Kokkaku

It’s hard to find a happy hour menu that you can explore with each visit and be excited to try, but that’s Kokkaku! The bruschetta offers a lot of choices and I’ve liked each one I tried. Their drinks aren’t alcohol-forward which I personally like (I don’t usually drink much). If you like finding eggs in your fish, the shishamo is a fun appetizer. I haven’t tried their non-happy hour items too much (the mains). I’m not sure if I’d go there for entrees if I’m craving Japanese, but I definitely recommend checking out the happy hour items!

Somehow we ended up dining here on a night we did have an appetite for beef. Still we had a delicious meal. An old fashioned, ceviche, the wings, and fried smelt, and you can’t go wrong. The seafood pasta was a bit gloppy, but still pretty good and filling.

Came here for my birthday with friends and it was amazing! We booked a reservation a few weeks early and noted we had a couple celiac people in the group. They were very accommodating to avoid cross contamination. Everyone really enjoyed their food - some ordered the chef menu options, others ordered Ala cart. I went with the chef menu of Wagu roasted beef with yuzu kosho dressing, Japanese cheese Hamburg steak with demi glace sauce, and the dessert of the day - chocolate cake. I also ordered a Toki old fashioned. Everything was wildly delicious - I highly recommend the hamburger. I don’t think the cheese added much so next time I’d get it without the cheese. Everyone in my group left happy and full.

We came by as a group of four with a reservation, and we were seated immediately! There was a mishap over the table not being ready yet, but they cleaned it up for us ASAP. The owner came by and made sure we were having a good time and answered all of our questions. We could tell that he was really passionate about wagyu and that he took pride in his work! We stayed and chatted for a long while, basically until closing time, and not once did the owner or the staff make us feel rushed about finishing up and leaving. It was a very cozy vibe, and the owner welcomed us to come back for happy hour next time! The Wagyu Sushi was our favorite and sooooo good!!! We will definitely come back to order more of it and try out the rest of the menu next time!! Definitely one of our favorites!

Wonderful find for us in Wallingford. The food is incredible, the staff are amazing. Great happy hour, and prices are really affordable for top tier food, presentation and service. Highly recommend, can't wait to go back.

Really unique and delicious wagyu steak, served with plenty of Japanese flair. The Wagyu Special Course is delicious and I'd highly recommend it if you want to experience all the varieties of Wagyu preparation that they offer. The sushi-inspired appetizers are unlike anything you've probably had before and the Wagyu ragu pasta is hearty and delicious. Unsurprisingly, the seared Wagyu steak is phenomenal and cooked to perfection. One member of our party has several dietary restrictions, including beef, and the staff were extremely understanding and flexible. They prepared a special gluten-free version of their chicken entree with no complaints and no extra fee, and it was delicious! For dessert, the fire tofu cheesecake is one of the best things on the menu. The soy milk panna cotta is also delicious, not too sweet, and it's gluten-free and vegan! Overall, we really enjoyed all the food and the service was exceptional.

This is a fantastic restaurant. The service was impeccable, and the food was exquisite. The ribeye was perfect. The seared Wagyu nigiri was another highlight. I also enjoyed the Caesar salad. Kokkku is going to be a restaurant where I bring guests to impress.

Kokkaku’s happy hour is an excellent mix of quality and value, with a few standout dishes that make it a must-visit. The best deal by far is the steak, served with an optional side of fries or a salad. We opted for the salad—a fresh, herby arugula mix that complemented the richness of the steak perfectly. The oysters were another highlight, priced at an incredible $1.75 each. Fresh and briny, they offered an unbeatable value and were a true delight. The shishamo fritters, featuring whole fried fish, were another must-order. Bursting with flavor and paired with a well-matched dipping sauce, they were an unexpected star of the menu. Unfortunately, not everything met expectations. The bruschetta was a disappointment—the bread, despite being grilled, was refrigerator-cold. Bread should be fresh or at least warm, and this was neither. It was an unfortunate misstep, especially given the kitchen’s otherwise impressive attention to detail. While the cold bread was a major letdown, it doesn’t overshadow the overall excellence of Kokkaku’s happy hour. I’ll definitely be back for the steak, oysters, and shishamo fritters—but I’ll be skipping the bruschetta. A near-perfect experience, but that one misstep keeps it from a full five stars.

Our annual visit to Kokkaku sparks joy! One of the rare establishments that raises the bar, every time. We wonder why we don't come more often. Niman Ranch Top Prime Sirloin Steak, 10 oz - perfectly seasoned, medium done steak. Served with rather extraordinary, silky mashed potatoes made with a secret Japanese ingredient..... Sea urchin & scallop fettuccine with salmon roe - this dish is all about the details. The sauce is simultaneously light and rich. A healthy amount of scallops, sea urchin, and salmon roe to make the dish wholesome. The arugula somehow just works. Octopus ceviche - a unique twist on ceviche, super refreshing! Just needs a couple of extra pieces of fried tortilla wraps. Fire cheesecake - I don't normally eat dessert, but I will always eat their tofu cheesecake.

Went here with a group of 7 on a Saturday. We made reservations, but a smaller group could have stopped by without one I think. Food was solid, for all this we paid about $55 per person. Our server did a great job of recommending different items. In the end we did three tasting menus to get a bunch of different things, plus ordered the two pastas and oysters. We ordered the steaks to be cooked to medium, but some parts looked closer to medium rare. Overall decent prices and good food! Would recommend stopping by, really recommend their tasting menus for best food to cost ratio.

