Extremely delicious fresh fish with traditional but very unique pairings. Completely blown away and the chef was so fun to talk to! Super worth the visit.

An amazing experience all around. The chef was spectacular and the service was terrific. I ordered the Omakase, and the presentation of everything from the first dish to the ice cream at the end was nothing short of special. It was my 3rd Omakase but felt like the first real one I've been to. Would definitely recommend!

Easily one of the best sushi experiences I’ve had in Southern California—period. From the moment you sit down, Matoi delivers a curated, thoughtful omakase that’s all killer, no filler. Nothing farm-raised, nothing phoned in—just wildly fresh, high-quality cuts that let the fish do the talking. And the value? Ridiculous (in the best way). Easily the best bang-for-your-buck omakase in SoCal. You’re getting an elite sushi bar experience without the ego or the four-figure bill. It was so good I forgot to take photos… and I never forget. That’s how locked in I was. Just me, the fish, and pure happiness.

A delicious omakase in San Diego! Shoutout to our cousin for taking us here! We had a reservation at 7:30PM for a Saturday evening meal. I believe we were sat on time and we got right into drinks and the course. Staff was friendly checking in on us and Chef TJ was fun, positive, and created a great omakase environment! I won't go into too much detail of each fish (as the menu can change with each service), but for the value, I thought it was an amazing meal! Parking is relatively easy to find in the plaza. I'm headed back to San Diego next week...so I'm going to have Matoi again :D twice in 2-3 weeks is my kind of vibe!

Truly a wonderful omakase experience! Coming from LA with tons of great Japanese options, I’m thrilled San Diego’s sushi scene has picked up its game with more great omakase options in the past few years. I’ve been to most in town and this is the best—amazing rice, really fresh seasonal fish, and that fresh wasabi will spoil you for life.

This place deserves all the stars! The quality of fish/ingredients was superb and it was such a fun experience, overall. We felt like we were part of a dinner party, where we were the chef’s special guest. Chef kept it relatively traditional to an omakase, but he included his own twists on the flavors and ambiance (90-2000s hip hop music) that were served. Thanks to chef TJ and his team for an amazing dinner - Can’t wait to be back soon!

Such a wonderful meal and experience - the food was exceptional. Only bar seating - 3 parties with 11 people total. All the sashimi and nigiri were prepared by TJ right in front of us. He never left the area the whole time! TJ’s insight and honesty about his experiences were very educational (and hilarious) and one of the highlights of the night. I’ve had omakases where the chef didnt speak more than a few words to describe the food. Be prepared though we sat for the 7:30 seating, didn’t start eating until about 8 and then finished around 10:30. Definitely get the hand roll add on if you have room! We were all full just with the base omakase but squeezed in a handroll!

Chef TJ is the only one in town who will bring you the freshest fish and the most authentic experience. I’ve stopped going to other omakase places in town because of Matoi… oops. I’m a regular here, and I have high stands. That itself should leave a strong message, right? Give it a try; give yourself a relaxed window to enjoy an amazing experience. I hope to catch you here someday.

One of the best dining experiences I’ve had! The restaurant is small and intimate. Every guest sits at the sushi bar, which I loved. It was a very interactive experience where you got to know both the chefs and the other diners. Chef TJ was hilarious and clearly takes pride in his craft. All of the courses were fresh, thoughtfully presented, and absolutely delicious. I was very full from the omakase course alone (and I can eat 😄). The dinner took almost three hours and was WELL worth the cost. Most certainly will be back and bringing friends!

If you want to eat the best quality and the most delicious Japanese cuisine, this is the place to be. Hands down the best in San Diego. I have been to all the San Diego sushi restaurants and even in Tokyo. TJ, the owner serves the food with so much love and pays attention to every detail meticulously. Matoi stands out amongst all anywhere. It is not just an amazing Omakase, it is a mind blowing experience for me. This one should really be a Michelin star place.

Jomy Matthews

Amazing service and amazing employees!! The food quality is through the roof too! Defenitely reccomend everyone to try it out . I had a minor issue and they fixed it right away. Very tasty bowls and drinks!

Heather Williams

Most delicious drink I have ever had not to mention I got the sparking strawberry boba , PERFECT COMBINATION …. STRAWBERRY COCONUT WITH THE SPARKLING BOBA. 10/10

Christina DLP

Delicious boba tea! I got Hawaiian tea. Reasonable price and wait time. Seating inside, but the chairs are not curvy girl friendly. Parking can be hard depending on what time of day.

Trevor Kwan

massive menu you’ll find crazy creations unlike anything else like the galaxy milk tea and even limited time drinks like the battleground bliss milk tea. I would’ve been so lost if it were not for the super friendly and fun to talk to server, I think his name was Christian. Super knowledgeable about the menu and helped me navigate to mango milk tea and it was fire, even helped me drop the sugar to 25% cuz i’m not tryna get diabetes. 10/10 would come back again

Wandering in Paradise

Yummy Boba teas at It’s Boba Time! We ordered the pistachio matcha milk tea and strawberry milk tea. Friendly service and didn’t need to wait long to pick up. Nice, spacious seating area. Recommend!

Daniel Cheung

Awesome variety and great service. Quick and timely service. Friendly staff and helpful. Could not ask for a better spot to drop by and buy some delicious boba drink. Definitely heading returning. Next time I’m grabbing something different.

Jesus San Miguel

Amazed by the taste, this place seems unique in the sense that they create different style of bobba drinks. Price is reasonable as well. I recommend they're bobba drinks!

