Kaizen Japanese Bar & Grill

Order ANY FISH. anything! This place has one of the best damn freshest fish i’ve ever eaten. And they serve you some thick ass sashimi pieces too. The prices are pretty reasonable for the amount that you are getting.
–Bento box: [lunch] 3 items for $ 12.95 is a good deal! If you pick sashimi it doesnt cost extra either. it comes with salad, soup and rice!
–Uni to Ikura: Comes in 5 little pieces, and slightly pricey for what you get, but the quality and ingredients used are the reason so. The scallop and uni sashimi were super fresh and buttery, daikon and chips were such a great texture.
–Big bomb: One of their filler rolls, but i always love the unagi and tobiko
–Billion dollar baby: butteryyy rainbow fishies atop was all i could taste and see yum yummm
–Sexy Mama: my favorite roll. it was so refreshing with the avocado and little pieces of raw fish inside. The soy wrapper wrapped around the roll was unique
–Put your hands up: Was not the biggest fan bc the mix of raw fish and seared salmon was not my cup of tea. But the pieces of salmon on top were pretty big!
The waiters and waitresses are pretty attentive with waters and what we needed. They never hesitated when we asked for more wasabi and ginger. They were also very knowledgeable about the menu, like what a popular item was or what kind of taste we were looking for. They gave great recommendations!
Parking is in a relatively nice lot. Its quieter during lunch hours, but gets a tad louder during dinner.
I would definitely come here again

I believe this place is the spot to get fresh sashimi. If you’re into rolls and stuff like that, maybe this isn’t the place for you.
We ended up ordering a ton of different sashimi. We decided to get the large special and asked for sweet shrimp instead of the uni.
We tried to uni shooter, which was good, but the «cocktail sauce» was very strong where you couldn’t even take the uni at all.
I definitely recommend the Black Cod, it’s a nice slab to share and it’s delicious!
I also ordered 1 roll, which was a baked one with scallops on top. Not the best, extremely fishy tasting. I actually couldn’t finish it because it tasted like a fishing pier.
We also had a few different special nigiri. To be honest, anything fresh is the route to go. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Also, ask for real wasabi, it’s a great kick in the face!
Other than that, place is clean and we had reservations and were seated quickly. It did fill up with large groups, even on a Monday. Their «restaurant cat» was outside to say goodbye, super friendly. Kinda flea infested though. haha

My friend and I were craving Omakase like at Amami Sushi but didn’t want to make the drive all the way to San Francisco. We were looking for a place that offered a selection of good quality fish and Kaizen did not disappoint! The fish here was really fresh and every piece tasted so divine. I will definitely be coming back!
We arrived on a Saturday evening and luckily didn’t have to wait that long. We both opted for the 9 Piece Nigiri Set with a Handroll for only $ 22! Talk about a good deal! I was skeptical that the fish wasn’t going to taste good because it was so inexpensive. I was proven wrong! Every bite was so heavenly and I couldn’t get enough, especially since it was only $ 22! The fish was really fresh and I was so happy that the chef included UNI on our plate. It was magical and I was able to enjoy my food more knowing I wasn’t breaking my wallet.
I definitely will be coming back whenever I’m craving Sashimi of some sort and don’t want to spend too much money. The staff & chefs here are really friendly and attentive. Unfortunately the wait for the food can take some time, but it’s all worth it for that amazing raw fish!

Came here on Valentines day with my boyfriend and we had a really bad experience. I mean, we already had pretty low expectations since it was VDay and we expected the restaurant to be crowded, etc, but they sold out of almost everything we ordered even though dinner was at 7pm. They were obviously unprepared to handle the crowd.
Service was subpar too — maybe the waitress was upset she had to work on valentines day? For what we managed to order, the food was definitely decent.
Sashimi was fresh, oyster shots were good (although it took a really long time — how difficult is it to make oyster shots??) and grilled black cod was done perfectly.
It was definitely on the pricier side for the service and amount of food we had. I’m hoping to give it another try but the prices are definitely a deterring factor.

