Sushi Ohana — Restaurant in Portland

A Deeply Disappointing and Repeated Experience with Discrimination

I’m Black, originally from East Africa, and have lived in beautiful Oregon since 2018. While I’ve always hoped to avoid racism, my repeated experiences at Ohana Sushi have been deeply upsetting.

Ohana is close to my apartment and a regular hangout spot near Peet’s Coffee. The first time I sensed something was off was a few years ago — subtle but unmistakable. I was alone and tried to rationalize it as a long day for the staff.

The second time, I went with a friend (also East African), and we were treated with blatant disrespect by the same two staff members — a man and a woman. It felt very clear it was due to our accents and skin color. My friend even addressed it directly. After that, I stopped going for a long time.

Post-COVID, I returned a few times and didn’t see the same staff. I was treated well and hoped the past was behind me. But in 2024, I unfortunately encountered them again — and once again, I experienced cold, unwelcoming behavior. Whispering behind me in another language, laughing while looking at me — the message was clear, even if not verbal.

But what happened on Memorial Day 2025 was the last straw.

Craving sushi, I considered other spots, but they were closed. Against my gut feeling, I walked into Ohana — and saw the same male staff member. I tried to avoid him, but he approached to take my order. I asked for water and some ginger. Instead of simply helping, he gave me a long, uncomfortable stare and pressed me repeatedly to order more. When I said I was fine, he muttered something in Japanese and then asked why I still come to the restaurant — a statement that felt like a clear dismissal of my presence.

I stood up feeling deeply unwelcome and angry. None of the other staff intervened or showed any concern. I’ve also noticed how African American customers are treated there — especially if they’re alone or not accompanied by someone white.

It’s 2025 — and no one should have to feel this way. Needless to say, I will not be returning. But I’m sharing this review because staying silent only protects those who think this behavior is acceptable. We all deserve dignity and respect — regardless of where we come from or what...

I've been to many sushi places in the state of Oregon, especially Portland, but this place is just like the others. Just another common sushi place. Not bad, not good, but mediocre. It's a place you'd go if you're nearby and craving sushi quickly, straight off the train.

Food: 2/5 This place hasrubber chicken and mediocre "crab". That sums it up. But, if you're just out for a night in the town craving seaweed salad and tamago, this is your place. I got the California Roll and Seaweed Salad. The California Roll really wasn't anything special, I had better at other places. The Seaweed Salad on the other hand was amazing, I'd go as far and say delectable. It was juicy and made correctly. My acquaintances got the chicken noodles. She said the chicken was dry. I had a taste and I agreed, it was also rubbery. My other acquaintance got the Seared Salmon and liked it. Obviously the food wasn't anything special, but serves its purpose.

Service: 3/5 The service here has some really nice and patience waiters. Though there is one big thing I need to mention, and the reason I gave it a 3: The language barrier. Waiters speak a little bit of English, and had trouble trying to hear what my acquaintances were saying, leading to one of them getting lemonade, instead of their "Ramune". But, they were very nice overall.

Atmosphere: 4/5 Besides the "okay" food, the atmosphere was really nice. They had Japanese paintings of people, scriptures, and nice lighting. The only reason this isn't a 5 is because it feels very...

Sushi Ohana has been our favorite place for years, the Valhalla of variety, the rolling cornucopia of comfort, the vast sea of… well, sushi. I lived in Japan for years and Sushi Ohana had it nailed, the perfect balance of quality and price. No pretensions here, a decent selection of moderately priced delight rolling past like days roll past on a summer vacation. The place was busy and the turnover fast. During the first months of the pandemic we absolutely jonesed for the place, we talked about it like a lost love, we prayed it would reopen and when it did, we rejoiced. So here we are. They reopened and the prior happy hour pricing has fallen by the way. Not nearly as many people, which I suppose is not completely bad since the pandemic is still with us like a case of herpes, never quite gone. The sushi is still okay, it was never absolutely the best, it was a balance between quality and price. But the balance is starting to tip a little the wrong way. The turnover on the conveyer belt isn’t as fast and some of the dishes look like they’ve been around the neighborhood a few times too many. Maybe the economics have changed and we’ll just have stick to a good filling Pho or a Pad Thai, or the amazing Ramen I found in Vancouver, but it’s getting hard to rationalize $60 for two people there for ok quality instead of $30 for an amazing really top quality meal at the Vietnamese place. Has the boat sailed? Is it a one way conveyor belt? Does way lead on to way and will we ever find...