| Large Japanese restaurant with sushi boat and party atmosphere at night |
Reviewer: Jason
Total Reviews: 992
Reviewed: 8/3/2004
Rating: 9
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It has been nearly 3 and half years since my first visit to Miyake. In fact, its one of the first sushi places Ive ever visited in bay area. I dont remember much about it except it was a huge sushi bar with disco lights along the walls. From what I hear, this place is somewhat of a happening sushi bar at night...waiters drinking with you, saki bombs every couple of minutes, people standing on chairs, and of course loud obnoxious music. Not quite the atmostphere at lunch.
We sat at the bar and Terry immediately grabbed 2 trays of the california rolls. I dont even think he sat down yet? I casually grab a spicey CA roll , hamachi, shrimp tempura, shrimp tempura roll, and HP roll.
CA Roll - crab had texture to it with a helping of mayo. One of the better CA rolls Ive had in a long time. Excellent roll drifts in with a 9. The only CA roll that I like better is Hotoru.
CA spicey - very similar to california but with a kick. Glad to see they didnt overwhelm the roll with that siracha stuff. A spicey 8.
Hamachi - fresh tasting, no fishy taste. My only complaint was the fish was sliced extrememly thin...cut it a bit thicker...7.5
HP Roll - white tuna, crab, avocado, cucumber. I like this one a lot...probably one of my favorite. Solid 9!
Shrimp Tempura roll - kinda weak...too much rice and could barely taste the shrimp. Rates a 6.5, I wouldnt order this again.
Shrimp Tempura - i dont know the real name, but it was 1 tempura shrimp on top of rice with a sweet teriyaki dash on it. Light batter, great crunch, perfectly cooked shrimp...A PERFECT 10...omg...taking one bite out of this produced explosions in my mouth and head...I was sooo high off this..I was melting in my chair.
Miyake boasts a gigantic sushi selection at bargain prices. Terry and I must have had nearly 40 pieces of fish for $41. We were sooo stuffed, I wanted to take a nap on the way home. I was on a great food high.
My rating is based on lunch only, bargain prices, enormous selection of sushi, and fresh tasting fish. Miyakes comes in with a 9.
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RETURN VISIT for Jason! 5/25/2006 - 7.5 Rating: A lot can happen in 2 years. I think I've learned quite a bit when it comes to sushi and wanted to re-visit since I gave out a 9 the 1st time. I arrived at 12 and sat in front of one of the chefs. I wasn't planning a huge lunch, I just wanted to grab 4 items off the boat. Prices are very cheap with nothing costing more than $2.45 on the boat.
I normally don't like eating at sushi boats anymore unless the chefs are making fresh batches. Since the chef was in front of me, he was basically handing me fresh sushi.
sake (Salmon) - 2 tiny slices, no melting effect, 1 of the pieces was tough to chew, temperature was too cold, too dry, average tasting.
maguro (Tuna) - 2 tiny slices, no melting effect, 1 of my pieces was broken, I didn't like the temperature of the fish, it was a bit too cold, no fishy taste, too dry, for maguro, it was just ok. nothing special.
tempura shrimp - 2 pieces, good sized tempura, just fried with a light teriyaki sauce to it tied with dried seaweed. since the chef was in a hurry to fill the boats, most of the items were not presented well and fell apart. the good news is, the tempura was very good. Only complaint was the sugar vinegar mix, heavy on the vinegar.
california roll - 4 pieces, nice sized pieces, filled with crab mayo mixture, avocado, cucumber, rice. it's a habit that I order CA rolls, kinda like an appetizer before the sushi. They do a decent job with the rolls. These CA rolls were very sweet today.
I think the major problem with nigiri is the way it's prepared. They had these large cookie sheets with small pieces of fish laid out. Who knows how long it's been sitting in the fridge, but all I know is, it definitely affects how the fish will taste in your mouth. It doesn't feel wet but more dried out. Although the nigiri prices are cheaper than normal, I think you pay in quality when you chew your extra thin slice. I'd rather have them cut it thicker and charge higher prices. It's not terrible but I think if you're a big fan of nigiri, you will be disappointed. Nigiri should always be prepared right off a slab of fish and not be sitting in a fridge all sliced up.
The rolls are respectable here and I would come back for those. They are cheap and made fresh. While sitting at the bar, they were taking the older California rolls and replacing them with freshly made rolls. I gotta give them props for that.
Todays lunch rang in at $12.50 for 9 pieces. Pretty good prices in my book. The sushi tasted fresh but it didn't have that WOW..OMG...THIS is 9 quality type of feeling. I think for the price, it's very respectable and that's why I'm giving a 7.5 |
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Reviewer: Terry
Total Reviews: 723
Reviewed: 8/3/2004
Rating: 10
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Absolutely amazing.
Miyakes has been known for years to be a good sushi place. Where does it get this reputation? I have been coming to this place for years and every time I go (EVERY TIME) I am blown away by how good the sushi rolls are and by the incredible prices.
When I go here, I invariably get the California Rolls and the Kani (crab salad) rolls. Say what you will about me, but these are the best rolls on earth made in the best sushi place on Earth. Some may scoff at Miyakes as not being real sushi. I have heard that and I have not bothered to hear reasons. For me, I dont venture beyond Sushi rolls anyway so for me sushi is all about the rolls. And the best rolls in my opinion (Arikato Bessssss notwithstanding) are California Rolls and Kani Rolls. And the best tasting ones of these can be found here at Miyake. And I havent even gotten to the prices yet!
