Meiji-En Japanese Restaurant

Sadly, Meiji-​En is no more. Closed down a few weeks ago. I’m not sure why.

meiji-​en seems to have closed. one day it was there and the next it was gone. their website hasn’t been updated, so i’m not sure if they’ve moved or just gone out of business. sadface!

Go for the Udon soup, lunch special; it’s delightful. Give yourself time to sit down, anticipate and enjoy a nourishing big bowl of soup (they cook it up fresh and serve piping hot!).

We had a great experience during our first time visit. The server was very helpfully and very nice. The sushi was great, beef was excellent and the miso very good. Very simple atmosphere, but they have tabes or traditional floor seating in private areas. That was cool. Would recommend you give it a try.

really good sushi, but unquestionably the slowest and most inconsistent service i’ve had in a while. i’ve been here a few times. they’re always friendly, but well…
on my most recent visit, the line was out the door and i was in it for a good 15minutes before anyone on the staff approached the 2 parties in front of me to see how many they were, etc. once i was finally seated, it was another 10 mins before the server showed up to take my order. i ordered miso soup, a tempura app and 1 sushi roll. i expected to get my miso immediately (how long does it take to ladle soup into a bowl, right?). alas, 15 mins after ordering, my sushi roll arrived. 5 or so minutes after i finished it, my tempura arrived. so much for it being an appetizer. you can see where this is going. i never got my miso!
bottom line: don’t ever come here when you’re in a hurry and if you show up to a line for tables, just skip it.

Unfortunately I must withdraw my previous praise for this restaurant after three different times I’ve received and returned «Fishy» dishes. this last time ended in an argument with the chef in front of customers! This restaurant is now on my «do not Patronize» list.

If you came to Meiji en recently with a coupon and found a huge crowd don’t let that first experience sour you in any way, their food is consistently excellent. I’ve been going for years and every time it is such a great meal, I crave it regularly their spicy tuna rolls are like butter!
Keep going back they deserve your business

Food quality: very good
Value: fair
Atmosphere: kind of traditional Japanese, not very fun, lots of whispering
Chef: An artist, dower, serious, very talented
If you’re looking for a value, you’ll not find it here. If you’re looking for good sushi that’s very well presented, this is a solid restaurant.

With my friends rating this all the way from 1 to 4 stars, I really wasn’t sure what to expect.
First impression: there was no «irasshaimase» greeting. A super-​minor thing to notice, but certainly the first sign that this is not very authentic Japanese experience despite the huge arowana and tatami mats). That aside, it is a nice dining atmosphere and the service was attentive without complaint.
BUT to the food… WHAT’S UP WITH YOUR RICE!!! You’re a JAPANESE SUSHI RESTAURANT! Overcooked and bland!!! If there was any vinegar, sugar, or salt in it, I certainly didn’t taste it! I guess the soft-​shell crab in the spider roll was ok, but it was hard to get past the inexcusably poor rice :-(
The udon was ok, but too sweet and salty for my taste
The ramen was decent and I guess I’d order it again, but obviously if you just want ramen there are other better-​quality local options.
The lunch specials are reportedly a better deal & quality; I guess I’d be willing to try that, but am pretty turned off from another dinner unless someone else has an amazing experience and I just happened to get them on a bad night :-/

Food is under the average. Unagi tastes the worst ever: too much fish smell. Shashimis are just ok, and rolls are not tasty at all. Sushiland has better nigiri and rolls than this place. Servers seems nice bur never refills my tea.

There wasn’t anything special about this place for me… sushi was mediocre, we ordered I think the most expensive roll on the menu (which was only $ 12, mind you) and it had a fishy flavor. The waiter highly recommended the bluefin tuna which we ordered eagerly and it was — oh — just OK.
Not gonna win any awards in my book, and I doubt I’d ever be back, but it was a pretty affordable sushi meal I suppose. Just nothing special.

Hits and misses in practically every aspect. Let’s review:
+ Were greeted and seated instantly. Brought menus and water quickly, and ordered in a timely manner.
— Waited a good half hour for our food, and it wasn’t insanely complicated (some ramen, a tempura bento box and some nigiri). People who came in and were seated after us got our food before us. When it came, it came staggered instead of all at once.
— Bento box is not a very good deal at $ 12 — four pieces of tempura shrimp, some rice, some salad, three tiny shumai. They forgot the miso soup that’s supposed to come with it and we didn’t have the heart to remind them.
+ The bento add-​on options for $ 3 (4 pieces of nigiri, 6 pieces of sashimi or 4 pieces of a roll, with several options) are a great deal and in combination with the bento box, make a very solid meal.
+ Nigiri is delicious. The fish is super fresh, melt-​in-​your-​mouth good.
+ Ramen broth is thick and creamy, great pork flavor, substantial quality. Not the best ramen I’ve ever had but more than acceptable.
— Pork in the ramen was on the tough side.
We had a Groupon and our order total came to just under the Groupon amount. We weren’t counting on this, as we didn’t have any cash for a tip and were therefore caught in an extremely awkward situation. We explained it to the server and asked if they could ring up the tip on a card. They declined, telling us not to worry about it and asking us to just come back and eat there again. Paying it forward! I was floored by how kind they were. Despite all the shortcomings, it’s clear that Meiji-​en is run by people who care about their customers, and for that, I’ll be back. Well, that and the amazing nigiri.

