Big Tuna Sushi Bistro

If I could give no stars I would. I went here last night for Valentine’s Day with my boyfriend, my cousin and his girlfriend along with their 1 year old son. The service for the most part was OK. But while waiting on our food, my sister in law and her baby were eating a basic side salad. Until she discovered what we thought was a live cricket crawling around in her salad bowl. My cousin took the bowl back to the employees and all they had to say was «it’s organic» and tried to laugh about it. No manager came and talked to us, no free food, nothing. Then our waitress came out and says «she heard what happened, and it wasn’t a cricket it was a YELLOW JACKET (like that made it any better). All they had to say was «we are really sorry, do you guys want another salad» no the fuck we don’t. We left right after that down a couple of doors to Mt Mikes where we had a lovely meal. Sucks because we were craving some sushi. But never will I go there again.

My boyfriend and I went to this restaurant for Valentine’s Day dinner. The sushi was amazing. Service was great (minus the missing napkins, but that happens). The very best part of this place was their Green Tea cheesecake. I love green tea and I have to say this cheesecake is just beyond amazing. The slice was super small, but totally worth the $. Will definitely be back!

The food is great but literally every time I try to call in an order, they can’t make it. Tonight they told me they were «out of sushi rice» after putting me on hold for five minutes. WHAT THE HECK. Their other store is more on top of it, but even they forgot my order and now my bf is sitting there, waiting for it to be remade. Get it together guys.

Love this place! Best Sushi and great atmosphere! They have awesome rolls! Our favorite is the energy, Mexican, Italian and Hawaiian!!!

Great food an awesome service!!! if u buy drinks for the Chiefs they have to drink with u so you can get them drunk lmao

Food is good, but service is a little slow. Overall nice place, but their sister-​store is a little better. Quality and prices are bothe great!

This was a great little sushi place. Be warned though… when they tell you it is spicy, it IS spicy :) The rolls were delicious and they were nice and bite size. I would definitely go back to this place and recommend that others try it :)

Big Tuma is our fav place in Chico for sushi! We love the Tuna Bomber, and the Red Shrimp Roll is my favorite.

OMG — Yum I really enjoy the sushi here. The atmosphere is simplistic and the food is really good. My daughters and I enjoy trying new sushi restaurants when ever we’re on the road traveling and I always enjoy coming back to Big Tuna. Some of their wait staff could be a little more polished.

Go to sushi in Chico. Sushi tacos are amazing, not on menu but are offered with crab (the best) or tuna. I have never been here when it isn’t crowded– which I take as a great sign.

Casual place for a casual lunch/​dinner that has great rolls! I loved the dragon, Chico and energy rolls. I took away one star because as u leave the place you will be smelling like fried items!

Took out of town guests to Big Tuna last Thursday. Disappointed. We’ve eaten there several times over the last three years or so, and have always been pleased. And I’d have to say the quality of the food was good — we had spicy tuna tacos, an ahi tuna plate, oyster shooters, a couple rolls, etc., plus Sapporos to drink. My only criticism of the food is that the rolls had too much rice relative to the amount of filling, though the flavors were fine, and they skimped on wasabi, of all things.
The problem is that the service was sullen. The sign says «Seat Yourself,» but a waiter snarled at us for sitting at a table he hadn’t finished wiping off, and our waitress never smiled or made any effort to suggest we were welcome. There was a long wait for food, and an even longer one for second beers. The ticket topped $ 100 — the restaurant didn’t earn it.
Unilocaler Christian M.‘s review from the same night is spot on. I won’t go back to Big Tuna.

Went in on a Thursday night and wait was terribly long. The restaurant was not even packed, but it seemed that the sushi chefs were taking their time in preparing the food. The two were chatting up with the customers seated in the bar, and they were also partaking in shots of sake while preparing food. I ordered two rolls, the Chico and the Dragon, but I had to wait for over 30 minutes before the food arrived. The rolls were not really spectacular, rice was very dry, to be honest, and not enough sauce was drizzled. I don’t see myself coming back. Two stars for location and cleanliness.

