Daimonji Japanese Restaurant

This place is a traditional sushi place, you won’t get anything crazy here –no ex-​boyfriend roll, no spicy ahi anything, and definitely no monkey brain sushi — but the food here is still delicious. The menu is pretty basic which is nice since you won’t be troubled trying to decide if you want a million rolls or choose between 20 bentos.
I wanted a bento for sure and it was very good. The waitress was very nice and accommodating; since Im a vegetarian I wanted tofu versus the meat entrees that came with the bento. She gave me agedashi tofu and the bento tasted fresh and was satisfying.
This place is a smaller family restaurant (the waitress had her kid there in a high chair). I would normally be bothered if an owner was watching a kid while serving, but since they were so nice and the food was good, I didn’t care.
Theres a starbucks right next to this place, so get a matcha green tea after.

Good food at a good price. The restaurant is showing a little wear and tear, but the food is excellent. Great broth for the udon, well crafted sushi with fresh fish– excellent texture! Lunch special is a lot of food for the price! We will be making this a regular lunch stop.

Super delicious! Reasonable lunch prices. Excellent miso. All ingredients taste fresh and high quality. Great service.
Aesthetic is mixture of Japanese/​Georgetown funky. Some parts of building and menu card need upgrading, otherwise, a 5-​star gem in the hood.

This is my favorite Sushi bar around the South End of Seattle, hands down. Mashiko in West Seattle is great, but why deal with the West Seattle Bridge if you can avoid it. Warm, casual and unpretentious, this restaurant is located in a strip mall next to a Starbucks right West of all the bearded hipsters in Georgetown. This is not a fancy joint, but then again, what strip mall location truly is?
First and foremost, the fish is fresh! I find myself delegating to Alex (the ever so hospitable owner) and am always pleased with how fresh the fish he serves me is. Just tell him what you like and do not like and he will plate you up something yummy. I am more of a sashimi person, so I cannot speak to the nigiri or rolls, but they look appetizing. Secondly, the kitchen dishes are really good. Do not miss the miso marinated black cod, one of my favorite dishes. I have had this dish at several branches of Zuma and Nobu throughout the world, and Alex’s version is a great substitute whenever I need my fix. Thirdly, the service is warm and personable. As other Unilocalers have mentioned, Alex and Stephanie take the time to get to know their customers. Lastly, the value is there. Good sushi is never «cheap.» Daimonji is not cheap, but I would say that the price is reasonable, especially compared to other places that serve inferior food and fish. They do have good lunch specials.

Finding good Japanese food without a reservation is extremely hard to do in Seattle. This place is a little pricey but considering how close it is to home, it’s worth it not to battle all the people at Maneki for a table or parking. The décor is a little outdated but the staff is always really friendly. Very authentic sushi with a bar and chef. We never have an issue with the fish not being fresh. There’s a large area in back for private parties and a lot of space.

I have had sushi all over the world… in tokyo, in london, in seattle. This is the best. Freshest, hand crafted. Custom Marinade salmon roe. Fresh sea urchin, blue fin tuna, gui duck. Amazing serving. Just ask the chef for what is best.

Alex the sushi chef is awesome! He is very particular about his selection of fish and is very skilled in the art of sushi. He happened to have toro the day I went in and it was spectacular. I highly recommend it. Wonderful place to eat.

Solid sushi spot in a Georgetown strip mall, between a FedEx and a Starbucks, Do not let that detour you. Once inside you step into a cozy Japanese family style place with an incredibly friendly sushi chef, Alex. Some Reasonable and some competitive prices depending what you order! Our dishes were fresh and I felt like
My sashimi was a bit larger slices than some of the other spots about town, maybe just felt that way as the plates are beautifully presented and they have a good variety of offerings. We tried several rolls that were very tasty, the dragon roll had some tempura crunch which I liked, the sashimi combo was perfect selection of the most mouth-​watering fishes and came with miso and side of rice.
I can’t wait to come back to try the meal combos as those seem like a perfect dinner as well! The Katsu sounds good and I will need to try that next time. My friends had the tasty cream brûlée and a order of fried banana for desserts. Definitely will be back!

Wow– this place is still here and still awesome. Excellent service– nice interior-​Same owner. Worth the trip south for me. Accommodating to requests without any fuss. Gonna come back for sure. Say hi to Alex when you’re here!

