Seiyo

I have been an advocate of Seiyo for a well over a year now but I have to say, the sashimi, sushi and maki have gone down hill in the last year. I went for the first time in Dec 2005 and have been a regular patron since but the last time I went (in Feb 2007), the sushi was loosely rolled and the sashimi was stringy. It was really good sushi for the first couple of months but I am sad that I am now opting for other sushi places instead.
One of my biggest annoyances with Seiyo is that they have not had a liquor license since the beginning of 2007 and they keep saying "next week" but "next week" has turned in to 3 months- I would like them to just be honest. I have also asked them to bring back the "crunch" which they have on the menu but do not offer in their rolls anymore... Their loosely rolled rolls could benefit from some more flavor from some ?crunch?. I will go elsewhere for a while.

Posted 03/19/07

I'm landlocked to an office for dinner so I've been trying sushi in various locations. Tried Seiyo on a recommendation and have to say it was definitely good value but not amazing sushi. The fish wasn't as fresh as it could have been, but the prices were noticeably cheaper than other place's I've ordered from.

On a negative note, their delivery took about an hour and a half, but then again we did order about $450 worth of food.

Posted 11/07/06

We just moved to Boston and are looking for places to enjoy around the house.

While the staff is Chinese and not Japanese, the service and food are quite good. The decoration is very nice with a blend of metal and wood as primary elements.

The unique combination of Sushi bar / Wine shop works quite well. We didn't order wine or beer but the concern expressed regarding cork fees are apparently addressed (at least were told it was to be contained in the retail price of the bottle).

The place was not too busy and actually fairly quiet which we liked for our dinner. Stay clear of the door where it can get pretty noisy I suppose.

We tried the Maguro, Sake and Hamachi sashimi and they were all quite good. The Seaweed salad was great. When trying a new place you have the include the classics so we ordered California rolls, they turned out to be quite tasty.

We will go again for sure. They also offer take out.

Pros: Decoration, service, sushi bar/wine shop combination

Posted 09/06/06

The good: Food is very good. Service was good in some ways. Waitress recommended a dish (called the volcano maki) which my party LOVED. Big hit.

The bad: I think since they don't have a liquor license, they get away around this by selling bottles of wine.
BEWARE: they charge a $10 corking fee per bottle.
We didn't find this out until the check came. Didn't notice it on the menu nor was told by the waitress. They were not very accommodating about it even when we brought it up.

Pros: Food, waitress suggestions

Cons: Corking fee, dispute resolution, parking

Posted 06/18/06

This place is great! Since they opened, the food just keeps getting better and better. The service is good, and the owner is veryvery nice. It is very convenient for south enders, and there is usually alot of street parking. This restaurant is a great addition to the neighborhood.

Posted 04/12/06

Nice place, good food, fair prices, nice people.
It's nice for lunch too, never packed , always nice to be there.
NICE selection of wine!

Pros: Food, Staff, Clean, neat

Cons: Liquor

Posted 01/26/06

My bf and I had dinner at seiyo the other day. What a great addition to this up and coming neighborhood. The sushi menu is extensive and creative. Delicious and resonably priced too! Really cool atmosphere with the thick wooden countertops and chop stick holders.

Posted 01/07/06

i frequently go there with my husband and we love it. great rolls, great value and very fresh sashimi. my favorite is the white tuna. it just melts in your mouth. great selection of affordable and great wines. Hopefully, they will get their liquor license soon. Definitely check it out. there's plenty of parking on the street .

Pros: fresh food, good service, good ambiance

Cons: no liquor license yet

Posted 12/13/05

I'm in love... I've been craving good sushi, and Seiyo delivers with style. The sushi has consistently improved since opening, and it's excellent now. Whether enjoying old standbys like unagi or a dragon roll or trying one of their Boston rolls or something else I haven't found elsewhere, I am always happy. The attached wine store is really handy, and I like that there is such a diverse selection of reasonably priced wines. Yum! About the only downside is the stylish, but weird notch in the tables that I always fear will be the downfall (literally) of my soy sauce or glass.

Pros: Fresh sushi, Great wine

Cons: Busy at times, Parking limited

Posted 12/12/05

My friend and I went her for s small bite to eat. We went early on a holiday, so were the only ones there. The sushi was very good but they only gave us a small amount of wasabi for 12 rolls. We asked for more and realized when we got our bill that they charged for it. It was more annoying than the actual cost. They also don't have a liquor license but you can buy a bottle of wine in the attached wine store and pay a corkage fee.....no thanks. There are too many other restaurants to try in the South End, so neither of us will probably go back any time soon.

Posted 10/13/05

I'll keep it short and sweet. The sushi's good but not great, the shasmi was very good however. Nothing earth shattering in terms of offerings but the presentation was very nice. No beer and wine license, but That's coming soon. Ambiance wise very nice, with some great people watching tables facing the windows!

Pros: Ambiance, Price

Cons: No Beer/Wine

Posted 08/16/05

Caught the eyes of both me and my boyfriend as we were walking down Mass. Ave. Very chic and stylish place but easy to miss because of its size. Excellent service: our friendly waitress was ready on hand to answer questions we had about the menu and refilled our drinks before the glass was half empty. Highly recommend the volcano roll, and iced jasmine green tea. Fresh sashimi came in Fugakyu-sized cuts. Window seats are recommended for people-watching (in our case, weather-watching because it was raining out). Will definitely return, but only if I'm in the area.

Pros: excellent service, decent prices

Cons: street parking, small, out of the way

Posted 08/14/05