Nobo Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Chelmsford

Came here with my girlfriend since we were in the area. We were looking to get a late afternoon bite to eat and wanted to try this other restaurant but they were closed.

Nobo was across the street so we decided just to go there since we both were hungry.

Nobo is in a strip mall so we thought it was just your typical Japanese restaurant. As we walked in, we noticed the nice decor. We realized this was not your typical sushi place. So I was excited and looking forward to a nice meal.

We ordered the the scallop kaiyaki for starters and boy was it a let down. This was more of a avocado salad than anything. Scallops? What scallops. Baked? Seems like they put a blow torch to it and called it a day. Spicey? I can't taste it. Scallop shell? You mean a plate in the form of a shell. Lastly this dish came out warm not hot like I'm used to. (This dish- I have always had it baked in a real scallop shell that comes out melting hot)

We also ordered a Nobo feast for 2 and 1 order of uni sushi. Nobo feast was ok, cut was bite sized. Just your typical sushi and sashimi. Nothing wowed me for the price. (59.95) Uni was ok as well, wasn't super fresh or sweet like I'm used to.

To end this, 3 stars is for service. Would I be back? Not unless I'm drunk and it's the...

Our party of three had a very enjoyable dinner feast yesterday. As it was my wife's b-day, we over-ordered to sample about 7 dishes and an extra bento box with chicken and cucumber maki. The atmosphere is contemporary, clean and comfortable. My starter - the seafood soup - was the only menu item I did not care for...but this may be my preference rather than an issue with the dish. The assortment of fish, scallops, shrimp and veggies was too 'fishy' flavored for my liking, much like lake fish. The waiter was great about it and replaced it with their miso soup, which was fine. All the appetizers were terrific, and the crab rangoons (I know, more Chinese than Japanese, but still a favorite) among the best ever.

My favorite dish, hands-down, was the peppered salted pork. It was fried with a crisp coating (I think tempura-style) and the inside was juicy and flavorful. The portion was generous. We also ordered 3 sushi dishes that were very beautifully presented, but somewhat average in taste. Nonetheless the sushi was still enjoyable. Nobo is pricey and not a place we'd frequent every day. But I believe you get what you pay for, and we would certainly go there for future...

Had dinner with a friend here, first time for me. We ordered 2 apps (veggie tempura & spicy chili cucumber salad), some sushi rolls (Idaho, Buddhist, and Inari), and my friend ordered some chicken udon noodles. Oh we also ordered 3 cocktails (mine was a melon one, can't remember what her 2 cocktails were). All delicious! My only negative was that the inari (tofu pockets) sushi wasn't filled with rice like I'm used to, there was a little bit of rice and the bottoms of the tofu pockets were folded under themselves...I think they'd be better if they were filled with sushi rice like they're "traditionally" made. It's the only local spot I can find with Inari still on their menu too, so I'm happy about that regardless! The Vegetarian options are plentiful which is really nice to see, and the rolls and apps we ordered were really well done and tasty. I'd be happy going here again or ordering take-out! The space still feels new, clean, and not overwhelmingly loud. The staff was attentive, and very kind. Drinks & food came out quickly, dishes were cleared quickly, and they helped us box everything up at the end. Great spot for literally...