Juku

This place is a true delight, the interior design is outstanding and the cocktails are truly unique. The hospitality is outstanding as well, their attention to detail is like none other. I highly recommend this place. I have not had the opportunity yet to try their food but I plan to be back soon for that. This place does it right definitely go there and try their drinks, also their wine list is amazing!

Extraordinary omakase for New Years. Sushi boss was funny and amazing! Catered to our wishes. When we come back to NY this is our go to. They have a speakeasy. I would say this place is a hidden gem:)

The best Omakase sushi place in town. Highly recommend by all my Japanese friends. Each piece is so delicate and perfectly seasoned. There’s a bar at the basement, worth stopping by after the meal.

My husband and I had omakase here for our one year anniversary dinner and it was just an amazing experience. Our chef was so meticulous with every piece of sushi and it literally was a melt in the mouth piece every time. Sake was delicious and Yuzu in the end was delicious. It was so much fun! It was the highlight of our trip back as former NYC residents

We’ve had several omakase experiences in New York, and this was the most fun and delicious. The sushi counter has its own floor upstairs, with two chefs serving ten seats. The lighting and music were both low key but endearing. The experience was intimate and classic at the same time. Every serving had layers of succulent flavors in its own category, standing out from the rest and really taking us on a journey through the evening (about 2 hours per seating). Some of these servings were complete show-stoppers - the king salmon, for instance, was so tender and flavorful that we shut our eyes and just experienced pure taste for half a minute at a time. This was a killer date night and the staff and chefs were spectacular. Highly recommended, but prepare to pay top dollar for the quality.

Update October 2019 Still incredible. Not a single star to lose. This is one of my top places for sushi and definitely do the Omakase bar. Feb 2018 Honestly a truly memorable experience. The omakase bar upstairs was a nice separation from the busier downstairs. The fish was beautiful, fresh, and delicious. The chefs were kind and shared interesting facts about the fish. We also got a sake pairing recommendation that was delicious!

We celebrated my husband's birthday at Juku and had a delicious and lovely experience here. The omakase was scrumptious; some of my particular favorite pieces were the double otoro, Tasmanian trout, Japanese barracuda, and the Spanish mackerel (and I usually hate mackerel!). Since the restaurant knew it was my husband's birthday, we received a complimentary ice cream dessert which was so good! We were very happy with the entire experience and our meal at Juku.

Last night I felt the need, the need for a feed…. Since I was in Chinatown I consulted with Google. Google Google on the Phone who’s the fairest sushi of them all? Juku said the phone. Juku. So Juku it was. A pretty nondescript dark door led to a dark “speakeasy” kind of a bar. Upstairs was the Omakase kingdom. Since I didn’t have a reservation I stayed downstairs and had the “Working man” version; the $45 chef’s choice sashimi. I was in Sushi’s heaven.

Absolutely fantastic experience! I thoroughly enjoyed each and every course. I love the scallop, squid, toro, king salmon, crab, uni bowl. I can definitely see why some people would go their every month.

Went on a Saturday evening. The space was nice on the second level with the sushi bar. It felt cozy. Sushi was terrific, each piece was delicious and thoughtfully prepared by the sushi chef. The toppings and sauces were creative and complimented the flavors of the fish well. The pieces of sushi like uni and the salmon roe were on another level from the kind you get in regular sushi bars. The price of the Omakase meal is about what you would expect. Overall a great tasting sushi meal in a nice setting.

Is it me or are all these pictures from 2 years ago? Was super excited to come here and came out disappointed. Tried the 12 piece nigiri with a roll. 8/12 pieces had so much wasabi on them, it overpowered the taste of the fish. Toro was good, but not the best. Uni was not fresh. Nothing memorable. Maybe I came on an off day.

