Rakuya
| Address: | 1900 Q St NW, Washington, DC 20009, USA |
| Phone: | +1 202-265-7258 |
| Site: | rakuyarestaurant.com |
| Rating: | 3.9 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–10:30PM 3–9:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 16
KA
Kate Bigam
Someone once said of Raku that its "a decent stand-by in Dupont when youre vaguely in the mood for something Asiany and dont know where else to go." This sentence nails it. Because Raku is right off the circle on Connecticut, it makes for a good midday sit-down place. Theyve got a great outdoor patio with some stellar Dupont people-watching. The inside of Raku gets a thumbs up, too - like an Asian Applebees, casual but still nice enough for a (second) date or a meet-up or whatever. The excellence basically stops there & slides its way into mediocrity. Their sushi is OK, but its nothing to write home about - VERY sticky, & just not that tasty. For lunch, skip the lame sushi & try a chicken bento box - a much better choice! It comes with so much food: TWO small chicken breasts in a really sweet teriyaki sauce, three small crab shumai, a house salad with ginger dressing, green beans & mushrooms, small sides of mashed potatoes & spinach, & six small California rolls. For $10.50. YES, PLEASE. Its so much food! Theyre always willing to substitute the crab shumai for a veggie springroll for my friends who dont eat seafood, & they take the mushrooms out for me because Im allergic - lots of places wont do substitutes in pre-established, multi-part dishes like bento boxes, so this was a pleasant surprise & gets Raku the extra star from me.
CA
Carol Chan
With limited Asian food options in DC, my husband and I had not had Japanese since we moved. Although Raku is far from authentic Japanese, we were pleased by freshness and creativity. Who knew pork belly would tasted this amazing in a sushi roll? And mango sauce with salmon? Delish! Aside from Japanese, Raku also offered a limited Thai menu! Unlike most Chicken pad Thai where I am overwhelmed by the amount of ketchup and peanut, this had the perfect balance and also came in a generous portioned size. Overall - 3.5 stars - Although the price was a bit steep and the service was just okay, I would come back for their food especially to more of their specialty rolls!
NI
Nicholas Galgoul
My bowl of soba was the most overpriced, vapid, tepid bowl of noodles Ive ever ordered. Their "Tokyo Dashi" reminded more of bath water or the laundry water after youve washed your dirty socks. Putting 75 ingredients into what should be a simple bowl of broth and noodles and PERHAPS a few vegetables does not improve on shitty broth. I couldve bought 52 packages of Ramen noodles and been happier. The sushi was OK, nice texture, but I really hate this new trend of rolling it in almost no rice so you have to order 5 rolls per person. Im calling places out on that now.
WE
Weiwen Ng
Ive always been skeptical of the pan-Asian restaurants. We were hungry and it was getting late, so my wife and a friend went to Raku. The udon noodle soup was fair and the tempura shrimp was frankly poorly done. The Mongolian beef dish lacked flavor. And the pad thai was crap. When a restaurant attempts to mix numerous different Asian cuisines, theyll usually be mediocre at all. This one tried to do Japanese, Thai, Mongolian, Southeast Asian and tried to toss in various Western cuisines.
LI
Lisa Paquette
Raku is an awesome Asian diner with a great location. In the heart of Dupont Circle, this is a great place for lunch or dinner. I highly recommend getting one of the bento boxes. I personally like the salmon teriyaki bento box, which comes with salmon teriyaki, miso soup, salad, dumplings, a California roll, and mushrooms and green beans. It is $14.50 at lunch but in the 20s and dinner time, so definitely stop by Raku for a nice lunch rather than a pricey dinner!
RA
Ranyelle Reid
Stopped in while touring the city on a Saturday at 4pm for a quick bite before dinner. Place was packed and smelled delicious. Was promptly greeted and seated. Details: Party of 3 (all AA women) Chicken & Pork dumpling Szechwan Crispy Chicken Grilled Korean BBQ Skirt steak ssam At the end of our meal we ordered 3 additional Korean BBQ meals to go. Thats how awesome it was. The other items were good but this was delicious. Would return.
A
A Private User
If you are looking for some great sushi, at fair prices, in a busy-but-manageable atmosphere, check out Raku. We ordered three types of rolls, and all were very well made. The edemame was fresh and Ive had it in a lot of places, this one being the best thus far. Their service was friendly and timely despite the busy time we went. They also have an amazing seasonal beer, Jacks Pumpkin Spice. And they carry Thai Iced Tea! AMAZING!
A
A Private User
The sushi is very nice here. Very western oriented fancy rolls that I never saw in Japan. The other entrées were excellent. The Nappa chicken salad is awesome. Crowd can be a bit annoying. Being in Bethesda Row brings in a lot of people, so the wait here can be excessive. They can also be douchebags over seating. Best use of Raku is calling in orders to go and avoiding their staff of idiots.
NA
Nathaniel Moore
Not the best sushi Ive ever had. Very marginal for the price. Set at the sushi bar which was otherwise empty on a Friday night. Rice was sub optimal for Nigiri. Red snapper pieces had a little bit of fascia so this was not ideal. Luke warm water with no ice, if you like that sort of thing. But great wasabi. For sushi again in this neighborhood I would want to check out other options first.
HI
Hiromi Tsuchiya
Seafood - grilled salmon, grilled cod, and of course sushi- are all delicious. You can also hear Japanese popular songs, which remind me of Japan quite well. I like this place. Updated on 3/30/2017 I revisited this place and ordred a grilled cod and sushi again. But they were bland and disappointing. Maybe chefs have changed.....sad.
GR
Grace Cannon
This was a regular sushi spot for me when I worked nearby. A solid choice for sushi in the Dupont neighborhood, without the attitude or expense of some other options. Love the bento box, Maryland roll. Price, of course, depends on whether you get drinks or not, but overall a good value and good quality for sushi and Japanese food.
KA
Katie Keegin
In my opinion raku is the best average sushi place in DC, if that makes sense. The fish is good and the specialty rolls are good. I love the tempura sea bass roll. A great take out option and the patio is nice in the summer. This is not sushi taro or kaz, but its not trying to be either.
AL
alex slater
3 Stars perfectly describes this chain pan Asian spot. Its just okay on almost every level. Sushi is standard fare, fish quality is... okay. Atmosphere is very lunch oriented. Service, again, is just fine. If you work nearby and are craving pan asian, not a bad option.
DA
David Hodge
Great decor and good pan asian menu. Surprisingly good number of sake choices. My favorite dishes are the Kway Teow, which is a Stir Fry Noodle dish that is sweet and savory. When they first opened there was Kung Fu playing at the bar, I miss that.
JO
Jon Schulman
Just reopened after a long renovation, but really its the same great place it was before. The menu does seem a bit smaller than it used to be, and the prices are a little high. But its a great spot to take a date.
A
A Private User
The food is a fusion-type of food, but its not authentic and if you want authentic Asian food, this is not the place. And this place certainly treats is non-Asian clientele much friendlier and much nicer.
