Temakira

So came here and unfortunately was disappointed by the quality. Rice in both handrolls were hard. Also, there’s something to say when you have it authentically made by Japanese bc of the care and attention they put into the preparation. There is an art to handrolls and sushi… My handroll seemed like it was just thrown together and it wasn’t busy.

Mmmm.Mmmmm. Delicious, size slightly fatter than usual hand rolls, prices reasonable & worth the amount you get. Ate 3 and filled me up for dinner, plus got a green tea mochi. I also tried Blood Orange Gingerale their specialty drink made In-​house, which was good but would like to try other flavors. Thanks to the very nice ladies who helped us since it was our first time. Place located in The Mix @ SOCO, small seating area which mainly had counter height table/​chairs, next to other random establishments.

Everything about here is so ok. It’s not a great deal, but they’re not stealing from you. The handrolls taste decent but the apps kind of stink. The salmon skin salad is pretty good, if you like salads. Meh.

Beers and hand rolls.
Temakira is reasonably priced and has outstanding food. It’s never really busy, but it’s small and quiet which is kind of nice.
They also have the most comfortable plastic patio furniture outside. They’re like Herman Miller plastic folder chairs. It’s weird. It’s nice. I like Temakira.

It would be in the management’s best interest to fire their current employees or train them on common courtesy. I won’t go into details but in my experience at Temakira, I was treated very rudely and disrespectfully. Enough to leave a bad taste in my mouth.
Anyways, the food. It was alright. I opted for the Zen roll which came out to $ 5.13. This tiny roll was not satiating whatsoever. I can imagine myself eating 4 of these, and at that point I would be approaching $ 20 for a mediocre meal. The spicy tuna was room temperature (slightly unsettling), and the seaweed wrap was soggy — as if it had been sitting for a while before being put in front of me.
So bottom line, if you don’t mind so-​so, extremely overpriced food coupled with terrible service: this is your place. Otherwise, steer clear.

Major rip off.
We’d been meaning to come here to check it out and, sad to say, will not be coming back.
Tip to the manager: if you’re charging $ 6.00 for a glass of wine, and you want to keep customers in the shop longer (which you most likely should, considering the relatively high prices and small food portion sizes), you should probably pour a little more than a few «shots» of unnamed wine inside the glass. Or at least get smaller glasses so they *appear* fuller. I don’t expect a brimming glass but well, come on — the pic says it all.
Food was decent– pretty standard issue for handrolls, no one’s reinventing the wheel here. But I suppose when paying restaurant prices I also had restaurant expectations. Guess that’s my bad.
Bottom line: if you’re paying this much money, go to one of the many great full service sushi restaurants in the area which have a much bigger variety of food, better drinks (with realistic portions), and a nice ambiance.

This place is great when you need your sushi fix but you don’t want to bother with the sushi restaurant scene. They have a selection ranging from traditional hand rolls to more updated interpretations of this delicious snack (hey, vegans/​vegetarians, they have options for you!). Yes, snack. At nearly $ 5 a pop, I only ever feel like I can get two at a time (three if I feel like spoiling myself), and while that does enough to keep the tummy rumbles at bay, I find that I am always hungry an hour after polishing off these little rolls of sunshine. #hungrygirlproblems. Not sure why that is but they’re so tasty I wish I could just have ten at a time.
This Costa Mesa location is in a hub surrounded by other eateries so it’s easy to be overlooked, but give it a chance. Resist the Thai Spice urge and get your butt in here. The nice staff and simple, clean interior makes a very welcoming space to nosh on these guilt-​free, if pricey, hand rolls.

It’s expensive for em handrolls about $ 5 each. I got the Viva and Miso hand rolls.
Viva: this is the reason why I gave this place 3 stars. Otherwise, it would be 2 stars. Viva is way better than the Miso. However, it’s not bad but it’s not great.
Miso: BADBADBAD. The salmon was not fresh. It just wasn’t good.
Overall, I don’t think I would come back since I can get better hand rolls elsewhere for much cheaper.

