Gaja Gaja

It never seems to get too busy here, but the food is always good. My favorites are the yaki udon, which is with plentiful meat and veggies, or the bibimbaps, either dolsot or non. Both come with salad or udon soup, which is yummy and not too salty though I wish they’d put tofu in it. And there’s plenty of South St people watching available since most of the tables are within view of the big front windows, which they open in the summer time.

Went there last night for a late dinner with my mother (both are Korean).
She ordered the tempura ndon, we shared rainbow roll, I ordered the chicken dolsot bibimbap. All-​in-​all, not bad. The tempura udon was good, nice flavorful broth, the shrimp and veggie tempura was also done well, and very good, not greasy, just perfectly fried and crispy. My chicken dolsot bibimbap was also very good, both me and my mother agreed. (the side of kimchi good too). The rainbow roll was just OK. the fish was very fresh, but the roll itself was kinda small and the rice was a little «hard.» (we arrived at closing, so that could be the reason why the rice seemed «dried out and with little flavor.»). Service was excellent. I’ll definitely comeback again!

My go to place for sushi, lunch or dinner! Reasonably priced, always fresh and they service is consistently good. They say delivery on the menu although it is only in a few block radius from the restaurant. Dine-​in or pick up… great place.

This is one of my favorite spots in the city to go relax. Its a breath of fresh air and a break from the noise on South Street. The vibe is always peaceful and serene. The main waitress is very kind, attentive, and knowledgeable. There’s a positive energy that radiates here.
As far as the food, it is definitely NOT the best Japanese food I’ve ever had. WARNING! I am not a sushi connoisseur. But I do like the sushi here.
The lunch box, which includes soup salad teriyaki and sushi all for like $ 11 is a steal! Great place for an intimate lunch or a 1^st date. Also great for 1^st time sushi tryers.

My boyfriend and I came here last Saturday for lunch. I’m going to list the good and the bad because I’m too lazy to type in paragraphs today.
Pros:
–Nicely decorated interior (good date spot)
–Attentive service
–DELICIOUS Philly Crunch Roll
–Fresh Green Salad
–Good Donkatsu (Better than Yakitori Boy, he says)
Cons:
–Hot Green Tea. A complete rip-​off. Tea bag plus mini tea pot equals $ 2.50. Picture provided.
–The ginger salad dressing was a bit too thick. Okay tasting, but too chunky for me.
–Table for two was too small considering the size of the plates that took up a lot of room.

As a Jappy (short for Jewess *not* Japanese) … and entitled natural beauty with a taste for all things delicious, I’d written this restaurant off simply for its South St. address.
I am pleased to report that I am now officially over myself. Tonight, I popped my Gaja Gaja cherry.
The restaurant is lovely. It’s serene, the service is really good, and actually let me cut to the most important part: the fish.
Unlike the four or five other sushi places I’ve been to in Philly since moving here this year including more notable and celebrated places like Fat Salmon, Gaja Gaja is the only one whose sushi menu focuses on actual fish.
(In fact I’m really unclear why so many sushi restaurants in Philadelphia feature almost anything BUT fish: tempura/​crunchy rolls, mayo everything, sweetened everything, crab stick everything, cream cheese, jelly, bacon …)
Tonight I had:
Miso soup (delectable — nice complexity to the broth, and perfectly piping hot, just the way I like it)
House salad (standard iceberg w good fresh ginger dressing)
Real California roll (lump crab meat instead of crab stick — very nice to have the option of real, as crab stick is just crab-​flavored weirdness whipped up with flour.) The rolls are studded with white and black sesame seeds — very nice)
Unagi sushi (a standout)
Yellowtail sashimi and maguro sushi (both were very fresh with velvety texture and clean flavor)
Ikura (honking-​big salmon fish roe on slightly unwieldy chunks of cucumber. Sim, the sushi chef — not sure if I’m spelling his name correctly — engaged with me at various times throughout my me, and explained to me that the roe is marinated in sake and honey to achieve a mild flavor. I was very pleased.)
Very delicious iced green tea.
I wasn’t in an alcohol mood so I did not seriously peruse their booze menu. But I couldn’t help but notice the wine bottles presented over the sushi bar. Mondavi, Jacob’s Creek, Beringer, probably Kendall-​Jackson … blech … all bottom of the barrel (ba dum bum).
Beerwise they seem weak as well (eg, Coors Light, Heineken) but they do have Sapporo, which is redeeming. They offer sakes as well. I am not knowledgeable about sake, so I can’t offer insight here.
In sum: the food was delish, all presented very nicely; service was ***extremely*** friendly and warm; the atmosphere was refined and chill; and the prices were ridiculously reasonable.
They also offer a Korean menu — I’m not a fan of hybrid menus (ie Japanese and Chinese) but fortunately it doesn’t detract from their fine sushi.
Highly recommend!

