Amami Shima Sushi

Everybody here gets the Omakase - ten different chef-selected nigiri arranged beautifully on a platter. Literally every table ordered this special. It really is good! But we also got salmon sashimi, which was amazing in its own right. I love the thick, juicy salmon cubes served with freshly grated wasabi.

Lengthy pieces of Sashimi make this place one of the best places to grab sushi. Once you clear the parking hurdle, then the wait list, it's totally worth the wait! The pieces are nice and fat, their traditional sashimi are loaded with tons of flavor, and not to mention their amazing oyster (shots) special! Last not definitely not least, fatty freaking Toro. When you get here, ORDER IT!

Super fresh fish. Just right portion of food. Awesome experience/recipe for omakase :)

The omakase is always my favorites thing to order here. Melt in your mouth rolls is also great + the tempura Great for the price and services!

Excellent quality sushi for the price with very attentive and super fast service. Eating in, the dishes are well plated and the staff is excellent. With takeout, everything is always very well packaged. Love coming here.

We love coming here as the food is fresh and service is great! We love different special rolls and sashimi.

Love the omakase here. All the different fish given both times I went were really good, definitely recommend it if you are a fan of raw fish. Their rolls were less impressive to me, so I think you should only bother coming here for their sashimi/nigiri. I also liked their salmon cheek. My friend liked the chirashi too.

Amami has the most affordable omakase around here at $42. The omakase comes with 10 delicious nigiri. The sushi is so fresh and the presentation is also beautiful. Make sure you check out the white board on the wall for specials as well. I ordered the Santa Barbara uni, sweet shrimp, scallop, and other one that I can't remember but they were all really good. The service here is excellent. The waiters are very quick to answer any questions you might have and give excellent recommendations.

Came here on a Friday night and joined the waitlist on yelp before arriving. We were able to be seated in a couple minutes despite the restaurant being packed. The service was excellent, with our water being refilled almost every 5 minutes. We got the rainbow and Amami sushi rolls and a set of okakase. The omakase was around $45 and it was honestly super worth it. The pieces of fish were huge. The rolls were also very tasty and reasonably priced, but I liked the omakase more. Highly recommend coming here if you are in the area and craving sushi! Parking can be a little challenging, but on the side of the restaurant there is more parking.

Delightful, fresh and authentic Sushi. My first time here but definitely not last.

We've had our favorite sushi places in the past, but this is our new go-to sushi restaurant. Since finding Amami ~4 month ago, we've been here maybe 3 times per month. My wife loves the nigiri (their slices are huge), but the kids and I like their rolls: our current top selections, in order: Wild Boy → Snow White → Melt in your mouth. We tend to stick to these 3 rolls, but I think future visits will drop 1 and try something new. We've also recently been ordering the unagi (eel) fried rice, and that is also so good - recommended (but it's a bit pricey). If you order nigiri, it comes with some freshly made wasabi (ground from the real thing).

Consistency freshness great service. Our go to spot even if it is 45 minutes away. Tuna Kama is almost as big as the table but call ahead to see if they have it. Omakase is ways fresh 10 pcs. of amazingness. My favorite is the seared Norwegian Salmon and the lobster which are both on the Omakase plate. You can reserve a spot on the Yelp app to avoid the long wait. 2 small T.V.'s makes me happy during NBA Playoffs. Tough parking lot we prefer to park on the 2 streets on each side of the actual lot.

Best omakase deal hands down! Only $43 for delicious fresh 10 piece nigiri. We also had the oysters which were one of the best I ever had! Will be back

Liz Stublen

Excellent quality sushi for the price with very attentive and super fast service. Eating in, the dishes are well plated and the staff is excellent. With takeout, everything is always very well packaged. Love coming here.

Vaish “Siso” C

We love coming here as the food is fresh and service is great! We love different special rolls and sashimi.

Elaine Wang

Love the omakase here. All the different fish given both times I went were really good, definitely recommend it if you are a fan of raw fish. Their rolls were less impressive to me, so I think you should only bother coming here for their sashimi/nigiri. I also liked their salmon cheek. My friend liked the chirashi too.

