Sushi Yuen

I’ve been wanting to try Sushi Yuen for a couple years now, after a friend recommended it to me, but had always been a little late to get a reservation. Luckily, I found a spot on a Wednesday night at 5:30pm. I had walked past Sushi Yuen’s wooden door many times, and finally I would be able to go inside! 

The inside feels simple, yet refined and classy. There is a single intimate bar, seating about 10 people. There were 7 guests total during our seating time - many of which seemed to be regulars and know the chef, Chef Ryan. Chef Ryan was kind, friendly, and humble. He had a lot of knowledge of his ingredients and seasonality. “This fish is from here. This fish can only be eaten during this season. Winter is the best because the fish are bigger.” Listening to him was interesting, and I le

Came here for lunch a few times before the price more than doubled since the Michelin mention. Good food, good presentation, no reservations for lunch so we had to line up 30+ minutes before it opens. There are 2 seating for lunch.

I wish this place was better. I would actually take half a star off if I could. While ingredients are good. The balance of flavors is off. Tried to play too much into the salty umami side of Japanese cuisine and overshadowed the natural flavors of the ingredients. The showmanship while effort was given it was not executed well. Yes I understand you want to show that the ingredients are fresh and came from a particular area, but when the box is wet and dirty you should not have it in front of your customers on the cutting board. Just simply have the ingredient in a prep container and the customer can see it while you work. There is also no need to show that each and every ingredient came from Japan. I think your customers will understand if you just tell them or simply have a menu

AMAZING! One of the best meals we’ve ever had! Taste-wise on par with several Michelin restaurants we visited in Japan earlier this year. Great flavored dishes with Uni, Crab, caviar, etc. Excellent nigiri flavors, only gotten through clearly special preparation of the fresh fish. The finishing course lately has been a wagyu steak plate. They also have a small but great sake selection as well. In fact, our dining experience was so great, we went back again a couple weeks later despite it being an hour+ drive for us, and it was well worth the trip. Chef Ryan and his team are very talented and welcoming (they even remembered some of our dietary preferences from the previous visit). Can’t wait to go back!

The food is overall salty for the price, and I know that basically omakase is made right in front of you, but here it seems to be made in advance and they just set it up, and the chef is Korean. I've been to many places, but the $70 corkage fee seems a bit expensive, and it seems too expensive for the quality. I wish they would reduce the quantity and improve the quality.