Went a few weeks ago… Restaurant had plenty of seating and staff was helpful.
Got the bento box with beef teriyaki and nigiri. It was pretty typical, no surprises. Good beef but not too much quantity. Nigiri was decent, fresh fish with an appropriate amount of rice.
The included salad wasn’t that interesting and the miso soup was saltier than normal. all in all, I’ve had better, but this isn’t bad. Might com again one of these days.

Came back on a friday night and this place was packed! We were seated within 20 minutes at the sushi bar, looks like they accept reservations! Our server was Ting Ting and she was amazing even though you can tell she’s all over the place! They had live Uni man were they huge and worth every penny! We also got their toro which was to die for! I think it’s the truffle hirame that I had that was also very good!
Other stuff to try
Fusion Sushi: Hamachi, kanpachi, Scallops
Scallop Uni Ikura
Tempura Uni
Hamachi Kama!
Can’t wait to come back here I think I’ll be there tomorrow actually, writing this review is making me drool!

Giving it 5 stars considering the sushi options in The South Bay, this is probably one of the best if not the best. If you’re looking for fresh sashimi and nigiri, you’ll be happy with this place. I typically get the sashimi dinner ($ 23) which comes with 4 decently-​sized pieces of salmon, tuna, albacore, and hamachi. Super fresh, and I love how it’s served atop crushed ice.
I have not yet been able to snatch an order of live uni before they run out (typically they’ll have it at the beginning of the weekend and for early weekday dinners) but everyone I know who has been able to try it has told me nothing but great things!

1) A sushi restaurant that smells fishy when you walk in the door? No.
2) They are trying WAY too hard with their «exotic» rolls… they were all so wierd that they didn’t even sound good.
3) Fish was not cold enough.
Surprised we didn’t get food poisoning.

I have such mixed feelings about this place! The service was so bad!
First, some of the menus were missing pages.
Then we ordered drinks. They didn’t have draft Sapporo like the menu said. Just bottles. They didn’t have soju like the menu said either. I ordered a beer. It never came until I asked again.
There were about six of us at the table. 4 got their bentos, not all at once. Instead of making sure we all had food, the waiter was refilling water. It was so bizarre. It was another 10 minutes until our rolls came. We just sat there and watched them eat.
I do have to say the sushi was really good. I had the Spice girl. It was SPICY. But really good and fresh. Just wish the rest of the experience wasn’t so lame.

The BEST sushi in town!!! I love this place. Whenever I come to town, this is my go to sushi spot. Everything is so fresh and melts in your mouth, I’m serious! Ask for the fresh wasabi! The sushi chef, Joe is awesome!

Everything was fresh and tasteful. The sashimi melts in your mouth. Service was awesome and our waitress checked on us frequently. This Japanese restaurant is modern and it has a nice ambiance. The restroom was clean and I love their Japanese magical toilet seat! Will definitely come back more often to test out more items on their menu.

Wow, what a surprise. Its been a long time since I’ve had sushi this good without having to drive 50 miles. I had the 9 piece sashimi and it was amazing. I’m a fairly tough critic when it come to sushi so I’m pleasantly suprised this treasure is local.

Unilocaled the place and think it’s really good!
Very reasonable prices and good quality food!
Will come back again!

What a great sushi find in the Campbell area. Came here for lunch right when they opened, which was a good thing since it filled up very quickly.
Reasonably priced lunch menu along with a wide selection of rolls, sashimi and nigiri options. I ordered the albacore, sake, hamachi and toro. Everything was well cut and very delicious. First time actually trying Toro, which is a fatty tuna cut, it basically just melted in my mouth.
The server and sushi chef were very attentive to our needs which made the experience even better!
Looking forward to coming back again very soon!

