Aoki Japanese Grill & Sushi Bar

Sushi here was fine but not particularly special. A bit pricey for what you get. People on Unilocal recommended the agadashi tofu, so we tried that, but I wasn’t a fan. It’s made with a soy sauce base rather than the standard broth.
Most of the nigiri i had was decent, some wasn’t great.
We came here late at night and there wasn’t a wait at all, everything was served promptly.

A bit pricey for what it is. Ordered the sushi deluxe combo, a spicy tuna roll, and agedashi tofu. The sushi itself wasn’t bad tasting but it wasn’t really anything special and I felt like the rolls were a bit expensive. $ 7 for a spicy tuna roll of 6 pieces seemed a bit on the high side to me.

Really lucky to live so close to this spot. It’s always a pleasure. The staff is really friendly and after a few visits, they’ve started to remember us which is nice. We always get a chorus of thank-​yous on our way out.
We usually get the miso soup which is awesome. Note, this place never serves it with spoons. Don’t know enough about proper Japanese dining to know if this is standard but just an FYI.
The tempura appetizer is so good. Batter is perfect and the assortment is pretty large.
Rolls are always filing and nicely prepared. Fish always has great taste and rice is seasoned very well. Hot tea is great too. As is the sake. Thanks, Aoki!

I am a huge inari fan… and three pieces for $ 3!!! It is a dream come true! I also got the Tamago roll, which was simple and delicious. I had a great time here and will be coming back!

Great friendly staff and service is quick but frankly the food is not anything special. The tea they serve smells like feet, but does actually taste fine. The cucumber salad was just just a few small sliced cucumbers not properly seasoned with tiny little bay shrimp. The seaweed salad was good. All of the sushi rolls were just mediocre and I couldn’t really differentiate the different flavors for different rolls. Also, sadly I’d say they were equal to or maybe worse than supermarket sushi quality.

A cozy place for sushi tucked away at the top of the hill. I stopped by for a solo weekday dinner and it was perfect. I sat at the sushi bar and the service was prompt and friendly. They have simple, well-​prepared rolls and sashimi (try the super white tuna!), as well as katsu, udon, etc. The complimentary green tea is a nice touch. So happy to have found a solid place for everyday sushi — I will be back to try more!

This place is okay, and I think that is the most accurate description I could possibly give Aoki.
It’s not as expensive as Nijo downtown, but it’s also not as inexpensive as Hana down the street. The quality of the sushi and nigiri are alright, and I feel neither cheated nor victorious for having eaten it.
I would avoid the entrée dishes — I have had one Udon dish and one chicken-​and-​rice dish here before and it was underwhelming. Both tasted pretty one-​note, as if somehow every single element on the plate somehow tastes exactly the same, from the noodles to the sauce to the vegetables in the bowl.
So Aoki, it is okay. I much prefer Hana over this place.

The fish was not as fresh as I’d like. For sushi rolls its fine but sashimi or nigiri suffer greatly.
Also word of warning their sushi with salmon is smoked. Not a factor in rating as that was my fault.

I love coming here on a rainy day. Cozy ambience and friendly service. They make my daughter her favorite roll on request, even though it’s not on the menu, which is super sweet. Great miso soup, gyoza, and simple rolls!

How I heard of this place: Through my dining companions, Carolyn & Ryan.
Type of cuisine: Sushi is the predominant draw to Aoki, however more Japanese food including garlic rice, appetizers such as edamame and miso soup, etc. are also offered.
Ambiance: Simple, tasteful. Complete with sushi bar and table setting options.
What I ordered: I ordered the miso soup ($ 1.50) and an order of the Vegetarian Rolls ($ 4.50) — because I was set to go to Elliott’s for dinner afterward. Others ordered soba udon with sushi and one order of a roll that came with green roe and a raw quail egg (which I hear was delectable).
What I loved: The miso soup is always a hit with me!
Why I loved it: Most of all on this evening, I enjoyed the company of those with whom I dined (all four of them!). The miso soup was light and flavorful. The avocado and watercress vegetarian roll was perfect.
Cost: Average ($ 4-​$ 8 for rolls)

We don’t come here enough. We live just across the street. The service is really friendly and the fish is really fresh. The prices are great too. We got a delicious udon with carrot, ginger, and onion tempura for only $ 7! It was really yummy. And I love that they have anago and not only unagi. Not enough sushi places have anago. I also really enjoyed my wild caught sockeye salmon sushi.
It’s a family business and has been here a long time. We plan to support Aoki more often and hope the neighborhood does too. It’s charming, traditional, and delicious, much like Hana, but just a different ambiance and a higher quality fish selection. We’d like both of them to stay.

Exactly what you would expect from a typical small Japanese restaurant. There is a decent selection of rolls, sushi, and entrées and they give you free tea with your meal (a definite bonus, and likely the reason for me opting to give 4 versus 3 stars). The atmosphere is a little dark– a hallway layout with the sushi bar on one side and small tables against a cushioned bench on the other side. Service is always friendly. This is a comfortable place to go solo and I’m a returning solo diner.
The Ikura, one of my go-to’s, isn’t the best but it’s decent.

This restaurant was simply amazing. You seat yourself and they’ll bring you out some hot tea. Everything I had there went above and beyond my expectations. They even have to go boxes to take any yumminess home with you that you can’t finish. I strongly suggest trying their Green Tea ice cream. It’s my new favorite flavor. The waitress was so nice that we tipped her 10 $. Hoping to return soon and I suggest it to anyone who’s looking for some amazing food.