THIS is my favorite place to eat in Chico, BY. FAR. I am a HUGE sushi but, and have eaten on the coast, in fancier places in Sac, Tons of different places, and this place is my favorite. The rolls are so good, tons of unique options, really good fish and sauces, and every time we come in it feels so casual and welcoming. It’s small and has a really good feel to it, right when you walk in you are greeted by the chefs who are standing right at the bar making sushi. They are really nice and the wait for your food is not bad at all. I have also tried the Raw Bar in downtown Chico, and I didn’t really like it very much at all. Plain rolls, not very friendly service, feels a little arrogant, and pretty pricey. There, I got an $ 8 roll and it only came with 4 smaller prices, but at Big Tuna, $ 8.50 gets you a good sized roll (8 pieces) and they are SO unique.
If I had to choose my favorite rolls, I would say the CHICO ROLL!!! It is my favorite food from anywhere I have ever been. You can’t beat it. The Japanese Fried Chicken apatite the is good too, and my boyfriend LOVES the red shrimp roll and the energy roll.
Can’t wait to be back here again soon!!!

Why is a good sushi joint so hard to find in his town? Big Tuna has wonderfully fantastic prices, especially during their «happy hour» deals, especially given the size of the rolls they serve. The portions are definitely generous for the price, and their menu offers a wide variety of different types of rolls. For example, the tuna bomber rolls are certainly a unique item I have not seen at any other sushi place, including Japantown in San Francisco. I also think the «sushi tacos» they offer are pretty ingenious, too. Big Tuna is obviously striving to be quirky, and it’s a label they are able to fully embrace.
Unfortunately, the greatest problem with Big Tuna is arguably the most significant consideration: the food is subpar, at best. I ate there for the first time three years ago, and it really blew me socks off. I’ve eaten there half a dozen times since, and I think they have either fired the chef who was there the first time I was a customer, or they have a new distributor for their produce. Each plate of sushi I have had since that original January dining experience has been pretty lukewarm. I don’t need my sushi ice cold, but I know that warm sushi is a step away from being unsafe sushi, never mind what the temperature rise does to the taste value.
Overall, the atmosphere and intent is what saves this place, and that first memory of amazing sushi for the right price. I haven’t been in a few months, but I will make an attempt to do so at least once more before I decide to call it quits completely.

Great staff, excellent menu. Disgustingly hot! The owners of this place must be out of their minds. i went there the other day and it was like 96 degrees at night. I can only imagine how much sweat the cooks are dripping on the lukewarm, raw fish. Until this is fixed, I won’t return. In any other city, this place would be shut down.
Here’s two new words for the owners: swamp cooler.
UPDATE: This place officially sucks. If they don’t shut down in the next 6 weeks I’m going to sue the idiots that are keeping them in business. Please… Make way for a hydroponics shop or cigarette store. Anything would be better – including a quicker less painful death.

Tried them again: since it was our daughters Birthday (she requested to go there).
Service was a little slow considering our dining time. (about 3:00 PM). Not many patrons either!
Ashli Beer nice and chilled. Go with the large!
Ordered the Beef Curry — very tasty, but not enough beef in it for the $.
Tacos are always «spot on». You’ll have to request them as they aren’t on the menu– they are amazing!
Energy Roll– good, but doesn’t look like what’s shown on the menu.
Salads were better this «go round» in a bowl and better portion: although mine was in the beef curry bowl, which I found a little strange? It should have come separately and not apart of my main dish!
Sadly, we didn’t seem to connect with our server Anthony until towards the end of our dinning experience! We requested a special roll to be made for our daughter who just turned 13 & that’s when we finally connected with him. The chef created a Salmon, Basil Roll and upon our daughters requested added Cilantro & green onion. Super tasty! The chef seemed very friendly, smiling & it seemed to be a pleasure to make a «birthday plate» which he then decorated in sauce & wrote «Happy Birthday». This was really cool and such a neat presentation!
Food is always good /​service (as I had stated before) during the day is not as good.

Not sure what the rave reviews are about. My friend and I came in and ordered a roll of sushi each. Both came out warm. I’ve never had this kind of sushi roll warm. Maybe the eel was freshly cooked and it warmed the whole roll? The roll tasted kinda plain. Maybe we had too high of expectations since we’re visiting from the PNW? We weren’t impressed with what we got for the price. (Can’t remember the name of the roll).

Big Tuna used to rock my socks off, but the quality of service has taken a nose dive, along with the portion size (they’re tiny!).
My family and I used to eat here several times a month, but anymore. Do yourself a favor and check out the sister restaurant, Izakaya Ichiban. The menu is similar, but their portions are larger and the service is great. Bonus: Izakaya has outdoor seating!!!