Ino Sushi

I am so bummed this place closed. Ino wasn’t the nicest guy on earth, and definitely not representational of most Japanese personalities that I know, but his sushi was phenomenal with his rice being the best in San Francisco and probably better than most sushi in Japan. (Put it this way, I was shocked at how bad the rice was at Maruya and Wako in comparison – tasteless and even overcooked.) It’s a damned shame we lost him to a golfing retirement and a total bust to the SF sushi scene. But what really drives me crazy is that he leaves this places with only 3.5 stars. Like wft? This totally validates that fact that the masses in SF have absolutely no friggin’ idea what they are talking about when they rate sushi. So bummed about this. Ino come back somewhere, somehow and make us some rice!

A tiny little awesome sushi place run by a husband and wife team. They have announced they are retiring so they won’t be open too much longer.
It’s very old school. The sushi chef doesn’t like you taking pictures of their food and will sometimes tell you to stop. So much for Unilocal exposure.
The sushi is very fresh. The presentation is sometimes a little rushed, but that is part of the charm of the experience.
The wasabi is generously pre-​applied by the sushi chef which I love, but it can be strong for those that are used to adding it themselves.
The Ankimo (monk fish liver) is really really good.
I love this place, it has great character.

the sushi. is excellent. hands down the most creamy ankimo i’ve ever had in the states. it’s delicious. the uni and toro — just as yummmm. my forever sushi date and i came on a thursday evening around 630 and there was ALL THESE SEATS open. somewhat unexpected because it’s a small establishment and the reviews are so good. we got a variety of other nigiri and sashimi — all very good. i will say that mr. ino uses wasabi very liberally — and my sushi date does not handle that very well — so he was kind enough to not put any on our 2^nd and 3^rd orders — which im sure he did disgruntledly. ha. overall great sushi — i will probably be back. probably, though i got a bit anxious at times when ordering because mr. ino is a relatlvely stern man who rarely smiles…

Clearly, I’m behind on the times. Not only do I not get all of the newest slang (seriously don’t get the «on fleek» thing), but I still haven’t tried many of the city’s hot spots that so many have already reviewed (hello, Brenda’s). Among those would have to be Ino Sushi — not as popular as some of the other traditional sushi spots that have opened in SF, but one of the earlier ones that has been relatively well-​regarded over the years.
Located inside the East Building of the mall (the one that Daiso is in), Ino is a tiny spot that is very easy to miss (we walked by without even realizing it). However, its cozy confines give it some of its charm, much like with Tekka in the Richmond. And like my trip to Tekka, my friend and I were able to snag the last two seats despite walking in at 8:00pm. Granted, they were at a table instead of the sushi bar, but at least we were able to get seats!
Unlike typical Japanese restaurants, especially those in and around Japantown, Ino’s menu is essentially limited to just sushi and sashimi. However, the range of what they offer is more extensive than some of the other traditional joints I’ve been to in SF. Since omakase wasn’t an option for us though (hence it’s better to sit at the bar), we had to pick our own array of items
— Ankimo Nigiri (Monkfish Liver)
— Hotate (Scallop)
— Magurozuke (Marinated Tuna)
— Toro (Fatty Tuna)
— Hamachi (Yellowtail)
— Ika Geso (Squid Legs)
— Uni (Sea Urchin)
— Spicy Salmon Roll
Out of everything that we ordered, my friend and I agreed on two things. First, the Spicy Salmon Roll wasn’t very good, though, to be fair, I think that about all «spicy fish» rolls (you taste nothing but spice and they seem like a waste of product). Second, believe the Ankimo hype — sizable cuts that are rich, flavorful, and delicious (we even added a second order).
As for the rest of the nigiri, I felt like most of it was decent enough, though my friend felt it was underwhelming overall («fresh, but not super tasty»). Admittedly, I’d skip the Ika Geso (bland) and Magurozuke (didn’t care for the marinade), and the Hamachi and Uni were good yet a bit pricey. The Hotate was pretty solid, however, and the Toro was great (cuz, you know… Toro).
Compared to a lot of the other traditional sushi spots that have been opening up lately, I’d say Ino is slightly better than average, but not by leaps and bounds (mostly due to price). While there are still a bunch of them that I need to try, Tekka would be go to spot at this point. In comparison, the menu here is slightly larger, and seating is relatively easier, but Tekka’s portions, prices, and freshness win out for me.
More THREE AND A HALF STARS than four, but more four than three.

