Kuni’s

The BEST sushi around. I have been all around (including Japan) and I have not found better sushi. The Sashimi 21 is absolutely amazing. The cozy restaurant adds to the atmosphere.

This is by far the best sushi restaurant in Buffalo. If you want authentic Japanese sushi then Kunis is the place. I have been frequenting Kunis since the days he was in Elmwood. The spot is small get there early or be prepared to wait for a table. Make sure you try the soft shell crab when it’s in season. And the yellowtail is awesome.

Just left this place and have to say this was one of the top three sushi experiences of my life. I live in NYC which is the mecca for raw fish fans this side of the Pacific and the only thing that even compares in my book is Ushiwakamaru (although I haven’t been to Sushi Nakazawa yet). We sat at the sushi bar right in front of Kuni and the man is just as interesting to talk to as he is intoxicating to watch work. We discussed the different regional variations of Japanese Ramen and our favorite places to find them in NYC while I watched him fillet a fresh Hamachi. He even recommended a few places I had not heard of (can’t wait to get to Sushi Kyo Ya when I get home). Enough chitchat though, let’s move on to the yields of his mastery!
My friend who lives in Buffalo and eats here regularly insisted we start with Wasabi Shumai and I’m oh so glad he did. Just the right balance of wasabi infused into the dumpling skin that wraps the juicy steamed pork to open up the sinuses and palate to get our mouths watering before our feast. This friend is your typical «order boring rolls off the menu» type guy and had never heard of Omakase before (for those who may not be familiar, it is essentially the Japanese word for «Chef’s choice») and in my opinion the only way to go. Be forewarned, however, there’s a likely possibility that you see some weird shit you’ve either never heard of or never wanted to see in front of you! The best part is you can choose how much you want to spend on an Omakase here. Many restaurants have a set price point. We opted for $ 100 (fifty bucks each).
I won’t get into a detailed description of each fish, but rather here is a simple list of what we were presented over the course of a 2+ hour feast (may have forgotten some and probably have a few in the wrong order, but you’ll get the idea):
1^st course: Raw Jellyfish, Monkfish Liver, Baby Squid
2^nd course: Salmon Skin Chips
3^rd course: Grilled Mackerel
4^th course (4 pieces each sashimi): Tuna, Spanish Mackerel, Salmon, Albacore, Octopus, Scallop, Sea Urchin and Amberjack
5^th course: Baby Sardines followed by two pickled root vegetables (Daikon & Rencon maybe?)
6^th course (2 pieces each sushi): Salmon Roe, Cod Roe, Unagi (eel), Tamago (Egg w/​Eel inside), Crab, Spanish Mackerel, Hamachi (yellowtail), Tuna
7^th course: from that fresh fish we watched him fillet, we finished with a Hamachi/​Jalapeño roll
While the fish was out of this world, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the amazing staff here. They’re super friendly (and hot! I’m definitely crushing on one of them), extremely attentive and incredibly knowledgeable. They know every dish and will explain what you’re looking at on the board filled with unique pieces of fish in front of you. I tried to test them a little by asking for «something sweet» at the end of the meal using the freshly cut Hamachi which they quickly disagreed with (bonus points to them) thus we finished with the jalapeño roll (I was tempted to place another order for dumplings to finish the marathon eating session full circle so this was a pleasant compromise). This meal would have easily cost over $ 400 in NYC. We got out for less than half of that with a belly full of love and a nice little buzz to weather the storm outside. Can’t wait to do it again! Arigatou gozaimasu, Kuni!!!

