Happy Roll

Ok, stopping in here and ordering some food was purely on a whim. I was at Starbucks which is right next door and I was picking up an iced beverage.
But not having anything planned to make for dinner, I decided to order something simple. The place is medium sized, plenty of booths and an area for sitting at the counter where a chef prepares sushi /​sashimi.
I just needed something small, so I ordered the kids chicken teriyaki meal which comes with rice, salad and miso soup. Needless to say, the portions they gave me definitely filled me up. I didn’t have any teriyaki chicken leftovers.
i also had an order of the kappa maki, cucumber rolls, they were good, unfortunately, the roll ended up falling apart, but they were still delicious. And lastly, I ordered a side of vegetable tempura, gotta have those veggies. They were perfect. Very rarely do I have Japanese food to go, so I don’t know if $ 23 for my meal is considered average, or expensive. The food was delicious, I didn’t have a problem having a few leftovers, it all heated up nicely. Not too soggy, not hard either. I would recommend eating here if you like Japanese food and are curious to try this place out.
It’s located across the street from the Todos Santos Plaza in downtown Concord, there is street parking and an itty bitty parking lot behind the building.

While the food is still good, the quality of service has absolutely dropped. Long waits, won’t take orders when we’re ready, long wait times once you do order, too long to get drinks, etc. You only get wasabi and ginger on request, really weird! Tonight they ran out of most of their beer selection unless you order a large.
While I still like the food, the rolls are poorly wrapped, breaking half the time. It seems like they’re getting smaller.
Tonight took way too long just to order our food. I really like happy roll, but they need to step it back up. I’ve been coming since the beginning when they replaced star Midas and the Brian’s special #2 roll, it’s been slipping the past few years.

The place looks very clean, i.e. The bathroom. Nice décor. Service was okay. Food tasted good, but unfortunately we came late Saturday and they were out of some dishes we wanted. The bento box was a good side for two adults and one kid; and I can eat. The parking lot in the back can use more lighting. It wasn’t the best I had, but it isn’t the worst.

The sushi is okay, not bad, but not great. I ordered a spicy roll and it was NOT spicy at all. Oddly, the wasabi wasn’t spicy tonight either! Weird. Service was subpar and we were there early –530 pm. First, it took a while for us to be acknowledged, and then at the end of the meal he brought our check without asking if we wanted dessert (which we did), so he had to come back with another check — which he brought when I was just beginning to eat my ice cream which made me feel rushed. We never received water refills either. Lastly, the miso soup was bland and the green tea ice cream tasted like green tea sherbet or something.

Love it. Servers are usually pretty cool. Food is great. Try the HeartAttack Roll, you’ll thank me.

Sushi quality is very good and the portions are large. I am not putting 5 stars because their chicken teriyaki is not good (the meat cut or the sauce); I ordered it a second time and it was still so-​so. Also, the restaurant is very dark.

Located in in downtown concord. Next door to Starbucks. The service is good and food is ok. Not horrible. I like the location but the area (not restaurant) needs to be cleaned up. Walking to this restaurant from my parking spot didn’t seem safe. Lots of homeless hang out in the park across the street.
I’ve had sushi rolls and bento boxes here. I like their bento boxes better. Tempura is great here. Perfect breading and crunchy. My chicken teriyaki seemed overly peppered but it was ok.
Their hot tea comes out Super HOT. Let it cool down before sipping or you’ll burn your whole mouth. After you let it cool, it is very good tea :)

I wish I could give no stars. The food is ok if you ever get it. Oh… they ran out of sushi rice TWO hours into dinner service. The waiter will call you «boss» or «man» and cannot pronounce the Japanese words. They might have just ran out of water too… I’m literally sitting at the table right meow waiting for the waiter to lose his shit and quit this job. PS… the bathrooms are still out of order. Happy Saturday y’all.

Will never be back here again! Wish I could give them no stars! Sitting here now and I wish I could walk out.
I’ve been here multiple times and service is always spotty. Today — they ran out of sushi rice at a SUSHI restaurant. All while taking almost an hour to get anything we ordered.
They are still seating hoards of people and not telling them they have no sushi rice. And they denied me a to go roll for my fiancé because they don’t have enough rice. Absolutely bonkers.

Still coming here for the Raider Roll. Its crazy good! Worth coming here from time to time for the RR.

