Tokoname

This was an incredible place to eat. I was just blown away how fun the service was. They did a great job. There was a special on toro that night and so I was able to get some extra. I left absolutely stuffed.

Found this place on Google maps while looking for a dinner spot. Was able to get a reservation for a time we wanted. The place was great. We at outside were able to look at Ko'olau during our dinner. All the food we ordered was great. My Chirashi deluxe finally came out after everyone else had finished their meals. Which was a bit disappointing. But the manager did comp our drinks.

Tokoname is hands down one of the best sushi restaurants I've ever been to. From the moment we walked in, the service was top-notch—attentive, friendly, and efficient without being overbearing. The food? Incredible. Every dish was a masterpiece, with the freshest ingredients and perfect presentation. The sushi practically melted in my mouth, and the variety on the menu was impressive. The atmosphere was equally fantastic—warm, inviting, and just the right balance between casual and refined. It’s a place where you can relax and truly enjoy the experience. What really blew me away was the value. For the quality of food and service, the prices were surprisingly reasonable. Tokoname offers an experience that feels high-end without breaking the bank. I can’t recommend this place enough—definitely a must-visit for sushi lovers!

This place has probably the best sushi I have tried so far. Food is absolutely amazing, everyone is very friendly, stuff welcome and approach you with warm smile on their face and prices surprisingly reasonable. We went there twice and both times extremely satisfied. 10 stars for this place.

Our family loved our meal here. Great, creative selection of rolls but not over the top. Super fresh sashimi. Refreshing mint/lime drinks. Fantastic service with all somehow with a traditional Japanese vibe.

A fantastic place to grab some Japanese cuisine for lunch or dinner. You can't go wrong with an teishoku entree, you will get a good amount of food for it. The service was great and food came out fairly quickly. I recommend this place for a quick bite or a sit-in with a few friends. The average price of eating here with a drink can easily go for $25 or more per person.

Great food and service. We both got the Nagoya bento plate. One with the teriyaki ribeye and furikake salmon, the other broiled saba with tempura shrimp and vegetables. Looked so good forgot to take pictures. But, able capture one our dessert, tempura ice cream, yum! Oh yea, kudos they’ve got the best waitresses.

We decided to try Tokoname tonight. The food was really good. Generous potions. Friendly staff. Street parking or paid parking lot nearby. They are very good for takeout during the pandemic as well.

My grandson and I had dinner at Tokuname a couple weeks ago. He got to pick the place (and we both love Tokuname). We had a lovely dinner. I had the misoyaki butterfish and he had sushi (we shared). I wonderful experience from start to finish. The food was excellent and our server was very good. We recommend Tokuname - right in the heart of Kailua. Support local!

Ordered to go 2 hours ahead of time. When we got there to pick up we told hostess we had a to go order. She never got back to us and when we asked if it was ready when she came back out, she said they were packing it up. 45 minutes later finally ready. So much for ordering ahead of time. Food was good.

We ordered take out... our edamame came plain even though we ordered garlic shoyu flavor. The miso butterfish also had so much edamame in the box... I mean, it looked nice... but then we just had SO much plain edamame!! Also the miso butterfish had a lot of bones in it. The salad dressing flavor isn't good, I wish they had sesame dressing. The tempura flavor was good with the tempura dressing but cold and not crunchy. The spicy tuna roll was delicious. The dragon roll was not my cup of tea, but my boyfriend liked it. The chicken kaarage was also good. Just all in all would not recommend takeout here. Not sure if eating in is better.

I was visiting from out of state & this place was highly recommended. The service was awesome, food was amazing & drinks well made! Please know that this is a small popular restaurant so you may have to wait a bit! Be patient & send ALOHA!!

Always a great experience here. Food is delicious and sushi fresh. Great and fast service!

Absolute worst service. I understand it is hard to find help but this is out of control. They charge a premium, meals take hours, food is ok. Kailua needs better.