The best Handrolls in town!!! Great new concept! So many hand rolls to choose from! My favorites are:
1. Salmon katsu HR (yummy sauce to top it off)
2. Calientail
3. Viva
4. Crunchy
I know many people enjoy Zisto Miso but I didn’t enjoy it very much. I normally don’t like anything too creamy so that’s why Zesty Miso wasnt my favorite.

I guess the new rage are hand roll bars nowadays. I forgot the name of rolls I had but one had spicy tuna and the other one had poke. Both rolls were good but a little on the pricy said. I will have to say the gyoza was my fav though. The inside is small but very modern.

I’ve been wanting to try this place for months but was deeply unimpressed. For the price the rolls are pretty generous but the flavors are just lacking. Each roll cost $ 4.75 or prices vary when you build your own.
Handrolls that we we ordered:
Zesty miso: salmon, lemon, cucumber, miso … Uhm what miso? Didnt taste any miso, but fish portions were good.
POKE: tuna poke, avocado (I preferred this one but I like poke)
Shisho peppers: I liked this a lot surprisingly.
Overall, since I don’t live in the area I wouldn’t come back but I wouldn’t void it out completely it was just so standards.

I amm the bigggggest fan when it comes to handrolls. My faaaav things ever. If you threw me in an island and fed me handrolls every day of my life, I’d call it heaven.
So I knew I was heading to OC today and called to see if it was opened since it was Labor Day, but no one answered so I assumed it was closed and was super bummed out that I couldn’t try this spot. HOWEVER, they actually opened late and when I went to ULTA (beauty store next door) while putting my stuff away in the car… I looked up and I was like Temakira I’m like… why does this place sound so familiar? Thennn I was like omg omg holy sh*t it’s the handroll place I’ve been wanting to try and whaaat… It’s opened?! I was super stoked and it was like a freaking miracle that I would somehow randomly stumble upon this place.
ANYWAY… focusing on the handrolls: I definitely will come back here to satisfy my handroll cravings even though I live far as heck from here. I wanted to order ALOT but ended up getting two, because I was suppose to meet up my friends at Baos Hog (turns out it was closed by the time we got there…). I ordered Calientail and customized one, while my bf ordered Shrimparagus, and Crunchy. I looovveedd my customized one (White rice, Seaweed, Salmon, Advocado+ extra charge, Crab Mix, Caramalized Onions, with Eel Sauce) I actually recommend customize your own unless you really don’t know what you want. The Calientail was okay-​ish while Shrimparagus, and Crunchy were really basiccc, but still good.
Definitely build your own though! Rice: White or Brown Rice (extra charge) Choose your skin: Seaweed or Soy Paper; Protein: Salmon, Spicy Tuna, Yellow tail, or Tuna (I think); Choose three fillers; and Choose Sauce: Spicy Mayo, Mayo, or Eel
Service: Welcoming. Ambiance is really clean and minimalistic

My boyfriend and I really wanted to love this spot. We really like the idea of this place. I love any type of food that I am able to customize and I love sushi/​hand rolls, and so this would’ve been perfect. However, it just didn’t hit the spot for me or my boyfriend. The shop itself is very clean and modern. There are several of little tables, along with some bar type seating and two outdoor tables as well.
It was mine and my boyfriend’s first time here and so we weren’t sure as to how we would order, until I noticed the menus on the side of the counter and the dry erase markers. There’s one side of the menu where the rolls are already set with their own fillings and on the other side of the menu, it’s a checklist of what you would want in your handroll so that you can customize your own. You have your choice of wrap — seaweed or soy paper (soy paper has an additional charge), a choice of rice — white or brown (brown has an additional charge), a choice of protein — salmon, tuna, spicy tuna, or yellowtail, 3 choices of fillings — crab mix, avocado (additional charge), cream cheese, tempura flakes, caramelized onions, green onions, daikon sprouts, tobiko (smelt/​fish eggs), yamagobo (Japanese pickled burdock root, very similar to a carrot), and a choice of sauce — spicy mayo, mayo, eel sauce, or sriracha. Each roll is basically $ 4.75, depending on if you’d add things with the additional charges or not. My boyfriend and I customized three of our hand rolls and also got the poke hand roll and the salmon katsu hand roll. Ginger and wasabi available upon request, soy sauce is on the side counter next to the water dispenser.
The hand rolls were good. Out of the five, my least favorite was the poke hand roll. My most favorite would be one of the ones that I customized — soy paper, white rice, salmon, spicy mayo, crab mix, yamagobo, and tempura flakes. My boyfriend’s favorite was the one he customized — soy paper, white rice, salmon, eel sauce, green onions, crab mix, avocado. However, for $ 4.75, it wasn’t worth it to us. There are other places that offer hand rolls for a lower price and tasted just as good. We tried and shared 5 rolls, and although I was full, my boyfriend wasn’t and our total was $ 30+ so it wasn’t worth it to us when we can spend just as much elsewhere for hand rolls, or just any sushi place in general, for that price for both of us to be full. I liked it, but I didn’t like it enough. I don’t think I’ll be back unless someone I was with really wanted to go or if I was conveniently in the area and wanted a quick fix because service was fast for us.

