Zen Japanese Izakaya

This is my hidden gem. I love this place so much. Japanese food by Japanese chefs and waiters. Perfection. This is my second time here and every plate has been phenomenally delicious. Food we ate and loved : - Daikon salad (with plum dressing) - 7 piece Tsukiji Chef’s choice nigiri sushi - Nankotsu Kaarage (fried chicken cartilage) - crispy Fish karaage - Agenasu (eggplant in garlic soy sauce) - Tsukiji Sashimi assorted - Truffle Chawanmushi

Positively surprised by this lowkey spot. The team is incredibly nice and professional. Everything we ordered for lunch was top notch delicious! Highly recommend

Absolutely love this place! Food is great, the Karaage and Gyoza are some of the best of these hot dishes I have found in the area, both perfectly crispy and tender. The service from the staff is always excellent, they are so kind and friendly! And the atmosphere is both cozy and elegant. We have been here six times now this year and can’t wait to go again!

Pretty quiet, the waitress comes along often to ask whether we need anything, the rice and noodles are average, but the sushi were pretty fresh and good.

I truly enjoyed my experience at this restaurant. The interior design is beautifully done, incorporating Japanese cultural elements that create a serene and authentic atmosphere. The sashimi was incredibly fresh, and the food presentation was impeccable, showcasing great attention to detail. My only minor complaint is the portion sizes, but I understand the high operational costs in this area and the ever-increasing labor expenses. The staff’s passion and attentiveness, however, more than made up for it. It’s a fantastic spot for a special meal, and I would gladly return.

They have a lot of high quality and lesser known fish cuts flown in from Japan. Everything tasted great. Their chawanmushi was prob one of the best I’ve ever had. It’s a cozy small atmosphere and the service was kinda lacking for me, my table didn’t get refills and the next table was getting their food out so fast vs mine, idk if each table is assigned a different staff member or what 🥲

Found this hidden gen off Shepherds just last Thursday, and today we are back for Mother’s Day lunch. Zen Japanese Izakaya has the best tasting rolls and freshest sashimi in Houston. The Japanese style decos are beautiful, service is excellent. My husband loves the Otoro. They a little pricy, but so fresh and melt in the mouth. I ordered sushi lunch special, Salmon & Salmon, Spicy Tuna. All are excellent. We ordered two bento boxes for our 10 year old kids, they love it. So it’s great that we can bring the kids here even though they are not fun or sushi. The food was beautifully presented too. We will be back.

I came back after a few years of break and I regret I didn’t come sooner :) This bento is delicious with the Japanese style hamburger as the main feature. The eggplant shigiyaki was hot enough but didn’t burn my mouth. You may not think this as a standard Japanese lunch, but it is very much so and I can’t find many restaurants who serves it, and who cooks it well. The Wagyu burger lunch with all the yummy side dishes for $19. That’s awesome!

WE WERE IMPRESSED! Everything we ordered was good. My boyfriend is Japanese and what we look for when we eat at Japanese restaurants can be different than others. This place has Japanese chefs which is already winning points with us, but boy did the dishes make us all giddy. Really authentic Izakaya experience. What we ate and loved : Daikon salad with plum dressing, fish karaage, Tsukiji market sashimi sampler, fried chicken cartilage, sweet shrimp, truffle chawanmushi. Also, service was great and attentive. Can't wait to go back, we love how close we live to this place.

Heard it was good, so I came all the way from Austin for lunch -- and it was totally worth it! First off, the menu is huge! Honestly, it was hard to choose because everything looked so good. I ended up ordering the wagyu hamburger steak -- it was fluffy, juicy, and packed with flavor! The sauce was a bit on the salty side for me, so next time I'll ask for it on the side. The bento came with a bunch of delicious sides: salad, fried eggplant in dashi, burdock and lotus root, and even a fried shrimp. Everything was well-prepared and satisfying. I also tried their kanpachi and madai sushi -- both were super fresh and delicious. Next time I definitely want to focus on the sushi! Loved the cute Japanese decor near the entrance, and hearing the sushi chef and servers speaking Japanese made the place feel even more authentic. Service was great too. So happy to have found such a delicious japanese hamburg steak spot here in Texas -- definitely coming back!