I don’t know what everyone else was talking about but the chef here was nice and professional! Sure, he may not be as friendly or sociable as other chefs at other restaurants in san francisco but that’s also not abnormal in terms of japanese tradition!
His sushi is fresh and his rice has the right amount of salty and sweet. Loved the ankimo, it literally (not be like every other foodie) melts as you eat it. The uni was good here as well, always a solid choice.
He piles the sushi pretty quickly (the first few came 4 at a time) and he won’t wait until you’re finished before he places the next set but in no manner does he make you feel like you need to eat it faster.
Definitely a solid choice if you’re craving good (though not cheap) traditional sushi in japantown. Too bad he’s retiring soon :(

This place reminds me of Tekka on Balboa. Strict rules, but it’s not clearly shown. However, Unilocal reviews says it all. We were hesitant to do anything wrong, and was quite relieved when we actually received a smile or two from the chef.
We ordered the omakase, 11 pieces for $ 55. Not bad with decent sized pieces with just enough rice. Most of the fish were quite fresh, except one or two of them. There was a bit too much wasabi for me in the first few, so I had to (hesitantly) ask for less, in which I was able to enjoy the rest of the pieces more comfortably. The best must have been the ankimo, the flavor is amazing, we ordered a second serving of it afterwards.
The chef is quick and he doesn’t wait for you to finish each piece. And each piece isn’t decadently made or decorated like some of those fancy expensive sushi joints that kept popping up a few years ago.
We read somewhere they’re changing ownership, so be brave and make a reservation and come by to try the ankimo. Ino Sushi is an experience to be tried at least once.

Let me start off by saying that this place is small and you NEED reservations (or be a regular) in order to guarantee yourself a spot. With that said, the sweet elderly couple allowed me and my friend in without reservation — maybe they felt sorry for two girls who looked very disappointed when they said they were pretty booked. Who knows…
Anyway, the prices are quite high, but the quality of the food is SUPERB and they offer other options not on the menu if you ask. But keep in mind that there is quite the amount of wasabi in each piece of nigiri so be prepared to have all your sinuses cleared up.
This is definitely the type of place you would want to go to impress someone with good quality sushi (and have the money for it) or just to experience a fairly authentic setting at the sushi bar. I will be back the next time I want to splurge for delicious sushi!

Very FRESH fish. Love the Hirame and the sushi rice although the wasabi was a bit heavy.
Definitely expensive though. And not quite fond of Ino regularly barking at his wife.

Pluses: centrally located in Japantown (the Daiso side), authentically Japanese! Great ambience small intimate Authentic Japanese sushi ya setting. Great Hotate (scallop), toro tuna. Wooden natural wood interior.
Minuses: the sushi is not amazing and the place is pricey $$$ $ 240 for 4 people.
Etiquette: no cell phone, there’s a minimum per person on the counter versus table ($ 20 for the table)
Serious Japanese service so not a lot of small talk

I’ve been coming to Ino once or twice a year, for the past 4 years. I like the mom and pop establishment — it’s a no frills, just sushi, kind of place. Quality is not the most premium, but it’s always been solid.
Tonight, after a 1 year hiatus, I was quite disappointed with what I returned to. Quality has gone down hill and the service a little worse. That’s not the reason why I leave such a bad review. My overall experience was rather nice, especially with a good group of people.
However, I dropped $ 250 for dinner. Within 10 minutes of walking out the door, the sushi chef/​owner personally called me and asked why I didn’t show up for my 7pm reservation.
«What? You must be mistaken. I was just there.»
But he didn’t care to listen.
«Don’t call. And don’t come back again.» Click.
Ok. Sadly, I won’t.
***Maybe I’m being too sensitive. But a lot of money makes me sensitive, especially when I’ve been such a fan of the place. It’s still worth a visit! Even better if you speak Japanese.

