Sushi Awaji

Unfortunately, Sushi Awaji has closed down. We were craving their amazing mama-​san rolls last night but when we arrived there’s a sign saying their lease had been terminated.
I hope they open up in another area close by!

This place is awesome! One of my favorite Sushi places in all of Dallas! I think its definitely a great place if you want to impress friends about your knowledge of good sushi without having to take out a 2^nd mortgage on a house!
The wait staff is friendly and accommodating. The sushi chef’s are great, one time my GF and I went but didn’t know what we want, we told him what flavors we were looking for and he created a special roll right there on the spot going off what we told him.
Definitely recommend this spot to everyone!

Had the opportunity to eat here for the 1^st time last night with 5 other people. (1 of them being Korean) We all opted for the all you can eat bbq utilizing the grills on the table. Meats were marinated and tasty especially the kalbi, bulgogi, and pork steaks. However, the other pork (red marinade) was too heavy on the sodium for me. Sides were ok to good. The Korean person in our group didnt care for the Kimchi but said it was passable. She noted that she was picky and only liked certain Kimchi like her mom made.
Soup was awesome. Much better than the one they have at Omi in Carrollton. Slightly spicy tofu with calamari, shrimp, and clams.
All in all it was a good dining experience with good service. I personally felt that the meats were more tasty than Omi. Give this place a try.

Whenever I’m in Dallas and am craving Korean BBQ, I always have to trek out to Harry Hines to satiate my craving. so imagine my surprise when I found out that there’s a new-​ish Korean BBQ place in Plano. I figured there are only two things left to do: try it and then Unilocal about it!
So try it I did. I went during lunch and as other Unilocalers have mentioned, they have a ton of lunch specials that are reasonably priced, especially for the quantity and quality of food you get. I went with the galbi (marinated short ribs) bento box ($ 9.99) while my friend went with the bulgogi bento box ($ 7.99).
While we were waiting for our bento boxes, they set out our bonchons — the side dishes that normally accompany Korean bbq. When our entrees arrived, we shocked at how generous the servings were — especially of the meat! Usually for lunch specials, you get gypped on the meat but at Sushi Awaji, they were more than generous. And with how good their Galbi was, I definitely appreciated it! The meat was well-​seasoned and moist — I could not stop eating it!
Service was prompt and one of the servers offered to give us more of one of the bonchons (the fried tofu that I LOVE). an offer I shamelessly and quickly said «yes, please!» too.
I definitely recommend Sushi Awaji’s Korean BBQ restaurant to anyone who loves Korean BBQ or anyone who wants to give it a shot — there’s something for everyone! I know I’ll definitely be back!

Like others, I was excited that a Korean barbeque place finally opened in this part of town, but it doesn’t really compare to the other korean restaurants.
The food was alright. We got the 4 person meal, and it came with SO many side dishes that it barely fit on our table! But aside from the bulgogi and kal bi, all the other meats were very bland.
My main complaint would be that the seafood pancake barely had any kind seafood in it. For $ 13, I would like a little more calamari and shrimp in it instead of just a fist full of scallions.
For the price, I would rather drive to Carrolton or Dallas for my Korean barbeque.

I love my spicy pork bulgogi and occasionally beef bulgogi if its cooked right, so I’m always on the prowl to find korean restaurants who can wow me with their bulgogi. At sushi awaji «korea bbq,» they did just that.
My brother and I ordered a lunch portion of beef and spicy pork bulgogi. Not only were the portions more than enough, the side items were delicious and the service was excellent. We were waited on by an older Korean lady who was as nice to us as an inviting mother. She always refilled our drinks, got us extra sides/​rice and was prompt with any other needs.
But what about the food? Food was faaantastic! For only $ 9, I got more bulgogi I could handle. Although the beef was only okay for me, the spicy pork was great. Both dishes were cooked very well, coming out sizzling and full of flavor.
I was very satisfied with this meal and I’d recommend this to anyone out for a delicious lunch.