I came back after a few years of break and I regret I didn't come sooner. Their bento is delicious (with the Japanese style hamburger as the main feature). The eggplant shigiyaki was hot enough but didn't burn my mouth. You may not think this as a standard Japanese lunch, but it is very much so and I can't find many restaurants who serve it, and who cook it well. The Wagyu burger lunch with all the yummy side dishes for $19. Recommended.

Always have a good time when visiting here. Quiet. Not super crowded. People are friendly. Fish quality is excellent - scallop sashimi just melts. Not fishy at all. They even have fish flown from Japan. Now.. because they have good quality fish, this means higher price. Only makes sense, but i think it's still reasonable. Their home japanese food are all full of umami flavors- love the unagi don set and the katsudon. I don't want this place to get too popular because I will have to fight the crowd but certainly deserves the praise.

Went here for lunch on a weekday around 1 pm. Surprisingly the restaurant was quite empty which was nice because parking was not an issue. That lots is usually a disaster. We ordered a variety of dishes including the sushi lunch combo, bento box, Japanese champong, etc. They were all quite good. It's not the most delicious Japanese I've ever had, but food was fresh and rolls were tasty. Service was good. Ambiance was as expected given the price point and type of food. Strong work, Zen Izakaya. You're giving Izakaya Wa down the street a run for its money.

YUM! I'll start with this, I'm vegetarian. I came in with a few friends for a dinner, where we ordered a plethora of items which I felt were fairly priced. The vegetarian items ordered among the laundry list of others were: the Umekyu Maki, Vegetarian roll, seaweed salad, enoki butter, nasu dengaku, and vegetable tempura. There are limited vegetarian/vegan options however the tapas are done WELL. The umekyu maki is a new sushi roll I'd never tried which I thought was unique. The enoki butter was also a star among the bunch too. The place itself is super cute and quiet. Great for a fancy or casual dinner. The employees were kind and constantly checking up on us. I think I could be back :)

Love this place. Always plenty of Japanese people eating here, which is a good sign. Great food, pleasant service. Looks like nothing from outside but is very different inside.

I love this place. I come here after every piano recital, and the food is always so comforting. The restaurant has nice decor and their bathrooms are usually kept clean! Service is also always great! Since i am Japanese, my family and I often talk to Japanese workers, and they are super kind! I wish this was closer to my home so I could eat here more often

For Tuesday's lunch, my brother suggested @zenjapaneseizakaya. They had several lunch specials...they all looked really good. Hubby and SIL both had the Tonkatsu Bento. I had the Sashimi Bento, which was so much food! Brother had the Chirashi. Dad had the Unagi Bowl and the Tempura. Everything was fresh and delicious. Highly recommend if you're in the area!

Decided to come here last minute since we were in the area and loved this sushi spot! The rolls were fresh and delicious. The service was friendly, and the atmosphere was a relaxed vibe.

The unagi Don was pretty good and on point but the service was terrible. Both server dropping silverware and don't know what they were doing...

Friendly service, great food, I mean everything here is on point. Visiting from Tokyo and it felt like I never left. Highly recommended.

Good as always. We came here during Happy Hour on a Sunday and take full advantage of their menu. Food is great as always and we also find an advantage of dining early. The restaurant is less crowded. Service is very attentive and because the place was not packed during Happy Hour, everything was immaculate. For ambience and specialty cocktails, we do think its sister's restaurant, Koi has the upper hand. However, for the solid home cooked Japanese food, it's Zen all the way. Will definitely return.

It is a lovely and quiet little place for sushi . Plus, other unique Japanese dishes. I love their shrimp fried rice. Food is wonderful. Service is excellent. They do take reservations but remember Happy Hour 4:30pm for select food and drink.

