Kibatsu — Restaurant in San Francisco

Kibatsu's intimate ambiance and ambitious omakase drew us in, but the experience left us feeling like we had walked a tightrope - some moments exhilarating, others a little wobbly.

One man show: Our entire restaurant relied on a single server. While her enthusiasm was undeniable, it stretched thin. Long waits between courses and forgotten requests detracted from the flow. It felt like a charming solo performance occasionally needing an understudy.

Speed demons and sleepy snails: Dishes arrived at a puzzling pace. The melt-in-your-mouth tuna came swiftly, while the delicate wagyu languished. Some nigiri arrived lightning-fast, and others took ages, leaving us wondering if they'd gotten lost in the kitchen labyrinth.

Fishy tales: The nigiri itself was a mixed bag. Some pieces were divine. Others, however, had a distinct fishiness and slightly chewy texture that left us wanting more freshness. Like a magic act, some bites disappeared in a delightful puff, while others required more chewing than anticipated.

Wasabi woes: The liberal use of wasabi was another inconsistency. Some pieces had a perfect kiss of heat, while others were overpowered, drowning out the delicate flavors of the fish. Perhaps a lighter hand would allow the natural sweetness of the fish to shine through.

Missed opportunity: All the uni dishes that were served missed the mark. Instead of highlighting the creamy and buttery uni flavors, the dishes were overpowered by other flavors.

Course overload (in a good way): The $158 omakase was certainly generous, offering a plethora of dishes. The whole experience consisted of small plates, nigiri pieces, sashimi and a dessert.

Cozy charm: Despite the service hiccups and inconsistencies, the intimate setting and warm lighting created a unique atmosphere. It's a place where you can easily get lost in conversation.

Final verdict: With some attention to service consistency, pace, and flavor balance, Kibatsu has the potential to be a great dining experience. For now, it sits at a 3-star tightrope walk - charming, ambitious, but needing...

Got a recommendation to come to this place and have the omakase ($120pp). I don’t even know how to put into words how random this meal was. It’s as though the chef was on the show Chopped and had a random assortment of fish and ingredients to work with and was like hmmm I wonder how I can combine these. An omakase meal should be well thought out and move from delicate to more rich flavors. To the contrary, this meal was a total hodge podge, making it confusing.

That being said, some dishes were outstanding — there was barracuda, flounder, and tuna that melt in your mouth. The rest of the dishes were so weird. There was a scallop with the tendon detached and set on top with a pinch of salt, a raw large squid, green tea ice cream with a fried wagyu donut, uni risotto (such mush that Italians and Japanese alike would be cringing), and wagyu wrapped scallop with a mushroom. Have I successfully conveyed how random this meal was?

To top it off, we were served our dishes by the food runner who had no clue what he was serving us and unable to explain what was on the plate. This is totally inappropriate for an omakase meal.

Perhaps this place is good for a regular sushi meal, I cannot speak to their a la carte menu but would highly not recommend their...

This is a long overdue review for my first in-person omakase experience in the past two years. I had my fair share of takeout/delivery sushi during the pandemic, but the nature of omakase is arguably one of the hardest to translate to takeout. There is something about enjoying a piece of nigiri that is still warm from the chef’s hand.

When I dined back in July 2021, the chef’s counter was unfortunately still closed, but I was able to sit indoors. The omakase was 15 courses, with total dinner time just over 90 minutes at a leisurely pace. Chef Roy created a modern interpretation of omakase, incorporating dishes such as uni risotto, deep fried wagyu ice cream cones, and a glorious maitake and fig topped seared toro.

The nigiri and sashimi were very good that day. A highlight was lean bluefin tuna sashimi that had fruity notes and the toro with caviar nigiri. The afore-mentioned modern dishes were also a standout, especially the sweet and savory dessert course with black sesame ice cream and yuzu sorbet cones, topped with a juicy, warm cube of deep fried wagyu.

I felt comfortable dining indoors in the smaller space, and service was polite and efficient. I thought the price point was also very...