Best sushi ever. Real attention to quality and detail. Chef selection of sushi served individually. This is an experience for the avid sushi connoisseur. You sit in a private upstairs room while the sushi chefs prepare one exotic piece at a time and serve it on your own personal marble slab place setting. There are 15 pieces and a hand roll, so 16 courses/rounds served for the average price of $120/pp, which is great considering it will be the best thing you have had in forever! Cannot wait to come back here ;)

I took my girlfriend here for her birthday because I've seen my other friends post about it and I'm glad I did! It was a 15 piece omakase + hand roll + dessert piece but the chef also gave us an extra piece (not sure if that was intentional but it was greatly appreciated for sure) and also a shot of dessert sake (yuzu). Everything was fresh and delicious. The flavors were pretty traditional and simple but nothing wrong with that at all! My favorites were the sweet shrimp with some sort of shredded dried egg, sea scallop, and Japanese bonito (which is some form of tuna). My only qualm and reasoning for a 4 star review was that the pieces were on the smaller side, compared to Sushi Dojo or Kura which are my two favorite omakase spots at the moment. Looking at these pictures as I'm posting it is making me want to come back soon, despite the smaller sized pieces!

Went here for dinner with my wife, and my oh my, this place was pretty swell. What's pretty notable in a cool but pleasantly jarring way (if that's even a thing) is that the restaurant itself has this cool vibe; yet, the sushi leans more traditional. The first floor is this izakaya style restaurant that has a more dark and modern decor, the basement is a cocktail bar, and the top floor is the omakase. Throughout the whole restaurant some hipster lo-fi and underground hip-hop music was playing~ again the experience was pleasantly jarring given that the sushi was more traditional (regular-sized cuts, less out-there toppings on the fish). Our chef was very friendly and knowledgeable about the sushi, the service was also quick and attentive. 15 pieces + hand roll. All were really good, but a few of the standouts were: Kohada, Hokkaido uni, Hotate (Scallop), and Anago. The hotate in particular was one of the best that I've ever had~ not only was it fresh (something you'd expect at a place like this), but the texture was softer and less chewy than other hotate I've had in the past, and the taste itself was more neutral, the smoked sea salt giving it a nice smoky salty taste on the back end. Hokkaido uni was pleasantly creamy; Anago was soft and naturally sweet and needed no sauce; Kohada was similar to mackeral in taste but probably slightly less so, the umami flavor was real nice. Honestly, all of the pieces were great, but those were the standouts. All in all, a really nice meal, and at a good price for good omakase. A place I'd recommend to anyone who knows and likes good sushi.

I really enjoyed Juku! Came here on a Wednesday night for omakase - 15 pieces + a hand roll. I would say that the pieces are much more on the traditional side and was a great balance of different types of fishes and seafood. Everything was super fresh and heavenly. My favorite pieces were the sweet shrimp, uni and fatty tuna stacked on tuna! Our omakase chef was awesome! Super sweet, knowledgeable, friendly and considerate. Kinda cool too with his orange dyed hair! At the end of the meal, they gave us shots of yuzu sake... mmm! Service was fantastic. When we first walked in, the hostess asked us if we would like to check in our coats. Once we handed her our coats, she sat us down by the omakase bad. Next, our waiter was attentive and always made sure that our glasses of water were filled and would check up on us the right amount of times to the point where we didn't seem smothered. Atmosphere wise, it was a very contemporary and modern place. I loved the decor and the type of music they were playing. It definitely made you feel like you we're at a trendy spot! IG: @twomorebites

Possibly one of the greatest mokases makasese I have EVER had. I ate and enjoyed every single one. When I droppped my chopsticks they PROMPTLY delivered me a new set ... thank you for a wonderful mokokaasesese experience!!!

Omakase sushi at Juku was memorable! Started with a drink at the bar, then escorted to sit in front of the sushi chef to prepare bite size personal service for you and your guest. It's an excellent choice to bring your company to dine here and enjoy the experience. I truly enjoyed a memorable Omakase at Juku!!!!!

Went to Juku for my boyfriend's birthday and we had an okay time there. They were super accommodating with us when we informed them that we'd be late due to extenuating circumstances! I really appreciated this as a lot of other places would just cancel your reservation if you're 20 mins late. That being said, the nigiri were quite small for the price and we were hungry about 30 mins after the meal ended (bless you, late night NYC pizza!!!). The pieces that were served were not that memorable or innovative and they also forgot the candle for my boyfriend's dessert at the end. Spoiler, I had to remind them :( Probably the best part of the night was the sake we ordered, which we both liked as it was a funky, slightly fermented junmai. Overall, I'd probably pass on this omakase, as I've had much better both at the same price point, and for much cheaper.