Came here to celebrate an anniversary with their steak course! All of the food was included was really good. My favorite appetizer was the sashimi. The 4oz of steak was rich and very filling. Our favorite course was the ragu. For the dessert, I got the dessert of the day and feel like they ruined it by putting store bought crackers on it. Their tofu cheesecake was creative and yummy. Recommend to make reservations here! It's a pricey meal but good quality.

Nice quaint ambiance. Started out with fresh oysters from Oregon. They were excellent! 5 out if 5 definitely. Next had 3 bruschettas- Maguro,surf n wagyu & beer braised beef. Rate them 4 out of 5. Seared wagyu sushi which they torch at the table. Torched perfect to medium rare and taste was 5 out of 5! Finished off with hamburger steak which was 3.5 out of 5. Demiglace sauce was normal but cheese was half melted on top. Service was 4.2 out of 5. Bartender paid attention to Japanese speaking patrons more and was not all that attentive. Overall 4.2 rating and I would go there again to try other dishes.

I came with some friends to try the 2024 SRW menu, which was ~50 bucks per person for three courses. Overall, I thought the SRW menu was a solid enough deal, but nothing really impressed me. I would recommend snagging a recommendation if you can, though I was surprised they offered them up until 8:30 PM when the restaurant closes at 9. Service was very sweet though and didn't rush us at all and the chef himself checked in on tables. As with all the other restaurants in Wallingford, you'll have to drive around for some street parking, but it isn't too impossible of a task even on weekends. Maguro Katsu (2/5): The dish was just a bit odd? I think the tuna didn't really benefit from being in a katsu and texture wise somehow ended up being really firm and a bit stringy even raw. The brown jelly / sauce was just oddly too firm for me. Definitely not my favorite. American Kobe Wagyu Kainomi Steak 8oz (3.5/5): The steak itself was well seasoned and the cook was decent (asked for medium rare). I wasn't as impressed with actual cut of the meat as I wanted to be, it was still a bit chewy and not as fatty as you would want. The home run on the plate was the mashed potatoes - probably the best bite of food I had all night, insanely smooth and creamy with just the right amount of sodium. Soy Panna Cotta (3/5): Texture was perfect - just set and very wobbly. Flavor wise, I thought it was just a touch bland, but still a nice way to end the meal. I'd probably just go for another of their dessert options instead.

Had a fantastic SRW experience here. I'm a fan of all their restaurants and this one didn't disappoint either. This was definitely on my top, if not the best, "steakhouse" experience I've ever had. Not only does it taste good but it's not over-seasoned and every side dish is artistically cooked to perfection. The con was that all their dessert options had soy but they were nice enough to make a really delicious ice cream alternative for me. I like that they have happy hour 4:30-6pm of you don't feel like splur on steak. Not busy during happy hour but definitely should get a reservation during peak hours.

Such a lovely place! I came with a few people for restaurant week, and we were able to snag one of the last reservations. We got lucky, as it was completely full when we arrived. The inside is decently spacious, and I appreciate the large tables that aren't packed too closely together. For restaurant week they had a 3 course menu for $50. I got the maguro katsu which was coated in squid ink panko, the wagyu kainomi steak, and the hojicha cake with orange chocolate cream. The food came out at a good pace, and all of it was delicious! The tuna was so perfectly cooked and was nice and meaty with a light crunch on the outside, and the salad and sauce that accompanied it were great. Our entree, the steak, was my favorite item of the night by far. It came with perfectly cooked buttery mashed potatoes and salt and mustard seed for dipping. The steak was cooked to a perfect juicy medium rare and the sear and flavor on it was absolutely delicious! For dessert, I thought the cake was a little too dry and dense, but with the cream and chocolate it was good. Overall, our food was yummy and service was really friendly. The chef came in and checked on everything a few times which I thought was really considerate. I would recommend this spot!

I'm giving this 3 stars based on my Seattle Restaurant Week experience. The Good: Starters were a hit. We had the Wagyu tartare and maguro katsu, and both were delicious. Definitely the highlight of the meal. The Not-So-Good: The main course, however, fell short. The Zabuton and New York steak was bland and lacked seasoning, plus it was tough with too many muscle sections, leaving quite a few inedible parts on the plate. Disappointingly, no one asked if there was an issue or why we didn't finish. Dessert was a mixed experience. The hoji cake was extremely dry, almost as if it was missing an ingredient, while the tofu cheesecake was fine but didn't resemble cheesecake in taste. Service was slow mainly because the food took quite a while to come out. It took about two hours to finish the three-course menu, even though we're typically quick eaters. We've tried their regular menu before and loved it, so it's too bad they didn't showcase their best for the SRW.

