Kaimuki Grill

User Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Used to be great now it's just ok: I've been going to Kaimuki Grill since 1998. I loved it. Ever since they sold it to a Korean owner 4 years ago the place has gone down hill. I used to go at least 4 times a week. Now I go once every few months. This place used to be packed. People used to wait outside for as long as 30 minutes sometimes. The sushi is much smaller nowadays. Some of my favorite dishes are made differently now. If you've never been before the new owner took over, you'd probably like it. But you cannot compare it to the good old days.

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User Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

good selection, average execution: wanted to like this place, especially because of it's name (I lived in kaimuki in honolulu for a while) but it disappointed.

heard it had some hawaii food - the only thing I saw was tuna poki (usually spelled poke) but I didn't hold that against it...love japanese food too and expected a mostly japanese menu anyway. but the tuna poki was nothing like real poke - no maranation, no flavor, just raw sashimi on a bed of lettuce and onions with a little seaweed.

ordered hokke - one of my favorite, dried then grilled fishes. I think it's a pike mackerel. this one wasn't bad...a bit wetter than usual but flavorful as these fishes always are. we had some sushi - that was average. had won ton ramen, and that was pretty poor - broth had little flavor and the vegetarian won tons were very mushy and lacked flavor as well.

the spicy tuna tempura was interesting, although not spicy. it was probably yesterday's sashimi, but that was probably the most unique dish I had.

service was fine. friendly. they got one of our orders wrong but it was okay - since we were going to order the dish they brought by mistake later anyway. they were especially kind to custom cut a orange for someone's birthday.

there's a ton of japanese eateries in san mateo, and I'd bet several are better than this one. it's a shame, because kaimuki's menu has a lot of potential, and parts of it remind of izakayas in japan.

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User Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Great Japanese restaurant.: I lived in Japan, and travel there every few months. Although this restaurant might get a B+ in Japan, it is one of the best in the Bay Area. The food is excellent, it has a wide variety, and the quality is high. It is family friendly, and great even for little kids. It is a bit small, but that adds to the genuine Japanese "ambiance."

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