paper) crane with your bill, which I traditionally bring home to my kids.
Although it is a bit off the beaten path on Orchard, it is definitely worth the trip.

Still giving it a four-​stars-​for-​Boise grading curve, and I still think this is the best place to come if you’re Japanese or are looking for authentic Japanese food. But I think an update was in order.
As a lover of ramen, and in particular tonkotsu (pork bone) ramen, I was very pleasantly surprised by the addition of tonkotsu ramen to the menu. But shocked as well, as I wasn’t quite sure how popular something like that would be around here. I think the people running Sono Bana feel the trepidation as well, as their signage alludes to tonkotsu ramen only as being a «white creamy soup» (see attached photo). Now I feel fairly confident in saying that they’re not simmering pork bones in the broth for hours and hours like actual ramen houses would. And the glaring whiteness of the broth (more than I’ve ever seen in a tonkotsu broth) makes me believe that milk is being added to the broth instead of the milky taste coming from the marrow of the simmering pork bones. In other words, I think they’re cheating. Still, compared to their miso and shoyu ramen, I think their tonkotsu is the best of the three. It’s still pretty average stuff in the world of ramen, but it’s all we have in the valley, and I don’t ever expect a bonafide ramen house to open up in Boise.
The advantage here still continues to be the combination of offering more traditional Japanese cuisine that other Japanese restaurants in town don’t offer (due to them actually being Japanese as opposed to 98% of the other Japanese restaurants in town), the high credentials of the itamaes, and the good value for sushi compared to the pricier places a couple miles away in downtown. Also of note is their Facebook page where they announce what kind of new and fresh fish they have in stock. At times it’s updated once a week, but there are weeks where no updates are given. I’ve found out living in Boise that some of the sushi restaurants have been much more open as to sharing the information as to what fish they get and when it gets shipped in, which was nice coming from an environment where you needed to spend a lot of money and be a trusted regular to gain that kind of info. Due to my income I’m nothing close to a regular at Sono Bana, but in this case that issue was resolved by simply becoming a fan of their Facebook page.

I eat at Sono Bana frequently and I love love LOVE their sushi.
Tonight I was craving salmon teriyaki and picked up a to-​go order from Sono Bana. The dish I got was not what I was expecting. The salmon was fried in a crust of rice flour and was accompanied by white rice and noodles. There was nary a vegetable to be found in the entrée; thank god the meal came with a salad. I don’t know if this is a traditional Japanese way to serve the dish, or if it’s some sort of concession to the American diet of fried stuff and carbs, but it was definitely not what I was dreaming of when I ordered.
I’ll stick to sushi in the future.

In a word… ATROCIOUS.
No offense to the other reviewers… but what were you smoking when you wrote those reviews? Please be advised that the following review is long, but detailed.
My girlfriend and I just visited Sono Bana this evening because she was in the mood for Japanese. We are from California, so we are accustomed to a variety of Japanese cuisine, both good and bad. Needless to say, when we went to this establishment, our hopes weren’t too high.
My girlfriend ordered the combination plate of chicken teriyaki and tempura, and I ordered the appetizer of sesame chicken in addition to the chicken teriyaki with rice I ordered.
The miso soup that both of our meals came with was VERY bland, almost water with a bit of tofu and green onions. The salad was iceberg lettuce with a bit of shredded carrot, which would have been alright if the dressing that came with it did not resemble the texture and taste of baby food.
Our food arrived a few minutes later. The aroma of the chicken was similar to old dog food that had been sitting out for a day or two, and the taste wasn’t much better. It brings to mind the old songs of where Asian restaurants would use stray dogs or cats in place of real meat. The sesame chicken also tasted old. Not only were the dishes not hot or even warm, the sesame chicken tasted like the 3 day old oil it was cooked in, and the tempura was only slightly better.
My girlfriend and I both had one bite of each type of chicken, and left the rest untouched. My girlfriend ate the tempura and a bit of rice because she felt bad, but needless to say the food we ordered did not even come close to edible.
The server came over to see how everything was, and when I told her it was awful, she seemed apathetic, then halfheartedly offered to get us something else. I politely declined and asked for the check. The waitress was less than friendly when she brought the check, and to my disgust she had not even discounted any of the items. After standing there for 10 minutes in the empty restaurant, I walked up to the counter to where the THREE waitresses had been standing, and asked what they could do for me. She took my dinner off of the bill, but said that was the best she could do.
I paid the bill, and we left. It was by FAR the worst Japanese that we have ever had, and one of the worst restaurant experiences I have ever had.
In all fairness, neither of us tried the sushi. This is just a cautionary tale of where NOT to go to get even halfway decent teriyaki. Do your self a favor… go to Jack in the Box and order their teriyaki bowl… it tastes MUCH better and is half the price.

Sono Bana (formerly Tsuru) on Orchard is my personal favorite for sushi in Boise. Tsuru, the owner, has been in the sushi business in Boise for over 30 years, and actually taught Shige (of the restaurant ‘Shige”) back in the day.
Sono Bana is not downtown, nor is it fancy. Their overhead is low, but the sushi is fresh and delicious! It’s definitely one of Boise’s best «hole in the walls.»

For a smaller less flashy restaurant, this was a very nice find. The food was good and the service was great. I had the Casablanca Roll which is essentially a deep fried Philly Roll (Awesome by the way), a Kuna Tuna Roll (highlight of the meal) and a Tekka Maki Roll.
The service made this place jump from a 3 to a 4 star review, although eh food could have carried a 4 star had I tried more dishes.
The fish tasted very fresh and the Tuna was great. The only thing I don’t get is offering mayo on rolls, but hey, maybe its a local thing…
Now the down side… the place needs a better ventilation system. Not that it smelled fishy in a bad way, but the daily sushi presence is definitely in the air… and there are 3 menus for food and not one has a Sake menu, but they have signs up for that.
Overall, this was a great find thanks to some Unilocal reviews and for Boise… not half bad at all. Would definitely come back for more and to try the entrees

This is one of two Japanese owned Japanese restaurants in Boise area (the other one is Shige). I am Japanese from Japan living in Boise area so I know what the authentic Japanese foods are.
I like their sushi and also like the variety of combo menu they have.

I didn’t think that sushi would be good in Idaho, but I was wrong. The fish is very fresh and they often have different fish specials. The sauce on their oysters is so good. The miso is not my favorite. The service is friendly and prompt. There were many other things on the menu other than fish, but we only ate the raw fish

On a cold, rainy spring day, nothing satisfies like a bowl of yakiniku don — rice bowl with BBQ beef and onions. Curry katsu is another good choice.