Kokkaku is where I took my girlfriend for her birthday since she always joked about getting steak in the past. I've had A5 wagyu in Japan before (shout out Oniku Karyu in Tokyo), so I certainly had high expectations going in. Reviewing each of the dishes in our WAGYU Special Course ($125/person): -Seared Wagyu Sushi: I should have asked our server to sear the wagyu a bit more (she did offer, so that was on me), but I was a bit surprised by how raw the beef still was even after like a minute of blow-torching. I wouldn't have minded if it had been seared a bit more, but overall the sushi was a nice opening to the special course. - A5 Wagyu Sashimi and A5 Wagyu Nigiri: This was actually my first time eating raw A5 wagyu. I was impressed that you could still tell it was A5 wagyu by how rich it was. I probably would have preferred if these was seared too, but I guess it was nice to try something new. - Wagyu Tartare: Pretty good, though I found the micro greens a little distracting; they got in the way of mixing the egg yolk with everything else. - Wagyu Gunkan Sushi: This was probably my favorite of the Wagyu 4 Ways appetizer. I'm not entirely sure why. I guess I just like seaweed and rice a lot haha. - Wagyu Ragu Sauce Linguine: Once again, not really a fan of the micro greens on top but the pasta itself was packed full of delicious beef flavor. The noodles were nice and chewy, and I absolutely loved how tender the wagyu beef was too. I wouldn't have minded if they had added a bit more cheese either. - A5 Wagyu Manhattan Striploin Steak: the star dish of the meal (obviously). If you've never had A5 Wagyu in your life, I urge you to try it at least once. A5 Wagyu is the reason I consider beef my favorite protein; no other meat can reach such a peak in my opinion. The A5 Wagyu steak (I got mine medium rare) was delicious as expected. What I did not expect was how much I would enjoy the garlic anchovy mashed potatoes. I'm not normally a fan of fishy flavors, but I liked how rich and flavorful the mashed potatoes were here. They paired perfectly with the steak and certainly left me feeling pretty full. - Dessert: I got the mango pudding which came with a slice of cantaloupe and two slices of pineapple. The pudding was nice and sweet, a good ending to my meal. My girlfriend got the dessert of the day which was a hojicha cake. She and I both agree it was probably one of the driest cakes we've ever had. I would avoid that cake at all costs. Overall, I was pretty pleased with our experience at Kokkaku. A5 Wagyu never disappoints I guess. Not sure when I will be back (my wallet could not handle many visits haha), but I would certainly recommend this restaurant to others.

The food, service and ambiance are phenomenal!! It's authentic style of Japanese steak house, I tried half of the menu within two visits and I wanted more!

After viewing instagram, I tried happy hour for the first time here. Such a great deal on apps and drinks. I ordered some oysters on the shell, Japanese style cheese humbug with demo glacé sauce, and a piece of wagyu aburi sushi accompanied by a glass of peach calpico that's similar to cyuhai Everything was delicious except for the hamburg that was very salty. I asked my friend who had the same dish and she had the same opinion. I provided the feedback to the server. The drink was sweet and refreshing with shochu alcohol. I really liked it! I'm so glad I asked the server for suggestion . The oysters are $1.75 per shell. I don't think there's any other place who offer this deal. Only one kind of oyster was offered. But Gotta have it if you're there. They have Tabasco, ponzu or cocktail sauce which was out of stock. I had them with ponzu. The aburi wagyu sushi is a must at this place. They shear wagyu in front of you as in the video. Medium rare seems to be popular. The Wagyu was soft and fatty that went well with vinegared rice. No soy sauce needed. If planned ahead of time, reservation is available on Yelp platform. Really easy. I

One of my friends recommended this spot and told me to go for Seattle restaurant week deals, I made some reservations with friends and tried it. Overall it was pretty good, all of the food was super good and the service was nice. It was packed when we went with all tables full, we were at a table next to the bar and when a server tried to fill up my water I think it was a bit too crowded for them and they ended up knocking my water over on the table. I did like the food but it didn't wow me as much as I wanted it to, I did find the potatoes that came with my streak as super good and the show that came with the cheesecake was super fun. Overall it was a fun, but not a must for me and not sure I'd go back.

A wagyu lover's dream. We savored every bite. I got the $125 Wagyu Special Course, and my bf got the American Wagyu Kainomi Steak. We started off with the Seared Wagyu Sushi, which they sear in front of you. The wagyu was still rare, which I loved. It was delicious. Then came the Wagyu 4 Ways, and they were all delicious. The A5 Wagyu Nigiri might be my favorite out of the four. Next was the Wagyu Ragu Sauce Linguine, and that was very tasty. My Japanese A5 Wagyu Zabuton Steak was amazing; it literally melted in my mouth. And my bf also loved his Wagyu Kainomi Steak. And we ordered the Garlic Anchovy Mashed Potato, which was probably one the best mashed potatoes we've had. For dessert, we shared the Fire Tofu Cheese Cake, which was tasty, better than I expected. Everything was absolutely delicious. You can really taste the quality of all the meats. And the staff and service were excellent.

My first time trying a raw beef nigiri. It was pretty good, would definitely try it again for special occasions. The steak was really good too, I ate it all up!

