Okawa — Restaurant in Antioch

I was in the neighborhood and was craving Japanese food. I found this place and came by for dinner on a Friday evening. I sat at the bar and oddly I saw that a space was reserved for a couple that was already eating at the bar. I have never seen reservations for a bar spot. As I was sitting there, I noticed that the customers were very friendly with the sushi Chef and vice versa. I could tell right away that this was going to be a good restaurant based on their interaction - loyal customers are always an indication of good food and great service.

I was hungry (and I also eat a lot) so, I ordered three items. The sushi chef asked me if I was sure I could eat everything and I said yes. And I definitely did. As I was sitting there eating my food. I was listening to the conversation, both English and the other language that the sushi Chef was speaking in. I was trying to figure out if they were Korean or Chinese. I come to find out that the sushi Chef, Teddy, used to live in Burma. (But I think he’s Chinese? I forgot to ask. And I couldn’t tell if they were speaking in Mandarin). Teddy and I had a little chat about Burma. I told him how I had visited a few years ago to Yangon and Bagan and how different it was compared to other countries I’ve been to.

Although I was meeting Teddy for the first time, I felt like I had known him for awhile.

Okay, to the food! It was good! The sauce for the Hamachi kama is fire! I look forward to going back when I’m in the area again.

Overall service was great from the hostess, to the girls taking my order and taking away my plates to Tina and Teddy and even the friendly bar customers (I think Friday nights is sushi night for them and it was recently his wife’s birthday (he bought her a car with cash…that got me thinking, the Rover I parked next to must have been their car…. What can I say, you hear a lot when you’re not on your phone and eating alone. Haha).

Thanks for the great service and good food! And most importantly thanks for making me and all your customers feel welcome and important!

UPDATE:

Went back on a Tuesday. It was understaffed, and I thought the roll wasn’t as good as the first time. Also, I made a mistake of ordering the tonkatsu. It was very dry, too thin and hard to digest. It also took the waitress over 10 minutes to give me my bill. I understand they are understaffed, but there were like only four other tables with 2 people at each table.

Definitely go on a Friday when they are expecting a lot of customers so they are fully staffed. The food did come out quickly though. But now I understand some of the reviews saying that no one helped them or that they were waiting for a while to get a table, etc. The guy making the sushi did acknowledge me when I went up to the sushi bar. I was just disappointed since it wasn’t as good compared to my...

You found it.

You found the best sushi in the area!

I am so impressed with the quality and freshness of the fish every time. Not only that, but the way the rolls are put together with great care, the balance of sushi to rice ratio, the quality of the rice -- everything is done with care and excellence. I have not found this level of excellence anywhere locally in Pittsburg, Brentwood, or Antioch.

Teddy is your dude if you're chilling at the sushi bar. Not one to shy away from introductions or keep his head down, he will commonly reach out to new faces and introduce himself. Very good person.

The experience of Okawa is definitely enhanced by sitting at the sushi bar. Better service and attention by far. Let Teddy and Jeping (Jee-ping) talk you into trying something new! They have introduced us to many creative and tasty culinary experiences, many of which became our favorites:

VEGAS ROLL This roll is topped with raw salmon, thin lemon slice, aoili of some sort, and inside it has tempura shrimp and I believe spicy tuna.

SEAFOOD SALAD Get this! Man, if you are a sashimi noob, you're in for a treat. Little cubes of fresh fish sitting on top of slices of cucumber. Topped off with fish eggs, seasoning, and some aoili. I love it. So fresh and satisfying.

DIABLO ROLL (AKA SEX ON MOUNTAIN TOP) This is an usual roll that shines in its crunchy texture. You get rolls stacked on their sides that are covered in spicy scallops. Inside the roll you have tempura shrimp, unagi, and crab meat all brushed with a teriyaki type of sauce.

POTSTICKER / GYOZA Freshly made in house.. need I say more? These are bangin' and soo fresh. Always crave them.

CHIRASHI This is a new obsession of mine. Chirashi is a beautifully presented bowl of sashimi atop a bed of rice. In terms of presentation, it gives you the "wow" factor. Very satisfying flavors, and having an abundance of rice at the bottom provides a good contrast of flavor that you have control over. Also comes with miso soup and salad.

NEGIHAMA-MAKI This one is a simple treat. I am sure yellowtail / hamachi is loved by many, as I know I'm crazy about it. This roll shines in its simplicity. Outside you have seaweed, then rice, then chopped hamachi in the middle mixed with green onion. The combination is so simple, and the magic that takes place, thanks to the natural sweetness of the seaweed and rice, is really a treat for the mouth.

This is one of my favorite restaurants. The food is great, but it's the authenticity and kindness of the sushi chefs and servers that keep me coming back.

"See you next week", the sushi chefs tell us each time as we leave. Solid regulars amongst...

Dining While Black:

Solid inside decor. Fairly small restaurant appearing to be spacey. Without being too vague, I had a friend bring me here as a treat that was offered. He went to use the bathroom when we got in and told me to handle the "getting a table process". So I did, until he went in the bathroom and got out, and he asks me "wow we still have not gotten seated?"

Half the restaurant is empty at this point with moderate seating on the other side and the bar was almost filled (~6 seats). So we waited about 5-8 minutes and at that point I personally would have said screw it and walked out, till he mentioned we grabbed our own table, why not. The place was not that busy at all, and mind you, I had two waitresses walk past me more than once with no eye contact or mention of a heads up, no communication whatsoever, kind weird, but ok, they may just be new and dealing with pressure, and we did not make a scene about it. However, the two tables that came in after us were seated almost instantly, one white couple, and the other two light skin hispanic/latinas.

Making this short form, some review said this place has "good vibes" . No, definitely not all around, had a few pair of folks who looked at me like I was some anomaly (be me: younger, fair trimmed beard, good shape & posture, casual dressed with work boots, glasses, a no-logo golf hat with good table manners and jeans at waist with a belt). Sushi was fine, nothing exponential, fresh, but was probably out since opening and rolls were presented well, neat, clean and compact enough for wooden chopsticks.

Nice size portions but general staff was ok, bathroom seems invasive when using (noise barrier was sickening), some people dining around us were pretentious (maybe because they were drinking), but I had rotten vibes from them, and I was also the only black person in the restaurant from dine in to leaving out, so I know for certain black people with money are not spending it here on a day when most folks in general are out of the house.

Not that I go to places in Antioch for non-buffet sushi, but I have been up and down this state at different sushi places for the last 10+ years. This ain't the place man... Especially if you're black lol but I've never heard of this place until today so for all my fellow darker skinned blacks, avoid this place (like I'm sure most of us already do) like the plague.

I do not go anywhere looking to pull the race card. That is a...