Okay, so this place should really be called just a korean bbq restaurant — they don’t serve sushi anymore (go across to the street for their other restaurant which is also called Sushi Awaji, that actually serves sushi — and I heard it tastes great!)
This is my #1 korean restaurant in this area because simply put: the food tastes good! (They also re-​did their menu so there’s TONS of pictures — sure is great to actually see what you’re going to devour, no?) I love all the side dishes they give you and they definitely are not shady with how many and how much. Sometimes they like to switch it up and give certain ones at lunch and others at dinner — if you want the jab chae side dish, go for dinner! I’d say they give you about 10 – 12 side dishes and the serving size for the soups are very generous. They usually have a lunch and dinner price and supposedly the portions are different, but I couldn’t really tell the difference. Maybe because I expect the lunch portion to be smaller, but I still have a hard time finishing my meal! (hehe)
My favorite dishes are the bi bim bap, hae mul paejon, yuk gwe jang, and of course the soon du bu: P (my mouth is salivating!) You really can’t go wrong with these dishes, but they do really make it taste better for some reason.. .especially the soon du bu. I’ve tried the duk man doo gook, the kalbi, and a couple others and they’re delicious as well — just not my favorite dishes to eat in general.
The place is very clean and the staff is very friendly. The only negative thing is that when it gets busy, they’re not as attensive.. .BUT I completely understand why: they usually have 2 ladies working, if not 3 (perhaps for Friday and the weekend when it’s busier).. .but when a customer comes in for the BBQ, they come to your table and do the whole table side cooking.. .that does take up time from being able to serve others, but that’s just how they do their business~ it’s actually BETTER that they do all the bbq-​ing because then I don’t have to worry about cooking the meat and not being able to enjoy the other food in front of me (and trust me, when you’re hungry.. .you DON’T want to spend all your time cooking and not eating). So please understand that they don’t mean to keep you waiting, they’re simply just doing the best they can to serve everybody. Sure you can say they neeed to hire more people, but that’s not really possible and necessary when you’re not as busy during the week (and from a business standpoint, adding 1 more person to the payroll just for the weekend doesn’t really make sense). Be patient and know that you’ll be rewarded with delicious Korean food! :)

Once I’d discovered this place, I am totally sold. Great korean food, good service, prices normal. This is what I have been missing in Korean food, anyone who truly loves more traditional Korean fare, will love this one. I am from Houston, and every time I come up this way, I now make it a point to stop here for a meal.

I have been to this restaurant many, many times since it opened up. I think my husband and I go there at least once every 3 weeks — it’s one of the closest and yummiest Korean places in Plano!
For those of you not familiar with authentic Korean restaurants, here are some tips — please note that I mention these because most Americans are used to a certain type of wait service that is slightly different for Korean restaurants, based on the needs of their usual customer culture and style of cooking. And no, my husband and I are not Korean.
1. Service is almost always slow
2. When you order BBQ, if your server has time, they will cook it for you and monitor it between their other patrons
3. With any main entrée, you will get a side of at least 6 appetizer-​like mini dishes, called «bon chon», which are meant to accompany your entrée and enhance it. You should also get rice. Sometimes you also start with some kind of soup or salad. These are all included in the price, which is why the price is «high».
4. If you don’t know what you’re eating, ask. Your server will do their best to explain it in English.
5. Korean food is pretty exceptional in general (yes, it is my favorite — sorry for the bias!). You must be open-​minded to eat food that does not look «typical». You’ll find that it is mostly sweet and spicy.
6. For dessert, they may give you fresh cut oranges or a cold, sweet rice drink. This is also included in your price.
7. Kimchi is a fermented, cold, pickled, SPICY cabbage, and it is served with every bon chon. Mostly it is in cabbage form, but sometimes it is in cubed radish form. It is worth trying if you have never had it, but it is definitely not for everyone. Many bon chon dishes have kimchi-​like spices on them.
8. Most Korean «heat» uses red pepper as the primary ingredient.
Sushi Awaji Korean BBQ is your typical Korean fare. It has great bon chon, which is why I rated it higher than average. We have a different set of bon chon every time we go, and it tastes great! Also, we love the variety of their menu — they have a pretty extensive list of Korean dishes that I have not seen elsewhere.
As far as service goes… it is slow, but this is what we’re used to with Korean restaurants, so we are not dismayed. Note that I have not had any issues with cooling/​heating.
Therefore, if you’re up for it — give it a try! And if you’re an American who likes Korean food and can deal with slower service, then you definitely should eat here!
Enjoy! :)
Note: they are running some sort of special right now. It is 30% off main entrees. I’m not sure how long it runs.

I was excited to see a Korean BBQ joint in Plano. Unfortunately, the first visit will be my last.
The food was just okay. The spicy pork was way too fatty and sat in a pool of oil. The kalbi was oily and was not cooked (seared) long enough.
The service was slow and non-​existent most of the time.
Now for the kicker. I was provided an itemized receipt, but they refused to provide me a copy of my CC receipt. Supposedly the CC machine can not print duplicate receipts. Say what!!!
This is a big issue for people that use corporate cards since the tip is listed on the CC receipt and not the itemized receipt. Even with the crappy food and service, the thing that will keep me away is the stupid CC receipt deal.
I’ll stick to Jinmi (on 15^th and Independence) or hit up K-​Town.

