Kaji Japanese Grill

I have had the opportunity of being an employee and a diner at Kaji and have never been disappointed. Lee always takes wonderful care of his staff as well as his patrons. I love the atmosphere there and I know that if I am going to go somewhere for great food, drinks and company, it's Kaji! Help support local businesses!!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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Me and my buddies went here about a year ago before we played poker on Thursday. We had such a good experience that we continue to try to make it there almost every Thursday. The sushi specials are great, the employees are fun, friendly, and truely care about building relationships. I always look forward to eating there on Thursdays!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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I think Kaji is pretty good. My main complaint is that if dining @ one of their "fire tables" it takes toooooo long!! I never go there hungry, or i'm starving by the time I eat!! The service is not as good as it used to be, and it takes FOREVER to get sushi!!! I've had sushi at only one other place in CR, and Kaji was much better. The owner IS EXTREMELY NICE, but I only go to Kaji if I have a lot of time!!!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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Kaji is amazing! The food is beyond incredible, and the atmosphere is always fun. The laid back atmosphere makes it a great place to hang out, have a 5-start meal, get some drinks and enjoy an evening.
The ownership treats customers right, and has a presence in the restaurant, which is great to see. Not only do they run the place, but they take an active role in making sure all the customers have the best experience possible.
The food is amazing. Whether its sushi, cooking table, or just sitting down for a meal, everything is top-notch. The steak is always cooked perfect, the rice is perfect, and everything else on the menu is incredible.
I've taken my family to Kaji numerous times, and they keep wanting to go back. I've taken business clients, bosses and other people I work with to Kaji, and it always gets the best reviews.
Check out Kaji! You won't regret it! And, ask Lee to play the piano...that's the highlight of the night!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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My husband and I visited Kaji's for the very first time and were not disappointed. My husband does not eat or care to eat alot of asian food. He ordered a steak. He is a beef eater at heart and knows the difference in good or bad beef. He repeatedly said that the steak he was served was the very best steak he had eaten in a long time anywhere. The food I had was excellant! The service was delightful and very quick. The restaurant was extremely clean. The place was about 80% full on a weeknight when we were there, and no one we visited with was unhappy and many were repeat customers with favorites to share off the menu. Thank you Lee to you and your staff for giving us such a nice place to come and relax with great food. We will definitely see you again.....and again.....

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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If you're looking for an entertaining, fun, laid-back, and modern dining experiencce, give Kaji Japanese Grill a try!
I visit this place regularly and have never left with a "sour taste in my mouth." Granted, I'm no self-proclaimed sushi connisseur (c'mon, I'm from Iowa) like some of the previous posters claim to be, but I know what's good and what's not good. Hy-Vee boxed sushi is not good... Kaji is good and if it keeps making improvements, it will be great!
The staff is always very friendly and welcoming and always greet me by name. Every time I sit down at a table, complimentary sake bombs are soon to follow.
One of the things that I look forward to the most when dining at Kaji is their Edamame. I know, it's simple and very difficult to botch, but so far, nowhere that I've had this dish has been able to stack up. I always find myself wishing that the Edamame was like Kaji's...
On top of that, you have the shirmp appetizers that will blow your socks off; they are mouth-wateringly delectable. I've even had the owner custom make me Tempura scallops... and I've craved them every day since.
The decor is trendy and modern but doesn't feel out of place in a city as small as Cedar Rapids. It's uniquely decorated and gives yout the fine dining feel without skipping over the local establishment vibe.
All in all, you'll be hard pressed to find an owner that is more proud of their restaurant than Lee.
Check it out. You'll be back.

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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I have been to many restaurants in Cedar Rapids but I find myself always going back to Kaji. The owner and his employees always treat me and my guests like family. It's a atmosphere like none other. I've had my company party at kaji along with many of my birthdays! Their food is always tasty and I am always looking for a reason to go back! Thank you KAJI! If you have yet to visit, go in for a good time or two! Ask for Lee. He's an awesome cook and host!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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Listen, if you havent been to Kaji, get out and check it out, it's great food, FUN atmosphere and less expensive than Osaka. plus 1/2 price sushi on Tuesday and Thursday, can't beat that!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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I work have worked in the service industry for 13 years and 6 of those years in Cedar Rapids. The KAJI experience has always been fun, entertaining, with great service, and amazing food! My group of friends goes to Kaji probably once a month with not one bad experience. The owner greets us at the door and the employees treat us like royalty! I recommend everyone to this restaurant. You are guaranteed a great time and amazing food. Check it out and ask for Lee!

