Kobe-Ya

Kobe Ya serves mostly high school kids because it’s across the street from Alameda High School which has open campus lunch for students.
This means affordable pricing!
Bento boxes range from $ 7-​$ 9ish bucks.
Sushi rolls start as low as $ 4 and the most expensive roll tops out at $ 9ish.
They have banh mi’s (vietnamese sandwiches), hand rolls, soup, tempura options, and much more.
It’s a small kitchen, so if you’re planning to order a lot, call in ahead of time.
Not many seats, but outside of school hours it won’t be packed or crowded.
Solid option for a quick and affordable meal! Food is decent :)

Great food love this place.
I’ve been coming here for years 1997 and i can’t help myself. I’ll drive 15mins one way just to come here.

Pretty decent mom and pop sushi joint. Inexpensive, fresh. Service was good and rolls came out fast. Small on the inside but enough room for the baby stroller to squeeze through and dine with us. Will be back.

Nostalgic shop for us AHS kids. It’s a small establishment for low value meals. They offer a decent variety of bento boxes and good portions for what they’re worth. Their service may not be the best, but I have never had any problems with their staff. I only come here for the food, not for the experience.
Chicken Katsu — breading is crunchy enough for texture but not rock hard like Hawaiian Grill Express. I can actually enjoy the chicken meat.
Teriyaki Sauce — I prefer their teriyaki sauce over their katsu sauce (it’s a bit too strong in flavor).

Cute little sushi spot. It’s not fancy. Its just a place for you to get sushi & other foods ‘to go’ or ‘sit in’ for a little bit. I think it has a decent amount of a seating area, for a ‘to go’ place.
If you like something with teriyaki sauce, get the teriyaki bowl! So worth getting! It’s actually a really good size for a decent price. Its really filling too. At least my chicken teriyaki & rice were. :-) California roll & the New York roll were also good.
My boyfriend said that the chicken curry wasn’t that great though. He said it didn’t even smell like it either. :-(
Overall, this place is cool. Check it out! :-)

Don’t ever come here! …I’ve had bad experiences at restaurants but this one was really the worst, I actually had to get an account here to advise ppl not to come here. I love sushi and this was the second time I come to this place, the first was a to go order so we didn’t have time to interact with the people as much, this time I had some friends come with me and I was expecting great service and great food. Instead I got a lady that looked like she hated life, she was incredibly rude! I got the most horrible meal! They gave us dirty cups to drink our sake and they gave us dirty PAPER cups to drink water… how can paper cups be dirty???
When I walked into the restaurant I was not greeted, my friend and I were asked what did we want instead of asking if we were ready to order, we asked some questions about sake she just ignored us and answered the phone, she then hung up and went to the back, then we saw more ppl coming out asking us what we wanted and we just wanted to know the portion they served! Anywho, we ended up ordering the sake and my two friends got their food first I ordered 3 rolls and it took them 25 min! For 3 rolls! I’ve gone to places and have ordered 4 – 5 rolls and it takes 10 min with only ONE chef! And the place is packed in the moment and I still get my food on time, this place was horrible! When they gave us the sake, I asked for two more little cups I wanted everyone to try it, they give us the cups but they gave it to us incredibly dirty and sticky!!! How are we to drink like that??? That’s disgusting… I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt so I went up to the lady taking orders and told her if she could give me clean ones she rolled her eyes and went to the back, I got the cups again and they were clean but I had pissed her off or something because she just looked at me really angry. I received my food and I thought well it looks ok so I began to eat it… I only ate about 4 pieces of the 3 rolls that contained 6 – 7 pieces each. Then I started feeling nauseous! I’ve been eating sushi for years! This has never happened to me! Well… I didn’t want to eat it anymore and I just wanted my money back it was around 25 dollars, I didn’t eat the full plate, I felt sorry for the waste of food but I was getting sick, I just wanted to get out of there, never once did I think of giving this place a bad review I just didn’t want to come back… but what pushed me to the review was the managers… they have no knowledge of hospitality! I asked to speak to the manager, I told her calmly that since we got there we had a bad experience, the person helping us was rude and that we received dirty plates and that I just became nauseous I asked for my money back and she just began to throw a fit and yelled, these ppl do not know how to handle a business I’ve worked for several restaurants and this is most certainly one that definitely is not customer friendly, this place shouldn’t even be in business! I did report them to the Alameda county department of Environmental Health. And this isn’t the first time they get a review like this and it sure isn’t the first time that they are being reported by someone else about this place being unsanitary, too bad I found out too late about this place…

