Taka Sushi

It’s closed??? No!!! This cannot be! I remember Taka saying that he and his wife were considering moving to Costa Rica and having a sushi joint down there, but I hope that they’re just remodeling or relocating. I used to love this place so much. I’d go so often that the minute I’d walk in they’d say: «chirashi sushi, no mackerel, no octopus?». They always remembered my order.
One less star for breaking my heart by not existing any more.

We went to try this place this evening, and it was closed. The inside was being all torn up.

Best sushi hands down!

This place is surprisingly good. You might be skeptical because it doesn’t have the Unilocal status of a Nana San, San Shi Go, Bluefin … but you’d be surprised at the quality and sushi prep here. It is much more economical than the above referenced places too.

Oh my goodness gracious I have found my new sushi place near South Coast. First of all, it’s a hole in the while and it’s a mom and pop shop run by husband and wife. The fish is fresh, the service is fast, and the options are incredible. My friend ordered the sunset roll and their fried chicken plate, delicious! I ordered their grilled eel roll and it was delicious as well. If I hadn’t been driving, I would have loved to have tried their sake, they have a great selection to choose from, so definitely coming back and definitely won’t be the DD. At the end the couple bid us a good night and were so happy that I thanked them in Japanese, instead of giving me a weird look like at other places. I recommend it!

Went there again for Omakase last night. Taka’s sushi is really tasty/​flavorful. My favorite piece would be the black cod sushi. Simply amazing.

I came here with a friend during the random hours (around 2−3pm ish) and the place was dead so I got my roll pretty fast. I forgot the name of it, but it was a baked California roll topped with scallops and mayonnaise. It was yummy; you could tell the ingredients were fresh and there were a ton of scallops! Only downside was that there was a liiiitle too much mayonnaise, so I could only eat a couple pieces before the richness got to me.
I might come back to try their other rolls!

I’ve eaten at many sushi bars around the U.S., this is by far the best. Taka gets FRESH fish EVERY DAY. No frozen fish here. This makes all the difference, not to mention that the entire staff is Japanese and very warm and friendly. It’s a small restaurant (capacity about 45) which keeps the quality of service very high. Anything you order will be oustanding, and the prices are reasonable. Some of my favs are: yellowtail sushi, the taka roll, albacore sushi, salmon and tuna are also awesome!

I am going to preface my review with a touch of bias to a new addition to Taka sushi, that led me to dine there. Takahashi, formally of Zipangu (in the AnitMall in Costa Mesa) and Ayame in Irvine (when it was a sushi bar) is now the sous chef at Taka Sushi. He gave me a ring and asked me to come in and check out his new digs.
I gladly obliged as Takahashi is a true sushi master. I am sure that Taka has his regulars and long term customers but having the other Taka join his staff is a real bonus. Check out this Omakase that was set up on my visit last week. It was a feast for the senses. Takahashi came through with flying colors!
Salmon collar-​perfectly cooked and seasoned if not a bit naturally salty
Seared Yellowtail Toro with a miso sauce
Seared Ocean trout
Blue Fin Sushi
Spicy Tuna roll wrapped in Albacore and Avocado with soy paper instead of nori.
White Tuna with fresh Yuzu relish
How’s this for sushi luxury? Seared Wild Salmon wrapped around a roll of lobster and uni, rich and delicious to say the least.
Thank you Taka for hiring Takahashi and making it a memorable meal.

We had the following:
Vegetable Tempura: Not good. The tempura was not crispy and the batter was very very ordinary.
Assorted sashimi: contained salmon, mackerel, octopus, tuna. This was the best dish of the evening.
Taka Roll: Very Good.
TJ Roll: OK. Nothing unique.
Overall, this place is forgettable and is pretty ordinary. I am giving 2 stars only for the assorted sashimi and the taka roll.

My boyfriend and I go here once in a while because its so close to his house. Its a nice small place with a sushi bar and 3 booths i believe and 2 or 3 tables. This place is a bit pricey for the portions so don’t be surprised when you see how much food you really get for the price.
The food is good though and Ive never had a problem with it. I always get the tempura and the dressing that they serve with the salad is very good. The service is just okay and it is sometimes hard to get their attention.

