Oji Sushi & Sake Bar — Restaurant in Pasadena

Well I can honestly say I wasn't too overly impressed. I really wanted to offer a Higher rating, however I have to state my experience and I simply cannot honestly Rate it higher than "3" Stars. While I am no Food Critic (insert Julia Robert's character in one of my FAVORITE movies: "My Best Friend's Wedding"); the food was just "Ok". Here is my experience (I may have to try it again) and evaluate my initial Rating. I ordered Sashimi, that's how you can really tell. The portion was a small Cut. The Salmon was a bit Gummy/Goo-ie to me. Seemed to have more White fat throughout. This usually indicates "Farm Raised" as opposed to Wild. Admittedly most places Farm Raise, maybe theirs wasn't the Best Cut of Fish. Again I will try it again. I also had the Yellowtail Sashimi this seemed better than the Salmon. Also a Small Cut. Lastly I had a Rainbow Roll (wrapped with Soy paper) this was good however the Rice was a bit Undercooked and some kermels were hard. Either it was Undercooked or simply not fresh either way, not too pleasant. Lastly the Wasabi. This is an initial First Test, and this Failed miserably, it was not soft at all. It was very hard and appeared not as fresh as well. I even had a tough time mixing it with my Soy sauce. So with that said, I'm sorry except to say I will give it another try asap. The Service was fine, ambiance cool with TVs on the Wall. Chefs and Staff attentive no problems there. Plate Presentation very nice. So in my humble opinion this experience renders my "3" Star rating, a solid Three Stars nearing a "4". Given the competitive Landscape in Pasadena for Sushi this was...

Okay, I really hate having to do this.

This place was one of my favorite restaurants in the 52 years I have been on this planet.

I used to brag to everyone about how Pasadena had the best sushi in the entire country, and this was the best of the best.

I have been coming back as often as I can during the pandemic, and I have been super understanding about the how the pandemic has changed so much in the restaurant world.

From the start, I accepted a drop in service and quality, considered it as an acceptable loss. The service has been admirable, after all they are working under tough conditions. And the service loss that came with the pandemic has only improved in the past few months.

But the quality of the food has not. In fact, it gets worse every time I visit. Until today, when my tuna was served without the pickled ginger that made this place one of the best sushi bars in the country. If there was a last straw that turns your dreams into nightmares, that was it.

I am afraid I can no longer recommend this place on Yelp, or anywhere else for that matter. Of course I will continue to come here, hoping that things will eventually get better, but until then, I have to lower my rating to reflect the current situation.

As a note to the owner, who has no reason to take advice from me: you are asking me to pay the same price for SO MUCH LESS, and I am afraid I cannot accept that.

I truly hope things turn around, I really do, but if you are going to drop the quality of your product this low, you should own up to that choice and lower the price to...

The food was excellent. I got a tempura California roll and takoyaki balls. The takoyaki balls were a bit on the raw side, being a little runny instead of googy. My family got a massive variety of sushi it was all good. The combo bento is definitely a good choice.

The atmosphere was dark, cozy, and with quite a lot of entertaining features to look at. Best of all, the mural on the wall.

We were there as a party of 17. Everyone's biggest complaint was service. We were the only ones in the restaurant at the time and had to repeatedly ask for water and drinks to be refilled past what would be an acceptable time for a good server. Even after asking they still left some empty and had to be asked again. Food came out as it was ready, which is fine, but 2 of us had been served after almost everyone was finished.

Gratuity had been added, which is common for large groups. That said, I would not have tipped near the amount gratuity was because the service was not nearly worth it, so I hope the chef got part of it.

All in all, 6 out of 10, we will pass on this Pasadena location...