Actually negative stars. I give them one star for the food.
First of all, their service is horrible. When they give back change, they throw it on the table. And I think they even tricked me into giving them two extra dollars. The food they give to students compared to the food they give to adults is completely different. For adults, they give an adequate amount of food and the presentation is acceptable. But for students, the portion size is smaller and the presentation is sloppy.
For the food, I’d say their okay. Definitely not the best though. For their sushi, they give a whole bunch of rice and the meat inside is so little.

Had a yellow curry of some sort, but it definitely wasn’t Japanese style curry. It was pretty sweet. Portion was pretty generous though, but not sure if I’ll be back… at least for that dish.

I’ve been coming to Kobe Ya for the past ten years and have always loved it for tasty, affordable, quick Japanese. I remember many a fond visit, sipping on their piping hot, complimentary tea on cold foggy days, while waiting for my to-​go order. I’ve always enjoyed their miso soup and, shrimp tempura, and various bento box combos. My personal favorite is the crispy salmon katsu. So good!
But alas, something has changed at Kobe Ya. There have been changes. It has now become: The Krusty Krab. Yes, it appears Mr. Krabs is now running the show and they nickel-​and-​dime your for everything. Gone are the nice pleasantries of the past. Want to use your credit/​debit card? That’ll be 50¢. Want an extra thimble of katsu sauce. Another 50¢. Want a cup for the complimentary hot tea. Good luck hunting down one from the staff, as they are never kept up front anymore. And the cashier/​phone/​customer service? Yes, Squidward is now at the helm, and he could care less about friendly customer service. Never mind that EVERY single time you ask for a SIDE of tempura-​about $ 7– and you *specifically* ask for a «SIDE» of tempura, they always ring up a tempura bento which costs more. Yeah, it’s happened about three times, no matter how much I emphasize «just a SIDE of tempura».
The upshot to this all is: Spongebob is still on the grill, and he still knows how to fry up them Krabby Patties. And they’re good. Especially for the price. Crispy salmon katsu and tempura, pretty decent chicken and beef teriyaki. Awesome rice noodle salad (wish I knew what that stuff was called). Is it the best? No, but it’s quick and affordable in a pinch, and will satisfy your craving for Japanese food. Sometime I leave thinking, «Wow that was a good meal and can’t beat the price!». Other times I’m like, «Wow, they’re really going downhill. I ain’t coming back!» But, like the Krusty Krab customers, I probably will.

Ok let’s set the record straight. This is a little ma and pop sushi spot so don’t expect anything fancy like sushi house. It’s a small establishment ran by 2 people at the most. There is seating available inside but it is limited. Meter parking is available on the street and in the tiny lot in the back. I’ve been coming here since I was 16, a decade ago. Their prices were always the lowest and their portions were always very generous. They offer varieties of bento boxes, sushi and curries. My favorite dish here will always be the steak teriyaki bento box with a side salad and the white cold noodles. Their sushi doesn’t look too appealing but it taste pretty good. I like their lion king roll and the mini deep fried rolls you can just pop in your mouth. I’ve never had a problem with service here. They’re always nice and always smile when giving you your food.
Just a side tip: it’s located right next to Alameda High School so it does get packed with high school students around their lunch time.

This place is a cheap eats kind of Japanese place and evaluated in this category it’s really good. If you’re looking for a one $ dollar sign meal in Alameda with great portions and good taste, Kobe-​ya is your place to go.
I think their Pork Katsu and their Chicken Teriyaki are their most popular items and rightly so because it’s all about the combination of big portions for cheap prices. You’ll get your fix for $ 7.