I've been neglectful writing a review on Tokoname even though we come here practically 1-2 times a month for the past umpteen years, and there's a reason we keep coming back here (even when they needed to add a Pandemic surcharge to help get back on track): because this place is AWESOME. My wife and I invariably start off with the Sake Flight as well as invariably get the Kin (Gold) Teishoku dinner set, and our children almost invariably get the Chirashi bowl (for special occasions, they'll get the Chirashi Deluxe...cuz I'm paying). We typically add a roll for the table too. Most recently we got the Tokoname roll, which I can't remember ever getting, but it will now become my go-to roll because it's fabulous! Regarding how long it takes for the food to come...get comfortable and enjoy your sake or beer, and have a good time relaxing because it's not uncommon to wait awhile especially during peak hours. For us we're just happy to get a table (be sure to make online reservations!!). Sometimes the roll for the table arrives before the main course, sometimes it doesn't. That's why I typically choose the Teishoku set dinner because the starters will arrive fairly promptly. And our servers have always been the best - super friendly, attentive, and apologetic for the wait. This last time we also decided to try their Butterfish Karaage, which btw is available only on weekends. It won't fill you up by any extent, but the taste is fantastic! For sure we'll be adding that to our usual orders whenever we go on a weekend. There's outdoor dining available as well, which we've done a number of times on nice nights (if you have one of those whirly fly things, I highly recommend you bring a couple with you for eating outdoors). We were even entertained a couple times with some nearby street preaching hahaha. But seriously, we're lucky to have such a terrific Japanese restaurant in Kailua!

Celebrated Father's Day at Tokoname in Kailua. Reservations are recommended. Restaurant does not have its own parking, so good luck finding street parking. We had to circle around the area twice. Luckily, the walk was not too far away from the restaurant. Hostess greeted us outside of the small restaurant. On the table was complimentary, lightly salted edamame. Was very good, not overcooked, but the pod was a little tough to break open. We ordered various types of sushi. I did not try all of them, but they looked delicious. The assorted sashimi platter was good, too. Their miso salmon was pretty good. Teriyaki chicken as well. This combo came with miso soup, garden salad, and tsukemono. They have quite a selection on their entrees. Their miso butterfish and sizzling steak are really good, too. We were on the small side of the restaurant, and the volume of the other table was bouncing off the walls. We could barely hear each other speak. It was also a high traffic area too, right by the door and kitchen. However, service was good and easy to catch the wait help if we needed something. They also have notice to customers that they apply a 10% inflation surcharge to their sales.

It's been a while since I've visited tokuname. Made a 6PM reservation and was seated 15 mins after outside. I understand they can't control how long people take to eat but sitting outside wasn't preferred and they said it would be another 20 mins for an inside table. Sever was average at best. Greeted us, came back 5 mins later to ask for our order... ugh I barley sat down. After she took our order came back twice. To food is good and probably why people come back. Also noted it was a birthday celebration on the online reservation and nothing was acknowledged at all. Totally disappoint when dining here.

This is the best sushi you can find in Kailua. Great service. My go to anytime I am feeling down. They always cheer me up. Not only because of the food, but because of the workers here that make you feel like Ohana

This is my reliable go-to sushi spot in Kailua. Is it the best Sushi on the island, no. But the price to quality ratio is just right. Delicious food without breaking the bank. I tend to get the same things off the menu. Tokoname roll: 9/10 Manoa roll: 8/10 Chicken Karaage: 7/10 Hot sake: 8/10 The staff are very attentive, friendly, and go out of their way to make sure you have a great experience. Usually able to walk in without much of a wait. Interior could do with some work but it's fine. I love the relaxing instrumental Japanese music. If you're looking for a regular joint to get your sushi fix on the east side - this should be your spot.

The service was excellent, and the food was over the top. A little bit pricey, but not extreme for the quality of the food and the excellent service. Definitely going back!

Went to Tokoname for my dad's birthday. Had a 5:30pm reservation and walked right up and got seated right away. Didn't expect to be seated outside as it was a little windy and rainy but hadn't specified our indoor preference prior and it was full up inside. We ordered the chirashi for him, had some butterfish, some salmon, some chicken and shrimp tempura for us and have to say it was wonderful as expected! Tokoname never disappoints!

Ordered takeout. They told us 45 min. Showed up on time. After waiting 40 minutes they said 15min more. Returned after 15 min - could not give me a time estimate of when my food would be ready. Waited over an hour. Rude, thoughtless. Do NOT order takeout from here!.