The best Omakase sushi place in town. Highly recommend by all my Japanese friends. Each piece is so delicate and perfectly seasoned. There's a bar at the basement, worth stopping by after the meal.

KenScale: 8.25/10 One of the pleasant surprises for sushi omakase meal that my wife Jun and I have had in the past couple of years since we started dating in 2016 came from an unassuming restaurant in Brooklyn called 1 or 8, where chef Kazuo Yoshida offered a very memorable dining experience with carefully sourced fish and his minimalistic approach to the art of sushi making. Late last year, chef Kazuo jumped ship to a multi-restaurant concept called Juku in Chinatown, which consists of an izakaya on the ground floor and his omakase counter on the second floor. I have been meaning to check out Juku ever since the news of its opening to say hello to chef Kazuo (Jun was hoping that he would remember playfully showing us his own miniature figure at 1 or 8) and see if he was still killing it at the new location. We finally made it on a recent Friday evening. The transition from a cozy counter at a neighborhood Williamsburg restaurant to a counter inside a rather splashy modern Japanese space was noticeable, and it was evident that the audience at chef Kazuo's new counter was not the Brooklynites living near 1 or 8, but hip, young crowds with financial means to splurge for a sushi omakase dinner. Granted, the pricing (at $80 per person for 12 pieces and $120 per person for 15 pieces) still feels like a bargain compared to the hyper-expensive places that have recently opened in the city, but the charm of a neighborhood gem was no longer there. Well, what about the food? Compared to our experience at 1 or 8, we (especially Jun) felt the individual pieces were somewhat uneven in terms of quality of fish and the use of seasoning, but we nevertheless had a pretty satisfying meal. One thing that Jun and I both noticed upon being served the first couple of nigiri pieces was that the size of each fish seemed to have become smaller than what we had at 1 or 8. Maybe all the costs into building the restaurant's glitzy space affected the "downsizing" of the fish size? And Jun immediately reacted negatively to the striped jack (shima aji) and soy marinated tuna that came as first and second pieces, remarking that the fish in both instances simply were not fresh enough (she senses the freshness of fish a lot better than I do). Other times, the use of seasoning was a bit of an issue. The fatty tuna (o toro) had superb, oily texture, yet it didn't need the extra salt on top of it. Chef Kazuo brought in some interesting pieces that we had not previously seen at other sushi restaurants, like a maki of baby sardines, but I felt it overused the soy sauce to give a rather funky flavor to the fish. Having mentioned all of these issues, I still felt the majority of pieces we sampled were wonderful, whether it was the golden eye snapper or Tasmanian king salmon that had silky smooth texture just the way I liked, or the Spanish mackerel with ghost pepper sea salt that had a very nice spicy kick, or the sea eel and the Hokkaido sea urchin (uni) that were literally melting in my mouth. Chef Kazuo also brought some interesting ingredients to the mix, such as Dungeness crab and the above mentioned baby sardines (although I have to confess neither was my favorite piece of the night), while also adding different types of flavor to give something extra to the fish, like the spicy scallion and the combination of lemon juice and sea salt that helped enhance the already delicious bonito and scallop respectively, or the yuzu flavor that worked beautifully with the Japanese grouper that displayed a surprisingly robust texture. A hand roll of fatty tuna, daikon radish and salmon roe was more or less a perfect ending to the meal that Jun and I also enjoyed a lot. Getting a reservation at chef Kazuo's counter seating (which can hold 12 guests at each of the three settings a night at 6, 8 and 10 p.m.) is likely to require an advance reservation through Yelp. There is a full bar (in addition to sake and wine options, you can also order cocktails from the izakaya space downstairs), but a carafe of sake is probably the way to go here. As mentioned above, if you are looking for a dinner in a hip setting with the latest Pop music coming out from the speaker somewhere, Juku can provide that experience. If you want a bit more low key setting, you might actually get distracted during your meal. When Jun showed chef Kazuo the photo of his miniature figure that he showed us two years ago (coincidentally, we visited Juku exactly two years after we went to 1 or 8), he chuckled and said the little one is on vacation. This is one restaurant where Jun and I debated for a bit which KenScale score should be given. I gave credit to all the positives from the meal, while Jun said it was hard to overlook some of the inconsistencies that she did not see at 1 or 8. In any event, compared to the other much pricier options in the city, Juku does option a nice value proposition, and I do think chef Kazuo has not yet lost his touch entirely despite some of the misses.