Hands down best sushi place in Clayton, Concord, Walnut Creek, P-​Hill, Martinez, etc!!!
Order the Happy Roll — it’s to die for (shrimp temp., cream cheese, delectable sauce on top, and other ingredients), no other place makes this identical roll. I like my food to look as delicious as it tastes — this place gets 5-​stars. Closed on Mondays.
–Sake Bomb

This review is based on food, menu and service.
Food:
Nothing special. I ordered the saba shioyaki bento, and it came with tempura and sashimi. The tempura is HUGE but because it’s drench with the batter. For the sashimi, at least it wasn’t skinny, and not fishy, but nothing special.
Menu:
Some name of the food is named incorrectly. So my order was the saba shio teriyaki bento, but it’s not even teriyaki. Saba means mackerel, shio means salt, teriyaki means; teri = simmered, yaki — fry, AKA teriyaki sauce which is the soy sauce based sauce. This dish is not served with teriyaki nor prepared as teriyaki, it’s grilled. I’m hoping the owner reads this and if you are, please change the name of this dish, it is not saba shio teriyaki, it’s saba shio, or change it to grilled saba, because there is no teriyaki sauce or prepared that way.
Service:
Service is BAD. The server just did not seem to care, or nor to serve. We did come late but they seem to desperate to leave since it’s close to closing, I felt rushed to finish my food. Worst part, the server was standing at the corner waiting for the other party who literally just got their food and she was standing at the corner waiting for them to finish their food so they can close the restaurant. It felt so awkward.
I don’t think i’ll be coming back here. Food is ok but service was just disappointing and it’s overpriced for the quality of the food.

Well I certainly left here feeling fat and happy :)
I can’t believe with all the years I have lived in this area, along with the gazillion times I have driven and walked passed this place, that I never got around to checking them out; especially considering all the great feedback I have gotten from fellow friends that have all indulged here countless times. Well, I finally made my way over to give them a try, and left quite impressed.
Located smack dab across from my Todo Santos park, and right next door to Starbucks — this place could mistakenly appear as nothing particularly special based upon its aesthetic exterior, however don’t let that fool you, for you walk into what exudes an ultra trendy, semi dark, sultry, seductively sexy environment — yet classy; certainly a far cry from what I envisioned the place to look like all these years — totally my kind of environment ;)
I was greeted and seated immediately by an exceptionally friendly lady who ended up assisting me on my visit. They have a decent selection of sushi rolls offered, as well as some other bento boxes and specialties. For starters, I ordered a cup of green tea. After perusing the menu, I decided that the «Heart Attack Roll» sounded most appealing. Guess my body called for some damage this day :) The roll consists of: spicy tuna tempura with jalepeno, avocado topped with spicy tempura, crab and house special sauce. My server also mentioned it was her favorite roll. I also ordered a cup of Miso Soup.
Tea arrived first and tasted excellent. Soup then arrived. I have to say, the soup was less then impressive and lacked a bit of flavor, however it was still drinkable considering I was quite hungry. Sushi roll then arrived massive in size– nothing exceptionally aesthetically appealing compared to other sushi rolls I have indulged in, but man, did it turn out decadently delicious! So good, that I ate the whole… damn…thing. I have never ate a whole sushi roll to my self before due to carb watching reasons, but this sucker was so good, I left my carb conscious mind out of this experience… mmmhmmm.
Needless to say, minus a few minuscule imperfections, I was mostly impressed with my experience. With the pleasantly friendly and attentive service, along with the decadently delicious roll and ultra trendy ambiance, you can certainly count on me making my happy way over again :)

For me, Happy Roll has 5 star food, 4 star atmosphere and 3 star service, hence my overall rating of 4 stars. When it comes to sushi, my main concern is the food, so Happy Roll has become our go-​to sushi local joint, and we’ve dine there several times a year for the past decade or so.
As you’ll read in other reviews, the service can be a problem. We are usually seated with in a few minutes, but there is frequently that long uncomfortable wait at the door when no-​one comes to greet you. If they are busy, there is commonly another long uncomfortable wait before anyone acknowledges your existence again. Once you get your order in though, things tend to smooth out. Just don’t ever expect the service to be anything more than cordial — friendly just ain’t going to happen.
The atmosphere is typical mid-​grade home grown sushi joint, nothing too fancy, but still adorned in real wood and nice Japanese themed art. The lighting is just right for restaurant IMO. Bring a sweater or jacket as it tends to be on the cooler side.
But the food, oh my is the food good. So good in fact, I measure all other sushi restaurants against them. My specific ruler is the Tuna. It is always just right here, always. Never too fishy, never too tough, never too fatty. The same goes for all the other fish too. They clearly put some effort into there fish selection when they are at the fish markets.
Their fancier rolls start at $ 11 and head well into the teens. This is not a place to go for a good deal on sushi. But IMO, you get what you pay for.