Susan

Amami has the most affordable omakase around here at $42. The omakase comes with 10 delicious nigiri. The sushi is so fresh and the presentation is also beautiful. Make sure you check out the white board on the wall for specials as well. I ordered the Santa Barbara uni, sweet shrimp, scallop, and other one that I can't remember but they were all really good. The service here is excellent. The waiters are very quick to answer any questions you might have and give excellent recommendations.

Mark Hoang

Came here on a Friday night and joined the waitlist on yelp before arriving. We were able to be seated in a couple minutes despite the restaurant being packed. The service was excellent, with our water being refilled almost every 5 minutes. We got the rainbow and Amami sushi rolls and a set of okakase. The omakase was around $45 and it was honestly super worth it. The pieces of fish were huge. The rolls were also very tasty and reasonably priced, but I liked the omakase more. Highly recommend coming here if you are in the area and craving sushi! Parking can be a little challenging, but on the side of the restaurant there is more parking.

sholeh ja

Delightful, fresh and authentic Sushi. My first time here but definitely not last.

Steve Okamoto

We've had our favorite sushi places in the past, but this is our new go-to sushi restaurant. Since finding Amami ~4 month ago, we've been here maybe 3 times per month. My wife loves the nigiri (their slices are huge), but the kids and I like their rolls: our current top selections, in order: Wild Boy → Snow White → Melt in your mouth. We tend to stick to these 3 rolls, but I think future visits will drop 1 and try something new. We've also recently been ordering the unagi (eel) fried rice, and that is also so good - recommended (but it's a bit pricey). If you order nigiri, it comes with some freshly made wasabi (ground from the real thing).

David Famero

Consistency freshness great service. Our go to spot even if it is 45 minutes away. Tuna Kama is almost as big as the table but call ahead to see if they have it. Omakase is ways fresh 10 pcs. of amazingness. My favorite is the seared Norwegian Salmon and the lobster which are both on the Omakase plate. You can reserve a spot on the Yelp app to avoid the long wait. 2 small T.V.'s makes me happy during NBA Playoffs. Tough parking lot we prefer to park on the 2 streets on each side of the actual lot.

Tiffany Phu

Best omakase deal hands down! Only $43 for delicious fresh 10 piece nigiri. We also had the oysters which were one of the best I ever had! Will be back

Pleasantly surprised by the quality of the nigiri :) food was good, especially the agedashi tofu. The salmon lover was okay, but what made up for it was the amazing service. They were kind and very friendly while also not being overly intrusive.

Sat at the bar and started with Omakase nigiri. All came at once, traditional cuts, generous, fresh, includes solid quality daily specials. Follow ups consistently solid. Low key place.

Joao de Sousa

Sat at the bar and started with Omakase nigiri. All came at once, traditional cuts, generous, fresh, includes solid quality daily specials. Follow ups consistently solid. Low key place.

Nicholas Nguyen

Pleasantly surprised by the quality of the nigiri :) food was good, especially the agedashi tofu. The salmon lover was okay, but what made up for it was the amazing service. They were kind and very friendly while also not being overly intrusive.

The rice for chirashi tastes good. The sashimi on top of rice are cut into very tiny pieces! The teriyaki salmon is well done!

+6

Pretty good omakase, uni was not worth it at $25 for 2 pieces. Highly suggest joining yelp wait-list to avoid waiting in person.

First of all, the food and the service are good. The wait for the food and the service however, is bonkers. This of course isn't the restaurants fault the long and short of this review is you should go here, but you should maybe bring a crossword puzzle. The parking lot area outside is just a tiny strip of asphalt with three booming restaurants perched on it. So my group and I were essentially chilling in a parking lot with about 20 other people for an hour and some change. Overall not the worst wait I've had. The unagi lovers roll is pretty good just a little small for the price, but who knows maybe that's an inflation thing.

Very affordable omakase is hard to come by, but Amami Shima has got you covered if you're on a budget and want some good quality fish. The omakase came with 10 pieces of nigiri. The cuts of fish were quite generous and had very little rice, which is just how I like it. I wish that they told us what each nigiri was though! It was like playing a guessing game... what fish is which... Overall, the quality of the raw fish was great, but I have definitely had better quality from other high end omakase restaurants. You get what you pay for! It is good quality fish, but not crazy special. The toro tartar, lobster, hamachi belly, and seared norwegian salmon were definitely nice highlights though. We also got the Melted In The Mouth Roll, which came with toro & avocado in the center and unagi, avocado, and sriracha on top. Very delicious! Didn't literally melt in the mouth, but it was quite tasty. I had no idea that toro and unagi would pair so well. I visited on a Tuesday night and this was the perfect day to come! There was no wait! I highly recommend coming on a weekday. A majority of their tables are oriented for small groups or tables of 2, so it's an ideal date night location.