Had a great omakase experience here for a date night, intimate and cozy. Our chef who was also the owner was funny and skilled. I enjoyed watching him prepare our sushi and carefully placing the delicate and fresh fish on top of the rice. Everything was so delicious and melted in my mouth. Everyone one who worked there was so nice and attentive to us. I would definitely come back again. This place is also really cool because it has three floors and each floor has a different concept. I actually found out about this place by checking out the speakeasy the first time and then had to come back again to try the omakase and left really content again. Make sure to checkout the speakeasy in the basement.

Okay. I've never had omakase before. I've always wanted to try it and 19 @ Juku broke my omakase virginity. The omakase here also has a great budget so it's more affordable. They offer two different options: $80 for 12 pcs of sushi $120 for 15 pcs of sushi and a handroll. Needless to say, I went for the lather option (heh). Super amazing, great plating, chefs are interactive and actually talk to you (kudos to you Abet - not sure if I spelled your name right but we loved you!). Each piece of sushi is made with love and you can see it from the chef's eyes. His heart was into it and it wasn't a sloppy sushi. The experience is undeniably amazing and I am super addicted to both Juku and omakase now. I highly recommend you to come here and try the 15 pcs of sushi and a handroll. You will come out full and in awe (that was me, literally). Their cocktails are also yummy so please enjoy one (recommending the one with Japanese whiskey because it's so yummy). I don't want to spoil your experience so I will say no more, but please do yourself a favor and come here. Oh, and make a reservation, it'll be wise to do so. p.s.- Great atmosphere, romantic and their downstairs are izakaya options which I would love to try soon. I also really like the location, it's located in the midst of Chinatown--exactly the perfect neighborhood that is in dire need of a great sushi place. Amazing. Love you, Juku!

4.5 because it definitely is bang for your buck in terms of the omakase but some slight room for improvement. Been 3x so far and have only done the omakase so can only speak to that -- Service is pretty good. Personable chefs and open to answering all your ques should you have any. Quality of fish is really good but I also think there's better out there . Nothing wrong with that tho! Drinks are also really good -- good rotating beer selection but the Yuzu cocktail is delicious. Pick the later seating time for an opportunity to do an uni tasting/sampler. They can't accommodate so readily if you did the 6pm but if later, they sometimes have up to 7 varieties of uni to try! Hostesses could use more training or simply be more seasoned.

Went here for my birthday and will without a doubt return! It was such a fun surprise to find a restaurant totally off the beaten path in Chinatown (one of my fave hoods in NYC). I found this gem thanks to TimeOut magazine. Juku is definitely for an elevated palette. Our server educated us on the style of food offered on the first floor, 2nd Floor, and downstairs areas. Each gives a different ambiance but allow for a cohesive flow in vibe. The first floor serves a moderate offering but finely made seafood dishes, not just sushi. Our server made us a specialty cocktail because it was special day so that was nice. Anytime I go to a place where it's obvious the bartenders are true mixologists, I let them get creative. No one disappointed!

Very nice and friendly place. Omasaki is fresh and tasty. One of the best omasaki I have had in the city. The price is very reasonable.

19 @ Juku was incredible!! Kazu was just amazing - we did the 15pc + hand roll omakase and could not believe how well he managed to make each piece taste unique and different from every other one. Every piece we had seemed as though it tasted better than the last, but then, they were all so distinctly innovative that it was hard to compare! Great value too, although drinks are on the pricey side (though to be expected, given the quality). Definitely recommend!

