Sushi Monster — Restaurant in Poway

My husband and I have eaten AYCE weekday lunch here 4 times now and we like it better than some others. It is a great value for $28 weekday lunch until 2:30pm.

The first 2 times during soft opening were amazing because the rice to fish ratio was phenomenal.

The 3rd time we were disappointed because the nigiris were like the rice had been pressed in a rectangle pan and fish just placed on top. The nigiri pieces still stuck together and were big blocks of rice.

The 4th time we went thank goodness the nigiri had semblance of being individually formed by hand and the rice ratio, though not good as 1st time, were better than the 3rd time.

—My favorites— *spicy garlic edamame: the spicy garlic sauce on the edamame is sooo good. I like to take the garlic from it and put it on the sushi pieces *eel hand roll: the rice to seaweed ratio is great and I love that it has avocado *seared salmon nigiri: there’s something about torched rice that makes a deliciously charred flavor *salmon skin salad: nice and crispy *salmon lover roll: I appreciate rolls that don’t have filler krab meat *mini ramen: we actually liked this very much as a small side dish. It has corn, nice firm noodles, and hot soup *sesame balls: it is so soft and chewy! Delicious dessert

—Can be improved— *tempura shrimp: isn’t tempura but panko. I prefer tempura

Parking is easy in the big free parking lot. Service is friendly and polite.

The interior decor fantastic. The wooden carved tables, fountain in the corner, giant ghibli wallpapers, one piece banners in the hallway, and anime/video game sword collection is very impressive. Kudos to the owner properly displaying each homage. You can tell decor is done thoughtfully because they’re ordered/grouped...

Sushi Monster 13307 Poway Rd, Poway, CA 92064

Took the family to a new AYCE, located here in Poway. Glad that it wasn't as busy at lunch time on a Sunday. Smaller place, but ample seating. Very friendly and attentative staff. The manager was very nice , and she answered all our questions , and even made suggestions. Really cool decor dedicated to Japanese anime, even along the way to the restroom, as well as inside.

We decided to do the AYCE menu,and skip the premium sashimi. You can also order ala carte as well

*Note: to control costs, they do charge for unfinished food on AYCE.

We ordered what we normally eat when dining at AYCE sushi , just so we get a feel of how they cook certain dishes, and they didn't disappoint.

Sushi rolls are pretty big, from when I saw them at other tables, so be ready to power them down if you're starting to feel full.( see last few photos for reference)

Knowing this, we decided not to order any roll, except the "Jessica Alba" which had no rice, pretty much a protein roll. (sorry no pic provided cause we were hungry😅).

AYCE Tip: if you do decided to order any of their regular or specialty rolls, I suggest you have a group larger than 4 so you you get a better chance at tasting more than 2 different kind of rolls. They serve you the full 8 piece roll when ordering!

Really enjoyed the atmosphere, service and food!

Hope you guys get a chance to come out and support a great new and local business!

*sushi roll photos are not mine, but from Yelp, and are intended for...

Sushi and all you can eat?? Sign me up!

My wife and I have been to numerous AYCE sushi places up and we have several favorite spots in SoCal and Las Vegas, but sadly, San Diego does not have good AYCE sushi, at least until now.

This restaurant is located in a small business outlet near Five Guys in Poway with plenty of parking. The restaurant itself is tiny, with only about 10 tables with enough seating for 4 people each. The restaurant is run by a chef and his family. Support your small businesses!

We usually come here for the lunch AYCE on weekdays, so it's not too busy. We have been here 3 times now, and each time we were seated right away and our orders were taken quickly. There were a few times when one item on our order was missing, but they fixed it whenever we brought it up.

The food came out in a reasonable amount of time, and I have to say that overall, the food is pretty good. It's not mind-blowing, but good enough to justify the price, which is the lowest in San Diego, I believe. The menu has a good enough variety, the fish is fresh as can be, and the amount of rice was decent in both the rolls and nigiri. All the fried food was done well, and I definitely enjoyed the shrimp tempura.

Overall, for the price, it might be the best AYCE in San Diego. Give this...