Ichiban on the Rocks

Not sure WHY they { Unilocal} is saying this place is closed — maybe the one on Grand Ave in Pacific Beach closed, but the one on University, which is the ADDRESS I PICKED, IS STILL ALIVE AND WELL — THEY ARE NOT CLOSED!
OMG probably one of my favorite meals in San Diego and the US for that matter. Pacific Beach is a cute restaurant but the original on University is the classic. I sometimes make it on time before they close when I fly nonstop ORD/​SAN after work!!! Lived in Pacific Beach when I was young, skinny and had more hair :(
Friends still out there — ALWAYS stop at Iciban at LEAST once when i am there — and have actually eaten there twice over a 3 day stay. I do not do Sushi — I eat the Teriyaki or Ginger Chicken WELL DONE extra salad MMMMMMMM I think people like there Sushi too so give it a try — jsut cause I don’t eat it doesn’t mean it’s bad — and by the crowd, it must be as goiod or better than the Chicken Teriyaki
I am so hungry now but it’s 1700 airmiles away ;(

Popped in here with my friend for a quick bite — blah it was just okay. Mostly rolls and when I asked if they had uni she said no. UGH!
We got 3 rolls — California, salmon skin and crunchy — I’m definitely not a rolls kind of gal and we only popped in here because I wanted Japanese and it was convenient. It was late and they were open and I was starving and it was a matter of getting my tummy filled rather than getting my tastebuds fulfilled — know what I mean?
I doubt I’ll ever return again even though service was friendly and when I asked them to pack up the leftovers with some wasabi and shoyu, they even put chopsticks and napkins in there.
2.5 stars

With the exception of the salmon, this is my favorite little go-​to spot in Hillcrest for Sushi. Now, this is not because it is the best. Not at all. It is because my date and I can sit down and not be constantly bumped into by people’s butts as they motor in for their takeout.
The Ichiban across the street? Only takeout for me from now on.
Some decent specifics and some joys as well as disappointments:
Mixed:
Fast service, but sitting at the bar means telling the sushi chef you need drinks. He then tells the waitress. She does not visit often
Great presentation usually. however, that means big platters. You can run out of room fast.
Sake? Yes, but only the house varietyis warm.
Pros:
Excellent sushi and good sashimi, and there is plentiful ginger on the wasabi comes formed in shapes and is also in good supply.
Very good teriyaki chicken and beef if one likes the Funky Samurai dish, a great value itself.
Hibachi dishes are excellent and the Japanese fried rice is killer.
Fried things in the tempura are good and not soggy or juicy.
Cons:
Bad salmon, teriyaki or otherwise, Seriously, this is the «not good» salmon. Avoid it until someone raves. It seems a little freezer-​burned or something.
Sometimes the Teriyaki is a bit sugary and almost sweet and sour in flavor. Yuck.
The sushi is often served with their spicy sauce all around. A small drizzle over the actual rolls would be nice. Laying it on loose fried panko makes it unwieldy.
I will be back again and again until they get it up to a five. But if they slip, there is always Sushi Itto!

I’ll start with the good, plenty of parking here. Started off with some gyoza. Right here your thinking mmmmm I love gyoza. Not so much here. Ordered the gyoza fried, it was at the table in 2 minutes and warm. No trying to chew without burning the roof of my mouth while saying hot, hot, not even piping hot… warm.
Got some tuna rolls (crunchy and spicy). Tuna looked processed and was on the table in 3 minutes. I can’t make a bowl of cereal in 3 minutes let alone 12 rolls.
Knowing I did not like the place by now I had to order a nigiri to know just how evil they are. No toro, so ordered up the yellowtail nigiri. Meat was cold… to cold. Almost as if he had cut this off and threw it in the fridge last night and yet looked like he used a butter knife to cut it.
All in all let me recommend you not come here unless you feel your starting to take your favorite sushi spot for granted.

Overprice.
The sushi was good, but the rolls were too small.
Service was alright.
Oh, one more important thing. Their hot green tea is tasted just like hot water.

Very overpriced for what you get. The sushi is alright, but the rolls and portions were really small. I’ve been to other cheaper sushi places that were more affordable, just as tasty if not tastier, and bigger portions. I say meh.

