Noma Sushi — Restaurant in San Mateo

We've tried Noma once when it was in it's grand opening and once the other day. The first time we went we got Lion King rolls and they were WAY over-sauced and way too sweet, and also undercooked (this is a fried roll), we also got a Hawaiian roll that was poorly wrapped and mushy. We tried to give them another chance the other day, we got the Fat Boy Mix and a Salmon Teriyaki Bento w/ a side of Salmon Nigiri, unfortunately we were not impressed again.

Their proportions of fish are always very generous, Nigiri had a ton of Salmon, Fat Boy Mix just has buckets of fish dumped on top, and buckets of sauce, again (true to it's name I suppose). Not a good thing, it's very very heavy and I've honestly never had more "American"-tasting Sushi (very large amounts, sweet, mushy, over-sauced, etc.) and we eat a LOT of sushi all around the Bay. The Nigiri was good and fresh though, I think the sweeter fried rolls might just be their weak point. The bento was disappointing as well however, which is a big problem for a Japanese restaurant. Salmon was over-cooked, under-seasoned, and the teriyaki was just plain bad, but again, the Salmon proportion was double what you'd expect from a normal bento.

The prices are average to above average on most rolls as well, so it's not even excusable by a lower price point. The main pull would have to be the large portions, if you're trying to engorge on sushi, which is worth noting this is the first time I've ever felt like that after eating a single sushi dish, than you'll probably enjoy Noma. The fish is pretty solid on it's own, the problem really is in the preparation and unfortunately we probably won't be going back because of this, after our second try failed to impress us again.

The wait staff are very polite and friendly though! The atmosphere is interesting, it feels relaxing like a traditional sushi joint but also sometimes plays 'top-40' radio-type music which I feel like makes the environment feel less authentic. There's a big TV they play cartoons on too, which is fine but I do personally prefer no TVs in a sushi restaurant, but not a problem. Overall it's not bad other than being a little cramped. But again the wait staff are very polite, we did have to go up and ask for the check after waiting 20min the last time we went, which is a bit annoying considering they didn't check on us for over 20min when there was hardly anyone else left in the restaurant..

I think if you've had very little sushi before you'll probably love Noma, because it's big portions for about the same price as most sushi places, and it's very sweet and over-done, but if you've had a wide variety of sushi from different places you'll probably recognize their preparation is lacking, and they should learn to apply the phrase "less is more" with...

I live in the neighborhood, always passed by and wanted to try it out. Hence I had high hopes for this place, but unfortunately, it fell short on almost every level. First, the service was extraordinarily unfriendly, not to say rude. First we waited minutes just to be welcomed for a seat. Note, this is a small place and there were barely any guests. We asked questions about the menu but were met with arrogant and short answers. Water was never filled up.

When the sushi finally did come out, it was a huge disappointment. The fish didn’t taste fresh (even the salmon hat a fishy taste), and the rice was mushy and completely soaked in vinegar. We ordered the family menu and it didn’t taste as it would have been made fresh at the counter. The presentation was sloppy, and the portion sizes were way too small for the price (72$). Furthermore, the soy sauce was stretched with water!

On top of that, the atmosphere was chaotic. The restaurant was noisy and the TV was on loudly, distracting everyone in our party. Not exactly the relaxed sushi experience I was hoping for.

To make things worse, the staff seemed completely uninterested in fixing the situation. I politely mentioned that my sushi wasn’t fresh, and all I got was a shrug and a weak apology. No offer to replace it or even a discount.

Oh, and by the way, they ID’d my aged dad (!) for having a small house sake. Not an issue itself, but just adds to the bad taste.

Honestly, I’m not sure how this place has any good reviews. Maybe I caught them on a bad day, but I won’t be giving them a second chance. There are way better sushi spots in town that actually care about quality and customer service. I’m just sad it’s not the place which is on my neighborhood and I had so...

This is a local Asian owned-and-operated sushi spot in San Mateo, which has slowly become a foodie hotspot in the Peninsula! This place specializes in GOOD QUALITY fish - especially their salmon and bluefin tuna. I made a reservation over the phone and it was an easy process. Our table was ready when we arrived.

I can see what the hype is about! The quality of fish is truly remarkable. Prices are reasonable too for the Bay Area. To get a good variety, I tried the Geisha - a roll without rice! This was very smooth and highlighted the fish. The soy paper added a nice change-of-pace to taste.

My favorite roll was the Bluefin Lover's! This was PACKED with umami!! Seared maguro, fresh avocado, kiwami wasabi, sesame oil, AND truffle pate on top? This was loaded! I would definitely go out of my way to have this roll again.

The table also shared a half dozen oysters and these were very fresh! They were dressed with various things, which elevated the taste a lot. My friends - who weren't fans of raw oysters originally - enjoyed it too!

This restaurant definitely had a rush during dinner hours, so the two waitresses on the floor were working continuously to help everyone out. They were really kind and efficient. At the end of the meal, they also gave us complimentary vanilla ice cream! We weren't expecting this at all. Thank you,...