Bento Box
California Roll (Soy Paper No Sea Weed)
Beef Teriyaki
Mixed Tempura
All Very delicious!
2^nd Time Getting Take Out and gotta say they make sure you have everything before you leave. Wonderful Experience

My friend and I went to this sushi place tonight and it was busy as expected. The receptionist wrote my name and asked us to wait for 20 min. After 20 min she and his unorganized boss told us there is no table and we just can go to the bar. They could tell us 20 min earlier and after us, they gave tables to everybody. I did complain and then they started apologizing and so on … It didn’t work out though! Good restaurants are good at service in busy days otherwise in easy days everybody is doing a good job.
Service is poor, noisy and food was just ok. Not recommended!!!

Great value for great food. My fiancé and I stopped by for dinner around 6:30ish on a Saturday night. This place is tucked away from the main street. It’s easily to miss to keep an eye out when looking for it.
We both got two item bento boxes and an avocado roll to share. It was way too much food. I had the teriyaki salmon and it yours standard tasting cut. I love the sauce, so I enjoyed it very much. The salad that comes with the meal was really fresh and satisfying. I’m not a big fan of miso soups, but my fiancé gladly enjoyed mine too.
This place is great for value. I can’t want to come back to try something else!

Dinner for 2.
— Ambiance (⁴⁄₅)
Very large wrap around sushi bar with several other tables. It’s not super sleek, but I’m kind of over the «over-​the-​top neon lights with blaring bass» vibe.
— Service (⁴⁄₅)
Reasonably fast. Teas could have been refilled faster. Service from Chef Julian at the bar is top notch.
— Assorted Nigiri (⁴⁄₅)
Everything was very good, augmented by exceptional knife skills from Chef Julian. No standouts for me, but the oysters, on recommendation of the chef, were indeed quite good. Best to just sit at the bar and ask what’s freshest.
— Value (⁴⁄₅)
Pretty good pricing for sushi.
— Final Word
Fresh fish, excellent knife skills, and great service from the chef.

I have seen this place change owners twice. I liked it a lot when it was Sato but I love it as Kaizen.
I like this new setup and the food is great. They run out of the live uni quite often but the regular uni is still really good. The dishes are creative and pretty. The sashimi is very fresh, the rolls will make you go … «mmmMMMmmmm» with every bite. I honestly have not had anything bad here.
I don’t like udon usually but I ate some of my friend’s udon… and it was so flavorful. So yea. you can bring all your non fish eating friends here and it’ll be a merry good time!

My girlfriend and I met here on a weeknight. When we sat down it wasn’t too busy. But by 7pm it was really crowded, service was slow, and lots of people waiting in line to be seated.
We started with the uni to ikura appetizer. It was delicious and would order it again. It’s uni, scallops, and roe. We ordered the hamachi, unagi, and hotate nigiri. We also had the sashimi deluxe which came with fresh wasabi. Everything was great except the slow service.
One thing to be aware of, I think the owner has a yellow tabby cat as described in other Unilocal reviews. It got into the restaurant that night and my friend did not appreciate it. As much as I love pets, it has no place in a restaurant. The health department can shut them down for that.

I’d heard great things about Kaizen and so bookmarked it on Unilocal accordingly. When we decided to go to Sato for some simple sushi one night, you can imagine how stoked I was to learn it was now Kaizen.
We were given the option of seats at the sushi bar because the tables were reserved already. It’s good to know they take reservations should you not just be popping in for sushi.
One of the sushi chefs explained the «pillow» in the WOW ROLL was actually phyllo dough — which was a pretty great typo on top of poke, so we ordered it. This was my least favorite roll. In fact, I’d go so far as to say it was awful. Nothing umami about the sauce; more like mayo and the «poke» were just huge pieces of (albeit tasty) fish.
The 3 other rolls that we tried were fantastic: The SEXY MAMA roll, GREEN LIGHT roll, and
NEGIHAMA. I know what you’re thinking — there’s nothing special about negihama. Well, it was a fairly large roll with super fresh fish which was a delightful surprise. The Green Light though is definitely the best one I had. Next time, I’ll be ordering the BIG BOMB.