Clean modern looking place where they serve simple handrolls! It’s a 8table small joint… Not bad for to-​go not quick simple meal! A good idea!
Smile servers! You are in a hospitality business!
You get 4 instead of 5 cause of service!

Such an awesome concept! I drove past this place multiple times in Costa Mesa and decided that my coworkers and I would have to hit this place up for a lunch one day.
For $ 5 a roll, this place definitely loses one star for the prices but considering I was able to eat 2 rolls and be full, it wasn’t too expensive. I can definitely see people eating up to 4 though to be fully satiated. Service is quick and high tech — you can order off the menu or build your own which I did. There’s an iPad cash register and the restaurant is TINY so if you have a large group or small children this place isn’t really ideal.
Overall we were all happy with our orders and I’m a huge fan of the crunch roll. It can take some timed to make the rolls if you’re here during prime work lunch hours because they make it fresh but if you’re in the area, it’s all definitely worth a try.

What does it say about a place when one isn’t wowed but still harbors a desire to return?
* In my case it says that hand rolls (aka temaki) are a perfect antidote to the question of eating light and healthy and the protein they contain will (possibly) kill the craving for Yogurtland, a few doors down.
* It also says that lightening quick food preparation coupled with a casual, sparkling clean atmosphere make this a desirable place for solo diners.
Why weren’t you wowed by it?
* 1 roll sampled (Calientail) was muddied so by spicy sauce that the fish flavor was MIA.
* The consistency of the fish in the Spicy Tuna and Negi Hama rolls was unfamiliar and mildly unappealing.
* Three rolls seems to get at the hunger which two rolls seem to barely begin to touch. At about $ 5 per roll it’ll take $ 15 to be even moderately satisfied.
So, it’s not really cheap and it’s not really great but a decent light meal or snack can be created here. The best thing sampled over two separate visits was a «custom roll» where I ensured no saucy treatment on the fish (only unadorned sriracha). Creating a «custom roll» takes about sixty seconds longer than picking some pre-​named roll off the menu but it’s from that «custom menu» that I finally got the only roll with which I had no issues.
Here, I’ll save you the 60 seconds:
* Nori (seaweed)
* White rice
* Yellowtail
* Daikon Sprouts, Tobiko, Yamagobo (pickled burdock)
* Sriracha

A little out of my way normally, but I was able to stop by on a day off to try this place out. Clean, modern décor and the staff was extremely friendly!
I tried 2 handrolls ($ 4.75 each)
– Zesty Miso: One of their originals. Salmon chunks with miso lemon, daikon sprouts, cucumber and tobiko! This was delicious and very hearty.
– Negi Hama: A more traditional handroll that has yellowtail, green onion, with olive oil and lemon. This was very light tasting but filling as well.
I really liked both of these rolls! Will be back to try Tekka, Poke, and supposedly the The Garden (vegetarian) is really good. They even have a variety of flavors on Ginger Ale that tastes amazing.
On a second visit back, I couldn’t bring myself to choose new rolls because I liked the Zesty Miso and Negi so much.
I did try one new item, the Yellowtail Collar which they cook once you order it, so it takes about 20 minutes. A small is $ 10 and the large is $ 12. The small is more than enough for 2 people to pick at. I felt they overcooked it a little but a great deal for a large piece.
I’ve now tried the Jasmine Tea Ginger Ale, Passionfruit Ginger Ale and regular Ginger Ale. Next time the Pomegranate Ginger Ale to complete the set!