WAGYU (3.2 stars) Steak is always the chosen dinner for the birthday celebration. We wanted to try something a little different and outside of downtown. Reservations is highly recommended as this place is small and gets packed. -FOOD: ok -PRICE: ok -SERVICE: average -AMBIANCE: didn't feel highend and felt like a simple eatery :: ORDER :: AMERICAN LEMONADE ($6/HH menu) - red wine, lemon juice, syrup. Meh. I could have done without. The red wine was a cheap one mixed with lemonade. SEARED EDAMAME ($6) - black pepper and olive oil. BUT WHY did it taste kind of fishy - also the description didn't say a thing about salt but there was salt. We had asked the server to check if there was any cross contamination and there wasn't. I've had edamame countless times and this didn't taste like edamame. DO NOT RECOMMEND BREAD AND KOJI BUTTER ($4) - this came with four slices of grilled bread. The koji butter came out hard and not easily spreadable over the bread. Thought the butter would be a little saltier and rich but tasted like normal butter. WAGYU SPECIAL COURSE ($125/PP) - Worth the portion to price but they need to rethink about the some of the ingredients. I would ask to not have them salt the steak and put the salt in the side. And I'd exchange the garlic anchovies mash potato for something else. -Amuse- Seares Wagyu Sushi (1pc) - this came with 1 super think sliced wagyu blanket-ing sushi rice similar to a seared nigiri. It was medium charred at the table and it was buttery, tender, charred brings out the oils and flavors. This was a great opener to the rest of the special course. HIGHLY RECOMMEND -Appetizer- Wagyu 4 Ways. They forgot to mention. "Wagyu 4 Ways RAW". I did feel that the first bite revolved in the next bite. HIGHLY RECOMMEND 1. A5 Wagyu Sashimi - first time having raw wagyu and it was great. This was very thin sliced like the amuse dish above minus the rice. 2. A5 Wagyu Nigiri - this was like the dish above but with rice. A mini version of the amuse bite above but not seared. 3. American Wagyu Tartar - the tartar reminded me of "poke". It has that sliminess, dash of sesame oil, garnished with micro-greens, and a little tiny table of raw egg yolk to mix together. It was the most flavorful of this 4 way taste. 4. American Wagyu Gunkan Sushi - this was pretty much the tartar minus the raw egg yolk and micro-greens on top of sushi rice and wrapped around seaweed paper but the quality kind that's not too fishy/umami. -Pasta- Wagyu Ragu Sauce Linguini - this was savory and kind of rich. I couldn't eat all of it because it was filling and the ragu was very meaty. At this point I kind ig was getting tired of eating wagyu. Who says that?! -Main- Japanese A5 Wagyu Manhattan Striplion Steak (4oz) - got this as medium! The steak was very rich as wagyu is expected to be so 3oz was plenty. However, the choice of maldon salt was overpowering for such a beautify cut of meat. Wagyu can be enjoyed by itself because it's so fatty, juicy, and tender. And to have maldon salt on top made the steak too salty. I wish they put the salt on the side to allow the custom to control how much salty they want. This plate came with Garlic Anchovy Mash Potatoes and vegetables.... was it just us but we did NOT enjoy the Garlic Anchovy Mash Potatoes, it tasted a little too fishy and salty served with a salty steak. Had to dilute it to with a side of plane rice to dilute the salt and taste the deliciousness of Japanese Wagyu. The salt on the Japanese Wagyu and the anchovy ingredient in the mash potatoes failed this dish. But of all the steaks on the menu, this was the best quality one and most expensive. -Dessert- Fire Tofu Cheesecake - TOFU?! Yup!!! the server charred the tofu cheesecake at table side. This was quite lovely! Imagine silky tofu with cheesecake flavor and charred sugar on top similar to a roasted marshmallow/crème brûlée. It was served with two pieces of fruit (slice of orange and slice of cantaloupe) which I felt were disconnected from the dessert and was a "filler" and "pop of color" only. Fruity compote would have been a better choice. But that cheesecake was a hit. HIGHLY RECOMMEND MID WEST GRAIN FED BEEF NY STRIPLOIN STEAK ($54) - I didn't order this but I tried it. They didn't have rib eye on their menu due to rotation and this was "closest" to ribeye. Orders this as medium-well and it came out looking medium but tastes kind of tough and chewy. I've had very well executed medium-well streaks where it was still tender and this place was not one of them. Steak was also little too salty. This came with anchovy mash potatoes and vegetables too. Worth a try as they do focus on Wagyu BUT didn't feel it was up to par of what I expected from the experience. There are many other steak places to be had. Until the next review...

We had a very mixed experience in this restaurant in one night. We came here for SRW and we ordered the Zabuton steak as one of the entrees, which adds extra $10 to the $50 course meal. When we got the steak, we were shocked to find that it was quite hard to cut with a reasonably sharp knife. The meat was extremely tough and stringy. We normally don't complain about the food, but this was just so disappointing, especially given that this restaurant specializes in steaks. We thought something might've gone wrong, so we told our waitress (which took about 10 mins because she never came by) that the meat is hard to cut. She seemed flustered and went to check on what we had ordered, and then came back and said with an ATTITUDE it's the right meat and walked away (?!?!). We thought she would've at least checked in with the chef but she simply looked at the ordering system. Afterwards, she kept ignoring us, walking past us and not even refilling our water. The steak was nearly inedible so we ended up flagging another waiter, and he went to go talk to the chef, which is the reasonable thing to do. The chef actually came to find us, and apologized and offered to give us a different piece of steak which is the cheaper one (kainomi) on the menu. While our original waitress continued to not even glance at us, the chef himself brought out the steak. This one was way more tender and we appreciated that he cared enough to give us a replacement. In addition, he brought out an extra dessert that we did not order as a way to apologize, which was very sweet and kind of him. Although the chef was caring and kind (reason for 2 stars instead of 0), our night felt ruined by the rude waitress. She didn't even come to clear our plates between the entree and dessert. It was as if she was pissed at us, although we were quite polite in asking if it was the right steak. The food in general were also just ok - our favorites were the tuna katsu and fire tofu cheesecake dessert. Hojicha cake was too dense and the meat dishes weren't that impressive, even the one that was cooked again. Also, the service in general seemed really slow and inattentive in general. There were many servers and we were out of water pretty early, but could only get their attention to refill our water by the end of the meal after 2 hours. Overall, very disappointing as we were pretty excited to try this place out.