We decided last minute to do an omakase for New Year's Eve and we were lucky to find this relatively easy to make reservation! The omakase at Juku is on the top floor, with the main level for an Izakaya menu and the lower level being a bar/cocktail lounge. We arrived on time for our reservations but had to wait about 20 minutes at the bar until we were brought upstairs. Decor is very trendy and chic, and in addition, possibly due to NYE, everyone was dressed well. We ordered a cocktail, El Gran Hamada, at the bar while we waited; essentially a margarita with a little bit of shiso leaf added. Once we were seated at the omakase bar, it took a few minutes for everything to get started but after that, service was excellent. Our waitress was lovely and funny, and helped us pick out a bottle of sake. There were two sushi chefs serving the table of 12, and although we weren't seated with Kazuo Yoshida, our chef was very good; seemingly serious but was kind and polite. This is definitely a more traditional omakase, with maybe 1 or 2 seared pieces,and few garnishes such as ghost pepper salt and spicy scallion, but every piece was delicious and so so fresh. The uni was the sweetest uni I've ever tasted. We ended with tamago that was so light and sweet and perfect. The pacing and flow of sushi pieces was thoughtful and on point. My only critique would be that the pieces seemed a bit small. But for the price,$125 for 15 pieces and a handroll and a shot of yuzu sake to end the meal, I left very happy.

** 4.5 stars ** With a budget under $200, having a fine sushi omakase in NYC has never been easier. Having truly fantastic sushi, now, not so much. In place after place, imperfections, often slight, sometimes not, detract from otherwise good sushi places that respect the craft, serve bracingly fresh fish, and display capable knife skills. And yet, I find myself recalling specific omakase because of fish that was consistently a hair too cold or cut too big, or shari served too warm or under-seasoned or off texture, or flavors too aggressive or too mild. Not great motivators to return, and rightly or not, I've not returned to very many. Instead, I aim to try most omakase under $200, so dining at Juku was expected. Opened in early December, this restaurant in Manhattan's Chinatown comes with promising pedigree, headed by Kazuo Yoshida, formerly of Williamsburg's 1 or 8. The first floor features a beverage bar and small izakaya dining room, while the upstairs loft space holds only the 12-seat sushi bar. Yoshida-san heads the omakase, serving the first six seats, while Kei Sasaki serves the other half. Right away, their sartorial style sets the vibe. Dressed in stylish navy short-sleeve buttoned shirts with mandarin collars and polka dots, topped off by baseball caps embroidered with the number "19" (which Juku can be translated to in Japanese), traditional and contemporary co-mingle comfortably. With seatings at two hour intervals at 6 PM, 8 PM, and 10 PM, timeliness is essential. Reservations are a must, and only even number parties can book (get that extra person!). The official omakase choices are $80 for 12 pieces or $120 for 15 pieces plus handroll. As with most omakase places, customizing is possible within the allotted time, and adjustments to cost. For now, this is a sushi bar, with sashimi and cooked dishes not making the cut. My first experience was early December, barely a week after opening. With few expectations, I walked away with a follow-up visit in mind. It was my first near flawless sushi experience in a long time, starring a memorably flavorful shari. The sushi pieces are markedly smaller than most, the only aspect I'd prefer differently, but one I can overlook. Three additional visits confirm the skill of Juku's omakase. Whether served by Yoshida-san or Sasaki-san, the sushi is consistently well-made, with almost none of the temperature or seasoning excursions that have thrown off other meals. Fish selection is good, if fairly standard for NYC now, but there are always a few less common or seasonal choices. Their signature chopped horse mackerel and scallion, scented with shiso, is a nice mid-way piece. They have some interesting seasonings on hand, including ghost pepper salt, and sear a few pieces to great effect, aburi style. The tamago is quite good. And still, for me, at every visit, the delicious shari steals the show. Enjoy the omakase with a limited but decent beverage selection: sake, wines, a craft and Sapporo beer on tap, some bottled beers, liquor, and a good cocktail menu often using Asian ingredients. The easy-drinking Big Wet's Sugoiii Tiki rum-based cocktail comes in an irresistible happy Buddha container, topped with a cowboy hat and a steel straw emerging from his belly. Yoshida-san and Sasaki-san are friendly and curious, and relatively proficient in English. The 2-hour slots limit discussion, but there is enough opportunity to chat. Service is attentive and unobtrusive. 19 at Juku is an excellent sushi omakase experience, one well-worth having, and which I'll be heading back to again.