Food is so YUM!!! Miso Tofu & the Veggie Tempura Fries is a must Service is Great! Young staff - friendly and attentive - making sure you have what you need. Thank you Tokoname! Happy you're part of the community

Tokoname is really good, I normally order one of the set menus, the Gold is plenty of food and includes an assortment of sushi and a roll, pretty affordable I think around $40. They have 2 Japanese beers on draft, service is good and it gets pretty busy on weekends. This time tried ala cart at the counter, was more $ but was really good!

I love the experience of dining at Tokoname sushi bar because the atmosphere is very authentic, the food is great, and the service is excellent. The freshest hamachi sashimi I have had on Oahu and the dinner sets were so good with all of their house made sauces. Small restaurant off the main streets in Kailua worth the trip from town. Best Japanese food on the island and I can't wait to visit again soon.

Only 1 cook, table was sticky. Plates stick to the table. Chicken had no taste, miso soup salty. Never again. Waited for over an hour for food to our table. Take out appeared to be there strong suit.

We weee able to get a table within 30 mins. This restaurant has been my family's favorite for many years. Good food! Draft beer with sashimi is the best!

Tokoname, wouldn't have known about it until Costco had gift cards. I bought a set to give it as a present, but unfortunately the Manoa restaurant closed, so I kept half of the rest since none of my friends drive to Kailua. Fortunately, was my friend's bday, so I treated him to eat here. The drive is far but fast to Kailua on H3, and with Google map it's easy to find. It's a hole in the wall, but unfortunately there is only street parking, and if you park in the parking lot just next to it where Jack in the Box is, they will tow your car away. I had the tokoname Combo, 2 choices for $29.95. 5 stars. I chose the tonkatsu and shrimp and veg tempura. The tonkatsu is fried with only thin batter, not oily and the katsu sauce has a nice strong flavor. The Tempura is to die for. Very crispy and light. Blended well with their tempura sauce. Teishoku (miso soup, salad, rice, tsukemono and today's chef's choice was soy beans) is already included in the price, which made it a full meal. I loved the salad dressing on the salad, but forgot to ask if they sell their dressing. Service: 5 stars - our waitress was excellent - bubbly, attentive and personable. Parking: since we went at 4pm, there was a lot of street metered parking right in front of the restaurant, but more so because the parking is free only from 6pm.

Love the sushi and my kids also. The service is always great! Our go to Kailua spot for sushi and steak

A small quaint restaurant with a limited amount of tables, during peak dining hours reservations are a must. I have been a patron since they first opened, as I absolutely love the service and their delicious Japanese food. The sushi is amazing and the Teishoku meals remind me of my childhood. Unfortunately the wait staff was short handed which normally would not be a problem but inside the restaurant was quite warm borderline hot. Hence the reason for the three stars.

The food was tasty and delicious. You would probably need a reservation. It's not a huge place. Service was good. I would go back if I am in Oahu again.

Overall, this place was okay but I'm not sure if I would go out of my way to eat here again. Our dinner had a rough start. We were told the wait would be about 30-40 minutes, which was totally understandable. They took down our number and said they would call us when our table was ready. A little over an hour later, we still didn't get a call and we were right outside so we could see that people had left. After checking in, it seems they had forgotten about us and got us seated at that point. The service for the rest of dinner as great. You could tell our server felt bad that we had to wait. The food was good but a little expensive. I didn't care too much for the butterfish though. The miso sauce was a bit too much for me and I ended up scraping some of it off to eat it. The tempura ice cream was the highlight of the meal though. It was nicely fried while keeping the ice cream still cold. If anything, I would get that again but I would definitely try something different for the meal.

I've reviewed this restaurant six months ago I was hoping it would die before I had to make my review. This is one of the saddest restaurants I've ever been to I live in Kailua tried to go there. They said we're booked you have to make a reservation. Try to call to make an order...no....Sorry we don't except that booked make a reservation so I did that... next available was in two weeks And guess what on the day we wait in our even with our reservation We had enough time to go next-door to Walgreens to go shopping Wednesday finally seated we knew exactly what we wanted because we waited so long It took another hour to get the food...foolishly. I went to the sushi bar to try and get something to snack on after a three hour a wait... They said no it was for the takeout customers Even with our two week in advance reservation, they catered to call in customers Or maybe the rich and privilege I don't know If you're a normal person, do not go to this place It breaks my heart to talk about a business like this in my hometown of Kailua But I feel it's necessary to warn any visitor

We enjoy coming to Tokoname Restaurant for several reasons: great selections of dishes, unique options, and lovely atmosphere. More than anything, we love the wonderful vibe of the staff: every single person you encounter is knowledgable, professional, and, most importantly, wonderfully kind. We always have a lovely time when we come. P.S. Their cocktails are pretty awesome, too.

