Kristen H.
Yelp
Lying just outside the heart of the bustling Dupont Circle, Rakuya is a buzzy sushi spot crowded with both locals and tourists hoping to quell a fix for Japanese cuisine. The Dupont Circle area is already a fairly saturated market for foodies, so the fact that Rakuya always looks crowded is a testament to its popularity. Our party of nine made a reservation a couple of days in advance over the phone, but they also have an online reservation portal for parties under 4 people. On a Saturday night at around 7:30pm, the place was packed, both in the small, sleek interior as well as the expansive patio complete with patio-style wooden tables. We were immediately seated, and given some time to peruse their extensive menu, which boasts a variety of sushi rolls (from the tame California roll to some more adventurous options, such as the "Flying Smoke'in Dragon" or the "White Tiger"), nigiri/sashimi, Japanese small plates, cooked entrees, and a host of noodle dishes. There's truly something for everyone - you can even replace rice in rolls with brown rice or go riceless!
We didn't go during happy hour, but they also seem to have a good selection during that time. The drinks that our party ordered ranged from $13-16 normal price, and during happy hour, they're a good $3-4 off, and there's a wide range of Japanese tapas-style food options in the $5-12 range. Their lunch menu is also reasonably priced, with filling bento boxes and sushi/sashimi assortments all under $30, and intriguing lunch sets for those who may not prefer to eat raw fish.
One odd thing that happened was that one member in our group cited that he had a serious tree nut allergy - the waiter told us "there aren't any peanuts in your dish, but there WILL be cross-contamination since we use the same knives for everything." We understood that there's always a risk, but that was a bit weird of him to say it like that.
Our group mainly ordered rolls and small plates - most rolls came with 6 pieces, and range in toppings and complexity. People tended to enjoy the fun variations, but the quality of the fish wasn't anything special - I would probably stick to the rolls here if you're going to get sushi, and opt to get nigiri or sashimi somewhere else. I ordered the Braised Pork Belly (Buta Kaku Ni) for $10, which came with 4 rich, fatty pieces of pork belly and a whole soft-boiled egg in a sweet soy sauce. Atop the dish were shishito peppers (careful - they say 1 in 10 are extremely spicy, and I got one of them), and a lovely acidic, spicy yellow mustard that paired nicely with the richness of the dish. For $10, it was definitely a steal - I really loved their variety of small plates/appetizers!
Some friends also ordered various noodle dishes, from their Tonkotsu Shoyu Rmane ($17) to their Shrimp Tempura Tokyo Dashi ($19). They really enjoyed that you can customize your protein, and they're fairly large portions for the price.
Finally, since it was my friend's birthday, they gave her a free dessert, which was three scoops of matcha ice cream topped with strawberries. This was very generous of them, and it was a large enough portion to share!
Overall, we enjoyed our meal at Rakuya - they were accommodating for our large party, the food came out within 20 minutes, and the food was tasty and affordably priced. We'll have to be back to get some of their lunch specials or happy hour drinks!