This is the sushi bar that is located on the 2nd floor of Juku which has a izakaya on the ground floor. Seatings are at 6, 8, and 10 pm. Plenty of time for a nice sit down sushi meal. The decor and ambiance is modern and the atmosphere is hip. Even the sushi chefs dress up in casual wear with baseball caps. If making a reservation definitely arrive early so you can be seated with the owner Chef Kazuo Yoshida who's very interactive, funny, and creates a great omakase meal. We chose the 15 piece and highlights were the mackerel, tazmania salmon, toro on toro, and the types of uni, (santa barabara, hokaido, and aged uni). They have a wonderful cocktail list as well and the tiki cocktail was very refreshing. I will be back.

Came here for my wife's birthday a couple nights ago. They offer omakase options of $80 for 12 pieces or $120 for 15 pieces and 1 handroll. We picked the larger option. The fish was definitely fresh and the meal itself was definitely reasonable. While I expected "finer" sushi reastaurants to have smaller pieces, Juku took this to the next level. The pieces were unreasonably tiny! Each piece were about the size of my wife's thumb and even after 15 pieces, we left feeling like we barely ate. The incredibly small bites completely distracted us from the actual quality of the food. There are plenty of other places offering sushi of equal quality at similar prices, but much larger portions. I didn't think this was any better and it was less food than the $60 you spend at place like sushi on jones.

My experiences of Omakase on 3rd floor. Taisho chef is very nice and knowledgeable. His Shari preparation is good, right temperature and mixtures of vinegar. Fish is also good quality in general. I will come back

A very interesting place w the bar in the basement, the izakaya restaurant on the first floor and the omakase on the second floor. Each floor was very well decorated. We did the omakase tonight, every pce of the fish was so fresh and the taste was so on point. Our chef(I think he's the owner) gave each of us 2 extra pces of sushi on top of the 15 that's from the omakase. We also got a free sake shot, a small pce of cake for dessert and a free cocktail drink to redeem from the basement bar. The price was well worth it. Definitely going back again.

I was very impressed with the omakase at Juku last night which was for my birthday dinner. Everything was perfect and each bite was delicious. My favorites were the snapper jack with spicy scallions, the mackerel, the striped snapper and the dungeness crab. We were sitting in front of Chef Kazu Abe and he was so nice and sweet. The only 2 slight flaws was that the lighting at the omakase bar is really weird and that the uni was a little too cold. I still had 2 pieces of the uni but that really stood our to me. After we got to have drinks in the basement and the bartender was amazing. I had initially gone to the izakaya right when they opened and was disappointed but yesterday's trip really made up for it.

I dined at Juku two weeks ago, and to date, I still have only regret from visiting this restaurant for my friend's birthday. We wanted to give this place a try because of the reviews, but the 2-hour long session with much smaller portioned pieces, and slower paced service made this place not worthy of a visit. The sushi chef in front of us who was responsible for the dining room orders was nice. The main chef who was serving the bar patrons took about 10 minutes per piece. And since we were at the other end of the table, it felt like there was no interaction of the sushi-bar experience. After an hour, we were 5-6 pieces through, and very hungry. I would opt for other places like Gari, Yasuda, Azabu and other gems in the city for the $120/pp price tag...

This restaurant is quiet and peace. Limited seat for omakake, just only 12 seats. Reservation is required if you need to have omakake. It was quiet on Monday. Fish is fresh and sushi rice is good size for fish. I had large that came with 15 pieces on sushi. Sushi size was a little small. Sushi chef is friendly and he works neat and good seasoning on every single bite.

Excellent spot for an Omakase deflowering. Took my best bud here for his first Omakase experience and it delivered. We had drinks before our scheduled seating at the bar on the ground floor - cocktails were on point and the bartender was supremely welcoming and attentive. (I'd be remiss if I failed to mention that the excellent service was a constant theme of our whole evening.) From our masterful sushi chef to the wait staff that carefully looked after our drink levels and the tidiness of the counter. The sushi itself was excellent. Each piece carefully crafted, temperature was perfect, and every bite melted in your mouth. There were even some inventive pieces with some nice combinations without overpowering the flavor of the fish. So I got everything I wanted. Great sushi with a few fresh spins. Boner points for the sexiness of this place as well. Nice tunes.

