Kyu Sushi & Robata

I liked this place. Ate at the sushi bar by myself. It was interesting to see all female sushi chefs, and the girl who served me made great sushi. Ordered my standard hamachi nigiri and rainbow roll. Hamachi tasted fresh and they were both fairly generous cuts. The rainbow roll was quite good as well. I was still a bit hungry so I decided to try some robata for the first time. It was delicious! Overall, this place is a bit pricey but I will probably be back.

Delicious sushi! I have no complaints. Speedy service – very courteous and a nice atmosphere.
Ordered bacon mushroom kushi and a few rolls (my favorite, lion king). Last time I went it was open but it may have closed as noted in the Unilocal warning… hmm.
It was a good spot and a chill environment.

Made reservations on Open Table to go here while in town about 10 days ago, but it was CLOSED. Luckily, Sakana is just half a block down, so we went there instead.

The lights made me dizzy but our Chirashi bowl was absolutely amazinnnnngggly delicious.
Fresh, fatty, and full slices of fish were given and the bowl, though it looked small never seemed to end.
4 stars for the chirashi bowl! YAY!
And then, things took a turn):
[Grotesque Warning]
We topped it off with the Uni… which was not good at all.
I knew it would be my demise– i could feel it churning in my tummy, even though i had just a bite, I ended up having to throw up after getting home.
Honestly speaking, I was pretty sad to have to dispose of that chirashi bowl in the mix of it all):
Aside from the Uni though– service was good and everything was a o k.

Check out the back of the menu for the charbroiled skewers. Nooooommmmm.
If you’re really hungry, go early. We went on a Friday evening and they were pretty slammed. We didn’t get in until 9 (even with a reservation for 8pm). Not a complaint though – there was nothing they could do. It’s not a huge place and people tend to hang after all that sake.

Really expensive place !!! Omg !
By the way the food is good not amazing.
The waitress are not smiling and they weren’t nice with us.
But I recommend this place because it’s good portion and good.
Just be careful about the price !

I ventured up here on a whim one night in the middle of the week
I do remember this place was pretty empty but it was a bit after dinner time
The food he is pretty good but nothing to blow your socks off
The staff here was pretty friendly as well

Came here last night. Long story short, food was very good, but it took over an hour to get. Literally. No hyperbole and no exaggeration. Restaurant was not full and not very busy. Just took longer than acceptable.
In addition, waitresses and sushi chefs are not Japanese. Take that information as you wish.
Verdict: Good sushi, took way too long. Way too many options in the city to have this terrible of a dining experience.

Yeah, just three. Food was good though. I ordered two rolls, an order of nigiri sushi, and some grilled shishito peppers that were on special. I’ve been here over an hour and they have only dropped the two rolls and *just* put down the unagi nigiri sushi. Which isn’t even warm… Deducting a star for the really notgreat unagi. :(.
I don’t think I’m ever seeing those peppers. Christ sakes guys, the place isn’t even 75% full. Step up your game. I won’t be back though.

Mmm «dargon» roll.
I really enjoy this place, been here 3 times and it’s very consistently delicious. Nothing to write home about, but props for consistency and tastiness.

Great restaurant.
It’s a small place. I was surprised it wasn’t very busy on a Friday at 8:30pm.
Nice décor, good service, and we both enjoyed our food. Prices seemed downright reasonable for downtown SF sushi.
Go and enjoy.

The sashimi here was fresh and the skewers were pretty decent. However, this was all tainted by this weird, weird smell in the dining area! I thought it was just me, but then my friend mentioned it (without me even saying anything to her). It kinda soured our dining experience to say the least. The service was pretty attentive, and I think the place is run by Thai folks. Hopefully this smell was just a one-​time thing, but I don’t think this is shooting to the top of my go-​to Japanese restaurants.

Sushi is really good and fresh. Description of the food is by far the worst. They’ll have the name of the sushi and then just put like «Eel» next to it. Like. Is that all that’s in the sushi? Eel? How lazy can you be when menu making?!
Service sucks! They were rushing for us to order. What place says they’re open until 12AM, but does a last call for food at 11pm? They definitely don’t care about their customers and just want out! DO NOT PUT THAT YOU GUYS CLOSE AT 12AM IF YOUR KITCHEN CLOSES AT 11PM! That makes absolutely no sense in a restaurant.