4.5−5 STAR.
Ok, wow. What a great find in Campbell! Kaizen is a really great Japanese restaurant tucked away in a small shopping complex in Campbell. Definitely eat here if you can!
We went about 3 weeks ago, as we were looking for a new Japanese restaurant to try out. We’ve been looking for a new go-​to place down in the South Bay, and I think we found one. When we walked in, we were immediately impressed by the ambience of the restaurant — it was very well decorated, and there was ample seating both in the bar area, and normal table seating. One of the servers immediately seated us at the bar, and we got immediately excited as we saw the sushi chefs working on the HUGE slices of sashimi, and the extremely generous rolls that they were making.
There was so much in the menu, and I was furiously looking around to see what other people were ordering. I saw some of the tables order side dishes of sashimi, so I looked for something on the menu that offered a sashimi assortment, and I struck gold when I saw the «Sashimi Moriawase». We also got a bento box to even out our order, and I’ll break it down below:
1. Sashimi Moriawase, $ 40 (rate a 5 out of 5): This is a 21 piece sashimi bowl, with chef’s choice of sashimi cuts. There was salmon, blue fin tuna, scallop, uni, mackerel with roe, yellowtail, tilapia, and a couple others that I am forgetting. You can see the picture I attached below to see what pieces I missed. The chefs did a tremendous job with the presentation, and they cut some very generous slices of sashimi. They served it with real wasabi, which I had never had before — it is really strong, and much better than the processed wasabi served in most places. This dish also got served with soup and salad to round it out. Amazing, amazing dish. Get it if you visit Kaizen — everyone sitting around me was jealous of my dish.
2. Bento Box 2 item, $ 12.95 (rate a 4.5 out to 5): We ordered chicken teriyaki and mixed tempura. There was an ample serving of both in the bento box, and the price was great for it! It came with soup and salad. Tempura was really crispy. Chicken slightly overcooked, but still very good.
Service at Kaizen was spot on. They constantly refilled our water and checked up on us. The food was served reasonably quickly. We definitely want to try the rolls the next time we go, and I will include pictures and reviews of those rolls the next time I visit. Highly recommend — plan a visit soon!

Kaizen is a great Japanese restaurant if u r looking for high quality sushi n good appetizers. from the outside, it looks like any regular Japanese place that serves bentos all day long. I was quite surprised from all the amazing dishes they served us. (u can also order to go online.)
the location is on the end of other shops in a strip mall on the busy street of Hamilton. u might miss it if u don’t have the address.
there’s a long sushi bar inside with some tables scattered around the dimly lit room. (romantic mood lighting anyone?) the service is always good there. our waitress is always willing to answer our questions about the specials. there r always daily specials on a board in the front of the sushi bar which really helps to help me decide what new items I should try. (usually not that experimental, but also don’t like to eat the same every time.)
Special of the Day: Uni on rice. good n buttery. not sure if it’s the freshest but was really good with rice.
Black Cod: the sweet soy was perfect on the cod and it was wrapped cutely in a banana leaf. I wanted more of this!
Lettuce Wrap: can pick either black cod or scallop. I picked black cod. (black cod overload!) came in a martini glass with fried shredded potatoes. small piece but it’s like an appetizer.
Hamachi Kama: this is always a great order cuz of the large size n tender meat of the fish collar. can’t go wrong!
Uni to Ikura: I LOVE Uni so had to order this one too! we had 2 orders of it cuz I wanted one all for myself. :) the scallop underneath was also tasty. I could’ve used more of the red wine reduction tho.
Big Bomb: this had a bit of everything. the spiciness was just right. the quantity is huge cuz everything is topped onto it. so worth the price!
Big Daddy: my friend ordered this. it wasn’t for me cuz it was too spicy for me. spicy aioli + spicy tuna + jalapeño = no bueno for me.