Create your own hand rolls!
In a small space wedged between Bruxie and Thai Spice is Temakira. It’s a place where you can pick what ingredients you want in your hand roll or go with one of their signature creations. All are $ 4.75 each.
Calientail (Yellowtail, Avocado, Tobiko, Cucumber, Extra Spicy Sauce) — This one was so-​so, nothing really stood out to me.
Zesty Miso (Salmon, Miso Lemon, Tobiko, Daikon Sprouts, Cucumber, Crunchies) — Creamy salmon with the citrus miso work well together. The flavors were a little more subtle than I imagined they would be, but that’s a good thing. Not everything has to be over sauced or over spiced to make it stand out. Nothing wrong with letting the fish shine!
Custom Roll — (Spicy Tuna, Crunchies, Daikon Sprouts, Spicy Mayo, Avocado — $.50 extra) — This had the strongest flavors of the three rolls because of the spicy tuna, avocado and spicy mayo. I liked my creatiion the best. Hahaha
The rolls are a generous size but then towards the bottom of the roll there is a lot more rice than good stuff. If they took out some of that rice, then it would be closer to the average sized hand rolls that you get from other places. The seaweed could be a little crispier.
Two hand rolls is probably good for an average lunch, order three if you are hungrier.
One weird thing is their bathroom sink. It’s the smallest sink that I’ve ever seen in a restaurant!
Fresh ingredients, good sized rolls, but a bit pricey for what you get. If you like to customize your hand rolls or are in the Costa Mesa/​Newport area and are craving some sushi for your abbreviated lunch hour, Temakira is worth a spin.

I normally like my sushi cut up into bite sized circles, but these handrolls are a tasty alternative.
This is a hip little spot with a few tables and a small bar space, but handrolls make for good to-​go food too. Everything about the place is modern including a cool ipad checkout system.
They have a handful of classic handrolls ($ 4.75) and you can also custom make your own handroll. I tried the Crunchy, Philly, Viva and Zesty Miso handrolls and they were all delicious. The Viva is good if you’re into spicy tuna. The Zesty Miso is unique with salmon and a lemon miso sauce. If the mood strikes you can substitute soy paper for 50 cents.
If you can’t imagine sushi without beer, you don’t have to because they offer beers on draft ($ 5.00) and even sake!
You’ll need at least 2 handrolls to feel satisfied, but you can also order appetizers like gyoza or seafood beignets. I recommend the poke salad ($ 6.50) which is dressed in a gingery dressing with big avocado chunks and buttery poke.
All their ingredients taste fresh and I feel good about what I’m eating here.

I came in here thinking it would have a sushi bar and look more traditional but it’s more like sushi on the go. Great for lunch time or a healthy quick bite to eat. $ 4.75−3.75 a roll pretty good prices if you ask me.
All beers are on tap which is a plus and all from Japan. A Blonde from Japan?! YES! It was really good and totally worked with the sushi. They have cold sake but no hot ones.
I loved the Garden hand roll– red cabbage, daikon sprouts, pea shoots, cucumber, asparagus, gobo, caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms. I would definitely order this roll again it was my favorite. I wish they had shiso with it though. I am a huge fan of shiso.
We also ordered the Viva — shrimp tempura, spicy tuna, viva sauce, tobiko. This was good; the tempura was fresh and crispy.
Another roll we got was the Calientail-​yellowtail, avocado, tobiko, cucmumber with extra spicy sauce. These ones are really SPICY, I am wuss when it comes to spices so I couldn’t finish it but my sister loved it. I was told by the girl at the register this one is their most popular.
The last thing we got was gyzos which were just okay. I wish they were crispier at the bottom. Overall, super tasty and a good price. :)
Stars 4 ¹⁄₂