When I lived in SF I made it a priority to find places (for both food and drink) where I did no waiting at all and that has not changed one bit these days where I don’t live in SF, but I do visit. And so, when our taxi dropped us off in front of Ryoko and people were spilling out of the stairwell into the streets I immediately started looking up alternatives nearby on my trusty Unilocal app. The next option, Sakana, was practically as crowded, but lo and behold 4 doors down was Kyu with no wait and a 4 star average. My party of 5 was immediately sat, just the thing I was hoping for.
And we weren’t jammed into a too-​small-​for-​this-​many people kind of table either. There was plenty of room for jackets, elbows, and even part of a Ms. Pac-​Man costume I was carrying around (a story for another time.)
Our server was plenty fast and plenty friendly and got us started off with water and sparkling sake right away. We then placed our order for a variety of sushi rolls (I don’t remember what was in all the rolls, but I do recommend the Toshi roll) and sashimi, miso soup and the bacon-​wrapped asparagus starter. It all came out at a lovely pace. Just as you finished sharing one dish another arrived to take its place. At the end of it all we were full and happy, and without any hangry happenings. Hooray!
I would recommend Kyu as a date spot, a girls’ night spot, or even a place for a medium sized group. They have the atmosphere for all occasions and handled our group with grace. Plus, the eats are good. What more could you need?

Sushi, STAT.
Not into waiting in the Tenderloin for your fill? Check this spot out…
Ryoko (first choice) was teeming with basement-​dwelling sushi lingerers (45 minute wait).
Sakana (second option) packed to the gills (30+ minute wait).
Kyu (new kid on the block) — no wait, let’s do this thing.
Funnily enough — you can tell a restaurant is «new-​ish» in SF when it «only» has 45 reviews. Open about a month. Yes, indeed. The power of Unilocal.
We were seated immediately near the back. A comfy table for 5, no need to bump elbows or sit in each other’s laps. The seating towards the front are all booths meant to seat 2 – 4. They have high backs and give the place a good private feel if on a date, etc. We did enjoy the back space!
I was in charge of Sake ordering (why? I am not totally sure) — and so let me say, they have a lot of options. More than I am used to. We wanted something served cold, and bubbly (it was a group of girls, after all) — and that is what we received. At $ 45/​bottle it seemed a bit steep to me, but perhaps I am not well versed in the sake world.
All the rolls that arrived were great. The pacing was good — a plate would arrive, we’d have time to share it, then the next. The sashimi sampler was quite good as well — very fresh and served over ice. Miso soup, edamame — all par for the course. Again, I wish I could tell you what rolls but I barely remember the ordering process. Suffice it to say, we were all pleased with everything.
Top it off with mochi ice cream (red bean and green tea for me!) and we’ve got ourselves a winner without a wait.

A Unilocal gem! Leave a poor review and the staff will personally reach out to you on Unilocal!Their awe-​inspiring Chef Yai K. spent his whole night harassing me with Unilocal messages for my brutal, yet honest, review of his restaurant.
Here are some of the best gold nuggets from his messages:
* Go to bed baby. U might talk too much tonight.
* Keep complain more as you can, because I happy to read and check baby.
* Please review more bad review.
* I love you ha ha ha.
I also love the feedback he gave to Roxana L. in her review: «I am the chef here. Please just never come back again» Priceless! Find it here:
.
Not too mention stealing Chotto Izakaya’s Uni Hotate special (here’s kyu’s —
now here’s chotto’s —
) — good job guys! Real inspiring stuff.
At the end of the day, Kyu Sushi & Robata is rip-​off tourist trap and thai-​japanese-​fusion joint concealed behind «sushi & robata» costume. From the over-​greasy kushiyaki (grilled Japanese food on skewers) to the tired sushi, and boring rolls — Kyu will do nothing short of empty your wallet and send you home pissed off.
They literally paint Japanese food with sweet Thai sauce. Literally.