Pretty good sushi. Fine. Actually, on a Sunday at 2pm, this is one of the best places… if not ONLY places for sushi you’ll find open. Why do they all open at 5pm on Sundays? Nobody has a late sushi lunch on Sundays? Geez! This was the 3^rd place we’d been to for lunch…
I digress.
Ambiance for our lunch was adequate, but… we did have to move inside from the patio because the bushes were emanating a urine smell. uck. Inside was okay. Flies were around, but… it added a special effect, like we were eating in an adventurous and remote locale, not Hillcrest. Usually you don’t get flies in Hillcrest.
The bathroom was alright. Though, I’m not 100% sure there isn’t a hidden camera in the women’s restroom behind the slightly broken door of the locked cabinet… perhaps I should check YouTube for Ichiban on the Pot videos?
In any case, only 1 out of the 3 of us felt ill after dining… but that could have been because we’d just come from bowling where she drank 3 beers before noon? So… I give 3 stars. I’d go back, but I’m not in a hurry.

Im not really sure why the owners of Ichiban felt compelled to open up another Japanese restaurant when they already have a Japanese restaurant just down the block. To me, it would seem like they were competing with themselves in addition to all of the other Hillcrest sushi bars.
I live in the area and I do notice that the original one seems busier. They do have some cheap happy hour specials, including sake and beer specials. Im sure they wanted this offshoot to be a little classier, judging by the interior décor. Everything looks brand spanking new and polished.
I’m pretty sure my friend Yoshi works here as a sushi chef but Ive yet to run into him. The last time that we spoke he told me that he worked at Ichiban, unless he was referring to Ichiban in PB, which is more like fast food Japanese for the beach crowd.
They have all of the usual suspects, nigiri, sashimi, custom rolls etc etc. Sashimi is pretty straightforward, if the fish is fresh and if its cut properly, then theres really nothing else to it. Nigiri is completely dependent on the rice. Well prepared rice will complement the fish. Poorly prepared rice will make the fish taste off, even if its very fresh.
Whenever I go to a new sushi restaurant there are a handful of items that I always order just to kind of gauge the freshness of the ingredients and the skill of the sushi chefs. There are so many small details that as a whole could make a break a place for me. Attention to detail, garnishes, knife skills, presentation, correct use of traditional sauces, etc etc.
Overall I liked this restaurant. For the price range its a good bargain. You could spend way more elsewhere and may or may not have a better meal. In all honesty, if you want to impress a date with dinner out at a sushi bar, this probably wouldnt be my first choice. If youre a local and youre walking and you dont want to deal with the people and the obligatory lines at Ono Sushi, then this would be a good alternative.

I came here for happy hour with my brother the other day. We’ve been here before for the specials. They have large banners advertising ½ off rolls which are hard to ignore. Anyways, they have select rolls that you can get at 50% off from 5:00 — 7:30 pm and they have sake and beer specials until 7:00 pm.
We ordered off of the happy hour menu and it was pretty good. The selection is basic. There are elements that remind me of Sushi Deli. I enjoyed the green tea and I’m glad they brought me the pot because the waitress didn’t time her visits right. The service was decent and the HH prices are right.