I was walking with a friend who lives right around the corner from here, trying to decide where to eat, when we passed this place. Neither of us had ever noticed it, and I had to check my bank statement to find out the name so I could write a review. We both agreed sushi sounded perfect, so we went in. It was dinnertime on a Saturday and there was no one else in there save for a table of foreign tourists, I was afraid this might be a bad sign. We had some vegetable tempura, which was good but I only ate a few — fried food hurts my belly. I had some sort of salmon combo that came with miso and everything was good. They had reasonably priced beer and wine, although the selection was small, I was surprised they served alcohol at all. I had heard a lot of hype about nearby Sushi Planet, and when I went there I was terribly disappointed — this place is far better.

This is one of the best sushi places in Philadelphia and every time that I’m there I’m amazed at how empty it is. The fish is fresh and noticably tastes so. I use white tuna as my litmus, and theirs just melts in your mouth, imo. The Ichiban Roll is really «number one» and I find myself craving it regularly.
The cost is great for the quality especially in comparision with some of the other high priced sushi restaurants in town.

On a mission to try out the closest sushi places in the neighborhood, my next stop was Gaja Gaja. Ok… so I might have still thought it was the Wasabi House II, but regardless I ended up getting take out here.
I had my staple order at any sushi restaurant (my sushi comfort food) which consists of a Philadelphia Roll (fresh not smoked salmon), shrimp shumai, and octopus sashimi. Their Philly roll was a bit different, with the cucumber and cream cheese on the inside, and the salmon on the outside. It was tasty and a good portion. The shumai was delicious and served with the sweet soy sauce that not every place does. The octopus however was inedible. Really weird cuts, and was super tough. Didn’t seem fresh at all.
I’m certainly going to give it another shot, but so far not entirely impressed.

I came here once when it was WAsabi House, and I came here once since it’s become Gaja Gaja.
The food is okay; my friend is a picky korean food eater but I think he enjoyed his dolsot bibimbap if that’s what he had (I can’t remember but most likely), and I liked my katsu :) I finished the whole tray thing.
I am a sucker for establishments with greentea ice cream, and the way they presented it was nice.

I’ve eaten here a couple of times and I have to say I’m not that impressed.
The location is great for me (right down the street from a good friends apartment). In nice weather, they open up the front windows, and you can sit nearly on the sidewalk and people watch. A great activity for South Street. It has never been extremely crowded and the service has always been fast and attentive.
However, outside of the location I don’t have too much to rave about. The sushi rolls were small and only so — so. The edamame was the worst I’ve ever had, and really, how do you mess up edamame? The prices are reasonable. There was nothing that great to write home about.

I came on the recommendation of a friend as I was forced into the city to take an awful two day exam. After the first day of 8 hours of computerized hell, I needed Korean food, and I needed it bad. Only the Koreans can understand my rage combined with despair stippled with a hunger for victory. I had hot sake for the rage, dolsot bibimbop for the despair, and miso soup cuz it was warm on a cold rainy day. I was the only customer in the place at the end of the evening on a weekday, so the service should have been great, right? It was.
The dolsot bibimbop was hot hot hot enough to give the rice a crunch if you left it there unstirred. Veggies were fresh. Hot sauce was tasty.
The place was clean.
I have nothing bad to say about this place. The banchan were delish. The service was polite and attentive. I will definitely go back, and I will bring friends!

Great dinner spot. We were the only people there for most of our meal which was great — quiet and quick service. Lots of people came in and out for takeout so I assume they do a lot of their business that way.
The Dolsot Bibim Bop was hot and delicious, with the rice getting that crispy layer as it cooked more in the bowl. Served with miso soup and kimchi, it was way more food than I could finish… the leftovers are making a nice lunch as I type.
My friends really enjoyed their ahi tuna appetizer and spicy tuna roll too… I want to come back and try the sushi!

The sushi looked meh and the mochi ice cream had freezer burn.
BUT! Go get their Dolsot Bibim Bop!!! GO NOW!

I absolutely love this place! Well, let me correct, I absolutely loved this place when it was a BYOB. Now that its not a BYO the food is still great, but I definitely think it is more of a lunch place then a dinner place. It seems to be a family owned establishment, and everyone who works there is SUPER nice. I also love the food. I have had sushi there, as well as a noodle dish and this past time the Dolsot Bibim Bop. The later was INCREDIBLE, although it could have used a little bit more meat. (I read the review below about the bowl not being hot enough, and I think they may have fixed that problem!) Also, you must try their Moki Ice Cream… it is unbelievable. The red bean is their best flavor!!!

