Takai Sushi and Sake Bar

This is a small sushi bar inside Fairmont hotel. It’s not quite a restaurant. It’s part of lobby lounge. Service is pretty good. The menu is short, since it is only a bar.
Here’s the catch, the food is fantastic. Quality was great. My review of restaurant always puts food first before service… We mostly order the rolls. Now the price is higher than a lot of different sushi place in area, but the quality was very fresh, and that is the most important measure of sushi. He doesn’t use imitation crab meat, he used «real» crab meat, including for California roll… Great food…

very good quality of fish and very friendly staffs. it’s kind of expensive at one point but the quality of foods and sushi make up for it. very nice place!

Chef Keith is the best! BEST sushi place I’ve ever been to. Clean, fresh, and ABSOLUTELY delish!

This little sushi bar is inside the beautiful Fairmont hotel. There is one sushi chef who makes everything for the 8 seat bar and the rest of the lounge in the hotel.
What you really want to get here is nigiri sushi or sashimi. The pieces are gigantic and well priced for the size of the pieces. Along with an assortment of nigiri, we had a shrimp tempura-​like roll that used an old piece of tempura shrimp. It was soggy and lacked that crispiness of fresh tempura.
Additionally, we got the tuna taco which was just alright.
Our server didn’t seem to understand us as we indicated we did not want the tuna taco, but got it anyways. Other reviews said this happened too, so maybe she just does this to increase the overall bill.
You should definitely come here, but stick to sushi/​sashimi, and beware of the tuna taco that you’ll probably get even if you don’t want it!

Tiny little sushi bar, but a really great experience. Feels mom ‘n pop but unfortunately it’s owned by the hotel. I ordered the 49er and I couldn’t have been more pleased.
Sociable host and chef with great sushi and a nice $ 10 beer + sake special ftw!

I don’t always write Unilocal reviews, but when I do it’s because my belly was very satisfied!
My wife and I stayed at the Fairmont Hotel for Rihanna concert and saw this sushi bar on the left of the main liquor bar with only 8 seaters so we were intrigued. Of course we Unilocaled it because that’s a millennial thing to do. I was surprised the ratings were excellent (4.5 stars) and everyone was raving about chef James. We decided to give this spot a try instead of the 30 mins-​wait overpriced cheese burger and burnt fries at SAP center, but not before peeking at the name tag of the chef to make sure he’s James. Linda was our server and she got us a small table next to the main floor. She was very attentive and informed us there will be a music performance at 9pm, so free show if you come a little bit later in the night! The menu has very interesting options like «Kitchen Sink» or «Sharks Tank» so I assumed chef James came up with these creations. My wife ordered «Rock Star» because Rihanna is her favorite singer and I got «Kitchen Sink» because I was starving and ready to eat anything in the sink. Linda also recommended Taco sushi, which is not on the menu. Very quickly she returned with «Spinach rolls» and told us it’s on the house. The main rolls arrived shortly after with purple rice in the «Kitchen Sink» instead of white rice. I was wondering if chef James is a Price fan? The quality of the rolls were excellent, better than the fancy sushi places I’ve been to around San Jose. Linda checked up on us very often and made sure everything was alright. We left feeling extremely satisfied. Everything was point, not like Rihanna’s concert but I don’t want to rant here.
Definitely will come back again to try different rolls and enjoy the show at 9pm.

It’s a $$$ place. Not $$. We got kitchen sink and rockstar. Free edamame. Rolls were good but forgettable. The crab batter was weird. Taste like chicken.
A California roll is 10 dollars by the way. It costs more than sushi at San Jose airport.
Our bill was 42 dollars including tip. Parking was 10. Yeah… (Don’t go on weekends)
The chef was pretty cool though. That’s why it got 3 stars

Huh, 5 stars? If you like overpriced, limited menu sushi in the middle of a hotel lobby, then this is your place. The available sushi options are serviceable, but not at the rating Unilocalers have given this place. Perhaps they’ve mixed up good sushi place with the guy who makes the sushi being a nice guy. If you are serious about sushi, you will be disappointed as I was. If you want something quick and are staying at the Fairmont, then it’s OK. Too many other places within walking distance to settle for this IMO.

The sushi here is really good. The fish is very fresh. It can be expensive but good food can cost a pretty penny. Everything we’ve had has been very good. However the reason for the 4 stars is because the waitress constantly pushes for these sushi tacos. We already said no but she continues to bring it up.
Come and enjoy sitting in the lounge of the Fairmont Lobby. It’s very nice setting. A good date place but you must also be okay with tons of people walking in and out.