So. My friends wanted to try this place since we believe we won’t find the good places unless we try new places.
This was not a good experience. The old lady waitress was nice, but she had long finger nails and it had something green in it, kinda like the same color as the green tea. Thats a big minus for me. I like people who serves me food to have short and clean nails.
It was our first time there, but we were warned by reviewers of the long list of rules there. We ordered quite a few food, when they came through, the old lady tried explaining to us which were the fishes. Then Ino started yelling at her i think he wanted her to stop talking to us, and i think shes trying to tell him that shes trying to explain which fish was what to us. We appreciated her effort, and we knew what most of them were. We just told her, its ok, dont worry about it. The whole unnecessary yelling was not welcome either but since we’re prepared for that, we still tried to keep positive.
Food came, the order seems off, part of the nigiri we ordered were two salmon and 1 shrimp but we got 2 shrimp and 1 salmon instead. Out of fear of being screamed at again, we just ate them. We always like taking pictures of our food so we can pinpoint which ones we liked and will order the next time if we do come back (which I can safely say most likely not). When we had our first bite, the wasabi that was inside the nigiri was so strong, good thing we had tea and water. He puts a lot of wasabi inside, its so strong that you cant enjoy the flavor of the fresh fish.
Good thing we took pictures of our order, because we pointed out to the lady that there was a nigiri that we didn’t get. She said she gave it to us but luckily we showed her a picture and it was not on our plate. She smiled and said «oh you guys have proof» and we said we didnt feel we needed to take proof, just like taking pictures and just so happens it proved we didnt get the fish we ordered. Ino heard and first we were just gonna cancel it and we said lets just get it to avoid anymore hassle.
We finished our food and we were not even close to being decently filled (we went to burger king after since everywhere else was busy), there was no breakdown of the bill, but we were just aching to end that experience already.
The monkfish liver tasted great although it looked like they were falling apart. Im not sure what customers liked about this place. I still love Sushi Sam’s Edomata in San Mateo. Dont waste your money here but if you wanna try it yourself, you’ve been warned.

Five minute assholery at Ino.
At 8:30p on a Saturday we encountered a gracious, welcoming hostess; a clean, surgically lit, small space seating for 15 – 20; and minimum charges of $ 20 for a table and $ 30 for the sushi bar. We took the sushi bar and a bottle of Daiginjo. 2 minutes later the sushi «chef» drama started.
Asked us if we were ready and I asked for 2 more minutes to unwind. He looked unhappy. We placed our order — all Nigiri sushi — and he started slapping down pieces on the sushi bar. Asked if he had low sodium soy — «NO!» and if we could get some wasabi — «INSIDE!» Having been to a few sushi restaurants around the world, this should have been a red flag. No real sushi chef tells a customer how much wasabi should be in his nigiri. This was pre-​made with «wasabi» inside. At this point he also started shouting in Japanese at the hostess across the counter, spit bubbles making their way across the glass — red flag #2.
2 more minutes into it, as my partner was expertly manipulating her chopsticks to bite into her maguro and save half for me, the chef came up to her face and bellowed «ONE BITE ONLY» at which point she tried to explain she understands, but wants me to try her roll as well. He kept shouting. We stood up, told him and the kind hostess (hope it’s not his unfortunate wife) we did not want food from an unhappy man shouting at us across the counter because it goes against the basic principles of preparing sushi, and left. He bellowed behind us «GO HOME!» in his single working volume.
In the five minutes I tried half of an ankimo nigiri that had too much rice, but the liver was tasty and succulent. She tried half of the tuna which was very good. Ino needs to shut down. There’s no space for shouty chefs using their hands to slop food down on a counter while shouting at their wives and guests, in San Francisco.