The sashimi sets and salmon and Kura don were very fresh and tasty. the Japanese sashimi set was truly beyond our expectations. We enjoyed this place very much and definitely will come back for more.

My wife and I came to Zen hopeful and excited to try new food. We absolutely love asian food, so we were happy to try a new place especially for Valentine's day. We made a reservation at 6:30PM and had some issues come up and the restaurant was amazing enough to allow us to push our reservation to 7:00PM. This was perfect. We arrived and the ambiance was amazing, we were seated immediately and there wasn't a lot of people so it was great for us to be able to talk and really enjoy each others company and that we did for the next hour. After the staff took our order, they would come to our table only to clean up. I never got my water refilled and it took them over an hour to bring our food out after guests that have arrived after us, had their food long before us. Very disappointing and left a sour mood on our Valentine's day, we will not be returning.

I got the Sushi Lunch special and the Wagyu Bento. I got the spicy salmon roll for the roll. I asked for no spice on top and it was pretty good. The wagyu was not that impressive. The soup it was sitting in tasted bad. There was an eggplant dish that came with the bento and that was good really good. I didn't care for all the add ins in the miso soup. It came out to $50.

Zen is one of those restaurants I'm just happy to walk into. The decor is calming and so thoughtfully laid out, with the tables far enough from each other for diners to be comfortable. The wood-heavy aesthetic is gorgeous, and the dimmed lighting with bright touches makes the whole experience feel really intimate. The open space does magnify the echoes in here, so sometimes it can get a bit loud. Service is nice and professional. Takoyaki -- Adorably presented in skewered form, these takoyaki were delicious. The outside was fried to a light crisp, with the dough on the inside soft and airy. The octopus was also well-cooked on the inside. Rolls -- I've tried a variety of rolls here, and I think they generally fall into two categories: fresh and light, or decadent and robust. With the more sauce-heavy or fried-ingredient options, they tended to be in the latter category while the raw ingredient-heavy rolls were more the former. I've enjoyed both, and I don't think I've had a roll here that I didn't enjoy. The ingredients are fresh, the combinations thoughtfully prepared, and the end products beautifully presented. Chirashi -- Delicious. I think I could probably eat this daily and not get sick of it. With fresh ingredients and a nice variety paired with sushi rice, this is happiness in a bowl. I think the portion is a bit more petite than some other restaurants, but it's delectable quality. Chestnut matcha cake -- Where has this been my entire life? I've never had this before, but it's essentially rich chestnut cream topped with light whipped cream and surrounded in a bed of matcha paste. The combination is dynamite, and it's somehow both decadent and light at the same time. I'd have a hard time not ordering this every time I come.

What can I say... YUMMY! SCRUMPTIOUS! DELICIOUS! DELIGHTFUL! Absolutely love every dish I ordered. Ikageso Karaage - so so good. Seasoned beautifully and cooked perfectly. Spider Roll - it was wrapped up well and everything comes together in the roll. One plate is not enough. Agedashi Tofu - big tofu with smooth outer layer. The tsuyu sauce was light and flavorful. Very good. Salmon sashimi - so so fresh. Every bite was just delightful. Maguro Tabekurabe - highly recommend this dish. The presentation of the dish was from the fattest bluefin tuna to the leanest. Every piece of sushi in the plate was utterly perfect. Salmon Roll - it had some white sesame seeds on it which was special. The roll is a good option if you don't want nigiri. Overall the food was super delicious. Service was great. Staff were friendly and helpful. The restaurant has ample seating for big and small groups. But making reservation in advance is highly recommended. I would definitely come back again. No doubt about it.

Excellent authentic Japanese cuisine! This place is not cheap, but you get what you pay for. We enjoyed the Saba Shio (broiled mackerel), and a few different rolls (I loved the Aburi Salmon roll), and a wonderful salmon/ikura don. I really like lotus root dishes so the renkon hasamiage was also a must...Also, the servers were friendly and efficient for a Saturday night. Definitely recommend everyone try this place!