The only time in my life that I’ve had okonomiyaki was in Japan when I went in high school. That being said, I’ve been having mad cravings for a meal that I’ve only had once.
So if you’re on the same page as me, then here is where you need to be. The okonomiyaki is too good. It’s come back to back days for about a week good. I’ve had all 4 of the okonomiyaki dishes that they offer and the best one is the Hiroshima. Order it. ORDER IT. You won’t be disappointed.
The rest of the restaurant as a pretty chill atmosphere. Your typical walk in, close to home vibe type of spot. Be sure you check the hours before you decide to go.

Alex is a really friendly guy, the whole family works here I think. Super welcoming and the sushi is really good here, fatty. And there’s a unique Japanese-​Chinese mix taste. One of the best places I’ve been :)

It’s gotten hard to find a sushi restaurant that isn’t fancy, overpriced, «fusion», or whatever else they’re doing with sushi right now.
This is it! It’s a normal sushi bar. You don’t have to pay $ 30 for 6 pieces of fish! I had the sashimi sampler ($ 20) and it had 15 pieces of fish plus rice and miso soup (though I can’t eat miso :(more for my boyfriend!). They’ve got standard sushi rolls, too. The quality of fish is good, too.
The service is outstanding. They’re so friendly and welcoming.
The atmosphere is like any typical small Asian restaurant in a strip mall. It’s clean, for sure, but I wouldn’t tell anyone to go there for the ambience.
Oh another cool thing. I bring my own gluten-​free soy sauce with me when I go to restaurants, and the owner told me they have it there! So I won’t need to bring my own bottle anymore.
With a beer, a sushi sampler, a sashimi sampler, a seaweed salad, and two orders of super white tuna, we still were under $ 70. Will be returning.

Been here a couple times and found the fish to be better than average, large pieces of sashimi and the service is excellent. Everyone is really friendly. I see a few reviewers complaining about the use of a certificate — we used one our first visit and there were no issues + I really appreciate them for offering it. A strong 4 to 4.5 stars — we will be back.
Pros:
— Easy parking!
— Super friendly owners/​staff
— Yummy Uni!
— Not overly busy so no wait and good seating
Cons:
— Small-​ish spider roll
— didn’t have Quail egg

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of sushi and friendliness of staff of this hidden gem along the Michigan/​Corson street corriodor, that passes by Georgetown.
I was greeted very quickly by what seems is a family of staff members. I was alone so I sat at the sushi bar after asking if they had Tamari (gluten free soy sauce) which they gladly did.
The sushi chef, Alex, was very helpful pointing out specials and fresh offerings that are not on the menu.
I ordered my usual faves, Sake (Salmon) Sashimi and Unagi and a roll with Salmon in it. The Sashimi was fresh and delicious and well cut, the Unagi was rolled with avocado which was a nice touch and the Salmon roll had a special leaf added to it that tasted a bit like plum which added a unique sweet and unusual but pleasant flavor to the usual roll.
The sushi chef prided himself on adding these special touches which I appreciated. The green tea was freshly made and was endless and free which is the perfect accompaniment to the salty sushi.
I will definitely be back.
Only 4 star because the ambiance was a tad lacking and very cluttered and not my first choice in décor. I would definitely go there for lunch and seek out a more dressy place if I was on a date with my man but all in all a great place that should have been packed at noon.

One of the precious few places to satisfy my okonomiyaki craving and thankfully they do it justice (I grew up in Japan and miss the commonplace serving of said dish)!
The service is most excellent (Kudos to Alex and Stephanie for being genuinely interested in their customers). The tempura batter is light and crispy and each type was perfectly cooked, especially the shrimp, yum!
If there was anything I can say needs improvement, it would be the sushi. Don’t get me wrong, it is good. However, I am spoiled by authenticity lol and frankly will go elsewhere for it.
Other than that, I LOVE the place, the atmosphere, the people and of course the food. Oh, and I would also like to add that they are wheelchair accessible, as is their restroom, so yes that’s a major plus for me and for anyone else who may be checking out the reviews who need this type of accommodation.

