Love Takoba again! They went downhill, but I visited recently and they redeemed themselves. Quality of fish is a lot better and the drink menu is now streamlined with a handful of good drinks. Love the intimate feeling with it tucked away on top of the club. Servers were so nice and personable. You can have your sushi and continue to party downstairs with the deejays ;)
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This tiny sushi restaurant is located on the second floor of the bar John Colins, super close to the Mesuem of Modern Art and a 5-min walk from Montgomery BART station.
The food here deserves a solid 4 stars.
Positives:
+ Fish is so fresh, tender, fatty and melt-in-your-month - actually, if you consider the fish quality to be the most important element of sushi, this place would deserve 5 stars
+ Taste of food is creative and well thought out
Top recommendations:
Midori roll (top: salmon; inside: shiso, cucumber, and avocado) is the most uniquely-tasting roll I've had in a while. It had a simple, refreshing and clean taste. With the right amount of shiso to give it a floral aroma, thinly-sliced cucumber for the perfect crunch, and salmon and avocado for the creamy texture.
+ Food came out within 5-10 minutes of ordering, great if you are starving
Negatives:
- Drinks came after food was out (likely because drinks are made downstairs in the bar and had to be carried upstairs carefully)
- Our waiter was friendly but did not know about the menu well so he had to "go check" multiple times to answer my questions about drinks and fish daily specials
- Sushi rolling technique needs to improve! One of the rolls was falling apart when I picked it up 😩
Lastly, some tips:
1) After you enter from the main door, you will see a hostess podium with a sign saying "Takoba" and an arrow pointing left and up. Follow the sign, walk up the stairs (see pictures), and you will be greeted by someone at the top of the stairs
2) Put your name on the waitlist on Yelp before you go, and be there by the time Yelp says to grab your seats
Small and cozy place up the stairs. Warm and welcoming service. Excellent sushi. Nice atmosphere. Highly recommended.
Cozy and intimate sushi spot located in the loft space of John Colins. The rolls are quite reasonably priced by San Francisco standards and also surprisingly delicious. It's really hard to find decent sushi in this city without spending a small fortune.
My girlfriend and I ate here early in the evening at around 5:30 pm. If you want to eat dinner here be sure to go early because this place will get packed by 7. We sat by the window overlooking the grimy alley with a not so pleasant view of the butt of another skyscraper and a couple of hobos smoking cigarettes.
Although you won't get a scenic view at this establishment, you will certainly get your money's worth in the delicious rolls. I had the Takoba, Minna and Oban rolls, all of which I would highly recommend.
Good experience and very fresh sushi; I'll be back. Heads up, Takoba is NOT family-friendly. The location is above a bar, and the bouncer outside cards you to get inside. Takoba itself is pretty small, but with the bar below, you just put your name in and get drinks downstairs while you wait, so a longer wait is very tolerable. The waitresses were very nice, far superior to your typical sushi restaurant where you don't expect great service, but you'll get it here. And as for the sushi itself...we didn't get a roll we didn't love. They have pretty unique specialty rolls, that are all delicious and very fresh. Definitely recommend for quality sushi in a small restaurant.
Super tiny spot above an alley. Reasonably priced. Limited selection for the menu, but the fish is fresh. A little busy at lunch time, likely a wait unless you get there when they first open, community seating. Will be back for lunch!
Never been to this hidden joint even though I've been to John Collins so many times...I had no idea how I missed it before. The sushi here is really good although I had low expectations at first. We had to order a second round cause we liked it so much!!
Great sushi near the moscone center. Cool atmosphere over the bar below, great service. Love the spicy tuna handroll with warm tuna.
Tiny hidden gem in the middle of San Francisco! The place has a communal feel to it (not much privacy given no individual tables) and is quite compact, so if you like space and grandeur, that’s not a place for you. Also, not super noticeable from the outside since it’s located on the second floor of another restaurant. But boy oh boy, is the food delicious! The rolls are to die for: yummie and creative! The service was great too, with waiters being both friendly and attentive. Great value for money! Will be back on my next trip!!
Really weird, interesting space, It's above a bar! The sushi was excellent, the service was good, and after I was done eating I went downstairs for drinks
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