Three Samurai Japanese Restaurant

Best sushi in Iowa City and really great servers. Love the specials.

The salmon I received today was cajun spiced, perfect sear and a perfect 145 degrees to perfect medium. Chipotle drizzle with a thinly shave slaw to accompany the salmon. I would have ordered three of them If I had big enough stomach for it! Amazing. Salmon was fatty and flavourful which mean it was prime salmon! #yummy

Joshua, the hibachi chef was amazing. I wish I would have ordered from him. The rest of the service was far from adequate. I had to wait over 15 minutes for both beers I ordered. Our sushi rolls came out with every one else’s sushi order, which would have been fine if we had ordered food from the hibachi. Instead, we sat there watching everyone else eat. I have never really been impressed by this place. The rolls were not very good and they were pretty expensive compared to the quality and quantity that I get in Iowa City at Oyama. I only ate here because it was a birthday party. I wouldn’t recommend this place. Joshua is a five star hibachi chef. I wish I could just rate his service, but Unilocal wouldn’t allow me to do that.

This could easily become my favorite place in the IC area for sushi.
After listening to my complaints about IC sushi quality, a coworker recently suggested 4 places for me to try. Of the 4, he ranked this on in the top 2 and I can see why.
Quick logistics tip: park in the back of the building. The part of the restaurant that faced the highway is actually the back of the restaurant. It looks from the street that the restaurant is on the second floor, but this is because the building is on a hill. The back parking lot is level with the front door.
Luckily we arrived around six and there was still room at the sushi bar. But this place gets packed, so try to make a reservation. Luckily, they do take reservations.
We asked to sit at the sushi bar to see the sushi being prepared. The presentation is lovely. And the options all look tasty.
We decided on 5 rolls: spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, rising sun, philly roll and subarashi. All were very reasonably priced. The favorite was the subarashi for its subtle sweetness. Least favorite was the rising sun because it was incredibly bland. The spicy tuna was excellent.
We would have tried more, but they were very busy, service was very hard to get, and we had Christmas shopping to finish. After the holidays, I think we will return.
My only caveat is that you need to make certain that you have the time to have a leisurely meal. Service is pleasant, but very, very, very slow. And, don’t expect to see your server again for drink refills or to order additional items… they are way too over-​worked. Expect the restaurant to be packed, be ready to get your complete order in the first time you see your served, and order all the wine you need for your meal at one time.
On the plus side, though, this would be a great place for a nice, slow, get to know you first date. Unless, of course, if your date sucks… then this would probably be hell.

I went here yesterday with two friends for the first time. I was so surprised at how incredible it was. .. both the interior (lovely) and the food (amazing) and the service. I had the lemongrass chicken that came with so many lovely sides that were fresh and top quality. I know this review sounds like I own the place but trust me, I have no connection whatsoever. I like acknowledging an exceptional restaurant when I come across one and this is exceptional. Everyone in my party loved their food and we left there planning the next lunch gathering there. Kudos to Three Samurai.

Don’t go here on a Sunday night. The sushi tasted old and dry. Especially the cooked shrimp. Couldn’t even eat it. A huge waste of money. Miso soup was ok.

I’ve had an excellent experience every time I’ve dined at Three Samurai. The sushi is great, the dinner menu is unique, and the teppanyaki tables area great experience (plus great food)!!
This place is perfect for any setting: couples, entertaining clients, birthday parties, etc. My go to on the grill is matsuzaka beef and scallops!

The food here is decent, but the service leaves something to be desired. If you plan on eating here, I hope you don’t have any other plans for the rest of the day. While the servers themselves have almost always been pleasant, the speed at which food leaves the kitchen is incredibly slow. The longest I’ve waited for food here was over an hour for a bento box and maybe 45 minutes for sushi. It doesn’t matter the day of week, time of day, or how busy the restaurant is, the wait is always the same.
With that being said, the menu is interesting. It is a mix of Vietnamese and Japanese food. They also have a sushi bar and hibachi grills. I personally am not a fan of hibachi in general (but if you are, I would recommend Konomi over Three Sam) and think it’s a bit overpriced anyway, but aside from that most of the food that I’ve had here isn’t bad. My favorite items on the menu would definitely be the oxtail soup and the chicken wings. It’s the best oxtail soup I’ve had outside of Hawaii; right amount of ginger, lots of oxtail. Maybe a few more greens wouldn’t hurt but other than that it’s amazing.
The most disappointing menu item I’ve had (multiple times) is the phở. The broth is hit-​or-​miss (but I’ve had more misses with flavorless broth) and the meat is scarce. We used to eat here every Sunday after a weekend of drinking since it was the ‘best’ restaurant in the IC/​Coralville area to get (mediocre and overpriced) phở. For phở that is better taste/​quality and cheaper, I’d recommend Phở Zaika which is located next to Hyvee in Coralville.

The bento boxes for lunch were awesome. I had lemongrass chicken which was good. My boyfriend had the teriyaki salmon which was AMAZING. Will definitely be coming back for lunch again.

