Ju Sushi and Lounge

Ok I love Ju sushi but after the treatment by the bartender last week feel compelled to leave an update. I was there on May 17, a Tuesday and have never been treated as poorly at a restaurant as I was that night by the bartender. She would not acknowledge our presence and when you asked to order a menu item she would rudely say nothing and you weren’t sure if you were going to get said item. Slammed plates and glasses that were to be cleaned and shoved our silverware and plates at us. Took beer glass away when it was empty and never asked if I would like a refill. Others around us were commenting on her behavior and said she was super busy, but clearly everyone was upset at how she was treating them. Ju’s bar area went downhill when the guy with the ponytail and the brunette gal he worked with quit. Here’s hoping that Ju does not rehire this gal after her summer off. She deserves to work at McDonald’s with her poor customer service and not a classy joint like Ju.

Very good sushi, excellent selection. Much better atmosphere than most sushi places in town. reasonable prices. I’m not sure why it’s not packed every night.

One my favorite sushi restaurants when I am in Grand Rapids. Their crab pizza appetizer is amazing and the Playboy roll is to die for! The waiters/​waitresses are really nice. The prices aren’t too bad!

Came in for an early dinner of sushi. This place is really nice inside. For this review I am only rating the sushi as we didn’t try anything else. I highly recommend the Tokyo tower dish… It is huge and delicious. We also had a playboy roll, ice land volcano roll and a spicy salmon roll. All were pretty good though the playboy roll was our other favorite. Good sake selection though the nigori sake we ordered was not available so we settled for one I didn’t really care for. Will not stop me from coming back.

We went in late Saturday night and it wasn’t too busy! I was surprised it wasn’t busier because the reviews were great! The staff was wonderful and vey helpful! We got the Playboy roll, Chicken Tempura roll, and Volcano roll for the entrees and the Mussels for the appetizer! All of our food was delicious and we were stuffed! I would definitely check it out again during the day time! Def a date spot!

I went here about six months ago and thought I had already given a review for this great restaurant but I was mistaken! Very chic and elegant inside, I felt a little under dressed without a tie on. Lovely fireplace and water accents all around made each little dining area seem like an oasis. The sushi was fantastic and so delicious I didn’t want to leave any and ate way too much! The espresso to finish off the meal was exceptional and I almost wanted to fall asleep there and stay until the next day.
A very nice place to go on a first date, casual dining or a group gathering. I will wait until I have someone else to go with as going to dinner alone is less exciting.

Being an avid sushi lover– this is hands down the best sushi I have ever had and definitely the best sushi you will find in GR! I got the Fire Mountain sushi roll which is served flaming and topped with mouth watering sauce. The food presentations are elegant. The restaurant is modern and cozy with comfortable lounge chairs and sofas with pillows that will make you feel at home. The fireplace and water feature create a relaxing environment. You can sit at the bar or the lounge area. There is even listerine in the bathrooms for any fishy/​spicy breath. I absolutely loved the food and environment and I can’t wait to go back!

Everything about our visit here was absolutely perfect! Our server, Kyle, was prompt to greet us, didn’t rush us to order but was ready to take our order as soon as we were, and made sure our glasses were refilled in a timely manner. The food was superb. For our appetizer we had killer fried dumplings with a delicious sauce and then for our meals we had the hibachi chicken, the spicy California roll, and the Flyin’ Hamachi roll. I have to say, I’ve had a lot of sushi in my life, and I’ve only found one other restaurant that has a roll as spicy and well balanced as their Flyin’ hamachi roll — this one is not for the faint of heart. As far as the spicy California roll, I was really wowed by their spicy mayo, which was the perfect ratio of sriracha to mayo, unlike the many restaurants that use an abundance of mayo with nearly indiscernible sriracha content. Overall, I was highly satisfied and would definitely come back.

