(415) 883-2423
Parking: shopping center parking lot
Hours: Lunch Tues - Sat 11:30 am to 2:30 p.m; Dinner Tues - Sun 5:30pm to 9:30 pm
Last Visited: March 19, 2010
Food: 2 to 3 stars
Atmosphere: 3 stars
Service: 2 stars
Price: $$ to $$$
Friends wanted to try out Taki Sushi, but when we met there, they were closed. So after talking to some coworkers whom live nearby Taki Sushi, and doing some additional web searches to verify that it indeed was worth trying, I made a second attempt to try out Taki and was successful. At least one review said that Taki Sushi was the best sushi restaurant in Marin and a number of other reviews gave it four or five stars, which of course increased my expectations.
When you walk into Taki Sushi, you notice koi pond in the front. Behind that, the room is divided in half - on the left side is the sushi bar and tables; a divider separates the bar from the right side of the room which contains only dining tables. We were immediately seated on the right side of the room and given menus. Since the shopping center itself was going through a remodel, they featured a special - a California roll for every table ordering over $20 in food - good marketing from my perspective as well as good timing for our visit. Of course, they must expect you to see the sign explaining this promotion on the outside because they don't tell you about it when you order and it was nowhere to be seen in the restaurant itself.
When it's my first visit to a Japanese restaurant, I like to order a combination of a few raw sushi items, a few cooked sushi items, and an entree. It gives me a feel for what to get for future visits since I'll be able to experience all areas of their offerings.
As you can tell from the prices below, they are not what you would call expensive, but the quality is probably what I would deem medium. The pieces of fish are large and fresh, but there wasn't a wow factor. The rice was just okay. Interestingly, while I don't normally order California rolls, I would say of the items shown on this plate, the California rolls were the best and what I would recommend ordering. After my visit, I learned that they are known for their California rolls.- Maguro (Tuna) $4.75
- Salmon (Fresh) $4.85
- Salmon (Smoked) $4.85
- California Roll - Good!
- Unagi - The unagi was good - a generous portion and cooked to a nice temperature. I've had better, and I've had worse. $4.85
- Baked Scallop - The scallop was fresh, but I would skip this one. It wasn't to my tastes in any case. I think the scallop loses its flavor in this preparation. $6.25
- Tonkatsu - The tonkatsu, fried pork cutlets, is served with a lot of teriyaki sauce, an abundant helping of cabbage slaw topped with a mayonnaise dressing, and a bowl of rice. Miso soup and a small pickled cabbage salad are served ahead of the main dish. While there is a lot of food, it was this dish that made them receive a lower service rating. More on that below. The miso soup was fine; nothing special. The pickled cabbage salad had a nice balance of sweet and vinegar flavor, but it wasn't pickled enough - it could be more crunchy (think good kimchee). The two pieces of tonkatsu is are large, but I would prefer the sauce on the side. There is a little too much breading, and the sauce makes it soggy pretty fast. Choose this if you want quantity, not quality. The cabbage slaw has
some shredded carrots in it, but that's all it is - raw vegetables with a drizzle of dressing on top. It's bland and blah - why would you heap such a large amount of raw vegetable onto a plate? $13.50The problem with the service was that they essentially created a trip hazard. The gal serving the tonkatsu dropped a bit of the heaping cabbage slaw onto the ground. Then she left it there after seeing it had fall to the ground. Let's assume she didn't see it - even if we give her the benefit of the doubt, other servers saw it. This action, or lack thereof, dropped their service rating from three stars to two stars.
My final thoughts on Taki Sushi - if you intend to go, get the California roll. The sushi is just okay. If you want a lot of food, consider the entrees, but make sure you like raw, undressed (or mix it yourself) cabbage slaw.
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