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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I'm responding to the last 2 posts which happen to be posted on the exact day and end with the exact words, 'I will not support this business.' Coincidence? We do have frozen foods. We have fresh also. Not everything is fresh because let's face it, we are in the Midwest. The freezing techniques used in this day & age is remarkable and I tell my customers we have fresh as well as frozen. I don't lie to my customers. But our sushi has dramatically improved since my brother and I have taken over the sushibar. The care needed to maintain the quality of the fish was obviously not done since my sushi chefs had time to hang out while my brother and I were doing their job for them. Professionalism is given when professionalism is exercised by my employees. A job is presented to staff to perform, such as closing duties, and they can't perform the duties despite trying to show them how to do it, and yet they stand in the kitchen and watch people do work or purposefully move slow so they don't have to work so hard? Is that right? In this economic recession, accountability and earning your keep is what's important. We need to realize as a whole that there are no such things as hand outs, and need to make an effort on work. My employees get paid, sometimes checks are late, BUT THEY GET PAID. Even the employees that don't do very much work or can't simply shutdown their area as instructed get paid. But when you give someone 5-10 chances and they still don't get it, and they screw up an order and talk back to you, in front of your customers, is that right? Again, professionalism is given when professionalism is exercised. Oh, for the record, there's only one owner. And that means you are attacking me, Lee, the owner. I'm the nicest person and exercise extreme patience. I am the voice of reasoning and take time in hearing my employee's opinions and complaints. I'm sorry if your experience was tarnished by the occurence that happened that night, but if you come back and see the changes we have done, you will see that almost my entire staff is still here at Kaji and have not left. Why is that? Ask yourself, why is that? If they don't get paid, would they stick around? Would they stick around if they are being demeaned as you have set out to make me sound? If you would like to come in and talk about this, Lesa, I would be glad to talk with you and see if this can be resolved. Thank you for your concerns, and I hope an unfortunate occurence and a disgruntled employee doesn't sway your opinion or the general public's view of an established 5year business.

Posted 11/18/09 | Report Abuse

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This restaurant has mediocre food, and the quality of the fish used for their sushi is questionable at best, obviously frozen for extended periods of time before use. More often than not, their rice is not fully cooked. I have also seen employees thaw a product to portion it, then refreeze it. The floors in the restrurant are sticky and every time i leave, I smell like I just dined in a fryer, which makes me question their cleanliness. I have seen the owners of this restaurant reprimand their employees in an unprofessional manner in front of customers while the restaurant was open, a very uncomfortable experience for me and my entire party. This behavior was reinforced to me by overhearing Kaji employees complain about not getting paid and being treated rudely often.
I will no longer support this business.

Posted 10/28/09 | Report Abuse

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I was happy to work at this restaurant. They were so kind to offer me a job, my first day in town. Unfortunately after working for them for 3 months, I am embarassed to say I worked for such unprofessional owners and will not be adding the name of their business to any resume. They were rude to me and others and I will no longer support this business.

Posted 10/28/09 | Report Abuse

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I have had my ups and downs with all sushi in the mid-west. Obviously we are not getting the catch of the day in Iowa, but we can get great quality fish here in the mainland. I have noticed that Kaji, along with all restaurants in general, go through changes in the menu, and many staff changes, including the chef's. I must say that as off the new change in chef, Kaji has become an A+ dine! I love the little differences in the core menu, and the sushi is out of this world! Keep up the good work. oh, and Kaji is the only place in town to get a quality unfiltered sake...give it a try it's worth it!

Posted 12/29/08 | Report Abuse

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I reside in Atlanta however I travel alot and always try to checkout a Japanese restaurant wherever I may be. The food here was average, the California roll (sushi) was not very appetizing even being as hungry as I was. The manager did suggest I try some type of deep fried shrimp stuffed with cream cheese, I must say that was the best thing I ate there. The entree (chicken/shrimp was average), took food awhile to get, I ordered fried rice and the waitress mistakenly brought out white rice...it took about 7-10 minutes to get the correct rice by this time my other food was cold. Atmosphere was nice and relaxing. I would definitely eat here again but will pass on the sushi.

Bon appetit!!!

Posted 11/14/08 | Report Abuse

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The first thing I noticed upon entering Kaji was the smell of hot cooking oil that needed changing long ago. Since it was a cold rainy night I sat at the sushi bar anyway and ordered a dragon roll which was put together by a sushi chef who has probably never been out of Cedar Rapids. I've been eating at Sushi bars for many years from Osaka to Atlanta and Kaji is at the bottom of the list. It was when I ordered some sashimi (figuring that it's tough to screw up sashimi) that I noticed the sushi chef had white qauze bandaging covering his little finger....yuck! You get the idea.

