Haru Philadelphia

When I first went to Haru during it's grand opening, I thought the food and sushi was fantastic! Yet a couple years later, I was incredibly disappointed to have my expectations not met. I ordered the Red and White Tuna Tartar and it looked like they took slabs of sushi and molded it together like a ball of playdoh. Not only have I never seen Tartar prepared this way, but it tasted horrible. It wasn't evenly mixed, there was no crunch, no taste (except for the gross fishiness). Of course Tartar has a taste to it, but none like this. I had to return it and ask them to take it off my bill. I then ordered a Seared Tuna app and that was not so great either. The slices were cut too thick and the Tuna itself tasted old. My Toro Scallion rolls were the only good thing I ordered. Even the soups my friends ordered weren't impressive compared to last visit. Did they change cooks? Another thing I found incredibly annoying was that they brought out our sushi plates when we were only eating our appetizers. it took too much space on the table and they should have waited until they brought our sushi out because we were knocking and spilling things everywhere. I'm not coming back. Not for that price.

Posted 09/25/08

My first time at Haru was with a big group and my boyfriend and I have gone many times since by ourselves. I LOVE their sushi. They have fabulous veggie-sushi options for vegetarians and their other sushi is just amazing. I've had one really bad experience in terms of the service; i was served the wrong meal and then it took 45 mins to get me my correct entree... Beyond that one time, I've had pretty good service. That one time won't stop me from returning.
The atmosphere is good for a date or for a group and I can't rave enough about the food.
My personal favorites there are the veggie tempura rolls and the agedashi tofu appetizer.

Posted 03/06/08

The decor is top notch. That's the only good thing about this place. The $10 drinks were overprice and not very good. The food is Ok at best. The sushi were not very good at all. The tempera was OK. But the style was more Chinese than Japanese. The grilled salmon was good though. The server Gina wasn't pay any attention to us. I had to shouted and waved hard to get her to bring us some soy sauce. She was either talking to her coworkers or other customers at the bar.

Pros: Location, ambience

Cons: food, price, servie

Posted 03/03/08

Came in without a reservation and seated promptly. Waiter was attentive and friendly. Food was moderately expensive, but not jaw-dropping. My date ordered a sushi combo and once I saw it on the menu, I immediately called for the Chilean sea bass. I was not disappointed with my dish, as my date picked at the other half! Their drinks, though overpriced I think, were still delicious and carefully made. My date ordered "The Derby" cocktail, their most manly drink (with scotch) among a list of fruit-filled tinis, and weeks later was still raving about how good it was. Overall, a classy, trendy experience!

Pros: decor, presentation, food quality

Cons: hard to find parking, relatively expensive

Posted 01/22/08

...why not you? The interior and plating are top-notch. The service was definitely very attentive.
The food itself was OK, but I've definitely had better--at a better price, too. The crab dumplings were filled mostly with surimi; the lobster meat in the ceviche was overpowered by its citrus vinaigrette. The double dragon roll was underwhelming, and it seems like they tried to compensate by adding extra sauce. However, all is NOT lost. The oysters (3 for $12) definitely salvaged the night, and the uni (sea urchin), though pricey at $5.75 per piece, was right on. The uni had the markings of quality product -- it had a creamy texture and was slightly sweet. This place definitely has potential--it just needs to focus more on the food.

Pros: Ambiance, service

Cons: parking, sushi needs work

Posted 06/02/07

I've been here twice, and am not blown away by any means. This place has the ambiance down- especially upstairs, but it is not the place to go if you're looking for value. They have interesting, though very overpriced drinks, and the sushi is ok, though also very overpriced. If you want a trendy place in a convenient area and have money to burn, go here. But, if you're looking for good sushi at a cute place for a great value try somewhere else (I'd recommend Moshi Moshi off Rittenhouse).

Pros: Atmosphere

Cons: Value

Posted 02/05/07

I was a let actually down when I finally came here for dinner. After all the hype that had been surrounding this place- I was expecting something more. I went with a co-worker on quiet Monday night. Being that it was 5pm- our waiter wasn't really attentive since we were the only ones in there!! I was a little disappointed in their sushi selection. We started off with the Edamane, which came out piping hot and fresh! My co-worker got the teriakyi salmon with bokchoy and it was very impressive- Ihad the sushi and sashimini entree and the spicy titanic roll ( the sushi was average but the roll was delicious!). The restaurant itself was nice but clean lines and cute but the bar upstairs is what peaked my interest. it hosted a two huge flatscreens if i remember correctly and a cute seating area and looks like a very trendy and fun place to have a drink on a Friday night. The food was ok, but it definately tanked in the service aspect. Maybe I'll return for a drink one night and see if Haru can redeem itself.

Pros: The Bar area, the restaurant decor

Cons: service, parking

Posted 09/19/06

Love it, love it, love it. The sushi is out of the world. I am hooked. The interior seemed to overwhelm you and the service is something I will live to always remember.

Pros: great service, awesome sushi, great management

Cons: none, none, none

Posted 04/17/06