Decided to try out this place with a co-​worker since it had good reviews. Got here around 12 pm and it was just about to get busy (because there were groups of people all walking in at once), but we were were seated immediately.
My co-​worker and I decided to go for the lunch special bento box – 2 items for $ 9.95 (or 3 items for $ 12.95) – which was a good deal! I got the chicken teriyaki and salmon sashimi, and my co-​worker got the saba shioyaki (fish in soy sauce marinade basically) and tempura. The bento box comes with miso soup, salad and rice. The food came out in 20 minutes and it was actually a lot of food. I had to take my chicken teriyaki to-​go. The salmon sashimi tasted very fresh and nice n fatty; it wasn’t cut too thin/​thick like some places I’ve been to. The salad was very light and refreshing with the creamy dressing, and the acidity from the miso soup helped balance everything out, washing down the slight heaviness from the chicken teriyaki. The rice was slightly mushy but that didn’t really bother me. I actually asked for the teriyaki sauce on the side (because I hate it when they drench the meat in sauce and it becomes too salty). The chicken was a little on the drier side, but I guess the sauce fixed that. My co-​worker thought the tempura was good, but the fish was also on the slightly saltier and drier side.
This place is definitely poppin’ at lunch hour and most people got bento boxes (because it’s a lunch special)…but I’d definitely come back to try some of their sushi/​sashimi seeing how fresh the salmon sashimi that came with my order tasted.

First off I got to say this place is definitely not authentic Japanese but I try not to discriminate too much. They have a roll called the Viagra blast… Haha strangest thing
I got the negihama roll and the dragon roll. Most places generally make negihama rolls thin like how they do in Japan but the ones here are thick like a futomaki. Not conventional but nice since they give generous portions of hamachi! The dragon roll was tasty also.
Service is so good that it’s on the verge of being weird. Our server came over to ask if everything was okay and immediately after someone came to take finished plates… followed by another server coming to fill our water glasses. I was impressed haha. The server also offered to split our bill before we even asked which was awesome!

Came here to have dinner the other night, I love how this place has fresh wasabi! What I ordered was the uni tempura, oyster shooter, the chirashi bowl and a couple rolls. The oyster shooter was good but a little salty for my taste, the Uni tempura. probably pass on this, i didnt think it was worth it, but what made me love this place was the special chirashi bowl! the fish are so fresh and melts in my mouth! the rolls were pretty good too, depending on which one you feel like eating. The only thing that bothered me was that i ordered a few nigiris and the waiter/​chef forgot about it like 2−3times and we waited for about 15minutes after we finished all of our food and was stuffed. but so far so good, i will come back to this place.

This sushi place is probably my favorite around the South Bay area, which is why I’m so shocked that I haven’t reviewed it yet.
If you’re feeling like something fresh, try their tasty nigiri, but if you want something more substantial then get their amazing sushi rolls. You can’t go wrong with their sashimi either.
Their outstanding selection of appetizers will put everyone in a good mood from raw oyster to Hawaiian salad filled with freshly assorted fish to piping hot tempura to agedashi tofu and finally washing it down with warm miso soup. Not bad if you ask me!
Some of my favorite nigiris:
— Hirame Fluke
— Hotate Hokkiado Scallop
— Sake Scottish Salmon
— Hon Hamachi
— Toro
–Unagi
— Ebi
— Uni
While not pricey, it can add up if you keep eating those freshly tasty nigiris like me. All in all, the service was excellent as they greet you the minute you enter to the approaching end when you leave. I’m definitely a fan and I’ve been coming back several times. I do hope you give this delectable place a try. Cheers!
The simple things in life.

Danny’s Unilocal 2015.
Everything about this joint reminds me of Kenji sushi when it comes to their décor, food, and presentation. My friend and I really enjoyed Kaizen. Everything we’ve had was really good especially when it came to the food and service.
Ask them about their daily specials. When my friend and I went, they had fresh live uni and it was really good. We spent approximately $ 120 for a meal for two people which contained:
— Regular 18 pieces of sashimi with real wasabi $ 34
— Live Uni (3 – 4 good pieces) $ 22
— Oysters 6 pieces with tabasco, onion salsa, and yamamomo $ 13
— Power Aid Roll $ 14
— Sexy Mama $ 14
The rolls are a bit pricey. I would only come back just to eat their sashimi.