WORLD’S MOST TERRIBLE SERVICE, EVER! If I could give zero stars, I would.
With a party of five, we walked in and were promptly seated. There was one other party dining at the time. She took our orders for drinks: 1 lemonade, 1 sprite, and 3 waters with lemon.
Next, she proceeded to take our main course orders. I started off, asking for a Spicy Tuna Roll, and she curtly instructed me to mark sushi orders on the paper. What paper? Oh, the one she hadn’t given us yet! Duh, what were you thinking, Elaine?
She took the orders for the two bento boxes (which bore the terrible name, «Sexy Geisha»… how awkward!), then took our sushi order form: Eel Roll with no cucumber (which we wrote in the margin), Spicy Tuna Roll, & Tiger Roll.
We sat for a few minutes, and the lemonade and sprite came out. No waters.
Five more minutes… still no water. I get her attention and ask again for three waters with lemon. In a couple minutes, she comes out with three waters, no lemon. It’s okay, we figure. Not worth bothering her for lemon slices.
About ten minutes pass, and the sushi comes out, all on one platter. The Eel Roll has large chunks of cucumber in it. We bring it to her attention, and she takes it back, then brings another one out after about ten minutes. This one has large chunks of avocado in it. Seriously?
1) my brother (who ordered the eel roll) doesn’t eat avocado, 2) the menu description doesn’t include avocado, 3) the first time they brought it out with the cucumber, there was no avocado! Apparently they just assumed that since we didn’t want the cucumber, they should throw in some avocado that we didn’t ask for! We didn’t didn’t say anything, because we figured they might start spitting in our food if we asked them to remake it. (Ever see the movie «Waiting»?)
I sit and help my little brother pick out the avocado chunks with our chopsticks as we wait for the bento boxes to arrive.
Five minutes pass. Our waters are on empty, but we’ve had no offers for refills.
Ten minutes pass, no bento boxes. We start playing the games we play in line at Disneyland.
Twenty minutes pass, still no bento boxes. Our sushi rolls are getting warm.
Thirty minutes pass. She brings us our check, and says «Thank you.»
WTFrappuccino??! At this point, we’ve been in the restaurant for over an hour, haven’t had a bite to eat, still haven’t received the orders of two people in our party, and she brings us our check? All the sushi is CLEARLY untouched (aside from the dissected eel roll, which has a pile of avocado on the plate next to it), and two people in our party have a large, empty, meal-​beckoning space on the table in front of them, hmm, perhaps for the bento boxes?
We look at her in disbelief, for she was the only waitress who served us the entire hour (if you could call it service). I look around. The one group that had been there when we arrived has now been replaced by another small party. There were two parties in the restaurant this entire time, ours included. We told her we still hadn’t received half of our food, and she went to «check in the back». She came out and apologetically said something about a paper falling on the floor and our bento boxes never being made. «I’ll bring out appetizers for you, ok? On the house, ok?» We shrug and say okay. At this point, we’re just fed up and decide that this woman will receive nilch in tips. I’ve never not left a tip before. Our waters are still empty, and we’re tempted to just walk out.
Five minutes later, she comes out with our glorious complimentary appetizers: three bowls of miso soup! Oh joy! I couldn’t believe that miso soup was supposed to make up for our experience thus far.
Five more minutes. She brings out a laughingly small dish, with about five pieces of edamame on it, smothered in salt. I look at her in disbelief. She would’ve been better off not bringing it out at all. I look at her, pretty annoyed by now, and ask, «You know what? It’d be great if you could just throw in another eel roll. No avocado, no cucumber.» She looks at me. «Umm… another eel roll? Umm… Okay then.» She takes back her 5 precious pieces of edamame, and goes to her cash register and punches a few things in. Is she ringing up the eel roll?
The 2^nd Eel Roll comes, this time finally made correctly, and just to double check, I ask her:
«You’re not charging for the eel roll, right?»
She looks confused.
I ask again, «Are you charging for the 2^nd eel roll?»
«Yes.»
“Uhm, I asked for it for free.“
She thinks for a while. «Oh, okay then.»
She brings our bento boxes out, and in the process knocks a tempura prawn off the plate and onto the table. She offers to bring out another prawn.
We dine quickly and pay (I know, right?), then find another waitress, and request to speak with the manager. The punchline of this entire joke of an experience? Our waitress WAS the manager!
I wouldn’t come back here if you paid me.

I don’t know if it’s been a while since I had sushi but the sushi I had last night was not great. I wouldn’t say bad, just not great. I met a fellow Unilocaler, Grace for dinner with my partner Brian and I chose this place because of Happy Hour and hoping to get a great meal, good prices and wonderful conversation. Well 2 out of 3 is not bad.
Can’t fault the service nor the attention. However, I just feel that the sushi could have been better. We didn’t order very much food 4 Sushi Rolls, 2 Nigiri, some sake and the Gyoza (fried) vegetables only.
Gyoza starter was okay not excellent, the sauce provided was barely ¹⁄₃ of the oversized serving bowl which only highlights the lack of dipping sauce.
Sushi came on time but not wowed in the taste department. Left over too much — Caterpillar, Rainbow, Spider and Eel roll — none were satisfying enough for the sushi palate.
I know our server was trying to clean up fast but she removed the separate plate that was empty except for the wasabi and ginger in it eventhough we had plenty of sushi left to use those condiments.
I am seriously becoming more critical of food despite my lack of expertise because the economy has all of us on the edge on how we spend our money. So if I go out, I want to enjoy not only the company, the conversation but also the food.
Recommended? Nah. better off going across to the cheaper Ichiban when they have the happy hour.

