Sushi Neko

Sushi Neko has long been the standard for sushi south of I-​44 on Western.
With their fresh fish, authentic dining style, and extremely friendly staff, Neko is the place for lunch.
The sushi is prepared quickly by the various sushi chefs and you feel full afterwards.
You must start with a bowl of miso soup. My dining partner this day added Sriracha to hers, something I’ve not witnessed before.
I can’t recall all of the rolls we ordered, but they were all great!

What? Decent sushi in OKC? Huzzah! It DOES exist!
I was skeptical when friends wanted to go there for dinner, but it was fantastic. The atmosphere and service was great! They also had a lonnnng list of rolls and nigiri to choose from. Even more shockingly, one of my favorites was a vegetable roll, the Triple Delight. It was yummy!
It was so nice to have somewhere in OK that wasn’t fried or greasy, or sitting in a pool of butter.

I went there Friday night with a friend (you would think they put out their best efforts on a weekend night). We ordered the saki and a couple of different rolls each. The biggest disappointment were the rolls which had nori (seaweed) which was so tough and chewey it was horrible. I would compare it to chewing rubber bands if I knew what chewing rubber bands tasted like.
I have eaten a lot of sushi on the east coast and this was nothing close in comparison. Geez, I have eaten some incredible sushi in Amarillo so i know it’s not the location from the water– LOL.
Read other’s poor desert reviews so we skipped that after the main portion was such a failure. Probably don’t have to go back.

Finally getting around to adding my 2 cents on this OKC cornerstone of the Western entertainment district. I’ve eaten at Neko probably 20 times the past few years. Never disappointed. I’ve only ever ordered sashimi & nigiri because that’s what I like, but I’ve had bites of most of the rolls.
The fish is fresh, and of good quality, which is of course most important with a sush spot. The menu has been updated over the years — and has lots of fun options (cooked & fresh of course). The yellowtail special sashimi & heartbreaker sashimi are great.
Walking distance to many other good restaurants & bars.

Most of what I said before still applies. I was with someone for whom it was a birthday, and this was their choice of restaurant. Once again– good sushi, but presentation and roll integrity is still lacking.
But I actually have a further complaint. In place of traditional cheesecake, they are now carrying some kind of soymilk cheesecake. Since we weren’t sure that the birthday girl was going to like the soymilk cheesecake, we ordered the dessert sampler, which includes several of their desserts, and every one of them was intensely disappointing. I joked at the table that there should be laws about what you can call a cheesecake. This was nothing like a cheesecake in any way. It was some kind of ultra-​light, disgusting, nearly flavorless mousse. Sushi Neko owners? Nobody orders anything labeled cheesecake, in order to receive some kind of low fat, artificially sweetened whipped thing. That is not a cheesecake. It has no cheese. It does not have a high fat content. It doesn’t resemble cheesecake in ANY WAY. Neither does the chocolate cake. The panna cotta and crème brûlée aren’t rich, either, and both of those desserts are supposed to be. The chocolate… not-​really-​cake was some kind of hard, dry, strange dessert. The sorbet was so overpowered with artificial raspberry flavoring that it was sickening. Utterly disgusting, if we’re being honest. I’ve had dollar store candy that wasn’t that overpoweringly fake.
Your dessert menu needs a serious overhaul. If you’re so judge-​y that you can’t allow someone to choose to eat a slice of cheesecake, because you don’t like fat people or something, just get rid of desserts. Don’t offer disgusting desserts instead. Okay? It was bad enough when you had actual desserts, and then came out with this two-​bite portion for $ 6 – 9. And maybe pay attention to your critical reviewers, as well as those who left those which were positive. You’re still missing my third star because you haven’t acknowledged anyone who said anything critical. Mmkay, I’m out.

Great Sushi bar. So many options and tasty combinations! I also like their happy hour deal. The staff is friendly, the atmosphere is crowded, but nice. The drinks are great! The bartenders always get my drink right.

BEST sushi in OKC. Hands down. Check out the happy hour too! Love this place

The staff has always been gracious and helpful. The food is consistently tasty, and the fish is fresh. I definitely recommend!

Literally they serve the best sushi I’ve ever ate. Every single time we go, I enjoy it so much. The sushi is so fresh and flavorful. The have a great array of options. It’s so fun to try a new sushi roll because they never disappoint! Our favorite 3 rolls include the Cowboy, Vegas, and Rainbow roll. My only thing I can complain about is that it gets extremely packed on weekend nights (clearly because it’s amazing), and the seating is close so it feels crowded at times. Honestly though, the sushi is so good that we don’t mind it at all. I would defined let recommend this place. This is our favorite sushi bar in OKC by far!

