Hime--CLOSED

This place was pretty good. everything tasted good, none of their rolls really blew me away though. I did really really like the decor. This would be a great place to take a large group or have an office dinner or something here. Very good service, and overall the food was definitely good. I just get really picky about sushi and since there are so many places in the city something that I expect to be one of the "best" places i want to have realyl unique super flavorful rolls. Overall good and I'm sure i will return.

Pros: great atmosphere, good food

Posted 09/16/08

What a disapointment. I had such high hopes for this place. Too be fair, the sushi is quiet fresh and good, but the service is so tacky in every way, and the decor looked like it was transported from chinatown.

Posted 03/04/08

We went here last Friday as a double date and it was one of the worst sushi experiences I have had. The waitress was completely ditzy and did not pay any attention to us at all in terms of beverages and just general customer service. Then towards the end she started to get pushy when there were clearly open tables available. The sushi was awful you could tell it was not fresh and it was overly saucy to the point of almost being greasy which is a word I have never associated with sushi. I would never go back there again--worst sushi ever.

Posted 12/19/07

I finally got the chance to check out this place on a Monday night and had a great experience overall. Cool decor that I bet would be even cooler when it's hopping. Friendly service. Most importantly, fresh generous rolls. The sake tastings were a terrific as well. Definitely going back to hang out in the bar area and eat there again. Oh yeah, easy parking - they have a small lot!

Pros: fresh sushi, friendly service, cool decor

Posted 11/25/07

It is very romantic. Sushi is fresh, not as good as Ebisu but the ambience definitely adds a lot of points. Parking sometimes is bad. Service is very good though.

Posted 10/16/07

I am a sushi freak. I eat it 4-5 times per week. This place is great. great people. great food. great atmosphere. I know lombard is a tough place for a restaurant...but there is even parking. Its not the cheapest, but I dont mess around with raw fish. Go! Lets make sure they stay in business!

Pros: great everything

Cons: pricey (but worth it)

Posted 10/07/07

I've heard mixed reviews from friends but decided to check out Hime anyway. I went with a couple friends who are big sushi fans and we were all quite disappointed.

Too much sauce: the rolls we had were drenched in sauce. The descriptions didn't state that, but wow, so much sauce. The hamachi jalapeno was also drenched in sauce which was unfortunate as it masked the flavor of the fish.

Inconsistent: We ordered a nigiri assortment platter and the sizes of the nigiri were all very different, the otoro being extremely small (half the size of the most other fish) and the tamago huge, the cuts of the fish inconsistent some very thin, others somewhat lopsided, etc, and the presentation was just plain sloppy. It also lacked garnishes.

Not authentic: the chawanmushi had an extremely cornstarch-y quality to it and was topped with a huge glob of wasabi. I've lived in Japan and have never seen wasabi in chawanmushi. The table next to us even made the same comment that the wasabi was unnecessary and actually ruined the taste of the dish for them.

Service was mediocre. Our server seemed less than knowledgeable about the menu and was a bit difficult to locate at times, but was at least friendly. The sake selection is decent, but I would recommend not having your sake overpoured into the masu (or box). While it's traditional to use a cedar box in the old days of just average sake, most places use lacquer boxes now for hygiene and taste purposes. Hime uses the cheap sho chiku bai wooden boxes, which, when overpoured into, makes the sake taste like cheap wood. I'd opt for them to overpour into another glass next time.

The tuna tartare was good and tasty, nice plating, but I wasn't a big fan of how the server handled the food with her bare hands when mixing in the avocado.

Overall it is a cool spot in terms of ambiance and the vibe, but overpriced, and very disappointing food and quality.

