Daiki Sushi Restaurant — Restaurant in Monterey Park

If you're into high-stakes dining and enjoy playing sushi roulette, Daiki Sushi in Monterey Park might be the thrill you're looking for. Unfortunately, I wasn't.

I placed an Uber Eats order and went in to pick it up. I stood there for 10 full minutes -- no greeting, no eye contact, no acknowledgment. It started to feel like I had become a ghost. Eventually, I had to flag someone down like I was trying to catch a taxi in the '90s. When they finally handed over my food, they did so with the energy of someone doing me a personal favor, not, you know, the bare minimum.

Then came the real treat: the sushi. All of the raw fish was slightly warm to the touch -- not "freshly prepped" warm, but "left out in a room with no A/C for who-knows-how-long" warm. Sushi should not feel like it's been tanning.

The spicy tuna? Didn't taste like fish. Looked like it had been dyed with Red 40 and shame. I took one nibble and threw it out before my immune system had time to stage a protest.

And the regular tuna (or maybe it's albacore)? Thin, sad, and oddly gelatinous. It resembled a fruit roll up more than fish.

Here's the part I can't wrap my head around: How has this place not been shut down? Where are these positive reviews coming from? Are we eating at the same place, or is there a secret Daiki Sushi in a parallel universe serving actual sushi?

Daiki -- I don't need you to roll out the red carpet, but cold fish, basic courtesy, and not giving your customers salmonella vibes would be a...

Came here once when it first opened. The food was great but I remember the lightning was harsh and uninviting. Sounds super picky, I know. One random day, we decided to give it another try. So glad we did!

We've been there twice in the last month, once with a big party. The food is more impressive than before and yes, the lightning is no longer an issue! 🙃😬

For the quality of sushi, I feel the prices are quite fair. Check out their weekday specials. They have something different going on each day, Monday - Thursday.

Update in 2023: Food is still great. If you like beer, go on a Sunday! They are $1 for draft beer. Also, try the standard salmon skin roll. It kind of tastes like...

We went to this Japanese Restaurant and we got there 30 minutes before closing and the girls welcomed us very friendly and got our order right away. The place is very clean and the food was delicious! We got Chicken Teriyaki, Tempura, California Rolls and this Sweet Potato roll that was amazing and super delicious! We loved everything and everything was super fresh. The service was excellent and we will be back. My Mom loved the green hot tea with the toasted rice flavor. Thank you and definitely recommend this place in Monterey Park if you are looking for good...