Ototo Sushi Co.
Sushi · San Diego
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About Ototo Sushi Co.
At Ototo Sushi Co., we're passionate about serving up creative sushi dishes that delight your senses. Our contemporary outfit is all about fusion cuisine, with a focus on fresh ingredients and bold flavors. Just like our signature Ramen, every bite is designed to warm your heart and soul. Our cozy B...
At Ototo Sushi Co., we're passionate about serving up creative sushi dishes that delight your senses. Our contemporary outfit is all about fusion cuisine, with a focus on fresh ingredients and bold flavors. Just like our signature Ramen, every bite is designed to warm your heart and soul. Our cozy Balboa Avenue location invites you to relax in our intimate atmosphere, where expertly crafted beers complement our sushi offerings. We're proud to have received rave reviews for our attentive service, with many praising the friendly staff's personalized touch and knowledge of our menu.
What Customers Say About Ototo Sushi Co.
Ototo Sushi Co. is a popular spot known for fresh, well-made sushi at reasonable prices. The Kamikaze Fries, Bruce Lee roll, and Korean BBQ lunch special are frequently praised. Some find the quality inconsistent or dislike the overuse of imitation crab.
Popular Dishes
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Tip: Happy hour is every day. Be aware that some rolls contain imitation crab if you prefer to avoid it.
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Frequently asked questions about Ototo Sushi Co.
Ototo Sushi Co. San Diego Reviews
Ototo sushi is 10/10. Our favorite sushi spot. It’s always so fresh, well put together and service is excellent. We have yet to find another place that tops this one!
I've reviewed this before, maybe just on Yelp, but this is the 30th time I've been here and they are still stepping up their game. The garlic edamame had some char on it, and was literally the best edamame I've ever had. The tuna and hamachi nigiri melted in the mouth. And the ninja roll was Outstanding. Capital O. So much winning and solidified primary in my rotation. And the tap selection wins hands down. Great service, they are responsive and friendly.
Servers were great. While I waited for my lunch partner they made sure I was happy. The special Bruce Lee roll was very tasty. The sashimi special was delicious and fresh. Beware of toasted peppers that look like toasted onions. Whew! They're hot.
Came here with my wife for dinner on a Wednesday just in time to partake in the end of happy hour for about an hour. It was not too busy, and were seated without waiting. We ordered drinks (draft beer and sake) and appetizers (Calamari, Salmon Kama, and Cucumber Salad). The Salmon Kama took a while to get, but the other appetizers came quick and were good. The Calamari was a little overcooked, making it chewy. For the main dishes, we ordered rolls (Balboa, Picasso, Scallp Dynamite, and Murica) and nigiri (Salmon, Yellowtail Belly, Albacore, and Unagi). We wanted to get sea urchin nigiri as well, but they were out. The rice-to-fish ratio was just right, although the unagi was on the smaller side for nigiri. The Murica roll is not a typical roll and we just wanted to try it. It was not bad, but not good either; definitely not one to reorder for our preference. Overall the food barely made a five star. The service was great. Our waitress was attentive and knew the menu. The atmosphere was energetic and not too loud, but nothing really stood out. There is indoor and patio seating. It is definitely place we would come back to, especially when in the Clairemont area. We look forward to trying the other rolls and dishes.
Parking: Came here for dinner on a Wednesday at 730pm and there were plenty of parking up front and shopping plaza in front of Vons Ambience: Indoor outdoor dinning available but outdoor did have a homeless person with a really foul smell around his sleeping area when. Smelled it when walking by on sidewalk and when a wind draft came by with same smell while dinning. Service: The service was very attentive and friendly. Food: Firebomb Roll: Really Flavorful but a bit small Spider hand roll: Best loaded Spider hand roll I’ve had in San Diego Eel hand roll: Best loaded eel hand roll I’ve had in San Diego Scallops Dynamite: saucy and loaded with baked bay scallops. Still pretty good. Supports Military: 10% Overall: Great fresh sushi dinning experience with outdoor pet friendly area.
The place is very cute, kinda small inside but it also has outdoor seating. It has a relaxing esthetic. They have beer, wine, sake, sodas, and teas. Get the Kamikaze Fries! Besides the sushi they also have noodle dishes, salads, desserts, and lunch specials. Can’t wait to try them again 🥰
Food is consistent. Nothing wrong with the food. SUSHI is great. But the service, meh they can work on the friendliness. The staff is ok, but for the amount of times I've been here still dont know any staFf members name or do they know mine. Which is kinda strange since I order from here at least twice a week. I'm giving it a 4 or a 3.5 because of the staff... but the foods on point.
Really good! Service is nice and staff was thoughtful enough to give a surprise birthday gift. Highly recommend the Rincon and Cardiff roll, and the fries are always good.