I’ve been wanting to dine at Kuni’s for quite some time now, but being that Sunday and Monday are my only nights off and the fact that they are closed both those nights, I haven’t had an opportunity… til now! There are things I really loved about Kunis and then things I really disliked. Parking is tough. Street parking only, it’s in a residential neighborhood while also surrounded by two other bars and restaurants. A Tuesday evening didn’t allow for parking so I can’t imagine what it’s like on a weekend night. We ended up finding a spot down Elmwood, but again, a location surrounded by bars and restaurants, spots are extremely limited come the end of the week. The restaurant is small, really small. Cramped upon walking in the door, hostess stand immediately to the left and the bar right in front of you when opening the door. There is a small seating area with a couch to wait for a table, but no coat rack that I could see anywhere. The bar is tiny and dining area is tiny and the tables were very poorly arranged in my opinion. They had a few high top tables along the wall, one table in the window and then a few tables haphazardly scattered in the center. There were two tables available for two when we came in, but the tables were LITERALLY touching each other. The chairs from both tables were touching, we could have eaten off the person’s plate at the table next to us, had it been occupied. I like intimate settings, not that intimate. We were given an option to sit at the sushi bar too but that took away from date night a little, we wanted to sit at a table you know? We asked the hostess if we could sit at the bar and have a drink while we waited for a better table to become available and she told us no problem it would be about five minutes or so. Like I said, the bar is quite small, but there was one seat towards the end so I grabbed that one and my dinner date stood next to me. Their red wine list consisted of one cabernet, one pinot, one malbec and one rioja, I can’t recall their whites. Stemless wine glasses, (personal preference, but I’ve never been a fan.) After ten minutes or so, the hostess came over and told us she was going to seat us at one of the tables we didn’t want because it didn’t seem like the other tables were getting up soon. We weren’t thrilled about this and the temperature in the restaurant was piping hot, I was quite uncomfortable in my sweater and the heat just added to the claustrophobic feel of the tables being so close. It was slightly agitating that just ten minutes after being seated, a high top table became available and a couple that walked in shortly after us was seated there. We would have waited the additional 10 – 15, heck 20 more minutes to have a good table. Those are my only negatives about the place, phew, onto the good stuff.
The service was fantastic. Attentive, opinionated and fast (maybe a little too fast, for people who want to space their courses out.) We had no problem with the quick flow of courses as we were starving and also came in to dine later in the night so didn’t plan on being those people who need to sit and talk for an hour after signing their credit card bill. Never be those people. Anyways, I say opinionated because when I asked about a roll and whether or not it would be paired well with a vegetable, she offered a different pairing that she enjoyed and I loved that. We went with two rolls; spicy tuna and yellowtail with jalapeño (our server’s recommendation.) Both rolls were phenomenal. Now, usually I have a problem with places that don’t serve brown rice and usually when I ask why I never get an answer. This time, when I asked why, our server told us that the chef is very particular about his rice and about the ingredients he brings into the restaurant in general. I respect that. You don’t do brown rice, you don’t do brown rice, at least someone gave me a legitimate answer this time. Another thing I loved about the chef is that he doesn’t use dairy in his food. HUGE plus for me and I’m sure many others out there. No butter in any of the dishes, I’m in love. I hate having to ask for no butter in my food when I dine out and here I don’t have to worry about that. Healthy, fresh food, so awesome. We started with their appetizer special which was salmon tartare topped with avocado, absolutely delicious. Two salads for the table; a house with radishes, cucumber and carrots in ginger dressing and the sea vegetable salad for me. I love seaweed but I also like house salads so it was a great combination. Greens topped with three different kinds of seaweed with your choice of ginger dressing or miso dressing. I went with ginger and it was perfect. The cajun tuna was another item we chose, sashimi style with a ponzu sauce. I wasn’t crazy about this dish because of the sauce, but the actual tuna was tasty. We paid $ 65 for a glass of wine, a beer and the food listed above. Not bad for two, but we left a bit hungry, another roll would have done it!

This place is excellent! Very fresh seafood. My only issue is that they are just a bit too traditional, I couldn’t get a crunchy crab roll. Still well worth the trip.

Authentic Japanese appetizers/​dishes which were surprisingly good. I hope they can have more options of udon noodles!
Hand rolls and sashimi are my favorites. Fish liver is very juicy and full of flavor too! those are the must try!
Waitresses are very helpful with the menu.

great place.
hot hot hot fish salad is wonderful! avoid saturday evening, otherwise you need to wait around 1 hr.