Everything was delicious, if you want to enjoy some good Japanese cuisine, try this place it's good and the service is good too the waitress was so nice. It's not a super high class place but it's very Kailua if you know what mean. They also have tables outside which is pretty cool.

We had to wait a bit to order and receive the food but I can't really complain the food was well worth the wait. Nice lil spot slanging some fire food.

It pains me to give this place only 3 stars :( but the quality of the food went down unfortunately. My best friend and I decided to come here for dinner since we haven't come here for a few years (fun fact - she and I worked at the Tokoname location in Manoa about 10 years ago and that's how we met). Luckily, we found parking right in front (parking is 2 hours max, and 25 cents per 10 minutes) For appetizers, our table ordered 3 piece oysters, agedashi tofu, miso eggplant, veggie tempura "fries", a natto hand roll, rainbow roll, and amaebi nigiri. OYSTERS: oysters are always a favorite. Unfortunately, these oysters tasted gritty and dirty and NOT fresh :( ew AGEDASHI TOFU: just like I remembered :) I love their agedashi tofu here, and the grated ginger and bonito flakes always pair well with the tsuyu sauce. MISO EGGPLANT: I love miso eggplant and have to get it anywhere I see it on the menu, but unfortunately, this was the worst one I've ever eaten. The sauce was overpoweringly salt, and the skin was REALLY tough (the chef obviously didn't cook it right, and/or they didn't score the outside to make sure the skin was soft). We had to spit out the skin and only eat the inside. VEGGIE TEMPURA FRIES: good and generous portion! NATTO HANDROLL: Well, they gave me a natto maki instead LOL, but natto is good.. you can't mess that up :) RAINBOW ROLL: again, this was disappointing. The fish (especially the salmon) on it had a frozen taste that was NOT fresh at all and it was rubbery. AMAEBI NIGIRI: the amaebi nigiri itself was not fresh and you could tell it was prefrozen unfortunately. The amaebi heads itself was good and nice and crispy though. For an entree for my daughter and I to share, I got the misoyaki butterfish combo with the shrimp and veggie tempura. It also comes with tsukemono (2 types), miso soup, salad, and a chef's appetizer. SALAD: the salad dressing here is the best :) the taste is best described as in between a creamy papaya seed dressing and a miso dressing. Refreshing, sweet and sooo good :) I always love their dressing. CHEF'S APPETIZER that night was more miso eggplant LOL :( TSUKEMONO that night was ocean salad and fukujinzuke. MISOYAKI BUTTERFISH: buttery as it should be, but too powerful on the sauce TEMPURA: good as always :) For a drink, I also decided to try the White Peach Japanese Soda. Unfortunately, it tasted mostly of carbonated water and the peach flavor was very light. Overall, I'm glad that the salad dressing, tempura, and the agedashi tofu was just as we remembered, but we were extremely disappointed on the quality of all the food (especially the sushi, oysters, and eggplant). We are hoping it was just a bad night.. because when we used to work at this restaurant, we loved the food

This was my pass time. The drinks are perfectly mixed, they teriyaki chicken and rice sides are worth dying for. If you can, try the ebi! Their meals and service reflects the values and interest of the palet of individuals in the community surrounding it. By maintaining creativity in the atmosphere of the restaurant, exemplary service, and freshness of products used for the dishes, the themes are appealing and worth multiple nights out for a meal.

Tokoname's offers the closest thing to authentic Japanese food on the Windward side. Their teishoku choices are absolutely delicious! Even the toss salad is amazing! For me, that's saying a lot. Though it's a little pricey, it's worth every cent. So far, each visit, my whanau and I have been given excellent service. The restaurant itself is small and decent. It's very simple, yet comfortable. What they lack in ambiance, they make up for with great food! The only drawback is that sometimes the wait time for your reservations can take a little longer than expected. Of course, this is through no fault of Tokoname's. In addition, although chairs are provided, waiting outdoors is not my favorite thing to do. Especially when it's hot and streets are busy. Still, Tokoname's is one of my favorite places to eat and I highly recommend it!

