Oco Time — Restaurant in Ukiah

Traveling through Ukiah on a trip, needed to stop for food. This place was decently reviewed, so decided to try it.

The TLDR is that you should go somewhere else. This was my experience:

Ordered a bento, and it took 45 minutes to be ready. We did takeout, as we were going to eat in the car. It was eaten as soon as it was served though, so nothing sat around longer than it would have in a restaurant.

Minus the tempura sauce that leaked, everything was packaged nicely. I wish the bento box was a little less flimsy though.

But the taste? We threw more than half the food away.

The tempura pumpkin just tastes weird. I didn't enjoy that at all. It's like they decided this was a replacement for sweet potato, but it just doesn't work as well. It was also very greasy, and mushy inside, except for the onion. So the tempura batter was crispy, but the inside was mush. The sauce was not good. Very bland, even for tempura sauce (it was nice and warm though).

The fried tofu with BBQ sauce... the breading was mushy, and the sauce still had a sharp alcoholic flavor, like it hadn't been cooked long enough to get rid of that flavor.

The teriyaki chicken was odd. The teriyaki doesn't really taste like any teriyaki I've had before. I don't think I'd peg it as teriyaki if I hadn't known what it was. It was on top of a bed of shredded cabbage (I hate it when places do that) and pickled carrots. Sitting on those (mushy) carrots changed the flavor of the sauce and it wasn't good. Most of this was thrown away.

The Klamath roll. Smoked salmon, avocado, and cream cheese. It was covered in too many sesame seeds, and very poorly cut. The end pieces were literally twice the size of the others (there were 6 total, only 2 were uniform), and had giant chunks of salmon coming out of the ends. The fish was more like a paste, it was mushy... so it was just a big mush roll. Could hardly taste the fish... the flavor is mostly cream cheese. This was actually the best thing in the meal, but fast Japanese joints like I Love Teriyaki have better sushi.

Even the miso was weird. It was nice and hot, but it had so much seaweed that it ruined the flavor. It tasted a bit bitter because of it.

It also came with a salad that looked like it had some sort of sesame dressing, but didn't get to try it. The lettuce looked nice.

This was the standard bento for $25. It's a lot of food (but not rice, so kinda weird for a bento), and, had any of it been good, would have been a decent value. However... since it wasn't tasty, and half of it was thrown out, I felt bad about it.

TLDR 2: Go anywhere else for Japanese. ...

Imagine a light and cool atmosphere, mouthwatering, impeccably presented, giant sushi rolls on beautiful dishes, a generous-sized miso soup, generously sized salad with delicious miso dressing, giant plates of Oco (layered food textures teeming with flavor and comfort), and various choices of drink (including Japanese soda that has a marble on top), and you might just find yourself in the small-but-cozy, Japanese-American restaurant -- Oco Time!!

It was hard to chose from the more-than 30 rolls and several oco nomiyakis and appetizers, because we Love so much of what they offer!! We chose ... Sushi Rolls (Dragon roll, Mendo Popper roll, and Arline Roll), 2 Oco Nomiyakis -- Hawaiin Oco and Mendo Oco -- Miso Soup, and a salad with miso dressing. They also serve Sashimi, Sushi Nigiri, Bento boxes, and so much more

Amazing food, impeccably made and presented, with great flavors which fill your mouth, belly, and soul Sooooooo good, soooooo delicious Our server Arianna checked on us often enough and treated us well.

I forgot to leave a tip! I will bring the tip, soon. @ocotime

Dragon Roll -- BBQ Eel, Tempura Shrimp, Cucumber, Carrot, Beet, Sprouts, and wrapped with Avocado ($15)

Mendo Popper Roll (we asked for Not spicy) -- Whole Tempura Style) Your choice of Smoked Salmon or Spicy Tuna Mix with Cream Cheese, Avocado, Jalapeno, Cilantro, Lemon and Green Onion with Spicy Tahini Sauce and Chili Sauce ($14)

Arline Roll -- Inside : Avocado, Cream Cheese, Cashew Nut, Cilantro, Garlic, Sprouts, Beets, Carrot and Cucumber Outside : Fresh Shiso Leaf with WhiteTahini Sauce, Basil Tahini Sauce, Mango and Blood Orange Puree Sauce, Dry Shiso Powder and More Cashew Nuts on top ($9)

Hawaiian Oco (Happiness) $20.50 Base plus Natural Rocky Jr. Chicken Thighs, Pineapple, Avocado and Cheddar Cheese. {Base : (sliced cabbage, bean sprouts, green onion, egg, noodles)}

Mendo Oco (Community Spirit) $14.00 Base plus Natural Rocky Jr. Chicken Thighs with Yakisoba Sauce and Hemp Seeds & Nori Powder. {Base : (sliced cabbage, bean sprouts, green onion, egg, noodles)}

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My friend was tasked to find us a place to eat while we were in Ukiah, and I'm so glad she found Oco Time. I have been looking for a place that serves Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki in San Francisco for at least 3 years now. Little did I know I'd stumble upon it in this small town!

I was SO excited to see it on the menu that my friends probably thought I was crazy. But I can't help it! I fell in love with okonomiyaki the first time I had it in Hiroshima. The places I tried in San Francisco were good, but it just wasn't the same.

I ordered one of the vegetarian-friendly okonomiyaki that came with three kinds of mushrooms. I didn't know whether I wanted it spicy, so the waitress suggested to get half and half. I did like the spicy side, but the next time I come back I will order it without spice because I really want to concentrate on the mushroom flavor.

Otherwise, the okonomiyaki was perfect: a think pancake and noodles that had a good bite. They also have it in its original form (with bacon instead of mushrooms), but I really liked the earthy flavor of the mushrooms. Plus, I felt healthier eating it. The portion was large for me, so I ate it the next night. It made great leftovers that I kinda regretted sharing it with my parents. Though I think I could eat the whole thing in one sitting on my own, it's probably a dish best shared with another person.

The restaurant is small, with a few tables up front a few seats at the bar, and a couple of tables in the back room. The food comes out quick, though so expect at least 20mins for the okonomiyaki to be served. It's casual, but can also be a cute place for a date. Service is friendly, and tbh, one of the chefs is easy on the eyes ;).

I really am considering another trip back to Ukiah just to...