I had lunch here with an old friend today and discovered a new favorite happy hour spot. We were enthusiastically greeted and took a seat at the sushi bar. As we were the only guests, I briefly thought about the fresh-​factor. A preview of the seafood at the sushi bar assured me we would be eating delicious fresh food from the sea.
So many specials to choose from: 99 cent hot sake all day long. 30% off all sushi during happy hour, great lunch combos and reasonably priced rolls all translate into «recession-​friendly» restaurant.
What we ate: vegetable tempura with a hot tempura sauce with fresh grated ginger and tempura’d rice sticks that looked like a tree coated in fluffy snow baron of it’s leaves in the wintry months. It was, in fact, a work of art. Next up: miso soup — lovely warm, ocean-​esque seaweed presence. Add a hot sake ~ no complaints. Ready for some rolls: spicy tuna roll and the AWESOME seared albacore roll. Both were delicious and the albacore roll’s presentation was beautiful.
The staff was friendly and efficient and the room filled up as lunchtime progressed. I will definitely go back for their happy hour as I know the rolls are worth it and at 30% off, why wouldn’t you? And by all standards, an all day 99 cent sake special is impressive.
With so many sushi restaurants dotted around San Diego, many get lost in the landscape, especially when they are tucked into the corner of a strip mall like Ichiban on the Rocks. Regardless, it is worth venturing out to and hey, parking is free too!

My friend and his girlfriend came down to visit from Los Angeles, and we decided to all go out to lunch.
Ichiban on the Rocks has great friendly service. We were greeted the minute we walked in the door, with a smile. Drink orders were taken right away. We looked through the menu, and marked down our choices on the paper provided. When our waitress came back, she double checked our orders, asked if we wanted soup or salad, and away she went.
Our drinks and soups/​salads were out with the quickness. I enjoyed the miso soup a lot. My friend’s girlfriend raved about the salad, while Eric through it was just okay — he thought the ginger dressing was a bit much.
Our sushi and rolls came with the quickness, and everything was delicious. Among our choices: Spicy Tuna Roll, Crunchy Tiger Roll, California Roll, Crunchy Roll, and a couple pieces of nigiri (I personally had the freshwater eel and enjoyed it).
Our total was about $ 25 per person before tip — and that was for either our soup or salad, we each had a beer, and our mass quantities of sushi. We were all stuffed afterwards — and very happy.
I snagged a take out menu when I left, so that one of these days I can get some to go!

When I was on my search for the perfect Miso soup this place won — its reasonablly priced and has the perfect amount of salt taste, tofu, and seaweed.
The sushi wasn’t bad either.

Ok, I should add a disclaimer, this gets an extra star of nostalgic value.
I’d won a bit of dough at one of our local Casino megaplexes, and wanted to take this guy I’d just met out on our first «date» with my winnings. We stopped at Urban Solace (one of the better date places in San Diego, I feel) but arrived 20 minutes before closing, and even through my magical powers of persuasion, I was unable to secure us a table. We opted to drive around and look for something that was open, and happened upon Ichiban on the Rocks. By this time, they were also getting ready to close, but made no fuss about seating us anyway.
The cold unfiltered nigiri sake was delish, but it doesn’t really speak to their skills as a sushi restaurant. Our sashimi was mildly slimy and smelled a bit too much like Ranch 99’s meat seafood area. Rolls were padded with rice and I believe a random piece of asparagus. For the prices, we were cheated out of actual raw fish in our rolls. The seaweed salad was pretty decent, though the crunchy roll was over-​stuffed with imitation crab. The rainbow roll and caterpillar rolls were forgettable.
The nostalgia however, is two-​fold:
1. Immediately following the date, we returned to his apartment to find his roommate’s cat deceased under the couch. Madness, sobbing, frantic phonecalls, and my heroic handling of a stiff feline corpse ensued, while I debated rushing for the door, never to return.
2. We got married six weeks later.