Pretty good omakase but thought it was pricey for what it was. Did the $120 omakase for 15 pieces and a hand roll. My main complaint was the tiny tiny pieces or nigiri, smaller than my thumb. Was definitely still hungry afterwards, luckily in Chinatown it's easy to find cheap filling food after juku. Pretty interesting fish selection, a few I've never seen before including a tiny whole squid. A few of the pieces were a bit fishy tho, not a great sign of freshness. Uni was my favorite piece of the night, no surprise there. The nori was a bit chewy on the hand roll, had some trouble biting through it. Piece of tamago and a glass of sweet yuzu sake to finish was really nice. But we did notice a few people down the bar got a few different pieces? Maybe it was al a cart but I would have assumed we would have gotten to try everything since we picked the large omakase option. Our chef worked right in front of us and was pretty funny. Answered anything we asked. Overall not bad, but I think there are better spots in NYC at that price point

Very mediocre Sushi Omikase. Try Nare Sushi on East 57th street and make sure you have Sushi Chef Wind. Now that's a great Sushi Omikase experience.

4-4.5 stars. Firstly, it's really easy to make resos on Yelp, which is nice. Make sure you choose the omakase option specifically though if that's what you're going for. There's a 20 minute grace window to make your reso, which is super nice because the area is a little bit hard to get to. As for the food itself - I really enjoyed it. I thought that the pieces of fish in all of the nigiri were on the smaller side among the omakases I've tried, but everything was extremely fresh and garnished uniquely. I left feeling comfortably full and really enjoyed the general variety. The handroll at the end was also a nice touch. The only thing that I was a bit surprised at was service slowing down majorly at the end. (Probably took about 5-7 minutes to get each of the last 5 pieces which was kinda nuts given that it was supposed to only be a 1-hour-ish meal). This may have been because we were a bit late to our reso and the sushi chef was dealing with new customers, but still wouldn't have expected the flow to slow down that much. Overall a great experience though and would add to the list of quality omakases in the city!

This place is so privately and escape from the disturbance of New York. When you step in the ambience is so quiet with the hip music. This place located in China town and the store front is so dark..you need to guess. lol, I had the omakase 15 pieces. All 15 are so fresh and delicious,wine and Sake selections are a bit pricey but it worth to spend.

This is a very good omakase place. Very fresh fish and much of it from Japan. The chef prepared each sushi piece with just the right amount of rice and light seasoning - like smoked salt. You always taste the fish regardless of how it is prepared and that is part of the mastery. You really don't need soy sauce or wasabi. They give you a small glass of yuzu sake at the end. Excellent way to finish.

Omakase was excellent, especially for the price. $120 for 15 piece omakase, hand roll and aperitif. We had fish that we'd never had before and in new, creative presentations. A must go.

I had high expectations but it was just ok. We opted for the $120 option - 15 pieces plus an hand roll. 3 pieces were amazing but the rest were either just ok or tasted not super fresh. I've had much better (and more consistent freshness) for this price point. Will not be on my sushi list.

Solid omakase, very tasty and fresh, and our sushi chef was great, friendly and did not hesitate to joke around. Take the servers' advice on sake also, it was fantastic.

Sushi is great here - perfectly cooked and seasoned rice and freshest fish toppings. The size was too small though. If the size of sushi is a little more bigger and brings more flavor and texture, it would be perfect. The service at the entrance and interior at the omakase counter could be improved.

Chef Kazuo was my favorite in Brooklyn, and his new place is great. The quality of the sushi, plus intimate setting, and the relatively modest price for what you get, make it one of the top omakases in the city in my opinion. (and I'm comparing to Ichimura @ Uchu, Shuko, and others). Cool, hip atmosphere also make the sushi bar at Juku more approachable than others for an impromptu dinner date.

Easily one of the best omakase bars in the city, Chef Kazuo and his team are sushi masters of the highest order whose originality are unparalleled.

The best in town. Kaz has the most sophisticated game in town. The Isakaya is also excellent and offers specials from the sushi bar