Fish are fresh and portions are generous. This place is always packed. Note that reservation doesn't mean you get a table when you arrive, it basically means a priority wait list over those who just walk in.

+2

This place has great sushi for a reasonable price. This it is a smaller place, I recommend making a reservation to avoid waiting. We got the Omakase, the Oyster Special, and a few pieces of salmon. Oysters came first as it was really good and fresh at $8.5 for 2 spoons. I recommend getting the nigiri instead of the sashimi since they cost about the same and you get significantly more fish. Omakase was good, but not amazing. At ~3.8 a piece, if you know what you want, ordering individual nigiri might be cheaper.

Opened at 430pm on Saturday and I was caught off guard by the long wait. It took about 45 minutes before we were seated. Not sure if you can join the waitlist online, if so it's a must. The taste and presentation was great. It's a little pricy for just your standard sushi spot but the portions are a little larger. A large variety of special rolls and saki available. They should definitely look for a larger space to occupy. Some people will be turned off by the wait.

This place offers casual Japanese sushi dining experience to enjoy the good quality at a friendly cost. This place is always quite busy and noisy, may not be the best choice if you take your date out for the first time 😂 Omakase is what I will order every time since it offers all varieties for someone who may have decidophobia like myself 😜 We also ordered monkfish liver, it was beautifully arranged on a bed of sushi rice and garnished with delicate slices of green onion. The flavor was equally impressive, with a rich and buttery texture that melted in my mouth. Oyster special ( oyster, quail eggs and roes) is also truly one of the highlights of the meal.

If you’re looking for a fast and affordable omakase, this is definitely the spot. It’s not the kind of traditional omakase run by Japanese chefs, but for the price and speed, it really delivers. Perfect if you want something casual and convenient without breaking the bank. If you’re ordering, go for the Omakase set. Just keep in mind it all comes out at once on one big plate, not piece by piece like a high-end omakase. It’s not meant to be a luxurious experience, but for under $50, you get a full set that’s really decent for the price.

It's a hole in the wall restaurant with amazing sushi! Order the omakase! You won't be disappointed!

This is a small restaurant but was able to accommodate our 10-person group for mother's Day dinner. Food was delicious. I recommend ordering from the specials. For example. We got the blue fin, which was really huge but it does take 30 minutes to cook so please order a head. Submit

A decent sushi option in the South Bay. I like getting either the chirashi or sashimi here, since their omakase is just okay to me. The rice is served warm, which is a great contrast to the raw fish. I find it a bit strange the sashimi is cut thick and short... Almost like blocks. It doesn't necessarily affect the taste of the fish, but the texture and the temperature is definitely impacted. When slices are cut longer and a bit thinner, I feel like the fish has a more consistent temperature. Here, the center of the fish feels slightly colder than it's exterior. Check in to the wait-list via Yelp! The parking here is pretty narrow, so watch out for pedestrians and cars backing out of tight spaces. You may need to circle the lot like a shark on busy weekends.

Nice little place with high quality food and decent staff. A bit overpriced for the portions given and overall doesn't do a good job of filling your stomach, but they do taste good. Staff seems unexcited and quiet, though our waiter was helpful and willing to explain dishes.

We tried a few Makimono and signature rolls. They taste good. I initially thought the * dishes are the recommended ones but then I noticed that they are actually cooked rolls.

Jaymar Simon

This is a small restaurant but was able to accommodate our 10-person group for mother's Day dinner. Food was delicious. I recommend ordering from the specials. For example. We got the blue fin, which was really huge but it does take 30 minutes to cook so please order a head. Submit

Irene Lu

A decent sushi option in the South Bay. I like getting either the chirashi or sashimi here, since their omakase is just okay to me. The rice is served warm, which is a great contrast to the raw fish. I find it a bit strange the sashimi is cut thick and short... Almost like blocks. It doesn't necessarily affect the taste of the fish, but the texture and the temperature is definitely impacted. When slices are cut longer and a bit thinner, I feel like the fish has a more consistent temperature. Here, the center of the fish feels slightly colder than it's exterior. Check in to the wait-list via Yelp! The parking here is pretty narrow, so watch out for pedestrians and cars backing out of tight spaces. You may need to circle the lot like a shark on busy weekends.

