Udon good. Buttery fish was ok. Fried eel was good. Monkfish liver was not good. My young daughters liked the crunch roll. Clam soup was good. Price points good.
Lala I.
Tu valoración: 5 Los Angeles, CA
We went to Kappo Sui in costa mesa tonight. it’s a small humble little japanese restaurant with an open kitchen. it’s rare to see the entire kitchen staff and wait staff japanese. the restaurant was all booked so we had to seat at the bar. there is a variety of izakaya, sushi, and carb dishes to choose from. we were impressed by the quality of the food and everything tasted pretty good. Service was equally excellent as we received our food promptly and immediately questioned if we wanted more beer when our pitcher was running low. Food is excellently executed without the air of pretentiousness from the newer«modern» izakayas, it feels like this place hasn’t changed since the 90s and probably never will. From beginning to end the whole experience was flawless and met my expectations on how an Izakaya should be.
Josie V.
Tu valoración: 5 Newport Beach, CA
Excellent! Authentic and delicious Japanese food! Yum! They also have a simple Sushi menu. Very fresh and priced reasonably. Very friendly staff. I will definitely be their new regular! :)
Tiana I.
Tu valoración: 5 Fullerton, CA
Only been for lunch(take out) but I have to say, I was very impressed with the taste of the food. I ordered the tempura udon; the noodles were fresh, the broth was nice and hot, and the shrimp and vegetable tempura was crispy. I will definitely come back for a dine in experience and update this review.
Kenji K.
Tu valoración: 5 Irvine, CA
This is my go to place when I want Japanese food like I used to get in Tokyo. It’s not teishoku and set menu stuff, like most of what is available here in the US. It’s a kappo place, so more traditional, elegant food. Most dishes are like tapas style. I really like the black cod with tororo imo – kind of like a ground taro in broth with steamed black cod. You have to like that texture to enjoy this dish(tororo imo has a slippery feel to it, the same way okra does), but if you can handle that texture, then this dish is awesome. Also love their chawanmushi(a savory egg custard), and they have a fried mochi dish that we all just gobble up. Big fan of the braised eggplant with shaved bonita, too. Almost everything is super yummy, if you can handle authentic Japanese food.
Kristi S.
Tu valoración: 5 Honolulu, HI
This unassuming restaurant is a gem. Don’t tell anyone about this place. All their dishes are authentic and delicious! We had salmon skin salad, spinach salad, agedashi mochi, Chu toro sashimi, zousui rice, hamachi Kama, chawanmushi and the fried stuffed shiitake mushrooms. Everything was delicious. Will be back.
Anja A.
Tu valoración: 4 Paramount, CA
This type of restaurant here in US is very rare. I lived in Japan for 12 years and understand the quality of Japanese food. some of the dish is considered«aquired taste» perhaps, but overall quality of fish are excellent being non-sushi restaurant. The style of restaurant is «bistro» or. «tapas» and yes, they have very good selection of Sake and Shochu(distiller sake)
Grant M.
Tu valoración: 5 Irvine, CA
Kappo sui is my favorite authentic Japanese restaurant. The dishes are always full of flavor. The food is always fresh. The staff is very friendly and the service is excellent. Food presentation is always excellent. I give it five stars not because it is a fancy expensive restaurant, but because of authenticity, friendliness, quality and flavors of food. Great value.
Gabby G.
Tu valoración: 5 Yorba Linda, CA
Enjoyed a nice work lunch here! The amount of food you get is crazy! I ordered a combination that included: a California roll, teriyaki chicken, a side of rice, miso soup, and a salad for $ 8.95! My co workers tried some of the more adventurous dishes which they loved! Next time I plan to get the eel.
Ina K.
Tu valoración: 5 Boston, MA
Goodness gracious. This place is beyond words! Here is the break-down: Staff: The waitress was super nice. Seated us real quick and walked us through their specials. She checked up on us very often to make sure that we’re happy. There were times when we had small chit-chats too! Food: This is the exciting part. According to the waitress, most people who go to their restaurant order the specials(which change every week). My mom and I got a mix of things from the specials and the menu. All the things we ordered were delicious. The two things that we got from the menu were lotus roots and duck with eggplant. I can’t emphasize enough how insanely good it was. When I first looked at the menu, I didn’t have high expectations for it because a lot of the dishes had foods that I don’t like(leek, eggplant, milk). Because of the way the dishes are prepared, you can’t tell that you’re eating an eggplant or eating a dish with milk. Simply, amazing. Side note: Waitress said most people come for the specials, not the sushi. Place: Located in a corner in a plaza next to Shell. Small restaurant. I’d say seats about 30 people. This place is great. One of the best Japanese places I’ve been to, so go!
Estelle L.
