Sushi-Yama

Okay so the only good thing about this place is that you have to do down stairs and up stairs to eat so at least you’ll get your exercise in and help stimulate bowel movements to get the sushi out of your colon.

This is one of my favorite sushi restaurant in downtown. You can really feel the passion and dedication to craft in every one of their rolls. I would highly recommend this place for an authentic sushi experience rarely provided outside of Japan.

Hands down my favorite sushi spot in Grand Rapids. It’s a bit of a hidden gem, located in the lower level of the Mckay tower in downtown. They have a great selection at very affordable prices. My favorites are the shrimp tempura roll and the mango roll. Everything I’ve they tried is amazing. They also offer lunch specials consisting of 2 different rolls, so it’s an even better deal!

So I’m rating this place on sort of a price to quality ratio, as Sushi-​Yama has rather inexpensive sushi, but the quality is still surprisingly good. Maru is still my favorite game in town, but these two places are entirely different planes for me and the two can’t really be compared. That being said, Sushi-​Yama does the trick when I’m just in the mood for takeout or a quick, inexpensive, and delicious meal. In that regard, they blow their competition in GR out of the water.
I had a hard time finding Sushi-​Yama the first time, as it’s tucked away in the basement of a building on Monroe Center, and only has a little sidewalk sign. It’s very easily overlooked. The eat-​in area is sort of in a strange elevator lobby, with the sushi bar inside a little alcove, but it’s interesting and enjoyable to observe what they’ve done to the space. The décor is generally pleasant (besides the fake grape vines, one of my biggest interior design pet peeves), but i superlove the presentation here. The dishes are small and pretty mismatched, but they sort of just make due, and do a great job making your meal flow visually and it all just looks very cute and homemade. In fact, everything is pretty mismatched and sort of makeshift wabi-​sabi.
Although their miso soup is pretty average, their house salad is awesome and much bigger than house salads at most other sushi places! (and a total steal at only 2 $!) And the vegetarian sushi options are ample, with plenty of fried tempura veg. options and veg options with cream cheese (as well as the standard veg. rolls you can get anywhere). But the kimchi/​avocado roll and mango/​avocado roll are what always bring me back here. Both are sooooo dank AF. And the owner/​chef is super friendly and helpful and he gave my two friends and I a large plate of complementary peach-​flavored mochi ice cream balls last time I was there, which was super sweet of him (and they were soooo delicious! what a treat!) :D
A [literally] hidden gem of GR and definitely worth the trip down the rabbit hole!

Was not happy with this sushi at all. Simplest sushi, tamago and ebi, was poorly done with minuscule portions of rice. Other rolls ordered were bland. Very disappointed.

Found this place when I was at a conference at the Amway Hotel. It is very affordable and the sushi is excellent. They had kimchi as a side and was very tasty. I ended up going there for lunch two days in a row! A former governor of Michigan enjoyed it too – she wrote a nice letter to Sushi-​Yama (nice décor on wall). Very recommended.
It can get really busy – there was only one guy rolling sushi and another guy serving, so be patient.

I came here because it was a 4 star sushi place. This place did not have 4 star sushi. When I say the sushi is «not bad», it is the same «not bad» as I would say if this sushi was edible from a gas station and it was exactly that. This sushi barley passed as gas station sushi. The rice was tough and the seaweed was chewy. The cuts of fish were skimmed and looked like it was at least two days old. The miso soup was no different. They would have done a better job if they served it from an instant miso soup package. And all of this sushi, 25 minutes. And they forgot to serve the soup until we asked for it.

I love sushi Yama. The lack of fancy sauces on most of their rolls makes the experience all the more authentic. It’s also probably my favorite place to get sushi because of the awesome prices. Consistently fresh and delicious. I also really enjoy hanging out in the basement! They’re always very nice, and the lunch special is awesome! Go here now if you’re looking for cheap yet delicious sushi!

I like this place and would go again. It’s convenient in terms of location, fast in terms of service, good price point and a little out of the way (down some marble stairs, below street level) to create a quiet ambiance.
The reason it’s getting three stars is because the menu isn’t all that creative or unique. It’s a good, standard sushi menu. I wasn’t a fan of the special salad but really enjoyed the nigiri and a couple of the spicy rolls.
It’s a solid sushi choice in a prime location. I certainly recommend it but I’m not ecstatic about it.

Worst sushi I have ever had. Very tiny rice to fish portion. I mean … This isn’t even sushi. Definitely not Japanese owner or chief .
If you know what sushi should taste like … Don’t go here …

Yes, the location is a bit hard to find, but well worth it! Everything we tried was amazing. The food came quickly and was very nicely prepared. Left fully satisfied.

This place could not be more hidden but if you like sushi, you need to go. Great food, friendly service and very fair prices. Not at all what you’d expect when you walk-​in based upon it’s location but it’s a «must go» type of place.

Solid sushi for reasonable money. The downstairs location is odd, but kind of unique with a grand marble staircase and a strange back vault cage present. I tend to try the spicy tuna roll at almost every sushi spot I end up at and it was awesome here although not very spicy. I will be back for sure!

Stopped here for a snack after walking around the city. Figured the place could be really good or I’ll visit the toilet later. I ordered the spicy spider California and the white tuna and ebi California. It was actually really good. I recommend and no toilet visit required after eating :)

very odd smell in the basement where this restaurant is. took 45 minutes to get one sushi roll and there weren’t many people down here

Love this place for my sushi fix during the week. They are reasonably priced and put out a good product. Only drawback is get there early or late because if you end up during lunch rush you will wait for awhile. Very friendly as well.

My favorite sushi in town. They are focused on serving a smaller selection of simple, but high quality roles rather than the usual giant list of specialty rolls with 20 ingredients each. It’s never crowded in there and it’s never too much of a wait.

ALERT: HIDDEN GEM OF GRAND RAPIDS!!!
Out of ALL the sushi restaurants I’ve been to, this is my hands down #1 FAVORITE sushi spot in West Michigan. It’s in a well lit area in the lower level of Biggbys next to the Rosa Park Circle in downtown Grand Rapids. The only indication of it’s whereabouts is literally a sidewalk sign on Monroe Center.
When you go downstairs, theres a small sushi bar with the friendliest Korean sushi master. The sushi is fresh. The portions are big and the price is very reasonable. In fact, if you go during lunch there are lunch specials that knock down a buck or two depending on what you order.
I don’t know what it is about this place that won my heart. Maybe because it reminds me of what sushi restaurants look like abroad. Or maybe it’s because I see that the sushi master works incredibly hard to keep everyone happy. Whatever it is, I’m sure others agree since most of his customers are locals who work in the nearby area.
You must try this place out. The sushi here beats any other «Asian» restaurant on Monroe Center. You HAVE TO try this place out. You just gotta.

Good sushi at excellent prices. Small, very casual. I will definitely be coming back.

Really like the service. They offered to make up some special rolls and extra sweet potatoes for our 16 month old. Only thing keeping it from 5-​stars is that I think some of the other local sushi places have more «special» rolls. But as far as the basic rolls go, they’re really good and nicely priced. The seawood salad is really good and they have mochi. But mostly, we like to support them because they’ve been around before there was tons of sushi in GR and we really like the owner.