Zeppelin

I've been seeing posts from their Instagram page for a long time and now I can finally say I've tried Zeppelin. IN SHORT, the sushi here is great, along with my entire dine-in experience. IN DETAIL: I ordered nigiri sushi + the Buta Bara Pork Belly Skewers + hot sake + the Matcha Crepe Cake (per my very kind waitress' recommendation), and then an order of Seaweed Salad + Gyu Donburi (Beef, Rice, & Egg) Bowl to go. Yes, that's a lot. However, the sushi orders come with 2 pieces per order, as do the skewers. So, dine-in experience altogether, it wasn't at all overwhelming. The to-go orders, naturally, were for trying later. SUSHI: Now, a short, sweet, and blunt rave: all the sushi I ordered was delicious. Everything tasted wonderful, was presented beautifully (see pictures), and had a joyous texture with each bite. They were all good. Personal suggestion: use chopsticks, not a fork. Layer a piece of ginger on top of your sushi, and place a sliver of wasabi on top, then dip the sushi into soy sauce and layer your bite. It's delicious. Sushi ordered: - The Kampachi (Amberjack) nigiri - Sake (Salmon) nigiri - Unagi (Freshwater Eel) nigiri BUTA BARA SKEWERS The Buta Bara Pork Belly skewers were equally delicious. They're simple at 2 pieces of bite-sized fatty pork belly, and seasoned with salt and pepper, with an added lemon slice for zest if you like. SAKE: The sake was delicious, though I don't drink often. Ordering hot sake with my sushi is a personal enjoyment, so I'll happily recommend it. TO-GO ORDERS My to-go orders were slightly underwhelming, however: - The Seaweed Salad was satisfying. It's a small appetizer, and also comes with a lemon slice for added zest. - The Gyu Donburi (Beef) Bowl was good, but lacking in flavor. It could have used a bit more spices, in my opinion, especially salt, and even at least a hint of spicy kick. It had none, and after adding my own hot sauce, found that the dish was only then improved. That is entirely my personal opinion, of course. MATCHA CREPE CAKE Finally, the waitress-recommended Matcha Crepe Cake was not too sweet, just tasty enough to be satisfying as a post-sushi dessert. It was presented prettily, just like the rest of my dine-in meal. Next time, I'd like to try their Strawberry Cheesecake, though... their Instagram pictures make you salivate over it. INTERIOR/EXTERIOR The place is lovely. There is the sushi bar upstairs, which I didn't visit, and a bar downstairs open until midnight, usually, but as late as 2:30am. There are outdoor patios adjacent to both sides of the restaurant, and both are covered and well-decorated for the atmosphere. I arrived around 6pm on a Friday and luckily enjoyed a sparse, quiet meal before a big dinner rush out on the patio. The bar inside was a bit rowdier, however. The single, shared bathroom, though moodily lit, could have used a bit more cleaning, especially given its location next to the bar. FINALLY Overall, my experience at Zeppelin was very pleasant, aided by a very friendly waiter--I believe her name is Ning? She was very kind and helpful. The establishment has a lovely outdoor area in a neighborhood feel (it is located at the corner of 9th St NW and Q St NW, east of Logan Circle). *Parking is nearby neighborhood parking. I lucked out and found a limitless free zone beginning at 6pm on Friday in front of a school on Q St a block up. Keep an eye out for that spot. And that's all, I think. Zeppelin was enjoyable and I'd be happy to go again. I haven't mentioned pricing because sushi joints do tend to be a splurge anyway, so be prepared to spend a bit of money. Treat this place like a celebratory occasion and enjoy their atmosphere and sushi. For full disclosure, if I hadn't ordered additional to-go items, my bill for the 6 pieces of nigiri, plus the skewers and dessert and sake, would have been $59, excluding tip. RYRY RECOMMENDED? Aside from the slightly underwhelming Gyu Donburi Bowl, Zeppelin was very good, and gets 4.5 stars out of me 🤌🤌🍣

We had the omakase for two experience. Wonderful service by waiter Best! Sushi very fresh and is the best outside of NYC. Uni in particular as well as the king salmon and otoro were the favorites. They had rare fish that we had never had at other places in the US. Will definitely be back.

Came here for restaurant week, and the food is phenomenal! The $40 plate (sushi option) got you 3 courses. Such a wide variety of seafood, also literally the best cheesecake I’ve ever had!

Everything 5-stars. From the moment I entered the door and was greeted by the host, to my final bite, this was such a wonderful experience! The food is so good (and I say that as a Seattleite sushi snob). The drinks are excellent. The service is top notch. The bar is filled with locals, the scene is chill and welcoming. I want this restaurant in my neighborhood. Please come to Austin!