I was very impressed with my first visit to this sushi restaurant. I went at an off hour (2pm) on a Thursday with a friend, yet it was still relatively busy. My immediate impression was how posh everything was. Very modern, yet comfortable. I didn’t expect there to be an actual lounge area. But I must say I initially felt a little underdressed amongst the rather bourgie clientele there that day (not that I actually care).
But overall the food was amazing, one particular roll that I ordered was outstanding (a «secret menu» item I was tipped off to by a friend, called ‘The Young Grasshopper’). It was unbelievably delicious vegetarian roll with avocado, seaweed, cucumber, and other fresh green veggies. It was so refreshing and delicious, and I’ll definitely return for that roll alone. I also ordered two other pretty standard vegetarian tempura rolls (tempura veggie roll and sweet potato tempura roll), but they did the trick. I really loved the presentation (see pic). Very authentic green tea as well.
Ju is really the only sushi restaurant in town that gives Maru a run for it’s money, but it’s within the same higher price range (expect to drop at least $ 20 here for your fill), but alas, you get what you pay for. I can’t afford to come here too often, but it’s definitely a delicious treat. I was pretty well-​stuffed on three rolls and had to resist the urge to take a nap in the comfy booth I was seated in (there actually were pillows, so it seemed appropriate lol).

I love the atmosphere very cozy, some of the best sushi in Grand Rapids. Try the soft shell crab it delish. The pork dumpling appetizers were fantastic too.

Best sushi in Grand Rapids! The Las Vegas roll is to die for! So delicious! The food is outstanding but the atmosphere is great as well. Always have great service here. Just an overall awesome place.

We had high expectations for this place since the prices weren’t cheap. We ordered the spider roll which was good but the avocado was browning. I also got their Udon soup. The soup was awful it tasted like it was marinated in a dead fish carcass for days. Our sever was horrible. Barely came over to our table and brought us out the wrong appetizer. She also never came back to refill our water so we left thirsty. The quality and service just were not there. I would skip this place if you are thinking about it.

The sushi here is amazing!!! Good service!!! Very modern, great look. The only thing is it didn’t seem very clean. The floor is sticky, the glass table we ate at looked disgusting. Even the plate with our food had spots on it. If they can keep this place clean I’d say they’d be in the top sushi restaurants in GR.

JU is not your average sushi spot. The décor is modern and cozy; featuring plush sofas and chairs so as to give the vibe that you’re hosting in your living room. Unlike your typical Japanese/​pan Asian restaurant, JU has perfectly mastered the right lighting, music and atmosphere that makes you want to linger and order more white tuna (which is is heavenly.)
There’s something for everyone at JU. Their appetizers are so incredible you could leave satisfied just having shared the Karai Tacos, Pork Katsu, or seaweed salad, to list a few. The sashimi is some of the best I’ve EVER had, and since I’ve lived Eastern Seaboard, that’s saying something! The cuts of fish are perfect, whether you order Nigiri, Sushi or Sashimi. The salmon melts in your mouth!
Even though the mood and food are unrivaled in the GR area none of it would matter if the service wasn’t on point. The bartenders and servers work seamlessly to provide a consistently lovely experience. The staff is knowledgeable, courteous and accommodating. While you will never sit with an empty wine glass, they seem to have a knack anticipating your needs and knowing when they’re needed and when you could use some space.
If you get the opportunity, GO! They open at noon! Go NOW!

My wife and I decided to try Ju Sushi for our date night. The décor and interior of the restaurant was attractive and pleasant. They have a bar/​lounge area and a dining area. We sat in the dining area. The drink selection is good with local beers and a good selection of saki, including a $ 92 bottle! My wife and I shared a bottle of the cloudy saki which was good. The sushi selection itself was just OK. We were hoping for some more variety in their rolls but most of it was standards like the rainbow, Alaska, and spider roll.
We ordered the sunshine and rainbow roll. The rolls themselves tasted good. The service was timely and polite.
Overall, good but not great.

Really 3.5 stars. Only cause I’m a pretty tough grader. Service was a bit slow but friendly.
Beautiful décor. nice and modern; plenty of room.
Sushi was good – not great but very good. Tempura was quite good. Pork katsu was good-​but serving was a bit on the small side.
It’s a good option for sushi in a nice environment. Much nicer room than the stripmall joints.

Definitely the best sushi in Grand Rapids, hands down. Okay, before I get to the food, the atmosphere: pretty nice place, has a neat «Japanese lounge» where it is a bit more casual, but also has regular dining tables as well. Servers very friendly. Okay, the food was fantastic. I had multiple types of nigiri, salmon, fatty salmon, snapper, and egg. Big portion, large piece of fish per piece. However, one piece per order, so it gets costly. Cheaper to buy nigiri appetizer. Also got the Sweet Potato Tempura roll which was delicious. They have a neat option where you can get any roll tempura fried for just a dollar extra I believe. Good place for a date, or just out with friends.