California Roll: I try to make it to the sushi bar if possible. During lunchtime its usually pretty easy to fit a few people at the bar without trouble. The great thing about Miyakes is that the ALWAYS have California rolls by the truckloads circling on the boats and they are always fresh. Most places you go to will have some stale sushi thats been circling for hours that no one will ever eat. And you usually have to specifically tell the chef to throw out some California rolls. Miyakes California Rolls are the best because not only is the Crab perfect (its the real deal and a hint of almost crunchiness?) but its blended amazingly with the mayo. Is anything else put in? Hard to say but I wouldnt be surprised if they threw in some kind of controlled substance. The final blend is a bit sweet and highly tasty. Its also cold, really cold. When mixed with the warm rice on the outside its a VERY pleasant combination. It literally melts in your mouth and then you are hit with the rush of cold flavor. Each little dish includes 4 moderately sized (not small!) pieces. And get this. Its only $2.15!
Kani Roll: If you like the California roll, you will like Miyakes Kani roll. Its more of the same great California roll crab blend (cold) pushed atop the warm rice in a sushi roll. Its absolely killer and I always order at least 1 tray of this. For $2.45 its worth the try (for 2 pieces).
For the most part you will want to stick with the California Rolls.
If you go on Weekend nights (most notably Friday and Saturday night) you will have a hard time sitting down. Its best to go drinking or something beforehand so you dont mind standing outside for an hour waiting fora table and then waiting inside 30 minutes for your order of sushi. Why do people bother? Because at night they turn down the lights, bring out the Saki bombs, and turn on the disco lights. Patrons stand on their chairs and kick back Saki bombs to blaring techno and lights. Sometimes on special occasions you can get the waiters to join you in the shots as well. You cant beat that.
For the california rolls, the great price, and fun atmosphere I give Miyakes a 10.
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Reviewer: Julie
Total Reviews: 46
Reviewed: 8/5/2004
Rating: 8.5
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Ive only been to Miyake for dinner, and to be honest we dont go there for the food. The food is good, but the reason you go to Miyakes at night is for the atmosphere. Its like a club – there is some kind of smoke machine, loud music, and strobe lights. Get there early, because the wait is almost always long. However, an evening of going out in Palo Alto will get off to a good start by a dinner at Miyakes.
Their teriyaki is good and the portions are large. The other thing youll do a lot of on an evening visit is sake bombs. The waiters will sometimes do them with you, or other tables, or the whole room. If a big enough group is doing a bomb, theyll stop the music so that the whole restaurant watches. Everyone gets up on their chair, there is a loud chant that involves yelling a lot of “sake” and “bomb”, and then down the hatch.
I give Miyakes an 8.5 for ambiance and uniqueness. Dont go here expecting a quiet sushi dinner, but its definitely a one of a kind experience. Ill have to go back for lunch sometime and actually try the food… |
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Reviewer: pyunnyhana
Total Reviews: 44
Reviewed: 2/15/2006
Rating: 7
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This review is for the CUPERTINO location.
My friend and I decided to go here for a Valentine lunch. With lunch bentos with one item at 4.95, or three items at 6.25, it is a REALLY good deal. It was around 1:45pm and was pretty busy.
Service was surprisingly quick as the miso soup was out almost right after our order. My friend coincedentally said to me, 'I like my food out quick, but not too quick..' and BAM came out our bento boxes.
Overall, I felt the food was mediocre to average, but here's what we ordered.
My order:
Bento box 17 with tempura, salmon teriyaki and CA rolls. Had a separate order of soft shell crab roll
Tempura: Consisted of ebi, potato, broccoli, onion and carrot. I actually enjoyed only the broccoli. The potato was like a very thick french fry, and the onion was a bit soggy. The ebi was 75% breading, but I broke off half of it, so it tasted like actual shrimp.
Salmon: Crunchy and good with the rice, but had bones in it.
CA rolls: It's different from what I've had and I liked it. The mayonaise was sweet.
Soft shell crab roll: There's really not much flavor to it. Might have liked it if it was served hot. I wouldn't order this again.
My friend ordered his usual beef teriyaki bento with tempura and sashimi. This was the biggest disappointment because the sashimi didn't seem fresh. Even before I tasted it, one look and you know it probably had been sitting out (the tomato included with the bento looked like it had been sitting out too). Fresh sashimi is supposed to be shiny and soft to the bite, but the sashimi served was dense, dry, and was like a sponge. No flavor whatsoever. Bottom line, the sashimi was BAD. I wasn't even sure what kind of fish it was.
The only reason I would come back is to try their other sushi. The sashimi was unacceptable, but the other food was ok for the inexpensive price. However, I'd be willing to pay more for better food. |
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Reviewer: wchane
Total Reviews: 141
Reviewed: 9/24/2007
Rating: 7
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Sake Bombs are a good thing right? This was the only reason a bunch of us decided to brave Miyake's again this past Friday evening. The food was edible, but not enjoyable - the hamachi kama was the only thing that completely surprised me. Forget your standard preperation of hamachi kama, they have invented their own method and that is to soak it in either soy sauce or some kind of teriyaki sauce. It was aweful. The environment loud and audacious, the service rushed with a extreme case of ADD, and the bouncer...wait a bouncer? yep.
Then again, we went for sake bombs and Miyake delivered. We left in a drunken haze and that being said...it's worth a return trip.
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