The sushi looks like art. The fish is very fresh. Vincent and staff do a nice job at making the experience pleasant. I appreciate them letting my toddler check out the fish tanks. I HIGHLY recommend Meiji En.
Larger groups it may take a little longer, but the food is worth the wait.

I always come eat here for lunch when I am in Portland for the day, considering one of my favorite yarn stores is right next to it. I always get the sushi-​sashami set, which includes 6 pieces of sashimi, 4 pieces of nigiri, and 4 pieces of california roll. For $ 9.50, which includes either miso soup or salad, you can’t beat that price for sushi, especially with no sales tax in Oregon! The chef very nicely always lets me substitute maguro for albacore, and all the fish were fresh and tasty.
The wait staff here is always very attentive and friendly. I would highly recommend this place.

Gluten-​Free Options: None outside of the usual careful ordering with sushi.
Bathrooms: Single occupancy.
For a solid meal at a reasonable price, Meiji-​en has got what you’re looking for. While I wasn’t blown away by the taste, the prices are reasonable, and our server was very friendly and helpful.
There was some confusion on our bill, as they initially double charged us for an item. However, after pointing it out to the server, the issue was quickly resolved. It’s the best bite of sushi I’ve had in the Broadway area, and will definitely be where I’ll go in the future if I’m in the area and in need of a sushi fix.

***Meiji En disappeared without warning. (Completely — carpet, walls, bar, GONE.) Very sad.***
5 stars for all-​around experience & value. Obviously not as schmancy as its upscale brethren around town (you know ‘em), but good, relatively inexpensive, and perfect for a *relaxed* dinner before some (more) cocktails or a movie. I always get Unavo and Hawaii rolls, and Escolar pieces when they have ‘em.
I don’t get all of the negative reviews here. Look, this place is solid; they’re not going to do a total recall on your brain, and not going to break your wallet or make you feel like a schlub. Bamboo is better conceptually, but I’ve had more fun evenings here by far.

On a whim (and thanks to the Unilocal App) we tried Meiji-​en and were nothing less than impressed. The food was good, beautiful, and typically priced. The service was friendly but not too overbearing, the wait time was perfect, and the interior had style.
After reading some of the other reviews for this restaurant to experience it for myself. As it was my first time being there I was not observing my surroundings very well. My first impressions are made by the important factors: is the food good? is the service memorable in good ways?
For me, food was good, service was good, and I plan to go back to be able to experience more of the atmosphere.

I can’t believe I haven’t reviewed this place yet because I LOVE MEIJI-EN…for certain reasons, of course. Okay, first off, food, sushi, whatever. It’s really quite blah here and for the money, you can definitely get something much better somewhere else.
Although for those interested in having an «authentic» experience (*gags self*), they do have little tatami mat areas where you can sit on the floor and pour your diversity-​loving self (and others, of course, for the sake of authenticity!) some hot sake. Yet Meiji-​en is owned by Chinese… Korean? I can’t recall at this moment, but in my experience, a lot of Portland Japanese cuisine is owned by those of other backgrounds… not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but the food in a lot of these kinds of establishments is definitely different (than «real» Japanese cuisine) and more «pan-​Asian» in menu options. So now you can throw that authentic Japanese sushi experience you were hoping for out the window.
So, what do I LIKE about Meiji-​en? They have a MASSIVE arowana. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, just glance into the restaurant one day and check out the crazy monster fish that has everyone — kids, grandmothers, policemen, wrestlers, convicts, and even the chefs — staring at it in awe. It truly is one of the most amazing things I’ve seen on this side of Portland.

I have lived in the neighborhood for a couple years now, and have always wondered why this place doesn’t get more attention. Anyone I know who is into Japanese food (including people who have been to the country) that I have taken love the place.
The Hawaiian poke there is a relatively new discovery and is just incredible-​fresh and lush and really beautifully presented. They also usually have interesting special rolls, and the other night we got the escolar lover which was also fantastic. I have tried some of the non-​sushi stuff, but honestly the sushi seems like the main attraction… if I want fried/​grilled stuff I’ll go to Biwa or somewhere else.
The service is always great-​staff is very friendly and food shows up quickly. The tatami rooms are a nice option if you have a large party, also hey! They have huge crazy fish to look at!

Ate here a year ago and had a pretty good meal, nothing really stood out or knocked me out, but nothing bad did, either. Just a good standard sushi experience, but the service and atmosphere was very nice.
However, I ate there a month ago and had the worst sushi experience I can remember in Portland. The sushi chef looked completely bored and it showed in the food. Had several standard things that would have been 2 or 3 star quality, but then got not one, but TWO pieces of uni that were obviously well beyond stale and if you have had bad uni, folks, you know how much fun that is. I understand the occasional funky piece here and there but this uni should NEVER have been served in the first place. They even looked dark and I should have been suspicious before diving in. Also the creamy scallops were really bad. A sweet mayo sauce that was awful, no hint of Kewpie mayo and garlic chile sauce. It tasted like scallops with sugar. whew!
Service was friendly, but a really underwhelming meal. All I ask for is a little attention to freshness.