Pros: Cool ambiance, away from the busy areas of the Marina

Cons: Value, Food Quality, Service

Posted 08/12/07

I really enjoyed this restaurant; first, the sashimi was very, very fresh- it melted in my mouth. The rolls were great (loved the spicy heaven roll), I particularly liked the creativity of the ingredients in them (except the last roll on the menu with gold, I found that a little cheesy. But I bet it's a delicious roll. It better be, for $20!). The atmosphere is cool too, though I wasn't fond of the music (sorta techno?), and the presentation of the food was cool (there was a blue light in the ice under the sashimi!). Although we were given the wrong sushi roll three times, the waitress was very apologetic, and she had been very attentive and friendly all evening. The sushi chefs seemed very busy, and it's a new restaurant, I'll cut them some slack. Anyway, the food made up for this service issue. For four people, we only spent $140 or so, which isn't bad. They have valet, too. I'll be back!

Posted 06/01/07

I'm really really sorry to read all the so-so reviews written on city search. If you can't appreciate Hime's brillance then quite frankly you don't deserve to eat at this WONDERFUL new restaurant. Kinda-San (the head chef) is a *great* new and young Japanese chef. His dishes are very creative and inspired works of art. The sashimi is very chef and just delicious--the kitchen food is equally great and the service is top notch! The manager Jesse is very gracious and very attentive. The waitresses are equally great in providing wonderful service. This restaurant is still relatively new (only 9 months old) so of course there are probably a few kinks here and there for them to work out and to gain a foot hold on who they are and what they're all about--but really this place is GREAT. It is a very HIGHLY RECOMMENDED GEM!

Pros: Great food, great service, great overall dinning experience!

Cons: The location may be hard to fine (it's hard to see their sign from the road) but overall wonderful!

Posted 05/12/07

After hearing the buzz, we decided to try Hime on a weeknight. The decor was sleek and the menu seemed authentic. Having lived in Japan, we could appreciate what they were trying to achieve for the US market.

We ordered a sample of sushi, hot and cold dishes. The sushi was fresh but not amazing. The tuna tartare was accompanied by burnt taro chips. When the waitress was informed, she simply apologized but offered no recourse. The baked black cod was a bit salty.

Given the plethora of Japanese restaurants in SF, we wouldn't return to Hime.

Pros: Parking

Cons: Value

Posted 04/29/07

Are you kidding me, this is supposed to be the new hot spot? The cheap asian theme is so tired. The redwood table you can get in chinatown for cheap. And what is going on with the different track light. We started the evening with a waitress, by the end of the meal she is nowhere to be found. The food is average at best. I should have had dinner at IHop next door.

Posted 04/02/07

I cannot believe how TERRIBLE the service was at this restaurant. Half of the time they did not bring out our table's order and the other half of the time they made lame excuses as to why we were not receiving our food. Our waitress was completely incompetant and did not apoligize once for forgetting our drinks and our food. You could not pay me to ever go back to this restaurant!!!!

Cons: Service, service, service

Posted 03/26/07

This is a really excellent restaurant. Great service, excellent ambience. Superb sushi. Highly recommended.

Pros: ambience, fresh fish

Cons: a little pricey

Posted 03/02/07

To be fair, the food is pretty good. If you go, try the mushroom sald...surprisingly good. And the portions are pretty big. So far, so good...until you're actually served. The waitstaff here is overworked and undertrained...sounds like some of them have never worked in japanese restaurant before. Could be that the place is new, but that shouldn't matter. The first time I went, the food came out in a bizarre order...different from the way I ordered, and with no other logic imposed...sushi, then miso, then robata plates? I thought it was an off night, but I went a 2nd time (because the food was good) and the exact same thing happened, with a totally different server. Kitchen needs to get sorted. Also, this place is cheesy, with a chain-restaurant kind of feel to it. Over-styled decor, lightly thumping techno, and food presentation that is trying *way* too hard. A blue light embedded in ice under the sashimi? Come on. Anyway, it's not terrible, but there's equally good sushi in the city without the hype...if you do go, be specific about how you want the dishes to come out!