My boyfriend and I ate here last Saturday and I think this place has some of the freshest sushi in town! The Chirashi was amazing! We also had a Dragon roll and a Spicy Tuna roll, both of which were very yummy. The portions are great and the prices are fare for the quality of the fish. The staff is also very nice and the décor is very soothing and clean. We live nearby, so I hope more people try this place and it can stick around!

Everyone keeps saying how slow Gaja Gaja is with food. Mine was done within 15 minutes, although I was one of out three people there (snicker) :)
I had a seaweed salad, both delicious and fresh. I also ordered a dragon roll and a philly roll… i was on the verge of busting. Definitely could not finish that place. My bill was 24 and some change. I think that the prices were a little too high. The service was good, but like I said again, I was 1 out of 3 people there. What I hate was wonderful, but I have not tried anything else there yet. Maybe next time I will try something new! I like the fact that the glass windows are completely open to South Street. Its always fun to people watch. Ill be checking it out again!

So I had to come on here and give this place 2 thumbs up. They are under new management but its a nice, quiet and cozy place on South Street to take a date or just a good friend for some sushi. I had some great service the other night. The server was nice enough to point at everything on the menu and tell me what it was. «We have 8 salads» and he pointed to the salads. «This is our sushi selection» and he pointed to sushi. I tried really hard not to crack up. But he was awesome anyway. They have Korean and Japanese cuisine. I got the Bibim Bop — awesome Korean dish which is like rice and veggies and meat and egg — you mash it around and dump some red sauce on it and it’s delicious. I tried eel sushi for the first time — it was pretty decent. If you are around the South Street area and in the mood for sushi, check this place out. These are good peoples.

I’m usually skeptical to try pan-​asian places, since there is usually a primary and more proficiently prepared cuisine and the good rule of thumb is to identify which one it is and stick with it. I was craving Korean, even though the menu at Gaja Gaja is heavily represented by Japanese dishes. After tonight, I will try not to override said rule.
I ordered the Dolsot Bibim Bop with chicken and I have to say I was somewhat disappointed. This hot sizzling dish usually continues to cook the contents as you eat it. I love when the rice gets a crispy layer on the bottom and the vegetables cook as you mix it. Unfortunately, the sizzling bowl wasn’t hot enough to do this and I was disappointed. I sampled an eel maki roll, which was average. I liked the service, which was friendly and attentive.
Overall, the food was decent, but definitely not a favorite place of mine. However, I would go here again to try the Udon, since it is more affordable than some of the other local Japanese restaurants in the area.

The food is great, but I am ready to SCREAM when it comes to the service. BE WARNED IF YOU ORDER TAKEOUT FOR MULTIPLE PEOPLE.
The people are so nice that you don’t want to fuss, but they keep fking up our food!
I prefer Maki House (South btwn 2^nd & 3^rd) but Sean prefers Gaja Gaja and I don’t drive so he wins. We work near the airport, so I collect the orders, call them in, and Sean goes to pick it all up.
The first time, I went with him but the food wasn’t even started by the time we got there, so we went way over my 30 minute time limit for lunch. And they made the wrong thing for me.
The second time, they mixed up our orders… Sean wanted a Caterpillar Roll and a Philly Roll. I wanted a Crunch Roll and a California Roll. I told her they were separate orders and she still mixed them up. I could hear the disconnect when I was speaking to her, so I tried to explain what I meant by separate orders but she STILL didn’t do it right… I think maybe the Crunch and Caterpillar were in the same container, and the California and Philly were together.
The third time was today… Sean wanted a Caterpillar Roll and a California Roll. I wanted a Crunch Roll and a California Roll, and Jeff wanted an M3 lunch special… I tried to explain to her that there were three separate orders for three separate people. She repeated back to me «three order» in that impatient way people do when they think they know what you’re talking about — cutting off the rest of your sentence or hurrying you along. (I have my theories on that because it also happens every time I order Chinese food with another person, but I digress.)
This time they managed to mix it all up AND got it wrong.
They gave us the M3 meal and the other container held one order of Crunch, one order of Caterpillar, and two PIECES of California Roll rather than two orders.
I called back, and she told me next time I should «say three order.»
I really wanted to scream or curse or both. I STILL want to scream or curse or both.
I will not be going back to them again unless I am there to check the order myself before we leave the store.