Quick, easy, friendly, fast. What is not to love?! Their menu looked like an assortment for those who like raw, cooked, fried, to soups. I like this place a lot better than Hana’s nearby. People and workers are a lot nicer too!
As soon as we sat down, we were offered green tea, which is most often an extra fee and service. This place just says, why not? Let’s make them happy as possible!
I ordered the veggie udon and dh got the chicken katsu. Taste buds most active are umami galore. For the prices, it’s a steal and you can’t beat service like that. What made me not give them 5 stars is because of their quick service I got my bill too early before I was finished, but maybe because we did eat at an awkward hour of 10pm (they close at 11pm). I don’t mind, I wish I could give them a 4.5!!! Next time I will try the rolls :)

Okay so I have been here a couple times now– both at the sushi bar and in the restaurant seating area. I would say I have a much better experience at the bar. They give you tea and a warm washcloth when seated at the bar but not in the main seating.
That being said, come sit at the bar! The lighting and décor in the main area is a little strange. Much more cozy and warm at the bar. I got the tempura roll– the shrimp tempura was still warm when it was served which is a huge plus. We also got the super white spicy tuna which I would highly recommend. Very fresh. So was the hamachi nigiri. Very fresh. All of our sushi was delicious and I will be returning to Aoki as my go-​to sushi place from now on!

Fresh, flavorful fish, and a classy ambiance. I went here with my friends, some of us got the deluxe sushi plate and some got the regular, and while both came with good cuts, we all seemed to agree the deluxe wasn’t quite worth the extra markup for the amount of meat that it came with. That said, everything that they served was excellently cut and served, the appetizers were succulent and shareable, the staff attentive and inobtrusive, the whole experience was very pleasant.
The restaurant is done in a modern-​minimalist style which is open but doesn’t expose the diners not at the bar. Being able to watch the chefs at work was an extra bonus to top off a nice night out. I’ll be back here when I’m in the mood for something fancy!

Not really impressed with the sushi. I mean everything was really fresh and all, but it was way overpriced. I ordered a shrimp tempura roll for twelve bucks and out comes six measly pieces. The entrees, on the other hand, were quite generous.
My spouse ordered the tonkatsu dinner and received a big ol’ slab of breaded, deep fried ton (I guess that’s Japanese for pork) for eleven bucks. It came with rice, soup & salad. One of my brothers-​in-​law ordered the tempura dinner. It was more than he could eat. And here was sitting there with six small, unremarkable pieces of sushi on a big plate for twelve bucks. Like a sucker. My other brother-​in-​law ordered the teriyaki chicken. Again, very large portion. I sampled all of the entrees and they were all tasty. My sushi was just OK. It wasn’t gross or anything, but it did have mayo inside, which I always think is pretty unnecessary. In fact, it makes things slide around on the inside of the roll, and adds calories, which nobody likes.
It’s not like I wish I would have ordered something else. I didn’t feel like an entrée. I felt like sushi. I only wish it hadn’t been such a rip-​off. For twelve bucks you should at least get eight pieces. Not to belabor the point, but each piece was two bucks. Plus tax and a tip. No wonder I feel cheated.

It seems the owners have gone nuts here. They are posting flyers about how the postal service keeps messing with their mail. They also have raised the prices of the dish I order regularly (tekka don) each time I’ve gone in there. I used to love this place but the prices are getting too high for it to be worth it.

After a brisk walk on a balmy evening my friend and I ended up on Broadway. We needed to eat dinner, she suggested sushi, and then we happened upon Aoki. Was it meant to be?
When we walked in we thought the place was empty. But after being seated (somewhat awkwardly at the only table near the window) we realized that there were other diners and the place is bigger than it seems. We asked for water immediately to quench our thirst, and were also treated to complimentary tea. It was not scalding hot, as mentioned in a few other reviews. Our waitress was very friendly and genuinely seemed to care about whether we enjoyed our meal. I appreciated that the menu is relatively short and sweet and I DIDN’T SEE ANY ROLLS WITH CREAM CHEESE. Joy to the world! Most of the rolls are on the simpler side, no crazy Americanized stuff here.
We started out with edamame and pickled vegetables and ordered three rolls to share. The edamame was cold and under-​salted — not terrible but not a highlight of the night. There were two pickled veges, one bright green and one bright yellow — quite pretty to look at. I don’t know what they were but we polished them off. We ordered one roll with mackerel, a spicy tuna roll, and a salmon one. The waitress suggested we order the «Broadway» with fresh salmon instead of smoked and I’m glad we took her recommendation. The rolls are on the dainty side, which makes for easier eating. We enjoyed all three, and agreed the spicy tuna was the best. With tip we each paid about $ 17, so really not a bad deal. Two of the sushi chefs bid us farewell on our way out.
I’m surprised Aoki has poor reviews, my friend and I had a lovely dinner and I would certainly come back.

Reviews of the place are all over the map! Stopped by here as I have craving fish in a big way. I went with the hamachi kama (yellowtail tuna collar) which was amazing! Also had the grilled mackrel with rice which also came with miso and salad. The mackrel was also pretty great, perfectly grilled with just the right amount of salt. For dessert, sushi of course! Tried the super white tuna nigiri which I liked. I think if I could do a half star it would be 3.5 star place. Try this place out!