I know you’re all tired of the slogan «yah baby I like it raw» but we can’t help it!
Sushi me please! LOL Hidden spot in the concord area, I’ve walked passed it many times and never noticed til a friend said this sushi hole was good.
Salmon & Hamachi sashimi pleaseeeeee with sugar on top. oh and I would like the mixed veggies/​shrimp tempura. My other friends ordered a bento box and specialty rolls (btw are different from others) 15mins roll by and I am starving but also grooving at my table because I hear some old school hip hop remix, which made you want to dance. HAAHAHH
All I can say was WOW and I want to eat more but my belly was so full. Not a complaint in sight. I will make sure to make an appearance soon again. Thanks Happy Roll!

First time visitor with a friend of mine. I like the spot and the surrounding area. When I came in here I noticed the ambiance which I enjoyed. Everything seems really odd but in a good way; it’s a sushi spot so it’s Japanese but the menu looks egyptian, there’s a wreath on the wall (x-​mas?) and other things but it all blends well. I enjoyed it. So why am I giving this place one star?
Well the food was a bit bland. We both got sushi rolls — it’s approximately an hour and a half before closing time and the waiter tells us they are almost out of rice and states whichever customers order first get first dibs; so we are feeling a bit rushed. After the order, food comes out prompt but the waiter also rushes to give us the bill. Can you please wait for me to finish my food with my date? Jeez. Even with the bland rolls, I would’ve totally came back cause I like the place but man, because of the rushed atmosphere, I’m not returning. They should consider themselves lucky I PAID the bill and just didn’t walk out.

I have tried to come to this establishment on several occasions but have had bad luck because they have frequently been closed. I tried their bento box with tempura and seasoned chicken (I’m not sure of the Accurate name.)
Area of improvement: the waiter spoken exceptionally fast and confused me about my order as he was trying to explain that they did not carry a specific item only to bring it out with my meal. Their short ribs were marinated to perfection but tasted a bit rubbery. I found myself chewing the meet like a piece of gum.
Pros: great customer service, tasty sushi and marinates. Fair pricing. The menu was clear and not too confusing. And the atmosphere was quaint and dim.
I will be back to try a big sushi roll.

This is my third time at this place and each time I was not disappointed. Tonight, I took the safe route by ordering the chicken teriyaki bento box. The California roll was good and the chicken was seasoned well (please keep in mind that this is based on my taste preferences).
Service was above average too as we got our food fairly quickly. Our server was proficient but not overly friendly. He got the job done.
I would definitely come back and also recommend this place for anyone looking for above average Japanese restaurant in the area.

Despite the name, I actually haven’t tried any of Happy Rolls’ sushi rolls. I’ve come here 3 times in my life for dinner, and I still think the dinner bento box is a way better deal than buying sushi (as its kinda on the more expensive side at near $ 16 per roll).
You’ll get more bang for your buck if you buy one of the bento boxes. Here are some tips if that is what you decide to order:
They come with your choice of protein (teriyaki chicken, salmon, or short ribs, fried saba, etc.) The teriyaki options don’t have much teriyaki sauce … ask to get some on the side! It also comes with some of the crispiest tempura ~ I was quite pleased with this portion of the dish but you might find that the tempura sauce is a little sweeter than usual~ a salad that I don’t recommend because the dressing is too nutty for my taste, and your choice of a California roll or sashimi (get the roll because your rice to meat ratio is not equal and the California roll can substitute you ordering more rice!)
These are only minor things that I found to be worthy to note. It was a table-​wide consensus, but I still enjoyed my meal… and finished everything except for the salad.
They give you complimentary salted edamame and miso soup with your meal! So that’s quite the hefty amount of food for the same price as a specialty roll.
For your birthday, they give you sunglasses, a hat, and a feather boa + take a picture of you and put it on their walls, alongside complimentary dessert of course.
Friendly service that kindly fills up your water without you having to ask.

Came here because a friend was in town and I had to see her! Said that this was one of her family’s go-​to sushi spots, so we came here. Had the Raiders Roll… not a fan of the name or the price, but at least you get a huge amount of sushi for the price you pay. Service was accommodating as well. I think we got pretty lucky with the parking situation, I can see this place being a bit tough to find parking for.
Overall, enjoyed my experience here.