+4

Marissa Duenas

Cute spot and centered in the Korean/Japanese part of town (my best friend gave me a little lay of the land). Here I tried one of their new drinks, the Strawberry Matcha milk tea. I don’t usually explore and stick to what I know, and what I know is I love taro milk tea. BUT, the strawberry matcha just looked too delicious to pass on and the lady ringing me up sold it to me when she said it’s one of the more popular drinks. Say less, and swipe. I also opted for the boba pearls which is also a hit or miss in my book but I was not disappointed at all with my choice. There were plenty of boba options for me to choose from, but I’m glad I chose this one.

My Le

I got the rose matcha and was impressed that the milk tea tasted really good. It came out with pink rose liquid at the bottom half of the cup and the other half had matcha. I tasted the tea flavor as well as the flora. Everything was on point, not too sweet and not too bland. I didn’t even adjust the sweetness or ice level and it came out perfect. Five stars for automatically giving less ice without asking. They served all types of snacks, desserts, açaí bowls, and you can skip the line by ordering on the mobile app. Indoor seating is not available but there are a few tables out in front.

+6

Glenna Trone

*On Convoy Heading South* I have gotten boba from here a few times. They have alternative milk options and some GREAT flavors like matcha rose, pistachio, tiger tea, thai tea, and a lot of there good flavors. They also do sweet smoothies, and you can get the poping fruity boba too! Their boba has a reeeally good texture, it's soft but not melty, (texture is really important to me). They also have fries and some chicken if you're into that. Overall every from I got from here I loved, and the service is great! If you love boba you'll love this place. 💕🌸❇️ Vegan friendly!

+6

Denise Dianne Torres

My favorite milk tea and snack place. I always order my all time favorite Jasmine milk tea with no boba. I really enjoy the flowery taste of Jasmine tea and the way they make it (ratio of tea/milk/sugar) gets me coming for more every time. It’s hard to find milk tea places that has got the perfect ratio of sweetness and milk. Their fried chicken is crispy and seasoned well. Definitely a perfect match to that perfect milk tea you order.

Jay Navarez

It takes literally less than 5 minutes whenever I order boba from Boba time. Their team is always quick and precise and I’ve never had any issues or complaints. Green tea with honey is my favorite and always will be. If you’re in Kearney Mesa and for a sweet tooth craving, come on in.

Ahwing Chu

I suggest the owner of It's Boba Time should change their business name to "From 11am to 11pm are Boba Time"!!! (Yup, stupid bad joke again). But seriouly, this boba place is super casual, even if you are new here and have no clue what kind of boba tea you are gonna order while waiting on the long check out line, no worries~, there is literally a big bright colorful sign that shows their store's most well-known and best sales boba drinks right above the cash register, just order one of them you won't regret.

hAMBurgER

It’s Boba Time is such a nice place to hang out and study while getting boba. I got a choco Oreo shake, Ube shake, and a tea. It was a bit late when they served it. The drinks were delicious, service was ok, and atmosphere was good. Definitely would recommend!

Patricia Curry

Large boba is very tasty and affordable! I got the tiger sugar milk. I was afraid it was gonna be too sweet but I actually found it not too sweet at all. It’s very mild, slightly sweet, the milk flavor really comes through, and the boba is perfect consistency, nice and chewy. Next time I might add extra boba! TY boba time!

+3

Ronald Dolsky

Good place for late night boba! Truthfully I used to prefer this place more, but it's still a go to when I'm craving their Butter Pecan Frappe with Boba.

+11

Bonnie Ye

It’s been years since last time i visited. I would say their drinks are ok, nothing special. The boba texture is a bit chewy than my liking. Their price is reasonable. They renovated the interior which is nice. Overall, it’s not a bad place to get boba but there are better options else where.

+1

Brian's opinions

Very ok boba place. Drink with boba was good. 4/5stars. Popcorn chicken that I got was a below average 2/5 stars since it was under-seasoned and the texture was a bit dry and chewy. Customer Service…3/5 stars. Wasn’t great, but not terrible.

Flórez Êdgard (Eddie)

The wait is hideous, made it look like it was fast service and everything but is not. Saw several people getting their orders mixed up even one guy didn't get his drink. I decided to give it a try because was within walking distance from my restaurant so needed a treat for myself after dinner Expect to wait, service decent, drinks not out of extraordinary, good but average.

D Martinez

**COME HERE IF YOU WANT TO RECEIVE TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE!** The food is decent though. Not the best acai bowl but it'll do, if you're in the area. 1) Nobody is paying attention to customers walking up to order. The workers want you to use the self service kiosk. I opted for a printed receipt and nothing printed. 2) The worker called out my order as if it's complete but it wasn't. I had to wait again for them to pay attention to customers to ask for the rest of my order. I politely said, "excuse me. You called my order but I'm still waiting for the rest of my items." She gave me an angry stare, rolled her eyes and tossed her head back frustrated like a child, took a deep breath and then started the rest of my order, which was the Taiyaki and it came out slightly overdone. During my contact with her, she spoke no words to me. 3) They don't have spoons out for customers to get when they pick up the order. I asked the female worker for a spoon and she got pissed off and rolled her eyes and handed me a spoon. Again, she didn't verbally acknowledge me or anything when I asked for a spoon. 4) They got my order wrong. I didn't bother with having them correct it because they're NOT even paying attention to the customers! 5) The place is filthy and tables are sticky. There's straw wrappers all over the floor and trash overflowing from the trash can and it's hot inside the dining area and that's even with the door opened. Parking in the area is horrendous. Good luck finding a sizeable parking spot if you're in a truck or SUV.