I love Kunis so much! The sushi is hands down the best in Buffalo and the atmosphere is quaint and lovely. I recommend the house picked sake flight. They don’t take reservations so head over to Vera for a drink while you wait.

Yamakake yam potato salad over tuna shashimi, no thank you, once is enough. We thought yam like I guess a western yam but this was a gelatinous goo of a yam.
Green mussels were delicious, the broth was good and chunky with garlic.
Spicy tuna, Yellow jack n scallion, Mackerel n ginger were OK, it seemed that there were no ingredients that stood out enough to outshine the seaweed wrapping and rice. I had read in other reviews «minimalist» I suppose I now interpret this as minimal flavor, minimal fish.
We sampled their sorbet, very flavorful, more in a serving than expected don’t order two a piece!

Been here several times and never disappointed. Food and service is very good. Well worth the wait.

I love sushi. And this was some very delicious sushi. The seared albacore and salmon sushi were like butter. We also had spicy tuna roll, eel avocado roll, yellowtail roll, special soft shell crab roll and salmon roll. The rolls were perfect in simplicity and exactly how sushi should be. Love the ambiance and the waitstaff was very lovely. We were visiting from Out of town and were very happy and pleased to have found this gem.

Kunis continues to deliver top notch food and service. Couldn’t imagine going anywhere else for Sushi!

Portions are so tiny but there’s a reason people can’t resist Kuni’s. Everything is fresh; you can literally feel the sushi melt in your mouth. Like ice-​cream, only more fish-​flavored. My favorite is the scallop and avocado roll (you also have the option of getting cucumber). I had a scallop roll at another sushi restaurant in Buffalo but it wasn’t the same.
It’s more expensive compared to other Japanese restaurants in the area, but if you want quality sushi, or have a craving so terrible that you dream about large chunks of raw fish every night, go to Kuni’s. It might put a hole in your wallet for a little while, but it’ll be worth it.

Simply, the best sushi in Buffalo.

My boyfriend and I LOVE sushi, and have tried the restaurants nearby– (Seabar, Fuji, Dao, etc) and decided on a Friday night to try Kuni’s. I followed them on Instagram recently and the food looked great and totally worth a try.
We arrived at about 6:30 and were seated immediately, which was nice. Our waitress approached not long after. We ordered waters to drink– which I’m sure they have a problem with but we’re not big drinkers. We then ordered the crispy octopus and edamame. The crispy octopus was very hard to chew but had a good flavor. Edamame is always good. We then ordered a Large sushi combo and a separate salmon roll. The sushi was brought out with some random pieces and the rest in roll form. Some pieces had more of a fishy taste, which is fine just not what I prefer. We then ordered the green tea gelato which was delicious!
One last thing– my boyfriend and I are sticklers for service and our waitress’ was just sub par at best. She was hugging and chatting with her friends often ignoring us, and sat her friends before other customers. We had to flag her down for water and another waitress ended up filling our glasses. After some time we decided to get dessert– and she had already printed out bill… Without even asking if we’d like dessert. The more attentive waitress actually asked us if we’d like to hear the choices, which was great. We overheard her intercept our waitress and tell her we would be ordering dessert. Over all– she was just very pretentious and seemed as if she was trying to rush us out to seat her friends. While we ate I witnessed her take a selfie with another woman. I may be being picky but I like feeling welcomed instead of made to feel like I’m a burden.
We wanted to try something new, so maybe we’ll be back someday.