Posted 01/08/08 | Report Abuse

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Kaji is truly a delight! I have dined there many evenings and have always been greeted by warm and friendly people, who obviously care about my dining experience.
The sushi is of EXCELLENT quality and comparable prices, as are all menu items that I have tried. The specials are always unique and carefully chosen. The wine list includes variety, both in prices and selection.
For an entertainment experience, the tepynaki grill is magnificent! The chefs are charmingly charismatic and the food is amazing.
This has quickly become my favorite place to dine!

Posted 11/01/07 | Report Abuse

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I went to Kaji's a couple weeks ago for a friend's birthday, after not going for a few months. To my surprise, they are making changes and have improved their food. Service is still not up to par, but the new faces I saw were making a difference. The biggest improvement is their sushi! The head sushi guy from before is gone, and the new guy is phenomenal! Word has it that he used to work at a really high-end Japanese restaurant and is extremely talented. The favorite appetizer, the shrimp stuffed with cream cheese, is still awesome, but the sumo shrimp is insane! It's like the stuffed shrimp, only there are added ingredients that just kick it up a notch. The presentation of the sushi has vastly improved and I requested the sushi chef to make something special. HOLY $@!^ After eating his food, I felt like I was back in New York. The grill tables are like other places, but the personalities of the chef, and the feel-like-your- at-home atmosphere really sets this restaurant apart. Eating out as often as I do, I HATE feeling like I'm getting rushed in and rushed out (which is why I refuse to go to Osaka), but seeing how busy Kaji was and how there was another reservation after our reservation, they handled it professionally. The seafood sauce at Kaji is one of a kind and it's another factor that keeps me coming back. Kaji has so many factors that set it apart from the other restaurants. They just have to keep making improvements like they are currently doing and they'll get a 5-star rating from me.

Posted 03/23/07 | Report Abuse

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I understand that Kaji is really hoppin' at night when there are other people to talk to while you wait to be served, and the teppanyaki chefs are drunk. I have gone there mostly for lunch so my experience may vary.

It can take a long time to be served, even when there are few people in the dining room. I've been there a lot so I've had some time to observe this and think about it, but I haven't figured out why it takes so long to take an order.

The sushi is average for the midwest; below average as compared to the wider world of sushi bars. I'm sure there are plenty of locals (and employees who tend to post to these review sites as if they were customers) who first tried sushi here and think it's the best. I've been around and let me just tell you it's not. There's not much of a selection of fish and seldom anything "special". You can get the normal tuna, salmon, snapper, yellow tail, octopus, etc. and sometimes uni.

When I go to sushi places I look for a signature menu item that I can't get elsewhere. You won't really find one at Kaji. It's just basic sushi.

If Kaji is the only place you've had a teppanyaki experience, then I'm sure it was great. Having sat through more of these shows than I care to count, I can tell you they're all pretty much the same. Kaji doesn't do anything to make it stand out. Compare, for example, Osaka down the street which has these amazing sweet carrots that are coma-inducing delicious. That doesn't make the teppanyaki show any better there, but it does give someone something to look forward to after the obligatory onion volcano.

Kaji's non-sushi menu is average. My wife is not a sushi fan, so she studies the other menu items more carefully. She prefers Sushi House, another local Japanese restaurant, for its non-sushi menu. The vegatables there are fresh, and the dishes are more interesting, varied, and tasty.

Overall Kaji is just an average Japanese restaurant. Yeah, when they crank up the music I guess it's a fun place. But if you go there to eat, get used to waiting for their very average food.

PROS: Convenient parking
CONS: Average food; poor service

Posted 07/02/06 | Report Abuse

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the first time i walked into kaji, the atmosphere alone intrigued me. it was subtile and gentle, which relaxed me right away. i ate at the teppon grill and it was an amazing show. From the onion valcano to the spinning, flipping, and cracking of the egg on the spatula to catching food in my mouth, it was the most entertaining meal i have had thus far. a new drink was introduced to me that night as well, the "Saki Bomb", a great blend of cold japanese beer and hot saki. there was something about sayin "ICHI, NI, SAN!!!" then pounding the table so my shot of hot saki can fall off the chop sticks into my cold beer then slamming it down as if it was the last cup of water and i haven't had a drink in three days. everyone o the staff was friendly but the price was a little steep. overall it was a great experience i would definitly go back

PROS: good food, great entertainment, the sushi is very good
CONS: a little expensive and sometime you have to wait if they are busy

Posted 02/13/06 | Report Abuse

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