Yes!!! Little hidden gem in the Montrose area. Ordered quite a few different things but too hungry and forgot to snap pictures. Everything was very good, sashimi was high grade, service was excellent, not super packed at the time, and like the vibes/ambiance Karaage, buttered enoki mushrooms, sashimi, chopped scallop nigiri, California uni nigiri, salted yellowtail collar, and eggplant appetizer.

We tried this spot out for lunch this past weekend and we LOVED it! Glad we got a reservation at 12:00pm because within 30 min the whole place was packed, which is a testament to how great this restaurant is. Food: we tried several of their nigiri and appetizers, my wife got their tan tan noodles (awesome consistency) and I got their lunch chirashi. Everything was fresh and tasty, I feel like you can't go wrong with your orders here. Ambiance: great decor and environment, it does get a little bit loud since the place was packed but we love the hustle and bustle, reminds us of the izakayas we tried in Japan! Service: there were two main servers for the busy lunch hour but they still made sure we got everything we needed, which was pretty impressive! Price: the nigiri was a bit on the pricier side but the fish was very fresh and it's quality ingredients. You get what you pay for, so I didn't mind it at all. Can definitely see ourselves being regulars here!

First time here and decided to try it out for lunch on a Saturday. Ordered the chirashi bowl and it was quite delicious. The bowl with rice underneath the fish had 10 pieces of fresh fish along with avocado and egg. The fish pieces were a bit smaller than I'm accustomed to compared to other chirashi bowls that I've had at other establishments. Parking was a challenge due to the busy bagel store that's next door on a Saturday. Service was great and attentive. Will be back to try the rest of their sushi menu.

Sister restaurant to Koi. Sushi is good. Atmosphere nice. Service is good. Ask for McLovin. He works at Koi, too.

3.5 stars! All the sushi rolls we ordered were great! Skip the wagyu beef steak, had no flavor.

Went here for dinner for two today around 6pm. The outside/parking lot looked a bit run down, but the interior of the restaurant was really nice and well decorated. We ordered the takoyaki, shaggy dog roll, niku udon, and pork misozuke. The takoyaki was phenomenal. They came in 6 takoyaki balls sized slightly smaller than the takoyaki balls you'd find in most other Japanese restaurants, which made them so much easier to eat, and they were packed with flavors. The shaggy dog rolls were also very good; everything tasted really fresh, and the tempura was very crispy. My favorite was the niku udon. The broth was light but flavorful, and the beef was very tender. The only okay thing from this dinner was the pork misozuke. For a main dish, I was really surprised the pork didn't come with rice, so I ordered a side of rice. Good thing I did because the pork turned out to be on the very salty side, so eating it by itself wouldn't have been very great.

I am from Japan, and Zen used to be my favorite Japanese restaurant as the Japanese owner and chef serve very authentic Japanese dishes. I did not visit Zen for a few years and very disappointed because the quality of the facility seemed ran down. When I entered the restaurant, I smelled unbearable odor like sewage, which was believed to be coming from the next door according to the server, but the owner should have fixed it as it certainly discourage our appetite and lowers the taste of food. I experienced the same odor at another Japanese owned Japanese restaurant Izakaya Wa on the same street several years ago and stopped returning to that restaurant. When I went to the women's restroom, I did not notice odor, but the faucet on the sink was wobbly. Although the food was still good, I will not return as there are so many better high quality authentic Japanese restaurants with appealing ambiance such as Kata Robata and Katami. As a Japanese, I feel slightly ashamed that those Japanese owned restaurants are such poor conditions.

This sushi place is solid. Quality is top notch without breaking the bank! The restaurant is cozy but clean. Staff are nice. It doesn't get horribly busy like some other big sushi spots. Anyways, I recommend any of their sashimi/sushi. Fish is fresh out the sea. And absolutely try their extreme picante and aburi salmon special roll. Looks boring but it's mouth watering. Any basic roll was fresh and of great quality as well. You may pay just slightly higher in price for the quality but at least you won't get good poisoning! Will def. Come back.