I’ve been here a few times and really like the atmosphere. We got the sashimi appetizer as a starter and Kyu roll.
The sushi chefs were so nice. So it was a great experience.
The service is quite good and friendly.

If you’re reading this, you might be like me, attracted to this place by it’s 4.5 stars rating on Unilocal,how ever, this rating is very misleading. I would guess most of 5 star reviews are not true.
Let me describe the experience my wife and I had tonight.
After we sit down, we sensed a very bad smell, hard to describe, a little like Dettol. That’s a bad start, but hey, it’s a 4.5 star place, right? No big deal, we changed to a seat without smell.
Then the menu, $ 2 miso soup? We tried so many Japan restaurants, I think this is the first place to charge for miso soup. Ok, no big deal, may worth the 4.5 star rating, right?
We then ordered two pieces of sushi and three Robata. To be fair, the shrimp robata is not bad, just the beacon is not tender at all. I literarily can not chew part of it, spat it out in the tissue. Taste of the sushi is not too bad either, but the material has the same problem, they’re not tender enough (OK, I am not sure if they’re fresh enough, so I used the word tender. They might be fresh, but really hard to chew). You have to chew really hard. It’s not supposed to happen to a decent sushi bar.
If you could see my FSQ checkins, you will see my wife and I tried so many sushi bars. From awesome Sushi Ran in Sausalito to the simple but very impressive sushi bar inside the mall of Japan Town .This place, is absolutely worse than average. So, read the reviews carefully before you go, don’t be fooled by the 4.5 stars rating and be careful.

12.14.12 || bookmarked 11.27.12
If we could have ordered the entire menu, we would have. But we came close.
The atmosphere was very trendy. The lighting and music reminded me of the lobby hotel at the W.
The servers were quick, friendly, and knowledgeable. We started with the sparkling sake (pink bottle and all), and dived into the menu.
Round one (
):
Kyu and Toshi rolls.
Eggplant, zucchini, chicken, beef, and bacon wrapped robatas.
Round two:
Another Kyu roll + a roll that we cannot remember the name of (but it was good).
Seaweed salad + pork robatas.
Definitely a must visit if you’re in the area — perhaps after a long shopping spree in Union Square?
Like.

(See pics) Review #1271. Good sushi and grilled skewers at reasonable prices, limoncello gelato, great club like ambiance and music for the opening night.
I literally walked by and was pleasantly surprised this place is opened so soon after the previous good old Thai place was closed. I believe those who work (and own) are mainly Thai and it does have a heated clubby vibe, and always with a smile. The cool blue hue was very nice to calm you down before you look through the extensive menu (categories and items.)
For sushi, the fish quality overall was A-​ok. Aji (mackerel), and escolar /​butter fish (walu.) Bonito (skipjack), Hirame (yellowtail), Maguro (tuna and was from Hawaii) and uni nigiri were solid.
The robuta (grilled) dishes might need a bit more creative sauce as the ponzu sauce was a bit on the sour side. The base ingredients were good firm taste and instead of getting 2 per skewers, you can get 1 skewer, making it possible to try out different ones and not too get too full. I had tried the shitake mushroom and nasu (Japanese eggplant), and they gave me Korean mushroom as a nice gesture, which turned out to be the most delicious texture of all 3!
They also have a good sampling of each price range of sakes Kawacho was recommended and turned out to be a pretty decent dry sake for pairing.
The dessert limoncello gelato was a must to order. Okay I DO love everything Italiano! The ice cream itself was plain but was totally fully sprinkled with limoncello sparkles, making it less lemon and just enough to bring you back to Capri as you bite into the cool sensation. As you enjoy it further, you will find the a nice cube of flowing limoncello right in the middle! This reminds me so much of the limoncello candies where the deliciousness flows right through your tongue like water washing up the beach, overwhelming and all over. A definite highlight!
The restaurant setting was interesting with high back booths and 1 larger area in the back (soft opening night was a private party) and a sushi bar by the door facing also the grill.
Service is as expected a bit slow even with a large staff but they were very friendly. The servers were just getting to used to and double check where each dish was going.