I have a friend who has been raving about this place. I love sushi and I was in the area so I decided to give it a whirl. Perhaps I should have been a bit worried because on a Friday night at peak time, it was pretty quiet. The décor is very modern and sophisticated, as others have mentioned. That’s where the good part ends.
I took a seat at the bar and the hostess gave me a menu. Not long after a waitress came around and asked for my drink order. Well I was never given a drink menu so I ordered water and asked for a drink menu. She came back in a decent amount of time and delivered the items. However, after that, I waited and waited and waited some more. She finally returned to take my order.
Their wine list is decent and I chose the Riesling which was good. A standard pour, it was chilled as it should be. I ordered the sushi set which included 8 pieces of nigiri and a California roll. I think the price is fine for the amount of food, the set was $ 19. I was served a salad with ginger dressing. Typically the salad is to cleanse your palate and this was hardly that. The dressing had so much sugar it was like candy. It definitely put me off.
Then my sushi arrived. At first glance, I was so excited! It looked really good. I got a mix of salmon, yellowtail, tuna, eel, and such. I started eating and soon the problems emerged. Problem 1– the fish is not fresh. The only raw fish that tasted decent was the salmon, the rest all tasted fishy and older than it should have been. Problem 2– the fish had been cut really poorly. Problem 3– there was no wasabi on the nigiri. That’s part of the art of making sushi is perfecting the amount of wasabi that goes under the fish. In this case, they didn’t put any. I put some in my soy sauce but it didn’t taste fresh, there was no kick to it. Problem 4– the cali roll was a freaking mess. How can you mess that up? The pieces were all different sizes, the masago was just dumped on top of the roll like they threw a spoonful on it, the end pieces had dangles of crab, the rice peeled away from the nori.
It wasn’t the worst sushi I ever ate but it was far from good.

This restaurant is tucked away in what use to be a higher end shopping center and replaces a different restaurant. Having been around for a few years now, I hope it is here to stay.
I usually come here for lunch. They feature a select two or three items for a fixed price. This is a great value considering the quality of food and portion size.
I had the Kari tacos which includes wonton shells filled with beef, chicken and shrimp. Each taco is presented on a small serving of room temperature mashed potatoes.
My second selection was the house udon. This included a nice sized tempura shrimp. Only thing that could be better is replacing the krab stick with either a piece of fish or real crab.
My third selection was the bulgogi wrap. Served in pita bread, this fusion like sandwich hits the spot. Beef has a lot of flavor and the veggies tie it all together. I love gyros/​doners so this was a great fusion version.
It all comes out at once and I ate in the above order so it was like having an appetizer, soup course and a main. Mini dinner for $ 12 bucks.
Of course you can’t not try their sushi. One of their specialty rolls is the Playboy roll. It comes to the table in foil and the sever lights it on fire. Having eaten a lot of sushi around town, this place is near the top for quality of ingredients.
Insider tip: Playboy rolls are half price after 6pm on Tuesdays.

Ok
Décor is a 4 especially the lounge. Dining area is 3.5
Food for value, meaning is it worth the price? No. that’s a 2.
Small things bother me but if you like sushi these matter. The fish overall was average it was poorly cut but presentation was good. The wasabi was old, it was dark dark green and not fresh. It was old and stale and should be more «mint» looking versus looking dirty. That’s a 0 out of 5.
The ginger was old too, yes these are garnishes but freshness is key.
We ordered shrimp dumplings which came out cold. These were clearly frozen and not steamed properly and they were pricey for frozen shrimp dumplings. These came out of a package. Another 0 out of 5.
The apps were not a good value. The nigiri sushi prices per piece are as high as u have seen in any major metro city. 3 bucks for one small piece of salmon is steep.
Overall service was solid but the other elements turned me off and for a Saturday night meal it was surely a Saturday night price if I was in NYC.
Can’t say I would go back but this place has great potential and upside. My experience this day was very subpar for the above average price I paid.