Kisaku Japanese Restaurant

Menu has changed, streamlining the format. Some dishes were removed and new sushi items added, with all the essentials INTACT…*PHEW*
Menu is new since our last visit back in January 2016.
Management same good people. They have added a Sunday-​Thursday all day «happy hour» menu — see my photos.
Still our go-​to all around awesome Japanese restaurant. Favorites remain:
Tokyo breeze roll
summer roll
Fried oysters
Seaweed salad
Soy sauce ramen
Pork belly
Tea — I can drink this nonstop.
Pics of updated menu were taken for all to see :-)

I feel Kisaku restaurant is like my uncle’s restaurant for some unusual circumstantial reason.
I used to frequent this restaurant with my family over the weekend and with my co-​workers for Friday lunch special when Mr. Sakima was the owner. His long time chef Tsutomu runs this place now.
Now that Mr. Sakima started Bashamichi in Millbrae I come here once in a blue moon.
I like the change they made to their menu with wide variety of small dishes and lunch bento box selections.

Loved this little place. I had the ginger pork which was pretty good although I could use more ginger. My sushi roll was average (rock n roll). I absolutely loved the dessert– crispy mochi tai-​yaki. Yum yum yum!

Very tasty and traditional Japanese restaurant.
Must try their hot dish, sushi is good too but really depends on if you are looking for some specialty or not. Since they don’t have much choices on sashimi/​sushi.
I tried:
Sukiyaki — 5star
Chicken karaage — 5 star with mayo (pls request)
Tonjilu — pork and veggie miso soup — 5star
Sushi 7pc — 3star
Ginger pork — 5star
Will go back and try very soon!

We came in, passing by. The food, the service and the ambiance was great. We highly recommend this restaurant.

Been going here for years…3 years ago it was bought and served great food and sushi… then they got rid of the sushi chef (huge mistake) and tonight I brought my family there and the sushi wasn’t good and the Uni was poisonous… the chef didn’t wrap it in nori, just served it on rice… I can’t tell you how disappointing it was… all the young chefs were gone… such a waste… it had such promise…

Nice open space, semi modern décor, omakase was meh $ 40, no wow factor, food was ok, service was ok, has 2 flat screen tv, omakase all served at once even sitting at the sushi bar… Just taking notes at the moment… will brb to finish this review later :)

This is a Japanese restaurant run by Mandarin Chinese. Here are our observations.
Service was spotty — initially attentive, then couldn’t get their attention to order more food. Also a man wearing glasses behind the counter spoke to us from 15 feet away and acted like he was doing us a big favor to make us a particular dish.
Food portions for the dinner plates were small and overpriced. Example — a small plate of fried veggies was $ 13.
Also couldn’t get their attention to get the bill. When it came, we paid in cash. The tray was returned to us with a big bill, one small bill and some coins. Giving them the big bill as a tip would have represented more than 20%. The meal experience here didn’t warrant more than 20% so we had to ask them to break the big bill. Then we tipped
18% which in hindsight was too much.
We will try other Japanese places.

Let me say I haven’t been here in a while. But Tell you what when you walk though the two large wooden doors you are met with pleasant welcome. Seated at the sushi bar because I just wanted to, Service was perfect. attentive and fast. Let’s talk about the food. OMG sooo good as good as it gets. Sushi if fresh if not moving. Tasty and filling. Hot food fast and tasty.
Sushi chef funny and entertaining. You must engage in conversation because they will leave you alone to enjoy your food. But they will have conversation if you start talking first.
No more hot towels but wet wipes on table. No big deal but still a nice touch.
Thank you very much an I will be back.

Came here for dinner with friends and ordered the yosenabe hot pot, Victoria sushi roll, and the Tokyo breeze. The sushi rolls were phenomenal and the ingredients they use are all very fresh. Besides the food, service here is great and the restaurant itself is very spacious. We spontaneously ordered the crispy mochi tai-​yaki Orange with plum wine. The sour orange dipped in the sweet wine was the perfect dessert after our meal. Overall, our experience here was very satisfactory and would definitely recommend sushi lovers to come!

Fresh sashimi and more than reasonable lunch specials.
Service could be a little more friendly, but overall a good experience at a place that holds its own in downtown San Mateo among all the other Japanese restaurants you could choose from.

I hadn’t been here for years. Used to really like their bi bim bap. Tried this salad today. I’m not a soba (mackerel) fan, especially in a salad, where the oily, fishiness is just too much, but there was a good ratio of fish to veg. The dressing had lots of wasabi, which I like, but didn’t anticipate. Thought the portion was small for the price. I like the sashimi salad at Aya in San Carlos better. Service was good. It’s a good standby, but I don’t think I’d repeat this dish

I came here one time during my lunch break for a quick lunch. Two complaints about this place. One, I ordered 2 shrimp tempura hand rolls with no rice, $ 8 each. When I got them, I was shocked that all I got was literally half a piece of tempura wrapped in seaweed– NOTHING ELSE. Not even a little crab or avocado. For the price, this was absolutely ridiculous.
My next complaint was that two of my friends came to visit me for lunch and of course I invited them to eat with me. The waiter informed us that they could not sit at the table because they were not eating. The restaurant was literally EMPTY. We were the only ones there. This place is by far has the rudest service I have ever encountered. There are far better Japanese restaurants in San Mateo for the price, quality and service.

