Genki Japanese & Sushi Restaurant of Wilmington NC — Restaurant in Wilmington

Reservations recommended. Food came quickly and the staff was efficient, conversational, and polite. Overall, I thought it was a good place to eat and would recommend to a friend.

All the food we ordered, specialty rolls/noodle dish/soup/spring rolls etc, was above average, but not necessarily spectacular/the best I’ve ever had. Hot towels are a great touch as well as the house made toffee treats that came with the check.

However, in my opinion, the greatest detractors from the overall experience was the ambiance, decor, furniture, and lighting. The old ceiling tiles were unsightly throughout, the walls are plain, and the floors, especially in the bathroom, were sticky and low quality. The sushi bar to sit at had a low quality plastic table top. In addition, the lighting detracted greatly from the environment. The lighting is close to sterile, high up in the ceiling, too numerous, and casts the entire restaurant in a flat tone, with little depth. It makes it too easy to look around and notice other dinners.

Fortunately, the fixes needed to make this place live up to the hype and to the quality of its food is easy, likely could cost less than $5k. If I was the owner, I’d take note: ————- To improve, I’d tear down the tiles throughout, paint the ceiling/pipes/ducting black and put in drop lighting that brings the light closer to the table, creating some depth and making each table seem like its own island, establishing some privacy that is currently missing. Next, on the walls I’d add some dark slot wood paneling along the top third of the wall, or something of varied textured, currently it’s a tall solid color wall with a single piece of art every 10 feet, bland. In the bottom 2 thirds add a few more pieces of art.

In addition, owners need to replace the counter top along the sushi bar. Choose a dark wood top and a Japanese style tile along the vertical portions. The chairs and tables could use an update, but a simple cheaper option is to sand the wood down to remove the shiny sealing and stain the wood darker before resealing. Lastly, bathrooms are in dire need of an update. Biggest change would be to select a dark large tile and change the lighting to something more dimmed and sightly. Lighting can...

Nice mom and pop place. You can tell the owners care about the food! I went in on a busy Saturday night by myself to order takeout. Mulllltiple signs about the wait and I was told there would be long wait, even after I would be sat.

I chatted with the lady and explained I would be happy with takeout. Instead of telling me takeout orders had already closed for the night and pushing me on my way, I was given the chance to realize I only wanted katsu and items from the kitchen. To give credit where it’s due, that shows impressed patience of a busy owner on a busy Saturday night!

I was sat at the end of the sushi bar and ordered pork katsu, miso soup, some egg rolls, dumplings and salad.

Some of the best miso soup I’ve ever had! Katsu was pretty decent. Pork was over cooked which is pretty typical and why I tried to preemptively tried to order extra curry sauce. The back chef said they couldn’t add on a side so that was a little disappointing but the flavor was nice. Same with the egg rolls. They were a little soggy by the time I got them home. I would suggest not packing fried/crispy items in styrofoam and then wrapping in plastic wrap for to-go orders. I appreciate delicious food so I am delighted I found the place and was able to try it!

As for the wait; I can’t speak to the quality of the sushi but it did look better than what I have seen elsewhere in ILM. I suspect the owners operate with such passion it is difficult to trust someone else to create and deliver on the same level. Which I totally understand. The food was really really good. I’m just a random person on the internet but I would put some of those items up against 98% of NYCs Japanese counterparts.

I was really impressed; with the food, my server Justina, the adorable feeling that the entire family was working that night and with the owners persistence to deliver good food under that long of a backlog. I hope they are able to relax the rest of the week and hope even more they have more help with the sushi on the way!

See everyone again soon. I’ll show up earlier, hungry...

The reviews didn’t lie - this place is legit. We stopped here for dinner and absolutely enjoyed it.

When it comes to sushi, I’m pretty spoiled and I’ve been to about 100 different sushi bars in the US and Europe.

From the outside, Genki doesn’t look super fancy but it’s once you walk inside you know you’re about to get some good stuff.

The kitchen is authentic Japanese and it may take some time to get your order cooked - quality takes time so be patient. Our order actually was done fairly quickly despite high occupancy.

Those who are into sushi know that rice quality is a big deal and it can make it or break it taste-wise. Rice at Genki was cooked to perfection. Sticky, warm, soft but not too soft. Another important point is temperature. Our rolls were served with the right temperature and were a pleasure to eat. Some places bring freezing cold rolls or overly warm rolls… but not here. Everything tasted perfect and was very fresh.

I was also pretty happy to see they made gunkan sushi and you could ask for temaki (it’s not on the menu). In addition, they have a list of real Japanese craft sake if you’re into that.

Last but not least, I have to point out their service. While you get a dedicated server, you also get the attention of the whole team. You don’t wait until your server picks up an empty plate or a dirty napkin, all of their servers grab plates and empty glasses as well as bring food to your table - it’s freaking efficient and is a great example of smart load balancing on a restaurant level. Keep this up.

Price-wise, it’s above average but worth every dollar. You’ll leave happy and you’d want to come...