This place always delivers on the yum! My top 2 dishes I order every single time is the butterfish karaage, it melts in your mouth!! And the firecracker shrimp, I often get 2 orders of this! The sushi can be hit or miss and is a little pricey but all around good and never fishy.

The food at this Japanese Restaurant is very good and normally I would recommend this place. However, for some reason they still have this after service charge of $12.00 added onto your bill. This add on was from the pandemic when everyone was having a hard time. Well, the restaurant has new menus and new prices, but they are still adding on the service charge onto your bill. This isn't right. As good as the food is, it is expensive and with the new prices there is no need to keep the pandemic service charge. For me, this will affect the tip that I'm going to leave in the furture if this charge is still on my bill the next time I visit this place.

Came here with a friend on a weeknight. I rarely come to the Windward side for sushi but we were in the area and this place was highly recommended. We ordered the edamame and agedashi tofu as appetizers and both were delicious. As for the sushi, the nigiri was perfectly prepared and fresh! The Tokoname roll didn't look as appetizing and there wasn't much fish on the top. Next time I'll go probably just stick to nigiri versus rolls. The customer service was pretty good. I'd come back here again if I was in the area craving sushi.

Just had our FIRST dinner out since Covid-19 quarantine lifted for restaurants, and it was such a great experience! I'd forgotten how pleasant it was to eat on a large table NOT from a foam container, plus all the little extras they served us were so nice. We were seated at a large table, far from other patrons, and we got our waters and drink orders taken. Drinks arrived and we reviewed contactless menus online, and ordered our entrees. Soon afterwards we got a large bowl of edamame, miso soups, salads with delicious miso dressing, tsukemono and ocean salads. By that time, some of us were already full! Our entrees arrived; I ordered the miso butterfish and rice which was SO DELISH and was melt in your mouth yummy. I decided to stop because I was already getting full and the piece of fish was pretty large. That's when our server Lindsay told us about the dessert menu and I HAD to try the ice cream soda and azuki dessert. I'm ashamed to say I finished it ALL because it was so good. I'd come again JUST for this dessert!

Went here for date night. The server was forgetful and it took forever to get our beer. She also forgot to bring out the shoyu, so we sat for 15 min with no beer and sushi that we couldn't eat. Alas, she came out with the beer, but forgot the shoyu again. She may have been under stress because they seem to be short staffed. I'm giving 4 stars mostly for the ambience of dining outside and the dessert (fried ice cream). Will I come back? Of course....

Best service of any Kailua restaurant. The food was great also. Best Asian style chicken wing I've ever tasted. Sashimi was very fresh. This was my first time trying the place and I'll certainly be back

Teishoku dinner a few nights ago: Nagoya combo (2 choices) and Tokoname combo (2 choices + shrimp & veggie tempura). What's awesome about the tokoname combo is that you can get miso butterfish as a choice without charging extra. All the food was delicious (the tempura in particular was perfectly tender and crispy, and that spicy aoli that came with the chicken karaage, and that butterfish was a good portion moist and tasty though I wish it had some char). We also added a salmon sashimi for $4.95 (yummy and worth that price). We had $100 worth of gift cards that we got from Costco for I think $80. With all these restaurants closing down (e.g. Gordon biersch, umamiya, etc.) I wanted to make sure I used up my gift cards just in case. All of this (the edamame is complimentary and all the rest of the side dishes came with the combos), including the sake samplers came out to $106+Tip. The gift cards definitely made it worth it. They also have really good early and late happy hour, but you cant use your gift cards for that.

