Sushi Roku

Sushi Roku
33 Miller Alley Pasadena, CA 91103 (626) 683-3000
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Not Recommended

A product of the Innovative Dining Group, owners of Katana and Balboa in West Hollywood, Boa in Hollywood, Santa Monica and Las Vegas and the Robata Bar in Santa Monica, have taken one of my favorite culinary art forms, sushi, and degraded it to a flashy disappointment. Despite the striking atmosphere in the Pasadena location the sushi itself is ultimately forgettable. I sat at the sushi bar and was served very small cuts of fish, either overly vinegary or served with heavy handed wasabi. The rice was not prepared well, with a very soft and unpleasant texture. I ordered tomago (egg omelet) hamachi (yellow tail) and hirame (halibut) as my first course. Served out of order (in my opinion tomago should always be served first) the hirame arrived first. The rice was so heavily vinegared as to overwhelm the fish completely and ruin my palate for the hamachi that arrived next. The hamachi had so much wasabi to render the fish irrelevant and the tomago, served last, was nearly frozen on rice that was so sweet as to be almost candy-like. My next course was maguro, (tuna), aji (Spanish mackerel) and a Soft Shell Crab maki roll. Again every piece served was a disappointment. The maguro, like the hamachi, was so heavily spiced with wasabi it made my nose run, the aji, so heavily vinegared the rice fell apart on the plate and (most disappointing of all) the soft shell crab roll was served as an inside out roll (bad idea, the heat from the fried crab ruins the nori by steaming it and making it chewy) pre-made so it arrived soggy and cold.

The atmosphere is very nice but service is a bit asinine. At 45 years old, I don't need to be called young man or “bro” by my 20-something year old waiter.

If you want nice surroundings and overly friendly wait staff and aren’t afraid to pay dearly for it, this may be your kind of place. If you want good sushi, carefully prepared and served in an appropriate manner I strongly suggest finding an alternative.