Dined in on a Thursday at 12:30 pm for a party of 2 and was seated immediately. There's a wall right when you walk in and I had to get the chef's attention to be seated. A young female waitress seated us, and there were two menus on the table that was for dinner and their rolls. We asked for lunch menus, she handed us one menu.... So we asked for another one.... The menus both said lunch but they had different items on each. Very confusing service and menus going on. She got two of our orders wrong as well. We ordered: Rock n' roll hand roll: tiny shrimp, not crispy, the shrimp was placed tail out, which was interesting... Spider hand roll: very good big soft shell crab Salmon belly nigiri: decent Chopped Scallop nigiri but she must have misheard and gave us whole scallops....... Unagi nigiri but she must have misheard again and gave us Uni....... So confused but we ate it anyways and it was good Takoyaki: very crispy and good flavors Katsu curry: big portion but the curry needed more flavor This place has potential but service needs a major upgrade.

Wow! This place was amazing, don't let the humble facade fool you. The interior was well decorated and very zen, certainly living up to the name. The $6 house sake was also an incredible deal and two of these are easily enough to make sure you have a great time here. The highlight of the meal was the quality of the fish - we had the zen ceviche and were blown away by how fresh and how much fish there was, not to mention how the fish just melts in your mouth. The deep fried squid legs were delightfully crispy, crunchy and well seasoned. The specialty rolls here were also delicious, as was the tan tan men which had a deep flavorful bone broth with aromatic Chinese chili crisp. This certainly isn't a budget eat, but for the quality of the food it is well worth it. 10/10 would come again.

The most authentic Japanese restaurant in Houston in my opinion. I've come here various times even though it's a drive for me, and I've mostly gotten their bento or sushi. I love their food, as it delicious, good quality, and decently priced. I took out one star because I had the unagi (eel) bowl and it was inedible. The fish had so many bones to the point that it was a choking hazard. I hope they've improved the preparation of the dish, as I'm not comfortable ordering it again.

I go here frequently as I live close by in Montrose, but this place is amazing and a literal oasis when you walk inside from the TX heat. The nearby Aka sushi is great, but Zen has equally tasty food, an equally reasonable happy hour menu, but is WAY more chill and relaxed. They also have some of the best nigiri/sashimi selections from fish I can't find at any of the other spots in town. Definitely try this place if you've never been cause you won't regret it!!

FYI: They are currently closed (July 4th - July 11th) for an employee summer holiday. Solid meal here. PLANNING YOUR VISIT: This restaurant is very small and not super busy (like some of the other sushi spots in the area). This makes it a good choice for a quiet date night. We randomly came by at around 6pm on a Friday and had no issue getting a nice booth. It started to pick up somewhat after that. If you plan on coming during a peak time, consider making a reservation (on their website) since it's such a small restaurant. LOCATION/PARKING: The location / parking lot looks run down since the adjacent building is entirely shut down (all the businesses vacated). Not sure if they intend to tear it down or sell the real estate or what. It's an eyesore but at least there is more parking availability. However, the restaurant is nice inside. FOOD: I enjoyed the food here. My Zen Mega Dragon roll was delicious. My boyfriend liked his Shaggy Dog roll -- pretty tasty as well. Yummy escolar nigiri. The chicken karaage appetizer was good. Tasty mochi (mango) and delicious yuzu cheesecake. MENU: The menu had a good amount of varying options. They have rare fish selections from Japan on their nigiri & sashimi menu. My one tiny complaint was that there was no soup appetizer option like miso (just noodle soups like udon). They also didn't have any decaf tea option (only green).