Yannan Huang

Nice little place with high quality food and decent staff. A bit overpriced for the portions given and overall doesn't do a good job of filling your stomach, but they do taste good. Staff seems unexcited and quiet, though our waiter was helpful and willing to explain dishes.

Yay H

We tried a few Makimono and signature rolls. They taste good. I initially thought the * dishes are the recommended ones but then I noticed that they are actually cooked rolls.

My sushi expectations are very high given I've had amazing sushi in Japan. The sushi was okay here. The price of the omakase is good, but the fish is ok. Some of the fish were too cooked for sushi, the raw pieces were not the right temperature, the fish pieces are too big, the end parts can get firm and not the best texture. I also had the Hokkaido uni and otoro and even those were not impressive. It'll be a while before I need to come back. Overall it's okay.

The omakase was definitely good, but falls just short of feeling like enough to comprise a full meal on its own. It is also a bit pricey, but it sounds like that's normal. Quick service and cordial staff though.

An okay experience, did not get really acknowledged by workers even while entering the establishment or while ordering. Food was alright, cook doesn’t wear gloves, and we saw him placing the sushi on the plate using his hands. Expensive for what we received.

Was recommended to try this place with a group of friends who raved about this restaurant. Compared to the other high end sushi restaurants I’ve tried, the experience at Amami was okay. The deluxe is priced decently for a chefs choice. The presentation is beautiful with slender cuts of fish, but the quality of the fish is not as fresh as I would’ve liked. Restaurant does get busy.

Popular sushi restaurant, and can get filled up fairly quick upon opening the door. We arrived 10 mins prior to opening hours and there are 2 parties ahead of us. Fish is quite fresh, some rolls is on a small side, taste pretty good, but not my favorite sushi place. Menu is quite extensive.

The dry pot is much better than the hotpot. Service is sterile with little warmth. We'd asked if we can have a particular table against the wall instead of the one in the middle of the room. It was before 6pm on a Saturday night and the restaurant was maybe 1/2 full, we were told no. Not I'm sorry this table has been reserved, just a curt no. The hotpot you have to order minimum 8 items, the dry pot 3 items. Unless you have been here before and know what to order, it's not easy trying to navigate the menu. Perhaps you should pull up the menu prior to arrival to familiarize yourself with it. Parking is tight, several restaurants sharing a small parking lot. I'll probably will be back, but not in any hurry, all in all I'll give it a B.

A S

Was recommended to try this place with a group of friends who raved about this restaurant. Compared to the other high end sushi restaurants I’ve tried, the experience at Amami was okay. The deluxe is priced decently for a chefs choice. The presentation is beautiful with slender cuts of fish, but the quality of the fish is not as fresh as I would’ve liked. Restaurant does get busy.

Saifu Angto

Popular sushi restaurant, and can get filled up fairly quick upon opening the door. We arrived 10 mins prior to opening hours and there are 2 parties ahead of us. Fish is quite fresh, some rolls is on a small side, taste pretty good, but not my favorite sushi place. Menu is quite extensive.

Kymberly Schieferstein

The dry pot is much better than the hotpot. Service is sterile with little warmth. We'd asked if we can have a particular table against the wall instead of the one in the middle of the room. It was before 6pm on a Saturday night and the restaurant was maybe 1/2 full, we were told no. Not I'm sorry this table has been reserved, just a curt no. The hotpot you have to order minimum 8 items, the dry pot 3 items. Unless you have been here before and know what to order, it's not easy trying to navigate the menu. Perhaps you should pull up the menu prior to arrival to familiarize yourself with it. Parking is tight, several restaurants sharing a small parking lot. I'll probably will be back, but not in any hurry, all in all I'll give it a B.

Only a few local sushi restaurants that serve Omakase with large cuts, but the sushi tastes bland. Their sushi roll selections and tastes are just average, and on the expensive side, you'll easily spend close to $100 per person for a dinner with Omakase.