UPDATE: While I haven’t had the Omakase again, this has become one of my go-to spots for rolls, nigiri and yakitori in DC. It’s a little pricey, but I think it’s worth it for reliably fresh and high quality food. Great cocktails too. Really enjoyed the Omakase at the sushi bar. Great value at $100pp—3 appetizers, 8pc sashimi, and 12pc sushi (plus soup and dessert). On par with decent places in NYC, and at a lower price. Chef Kevin paced it out nicely. Very relaxed vibe throughout the restaurant. Main issue was the wait staff. Although friendly, it’s clear that this place doesn’t prioritize the Omakase, so dirty dishes would get piled up as we waited for our waiter to eventually come around. At the end they brought out two desserts, as expected, but then only left one at the table and didn’t seem to know what to do with the other. Moments later we saw the staff eating our other dessert just 10 feet away from us.

went here for dinner tonight and we loved it! similar to other reviews I would say the waiter was a bit hands-off, but when she did come around her recommendations were super thorough and honest. The hamachi carpaccio was incredible, and we loved the spider-man roll. Our waiter recommended some maguro nigiri because the fish had just come in yesterday and looked really good. I loved getting that insider scoop and it didn’t disappoint - super fresh and very good. We ended the night with the rainbow roll, which we really loved. Super flavorful and fresh. Overall a great dinner and a fun spot! We will be back.

What a really great dining experience at Zeppelin!! My friends and I decided to grab an early dinner before going to see a show at the Kennedy Center - and we could not have been happier starting our evening off at Zeppelin!!! All the drinks available on the happy hour menu were great. My friends and I really felt spoiled for choice with the options; and it translated well into the great taste as well. The service was superb - and the food was really really tasty! As it was my first visit, I decided to go with some of the more popular dishes & those that were recommended by our server. These included: - Ebi Shumai 🤤🤤 (shrimp dumplings) - Tako Yaki (octopus dumplings) 👌🏾👌🏾 - Buta Bara (pork belly) ✨✨✨ - Evica Hotate 🤤🤤 (shrimp wrapped scallops) - Gyu Donburi Bowl 🔥🔥 (beef over steamed rice, topped with a fried egg) - the Sushi Special (🍣🍱) 🤤🤤

Had an early dinner around 4:30pm so the restaurant was mostly empty. Parking can be a little difficult to find (I did street parking a couple blocks from the restaurant). The restaurant had a nice ambiance to it, but the restroom itself had dim lighting. Our server was attentive during our 1.5 hour dining at the restaurant (mostly waiting for the food to show). Drinks (not pictured), we ordered the Getaway and Kabuki Springs highballers and thought they were good. They have a daily happy hour from 4-6pm of 1/2 price highballers and something else I don’t remember I think beer. Food (listed in the photo captions): The appetizers were okay for me. I prefer grilled squid to be more charred but it nice and chewy. The takoyaki was piping hot and good. The rolls were a good recommendation by our server. The nigiri special was the main event. If I was richer lol I would have ordered 2 but my partner and I shared the platter. Our server explained to us what each piece of nigiri was in detail. Overall, I would eat at this place again. I don’t see a lot of sushi restaurants in DC and this place fulfilled my nigiri cravings 😋

Chill vibe. Cool ambience. Two stories—downstairs bar and some seating, upstairs sushi counter and lounge-like seating. There is seating outside also. Food is great! Clearly fresh ingredients and skilled chefs at work here. Friendly staff and quick service makes this a great place for date night or sushi binge 😁

Bumped into to this establishment for the first time while taking a walk in the neighborhood and what intrigued me was the aesthetics and decor. It gave me a gothic appeal. Jake was the bartender and he suggested a coffee , banana , concoction which he made for another customer which was out of this world. The ambience and vibe is very chill and relaxed. I will definitely come again when in the area.

Zeppelin is a place I frequent often. It’s always at the top of my list if I want an affordable sushi meal that doesn’t compromise on quality, atmosphere, and service. I enjoy their cocktails, especially the highballs at happy hour that become half price. Their chicken yakitori is unbelievably juicy and flavorful. I highly recommend the chicken thigh skewers as an appetizer. They must brine the chicken and then grill it quickly and to perfection in order to lock in the flavors. I am a vegetarian most of the time and I make exceptions for exceptional meats, and this is one of them. The sushi is buttery and fresh. No complaints there. Try the Negitoro roll. The cherry on top is their daily happy hour. I would love to see some food items on their happy hour, but I’m not disappointed with the current offerings that include half off highballs. I recommend the Monkey Magic if you love banana flavor like I do.

My boyfriend and I were craving sushi late night and found this place. The sushi was impeccable! The toro literally melted in my mouth. Loved the atmosphere & our waiter was amazing. 10/10

The setting and atmosphere is very chill and calming. Service was great. If you like octopus get the takoyaki as a starter, super delicious. First time here and Imma recommend going with the yakitori bowl.