Dirty! This place was filthy. It looked like they had not taken a towel to anything in a long time. Got some sushi, cheap and tasted like it. Didn’t even finish it was so bad. Won’t be back.

Yummy and great prices !

HAIR IN ALL OF MY CKICKEN???
Say it aint so! I’ve posted pictures for your pleasure.
Dropped in to pick up some chicken katsu and instead came home with a bunch of pube nose rat hairs with a side of chicken.
After calling the owner at Kobe Ya, she acted like she did not understand me, and said to come back for a refund. I returned only to get yelled at by her and the cook. and of course they did not give me a refund.
As an Alameda resident for many years, I have tried to support locally owned business’s, however, I will go out of my way to protest against this sh** hole. The fact that this place is screaming filth and always empty should have been warning enough.
I am disgusted and afraid for any one who eats here. BE AWARE!
I HAVE REPORTED THEM TO PUBLIC AND SAFETY HEALTH DEPARTMENT.

Great little mom and pop place.
Very good price, decent portion, good quality!
Recommend Katsu curry, cheap CA role too

Lots of varieties from bowls, udon, to bento boxes, and sushi, also chicken curry. Very cheap sushi!
My favorites:
Swamp roll — seaweed salad on top of the sushi roll
Chicken Udon
Beef teriyaki Bento Box
Alaska roll
California roll
Unagi roll
Spider roll
PROS:
have pictures of food to help you decide on your order
lots of street parking
small area
cheap
CONS:
your clothes will smell like food if you eat there
mostly self-​service

Kobe Ya peaked my interest the other night when I was at Hang Ten Boiler. So the next day. I jumped into my Whip Black Beauty and rolled to A town. I was able to park my Whip across the street. I street hiked to Kobe Ya. I was greeted by a Mommasan and asked what I wanted.
I ordered a Tempura Handroll and a Unagi Handroll. 7 minutes later I was presented with my food. The Handrolls where good sized and the ingrediants were fresh. They tasted very good .
Kobe Ya is more of a To Go place than a eat in.

Haven’t been to Kobe-​Ya since the ownership changed hands, so I thought I go back to my old stomping grounds for lunch. Not much has changed, the menu is intact with a few notable additions (Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches on the menu gives you an indication of who’s running the place now) The food is still an exceptional value at decent quality. The chicken katsu at $ 5.80 is a small price to pay considering the portions you get. A large helping of crispy fried chicken, white rice, and sides of vermicelli noodles and green salad with mystery =) sauce. The chicken and rice are spot-​on, but the sides were a bit on the salty side. (imagine a salty green salad… weird)
Nonetheless, an overall average dining experience. Stars for being fast, convenient, inexpensive and bringing back a little nostalgia.

Kobe Ya changed ownership a couple years ago and is currently operated by Vietnamese people. They did some remodeling with the ownership change but the food is not as good as in the past.
They have about 5 tables, but I take-​out when I order from here. The food is decent if you need a quick Japanese food fix. I usually get the chicken teriyaki bento, which includes rice, a vermicelli noodle side dish and a salad. For $ 5.85, it’s a good value. The food order is prepared pretty quickly, so it’s like a fast food joint.
Though there are better sit-​down Japanese restaurants in Alameda, Kobe Ya fits the bill of a fast food place.

So not so great… that is to say, not horrible. But a girl has got to compare it to the awesome quality of 10 years back, when it was Japanese-​owned and not now Vietnamese-​owned, whereby the quality has slipped a few notches. Tonkatsu ordered.
Same portions, prices have only inched higher (thank you), but the overall quality of the meat preparation and taste/​texture lacks… one can spot it within a few bites compared to its glory days.
What of this new Kobe-​Ya business? It’s been the same Vietnamese proprietors for at least a year now, T.
The charm has faded… time to move on.