Sushi Neko is A-​OK~. The sushi is alright. There’s nothing bad about it, but there wasn’t anything spectacular, either.
What really stuck out to me was the service. When you order sushi, you have a little pamphlet type thing and mark which sushi rolls/​nigiri/​sashimi you want. Honestly, I immediately forgot what I ordered after they were taken. That’s just how it is being me, okay?
When my sister and I got our orders, I looked at mine funny because there was asparagus (which I am not a fan of) and I thought I specifically avoided any sushi with asparagus. I chalked it up to my own mistake and just poked it out to eat the rest of the roll. A worker (maybe manager of some sort?) passed by and immediately noticed it was the wrong roll. We both apologized, ’cause I started eating it and all, and he insisted we keep that roll free of charge and then had the correct roll made. So that was cool.

Not sure why this place only had 3 and ½ stars. It’s a solid 4.5 at least. The tuna/​salmon nigiri was really good. Not 5 star ocean-​state excellent… But some of the best fish I’ve had in a land-​locked state yet.
The rolls on the other hand were incredible. The scallop hand roll was great… And the rainbow roll (with real crab meat substituted) was as well. But the Lifesaver with tempura bacon was incredible. Not to mention the lobster shooters were tasty and fun to eat. The fry on the lobster is a bit thick, but the curry sauce makes up for it. Pour the curry on the lobster and shoot it back like a shot. Def worth it!

I personally did not enjoy this sushi overall and would never return to this place.
For starters, I ordered gyoza. This ended up being the BEST item on the table. I enjoyed them very much.
For sushi, I’m only into cooked rolls. I searched the menu for cooked rolls and the fact that they had symbols to designate cooked vs fresh was impressive. My selections were the sassy shrimp and cowboy rolls. I was very disappointed though. The cowboy was freezing cold. After trying a couple of pieces I gave up and asked the waitress why and she explained that all sushi is cold and the cream cheese makes it colder. I said even cooked sushi? She said yes. I asked even cold to the point that it’s freezing my TEETH, she said okay.
The Georgia Peach martini was very good also.
I was visiting for vacation. My Über driver who picked me up told me how much she also hates this and recommended a better spot that I hope to try.

Really have always enjoyed my meals here.
Then they dumped an entire tray of drinks on me and ruined my coat. (That’s pejorative, I’m sure $ 20 at the cleaners can fix it– glad I get to spend that money too.) And I do mean an entire tray of drinks– I spent five minutes in the bathroom wringing my sweater out. Good times.
Then they brought me the tab. And never said a word of regret about ruining my night. Never apologized at all to me.
Class management. Can’t even imagine doing that to a customer, much less a formerly good one.

Fish was fresh and service very friendly. The beer was ice cold. What else could you want?
I had various types of sushi and nigiri — mostly salmon and yellowtail. The service was very quick and attentive. Total bill was about $ 45 for one person — which was not bad. There was ample parking in front of the restaurant, even on a busy Thursday night. There is free wifi. I think I found my new favorite sushi spot in OKC!

Sushi neko is my all time favorite sushi destination in Oklahoma. I’ve been coming to this place several times a month, for the past several years and I still don’t mind giving them all my money. The fish is always fresh and the best thing is that they don’t try to skimp you on the portion of fish. You know how some restaurants give you a giant rice roll with confetti sized pieces of fish sprinkled on top when you ordered a Yellowtail Bonanza Roll? Not this place! This place slaps you in the face with an entire yellowtail filet! The Pommes Frites is pretty good too! The Tuna salad is also really good… The rice is exquisite and holds together quite well. The only subpar menu items are anything that doesn’t have fish in it. Why are you going to a sushi restaurant and ordering a steak anyways? That’s like going to a steak house and asking if they have any vegetarian options.
The staff is always friendly and attentive. I would recommend James as your server because he’s amazing! Great atmosphere. Great place for a date. Just come asap instead of looking at other restaurants and reading the reviews.