Taka Sushi is still my favorite after all these years. On my most recent visit, my friend and I put ourselves in Taka’s hands and left very full and happy. Halibut, live sweet shrimp, miso soup with the shrimp heads, salmon, yellowtail, and a couple of hand rolls later, I was very satisfied and already planning in my head when I would come back again. Taka is a master at flavorful seasoning and artistic presentation.

Orange County is filled with sushi joints practically in every corner… many of which are Korean owned fast food «sushi» establishments. Not sushi IMHO. If you want the real deal, traditional style sushi, Taka Sushi is where you have to be. That being said, it requires a special sushi connoisseur to really appreciate Taka Sushi. If you fancy California rolls and spider rolls and you want it all out on your table at once, with quick snappy happy waiters, this is not the establishment for you. Good sushi takes patience, and your patience will be rewarded here.
Best way to approach Taka Sushi is «omakase» style — meaning, let Taka give you want he wants you to eat. He only serves the best seafood that is in season. This means: don’t expect to be eating oysters in mid June. Also, soy sauce bottles are on the table, but it doesn’t mean you have to use them. Taka carefully flavors all your sushi for you with his arsenal of secret sauces. I know for those of you who have been plagued by other «sushi» places, it’s a hard habit to break, but trust me on this one.
Some of my recommendations:
Rolls: Elsewhere Roll, Seafood Spring Roll or the Snake Roll — creations exclusive to Taka Sushi.
Non-​sushi items: Nabeyaki Udon, Nikomi Hamburg: delicate Japanese style meatloaf served in a demi-​glacé sauce.
This is a really small place and it’s family-​owned and operated. Taka is the head chef, his wife is the waitress. Taka has a 30 year following from loyal patrons that swear by him. On any given night, you might be the only person in the place that speaks English. And you know if you are the only non-​Japanese person eating at a Japanese restaurant, they must be doing something right.

I went here for lunch once with a friend. This place has ridiculous prices for small portions.
Pretty much overpriced whatevers sushi.
Service was okay, prices are overpriced, food was meh, & the environment is small. I wouldn’t imagine that this place gets crowded.

Everything about this place is off-​the-​charts-​fantasic. Sushi doesn’t get any better than this. The retaurant ambience is subdued, serene, and laid back. They make it look easy to serve such deliciousness, but it ‘aint.
If I lived closer, I’d likely be homeless as all of my greenbacks would be spent here, at Taka. So it’s a blessing and curse that this place is an 8-​hour drive for me. Still, I try to pay it a special visit every time I’m in the area.
Shhh… keep it a secret.

It was a simpler time, I was living in Tustin and I stumbled into a little sushi bar and never left. Yes Taka Sushi on Newport back behind the Ruby’s was my place. Taka-​San knew me by name, he knew what I liked, he knew that when I asked for dessert, it meant that I wanted salmon, and I kept a bottle of sake in the back. Life was good.
Then he sold the place, I think he went back to Japan for a while, then I heard he was back, but never knew exactly where. So I searched Unilocal,and I turned up Taka II.
I went here for the first time and it was much as I remember it. He was exactly as I remembered him, and I was very happy to find out that he remembered me as well. The décor was different, and a few of his presentations had changed, and his nephew was in the second spot, Jun fro, Tustin off somewhere else now. He had a few more beer options, and it looks like he has more sake as well.
But more important was that the fish, and especially the salmon, was every bit as good as I remember it. I live and work a little too far for him to be my neighborhood guy anymore, but when I get nostalgic, I will be back.
Who says yo can’t go home again.