Pros: Parking, good-sized portions

Cons: Service, decor, style

Posted 02/04/07

I went here tonight after seeing the high reivews by other CitySearchers. What a dissapointment. They do a really good job of marketing on their website, it "looks" really cool, dark, red lights and cool Asian atmopspher. In reality, when you arrive at their parking lot, you already feel like something is a little off...like, you've just arrived at Denny's. Once inside, the lighting is a little too bright, the place a little too big, and the atmosphere like a remodeled diner. Our server did not know much about the menu, which is fine. But the food!!! If you are going to advertise that your 3 Japanese chefs are from Japan and trained in Kaiseki style food, and that they experimented with the food for 3 months straight trying to come up with the menu, I expect alot more. It's really your average Americanized sushi-place. I mean come on, I as an amateur chef could of come up with a much more original menu.
As a bonafied sushi snob, I distinguish a sushi place by some standards. And Hime failed miserably out of the couple standards. First, the rice in the nigiri crumbled. Not a good sign. Also, the rice didn't even taste anything like how a sushi-meshi (sushi rice ) should taste. Hardly even a hint of vinegar. Then, their miso soup. No broth. Just straight up instant or packaged broth. Being a sushi joint, you have alot of fish bones lying around, you could cook them to make some seriously delicious broth. Total dissapointment. I had the unagi, hamachi, and uni nigiri. Hamachi kama, dynamite, and a couple different sakes. I honestly had a hard time remembering what I ate at the end of my meal. Recommended for people who don't know what sushi, or Japanese food is about and willing to waste some money. I guess in the Marina on Lombard, this what you get?

Pros: parking

Cons: over-price, over-hyped, non-original japanese food/sushi

Posted 01/27/07

This place is awesome and I will definitely be going back for more. Some of the freshest sushi you will find around, plus a very cool atmosphere. The servers are very knowledgable and helpful on their specials, and the food is beautifully displayed. The back bar serves special Japanese vodka and beers on tap too. Overall an A+++!!!

Pros: Food, ambiance, service

Cons: No parking

Posted 01/23/07

We went here for NYE, 2006/7--Prompt service. We had a large group (11people) and they still got us our food quickly and with great service. I love love love sushi and have tried many places-this was by far the freshest fish I have ever tasted. Our waiter told us they flew the cook in from Japan to open the restaurant. I loved ever minute. I think they are in a weird location and that's why they don't have a lot of foot traffic. You must go before this place takes off--its amazing!!!

Pros: Fresh fish, execellent selection of saki

Cons: Hard parking, better off taking a cab, make reservations its small

Posted 01/01/07

Delicious. Good service. I will definitely be back! The Dragon and Rainbow Rolls were amazing. And I finally found fluke on a sushi menu out here!! It's one of my favorite fishes and out here (I am from NYC) I've been told halibut was the closest I would find. Served on ice, it was so cold and fresh - I loved it. The only disappointment was the green salad - it was large enough for two of us to share, but I had higher expectations for the dressing. Even the dessert was terrific - we had the Chocolate Chocolate...mousse and ice cream, beautifully presented and very yummy. Hime is only a few blocks from where we live, and we are thrilled to have found such a great sushi place so close.

Pros: Fresh fish, good/friendly service, nice atmosphere

Cons: It ain't cheap, but it's worth it

Posted 12/28/06

I was really excited to check out this spot due to the great reviews here. Unfortunately, the food quality at Hime is simply 'average'. The service was friendly and the atmosphere was definitely 'trying' to make a statement - unfortunately, the end result is more of a '96 dot-com feel with pretty average fish quality and menu. The music was quasi-trendy (not sure why restaurants thinks it's a good idea to pump tired house music while you're dining?) and the wasabi was made from powder. The rolls are pretty much the same as everywhere else and the unagi wasn't as fresh as one would hope. I am hoping to find a really GOOD sushi joint in SF, however, I'm almost convinced they don't exist ...

Pros: Good lighting, attentive/friendly service

Cons: Really average fish quality

Posted 12/16/06

I went with a couple of friends on Friday night and the food was amazing and the service was great...both the owner and the server were really friendly and made great recommendations on the food. The tuna tartare and the Hime Rolls were the best I have ever had. I highly recommend this restaurant and would advise making reservations to avoid the wait.

