While the food certainly featured a good taste for the most part, including the delicious chawanmushi, the scallops handroll, and the sweet shrimp nigiri and their warmly tasty fried heads in particular, some parts were less tasty than expected such as the ikura nigiri which honestly tasted rather foul and nothing like I've ever tasted in Tokyo or anywhere else in Japan or in Honolulu where we often get fish flown in from Japan, and the california handroll and the california cut rolls both tasted a little bland and the entire inside was like a puree that was molded inside the roll which I'd never eaten even in Honolulu where the california rolls actually taste phenomenal with strings of crabmeat, lots of mayonnaise, long cucumber stalks and slices of avocado. Most surprising was the enormous price increase from the menu that we had found on their website shortly before visiting -- as in, the $20 chirashi now cost $30 and green tea costs $3 rather than being complimentary as we see in Japan and Honolulu. We were hoping that this restaurant will match our Honolulu favorite, Katsumidori Sushi, but alas, despite costing almost twice as much at the end the flavors we encountered throughout our dinner were rather sparse and overshadowed by the attention to customer service we had received. I have great respect for the people who run this seemingly authentically-oriented sushi establishment and hope that they may soon find a way to bring the explosive joy of sushi as eaten in Japan and Honolulu to their homeplace in Orange County. Please keep us apprised of new changes on your website, thank you!!
Incredible sushi bar. Everytime I visit Irvine I have to go sit at Shunka's sushi bar. Let the chefs recommend you nigiris, enjoy some sake or beer. Must visit.Update: 4 years later it is still the best!
Freshest fish I've ever had. They also serve fish I've never heard of. If you love sushi come here. If you wanna try something new come here. New favorite spot!
Love my sushi !! Great spot
good food and service Yuki is the man
It's one of the best Omakase Sushi around here. Sushi size is small and beautifully presented. Service is excellent. Good selections of sake. The only thing I am leaving one star out for, is the foods that are coming out of the kitchen. Soup based items tend to be bit salty and it may be that they are cooking for the local market. If you taste soup items too salty, just ask for the hot water and they will happily accommodate you. Tempura is good but not out of ordinary. The udon noodle is just the run of the mill frozen noodle. Hama, or anything grilled fish such as salmon skin etc are not grilled well enough to bring out its flavor. This requires quite a bit of expertise and they don't have someone trained enough. Having said, I have been visiting here weekly, because they are really better than most Japanese sushi places in Costa Mesa or in Orange County, CA.
My Dad (81), My Sister & I have been coming here a couple times a month for our "Family Lunch" for a few years.The sashimi, sushi & service are always on point.Friendly atmosphere & the get to know you +++I drive from San Clemente... Just sayin'.
Got takeout, tastes great, good portion. Good service.
Good sushi place but I would say it's one level below Nana San or San shi go in terms of the sushi and it's a bit more expensive as well. The king salmon, Spanish mackerel and toro stood out among the nigiri I tried, the rest are just okay/good enough... I feel that the madai, which was highly recommended by our waitress on the "from Japan" menu was nothing special which is why it was masked with a chili flake sauce/topping. Good place but not great.
Good sushi place but I would say it's one level below Nana San or San shi go in terms of the sushi and it's a bit more expensive as well. The king salmon, Spanish mackerel and toro stood out among the nigiri I tried, the rest are just okay/good enough... I feel that the madai, which was highly recommended by our waitress on the "from Japan" menu was nothing special which is why it was masked with a chili flake sauce/topping. Good place but not great.