Food is good, but they need to improve their organization. They called people came after us first. It made us like frustrated and don't want to come back there again.

Came here for lunch to give it a try. Unfortunately, really bad! Really screwed up the hamachi kama, look at the picture and you will see what I mean, burned! The sushi rolls were not good either, below average (rice was too wet), spicy tuna did not taste right. I have been having sushi for years in Japan, Taiwan and here in CA and the quality here is just does not meet my average standard!

+3

I usually don’t leave negative reviews because I don’t want to hurt someone’s business, but I feel like I need to share my experience. Their food is very poor quality. The special scallop roll and one of the other rolls were mostly filled with crab sticks, and the rice was so oversized and bland that it tastes just like something you’d get at Safeway. For what I paid, I expected much better quality. I’m sure the staff are nice people, but the food just didn’t live up to expectations. My friends and I all agreed that it was one of the worst sushi we’ve had. If you’re looking for overpriced Safeway sushi, this is your spot.

As a Japanese person from Japan, I'd say most Americans may think this is good "sushi" if they've not tried any authentic ones. Just order the rolls and skip the Nigiris. Nigiris are cut pretty but I would almost consider it worthless. The name suggests a Japanese place but the place is entirely ran by Chinese owners, chefs and servers. Ordered: - 2 Sushi Deluxe (9 piece + rock'n roll + miso soup per order) - Ankimo (4 pieces) - Oyster shots (2 spoons) - Mix-it-up roll - Tiger roll Intro: First of all, the male receptionist with spiky hair was flat out rude and a liar. We waited an hour outside and he came out and called peoples names on the wait-list. I noticed he skipped my name which was the next in line so I went in and checked with him, he said rudely that he called my name but I wasn't there so he skipped me. I responded by saying that I was there, he didn't call my name. He started mumbling something in Chinese with frustration and kept saying he called my name but I wasn't there. I started laughing because I thought he was joking as I was literally standing by the door, and turns out he was seriously lying to my face. (Maybe he couldn't pronounce my name? Who knows...) So I told him my car parked directly outside the door has a video recording if he wanted to see. Then he goes and speaks to one of the servers and gets me a table. He had a very entitled attitude and told me it happened because I didn't check in. (I walked in, put my name on the tablet wait-list, and spoke with the guy to make sure I'm good, and replied to yelp's text with confirmation, stood outside patiently and went in periodically to check the tablet for status for an hour so I don't know what I did wrong to make him angry?). At this point I was already feeling this was a terrible experience, in terms of service quality, for the money I'll be paying. Food: - Sushi Deluxe consisted of: 3 Salmon, 2 Bincho Tuna, 2 Hamachi, 1 Aji and 1 Escolar. To me, anything that says "Deluxe", I expect at least one piece of Ebi, Ikura, Chutoro, Otoro, or Uni. They provided the lowest and cheapest kind of Tuna ( Bincho Maguro), cheap Salmon (lean cut, no fat), borderline sickening Escolar (full of laxatives, Japanese don't use this for food). Hamachi and Aji were moderately good (when I say good, it's Japanese supermarket sashimi grade). The best part was rock'n roll as well as the wasabi that wasn't the typical paste-style you'd find. We never got ginger, while other tables were served with it. Also, we didn't get our Miso soup until we had to ask 30mins into our dining experience. Marukai market has better salmon, tuna, and hamachi for much cheaper and fresher. - Ankimo: Tasted a bit old and stale but ok for the price. You can buy better ones at Korean supermarkets for cheaper and fresher. -Oyster Shots: I assume middle to low tier grade oyster, barely fresh. Covered by an overwhelming amount of flavorful toppings to cover/ fancy it up. I'd say ok appetizer for the price but wouldn't have more than 1 for the fear of getting sick from old oyster. Also, one spoon had a tiny piece of Hamachi mixed in it accidentally. Could be extra bang for the buck but also shows the chefs don't care about contamination. - Mix-it-up roll: I like it. They have low tier fish so get them fried like Mix-it-up. It has 3 kinds of fish mixed up and lightly fried to cover the cheap taste. - Tiger roll was shrimp tempura, salmon and avocado, can't go wrong with that. Liked this too. Overall, you're paying for the premium looking pretty presentation, not sushi quality. I spent $140 for the two of us and the dining service and experience kinda sucked, tables are packed tight and the restaurant is not too clean. I almost regretted taking my date there but I promised her a genuine sushi experience next time.

