06/10/07

Poor value for the money

by dgmw

Sorry to rain on the '5-star' parade going on around here, but for us, several reasons made Minako a definite "no-repeat" experience:

1.) While the lure of 'organic' does imply SOMEWHAT higher prices, the pricing is highly unreasonable for the quantity of food you actually get. We ordered wakame salads, which turned out to be tiny for $8.00 each. Plus, the flavor of these salads was very unappetizing. (As the appetizer prices are omitted from the menu, we only learned JUST how disappointed we were when the bill arrived.) The "appetizer" portion of the tofu teryaki was, for $12.00, woefully tiny.

2.) Very slow service. For a 2-person dinner, how long can 2 plates of teryaki take? Pretty damn long, we learned. The timing of the delivery was off as well, as one of us was served our entree 20 minutes before the other.

In summary, our experience with the pricing and the mediocre quality of the dishes makes this place a very poor value for the money you spend.

• Cons: Prices not listed in menu, slow service, overpriced for quantity and quality of food you get

11/16/06

Please don't eat here because you make the wait longer for the rest of us.

by ashsf

This is the best restaurant in SF.

Yoko and Judy make the experience feel like going to eat at your long lost japanese family's house. The food is fantastic, with tons of creative choices and artful presentations.

The restaurant is so small that sometimes there's a long wait and that can be annoying. It is nice to see people complaining about the restaurant because if everyone had a positive experience there, I'd NEVER get a table! In fact, the owner deliberately discourages restaurant reviews in local papers because she doesn't want bigger crowds than she already has. They have a very loyal clientle who loves them as much as I do, so if you're not there for the whole experience and show up with a bad attitude, please go to one of the yuppie restaurants around the corner on Valencia instead.

• Pros: Great food, good for vegans and people who want organic, wonderful owners, nice ambience once you're inside
• Cons: parking, people who are in a hurry and rushing the waitstaff

06/10/06

best japanese restaurant in san francisco

by acura1993integra

minako's is very talented at japanese food. their fish, whether it be in something cooked or raw, is always fresh and delicious. but they also have excellent sukiyaki and other traditional japanese dishes. if you're a vegetarian looking for japanese food, minako's is one of the few japanese restaurants i know of that also caters to vegetarians and even vegans. their veggie eel is not exactly like real eel, but it's very tasty. and they're also environmentally conscious to boot, as everything they serve is organic. as long as you're patient and friendly (don't go there when you're in a rush -- they have just one chef in the back doing ALL the work and she really works hard to make all the food just right), minako's is an excellent choice for dinner.

• Pros: service, food
• Cons: parking, neighborhood

03/08/06

Quite disappointing

by bbzeta439

I went a few month ago because the place got high reviews. The wait was long and the food was not as appetizing. One of my friends is japanese and her dad is a chef. She didn't eat half of her order and I barely touched my age tofu. It's just a piece of tofu fried poured over some soy. I can make that at home instead of paying almost 10 bucks for it. So all we did was drink alcohol and try to eat some of the sushi pieces to stuff our stomach. I am quite embarassed to take my friends there. But the daughter was nicely to make conversations with us as others were waiting for her service

• Pros: friendly
• Cons: food, price

10/10/05

best japanese joint in the berg

by lancer23

very delicious and the staff are extreamly attentive and wonderful. great time was had by all. for a tiny hole in the wall it is a rare find. (actualy we were going to country station but they had a padlock on the door so we went here, on a whim, which was next to it.)we will be going back!

• Pros: food, staff, location

08/29/05

The wait is outrageous!

by sushisucker

After eating at Minako, all I could remember was the extremely long wait for the food to be brought out...nearly a hour after we ordered. The food was quite ordinary and I couldn't tell the difference between eating organic and not. I heard so many good things about this restaurant, but I won't be back.

• Cons: long wait, service, parking

07/16/05

Its not japanese and minako is rude

by everettpeters

When we went in, there was a table available at the window but we werent allowed to sit there. Minako did not want us sitting there. Instead we were put at a makeshift table near the kitchen where we were brushed up against when they walked by us. The service was too slow considering how big the restaurant is. They charged us for four pieces of vegetables and uncooked tofu at outrageous priced. The tofu kebab was not edible. The waitress told us the chef ,Minako, said that is how it is made in her restaurant. It was not japanese food. We ordered sushi and for the first ever neither one of us ate all of it. The fish had an oily quality that made me a little naseous. I was embarassed by this this and ended up paying $90 for a subpar dinner of half eaten or uneaten food.

• Cons: rude chef, unauthentic food, overpriced

04/14/05

Eating here makes me happy

by dustboy

This is absolutely my favorite restaurant in SF, and my favorite sushi joint ever. After a couple of visits, you'll get to know Judy, who makes you feel right at home. She's a sweet girl, but she'll let you know if you're ordering too much food! The food is the best around, I always get sake nigiri and it's always very fresh. Try the Age Tofu, the presentation alone is worth the price. Vegetarians will not be disappointed, this is one of the best vegetarian options in town. Leave your expectations for a pretentious, upscale sushi-bar at home, this is about top-notch food and pure sushi love.

• Pros: delicious!, good people!, pure sushi enjoyment!
• Cons: a little hard to find

06/10/04

This funky hideaway brings Japanese cuisine to Mission Street with organic ingredients and lots of vegetarian options.

by Contributor

The Scene
Grubby chaos may rule the streets outside, but harmony and comfort await guests within. Judy, the daughter and front-of the-house half of the mother-daughter team that runs the establishment, works in the music industry, so expect to hear the latest cool tunes while eating her mom's creative, often organic, Japanese-Californian home cooking. The small dining area is tastefully decorated with bamboo accents.

The Food
Vegetarians and vegans often feel left out at restaurants--not so here. Eel-free vegan unagi is made of deep-fried potato swathed in a deliciously sweet barbecue-style sauce. Gyoza (Japanese pot stickers) are greaseless and accompanied by a perfectly balanced dipping sauce. The wonderfully spicy tuna salad is like a rich steak tartare, and the spinach salad is sublime. A traditional California roll is made with a very untraditional fried crab cake. Each beautifully presented dish is a work of art for the eye, as well as the palate.

05/04/04

Home made Udon!!!

by afterhoursblueangel

Minako's chef, Yoko makes her own Udon! Not only that, did you know that she grows her own vegetables in her garden and serves some of that in the restaurant? She also has some twenty-year-old vintage pickled plum (umeboshi). Try it in a roll with shiso leaves and cucumber and you will taste something not even a typical person in Japan would not have a chance to eat. Very rare and special place. Vegetarian/Vegan friendly as well. I saw a Japanese family dining there and they said the food was excellent. (There is a man named Allen, who dines there every night!)

• Pros: Excellent food, Friendly, Cozy