I have to hand it to Kisaku for transcending the predictable when it comes to serving what I consider standard Japanese fare, and I would have never come here if it weren’t for my dad who lives just a few blocks away. When I come down to see him, he has recently been suggesting we eat here. Keep in mind he took me to Denny’s or the IHOP as examples of fine dining when I was a kid. Now I wonder if all my Unilocaling is a latent rebellion for all those burnt patty melts. Well, I say to myself, «Get over it!» and then we come here, a pleasant, spacious place that really doesn’t stand out since San Mateo is packed full of similar Japanese restaurants.
My dad makes a habit of insisting I order one of the $ 13.50 Special Combination Lunches because he thinks it’s the best deal. He’s right, and I don’t argue with him about trying the $ 21 Unajuu (Eel over Rice) since that would offend his Denny’s-level dining sensibilities. Consequently, I simply ordered the Chicken Teriyaki and Tempura. I have to admit the tempura was lightly crisp just the way I like it with the panko barely evident. Not at all the oily mess I was expecting, three big, fresh prawns came with the order as well as a couple of soft tofu wedges, broccoli florets and other vegetables (photo:
). It was quite delicious with the soy dipping sauce.
The chicken teriyaki arrived as a hearty portion, all thigh meat which is always my preference, and while it was covered in sauce, it wasn’t that sweet, the bane of most such bento boxes. In fact, it was quite tender and
came with quite a salad on the side. Nothing fancy, just iceberg lettuce, a tomato wedge and a big dollop or miso mayo dressing (photo:
). The bowl of miso soup was par for the course with little tofu cubes properly bobbing on top of the milky broth, and another bowl filled with rice was quite necessary to sop up all that teriyaki sauce (photo:
). Yep, I was full. And yep, my dad was right. It was the best deal. Now I feel like I should come back and try the Unajuu, but shhh… don’t tell my dad.
FOOD — 4 stars… predictable Japanese food done unpredictably well
AMBIANCE — 3.5 stars… spacious but pretty standard as Japanese restaurants go
SERVICE — 4.5 stars… they treat my dad with respect, and that’s all I ask
TOTAL — 4 stars… nice to know this place exists for me and my dad

It’s a good choice for bento if you are in San Mateo. But it’s not comparable with other way better choices in the South bay, such as Gombei.
I have tried many items here. Food is decent and tasty. Price is worth it.
Miso soup tastes on the salty side. I love miso soups and I don’t finish their soup.
Last time I ordered Katsu curry and they told me they are out of pork after I paid. So I changed it to Beef Teriyaki. The Cashier said it’s free of charge for me, which means, it’s a little more expensive, but he wouldn’t charge me for the difference. However, my bf noticed the new order is actually cheaper than the old one. So the cashier had to give me back some changes.
I am not supposed to rant about twenty or thirty cents here. but I think the cashier or worker should be more professional and know their food and price.

Followed the Unilocal reviews to find a sushi dinner. Saw some if the pics Ken K posted so we headed to Kisaku. We sat at the sushi bar and ordered the omakase. It was 9 pcs for $ 38.
Omakase :
Uni
Japanese snapper
Ika
Aji
Baby Bonito
Halibut
Scallop
Smoked Japanese Tai
Kampachi
All were fresh and delicately presented. We also ordered the following additional items
Hamachi Belly
Saba
IKA and Uni
Salmon Skin with Daikon
Chawan Mushi
Service was excellent. Found out they are open late till 2 am on Friday and Saturdays.

Wow this place is delicious. We had a bunch of sashimi and sushi and all were super fresh. Loved it. Service was great. My favorite was the toro sashimi, had 5 orders for 3 people and we wanted more.
I will be back!!!

Finally tried this place after we heard from two of our friends that this place is legit. The décor was cute and definitely had a Japanese vibe.
We had the combination with to katsu and sashimi. Prices are about average, and same with portions. You got a decent size pork katsu plus 6 pieces of fish — magaro tuna, albacore, and salmon. The salmon was pretty good but I could pass on the others. We went on a Thursday but you could tell the fish wasn’t all that fresh or tastes like it had been frozen for awhile. Fish was a little chewy and fishy.
As for the katsu, my husband really liked it. I thought it was a little greasy but overall not too bad.
We may return for the hot food but will pass on the sushi.

We were first attracted to this place because of their late happy hour (starts at 8pm). The outside of the restaurant looks modest and the atmosphere is very laid back.
We were overwhelmed with the menu (very extensive!), but we finally ordered the jalepeno roll, hamachi, butta kakuni, agedashi tofu, and misoyaki butterfish. Every single item that we ordered was delicious. It went down perfectly with a cold glass of Asahi.
For the price point, the food is amazing. Please try!

Their salmon sashimi was so good! That was my favorite… buttery and flavorful. I ordered the chirashi + udon combo. The udon was sprinkled with deep fried tempura flakes on top and the broth was very tasty.
Great place to come in downtown San Mateo for more authentic Japanese food. Service is excellent too.
PS: if you check in on Unilocal,you get 50% off your first beer!