The restaurant was so cold. I mean unbearably cold. We had to eat outside where the flies landed in my drink. We eventually had to get our food to go. I ask the manager to come over and she said they could have adjusted temp, which was never offered before we had to go outside. Also I had to pay for the drink with the fly in it. So wrong! I just felt like the Mgr didn’t care at all she just stood there and shook her head. The food is good but where will you eat it?
It got worse when we got home. The put all the sushi in one box! The sauces ran together. So my Captain Crunch became a Volcano Captain Mush!
All I wanted was sushi… not today! Ugh!

Although when I visited I was in a bit of a rush, I was running late for work and just wanted some sushi, I still feel every bit of my experience was worth the 5 shiny stars. The staff was more than accommodating and brought me a drink while I waited at the bar. I tried the spider roll and it was phenomenal, one of the best rolls I’d had in awhile. Excited to try them again when I’m not in such a rush!

It’s been years since my two disappointing trips to Sushi Neko (pronounced «neck-​o» in Japanese). The sushi seemed pedestrian and overpriced, and the vibe screams «Top Choice for Basic Bitches to go on Dates» award. That being said, my visit here yesterday was quite great, and I would come back again.
My friend and I received $ 20 in credit from Unilocal and figured «Sure, why the hell not?» (Thanks, Unilocal!) We ordered the sushi boat ($ 40) and paid the difference, since really– everything just seems more appealing served in a huge plastic boat. We ordered it without even checking what the rolls were, and it’s a combination of raw and cooked rolls. (in the future, I would just order raw rolls.)
Sushi pieces were all good-​sized, and they actually packed a lot of flavor into the rolls and nigiri. No element was particularly bland, which was enjoyable to eat. Rice texture was pretty good; not as good as Tokyo sushi’s, but it held together properly and had good texture.
Oh, and kinda cool… I heard female sushi chefs speaking Japanese! (A sushi restaurant with Japanese chefs is rarer than you’d think!) Chefs were efficient and fast. Service made consistent checks to see if we needed anything.
Don’t forget to Keep It Local for 10% off!

Sushi Neko has long been the standard bearer for high quality sushi in OKC during its 18 years in business. Nowadays it might not seem so unusual to have high quality sushi in the midwest, but how about some love for a restaurant that’s been doing this well since the 90s?
Service is amazing at Neko; they’re considerate and efficient. Their sushi isn’t the most inventive (go to Guernsey Park for that), it’s just really solid. There isn’t anything on the menu that will disappoint you.
PROS:
Nothing has changed in a decade.
The Sexy Roll and The Hot Lips Roll.
CONS:
Nothing has changed in a decade.
PRO TIP:
Go early for your reservation (and yeah, get a reservation) and let Charles pour you a tall Sapporo at the bar while your table opens up.

I have experienced sushi Neko twice so far and my overall experience is average. It’s a decent place to drink since they have a full bar but for the foods and services, I was not impressed.
I have experienced sushi from Japan and California so my expectation might be higher than others. However, I believe if you are seeking for a good place to eat sushi in OKC, Tokyo sushi is a much better place. Rolls from sushi Neko are often too big, too much rice, and falling apart. The fishes are not the freshest either.
Services can be disorganized if you come during busy hours. Servers are friendly but they have lost our order before so I can’t give anything higher than a 3.
Overall, if you are looking for a place to eat and drink before going out, this might be worth your consideration. If you are looking for some good sushi, go to Tokyo sushi on Western.

Best sushi we’ve ever eaten period. We’ve been coming for 10 years and never had a bad experience. Tonight we had the Miami which was the special. Really delicious. We had the lobster shooters which are our favorites that and the red canyon. Also enjoyed the typhoon for the first time. Only complaint was meat on that roll was a little bit over cooked. I would love some wagyu beef.
Cocktails are always good. They have a nice wine and saki selection. You can’t go wrong here. Make reservations and do it early in the week if you are eating out on the weekend. Always super busy although I like the additional seating and meeting room they have now.

So I’m not a sushi connoisseur and I don’t have a lot of experience with sushi and none with raw fish, but my friend loves this place and took me here once, and I was hooked. I’m a very picky eater so you can imagine sushi is kinda hard for me to find something I would like everything in, but I usually go with others and I get to sample different rolls though them sometimes.
I’ve had the calamari roll which I love (very simple), salmon skin (nice and crunchy salmon skin with the chewy rice was a great combination, would definitely get a whole roll of next time), and terry (nothing special). I tried my first uncooked fish via the hot lips, which wasn’t bad. I tried the atomic tootsie, which wasn’t for me because it was so spicy. I’ve also had the dragon roll, and I had to complain about this one to the waitress because the ends of the eel had bones in them, and that was a no go for us. But the manager gave us a gift card-​like voucher for the cost of the roll since they already charged us for the food.
I like the environment of the restaurant a lot, but it’s kind of small and the tables are pretty close to each other. At busier times, it feels extremely crowded. The service was pretty good overall.