I LOOOVE TAKA.
It was about 3 years ago that my b.f. took me here for dinner. And this is the only place that he will eat sushi in the O.C.
The place is has awesome Japanese décor and you are instantly greeted by Taka, his wife or Ugi right as you walk in the door. You cannot help but smile and feel welcomed.
For their food, their sushi is extremely fresh and you cannot go wrong with ordering anything on the menu. The prices are reasonable and if possible order sake to go along with your meal.
I don’t remember which sushi piece comes with Taka’s special sauce, but just ask and you will be delighted in the taste.
I have to warn you it is very hard to rush through a meal here, so don’t expect to only stay for 20 – 30 min. Coming to Taka is the perfect opportunity to sit down and enjoy each piece of handcrafted sushi one moment at a time.
Enjoy and bring company.

This is one of your typical small hole in the wall Japanese places. They have pretty good fish; I enjoyed the Japanese mackrel but overall the place seems like a much slower paced place with long intermissions between rolls.
That’s fine if your used to it or want to delve into the depths of conversation, but come on! We ordered just a handful of rolls and they don’t even come out together quickly? The night wasn’t especially busy or anything so it’s surprising to see the down time. A beer or two might do some serious damage. So I complained and asked where our mackrel and halibut was and two seconds later it came out. Then the sushi man came over and said «See, you don’t have any more rolls. Just these rolls you already got.»
I was taken aback how defensive the sushi man was, when all i was doing was just asking where our two fish sushi was after alllllll this time.
I think it’s cool that they offer Japanese vodka (which tastes like soju or sake, its even called shochu and it came in a whiskey glass on the rocks with a side of lemon) and everyone there, from the waiters and waitresses, to the owner and both sushi dudes were full on Japanese. Its kinda rare to see that.
Overall the fish quality was pretty good, not the best, but alright. They had good americanized rolls and good but not great fish.
As far as the price goes, it was fairly reasonable (they charge by the piece for sushi, instead of charging for two pieces) and the rolls were moderately priced.

A great local spot for Japanese food. =)
I was on my way to an event at OCC but wanted to eat dinner beforehand. I Unilocaled restaurants & this was very close so I decided to give it a try. The place is tiny, in a strip mall next to a textbook store & a liquor store. There’s 3 booths and 12 – 15 seats at the sushi bar.
I was in a bit of a rush, so I ordered the sesame chicken appetizer, a spicy tuna hand roll and a shinji roll (crunch roll with yellowtail, salmon & spicy mayo on top). The spicy tuna hand roll was delicious — actually spicy (a lot of other places make it bland). There was a long wait between that and the rest of my food though. The sesame chicken was good… not the best I’ve had but good enough for me to want to finish it all. The shinji roll was a little disappointing — it was the last to arrive. The shrimp tempura inside seemed to make the fish on top warm. The salmon and yellowtail pieces were cut very thin — I didn’t really like this one much. When the bill came, these three items plus an iced tea came out to over $ 27. Yikes — that seemed like a lot of money to me for the quality of food I was receiving. I think the shinji roll price was a bit high… but I think the other items I ordered were reasonable.
The reason why I think it’s still a good place to eat is the service. The staff here is incredibly friendly — There are two really funny and friendly Japanese sushi chefs who greet you as you walk in. Just for the hospitality and service, this place is worth a visit. They also have other items like sukiyaki, udon, soba, rice dishes and other authentic Japanese foods to eat like sunomono and agedash tofu. If I were in the area again, I’d give it another try. =)

Definitely my favorite spot for sushi in the OC.
Just went tonight and here’s what the BF and I got for approx. $ 80:
1. 4 pcs salmon
2. 2 pcs Yellowtail
3. 4 pcs Albacore
4. 4 pcs Sweet Shrimp (and Taka will deep fry the heads which are SO good!!)
5. 1 Spider Roll
6. 2 pcs Toro
7. Salmon Cheek
8. Miso soup
9. 2 pcs Maguro
10. 1 salmon skin handroll
11. 2 pcs Seared Salmon
So for those of you who say this place is overpriced, I totally disagree. Especially when you take into consideration how fresh the fish is compared to other places. A lot of the stuff is also seasoned in such a way that you don’t need to use any soy sauce. And Taka is a really friendly guy who’ll always take care of you.