Delicious quality food. But the service was even better! Jake was a fantastic bartender. Very knowledgeable and just a genuinely kind person to chatt with. Thank you for making my day.

I’ve been in DC for about 4 years and I’ve been struggling to find a stellar sushi place. Well thankfully I don’t have to look anymore. The restaurant is so inviting with a charming outdoor space, and two levels of a well decorated restaurant. The server was very friendly and recommended some delicious off-the-menu sushi items. The nigiri fish was so fresh and melted in my mouth. Everything was so delicious and the sake went perfectly with it too!

Me and a friend got the Omakase and it was AMAZING and so much fun. Our server made the experience even better by sharing his preferences and how they’re suggested to eat each bite.

As someone who really loves sushi, I can confidently say this is the best sushi restaurant in DC. Every piece is incredibly fresh, thoughtfully prepared, and full of clean, balanced flavor. You can taste the quality in every bite. The chefs clearly take pride in their craft, and it shows—from the precision of the cuts to the creativity on the menu. The ambience is calm and elegant without being pretentious, making it perfect for anything from a casual dinner to a special night out. If you’re a sushi lover, this place is a must. Absolutely outstanding.

We enjoyed the sashimi special, sushi special, edamame and tofu. The sushi was fresh and delicious. The apps were good but short of great - a little more salt and homemade tofu would have made a bigger difference. Overall we were happy sushi-lovers and would return if we were in the area again.

Good sushi!! It didn’t blow me away but it’s potentially the best I’ve found in DC for a reasonable price. The nigiri was good - I’d say better than the rolls. The sushi was fresh but the rice wasn’t as high quality as I’d expect for a Japanese restaurant. I do want to return for karaoke night! The night I came they didn’t start it on time and eventually I left.

Overall the place seemed clean and tidy. Unfortunately both my colleague and I became ill the next day. I had the spicy tuna, and shared some with him. This was the common denominator, so possibly the prep area or the tuna itself was the culprit for us both getting sick.

Atmosphere & ambiance were 10/10. Sushi was delicious, steak was cooked perfectly, and there were a lot of options on the menu that we could take advantage of! I definitely recommend the takoyaki for a starter, they were so yummy. The matcha tiramisu was a great way to end the meal.

It’s been a while since I’ve been to Zeppelin and the menu isn’t as extensive as it used to be but it’s fine. The sushi was decent. I felt a little ignored at the bar, but it was slow. I enjoyed myself anyway. I had a dragon roll, a California roll and agadashi tofu. They were good.

Solid place for drinks and sushi, they even do HH on the weekend. Fish was fresh and service was friendly. Definitely want to come back and try their omakase.

It has been a while since we last dined at this Japanese restaurant, but we enjoyed the food. We ordered seaweed salad and takoyaki for appetizers, and for the main course, we had some rolls and sashimi, which were fresh and delicious. The drinks we had paired well with the food. We admired the unique interior decor of the restaurant, which included black and white illustrations on the wall and a Godzilla mural outside. Recently, we learned about the Omakase menu and are looking forward to returning and trying it soon.

Nice corner spot to grab some good food and decent drinks. They also do HH on weekdays and Sunday till 6pm. We went here on a Sunday during Cherry blossom season, they had few seasonal drinks that tasted decent. But the best part of our experience was finding Donburi vegetarian. This is one of our favorites and let me tell you, 99% of restaurants don’t make it vegetarian and this place did. Added bonus that out was delicious and we loved it. The only negative experience I’d say was the service. The bartender was extremely cold to us and not a single smile or friendliness through our visit. However, she was friendly to others. We tried making conversation but she just didn’t like us. It was an unfriendly environment to say the least. May be the restaurant can work on their service a little bit more. Otherwise, worth checking out.

This restaurant has a lot going for it. Great lighting and design feels current and trendy. I particularly enjoyed their version of the Old Fashion with a splash of plum. I enjoyed the tempura shrimp more than the vegetables which were alittle too dense. The shrimp was perfect. Plenty of drink and sushi options.

Overall a lovely experience. All of the food we ordered was delicious and they even had good options for mocktails. I ordered the zeppelin sushi roll and unagi nigiri and both were amazing. Our waitress was so friendly and helpful as we tried to decide what to order. The only questionable experience was when we walked in without a reservation and was told would be an hour wait (totally understand that) but then we were able to make a reservation on OpenTable and went back up to the host stand to say we made a reservation. They told us that they were behind with reservations and it would still take a bit of time for us to get seated. It really seemed like they messed up and didn’t turn off the ability to make reservations online and then were caught in a tricky situation. Nothing major but it was very awkward.

