Momotaro Sushi

Had the large RVA roll with some salmon sashimi and loved it. Will be coming back again to check out the Wednesday Happy Hour deals.

Perhaps I’m not a connoisseur of sushi, though I still think you can do better than Momotaro.
Came here with a few friends to try it out. While there was a «happy hour» special running, it was severely limited in terms of which items were offered, and after ordering I was notified that half of my items ordered were out of stock. An unfortunate start.
When I did receive my order, I found the taste lacking compared to other sushi establishments in the area. Also, their «crab» is really just imitation crab, and it definitely tastes nothing like actual crab. Perhaps Carytown Sushi and Sushi King spoiled me, though the fare here isn’t even close to either of them. Service was lacking as well. Our server seemed less than interested in serving, and her sole offer to refill my drink took place long after I had finished my meal.
Overall, while Momotaro is an economical choice, you get what you pay for. I would recommend you go elsewhere for your sushi fix.
Overall: 2.0 stars
— — — — –
Pros:
— Affordable. This earns it the two stars, as most sushi places in this area can run up quite a tab with very little to show for it.
Cons:
— Sushi just isn’t very good. Very bland with an odd consistency to it. Also, who wants imitation crab?
— Parking for this location is difficult, and the Carytown lots are often full and still a walk to get to.
— Service was lackluster. Often times I’m willing to work with a place if they at least have good food or good service, though this place has neither.

Yummmmm!!! Excellent menu, fresh ingredients and great service! Happy hour prices are killer!

I am so sad to write this review because this used to be my very favorite sushi place in Richmond. The quality was amazing, the rolls prepared delicately, and the atmosphere quaint. It’s like that place never existed.
I had not been in a long time because the hours had been so variable, which probably should have been my first warning. I would go by for lunch, their own sign on the door would indicate they were supposed to be open, but they weren’t.
Finally I went for dinner recently. The place has been expanded, but it looks so shabby and, frankly, dirty. The waitress was very friendly but the gentleman (I think he’s the owner, actually) looked homeless and kind of out of it.
The sushi was a complete letdown. I ordered all rolls I’d had before, remembering how good they’d been, and they were absolutely atrocious. Things like the Momotaro Roll tasted absolutely nothing like they used to. The quality has gone down significantly and the rolls themselves were poorly prepared — falling apart completely. Nothing tasted like it should, and the portions were smaller, adding insult to injury.
The final straw was that I ended up not feeling well after eating this totally disappointing meal — not food poisoning sick, but definitely something was off sick. I don’t know what’s happened here, but it makes me really, really sad.

I honestly can’t understand how this place is still in business. I have been many times over the years but tonight will be the absolute last time. No AC on a 98 degree day. The waitress also tells us, we cannot get salads with our meals because they are out of salad dressing (ugh, how about go get some!?). She gives us waters with no ice. Then we wait over an hour for 4 rolls of sushi. Keep in mind, this is a very small restaurant, with about 10 tables.
This is a horribly run place.

I’ve been to Momotaro three times. The first two experiences were great. The third experience, just this past weekend, was surprisingly disappointing.
The biggest issue was that we waited for almost two hours to get our food. We also ended up canceling some of our orders because the wait was so rediculous, which means we left not fully satisfied.
There were some smaller issues as well, like our water being brought out in small tea bowls instead of full glasses. Water was also not brought to everyone at our table. We also asked for smaller plates since our food was grouped together on a large plate, but we didn’t get those by the time we finished eating. Our waitress also made some mildly passive aggressive remarks and acted like some of our requests (e.g. the smaller plates) were an inconvenience for her.
I’m not sure if I am willing to risk such a terrible experience again by ever going back.

I’m currently sitting in the restaurant waiting for my food to come out, been over 45 minutes and there’s only 3 other tables in the whole place.
Also, they bring out 2 menus that are different and only tell you one is wrong once you start ordering. Invest in correct menus.

This has to be one of the worst places to go. Poor service, low quality food, menu could add some items and do away with many. Restaurant has VCT flooring and cheap furniture. Might as well get it to go and eat it in a janitor’s closet. I will be surprised if they’re still around in a few years. Not very busy at all, and I was there dinner time on a Saturday. Feel bad for the owner (s). City of Richmond food tax at ten percent just adds insult to injury.