I really have only one complaint about Sushi Awaji. It’d be nice if they’d have the prices of the ‘New Menu’ rolls published somewhere so you know what you’re in for before the bill comes. Would that have affected my selections? Probably not, but it’s annoying. Most specialty sushi rolls seem to fall between $ 12−15ish range, so I just figured they’d be in that neighborhood.
The edamame was average. Our waitress was pleasant and attentive (on a Monday night when no one else was there, I’d kind of expect that to be the case). The sushi itself was notably good. We had a spicy tuna roll, a Sally roll, and a carrot roll.
The spicy tuna roll was better than average (it’s pretty hard to imagine a «bad» spicy tuna roll), the Sally roll was very good, and the carrot roll was great. For the amount of fish in the carrot roll in addition to the fact that the exterior shell was carrots in lieu of rice and seaweed, I knew it was going to be on the pricey side, but I kind of wish I had known it was $ 17. The Sally roll had quite a few more pieces (however, the pieces weren’t as large) and was a more reasonable $ 14. We really enjoyed all our rolls, and I like that they have some unique roll options, but I just don’t appreciate the price surprise.

I went for Mother’s Day dinner, and they definitely need to work on being able to handle larger crowds.
Our kalbi came out undercooked, and when we sent it back, it came back out burnt. The waitresses (there were only 2 of them in a packed restaurant) tried their best to accommodate everyone, and it wasn’t their fault, but the ownership probably could add a few more members to their staff.
They have great pan-​chan (sides) though, and the food tastes great for the most part (flavors are well seeped through) — you’ll just have to be prepared for a long lunch/​dinner.

One. We were seated and iced water was brought immediately after seated.
Two. The air conditioning was off. It was dinner time (6ish) and weather was warm. How can you have the air conditioning off? This worried me regarding the quality of meats and the sushi/​sashimi.
Three. We ordered and we knew what we were ordering, you don’t have to repeat it 5 times back to us (Combo B feeding 3 – 4 people, yes we know it only feeds 3 – 4 people and we know that among ourselves).
DINNER MENU: Combo B for the korean bbq grill (5 different types of meat/​marinades, a choice of soup/​stew between two options, and steamed egg). Yellow tail sashimi. Shrimp tempura roll. Eel roll.
SERVICE: The waitress will cook each meat then place it on a plate, and continue this method until all meats are cooked. The Combo again only fed 3 – 4 people, so we only received 3 bowls of rice (What happened to common courtesy? Customer satisfaction? Something? Clearly there were 5 people at the table.) Sashimi was 6 extremely tiny pieces for $ 14. Shrimp tempura roll, do not order it. Eel roll, do not order it. The rolls were extremely loose, small, smaller than norm (and that is probably why it was only $ 5ish an order).
CONCLUSION: Quality of food was okay, but not worth the amount we paid for the dinner. Thank-​you, please come again? No Way!
P. S. The air condition was finally turned on as we were leaving.

Surprisingly, Korean BBQ (or even Korean food in general) has not quite entered the mainstream American conscience quite like Chinese, Japanese, or Thai cuisine. For those cuisines, most know General Tso’s Chicken, Sushi, and Pad Thai.
Average Americans just don’t know bulgogi (marinated beef), kalbi (marinated short ribs), and soon doo boo (spicy tofu soup). But ironically, Korean BBQ may have a taste profile most resembling American taste preferences — high protein, sweet marinades, no weird spices. The challenge is educating the American public what to order (try the bulgogi or galbi) and the DIY component (grill at your table).
Now here is why I’m giving this place 4 stars. It chose a location in a corridor of relatively high affluence and education — accessible to a demographic unfamiliar to the food. This is unusual for a Korean restaurant in Dallas, because typically, you must drive to ethnic enclaves (Korea Town or strip mall anchored by an Asian grocer) to get Korean BBQ. Now, people can choose Korean BBQ along with Corner Bakery, PotBelly, and La Madeliene, all within a 1-​mi. radius.
(BTW: This is the Korean little sister of the Japanese restaurant Sushi Awaji across the street, run by the same owners.)

Late last evening around 8pm I had a need for a sushi fix. Having visited Awaji many times this is now my favorite local sushi spot. Fish is always fresh, price is reasonable, and all the sushi chefs are fun and like to talk, even more so if you buy them a drink! This is really a casual spot with very very good sushi. If you like rolls try the cucumber wrap, mamasan 1 and 2, and the candy roll. The sushi and sashimi is always tasty too and they often have blue fin Toro.
Sitting at the sushi bar is your best bet for a good time. There are several other good sushi places around DFW but this is the one that keeps me coming back time after time. When you combine all the factors of value and quality, you cannot go wrong with Awaji!

Last night I took 2 girlfriends to experience my favorite sushi place. Don’t get me wrong, I could eat sushi any day, ALMOST anywhere, but when it comes to fresh sushi, decently priced, and not all frou frou, Sushi Awaji is the place.
We arrived at 7:30 and were able to find 3 seats at the sushi bar, in my opinion the best place to sit. We were immediately greeted with hot towels and cucumber salad. (I could eat 5 of those things.) We ordered the Mamasan Roll (my favorite), a California Roll, Salmon sashimi, Ikura, and a Crawfish Volcano Roll.
Everything came out fast and we were never left waiting for more than a few minutes in between each. The Sashimi was really fresh and melted in our mouths. My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it!
Our meal ended with orange slices, enough for each one of us.
My family has gone here for years, through all the changes, and I was happy to introduce my friends to such a great place.

