Ken Sushi Workshop

I came here the other night with two coworkers and we all enjoyed our meal but for the price point I expected a little more. Their specialty rolls on the menu are $ 20 — $ 25 and we ordered the speciality scallop roll, a non-​menu speciality eel roll ($ 15) and then spicy tuna roll, and 5 pieces of yellowtail sashimi ($ 18). I felt like the portion of the rolls were on the smaller less filling side compared to the higher price point. All in all quality of fish was good and rolls were tasty but probably not worth the money.

Ken is amazing!
If you wanna feel at home come try it out! Fish is sooo fresh and delicious!
It’s so personalized you feel at home!!!
Ask for the bar and you won’t regret it!
Couldn’t of been more happy,…beware favorite spot!!!

Uni, Toro and black truffle nigiri. Enough said. This place is THE BEST, hands down! (Sorry, Sushi Ota)

The Experience I had to Ken’s was spectacular. I really enjoyed the service of the hostess and my waitress. At first, I was sitting outside, but as the wind picked up, it got cold and I asked if I could be moved inside. They gave me their first open table and even offered blankets for customers sitting outside.
The Food is the best quality sushi I have found in the Del Mar/​Torrey Pines area.
I came for dinner but I would strongly recommend coming for their lunch special. Worth the price and quality of fresh sushi! For dinner, I would recommend the chirashi bowl (not listed on the menu).

So Ken came from Sushi Ota, my favorite sushi restaurant. So I figured Ken’s sushi restaurant should be great as well.
Unfortunately, while the sushi did taste great, the prices were not justified. Having ordered the Chef’s Choice sushi, the entire course was presented all at once and there was no guidance on whether to dip the sushi in soy sauce or whether to add wasabi (or actually, much cheaper horse radish disguised as much pricier wasabi). Contrastly, Sushi Ota presented sushi one at a time, timing the next sushi so it’s completed by the time I finish my current sushi – this ensures both the optimum temperature and more importantly the progression in flavor and texture; additionally, Sushi Ota also recommends whether to dip in soy sauce (the right amount of wasabi is already added by the chef).
Ken Sushi Workshop would get a higher rating if I didn’t have to pay for service that Sushi Ota offers that Ken Sushi Workshop didn’t. To increase the rating, either decrease prices or increase the quality of service.

Went to Kens with a sushi aficionado who told me this was the place to go. We ordered a wide variety of stuff for our table of 7. I am not a sashimi fan normally but tried a bunch that was fantastic. Everything I tried was really good, udon, rolls, etc
Service was attentive, we couldn’t get inside so are outside which isn’t great since you are overlooking a highway and lose the sushi chef vibe but other than that highly recommend. Fantastic food and service.

Had an amazing dinner here. I recommend the oysters. My favorite was the the toll of the day: spicy salmon pan out coconut shrimp and avocado on the inside, seared salmon, jalapeño, spicy mayo and eel sauce on the outside = WOW!!!

Simply the best. Our second time here. We were here when they first opened, and the place was empty. Now, it’s packed. That should tell you something.
Tonight, we had the Tomiko bowl again. And Surfs Up. Then, I saw a picture of some creation on the Unilocal review that included spicy tuna, white tuna, cilantro, chili, jalapeño, and truffle. I asked them to make it. I’ll include a picture so you need not use your imagination. Anyway, your imagination could never predict how amazing this role would taste.
A solid five star performance tonight

Ken Sushi Workshop is hands down the best sushi spot in this area. It’s located in an office park– not your typical sushi restaurant, but the sushi quality is absolutely on point. I definitely advise calling ahead for a reservation, especially if yo need a highchair because they only have one.
The restaurant itself is smaller– sushi bar, small dining area and outdoor patio (with heat lamps and umbrellas). Each time I’ve been here the servers have been awesome, they definitely have great staff.
The quality of the fish is top notch. Everything I’ve tried here, from the blue fin to the albacore has been fantastic. They have a great mix of specialty rolls that are unique combinations that you wouldn’t find elsewhere to classic sashimi options. Some of the best fish I’ve had in San Diego, if not the best.
Their hours are odd, so I always say call ahead before showing up (not open for lunch on weekends currently). Definitely give this place a try, you won’t regret it!

Pricey, but worth it for the fresh fish and delicious food. I would frequent this spot for lunch but I would be poor. =P
Get here early to beat the lunch crowd… or take a later lunch to avoid the crowd. Other venues are in the area if you don’t feel like waiting.

We mainly ordered nigiri sushi for dinner today. Sharing photos as below. The Chu toro is so fresh and juicy, feeling like when you put it into your mouth, it melts on your tongue. I’m a big fan of salmon egg /​ikula, it’s fresh!
I also ordered sweet shrimp, but I’m not sure if it should be one shrimp per order or two shrimps per order, as I had sweet shrimp sushi at other places, it’s one shrimp on one sushi rice, but here I only got half shrimp on one sushi rice, which made me feel double charged…
I like the green tea cream brûlée, creamy and not too sweet.