After several positive experiences here recently, I think Momotaro has surpassed both Akida and Sticky Rice to become my favorite sushi in the city. Their $ 12.95 dinner special (soup, salad, two rolls $ 4.95 and under, and two pieces of sushi) handily scratches my sushi itch without leaving too much of a dent in my meager grad-​student income. Two of my favorites are the Philadelphia Roll (with nice fresh salmon, crunchy cucumber, and a hearty helping of cream cheese) and the Dank Veggie (a pleasing assortment of crunchy and creamy veggie bits with tempura crunchies and eel sauce). I also love their rice — it seems nice and fresh and has the perfect consistency, soft yet with the individual texture of each grain still discernible.
As others have mentioned, don’t come here if you’re in a rush. I haven’t had the problems with service other Unilocalers have described, it’s just… unhurried, even when there are only a few other patrons in the restaurant.
Also, isn’t it kinda macabre to have a fish tank in a sushi restaurant, or is it just me? Pretty much every sushi place does this…

While scouring the web for some lunch specials, I stumbled upon Momotaro’s FB page: «½ off sushi rolls til 7»… sweet! So off I went.
The restaurant itself is nice enough… standard for a small sushi bar. I was the only one in the restaurant and was told I can take a seat anywhere. Cool. Waitress comes by with a glass of water (no ice, but cold, so whatever) and menu. I say ‘there’s a special going on now for ½ off certain rolls right?’. Looking a little puzzled, she reluctantly says ‘yeah’. I ask which rolls are on special as I’m looking around the restaurant for any signage. I point to what I think are the specials and she says «ohh yeahh» and just walks away. Weird.
Anyway, I get up to grab the special menu. I notice it says happy hour specials 5 – 7. Waitress comes back and I place my order from the special menu. Sushi comes out… pretty tasty, nothing too special. Rolls were a nice size, and fish tasted fresh enough. Was a little miffed that I had to get up to get my own soy sauce (not that I’m lazy, but, c’mon…) from the bar.
Anyway, I finish my meal & get the check. I knew it. Full price. I flag down the waitress and ask «I thought these were half off?»… you know, because facebook said so and the waitress confirmed… Sushi chef tells me it’s from 5 – 7.
Up your customer service and try to be a little more clear with specials. There seemed to be confusion on multiple levels.

The place has a weird smell when you walk in and that’s not a good sign when you’re going to eat sushi… I just didn’t feel like anything was that fresh or delicious. It just didn’t taste right to me. We got the sashimi dinner and naruto roll. I probably wont be back.

Every time I come here, there is barely anyone here. The food is delightful, as is the staff. They have my favorite spicy tuna roll in town. They also have great specials too. Half price traditional rolls is where it’s at.

Went here for lunch on a Thursday afternoon and was extremely disappointed. I got the 2 roll combo with soup and salad. The soup was fine, except the miso had no tofu in it. The salad on the other hand had watered down dressing with large chunks of extremely over-​ripe cucumber. I got a cucumber roll and a spicy salmon roll, which were not even rolled! I mean, the picture should say everything. Will not be back anytime soon. Akida is a way better deal and the quality is much higher.

Ok so after a visit to Momotaro on Sunday, it’s definitely time for an update.
First off, they serve water with ice now! Hallelujah! If you’ve never been to Momotaro, you might be thinking «umm isn’t that just standard?» Well, it didn’t used to be at this sushi joint. But now they have a new chef and it’s clear they’ve spiffed up the place.
Along with ice in the water, they also have new menus that are even laminated. Some of the old favorites are still on the menu, but they’ve added some new rolls, too. At least I think some of them are new… Either way, they were new to me this past weekend.
First up, the RVA roll. My dining companion chose this option, but we swapped pieces so I was lucky enough to try it. Holy goodness. I’ll definitely be ordering this next time. So what is this drool-​worthy roll? Shrimp tempura and spicy crab topped with fresh salmon and tuna and drizzled with spicy wasabi ginger and eel sauce. It’s only 5 pieces, but they’re big and totally filling. As for me, I was thrilled to find a rice-​free roll on the menu! I chose the Naruto roll, which is fresh tuna, white tuna, salmon, and crab, wrapped in cucumber rather than rice, topped with scallions and tobiko, and served with ponzu sauce. I’m a salmon freak, so I asked to just do salmon instead of the tunas. It was fresh and refreshing, just how I like it.
Okay, now I want sushi…

A number of years ago in RVA, you really had to hunt for a good sushi spot in town and, realistically, I believe there was only one really good establishment which was down in Shockoe. Now they are everywhere!
Sushi here was good, no complaints. I do have complaints about a few other things.
1. You were out of diet coke which irritated one of my friends.
2. You first stated that you were out of Ginger Salad, which, upon consultation with your sushi chef, was incorrect. How the heck can you be out of Ginger Salad at a sushi restaurant?!
3. Your Miso Soup was just this side of lukewarm? Huh?
I hope some folks in the restaurant industry in this town pay attention to online review sites such as Unilocal.I will repeat it again here in yet another post, pay attention to the little things. It makes us want to come back over and over. I did not leave Momotaro with that feeling.