Really enjoyed the wagyu appetizer here. The course meals are good value and service is great. There wasn't any AC when we went in the summer but I imagine in the winter it's cozy.

Came for the Seattle Restaurant Week Menu! Highly recommend making reservations in advance. My husband and I came here on a Tuesday night for dinner, it was a fully booked restaurant! The atmosphere is really nice! Gives intimate and cozy vibes and the bar is really swanky! The SRW menu is $50 pp and comes with choice of an appetizer, main entree, and dessert with options to upgrade some main items. My husband and I each took part in the SRW menu: Appetizers - + sukiyaki wagyu beef on takana rice - this was pretty tasty! Rice had a nice flavor and meat was buttery, I wish the sukiyaki flavor came out a bit more. + sockeye salmon - very generous portion of salmon. My husband enjoyed this, I thought it was ok, maybe needed more flavor. Mains: + wagyu beef zabutton ($10 upgrade) + wagyu beef kainomi Both steaks were very high quality and tasty. Dessert: + Fire tofu cheesecake - this was the best! So light and fluffy and they blow torch it at the table + hojicha tea cake - this one grew on me the more I ate it. It's a little more dry and dense but has a really good flavor and taste. Overall, I really enjoyed this spot!

We went for restaurant week. We were all fairly happy with the value at $50/pp. Restaurant was pretty small, tables were sticky. Service was incredibly slow. I think it took 30 minutes to just get our order taken and the entire meal lasted close to 2 hours. Food was good though, the steak was well seasoned and relatively accurately cooked to preference. While I did enjoy the food at the prices we paid I can't say I'd recommend it at regular prices all things considered.

This restaurant appears to be located in an old, forgotten neighborhood, but that made it easy to secure a reservation for a large group. It's a small, casual Japanese steakhouse. The Wagyu special tasting course was delicious. The Fire Tofu Cheesecake was delicious! Way better than how it sounded. Not New York style cheesecake, but not at all jiggly or light like tofu. They torch/brûlée everything at your table. No options for vegetarians aside from a side salad and one or two appetizers. Two single stall bathrooms located in the back.

OMG. What an experience! Came to their happy hour for the best priced oysters in town with girlfriends, and ended up loving everything we tried. Started off with 1/2 dozen each oysters, then tried few shareable appetizers (yuan-yaki roast, shishamo fritters, seared edamame, and a few baguette items) with a glass of sparkling, beer and few glasses of red. Notable items below: Seared edamame - charred bean pods add such appetizing flavors to these soy beans, and I need to recreate this at home sometime. Baguette - we tried aburi Gorgonzola, Shimesaba, and aburi wagyu, and they are all superb. Gorgonzola and honey is classic but never miss the spot good, shimesaba (marinated jack mackerel) was very thick and meaty, wagyu is melting in your mouth. We each ordered seared wagyu sushi for the closing, which, every one of the occupied table in the house was ordering. They are seared to your preference at each table - fun to watch, and simply heavenly to your pallets. This is an intimate establishment where you can enjoy great food and drinks. Try them!

One of my top go-to places in Seattle. For any audience, for any occasion. I first discovered this gem during Seattle restaurant week (SRW) years ago. Ever since then, I visit whenever I am feeling like treating myself. Staff is always Uber friendly and food is always on point. The place is relatively small, so I suggest booking a reservation. While everything here is always spectacular, my favorites over the years have been their Wagyu 4-ways, zabuton steak, uni pasta, and tofu cheesecake. Their menu rotates over time, but best part is that everything is extremely affordable.

We went here for restaurant week! We had the (starters) seared wagyu sushi, wagyu beef tartare, maguro katsu, (mains) wagyu beef kainomi, sapporo beef with fettuccine, and (dessert) all three items! Highlight was definitely the seared wagyu sushi. The others were decently great -- I liked the beef kainomi a lot -- although the fettuccine was slightly underwhelming.

Had an amazing time at Kokkaku - we got the "sushi" appetizer as well as the smelt. Both were great - sushi is torched at the table so you can smell the char on the fat as you eat. Smelt - crispy and very nice with the aioli. Then gentleman behind the bar helped us pick our entrees. Super sweet - we went for the "hamburg steak" and another American wagyu. The hamburg steak felt quite heavy - food was good. Nice local spot. Will def be back.

Good food, good service and great ambiance. Value for money at happy hour. I have visited twice now and I'm going back a third time.

Oh man. The service and food are amazing here. It is quite loud in there since seating is pretty close to others if you come when they are busy. I would highly recommend their flame torch steak sushi appetizer! Get at least 2 person.