Big generous meaty sushi rolls and pippin hot sake! Some of the best staff around that appear to love their jobs. Patio seating gives you some lovely Western Ave people watching. Rolls are good sized but always seem to fall apart before you can get them to the promised land … Aka your mouth. When you’re in the mood and in the area, Neko is the place to be!

Having grown up on the streets of Tokyo, Japan, I know a thing or futatsu about sushi. When I was a young boy, my father would often take me to the fish market in the early hours of the morning before sunrise. It was amazing to watch the skilled fisherman haggle with their customers: weighing fish, sampling the fish, examining every last detail about the fish. Later in the morning I would come to the realization that my father had left me at the fish market (I had two older brothers and he always told me I was a mistake — contraception is hard to find in Japan).
I’m not a sushi snob by any means, just a regular snob, but I am thankful for my experiences because I gained such an understanding of what goes into great sushi. I can taste the grass that was eaten by the cow that produced the milk to make the cream cheese that was used in my philly roll. I have a deep love and appreciation for locally sourced and sustainable tempura flakes; we must ensure that future generations have the ability to enjoy the same fried foods that we have had the luxury of enjoying. You can rest assured that when you order the chicken and fries, that no chickens (or potatoes) were harmed in the process (except for the ones that you are currently eating; those were likely raised in a cage and killed for the sole purpose of your enjoyment).
Can we make wasabi mayo the official condiment of Oklahoma already? Probably the least average mayo I have ever had. #wasabimayokc #wasabimayosoexotique

Let me be upfront about my review… I love this place. However, I’m really biased, hence my hesitation to review Sushi Neko.
I lost my sushi virginity (writing that was odd) here in 1997. I was a small town girl going to school in the bustling capitol city. OKC was a little less busting then, but I digress.
I was a freshman at OCU and my best friend took me out for sushi at Sushi Neko. The idea of eating something that was raw, or even raw-​ish, seemed exotic and adventurous. I believe I had the virgin platter and it might still be the same today. Basically, it was the cooked items and the California Roll, and maybe even the Rock N Roll. I was hooked… pun intended.
During my 4 years at OCU, I ate my weight in sushi here. And even after my friend passed away, Sushi Neko was a way to connect.
I later moved to Los Angeles and ate at several well known sushi establishments, dive-​y sushi places, grocery store sushi, and food truck sushi. I’ve had sushi in Seattle, Canada, and New York… Still I love Sushi Neko. For me it even survives the nostalgia factor.
My favorite dishes are the following:
Red Canyon Roll: Fried calamari, avocado, spicy sauce. Outside: baked crawfish, japanese mayo, green onion, eel sauce, japanese pepper.
The Spider Roll: Softshell crab, avocado, cucumber. Outside: masago.
Hot Lips (love the M*A*S*H reference): Tuna, cucumber, chili sauce. Outside: salmon, eel sauce.
The Rock N Roll: Cucumber and Avocado. Outside: freshwater eel, eel sauce, sesame seeds.
and the Super Tootsie: Tempura (salmon and cream cheese), tempura shrimp, masago, spicy sauce.
I have so many favorite memories and experiences at this place, so my review is more of a thank you to Sushi Neko. I’m glad to be back in OKC and am now able to share this place with those I love.

Fish is always Fresh! Sushi rice is perfectly seasoned. Definitely a place to enjoy some awesome sushi! You won’t be at all disappointed in the food/​service. Even though the restaurant is small, it can be really busy. Make sure to place a reservation before coming!
Make sure try these!
Appetizer:
— green mussels
— calamari
— pomme frittes (CRAZY YUMMY HOUSE FRIES)
— yellowtail special
— hamachi Kama (grill yellowtail cheeks)
Sushi rolls:
— lifesaver
— calypso
— volcano
— Cupid
— red canyon
— cowboy
–mermaid
–spicy scallop
Entrée:
— crispy chicken
— New York steak
Dessert:
— tempura ice cream
— tempura banana
— dessert sampler
Enjoy!