Tu valoración: 3 Los Angeles, CA
Food on the cooked menu is pretty good. Sushi is just okay. I like yakionigiri(grill rice ball), tebasaki(chicken wings), yellow tail collar all are pretty nice. Don’t waste money on sushi. Only few items are actually good enough for the price it charges. To be honest, salmon sushi from mitsuwa tastes better than that here. I only gave it 3 stars because one of the staff kept smoking in front of the restaurant with the door open. We were eating with the 2nd hand smoke all hour long. I just want to finish my dinner ASAP because it makes me feel uncomfortable. I can’t smell the food. It’s really not a good experience tonight.
Tahiti Mist T.
Tu valoración: 4 Irvine, CA
I love supporting real hole in the wall place owned by Japanese sushi chef! This is it! Very authentic Japanese food. Nice lunch daily special up on board too. I had vegetable tempura, scallop sushi and spicy tuna. Everything tasted wonderful. Restaurant smells great aroma of «katsuobushi»(dashi). Wonderful smell made me want to eat their udon also. My tummy full so next time I will try their Tempura soba(hot soup). Can’t wait!
Jared W.
Tu valoración: 4 Prahran, Australia
The sashimi is fresh and delicious. A little pricier than I expected but you get what you pay for. I noticed some reviews complaining about the selection of American style sushi. The more authentically Japanese food is what you’d come here for!
Hany Y.
Tu valoración: 2 South Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
This place is less than normal sushi place, doesn’t deserve to have anything more than 2.5 or 3 stars at the most. Limited sushi roll variety. I had way more expectations.
Tony W.
Tu valoración: 5 Costa Mesa, CA
I’ve eatten here 3 times so far and every time it was awesome. Come here with a Japanese friend who can read the special menu on the wall because it’s in Japanese. All the good stuff is on this menu! I especially liked the fried oysters and the cold thin udon noodles(the first noodle on the menu). So be sure to order those when you come here. The sake by the glass here is expensive but you get a decent amount with the overflow of your glass. The Haikaison is a good sake :) I’ll be coming back here many times whenever I’m in the area. Love it here! Authentic japanese tapas place where many Japanese eat so you know it’s all good here.
Lili R.
Tu valoración: 5 Lake Forest, CA
I love Kappo Sui. Been going there for a few years now. I like it becuse the staff is accomodating and the food is the best: traditional. Brought my coworkers there with me yesterday and they loved it. One got the daily special and the rest got sushi combo, tempura combo and fried fish combo. We left full and happy that I showed them this pearl! Will be back very soon!
Jessica M.
Tu valoración: 4 Eastvale, CA
Got here on a Tuesday night around 7:30. Sat at the bar as there was a 30 minute wait for a table. We haven’t been here for over 6 years, and we were happily surprised to find the food quality to be great still, and the service is very friendly. There were quite a few Japanese people dining here, which tells me that they serve authentic Japanese dishes. They do sell sushi, but I would come here for their cooked dishes and wash them down with a good selection of sake or draft beer. Subdued atmosphere and dated décor, I don’t mind that at all.
Xander M.
Tu valoración: 4 Santa Monica, CA
This place rules! Sweet, kind and attentive staff, real Japanese local community, interesting dishes that I have never seen before, and, incredibly fresh fish. Kirin on draft? Hello. Fresh fish? Check. Located in a strip mall? Yes. Come one come all, for the best Japanese food outside of LA.
Willy W.
Tu valoración: 4 Culver City, CA
Went to Kappo Sui for lunch on the boss, and I had the cold Soba which was their daily special. It’s located in a strip mall, so parking is possible but kinda tight. It’s definitely helpful to speak Japanese, but their English is good enough to get by.
Frances G.
Tu valoración: 4 Orange County, CA
I met up with my friends for lunch here on a Monday close to noon. This is located in a small, weathered strip mall off of Santa Ana Avenue, close to the corner of Bristol(next to Shell gas station), so it may be hard to see while driving on the street. Many Unilocalers have commented on the interior, and it does looks like it never left the 80s, but it didn’t bug me that much. The place was still somewhat empty so we got a table right away and our order came pretty quickly. Nothing like fast service when you’re hungry. I got the daily special, which was shrimp and onion kaki age(tempura) with dipping sauce, rice, udon, hijiki(brown sea vegetable), and tsukemono(pickled vegetables), for $ 10.50. The kaki age surprisingly had generous amounts of shrimp. I don’t eat sashimi so I can’t comment on how it is here, but I noticed that they serve a lot of «mom’s home recipes» like grilled fish, chicken karaage, tempura, chawan mushi(steamed egg custard with seafood/vegetables), and soba/udon noodles, so maybe that’s what they specialize in. The prices here are little high for«down home cooking» and can add up especially for dinner, but if you’ve been to Japan and have a craving for that«ofukuro no aji», then give this place a try.