Three Samurai is a very reliable Japanese style restaurant. One of my favs is the pork ramen, simply because it’s the only place in the Iowa City area where I can get ramen; not nearly enuf ramen choices around here. The sushi’s ok, but the ramen is the headline, esp if you wash t down with a big Sapporo !!

The sushi here is great and cheap but don’t expect a Zen experience. Recently dined on a Sunday afternoon as our first sushi choice (Takanami) wasn’t open for dinner yet. My girlfriend knew of Three Samurai and recommended it. We were greeted after entering the strip mall setting. We were seated and given menus.
We could hear the wait staff right inside the kitchen entrance «bro-​ing» it up. I understand it’s a college town and this isn’t a five star experience but shit, save the bar jokes for your breaks.
ORDERED: Clear Soup $ 1.00, House Salad $ 1.25, SP Lobster Roll $ 9, Rising Sun Roll $ 4.50, SP Tuna Roll $ 4.25, Samango Roll $ 7.50 AND what I didn’t order but now see on my bill upon writing this review is a charge for $ 4 Spicy Mayo WIngs. Seriously didn’t order or eat these. Kind of offsets the cheap specialty rolls.
TASTED: The bargain soup and salad were great. Nice cheap appetizer to prime the taste buds for sushi. The sushi presentation was nice (see photo). The Samango Roll was ¹⁰⁄₁₀ — seriously amazing — could hang with Wasabi Chi/​Tao in Des Moines. Consisted of Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese, Mango, Avocado and Walnuts — great textures and flavors. LOVED IT. The other rolls were just okay, the rice was mushy — a sushi boner killer. The Rising Sun roll was saved by the sauce, otherwise this pablum was disappointing.
POST: Decent sushi and great prices. Good service. Unprofessional loud staff in back.
CHANCE OF RETURN: ⁴⁄₁₀

Super tasty and super cheap sushi rolls. Friendly service and nice environment. Even discovered a roll ive never had before

I always order the agedashi tofu. The tofu is really soft and silky. I have also tried different soup, including ox tail, yose babe, warishita sukiyaki, and the seafood ramen. All of them are good and very big portion. So if you are into soup and yam noodle, this is the place to go in the Iowa City and Coralville area.

Excellent food. Great ambience. Clean bathrooms. Inexpensive for the amount and quality. Great quality. Has more than just Japanese food available. … but it is great.
Agedashi tofu is just delicious! It has these mushrooms in it.
I have had the bento, nabe, and seafood ramen. The seafood ramen is very Japanese style down to the amount of seafood you get in it. The mushroom nabe is superb.
I’ll be coming back for more

This place rocks for the simple fact that their lunch menu is super cheap! Miso soup only a dollar, the nigiri pieces are all under $ 2 they range from $ 1 pm up. I got 5 pieces, 2 miso soups for $ 7 and change with tax. Very good deal for lunch, I know I’ve spent more for similar.
Sushi was good and fresh, no issues at all. Place was very busy and my food came out in a timely manner. I do want to try entrée here to taste that side of their menu. Very satisfied based off their sushi and prices.

Have been in Three Samurai for many times. The sushi is good and the appetizer wings definitely worth a try. Overall, it is the best sushi place in Coalville.
The service for sushi is extremely slow though. If you order a noodle and a sushi, you might still be waiting for the sushi when your partner has already finished the noodles. Servers sometimes let you know in advance that the service for sushi is slow.

Three Sam is a regular spot for my boyfriend and I on happy hour nights. Their rolls are consistently good and their service is usually good, though can sometimes be slow (as can all restaurants, especially sushi). Sitting at the sushi counter is always enjoyable and the sushi chefs are extremely friendly.
Best rolls, in my opinion, are the cubby roll and the subarashi roll. Their egg rolls are also quite tasty.
If you’re a fan of hibachi, Josh is a superb and fun hibachi chef and their hibachi is yummy.
Highly recommended to any sushi or hibachi fan.

This place has been going down hill. The first few times I’ve visited, they had great service and great food. Just last weekend, when I went for dinner, they hardly had any customers and the rolls seemed like it was made in a hurry. They also didn’t have a few things that I wanted from their menu because they did not have enough ingredients. It surprised me because it was on a weekend.

This place has consistently slow service — even if you go during a non-​busy time. I’ve waited over an hour on multiple occasions. One time they completely forgot my order. Their food is good but not worth a 45+ min wait. I hate myself every time I come here because I naively hope I won’t have to wait so long for my food to come out.
If you want sushi, come during their happy hour (every day except Friday-​Saturday) for cheaper prices. The phở is bad, never get it. Seafood ramen is probably my favorite item.

I have to admit I was disappointed in my lunchtime experience at Three Samurai.
I found the Tempura appetiser just tolerable. It tasted more of old oil than shrimp and vegetable.
I ordered one Sushi roll and felt the seaweed in it was tough and the sauce overpowering.
The ambience during lunch was absolutely flat, but I will try it again for an evening meal to be fair.
The staff was luckwarm at best.