Sushi:
–Ankimo liver was the smoothest and most savory I’ve ever had
–Superior quality ikura and uni
–Too wasabi-​happy with a few pieces that made me hold my tears in fear (see below), but good sushi across the board
Setting:
–Small sushi bar with just Ino and his wife
–Yes Ino does drop the sushi right onto the bar but not like feeding a dog like some reviews have mentioned unless you lick it up like a dog
Price:
-$ 30 minimum per 20 minutes at the sushi bar, $ 30 minimum per 30 minutes at a table
-$ 68 excluding tips for around 8 sets of delicious nigiri, very reasonably priced overall for the quality
Fear:
–Read from a lot of reviews about the notoriously «mean» Ino-​san before coming by myself dining in the middle of the empty sushi bar in complete silence with Ino-​san for 30 of my most nerve-​wrecking dining minutes
–Upon weating, I was about to pour the soy sauce into the tray the soy sauce pot sat on until Ino suddenly stopped me and made me realize that was not the sauce tray and made me fear that I’d already fallen onto Ino’s shitlist
–Forgot to take a lot of pics out of fear
–Held my tears out of fear after eating a few wasabi-​happy nigiri (might be Ino’s test to weed out the noobs, and I didn’t want to fail him)
–Was on my best behavior throughout the meal as if meeting in-​laws. Felt like I was in Japanese Poseidon’s grace when Ino cracked a few smiles.
–20min after the meal I’m still trembling from fear aftershock
Overall, one of the best no-​frills sushi joints for the price.

Ok, straight up: THE BEST NIGIRI EVER! However, also THE WORST SERVICE EVER!!! So many rules to dining that it felt rushed and stressful rather than relaxing.
**RULES OF DINING**:
-$ 30 min a person at the sushi bar, $ 20 min per person at a table
–when ordering from the sushi bar the grumpy rude and short tempered low patience chef will tell you that you must order two items at once. You can not order one fish at a time.
–I guess reservations are key but luckily my family and I were seated in a few minutes.
**CONS**
–the whole place holds less than 20 people
–when the bill comes it DOES NOT TELL YOU YOUR ORDER! It will simply say «sushi» and then a crazy ass number next to it. In my opinion: keep track of what you order because they won’t have that on your bill
–THEY WILL NOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH SEASONAL ITEMS ARE! Some items have no price and they will continue to not have a price on your bill. How much they charged me for those seasonal items I will never know
–They will also not tell you how much their «off the menu» items are. How much I paid for something not listed on the menu I will never know. $ 10, $ 12, $ 20, who knows.
–the chef is mean! I said thank you and he DOESNT EVEN LOOK at me or acknowledge that I said the food was good. I really don’t care if that’s «what they do» or «how they act». If someone says thanks you should say SOMETHING back!
–when he plops your nigiri on the bar top (yes the bar top, there are no plates here) he LITERALLY DROPS IT to the point where my family and I felt like he was feeding a dog. The couple next to us ordered a roll and he dropped the rolls so rudely and forcefully on the bar that they unraveled!
**PROS**
–best fish I’ve ever had. Spanish mackerel was amazing, not even the faintest taste of fishiness.
–great off the menu selection: If you point and ask he will tell you what it is. Sea snail is great as well as some kind of squid head thing with eel sauce on it
The fish was so amazing. Too bad it was nearly ruined by this chef’s shitty attitude and rude demeanor. $ 220 total for 3 people. I’m sure there are other places where the food is just as good and costs the same (or maybe less) BUT WITH A NICER SUSHI CHEF!

