Takemura Japanese Restaurant

Bizarre that I hadn’t come here sooner, despite my love for Japanese cuisine! The weekend night was quiet. Service left a little something to be desired, but I really had a hankering for yakisoba and their noodles hit the spot. The cabbage: noodle ratio was a little off (little too much crunch), and there could’ve been a bit more sauce, but it was alright!

Sushi is OK, it is not great but there are several choices and it is worth the price. The place is not very cozy, quite essential.

I don’t know why do they use the smelly tuna, which looks purple, the salmon is also not fresh at all, I ordered their ochyazuke 茶泡饭， it was surprised to see they put some vinegar into the soup, which makes it has a sour plum taste, but that’s not the way we make the snack in a correct way. The sushi should be cheaper than it was sold, I give it a 2-​stars for its location and its Japanese decorating style, maybe for its snacks were still acceptable, but keep an eye on the sushi.

Tasted good, but there is not a lot of attention to craft. See photos. The sushi platters could use more variety than ‘chef’s choice’ (likely code for cheapest available)

I’ve lived in Cambridge for 8 years but somehow I never noticed this restaurant. It’s below street level, so it’s a nice hideaway when you want a quiet lunch.
My friend and I got 3 different kinds of vegetarian rolls, and while they were good, we weren’t that impressed. I got an avocado roll and each piece had just the tiniest sliver of avocado in it. I also got something called a pumpkin roll, although the vegetable on the inside was green, and my friend got a sweet potato roll and the sweet potato was yellow. So I’m not 100% sure what exactly those fillings were — maybe delicata squash? Also, the rolls were surprisingly expensive. The pumpkin and sweet potato rolls were $ 8 each.
The service was great and it wasn’t crowded, but I can’t see myself coming back.

I had sushi roll for dinner. Since I sat at the sushi bar, so I decided not to order the raw fish as I don’t think they were that fresh. Had the softshell crab roll. The rice was dry and fell apart from the roll, you can guess the rest of the quality… if they don’t know how to cook the sushi rice well, what else can we expect.

Takemura is great. I lived near Harvard Square for a few years, and my boyfriend and I went to Takemura as a special treat. We would get spicy rolls, philadelphia rolls, california rolls, and some spicy tuna (almost consistently, because they were delicious!) I really like the place, and go there multiple times a year, mostly take out (because I like eating at home. But have had a good experience every time I went there! It’s small but nice.) This is the place I recommend when people are visiting Somerville/​Cambridge.

We had a party of 4 and had lots of requests! Our server was able to accommodate our ridiculous requests and provide an amazing experience for our entire group.
The food was served on a giant boat (upon request) and the drinks kept flowing. I am definitely coming back this DOWNSTAIRS gem!

I am here Sunday at 9 PM. There are only two other customers. The waiter and waitress could be more inviting. They have no facial expressions.
The shrimp tempura roll tastes good the miso soup is authentic. I just read someone’s posting that they got sick twice. Had I read the post first, I would not have come. Let me hope that I won’t get sick.

I will not go back. Improve your service if you want more tip instead of illegally charging my credit card for it!
The service was extremely poor. 1) We did not have utensils by the time the food came out; 2) it was a hot day and I had to ask for water several times. The food was average — not great, but not bad.
At the end, I gave a 12% tip and they had the audacity to charge my credit card more!

I have only tried the vegan sushi rolls but they were absolutely great. I can especially recommend the sweet potato rolls.
The staff is friendly and it’s a really quiet restaurant, great if you want to talk or study/​work a little.
The prices are more than reasonable.

Total waste of $ 20. Sushi was awful– the tuna was a murky brown/​purple that almost looked like a plum. The yellowtail was an offputting color as well. 2 stars instead of one because the delivery was fast and the gyoza was passable. Seriously never worth ordering from again.

Ben enjoyed his Ikura and Spider Roll. You could tell they used fresh oil for their tempura frier. I would recommend this for anyone in Harvard Sq. The edamame was hot, salty and fresh, but I wasn’t a fan of the seaweed salad. Too Liquide.