Not sure why this place has anything below 4.5 stars. My boyfriend has been coming here for years before I finally came by today. We live across town so it's a hard with our schedules to make it over at times but we always try to make it this way when reservations are open. We sat by the sushi chef at the sushi bar and ordered a handful of items. Not one short of taste or something I could complain about. Mind you we eat at some of the most exquisite or "high end", or even "best" sushi places on the island. We have a few friends that's are chefs on the island and can say we are quite "spoiled". I genuinely was quite surprised by all of this. We requested the chef give us a few recommendations and really got to know him by the time we finished up our meal. Being the first ones here, every employee here was a joy to be around. Kind, thoughtful and open to giving us honest suggestions and feedback we enjoyed our meal 100%. A few items that weren't on the typical menu were on specialty and we made sure to order them. A few of the others included: Chutoro - remarkable. Cold with just the right amount of fat and flavor. Dip it in a little bit of shoyu and wasabi and you'll be in love. Unagi - clean, smooth, and a hint of crisp that left it memorable Chicken wings - seriously, this might seem silly at a sushi spot, but a MUST TRY. Crispy with a hint of taste that will want to make you finish the whole stack on your own Uni- this one came from Seattle. Typically I try uni and it always has a little bit of a "sea" or "ocean" taste, this one has NONE. Smoothest I have had to date!! I have one spot I absolutely love uni, but it is typically Hokkaido or from Santa Barbara, but this was my new favorite. No exaggeration. I will order this my next time around. Ask for it as nigiri or on top of chutoro. We finished with a tempura green tea ice cream Absolutely perfect. Thank you to the team and servers that were there, and kudos to the chef. Enjoyed our early dinner and will definitely be back.

This place is in a tiny nook of a spot in kailua. It's across Walgreens next to Jack in the box parking lot. You can make reservations online which is awesome. We had reservations for 2 at 6pm and we're seated right away. The food was so so good! We both ordered the tokoname combo with a side chu Toro sashimi. Freaking delicious. We will most definitely be back.

Love this place!! We got bar sitting, because we enjoy watching & talking to the Sushi chef. Service and food was excellent. Our go to order are always nigiri. Otoro, chu toro, hotate, ame ebi, etc some of our favs. Pricing were about the same as other sushi restaurants of same rank. One of our favorite hole in the wall sushi places in Kailua town for a chill dinner night. Recommend!!

Best sushi in Kailua with really fresh sashimi. The staff is awesome too and they have draft asahi, our go to spot :)

The food was GREAT, but the service was SLOW. I'm guessing because they were short on staff? It looked like there were only two servers on the floor for a BUSY Saturday night, and it seemed like some kitchen staff tried to help with those picking up their orders, and our bill also came back incorrect and had to let our server know to make the proper corrections. Otherwise I would've given a 5 star rating. As for those of you who are thinking about getting the the Deluxe Chirashi bowl, just do it!! Yes it's $50 but it's worth it if you LOVE your raw fish, unagi, ikura, ogo, etc...!! Plan to go back and give the staff another chance.

Tokoname is a wonderful place with great ambiance, especially for the price. We got a few different rolls, all of which were delicious, but the best was by far the Lanikai. The miso and hand rolls were also excellent, and I would recommend sitting at the bar to see them get made-- watching Eiichi slice and roll is totally mesmerizing!!

We had a gift card here so we came to pick up some sushi. We got the platter with California rolls, spicy tuna and some maki. It was a large amount of food for a fairly decent price. The sushi was decent quality but not impressive. Overall a decent place for a quick pickup They have street parking only.

The tempura was good, miso butterfish salty, pricey, and don't order the karaage butterfish! Service was great and has a nice atmosphere.

Some friends and I coincidentally had gift cards for Tokoname (Costco was selling them, I'm not sure if they still are). There used to be multiple locations in town too, but they closed so I think only the Kailua location is open. It is located in the building next to the Jack in the Box parking lot. There is only metered street parking available, and it is free after 6pm. Very cute decor with a variety of sushi, sashimi and Japanese dishes. We ordered a dragon roll, various sashimi, sizzling rib eye, various tempura, aburage tofu, miso eggplant, and green tea ice cream for dessert (Dave's Ice Cream, yay!). All the dishes were delicious and the service was great as well! Especially a great value if you get the gift cards from Costco. Just parking is difficult.

Sushi was so fresh and high quality. Staff was friendly and efficient. The veggie tempura "fries" were amazing

My family and I have been fans of Tokoname for a few years now. We use to go to their Manoa location a lot before they closed. Today was our first time at the Kailua location. We had reservations at 8 pm but didn't get seated until 8:20. Service was pretty slow but it was also very crowded. We waited a long time to order too. We order the shrimp dynamite which was decent but it's very tiny shrimp. The tonkatsu I had was over cooked and the tempura as well. Compared to our usual visits at their older locations, this wasn't an impressive visit.