Maneki

Reviews 8

CH

Christy Nguyen

Yummylicious! This is my 3rd time here and also my most favorite visit as it seems we ordered all the right things. We had 4 ppl in our group and ordered: -2 sakana dinners, 1 with salmon teriyaki, 1 with salted mackerel. This is always a good deal b/c it also comes with miso soup, cucumber/shrimp salad, tempura, sashimi and rice. The salmon teriyaki was huge and very tender with good flavor. The mackerel had great flavor but was kinda skimpy on size compared to the salmon. The tempura is so light - just so delightful! -Chirashi Bowl - in my opinion, its kind of a small portion size and Id rather just get another sakana dinner, but the sashimi is really good, fresh and you get a good variety. Comes with miso soup too. The sushi rice is just perfect. -Ika Garlic Bata-Yaki - The flavor was really good, but the squid was slightly overcooked, so a bit rubbery. -Miso cod collar - I loved this one. It was soft and buttery, yum. I highly recommend it and the portion is large for the price! -Sassy Salmon Roll and Yellowtail roll - Simple, not fancy, but very fresh fish and a great price. All this food and it only came to about $80. We were stuffed afterwards. Oh yes, and the service there is wonderful. Everyone is extremely friendly. I cant wait for my next trip back to Maneki. Although this time it wasnt that busy, I still highly recommend making reservations as the last couple of times I was there, it was extremely busy.

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A

A Private User

I have been to this restaurant once about 7 years ago and it was pretty good. But it seems like things have changed. My husband went there with his friend on last Friday, and they told him that they are full and do not have a table till 2 hours later. He says it didnt looks so busy, but thought that maybe he needed a reservation on a busy Friday evening. Now we went at 6:10pm on a Tuesday evening. This old lady comes out and says "....How can I help you?" Well we are here for dinner obviously, so I say "3 adults and one child". She says "We are full till 8pm". The restaurant didnt look full at all, so I asked if they take reservations, and she says NO. My coworker says she doesnt go there anymore because the same thing happened to her several times in a row. She says they reserve seats for "regulars" even though they dont take reservations. So, if you really want to go to this restaurant, you should either have one of their "regulars" take you, or go around 8 or 9pm after busy dinner time. But personally, it is not worth trying because there are other good Japanese restaurant near by. Try FUJI instead, its only a couple of blocks. After we were thrown out side like stray cats, we went to FUJI and what wonderful service and great food they offer. I will write a review on FUJI later, but really, MANEKI is not worth trying.

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MI

Michelle Saltzer

Simply stated - dont come here for sushi/sashimi, come here for the other spectrum of authentic Japanese cuisine. If you must have raw fish, opt for sashimi cuts of the chalkboard specials, and save room for other menu options. Maneki is an adorable and over 100-year old Japanese restaurant in the blink-and-youll-miss-it "Japantown" of Seattle. The hosting and serving is helmed by some pretty snappy Japanese women, including the bartender who has to be around 80 years old. They are fantastic. I would suggest making a reservation, but I have walked in several times on quieter evenings and been able to get a table without much waiting at all. The eel rice is a MUST, and the tempura is perfect in both portion size and crunch. They have beautiful preparations of cooked fish. The key would be for each person to find one or two things that look good, and share it all.

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AN

Angelo Rondello

Very mediocre in all respects. Octopus was dry, edamame not cooked well, plus was just not a good crop of beans. Seaweed salad not fresh. Maki was supermarket quality. The service is pretty sub-par, starting from the lady at the entrance, who ignored us and kept chatting with her friend while we waited. Finally, I had to approach her to ask about a table. She gave a curt and condescending answer. I can tell that shes just a socially awkward person, which is forgivable. But theres no reason to ignore customers who are waiting right in front of you. I think this place might rest in its laurels after being around for a long time, but its absolutely a second-rate restaurant, even by mid-level dining standards. For the same price, why not go to Tsukushimbo around the corner and have much better versions of everything on the menu??

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SO

Sonya Li

This is a very old Japanese restaurant that serves traditional family style food. I came here with a party of five and we were given one of the tatami rooms. It was cute and while it didn’t give us total privacy, it was a great way to spend a fun evening with friends and students. I ordered the sakana dinner with the salt broiled mackerel, sashimi, and tempura. One of the fillets was good but not outstanding while the other was riddled with bones. I was served albacore, tuna, and yellowtail sashimi. The former wasn’t the freshest, but the latter two were very good. The tempura was some of the best I’ve had because it was crispy, not oily, the shrimp was still tender and sweet, and the vegetables had crunch. There are hits and misses, but the prices are affordable, the atmosphere charming, and worthwhile to come back to.

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GO

Gowri Chandra

Great experience! Definitely one of the more authentic, homestyle places to eat Japanese in Seattle. I wasnt blown away or moved to tears by anything I ordered (black cod collar and agadashi taro root), but they were both very good. Good flavors, good textures. Dont add too much soy sauce or ask for hot sauce, itll mess with the subtle flavors. The prices look, on first glance, too good to be true-- $8 for the black cod collar for example. Beware though, because of the a la cart format (you need to order rice, for example, with your main dish, and portion sizes are more appetizer size than entree size), its very easy to over-order or spend way more than youd intended! This is an especially great place to come with people so you can try many different items. Next time will try the sea urchin!

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AL

Alex Jung

Americanized Japanese taste or stuck in outdated flavor! My wife and I visited there TWICE with a dream that we could dine authentic Japanese foods in Seattle, but it was just a dream. Beef Teriyaki-too salty,( look like Korean Bulgoki), tenpura-too small, Sukiyaki-too sweet(feel like sugar soup), Nabeyaki Udon-too simple, the worst Nabeyaki Udon in my life. Shabu-shabu-Just horrible, better going to Szechuan bistro. Maybe I shoud choose Sushis or Boiled fishes than these menu or just socialize friends with drinking in Tatami room. However, I could say that this restaurant ads are definitely exaggerated over all comparing their history.

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JA

Janet Lim

you want a seat, you gotta make a reservation. I really like the ambiance, the place is quiet and not too noisy. and the decoration are really cool to look at during the meal. I dont think anything that I have ordered here has tasted bad, if anything everything was excellent. We had the black cod collar miso, steamed salmon, the chicken karaage, croquette, tofu, seaweed salad, and soba. We also had a couple sushi rolls. Everything was tasty and I would definitely recommend the salmon and black cod. this is a place to visit while in Seattle. Ive been to Seattle twice and this place is always in my plans!

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