This is one of my go to spots for sushi and drinks with friends. It has a chill but energetic vibe. I always sit at the bar though the outdoor area is nice too. Most recently Jake and Taylor were super friendly behind the bar. I always get the negitoro and spicy yellowtail rolls, and then additional items depending on who I’m with. I recommend the cod and skewers as well.

Great food. While the sushi was fantastic (best you can get for the price), surprisingly, the cod was the most stand out thing for me. I'm not usually a big cod fan but this was truly amazing. Dessert was 10/10 too! 4 stars because the mosquitos were terrible on the patio, and they didn't offer any sort of birthday special. That said, the food was so good I still don't regret choosing them for my birthday meal!

I love coming here - it is truly a great option for Japanese in DC. Contemporary with authentic flavors and great sushi. The rice and the fish, are very well done. I love their Okonomiyaki, Shishito Peppers, Rock Shrimp Tempura, Beef Harumaki, Sushi, and their Onigiri. If you're in the area, I definitely recommend!

My friend saw this place on social media so we decided to give it a try. Physically it's an appealing space. The sushi was good. The appetizers were ok. We had a bit of a wait for everything. Everyone got their food at different times. There could have better descriptions of some of the menu items. Our waiter kinda dissappeared. Fortunately, other staff members were helpful. I think the quality of service depends on who u get and when u go.

I came to Washington for a trip. Grabbed dinner here because it was close by. It’s very busy inside very lively with the bar. The service was very good but the wait for the food was long. My favorite was the Waygu nigiri. It was okay. I loved how there was a karaoke night super fun!

Honestly.... I wasn't impressed by their happy hour. They had a fantastic patio-AMAZING staff, and great tasting stuff but it's just wasn't my vibe, due to the location & price. If you're in the shape neighborhood, and looking for something more quit and family/ dog friendly this is perfect for you!!

Came here for dinner on a Friday night. It was pretty packed so prepare for wait times for food! The glasses have that wet dog odor to them so that wasn’t pleasant. I did get their amazing grape fruit soda which was super yummy. The miso soup was pretty good although a little fishy tasting for my liking. The sushi was pretty good but nothing out of this world. I did like the sitting in the outdoor space. Our waitress was nice but didn’t check on us much after taking our order. Was hard to get wait staffs attention. Overall all, just ok!

For the food, best sushi in town. For the service, idk why this place is cheap. I order it on a biweekly basis and they never get me the extra ginger I request. I order for parties of 3+ and the ginger they put is clearly insufficient for one person. Today I called requesting the extra ginger in the phone after ordering, the person in the phone replied with “of course it’s already requested”. Ordered a 100$ worth of sushi and got barely ginger for two and two soy sauce and 3 chopsticks. Come on…

Really lovely people and a beautiful restaurant, but the food has fallen off as of late. Went there recently and ordered donburi, two rolls and some edamame. The edamame came out and was still hard and crunchy. The rolls were, despite all the ingredients, kind of bland. The tempura was soft and not flaky, and the eel atop the donburi was cold. It’s the second time I’ve had similar issues with the food here. Again, lovely people and service. Drinks are great, but I’ll come without an appetite next time

I don’t know if they have lowered the sizes of what the fish usually is but this is really small/thin for sashimi. I usually order the premium so maybe when you order the regular sashimi special they don’t offer a nice size.

Terribly rude and unprofessional service. The host actually showed us to a table laid for 4 after we told her we are 5 people. A bunch of bigger tables in the dining room were sitting empty and when we asked if we can be seated at one of those tables the host said that's not possible. !?! The server made no effort to check on us after taking our order either. Sushi is ok by DC standards.

The food was actually quite good and very fresh, and the cocktails were great too. But what’s going on with the man at the reception? He had no smile on his face — he looked like he was about to punch someone. And he wasn’t honest. We told him there were five of us in total, and that two of our friends would arrive a bit later. He said, “Then please wait at the bar for a while, I’ll arrange it.” However, even after our two friends arrived, all five of us waited at the bar for a long time, and he still didn’t give us a table. Eventually, we realized he wasn’t going to arrange one for us, so we booked a table ourselves through the app. When he saw that we already had a confirmed reservation for five people, he suddenly told us we’d have to wait another 1 hour and 30 minutes 🥵. Honestly, this man is not suitable for front-desk work. He should be assigned to a position where customers can’t see him.

The food was pretty good, but this was one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. I don’t blame the server for our issues. It seems like a larger restaurant issue. It took over 25 minutes for someone to bring us menus, another 30+ minutes for our drinks to come out. Appetizers came out before food. It took another hour for the second round of drinks to come out, and over an hour for our sushi to come out after we ordered. There was also a hair on one of our drinks so it had to be sent back and there was a long wait for another one. We were sitting outside and there were many empty tables around us