My husband purchased a
coupon for Daimonji. As he told me we were going for dinner, I decided to Unilocal it and read some reviews. I have to admit it was quite discouraging. I went without high expectations.
We arrived early around 5:15PM. I got the sukiyaki, spider roll, gyoza, and Saki clams. Don’t judge. I was hungry. My husband got the Daimonji chirashi bowl. The gyoza came out first. I could tell they weren’t handmade. The filling was mushy just like the gyoza you buy frozen and prepare yourself at home. Although I would have to say the Hispanic man that prepared them did a fantastic job frying them. They looked beautiful and had the perfect crispy and chewy dough. Unfortunately I think that was the most impressive aspect of our experience. The sukiyaki tasted ok, but they skimped out on the meat and put udon noodles in it. The Saki clams taste more like Chinese style clams. The spider roll was horrible. They got the rice all wrong. The rice was broken up into a mush and masked the other ingredients. My husband told me the chirashi bowl was horrible mainly because of the rice.
The service was awkwardly good, but I do understand why some of the other Unilocalers might have complaints. The wait staff (the owners) did not have a uniform. They were in casual cloths. When they weren’t serving, they were standing around talking. It’s fine to talk, but when you feel like you are inconveniencing them when they have to serve you, it came across as unprofessional. It is hard to describe, you have to be there to understand. Perhaps it’s the lack of focused service. Good wait staff can walk away and tend to other things, but they make you feel they are aware of you.
The owner mentioned that the business was not doing well. I wanted to be empathetic, but I feel they are not trying hard enough to do well. I am not high maintenance. I can be forgiving, but when there are too many elements that fall short, it makes this restaurant a joke.
Perhaps it is best to stay away from the sushi and stick to the other dishes.

As sushi bars go, I’ve certainly experienced more authenticity and selection. One would think these two attributes at the pinnacle of any successful sushi restaurant. Or so I thought.
There are plenty of excellent sushi spots around Seattle. The brilliant, creative, ambience-​driven, romantic views, the modern and the traditional. If you’ve been eating sushi for as long as I have (37+ years, globally) the one thing we aficionados request… the only thing that permeates to the tops of our collective wasabi soiled lists, is freshness. All else is secondary. That’s the only thing that matters. None I’ve visited over the years in Seattle can surpass this chef’s delft ability to choose excellent product AND manage to humble himself in remembering every patrons names after only meeting them once. He’s not only polite, he’s friendly in a seemingly sincere way.
Good to know that surprises still exist in the simplest of ways. Excellent fish meets gracious service.

Had a major sushi craving, so last minute my friend and I decided to visit this place for our first time. When we got there, they were cleaning up so we thought they were closing. They said they had been slow that day and were deciding to close early, but they insisted we still come on in! So courteous and sweet.
We ordered a rainbow roll, a spider roll, and the eel roll. Out of the three, the eel roll had to be my favorite. I always get a rainbow roll at any sushi joint, but the color of my sashimi was kind of… Dull? Made me question the freshness. The spider roll was pretty good. Their rice is a little different though. It just has a texture that I’m not use to… Idk if thats bad or if thats just the kind of rice they like using.
However, we received exceptional service. The owner gave us free fresh watermelon with our meal and gave us lots of attention. Our plate looked really beautiful! I will be back when I’m in the area and randomly want sushi.
Forgot to mention that I was sweating bullets because there is no AC but there were a few fans blowing at us. We were the only ones in the restaurant so we were definitely getting all the air possible blown at us but if I ever need to go on a hot day again it will be a definite no-​no. Also just cus I’m one of those people who get nosebleeds when it’s too hot and stuffy LOL.

Very fresh fish and beautifully plated! I always just give chef Alex a lil guidance and leave him to create whatever he’d like. I have never been disappointed! He remembers every one and his wife Stephanie is lovely. Friendly customer service and I’m happy to fit great food into my short lunch break.
Free miso soup and tea. So far I’ve sampled numerous nigiri, rolls and poke… all delicious.

First impression of Daimonji was that the layout was really similar to The Cutting Board nearby, except Daimonji is bigger and feels cleaner. The menu had a nice assortment without being overwhelming.
We ordered curry katsu and a variety of sushi. The curry katsu definitely had that homemade taste – it tasted like it had been cooking for quite a while and had a nice spicy kick. The pork was crisp and moist, while the steamed veggies were fresh.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t a fan of the sushi. The sushi rice tasted kind of watered down – it’s the only way I can think to describe it– and it was a bit mushy. Though the general presentation on the platter was initially nice, the look of the rolls was unappealing at second glance. The pieces were not cut uniformly, some pieces were thicker than others, and rice was busting out of most of them. Also, there must have been some cross contamination with ginger while the sushi was being made because I had a couple pieces that tasted heavily of ginger.
However, really friendly and polite staff, and I would probably return for the cooked items if I’m in the area. I saw okonomiyaki on the menu, and I do want to try their version sometime!