Takemura is in a word AWESOME. The food is great, the atmosphere is cozy and the staff is helpful and friendly. Sushi is fresh and you get some tasty goodies from the kitchen. Can’t go wrong. Try once and you’ll be a fan!

Ambiance: It’s a small place that is not the easiest to find. It is half underground, and is dimly lit which does very little to help the ambiance. The tables and seats aren’t in the best shape, but the table holds food and the chairs will hold you so I don’t find this to be a strong complaint.
Food: I ordered the Harvard roll and was not disappointed. The sushi was pretty average, but I was most impressed by the sauce and the mound of tempura on top of it. Altogether, it made for a delicious dish.
Service: A little bit awkward, but generally courteous and pleasant.

I’ve eaten here twice. Both times somebody in my party got seriously ill from the food, which is mediocre at best. I’ve had better sushi for lower prices. The variety of options is considerable, but once you actually get your meal it’s less than satisfying and rather bland.
The ambiance of the restaurant is lackluster. Half underground, the lighting is dim (not in a mood lighting way, but in a cave way). The seats look like they need to urgently be replaced and the tables rock because they are unbalanced.
Service is either excessive or non-​existent.
Overall, there are much better places to dine in the Square

I like Takemura a lot. Their sushi rolls’ fish to rice ratio is usually ON-​PAR. Very thin layer of rice, and lots of sushi. I dare say it’s definitely the best in Harvard Square. Fresh fish. They give you a lot… it’s great. So many places just pile on so much rice onto the seaweed and you can’t even taste the fish, so this place is a gem of a spot.
BUT today, I got two rolls, and they were so much below their regular standards that I was very surprised and wondered if their sushi chef had changed… Little fish, not seasoned well either, and more-​than-​usual amount of rice. And overall smaller roll size…
I hope they bring back their usual sushi quality. Then this would be a four-​star review.

I liked the place. Service is nice and fast. Food was good too. I ordered Salmon Teriyaki and it was really good. They brought the whole plate of veggies and good piece of salmon which was cooked perfectly! The environment is not fancy, but it is definitely a good place to have lunch or regular dinner.

Three star because food was fine.
Taking two stars because place was totally empty on a Sunday night.
Server didn’t greet, never came to ask if we need anything or how are things, Basically he just took our order and served food without any smile on face.
It’s good that I used groupon cause it was not worth the price. But be aware, groupon is kind of misleading. Although they clearly state what we can order through groupon but they also show the value 42 $ and they don’t care of our order doesn’t add up to 42 $.
When I asked about it, server was not interested in making it clear. He just said doesn’t matter if we said total value is 42 $.
I am not going there again for sure.

Ordered a special roll («Tornado»: shrimp tempura and cucumber inside with spicy crab on top) in addition to a regular maki (spicy salmon) and enjoyed the maki so much more. The ratio of fish, salmon in this case, to rice was as good as I’ve seen, and the salmon was extremely fresh. The rice on the outside was a thin, chewy later, which complements the fish instead of overwhelming it.
Service was very quick and polite. The staff isn’t very talkative, which is nice for a quick dinner in a casual setting.

I got a Sapporo and the veggie combo sushi plate. It came with miso soup. On a hot summer night it really hit the spot.
Everything tasted amazing and I enjoyed the atmosphere and the wait staff. I really wish I had something snappy to say about this place but I don’t. It was just simply good sushi!
I dunno what all the haters are talking about. If you’re in Harvard Square and want some sushi this is a solid option.