I came here on a Saturday during lunch and it was pretty empty. Not sure why. They have pretty good lunch menu deals, and the food quality was great. I got the sashimi bento, and it came with so many side dishes. I loved the eggplant it came with. I also tried the hamachi kama and tempura. Everything was great! I will definitely be back

Went here for a quick lunch between appointments. Knowing how busy this place could get during lunch hours, we decided to arrive a bit early (before noon). We were seated right away in a booth and ordered our food promptly. The food took about 10 minutes to arrive, we had Tsukiji 5 and Small Bowl, Chirashi, Karaage (too bad their Nankotsu Karate was out already) and some sort of fried cake. They were solid, the sashimi and sushi were fresh while the side dishes were good as well. By the time we finished, the place was already full with folks waiting in line. So if you're still wonder how good the foods are, wonder no more. It's important to note that parking is very limited in front of the restaurant and the exterior looks a bit run down. If you drove by, you might miss this place. However, as the saying go, don't judge it by the outside.

Food was good. The Zen ceviche was delicious!!!. Sushi rolls was decent. Place was clean and good service

I love their food, people and their services , and I love chef's presentation, too! thus I will keep visiting there.

Just excellent in any way good food great services nice location and an unforgettable taste

In my opinion, this is one of Houston's two most underappreciated eateries. Undiscovered treasure. Outstanding value and quality. Always excellent.

Great Japanese restaurant, delicious Japanese traditional dishes highly recommended

I'm almost never in Houston, so I never know how to make a decision on where to eat. Especially because I know Houston is an amazing gastronomical playground for people with all tastes and preferences. I trusted places close to me with great reviews and I'm glad we came here for dinner. We made a reservation because it is recommended as it is always packed and the place is not too big. The night was cold so not everyone was out, so we got to experience the restaurant at about half capacity. We didn't take too many pictures, but everything we ate was amazing. We shared a seaweed salad, a bowl of Tan Tan Men, a shaggy dog roll, and yellowtail sashimi with an extra dry Asahi beer. OMG, everything was delicious. So far, Houston has not disappointed my palate.

Came here alone for lunch today. Definitely did not miss the mark on quality (5/5). Sushi was fresh. However SERVICE made it not worth the price. The woman who greeted me was sweet. Girl actually serving me had a couple mishaps. Ordered wasabi tobiko and my waitress brought out a half soy/habanero tobiko without asking me if that was ok. Then brought my bill before charging my soup. I thought maybe the miso soup was a complimentary gesture since she punked me on me order. When she swiped my card I noticed she put on the soup AFTER she took my payment because I got a notification on my phone. Shady and poor communication. Irritating. Would have considered going back but there are too many sushi places having equal quality and better service in Houston.

I cannot believe that I still haven't written a review for Zen Izakaya! It is a little hard to locate if you're driving down shepherd. It's in the little "shopping strip" on Shepherd going away from westheimer. But directions are not my forte so you should probably google it. Once inside, you are in a very well planned place where light is maximized to create space. We came here for dinner. It was raining that night and the atmosphere couldn't have been any more perfect. The takoyoki, hikaji, and tempura were some of my most favorite nonsushi items. It was my first time trying hikaji and I fell in love with the different textures of seaweed and flavors that I had not tried before. The tempura pieces were fresh, crispy and the presentation was perfect. Think Japanese presentation perfection. The miso soup was very tasty as well. The takoyaki burnt my mouth and I absolutely loved it. We got the unagi, hachi, and the dragon roll. The hachi/hamachi was super fatty and melt in my mouth good. The unagi was a solid flavor of the rice complementing the barbecue-esque notes of the eel. The dragon roll was as good as any. Can't wait to go back!

If I was to rate Zen on a scale of HEB sushi to MF/Uchi, I would say they are a solid 8. They place above restaurants like Miyako's, Top Sushi, Oishii, Hokkaido, etc., and could be comparable to Kata. Zen has a fine dining kind of atmosphere, with dim lights and minimum noise levels. The fact that they offer Otoro and Wagyu are signs of a finer sushi restaurant, and although it isn't authentic Japanese Wagyu, the tenderness of the meat and the way it was delicately torched tells me that it wasn't just some cheap imitation. The Otoro and Ama-Ebi were fresh and didn't have any of that fishy taste/smell. What stood out to me about Zen wasn't their above average sushi, but the different Izakaya dishes that other sushi restaurants in Houston have never offered. The deep fried eggplants were actually not battered but still delightful. The Recon Hasamiage was an interesting combination of lotus root and shrimp cake, battered and deep fried. My favorite by far was the Omu Soba. The crepe thin omelette was wrapped around these wok fried noodles that had a very strong char-grilled flavor, or wok-hei as we call it in Cantonese (heat from the wok), which is something only accomplished with precise control over an intensely large fire. I love anything that has that grilled flavor to it. #218

Food authentic, service great, we really enjoyed this place each time. Highly recommend to spend your time here with loved ones.