Small menu. A little pricey relative to quality. Maybe we went wrong by ordering the two gimmicky rolls the desk clerk recommended (the Kitchen Sink Roll – dull – and the Totally Baked Roll – fatty). Not a five-​star experience for us. Low 3, by SF standards. Nice server and setting though. She put up sweetly with our having a lively three-​year-​old with us.

In San Jose, the land of plenty,
Sushi bars are anything but far and few.
Yet, tucked away in the Fairmont hotel
Is a one-​man show, and it’s the real deal.
Our sashimi was fresh: the toro like butter.
The sushi taco was a welcomed surprise.
For our rolls, we left it to Chef James’ choice.
Just trust in his judgement, that is my advice.
Chef James is a man who knows his craft,
And treats you like long-​lost family, no less.
An innovative soul with a gracious laugh,
No doubt, he’s the secret to Takai’s success.

Never has such a small sushi joint provided such amazing dishes! The Sushi Tacos and Spicy Tuna Roll (Classic) were both so fresh and greatly presented! It was way worth the 2 mile walk from my hotel!

This little gem is uh-​ma-​zing. Don’t let the hole in the wall appearance fools you. The chef is attentive, personable, and flexible. Chef will create any rolls you want or you can let him pick and be surprise! Great sushi, great price, great service, freshhhhh!

Wow! We’re very impressed! Chef James is a one man show at this 8– seats sushi bar located in the Fairmont Hotel. As you enter the hotel, veer to the left and straight ahead is the bar. I love the cushioned red chairs. There is a menu, but Chef James will disclose to you that he can make anything as requested. The sushi rice held well together. That’s a must! That’s always a disappointing factor for me. The wasabi is not made out of powder. It’s fresh and believe it or not, it had a sweet hint to it compared to the more potent powder form.
We love this place!

I was staying at the Fairmont, so I tried Takai since it was so close (inside the hotel). I was really impressed with what they could do with what appeared to be a limited selection. Looks were definitely deceiving! Straightaway, the chef said he could make anything I wanted. He then proceeded to whip up the best Spider Roll I’ve had (off the menu). The size of the soft shell crab was AMAZING, and he added more crabmeat on the inside.
The Kitchen Sink was presented very well. You could still taste each fish because they were added like a Rainbow Roll with the other ingredients on top of a Spider Roll.
I highly recommend this location.

This was okay, I ordered the kitchen sink. The roll was okay, not worth 17 dollars but hey pretty good for hotel sushi. Just saying it’s not worth the money, hadn’t realized this was a hotel sushi bar. I liked the owner though, very nice and served us a complimentary wakame salad with shrimp and ponzu sauce. The fish was fresh, I was just not feeling the price.

The BEST sushi I’ve ever tasted. Chef James San has over 20+ years of experience and it definitely shows with the amazing attention to detail. Everything is fresh. They use real crab meat, not imitation, and wasabi made from horseradish, none of the powdered stuff.
The way the sushi flavors/​textures pop and melt in your mouth really shows how the ingredients are of the highest quality! You can really tell he loves his craft. Service and staff are on top of everything. Linda is attentive and hospitable, making the experience pleasant.
You get the best food and service for an unbelievably affordable price. If you’re in San Jose, make sure you stop by! You won’t be disappointed.

This is a small sushi bar inside of the Fairmont hotel. It holds only 7 people at a time. I did not expect it to have such a high quality. The salmon was fresh and cold. The unagi nigiri was perfect as well.
The sushi woman was super kind. This is a must go place for those who enjoy quality.

This is an awesome place. Really interesting sushi experience. The first thing the chef tells you to do is order off-​menu. Get the sushi tacos. It sounds hokey but they are delicious and a great mix of textures. James-​san doesn’t have every ingredient, but with what he has, he is a master. The fish was fresh and flavorful, and the service attentive, engaging, and polite. Also I love that you can sit in the hotel lounge and order sushi. It’s not *the best* sushi I’ve ever had but it’s very, very good and a hidden gem. Highly recommended.

I went here last night and I was pleasantly surprised, it’s a small place in the Fairmont Hotel that provides great sushi in a very small setting. The sushi chef was fantastic and very pleasant. I told him to just bring me some food and he did a very good job. I loved everything he brought me. I wasn’t crazy about the roll only because it was so big that I could hardly eat it. All in all a good option for quality sushi in downtown San Jose.