Hiroyuki Ichikawa

As a Japanese person from Japan, I'd say most Americans may think this is good "sushi" if they've not tried any authentic ones. Just order the rolls and skip the Nigiris. Nigiris are cut pretty but I would almost consider it worthless. The name suggests a Japanese place but the place is entirely ran by Chinese owners, chefs and servers. Ordered: - 2 Sushi Deluxe (9 piece + rock'n roll + miso soup per order) - Ankimo (4 pieces) - Oyster shots (2 spoons) - Mix-it-up roll - Tiger roll Intro: First of all, the male receptionist with spiky hair was flat out rude and a liar. We waited an hour outside and he came out and called peoples names on the wait-list. I noticed he skipped my name which was the next in line so I went in and checked with him, he said rudely that he called my name but I wasn't there so he skipped me. I responded by saying that I was there, he didn't call my name. He started mumbling something in Chinese with frustration and kept saying he called my name but I wasn't there. I started laughing because I thought he was joking as I was literally standing by the door, and turns out he was seriously lying to my face. (Maybe he couldn't pronounce my name? Who knows...) So I told him my car parked directly outside the door has a video recording if he wanted to see. Then he goes and speaks to one of the servers and gets me a table. He had a very entitled attitude and told me it happened because I didn't check in. (I walked in, put my name on the tablet wait-list, and spoke with the guy to make sure I'm good, and replied to yelp's text with confirmation, stood outside patiently and went in periodically to check the tablet for status for an hour so I don't know what I did wrong to make him angry?). At this point I was already feeling this was a terrible experience, in terms of service quality, for the money I'll be paying. Food: - Sushi Deluxe consisted of: 3 Salmon, 2 Bincho Tuna, 2 Hamachi, 1 Aji and 1 Escolar. To me, anything that says "Deluxe", I expect at least one piece of Ebi, Ikura, Chutoro, Otoro, or Uni. They provided the lowest and cheapest kind of Tuna ( Bincho Maguro), cheap Salmon (lean cut, no fat), borderline sickening Escolar (full of laxatives, Japanese don't use this for food). Hamachi and Aji were moderately good (when I say good, it's Japanese supermarket sashimi grade). The best part was rock'n roll as well as the wasabi that wasn't the typical paste-style you'd find. We never got ginger, while other tables were served with it. Also, we didn't get our Miso soup until we had to ask 30mins into our dining experience. Marukai market has better salmon, tuna, and hamachi for much cheaper and fresher. - Ankimo: Tasted a bit old and stale but ok for the price. You can buy better ones at Korean supermarkets for cheaper and fresher. -Oyster Shots: I assume middle to low tier grade oyster, barely fresh. Covered by an overwhelming amount of flavorful toppings to cover/ fancy it up. I'd say ok appetizer for the price but wouldn't have more than 1 for the fear of getting sick from old oyster. Also, one spoon had a tiny piece of Hamachi mixed in it accidentally. Could be extra bang for the buck but also shows the chefs don't care about contamination. - Mix-it-up roll: I like it. They have low tier fish so get them fried like Mix-it-up. It has 3 kinds of fish mixed up and lightly fried to cover the cheap taste. - Tiger roll was shrimp tempura, salmon and avocado, can't go wrong with that. Liked this too. Overall, you're paying for the premium looking pretty presentation, not sushi quality. I spent $140 for the two of us and the dining service and experience kinda sucked, tables are packed tight and the restaurant is not too clean. I almost regretted taking my date there but I promised her a genuine sushi experience next time.

Aa

I usually don’t leave negative reviews because I don’t want to hurt someone’s business, but I feel like I need to share my experience. Their food is very poor quality. The special scallop roll and one of the other rolls were mostly filled with crab sticks, and the rice was so oversized and bland that it tastes just like something you’d get at Safeway. For what I paid, I expected much better quality. I’m sure the staff are nice people, but the food just didn’t live up to expectations. My friends and I all agreed that it was one of the worst sushi we’ve had. If you’re looking for overpriced Safeway sushi, this is your spot.