Pros: food, staff, drinks

Cons: none

Posted 12/10/06

Discovering this neighborhood restaurant had parking prompted me to try a relatively new restaurant, but it's the service and the food that will keep me coming back. The baked salmon rolls could melt in your mouth. The portions are generous and each dish was superb. The service was impeccable-every dish timed perfectly and we were never left searching for a water refill as we are in some other marina sushi restaurants!! I filled out a comment card with the bill and even received a thank you email the next day. This is our new sushi spot

Pros: Parking

Cons: A little pricey

Posted 11/07/06

So I have very high standards for sushi. probably ridiculously so in SF. But this place could possibly top them all. The ambiance is breath-taking - beautiful furniture, lighting, colors. The bamboo shoots hanging in from the window are integral in making you forget you're on busy loud, Lombard Street. It is literally a peaceful enclave from the world.
And the food - incredible - probably better than anywhere in the city! The serving sizes are large - if that can be said for any sushi restaurant. generous pieces of fish in all nigiri items, rolls and even the sashimi orders are large!
And the taste - unbelievable. The fish literally melts in your mouth. Even the rolls, with the variety of textures, rice, etc, seems to come together into the most wonderful combinations. Everything just gels in the rolls.
Try the Green Tea ice cream dessert - not your mother's green tea ice cream. Delicious, light and the perfect cap to an amazing meal.
The service is impeccable (warm hand towels), wait staff is so helpful and friendly and they are genuinely knowledgeable about Japanese food and culture.
And get this: THEY HAVE A PARKING LOT! It doesn't get much better than this in the city.
The 8.7 rating does not do this place justice. You HAVE to try it if you're in the marina and looking for sushi. Forget Ace Wasabi and Mas Sake. Come to Hime and have a true Japanese feast - the way it was intended.

Pros: Food, Service, Parking Lot

Cons: None!

Posted 10/26/06

One look at the inside of the restaurant will make you go "oooh." The ambience and the decoration is very very nice. The wait staff and the hosts are very nice and friendly. The most important part, the food, was very good also. The japanese garden was nice and simple. The hamachi and daikon was very good too, alot of flavor. the presentation on the food was something. Who ever would think of blue lights shining under crushed ice onto your sashimi? While im more into traditional japanese food as i am japanese, the fusion cuisine at this restaurant is definitely something to try.

Pros: presentation of the food, interior decor, their own parking lot

Cons: nothing really stands out as being bad, so all is well.

Posted 09/22/06

I went a few nights ago with two friends. We were very pleasantly greeted and seated immediately. Our server came over with hot towels (Oshibori) and offered beverages. We looked over the menu and decided on a variety of items. Sashimi, Nigiri Sushi, Vegetable Tempura, and Kobe Lettuce cups. Everything was outstanding. The Hamachi Sashimi portions were extremely generous and the fish was the perfect temp. The Nigiri sushi was expertly prepared and the perfect temperature. The Toro was as good as I've had anywhere. Bubble gum pink and very well marbled. The Tempura portion was huge and was served with grated Daikon Radish. A nice change from the salt bath (soy based sauce) most Sushi places serve. I was very surprised to have Avocado Tempura, which was warm and creamy. This was followed by Kobe Lettuce cups. Delicious! Much more luxurious than the ones from Betelnut. And once again, a huge portion. In all we ordered the same as we would at any other sushi place, but somehow we even left with food for the next day. Overall, a solid restaurant that will have a bright future once everyone tries the fish."

Pros: Parking, fresh fish and cool atmosphere.

Posted 08/28/06

their decor is great, the service is fast, the atmosphere is intimate, and the rolls are substantial. Most impressive is their Hime roll with their special spicy sauce. we ordered 2 rolls this last time between the two of us. as an appetizer, i'd recommend their kobe beef lettuce wraps. i also liked their zen martini (green tea liquor!).

Posted 08/25/06