For a number of reasons, this is our go-​to spot for Japanese food.
Like most of the restaurants in Harvard Square, Takemura is underground, and it’s so out-​of-​the-​way that we’ve never had a wait to sit down. There’s a more «trendy» type sushi restaurant around the corner that’s always hopping, so hopefully all the hipsters stay over there.
We’ve been to O-​Sha, New Ginza and Super Fusion, and Takemura is still our No. 1. It has all the basics and enough of those «Americanized» maki rolls for my Italian-​American wife to enjoy. It’s kid-​friendly, which is crucial, and the prices aren’t outrageous. You’re not going here to be blown away by a fine dining experience; you’re going to get a simple Japanese-​style dinner.
A couple rebuttals to criticisms in other reviews:
1) Dim lighting: Excellent point. Everyone knows bright, fluorescent light is always indicative of the quality of a restaurant. That’s why McDonald’s is the world’s finest eating establishment.
2) «Un-​authentic»: Not sure what sort of Japanese cuisine people have been eating, but this is par for the course for every U.S.-based Japanese restaurant I’ve gone to in my three-​plus decades of existence. Standard maki, sushi, udon, katsu, etc., plus the «creative» maki rolls every place loves to invent.
3) Run by Chinese: I don’t see what someone’s nationality has to do with their ability to make a certain food. I never ate my dad’s Thanksgiving turkey and said, «Hey, this is great, Dad, but it would be so much better if you were one of the original Puritans.» One thing I would say to those critics, who do not appear to be Japanese themselves: Using your logic that only Japanese people can make good Japanese food, isn’t your opinion of Japanese food therefore irrelevant, as a non-​Japanese who can’t have an «authentic» appreciation for it?
4) Cuts of fish were small: You must have done something to irritate the staff, because the amount of fish you get per roll is what I love most about this place. Sometimes I forget this and go to other places, where I’m usually disappointed by the tuna-​to-​rice ratio in my tekka maki.
5) It isn’t Jiro: Hey, thanks for the Hot Sushi Take. There also isn’t a five-​year waitlist.

Came here for ASU eBoard dinner Friday night. We had a party of 13 so we made a reservation earlier that day. Only 3 of us were there at 7 pm but they wouldn’t seat us until everyone arrived :(
The restaurant isn’t big and from the outside, looks pretty simple. And from my experience, simple = legit so I was pretty pumped. I haven’t found any good sushi places in boston yet.
I had a long week so I decided be like Tom Haverford and treat yoself. My friend and I split a 2 person boat. It didn’t look too big in the picture so I decided to get something hot… to balance my meal of raw fish. So I got the Yaki udon with shrimp.
The boat had tuna roll, California roll, tuna nigiri, salmon nigiri, yellowtail nigiri and octopus, tuna, salmon, white tuna, and yellowtail sashimi. The fish was pretty fresh and the nigiri rice was really well cooked –perfect amount of vinegar and it stuck to the fish! I hate it when the rice collapses mid bite and makes you look awks eating it haha so the nigiri here passed that test. My friend couldn’t finish her share of the boat so I manned up and finished it… hence my food coma. Honestly, I think the boat could fill me up… I really didn’t need the udon but it came anyways haha and I gobbled it up. It was pretty normal haha I wouldn’t get it again.
Service was good, especially since our table was huge. Food came within 20 min and when they brought the check, they had already split up the tab by person and added tax/​tip for us. I was super thankful cause I know how hard splitting checks can be lol. Plus points for them. You pay at the counter though so there was a line of 13 girls blocking the restaurant haha.
This place is good. It’s not amazing but it def hits the spot when you’re craving sushi. The tradition makis are legit.

Checked Takemura out after finding a Groupon.
The restaurant is in the basement of the building that IHOP resides in — I’m usually a little apprehensive about subterranean restaurants, because some of them definitely feel like a restaurant in a basement. Takemura manages to escape this issue with some nice interior decorating and cool wood paneling.
The sushi bar is pretty small and was full, so we opted for a table. Waitstaff was all very courteous and prompt, and we found ourselves with a never ending flow of water. They have a pretty good selection of special/​house rolls, and all of them are very reasonably priced, especially for Harvard Square — they range from ~$ 9 to ~$ 15 and portions are great. I ordered the Harvard roll, which comes with spicy tuna on the inside and came buried under a mound of fried popcorny shrimp. Caterpillar roll and spider roll were all pretty routine — pretty good, quite filling. The appetizers were hit and miss — the shumai was very good but the the tempura tasted very overcooked.
The staff handled the Groupon very graciously — they knew exactly what it included and ordering was seamless. The billing was handled well and there was never any hiccups. The sushi is alright (not the best but fine for the Square) but five stars for the staff.