Great place to go with a couple firends for sushi and a big cold can of Sapporo. The atmosphere is cute and japanese but still very Richmond. Yummy roll to try: pepper tuna! SOOOOO GOOOOD! I got take out from them yesterday and realized that they are the best sushi in Richmond in terms of fresh tasting nigiri. I mean it was pretty incredible.
I will be back, again and again!

This place has seriously gone downhill. We went in around 9pm last night for a late dinner, but ended up walking out because
1. We (the waitress and I) killed a stinkbug on the wall next to our table.
2. There was no ice available (which is a bad sign– doesn’t sushi have to be kept cold? How can you be keeping the sushi cold but not be able to make ice?)
3. My nigeria had a giant hair wrapped into the rice. DISGUSTING.
The waitress was super nice and friendly and incredibly apologetic though. The one saving grace of this place last night…

Ryan C. & I just moved to the area a few weeks ago and are slowly trying all the local fare — decided to come here for his birthday dinner since we both adore sushi.
the place isn’t much to look at; definitely has quaint charm, but its small & simple in decoration. we both ordered water, which they serve as regular tap water in glasses with no ice. maybe i’m spoiled, but i was a little turned off by that. i’m also sick though, so maybe i just wanted some nice cold water.
but none of that matters when it comes to the sushi. we ordered 4 rolls, which was brought to us in a boat. :) the ‘king of sushi’ had a delicious flavor, and we got another special roll with eel & avocado that was my favorite — with the eel sauce, the combination of flavors was excellent. we also ordered our standards, the philly roll & shrimp tempura roll, which didn’t disappoint. every roll we got was a reasonable price too.
i was surprised to see they were charging $ 5 for edamame (many places i have been to serve it for free!), but maybe bc its a small place, they need the money?
overall, the food was freakin scrumptious and affordable, so what more can you ask for? i just have to say, i am starting to love carytown. :)

Momotaro Sushi is my go-​to place for affordable, quality sushi. Is it the absolute best sushi in town? Maybe not. But it is solid, tasty and the prices are reasonable.
The place is tiny, but so far I’ve lucked out and haven’t had trouble getting a table. Service is friendly most of the time. The menu has all the sushi standards (California Roll, Philadelphia Roll, etc.), along with some creative specials. I frequently get the Hot Mama Roll, which has chunks of peppered tuna topped with spicy salmon, spicy mayo and Sriracha. I also really like the Katrina Roll: scallops, avocado, tempura cruch and tobiko topped with yellowtail and salmon and eel sauce.
The Kani Salad is very good and full of tangy, umami flavor. I’ve also ordered lots of pieces and all have tasted fresh and good. The unagi is very flavorful.
If you’re into sushi, become a fan on Sushi Momotaro’s Facebook page. They often advertise specials like $ 1 a la carte sushi.
To the poster who wrote about the cockroach, I know it’s gross when this happens to you, but I just have to throw out that it happens at some point at every food establishment, even the five-​star restaurants. It sucks, but it’s true. If it happened to me, I probably wouldn’t go back either, especially if I were still charged for half my meal, but to others, this really shouldn’t deter you from coming. Every time I’ve gone, the food has been fresh and delicious. Plus, there’s a chocolate-​chip starfish in the aquarium!

COCKROACH– DON’T DO IT! This might have ruined my sushi experience!
I have eaten here 3 times. The first two were fine– I am a regular of Akida, but it is a new restaurant and I wanted to help it get business– after tonight, I don’t think so.
When we walked in, my roommate (a chef) commented on how the place smelled like rotten fish. I did notice an odor, but just chalked it up to stale air.
I ordered yellow tail, spicy tuna, and seaweed salad. They were out of both the yellow tail and the seaweed salad. This was quite disappointing, but it wasn’t a deal breaker– I was trying to stay positive.
I ate the majority of my rolls and my roommate was not pleased at all with his – fine. I had about 5 pieces left when I catch movement out of the corner of my eye and see a COCKROACH darting out from between my rolls. I immediately stood up and had to keep myself from being EXTREMELY disgusted. I can handle bugs, but in a sushi restaurant where hygiene is important, NO THANK YOU!!! We asked for our check immediately and they still charged for ½ our bill, even though my roommate only ate a few pieces of his two rolls– NOT A GOOD MOVE ON THEIR PART.