8÷20÷15: I have an issue with their name. How’s that? Well, I had a lot of sushi the last week or so, and I wasn’t really looking forward to more – I mean, how much of the same-​ol-​same-​ol can you have? But how I miss Furaibo in LA!!! – yakatori sounded sooooo good… and this place is a «Bar & Grill» so what possibly could they have meant other than Japanese grill???
This is NOT JAPANESE BBQ. No yakitori here. Hell, there almost ain’t anything grilled on the menu. It is a straight-​up standard American sushi restaurant. Period. I opened the menu in dismay and called over the waiter and asked, «hey, where’s the bbq?» And he looked at me, then pointed to the menu to… teriyaki chicken. Wtf.
Well, that was a pretty bad start. My gf was even more disappointed than me. I asked her if we should leave, but you know girls… well, I should have known better anyway that the quiet stare meant «go» but I guess I still gotta learn to read mind better. So we stayed…
1. Asahi (small) $ 3.50: The Japanese equivalent of Miller. ³⁄₁₀
2. Beef Sukiyaki $ 16.00: Soooooooooo… two things:
#1. They used Chinese glass noodles, not Japanese wheat.
#2. THEY FORGOT THE MEAT. Like come on! Would you believe this is the THIRD time a restaurant forgot our meat? I’ll never forget Firehouse forgetting the patty on our burger! And yup, this restaurant joins the elite.
Beyond that, I would say the flavor is somewhat typical, but maybe overly sweet. It was alright, after they replaced the meat. I’ll forgive the meat thing, but the Chinese noodles would be a deduction. ⁴⁄₁₀
3. Chirashi Sushi Special 21pc Sashimi with Real wasabi $ 22.00: I’m not sure where this «real wasabi» is. Ain’t obvious. I dunno… maybe they hid a micro amount somewhere? Anyway, I dunno if they’re trying to be hip or what, but this is NOT CHIRASHI. It’s sashimi with sushi rice (see my picture.) And, besides the uni, which I did appreciate, the rest is standard sashimi – I dunno why they call this the «special» version as opposed to the «regular» which is 20% cheaper. The fish itself was fresh enough, though some of the sushi was hard to chew, containing too much connective tissue. I would say this is mid to low grade fish. ³⁄₁₀
4. Abalone (special) $ 12.00: So this was cool. I’ve never seen fresh abalone as sushi before! Yeah, it’s expensive, but if you’re familiar, maybe the price is on the cheaper side even given the crazy prices I’ve seen at good Chinese places for the fresh stuff. Taste wise it ain’t all that great, but I don’t fault the restaurant of course. I think that’s just how it is. Kinda crunchy. Not too much flavor. Again, not their fault, and I was really happy to try this. Bonus points for even having this. ⁸⁄₁₀
Alright, food here is edible, some not good, some okay. False advertising though.
²⁄₅
#sushi #chirashi #abalone #sukiyaki

I’ve been on the hunt for a good sushi place. Was pleasantly surprised by the décor of Kaizen when I entered. Very modern & clean atmosphere. We sat at the sushi bar. I would recommend the right-​side of the bar as if you’re on the other side, you face the backs of the sushi chefs and it’s hard to get their attention.
We ordered the Sexy Mamma roll and Nigiri special. The Sexy mamma roll was good, but I thought it was sloppily made. For example, I had some pieces where there was no salmon at all and only tuna. And it wasn’t very tightly bound for sushi (there were holes in the center.). What made it good was really all that avocado and sauce they put on it! I really liked the Nigiri special that we ordered. Because of it, I would come back and only order Nigiri.
I think this place has potential — they need to hire more sushi chefs and staff. The sushi chef’s looked pretty bogged down by orders, and I heard another couple ordering omakase and given a heads up that it might be 30 – 40 minutes to prepare due to this. Our waitress was pretty good about filling out water and checking on us, but she had a pretty stoic look on her face and didn’t seem too friendly. If she smiled her service would be rated tip-​top!
The best part was at the end of the meal we saw an orange tabby lying by the signage of the restaurant. It was super friendly and cute.