CALLING ALL SUSHI LOVERS! Ken’s is the place to be! Oh. My. Gosh. I had THE best dining experience tonight. They were slammed but were on top of things as much as they could be. The staff is so polite and friendly. The chefs are adorable and seem to absolutely love what they do, which is to provide art you eat! We got the omakase (spelling?) for $ 150 (we were starving and felt like splurging a little :)). It was SOOO GOOD. Everything they presented was creative and tasty. It’s not like anything I’ve ever had before, and I’ve been to many sushi places! My ultimate favorite of the night was the toro, uni, truffle nigiri (not on the menu) and it’s a MUST-​HAVE! It was sushi heaven and I wish I could eat 6 more pieces! The other interesting dish was the foie gras (duck fat liver). It was melt-​in-​your-​mouth awesome! Holy moly I’m getting hungry again thinking about everything. *wipes drool*
If you’re not wanting to spend $ 150 on dinner, easily order anything on the menu and you’ll be satisfied. I am most freaking definitely coming back. I can’t eat anywhere else when I’m craving a legit, fresh, sushi meal. I thank the sushi gods for this place! Ken, you’re the man! see you real soon!

It’s our first time going to this restaurant. Trusting the Unilocal reviews and the fact that Ken worked at Sushi Ota before, we dove in and got the Love Omakase. Given that this is not a regular folk’s everyday sushi restaurant which comes with a pretty high price tag ($ 95/​head), we were so glad our Love omakase experience came out to be very enjoyable. Come with an open mind and minimal homework to let him surprise you with delicious food! (I still posted the pics but they might ruin the element of surprise.)
The service was friendly and attentive. The hostess greeted us with a smile and asked for our reservation. We were, per our request, seated at the sushi bar with Ken serving us. Our server and Ken both gave us a warm welcome.
We came here mainly for omakase but were surprised to see it was laid out like a prix fixe menu with two options, the Love and the Pride. The Pride costs an extra $ 25/​head and comes with 2 to 3 additional courses and one of which being the scallops. We decided to get the Love and see how it goes.
Everything was fresh, delicious and exquisitely executed. For people with a regular appetite, I’d say this 7-​course meal comes with a good variety and is enough to feed you.
It was a very enjoyable dinner and I’d definitely come back to try their other items!

Stick with sushi here.
If you have dietary restrictions, they will customize rolls to your liking, it’s great how they give you a lot of product and not much rice. Even the salmon belly nigiri, had a long extension of fish, I had to take several bites, but I could have done without the addition of sesame. The chuturo was some of the best I have had.
I found the cooked sea bass a bit dry in texture and overly firm.
Nice touch: they provide purse hangers.

Ken’s Sushi Workshop has a fun, clever name written all over it. It sort of reminds me of Willy’s Workshop in a way. which was a skate shop in PQ. This Carmel Valley sushi spot is on El Camino Real near the 5 and 56. I came here on a Friday night and the sushi tasted excellent, but the price did not not seem worth it. The specialty rolls were $ 20-​$ 25 which is worth it maybe at a fancy place like Ra Sushi or Harney Sushi, but not Ken Sushi Workshop. I ended up getting bottle of Sake which was a bit overpriced. and regular sushi rolls:
–Masumi Okuden Kantsukuri Sake: $ 25
–Eel Roll: $ 6
–Philly and Crunch Roll: $ 10-​$ 12 each
The sake paired well with the sushi (I went to town with the sake vs the specialty rolls) and it tasted smooth, and the sushi were tasted good quality and had neat presentation. The service was fine and I was helped by Janice that evening. The ambiance is trendy, and seemed busy since it is a smaller restaurant.
Overall, a good option for sushi in the area. although I prefer Gami Sushi over this location.

This place is definitely one of the best. The sushi is as fresh as it gets! I’ve only been here for lunch and consistently order the lunch sushi sampler (I think it’s about $ 12). So worth it — even comes with a bowl of miso soup to start. An important piece of the sampler is a crunchy rice with spicy tuna on top, I could eat a whole plateful!
The staff is extremely friendly and accommodating, especially if you sit at the bar and get to talk to the sushi chefs. The whole restaurant feels nice and clean, with a relaxing ambiance. It’s a great place to come for lunch in the middle of the day.
I’ve always managed to find a parking spot, but I can imagine that it gets tough. Even though it’s a private lot, it is very small and really no street parking available.

Best sushi in town. I’ve been to Ota which many compare to. Their qualities are similar in having amazing fish, but Ken takes it up a notch being a little more contemporary. The inside reminds me of a New York restaurant.
We always order some of the same things which have all been fantastic. Amberjack,
Golden Eye, spicy seafood salad, and anything Ken or Janice suggest

We came here after some wine tasting since it was kind of nearby even though we already had dinner before that. We sat at the sushi bar and ended up getting the and kobe beef sashimi, Mango a go go roll, Oh no but oh yess roll, and the workshop roll. Everything was so fresh, light, and yummy. The presentation was nice too and I loved every bite of my second dinner! The workshop roll is the Chef’s special of the day, so the roll we got looked like it had pieces of candy on top!
Service was okay. There was one guy that must be new, so when we asked Sriracha, he didn’t know if they had that… and when we asked to see the dessert menu, he gave us the regular menu. He was nice and friendly though. I’ll definitely be back and will save my stomach to try the Pride omakase next time!

I went today with two friends and we had a great meal. We ordered 4 different type of sushis and I ordered a Miso Soup.
I must say the Miso Soup was perfectly done, delicious, and the sushi we all agreed was the best one was called Crispy Rice.
The other things we ordered were tasty, but nothing special.
The place is clean and the service is good. I did not pay so I can’t nothing about the price.

I came here for lunch recently and will definitely be back.
There are great lunch specials at very resonable prices. This is a much more expensive place for dinner, but lunch, i can afford.
The fish is so fresh! I got the sushi sampler and it was the perfect amount of food. They had the crunchy rice with spicy tuna on top which was to die for. The meal also came with miso soup to start. Definitely try this place out!