The food was good, tasty. I like the size of the rolls, not too big. A good value for money. Now observing the sushi cooks, they were not dressed appropriately for preparing food, specifically raw fish. There were no gloves or hats visible, which is concerning for food safety and makes it hard to trust the handling process. I hope management addresses this immediately, as the potential for a great restaurant is there once health standards are met.
Overall, an excellent sushi place with what I think are reasonable prices for sushi. I had the red ramen which had excellent flavor and the pork belly was wonderful. A really nice spot that is very popular so make sure you put your name in because there's going to be a wait. Worth the wait though.
The chicken karaage had a thin batter, which I liked because it felt lighter and less flour heavy. I enjoy fried chicken that’s crispy on the outside and juicy inside, but in this case, the batter wasn’t particularly crispy. Still, the thin coating clung nicely to the moist meat, creating a good balance. I also appreciated that it wasn’t too salty. The rolls are generally good here, but today the rice was especially well-prepared pleasantly nutty and with a nice, slightly springy texture. The spicy tuna roll is my go-to menu item, and I love that it always comes with a generous amount of fish. The spider roll had a delicious balance of flavors, with crispy crab and a sauce on top that was seasoned just right.
12-31-24 Ordered: 3/5 -Tonkotsu $14.50– the flavor was just ok nothing special. I also didn’t like the fact that my soup broth was not hot. -Dynamite $13– overloaded w mayonnaise. -Rainbow $13– the roll was filling. -Crunchy $7 HH plus eel $3– adding eel atop the roll was a good choice. -California $5 HH -Salmon Kama $5 HH– good portion. Perfectly cooked. -Sake $5 HH Service: 4/5 Our waitress gave us the courtesy of checking to see if we wanted to order more food before the Happy Hour ended. We enjoyed our experience. The place was happening and had customers going in and out constantly. Note: Best time to beat dinner crowd is to arrive before 5pm. Otherwise, there’s a wait.
Grabbed lunch here and had a great meal! We were seated promptly and our server was very kind. I ordered the classic eel roll, the sunset roll, and the scallop dynamite roll. All the rolls were very tasty. The eel roll flavor got a bit overpowered by the sauce drizzled on it (a thick, sweet sauce) and the sunset roll was a bit one note--though still very tasty. The scallop dynamite roll was my favorite. It has no structural integrity and kept falling apart as I ate it, but the flavor was amazing! My partner got the teriyaki chicken and he enjoyed it. It came with a side salad which had an odd flavored and textured dressing on it. All the rolls were fairly priced and you got a good amount of food for each one. Service: 10/10 Food: 8/10 Atmosphere: 10/10 (really cool mural on the walls, can see the chefs making sushi, and there is a nice outdoor seating area)
The sushi is hit or miss. Some days it's just OK and others it's second to none, fresh and fantastic. Prices have come up over the years, but this is one of the best fast-sushi options in Clairemont. They regularly have Uni, and other fatty belly cuts of salmon and yellowtail which other restaurants don't have. Their spider hand roll is also one of my favorite snacks.
Nice sushi restaurant for a quick lunch. In a busy strip mall in Kearney Masa, San Diego, this restaurant is popular with the locals. We went their with our son while we visit him in San Diego. During this pandemic, the restaurant keeps its door open with outdoor dining and take outs. The menu is very competence is very comprehensive with teriyaki items to sushis, sashimi and noodles. I particularly like their balboa roll. The rolls were Amazing with fresh spicy tuna inside. Tempura shrimp was good but not spectacular. The prices are very reasonable compared to the prices here in LA. I also heard my son told me that their noodles are good. Maybe we can try that the next time when we're in San Diego.
Updated : I ordered Bruce Lee roll , it was supposed to be with shrimp tempura and no Crab is mentioned. I got little bit of shrimp and lots of imitation crab. In general over 80% of sushi rolls are full with imitation crab. Just wish they have more rolls without crab in it ! Old review : We live across the street so we come here very often. I love the fish , it’s always fresh . Nice and clean establishment. Good service as well . Prices are reasonable and in general a must visit place .
A 20 to 30 minute takeout estimate turned into an hour and 20 minutes. This place was packed and after finally receiving my food I'm not quite sure why. They rushed everyone's order through and every roll I ordered was falling apart. Fish quality was very lacking and the rice tasted like prepackaged sushi from the grocery store.
this review is about my last visit and the follow up. Everything I ordered was extremely poor quality. Brown ahi, sushi falling apart into 10 pieces, inedible karage - chewy and hard. I contacted them via email that I don't want any discount or money back but they should be aware that this was not a meal. No response. I contacted them again, still nobody cared to talk to me.
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5651 Balboa Ave, San Diego, CA 92111
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5651 Balboa Ave, San Diego, CA 92111
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