I initially found this place on Instagram through a food page. We decided to celebrate our anniversary dinner here and it did not disappoint!! Staff were super friendly and attentive, and food and drinks were amazing! We got there very early for our 6:30 reservation to grab some drinks but they were able to seat us early at 5:30! They had HH from 4-6 daily, with lots of food and beverage options. We started off with a few apps off of HH menu- couple orders of Wagyu sushi (you HAVE to get this), fig butter toast, and oysters paired with yuzu champagne. happy hour menu was more than reasonable for the quality and great service we received. For main, we ordered uni & scallop pasta, and Wagyu. Every dish we had was perfect and I can't wait to go back to try other things! Staff also surprised us with free dessert for our anniversary

I had reservations on a Wednesday night to celebrate an anniversary. It wasn't necessary based on the small crowd that night but better to be safe than sorry. The heater was blasted inside and we were too warm. We ordered several dishes to share and a Coke that tasted watered down and barely carbonated. Wagyu four ways: fun to try and the tare-tare was my favorite one! Would highly recommend this. Seared wagyu sushi: average taste and wouldn't order again. it was fun watching the searing process though. American wagyu bolognaise sauce, rigatoni: average al dente pasta for me but my partner loved it! American wagyu kainomi 8oz: so good and the mashed purple yam made it a million times better! Japanese A5 wagyu zabuton steak 4oz: half the size of the other steak we ordered and more than double the price. Honestly both steaks tasted very similar and I can pass on this next time. Mashed purple yam came with this steak and made it better too! Fire tofu cheesecake: I ordered this dessert based on other reviews and it was a complete miss. The searing show was fun but the taste was funny in a bad way. I'll be back for special occasions!

The attached pictures do not do this restaurant justice! Food and service are outstanding. I walked here from my office and can't believe I've never tried this place before. Will definitely be back with non-vegan friends.

Went here recently expecting to get a Hamburg Steak which is phenomenal here, but instead the menu had changed to accommodate people doing the whole Restaurant Week event. The menu was different and I couldn't order the meal I wanted initially, but for $50 and some change, this was an amazing deal! Ended up getting the NY Strip, some niku nigiri, and wow.... I left hoping that this could be a regular experience at Kokkaku. I'm excited to have another Hamburg Steak soon, but this restaurant week menu was a deal I hope more people can jump on in the future, cause it was damn good! 10/10 for the Hamburg Steak alone BTW!

A lot of people went here for restaurant week, but I personally went for a splurge dinner for myself, having a bit more control of what I want to get and add-ons. I made a reservation just in case, but for a Sunday dinner, it was not busy at all. Only 2 other tables were occupied when I ate around 5pm. I got the HH seared wagyu sushi 1pc, wagyu 4 ways, the $45/person tasting course, and kokkaku sour. Seared wagyu sushi - for $4 during HH or $12 for 2 pieces during regular hours, you get a large, thinly sliced wagyu nigiri that will be seared right in front of you. The meat was sooooo tender and flavorful, and everything just meshes well. If I wasn't stuffed from the other items, I would have 100% gotten a few more pieces. This is one item that I would love to come back for more! Wagyu 4 ways - there was A5 wagyu sashimi and nigiri, which allow you to try A5 wagyu in 2 different formats. The sashimi gave me a nice introduction to what actual nice A5 wagyu should be, in terms of fattiness and marbling. The Americah wagyu gunkan sushi was also really good, a bit stronger in flavor. I wasn't too interested in the tare-tare with quail egg, though, but it was still solid. Tasting course - The amuse of the day was a chilled corn soup which was very smooth and has strong notes of corn flavor. - I chose the pate du campagne for appetizer which seems to be a new choice for the tasting menu since it was not shown in the online menu yet. I found this okay since pate is not really for me, but the spread of in-house mustard, pickles and carrots did enhance the dish alongside the crispy baguette - For the main, I got the Zabuton wagyu steak which was a $14 supplement, which is not bad at all since Zabuton has more marbling while the Kainomi had a more balanced distribution of meat and fats. If I want to splurge, I would want better cuts without completely breaking my bank. - For dessert, I got the fire tofu cheesecake which they also torch in front of you. The flavor is very apparent, with the cheesecake giving creamy notes. It is a somewhat sweet dessert that is very smooth. For the drink, I got the Kokkaku sour because I was intrigued by the stack of lemon presentation. Not only was it aesthetic, but it was also very easy to drink. It was very refreshing during these warmer days. Service was excellent as they check up on you regularly and refill water regularly. They also serve the dishes in a timely manner without being rushed and clear the dishes as needed.

My friend and I had an absolutely delicious Seattle Restaurant Week dinner at Kokkaku! We started with the Seared Wagyu Sushi appetizer even though it wasn't part of the SRW menu. The beef was torched table-side and was melt-in-your-mouth amazing! From the SRW menu, we ordered: - Donabe rice with wagyu: perfectly flavorful! - Kobujime tuna: such a unique dish with delicious crunch from the okra and yam - American wagyu beef: the steak was, of course, perfect and the mashed potatoes were very tasty along with the veggie sides and house-made mustard - Fire tofu cheesecake: torched table-side and so creamy, with peppery surprises! - Fuji apple tarte tatin: served slightly cold, it was a refreshing dessert Kokkaku has been on my list of places to eat for a while! SRW was a great opportunity to try them out!