Ino Sushi, a very cute but frustrating experience for me.
I heard that you had to make reservations for this place, so I called in around 4:30pm to book a table for 2 at 8:15pm. Ino-​san answered and sounded extremely irritated and annoyed):
You first go through a very short hallway-​like entrance, where you enter the restaurant area. It’s pretty small, probably able to seat around 25 people.
I said my experience was cute but frustrating because Ino-san’s wife is the waitress, and she is a very old and sweet Japanese lady. My mother asked for tea 3 times, but she either forgot or gave it to the wrong table. It was also hard for us to get her attention to take our order. But it’s okay because she’s a cutie (:
:Nigiri Sushi:
–Sake ($ 7 per order): mmm the salmon was fresh and delicious. I really like how it just melted in my mouth and tasted so damn good you know?!
–Hamachi ($ 7 per order): this was mediocre. I’ve definitely had better at other restaurants, for a much cheaper price as well.
–Maguro ($ 7 per order): tuna has never been my type of fish, so I didn’t have any, but it looked way better and fresher than the maguro in the deluxce combination that we ordered.
–Ankimo ($ 6 per order): now, I know that a lot of people have raved about this, but I honestly don’t think that it’s that good. Please don’t hate me lol. Maybe it was an off day for them or something like that, but the ankimo was dry. It’s supposed to be creamy and buttery, but ours was lacking in that area. It was very smooth, just not moist, which was a huge disappointment. Also, it had a pleasant sweetness to it, but I prefer mine savory with ponzu sauce.
:Deluxe Combination ($ 27): 8 Single Nigiri Sushi, 1 Hosomaki Roll, Miso Soup
Definitely a big NO for me. Biggest disappointment of the night, as a matter of fact. It came with 6 pieces of cucumber roll, tako, aji, ebi, hirame, hamachi, maguro, binnaga maguro, and saba.
The fish just didn’t seem fresh at all, to my surprise. The quality was also not the best, and for the price of $ 27, it was not worth it.
My table of 2’s bill came out to be a little over $ 120, but neither of us were full T_​_​T

This is my go-​to-​spot-​for Sushi when I’m in the Bay Area and I’ve got a tight schedule. I sit at the bar and get the omakase. Fresh, swift and delectable, and with minimal interaction with the staff. Usually just a nod and bow and smile to the husband and wife owners.
Not chic, fancy or pricey, but also not cheap. Just great quality sushi, and they know what I want, including my beverage.

Sigh… I don’t know what’s the deal here. It’s cute and the owners are adorable — but they like to remind you of the minimum charge and when I came in, it was a forced Omakase because they were kinda booked up… that’s fine. The fish and uni was all good and fresh (I’ve had better in SF but this was good quality for sure). Oh, did I mention this place is cute and quaint?
Ok, so enough of that… two things here. First, I don’t know why, but they put way too much wasabi on each nigiri piece which kills all the flavors. Seriously, the slab of wasabi is about ¼ that of the piece of fish. Second, you know when you sit at a sushi bar they put a little plate down or a bamboo leaf and set the nigiri and sushi down on it. Nope. Not here. The old man chef would just set it down on the lacquered wood ledge at the bar. Really… just on the table top. I’m not sure how I feel about that if not just ewh — can you really clean that between servings of raw foods? Don’t believe me? Check out all the Unilocal photos. Go ahead, click over and look… I’ll wait.

Ino is EXCELLENT. It’s very small, so be sure to make a reservation. We sat at the sushi bar and got the omakase.
Service can make you feel uncomfortable, especially since it’s a mom & pop shop, and the mom is kind of out of it, and the pop yells at the mom openly. Also, the pop won’t be nice to you if you don’t know what you’re ordering. But this might be the first time I’m not taking off any stars for service because… the sushi was… amaaaaazing!!! Fish, shrimp, and fish liver never tasted so good!
Get the omakase. You won’t regret it.

Ino Dreams of Sushi?!
Came here at 5pm w/​no reservation after biking to Sausalito and received an incredulous look from Ino-san’s wife upon entering. «No reservation? $ 30 min per person -.-» Ok, ok, I’ll remember a change of clothes next time I don’t want to be treated as a hooligan but we weren’t expecting to eat in the city.
She seated us immediately and we both ordered sake & omakase. Apparently you are supposed to eat this with your hands and dip lightly in soy sauce. Perfect, I love eating with my hands!
Watch this video to get schooled:
Sashimi is very high grade and the rice has the right texture + stickiness. Of course I love gonads so I was delighted when I tasted the slightly firm yet creamy, sweet uni. Bigger pores=fresher uni. When I wrapped my lips around that nigiri, I felt as if I kissed a mermaid.
I ordered another round of toro after finishing my omakase. The cool, buttery fish melts in your mouth and will make your taste buds dance in bluefin heaven. :)
The wife forgot our order twice and seemed a little out of it. She then brought it to the wrong table when she finally remembered and didn’t bring the waters I asked for. Ino scolded her in Japanese for it. Oh, domestic bliss.
Use your indoor voice because this place is tiny and you can literally hear a pin drop (well, I dropped my Unilocalstick but close enough). Don’t expect schmancy rolls or warm service; Ino-​san is here to serve you the best sushi and has no interest in conversing with you. Overall, an unpretentious omakase experience!