Houston has exceptional high-end sushi options and serviceable cheap establishments, but I haven't found too many reliable spots in the mid-priced tier. Enter Zen. Their standard rolls clock in at less than $10 and the majority of their special rolls fall in the $10-$15 range. While the individual nigiri/sashimi items and combos are on the more expensive side, they're not back-breakingly so. The fish was of consistently high quality, and the rolls were well constructed and tightly packed such that they did not crumble easily. They have other Japanese izakaya classics on offer, but we didn't stray too much from the sushi menu for takeout. Extreme Picante Roll - Don't let the name scare you away, because it was by far our favorite. First, the smoky char of the torched escolar washes over your palate, followed by the creamy yellowtail, then the pop of spicy serrano, followed by the crunch of microgreens. Don't miss this if it's available! Aburi Salmon Roll - Another excellent entry with flame-seared salmon on top that provides a lox-like savor. Cucumber and raw mango provide some nice crunch to offset the delicate fish. Shaggy Dog Roll - I'm not normally a tempura person in sushi, but the fried shrimp was fresh and crunchy without any hint of sogginess. The crab on top is real (not imitation!), and I actually appreciated the stringy texture. The sweet and umami glaze, along with the flaky "crunch" that gives the roll its name, were all really nice. Tuna & Tuna Roll - This was our least favorite, if only because it was the least exciting. Both spicy and fresh tuna were tasty and they don't have a heavy hand with the mayo. Tempura Udon - Our one non-sushi item was also really good. The noodles were chewy and thick, the broth was flavorful without being overwhelming. The fish tempura in particular was perfectly cooked and delicious. The crew at Zen clearly know what they are doing, and I would definitely consider this local izakaya if you're in the mood for sushi or Japanese small plates.

Love that their sashimi is imported from Japan. There's really a distinctive freshness that you can't taste from cheap fish which makes the higher price worth it. Sushi rice is honestly so underrated because the wrong proportion or taste will throw off the entire balance of a piece of nigiri, but Zen manages to make it perfect. Also, the yuzu cheesecake is a must.

Being a big sushi lover, I'm astonished why I haven't been to this place sooner. The ambiance is very quaint and intimate. It was very "zen" indeed. I liked how quiet it is, especially during this COVID time. They have an extensive menu with focus on different types of fishes from Tokyo. I didn't spot novelties such as uni or foie, but their fish quality is authentic and fresh. The nigiri pieces stood out! It was my first time having nigiri where the actual rice is dressed. They also had a big surprise of wasabi underneath the fish. I liked that, but some may not prefer it. We ordered the chu toro, salmon belly, and hamachi belly nigiri. Oh...my...days...the chu toro was one of the best I ever had. Usually when I eat chu toro, sometimes it can be overwhelmingly fatty and meaty, but this one literally bursted into my mouth with flavor and then disintegrated leaving me wanting more. It was similar to the affect of eating a foie gras. I was very surprised as I never had chu toro with texture and flavor such as that. The salmon belly was okay (not as buttery) and I really liked the hamachi belly. We ordered the tan tan men ramen and that was good too. No complaint there in terms of broth and flavor, but a slight complaint would be there wasn't any egg. We also ordered a roll that we enjoyed, but it wasn't the highlight of our meal. For sure, come here for nigiri if you appreciate fish and quality.

I love the vibe here. The food was amazing, I loved the miso soup & the shaggy dog. Our server was also nice! 10/10