Currently, I am on a quest to find the best oyster happy hour deals, and Kokkaku is the one to beat! Kokkaku is a Japanese-inspired meat house in Wallingford with plenty of free street parking around. I have been here for both happy hour and dinner time. Their happy hour runs from 4:30-6 pm. What I got during Happy Hour: * $1.75 oysters - Super fresh, especially delicious with ponzu. * $6 drinks: * Japanese 75 (yuzu cocktail) * Kir - White Wine and Crème de Cassis Dinner Time: I opted for the $45 tasting menu, which comes with an amuse, appetizer, main, and dessert! The tasting menu changes, and you can choose each course from a select option besides the amuse. What my boyfriend and I got: * Amuse of the day: Pumpkin soup - Creamy and flavorful. * Appetizer: Beef tataki carpaccio - Tender and savory. * Main: Ichibo steak 10oz med rare - Cooked to perfection, juicy, and flavorful. * Desserts: Fire tofu cheesecake and hoji tea baked cake - Unique and delicious. The owners and servers are really nice and attentive. The lighting and interior are warm and inviting, making it a great place to enjoy a meal. Everything we got was tasty and worth the price. I especially loved the oysters! So refreshing! Make sure to make a reservation or join them at the bar!

Booked at Kokkaku a month before, knowing we'd be in Seattle for my boyfriend's birthday! The food was delicious and reminded us of our time in Kobe, Japan. We picked the perfect time to come because Seattle restaurant week was going on and got to try a tasting menu. The servers were attentive, kind, and welcoming. Surprisingly the restaurant wasn't too loud but had a full house. I recommend making reservations so you don't run into waiting for a bar seat.

I've been wanting to try this place for a while and finally got to recently for their Seattle Restaurant Week menu! Not a bad deal, $50 for a three course meal. You can also pay more for upgraded items such as Australian wagyu over American wagyu as well did. The appetizer and dessert were both pretty solid. The steaks that we got were both decent, but honestly a bit chewier than I would've expected for wagyu. Also we didn't feel like upgrading to the Australian wagyu was worth it because it was actually chewier than the American wagyu. Definitely make reservations on Yelp in advance if you're trying to come on a weekend! Parking is just street parking so make sure to account for some extra time to park.

Came here for SRW to try it out and can say we'll be coming back in the future! FOOD: Incredible selection for the SRW menu. For appetizers, the tuna tartare was delicious and refreshing while the donabe gomoku rice was hearty and comforting. For entree we got the mussel and bay scallop with uni cream pasta which was DELICIOUS The cream wasn't too heavy and it has such a good umami flavor to it. For dessert, we got the hojitea soy pudding and the tofu cheesecake. I gotta say the tofu cheesecake was unforgettable. Very light but also rich but not too rich where it leaves you feeling sick. The cheesecake is something I'd come back for. As for the hojitea pudding, it was light and good! Reminded me of the Chinese dessert tofu flower. AMBIANCE: Small space with limited seating and it's a cute place for a date. It's dim but comforting. SERVICE: Since it was SRW, we booked at least a week in advance knowing that it was going to be full. They didn't take walk ins during our Tuesday of SRW. I'm not sure how busy it gets outside of SRW, but I don't doubt the fact that it'll probably be better to get a reservation or risk waiting for awhile. Service was good and staff were friendly. I'd love to come back when I'm in the area again. They had great food and I'm excited to try their other items.

came for restaurant week and got to try a pretty tasty meal! their happy hour is great, $1.75 oysters which are probably the cheapest i've seen for seattle. i would also come again and order more of their wagyu sushi, which is $4/piece during HH, and honestly quite a generous portion of wagyu. they torch it at the table which is fun to see and it smells soooo good. their cocktails are yummy and cheap, but definitely not the strongest. i particularly enjoyed the lemon sour! it was really refreshing, especially when paired with all the meat. we got the wagyu beef bowl for the appetizer, and it was okay, the carbonara sauce was quite mild. the beef was very tender though. we also got the wagyu steak, medium rare. it was also ok, not sure if all steaks are cooked/seasoned the same way but it didn't have much of a flavor to it. definitely had to use the sauce/mustard it came with. for dessert we got the soy pudding, which was so smooth and wasn't too sweet! and we got the fire cheesecake, which they also torch at the table too and makes a crackly creme brulee like top. service was nice and staff was very attentive and didnt rush us! it definitely feels a little more casual than fancy, and is quite cozy, since the restaurant is small and tables are close together.

Brought my wife and son here for the first time and was pleasantly surprised. The Wagyu four ways was a great sampler. My wife liked the Smelt fritters. My son and I shared the sukiyaki beef and it was delicious. I ordered the Wagyu Zabuton and the mashed potatoes were the bomb, while the beef was cooked nicely and pretty good. My wife got the radish salad and it was beautiful and delicious. The pasta dish my son ordered was a carbonara type dressing and he really liked it. The staff are nice and though the menu is relatively small, it appears one can get a good meal here no matter what you choose. I didn't order sake but I did look at the menu and it looks to me like they have some premium options. Will definitely come back.

Took someone for their birthday dinner here. Was a reservation 2 days before and glad to get in. They enjoyed the food and experience at the restaurant. The ambiance was great.

Food was delicious and service was great. Came here on a Friday night and it wasn't too packed. Great place for date night!