I am in love with San Francisco’s Japantown. Yet, during last weekend’s JPop Summit, tens-​of-​thousands of people flocked to this quaint Westside enclave — rendering the area near-​intolerable.
It took the same time to get from San Jose to SF as it did to get from Van Ness to the Kabuki Hotel (about one mile). Further, after we arrived to the hotel entrance, we needed a police escort to move people out of the street so that we could claim one of the hotel’s 20 valet spots — the only place to park within 2 miles.
No asphalt or concrete in site from our hotel room! There was no room for oil in this sardine can! We drank our complimentary glass of wine, braced ourselves, and went from our hotel room into a sea of chaos.
This was not the Japantown I know… Lines everywhere! The shortest wait was at the Daiso dollar store which had a mere single-​filed line wrapped around the store.
Anxiety began to set in. I feared for the worst. Would we be able to eat? Would my reservations for dinner even matter? Is it possible that this nightmare would extend into the evening? In climactic fashion, the folks at Ino Sushi called me to confirm our seven o’clock reservation. I asked them to change it to five as I couldn’t imagine two more hours of mayhem on an empty stomach.
Amidst the Chaos of the Japan Center, Ino Sushi sat quiet, as usual, with only a small group of people waiting out from for the 5pm opening time. A lack of popularity? Not in the least! You see, at Ino, no festival or travel channel show could ever change the focus on craft, and craft alone, that they have been successfully sharpening for decades. As such, the Ino-san’s wife gracefully sends most would-​be patrons on their way if they do not have a reservation.
My first experience @ Ino last year taught me a great deal about sushi etiquette. Many Unilocal reviewers claim that the chef is partial, cold and often rude; however, I feel that they may not understand true sushi culture. Sushi is a celebrated art form. Patrons sitting at the glossy wood bar are spectators who look on as a culinary Rembrandt creates perfection.
This is not a social experience; however, if you allow the artist free reign by dining Omakase (meaning Chef’s Choice), you are bound to catch a smile or two from Ino-​san.
Ino-san’s selections knocked my socks off! My favorites where the Ankimo and O-​Toro; however, every bite played an important role in, this, the most amazing food experience I have ever had!
Here is a recap of etiquette I would suggest following at Ino Sushi:
Reservations: A must for getting a seat at the sushi bar.
Ordering: I know everyone has their «favorite» fish; however, ordering Omakase increases the rapport with Ino-​san and might teach you something about your palette that you didn’t already know. It’s like having a wine flight arranged for you by a master sommelier.
Dining: Don’t allow your food to sit around too long as you are «saving the best for last». My wife did this the first time and received a very strong lecture about the importance of eating the food right away. Also, don’t ask for wasabi! Each piece has a layer of wasabi which acts as a glue holding the fish to the rice. And don’t ask for no wasabi either! If you think you don’t like wasabi, you’ve probably never had the real deal! Most «wasabi» in the US is made from dyed– and powdered-​horseradish and is not nearly as refined as fresh wasabi root (which can cost as much as $ 25 for a two inch stump in the store). Lastly, Don’t speak to loudly or get impatient! This should be a blissful experience for all involved — an attitude of entitlement is not constructive.
My recent experience at Ino was quite spiritual. It was a zen-​escape from the surrounding insanity. It dramatically change the energy flow of our trip. We walked in anxious, and left well-​fed and with a feeling of ecstasy.