Friday got off to a bad start sushi wise. After waiting an hour and a half for a plate of sashimi at Sushi Sakana I was ready to throw in the towel and go home and eat peanut butter straight from the jar.. .the gf was determined to salvage the night and suggested we head to Sushi Awaji since it was one of the few places we knew would still have the sushi chefs working.
After my last couple visits hadn’t been that great, I was a little hesitant but agreed. I couldn’t be more thrilled to write this updated review.
First, the waitresses no longer wear the old school geisha garb. Second, the hot towel and cucumber and seaweed salad was waiting for me as soon as I sat down. Our waitress was absolutely delightful. She made suggestions for us, was personable and had a great sense of humor (nothing like joking around about my obscene eating habits to life me out of my grumpy fog).
We settled on the rainbow roll, the Sally roll, halibut sashimi and the dragon roll. The Sally Roll has just entered my favorite roll class — tempura shrimp in a roll covered with fresh ahi, sriracha and a bit of spicy mayo.. .heaven. The rest of the rolls were equally delicious but I would say the star of the show was the halibut sashimi. I could have ordered 20 plates and had no problem eating all of it.. .since the gf was paying, I decided to be polite and stop at one though.
Did I mention we were in and out in less than 30 minutes? After waiting over an hour and a half at the previous sushi stop, I was THRILLED by this. We made sure to tip our waitress generously and I made a special note to let the manager know they had saved our night and could count on seeing us on a more regular basis.
Sushi Awaji, you’ve returned to your old form and I couldn’t be more excited.

I love trying new sushi restaurants, even though it can be a bit scary if it turns out not so tasty, but tonight was exceptional. Sushi Awaji was fresh and tasty. I started with the seaweed salad and could not believe how big the portion was. Usually when I order the salad it comes in a small bowl for 4 dollars. Well this was double the portion for $ 6.50 and quite delicious. For dinner we ordered Albacore, Halibut, Salmon, and Eel and every piece was so fresh. I have yet to have a bad Spicy Tuna roll and tonight was no exception. It was just as one should taste… delicious!
The atmosphere was relaxing and authentic and I loved how they brought out fresh orange and pieces of cake for dessert. Oh and the cucumber salad at the beginning really cleansed the palate as well. I will definitely be coming back for more!

Awaji is located in the mecca of Plano dining — next to Blue Goose and across the street from Patrizio’s.
Upon arrival you are given a moist warm towel which is great. I think all dining establishments should provide this feature. You are also given a cucumber-​ish salad which is small yet tasty.
The selection of sashimi is normal and not too extravagant. However, the creativity of their rolls is something that I wish Blue Fish or others followed suit with.
What we ordered:
Awaji tower — my favorite thing at sushi establishments, a «tower» or rice, tuna, and sauces (both spicy and tasteful) that is combined together to make a mish-​mash of sushi dining into one plate — hard to describe, but hard to forget.
Mamma San Roll — decadent.
Crunchy roll — wow is this sucker big, delicious, and makes you want to order another one — my favorite roll we tried.
Beef Tataki — a Japanese favorite — rare beef that has been barely seared and served in a shallow dish full of soy sauce, onions — I am in love with this!
Tuna and Yellow tail Sashimi — very very good and okay freshness.
Baked mussels — wow! this was a first and it was great!
Sake assortment is superb along with genuine Japanese beer.
Pricing is on par with Blue Fish and perhaps a little bit less depending on what you order. For sushi doable — $ 25 for me with tax and tip.
I have got to say it was not the best I have ever had but by no means is it the worst. I can’t say I’m a fan b/​c I’ve only been once — but if suggested I won’t turn it down either.
If in Plano and need a sushi rush I would head here in a heartbeat.

Another great place for sushi in Plano! They have a small bar and a sushi bar when you first walk in the open area and they also have a separate room for smaller crowds or for big parties. The service was ok but I was part of a group that went and the server lady was getting kind of anal about how we were supposed to order and trying to get our checks at the end took forever, but it was a Friday night after all.
I had the salad to start off and it was pretty nice since they went easy on the ginger in the dressing. Miso was ok. I had also ordered the Gyoza (Fried Dumplings) as an appetizer and it too was ok. The inside of it seemed like a homogenized mixture so I’m thinking it was made elsewhere so it was thawed and cooked. For my entre’s I had ordered the spicy salmon and fried shrimp tempura rolls. They were exquisite. Also I had the vegetable tempura plate which was also great since it wasn’t too saturated with cooking oil. Overall experience was pretty good!