To put it simply: VERY low quality sushi for good quality prices. It would get one star, but I didn’t get food poisoning or anything here. I would take Ichiban across the street over this place ANY DAY! Very appropriate that this place is called Ichiban ON THE ROCKS… hopefully an indication that they are on the rocks and about to disappear.
I tried 3 rolls: spicy tuna, Philly, and unagi. In all three, the size of the fish was comparable to… let’s see… head of a pin would be too mean, but a dime would be WAY too generous. A pencil eraser would be about right. That’s an accurate estimation of the size of the pathetic fish here. In the Philly roll, the cream cheese was 3 times as big as the piece of salmon. The rice was not good, and neither was the seaweed.
Service: Slow, and not so friendly. We ordered 2 beers, but decided we wanted to switch it to one large beer. As the waiter was rushing around, we said «excuse me.» He looked at us, and said «one minute,» with the «hold on» finger motion. And he came back a few minutes later with the 2 beers. Now… as a server, don’t you think that if someone flags you down after they just ordered drinks, you might want to see what they were going to say before you grab their drinks?
Blah Blah Blah… describes the food, service, prices, and what my words would be if I attempted to say anything else about this waste of space sushi place.

I gave this place three stars because it just doesn’t stand out. It is better than Ichiban across the street. However, the sushi here is not cheap, and does not have any flair.
With so many sushi places to choose from in San Diego, you’ve got to stand out. Sorry Ichiban on the Rocks.

First impressions usually make a lasting impression. That’s what happened to me at Ichiban on the Rocks.
I just had a pretty bad weekend, so my cousin was nice enough to take me out to dinner. Nothing like emotional eating to get my mind out of a funk. She raved about how much she and her boyfriend loved the place. I was a bit skeptical because we don’t see eye to eye about sushi. But, hell, she was buying. Who am I to complain?
We scored seats at the sushi bar and before I know it, we were both being entertained by our Japanese sushi chef. Though most people tend to lean more towards rolls, we actually stuck to the sashimi menu.
I gotta admit, by the end of the night, I was really pleased with everything I ate. Even the monk fish liver, one of their seasonal dishes! I don’t even like liver in ANY form. As we tried every dish, we were able to question our awesome chef about his creations. I mean, really, miso mousse? Flavored sake and chardonnay jelly cubes? Sashimi with a jalapeño sauce? I couldn’t help but feel like a judge on Iron Chef, asking about the different elements of the dishes. Asking him about how he came up with his dishes. He was highly entertaining, even saying once ‘I was drunk out of my mind when I came up with that one.’ Awesome.
Place is clean. Sashimi is extremely fresh. If you don’t want to commit to any one sashimi dish, Ichiban offers a sampler option. I can’t comment on the other items, as I didn’t even try them. Sushi chef — very friendly and entertaining. Price is moderate, but worth it. Between the 2 of us it was $ 65, after ordering 7 – 8 different items, including 2 sampler plates. Parking in the area sucks, so you might be better off finding street parking. Overall, the place is awesome. Can’t wait until the next time to visit again!

I came here with some fellow Unilocalers after the Elite event last night. I ordered the teriyaki chicken plate that also came with some tempura fried items, Miso soup and rice. Yum!!! Everything was great. The staff was amazingly nice even though we strolled in close to closing time. They didn’t hurry us and didn’t have a cow when we asked them to split our check on 6 different cards. Now thats’s what I’m talking about.

I am a sushi snob, I have read the other reviewers here and I have to agree with them. Some of their sushi is not very good, bland or filled with Krazy Krab that even North Park Sushi likes to use. I am sooooo allergic to that stuff. Anyhow, I like this place better than NPS because the Sushi Chef, Mickey-​san is very talented. He has his own menu that is not part of their regular menu. I like the grilled ahi soaked in terriyaki and hot mustard, he chops up avocado, tomatos and onions sprinkles them on top. Tonight I am going to try the Yellowtail dish with Jalapeño that he has created. I DO NOT recommend the sashimi, their Americanized sushi rolls but I do however, suggest that you try the items off of his other menu. Mickey does not work on Wednesday nights but he is at the sushi bar about 5 days a week. Satruday and Sunday’s he works the floor.
Yes there are better places out there, if someone can recommend one to me I would love it since I enjoy fresh sushimi. Anyhow, I come here 2x’s a month and do like it better than NP Sushi right now.