I hadn’t been to Kuni’s in ages, for no good reason, and ended up there last week. My husband and I were looking for something different for dinner, and wanted to stay in the neighborhood. So we went to Kuni’s and ate at the bar.
I remember Kuni’s being good, but WOW, this was amazing. We started with a special appetizer that was mainly about the tuna, which was lightly cooked on the outside and raw on the inside. Delicious. We moved on to an order of wasabi shumai, little pieces of pork wrapped in a delicate pasta like shell infused with spicy wasabi. They’re terrific, and really pack a punch.
We split a couple of rolls. Super fresh and filling.
It was a lot of fun eating at the bar. The bartender helped us make good selections.
Kuni’s is a great little neighborhood restaurant. It’s always packed, so make rezzies or be prepared to wait. But it’s worth it.

Went here for the first time last week. My friend and I were walking by, about to go on Elmwood for dinner but for once the place was not busy and we could be seated right away! There normally is the long 45 minute to an hour wait which kept me away for so long. Says something about the business though. Kuni’s reputation is for its amazing sushi and the sushi did not disappoint.
For dinner I ordered; the seaweed salad and miso soup to start, and 3 different sushi rolls for my entrée. Roll 1. Spicy Tuna, Roll 2. Shrimp Roll 3. Yellowtail. My guest ordered; the TOFU salad to start and the Shrimp Dumplings.
My seaweed salad and Miso soup was the normal you would find at any Sushi bar. My three different rolls were great! They all were fresh and packed nicely, with a very very slight fishy taste, but made perfectly that is just melted in my mouth. I have never had shrimp dumplings before was hesitant to try them but not anymore. The shrimp dumplings were out of this world. They were cooked perfectly, outside was so tender and packed with fresh tasting shrimp. I made a mistake that night and should have order that instead my sushi rolls. The TOFU salad had daikon, alfalfa and radish sprouts, served with a sesame-​soy dressing. Dressing really made the salad tasty and made your taste buds go a little wild. Salad had fresh everything and was presented well.
Kuni’s is small inside but has a cozy and intimate feel to it, great for a date night with your other half. During the warm months you can dine outside in front of the restaurant. Prices are more then reasonable for some fantastic sushi, and the place has a small little sushi bar you can sit at and a nice cocktail bar.

It’s just ok. The best thing I had wasn’t on the menu– deep fried fish gills. The sushi rice was hard and dry. The roll was a lot of rice and not a lot of salmon skin. Presentation of the tuna and grated yam was difficult to eat. I didn’t think the miso barley with cucumber made sense either. Cucumber slices with a tiny bowl of barley covered in miso? Pretty presentation but difficult to eat.
Not the best sushi place/​Japanese place I’ve ever been to. Honestly, one of the worse but I don’t think Buffalo is a hot bed of yummy Japanese food.

I lived in Japan for a year and was largely horrified at the sushi I encountered after returning to the States. Luckily there is Kuni’s, a shining beacon of raw fish in a land of fried food and overcooked meat.
The quality of ingredients is consistently good and while the presentation might not always be exactly what I found in Kagoshima, it’s still attractive enough to be incredibly appealing. Service is decent and very friendly, which always helps when you have to wait an hour for a table (and if you come on the weekend, wait you will).
I love the sashimi special: 10 — 12 pieces of raw fish artfully arranged. Last night I tried the soba noodle salad, which is decorated with sweet tofu, cucumber, carrots, sprouts, and wakame. Served cold, it was the perfect refreshing warm-​weather dish. Their rolls are also top notch, several million times better than the stale-​tasting chewy abominations you find at Wegman’s. Last night’s was eel and avocado and it was good enough that I brought the rest to work for lunch, which I think says a lot… sushi has to be really good to eat it leftover.
Be prepared to walk a bit to get there, parking is on the street and usually tough to find. Overall, definitely would recommend.

I’ve been dining with Kuni’s for years. Since their conversion to a full sit-​down restaurant they have always presented a solid experience.
Kuni’s is small. It’s cozy and always full. I take that as a good sign. Everything is always very fresh. I’m a fan of their soft shell crab. Their fluke chips are a great snack as well.
The rolls, sashimi, and entrees are all great. The food is fresh and the service is always solid. I’d highly suggest it for a date spot as it’s very cozy and unique.