11/10 so delicious. Will be back. Dessert cake was dry. Didn't matter all else was so good.

The servers were very friendly. The food we had was very fresh and had great flavor. We ordered the Wagyu 4 way, A5 wagyu, and American wagyu. The A5 Wagyu melts in your mouth. The American Wagyu was a bit more chewy although cooked to perfection.

Came here during their happy hour (4:30-7pm Tues-Sunday) where they have a happy hour menu. Walked in and first impression is nice and clean. Cute little decor as soon as you walk in. Since it's still early around 450pm when we arrived, the place is pretty slow so we get to seat wherever we want and served almost immediately. Tried their Mexican Mule and Japanese 75 ($6 each) during their happy hour. Personally I think their drinks are a little light where I can barely taste the flavor or the alcohol... I also got their half-shelled oysters a dozen (no pic) for $1.75 each. They tasted pretty good and fresh but instead of cocktail sauce, they give us their version of what seems like spicy mayo. Totally doesn't match to bring out the freshness of the seafood. We also got the shrimp cocktail ($7?) with 10 pieces of shrimps. Again, I don't know what's their obsession with spicy mayo as condiments.. Also ordered their American Wagyu Sushi $4/each and they torch it right in front of you. Nice little actions, but it only torches what's on top and I think they put two layers, so the bottom layer is like raw raw... the meat is slightly marinated with something similar to bulgogi, so it covers any raw meat taste you'd otherwise taste. Overall, a nice place in town. They have a $45 tasting course I might check it out next time.

This place is a hidden gem that deserves discovery. We've eaten there five or six times now. Folks. The happy hour is amazing. We always get the oysters. Super fresh, perfectly shucked and the granita isn't like any I've had with other oysters. They offer a 10oz CAB beef chuck tail flap for $15 and it's delicious. Aside from happy hour, they also offer a 4 course pre-fixe meal for $45. My favorite starter is "WAGYU 4 ways". I wish the tartare was a stand alone app; I could polish off a pound of it. Service is also great. Dai, the bartender takes great care of you, as well. Can't recommend it enough!

I really wanted to like this place but I have to mimic what others on here with low reviews have said - not sure why this place has such high ratings. Our group is visiting Seattle for the first time and wanted to try a nice steakhouse. We saw that Kokkaku had 4 stars and the pictures looked decent, so we booked an RSVP. First impressions: quaint little place with cute decor. Our waitress was friendly upon arrival. The food was taking awhile to come out but we were just enjoying the vibes. Shortly after this is where things started going downhill. The waitress that originally took our order disappeared after the first part of our 4-course tasting came out and the one who replaced her barely checked in on us, let alone said anything in general. It wasn't ever communicated to us that our waitress wasn't returning, we just kinda figured when the rest of our meals came out and she was nowhere to be found. Side note: this is a personal preference but I ordered a Coke that tasted kinda funny to me since it's from the Seattle Company, which our OG server initially warned me about. I wanted to ask her if I could switch for something else after I tried it, but didn't wanna ask someone that wasn't my server for something like that. By the time I realized she wasn't coming back, it was already too late and I just sucked it up lol. I think it definitely would've been helpful to know ahead of time that she wasn't coming back so that I could've communicated accordingly. So now for the food - LIKES: - Amuse of the day (onion & potato soup) was flavorful and creamy, but a bit frothy - Dessert of the day (tiramisu) was light and not too sweet, which I personally prefer - Garlic mashed potatoes were a good flavor but almost the same consistency as my soup - Food presentation was nice DISLIKES: - Beef tartare tasted very mustard-y, almost like they just mixed ground beef with a bunch of mustard and presented it nicely - 8 oz. American wagyu (ordered medium rare), turned out very rare and hard to chew. Flavor of the steak itself was okay but it took me forever to chew through one bite - Friend ordered the Caesar salad which I tried, basically a whole lettuce wedge with way too much going on. If I need to use a knife to eat a salad, that's way too much work - Fried fingerling potatoes were not worth it imo, just tasted like french fries that you leave in a closed bag for too long so it becomes soggy Overall, I personally wouldn't return. It's just fancy food that's presented nicely but the taste is not nearly up to par.

Bad experience, the pace between each dish was slow. I feel tired and out of interest before all dishes come. In particular, the Wagyu steak I ordered looks like the image below. I don't know if it is normal for a steak, but I have never eaten a steak like this. Also, I saw the chef eating pasta from the pot when he was cooking it. It was generally shocking. P.S.: The total cost for two people dining is $184. I just don't think it's worth it.

We went there for Seattle restaurant week. Steak was cooked perfectly for medium rare. Service was excellent, from hostess to servers to bartender. We enjoyed every single course we had.

Came here with my husband awhile back. Delicious wagyu, cool ambiance, and great service. I loved the seared wagyu - a fun little show like the other reviews state. Also did the Wagyu 4 ways. It was good but the least exciting thing out of everything we ordered. Favorite thing was the tartare! Although everything overall was delicious I will say that I did leave the place feeling like I ate way too much raw meat lol so just be aware of how much you're consuming and if you have a sensitive stomach like I do maybe take it easy ;)

Ice in the red wine. Very strange. Also slow and intermittent service. The table next to us waited so long they got up and left. Food was ok.