Yoko's Japanese Restaurant

Last Saturday, my girlfriend, her son and I went to Yoko's. We've been there maybe a couple dozen times and have had varying degrees of service, but always excellent sushi. Blonde waitress, appeared new, skipped us on the list. We were waiting next door at C-Bar, but received no call. When I walked over and asked her about it (they had an open table and 3 spots at the sushi bar), she said, ""we will call you when we are ready."" I tried to explain we were missed, but she would have none of it. My girlfriend walked in a minute later, spoke to another employee, who apologized and offered us seats. I passed, called back later and asked to speak to a manager. The same blonde waitress answered and when I explained, again, she said she didn't have time to deal with it and I could call back the next day. Pros: Great sushi, location Cons: Poor service last time, service level varies more

Great Sushi and really friendly service. Just DON'T wait at the C-bar next door while your waiting for a table at Yoko's or the experience will ruin your appetite. Pros: Great Sushi, Friendly Service Cons: Long wait for table at times more

Best sushi in Portland, hands down. Great cozy atmosphere. If you haven't tried Taka's Tuna, you don't know what your missing. Great staff as well, get there early to avoid a long waiting list. more

I always drive by Yoko's on my way home from work and decided to give it a shot. Well I think it might have been a bad idea. It started out with a long wait, but the good thing is that we could wait at the C bar next door (where the service is great) and they give you a call when your table/bar seat is ready. The second we sat down at Yoko's we were treated as though we weren't supposed to be there. I was having a dinner date which was ruined by the RUDE SUSHI CHEFS. I don't know if they just didn't want people to be there or if they both just had something crawl up their a** and die. The sushi was okay.. I've had better. I just would never support a business that treats their customers like they're unwelcome, but I don't think that they would care. Pros: Waiting at the C bar Cons: SERVICE more

All I have to say is that yoko's used to be my favorite sushi restaraunt. I would go out of my way to get there because I don't live close. I will say that they have good eats there, a little pricy but good. I went there tonight with firends that had never been and I ranted and raved about the place. We ended up waitng about 1 1/2 hours to get in because it was busy, which is fine I understand, but still we waited just to eat there. We had a little to drink throughout the day but no one was drunk. We were just a group of friends that were having a ton of fun having the weekend of from grad school. Granted one of us is a bit of a clown and was being loud, never once were we rude to any of the employees, we said thankyou for everyhting and made sure to give 20% tip seeing as how we were probably louder than other customers. Only amongst ourselves though, we never included the staff or others around us. Well I was standing to go to the bathroom while the rest of our party left. The sushi chef (who hadn't delt with us at all the entire night) said ""have a good night"" to the rest of my party. The clown guy said thanks and then gave me a thumbs up cuz I was being left behind at the bathroom. The chef thought it was some kind of derogitory gesture and blatently called him an a**hole, not realizing i was there. I said to him that it wasn't meant towards him and that my friend really wasn't trying to be an a**hole, he rolled his eyes didn't say anything like sorry. Then I mentioned to the waitress that we waited an hour to get in, didn't bother anyone and tipped well and that the employees should try to make sure not to call customers a**holes in front of them. She argued with me, told me that my friend was drunk and must have rubbed him the wrong way even though she didn't see anything, after she is the one that served us beer in the first place. All I wanted was for someone to say ""I'm sorry I called your friend an a**hole"". Thanks for ruining a great evening yoko's. Pros: Taka's Tuna special Cons: SERVICE!!! more

I love this place! One of the best sushi bars I've ever been to. I read another persons review that complained about the bar next door...not sure what she's talking about. Must have been a bad night or something. The staff/service at C bar is top notch. At least every time I've been there it has been. I highly recommend both places. more

Fantastic sushi! Try their seared tuna sashimi, and their broiled mussels, you won't be sorry. If your adventurous, their wasabi soaked tobiko will burn out any cold you might be fighting, especially when accompanying their delectable Miso soup. The main Sushi chefs are both hospitable, as is the lad who is generally our server, and his support team. We often bring our teenager, but the space is a bit confined for infants. Biggest downside is lack of enough seating, which can lead to ridiculously long wait times. DON'T wait in the bar next door (it's called C-Bar), the service there is beyond terrible. Their male bartender seems always stoned out of his mind, and the woman is the rudest bartender on the planet. Pros: Great Sushi Cons: Wait time for table more

I've been to Yoko's a few times & thought it was great, but my most recent experience left me with a sour taste in my mouth & a resolve never to return. There was nothing particularly horrible, just a lot of small things. . . \r \r First, we waited for over an hour, which I expected, and was happy to do at C-bar right next door. Then, as we walked into Yoko's we were greeted by an overwhelming fishy odor, which is not the hallmark of great, fresh, sushi-grade fish. When our party of 7 was finally seated, we were told we could only order once, so make sure we order enough. Since when do sushi places not let you place another order if you're still hungry or find something you like? The service was borderline rude. I would take all of that if the food was good, but it wasn't great. The rolls weren't rolled tightly enough & fell apart very easily. They also weren't cut through all the way, so it was very difficult to grab a piece of sushi off the serving platter. One of the members of our party had to ask for a straw 4 times! (& 30 minutes later she got it). Then, at the end of the night, the waiter was extremely put off by us asking if we could use more than one credit card. \r \r There are plenty of wonderful sushi restaurants in Portland with just as quality fish, much better service, and a more welcoming atmosphere, so I'll steer clear of Yoko's from now on. Pros: small, homey place, C-bar next door Cons: service, sushi quality, wait time, more

We love Yoko's! The soft shell crab is wonderful.The staff is always so friendly and there is always good music playing! If you go on the weekends there is a wait but it's no big deal because you can wait for your table next door at c-bar. Pros: Service, Sushi and Atmosphere Cons: parking more

The food at Yoko's is AMAZING. It is hands down the best Sushi in Portland. As far as the complaints about customer service, EVERY TIME I?ve gone in there with my boyfriend the sushi chef looks up, Greets us with a ?Hi you guys, good to see you again!? Its takes awhile to get seated, but it?s worth the wait. Try the muscles, SO good. Pros: The food/service Cons: A bit of a wait more

Unfortunately, I agree 100% with writerajwold's review that the guys behind the sushi bar are rude and snide. And I had the exact same experience with being turned away at 8pm, despite the fact that there were even open tables at the time. The sushi is great, the rolls are tasty, but it has taken me a long time to consider going back. Pros: Great fish and rolls Cons: Sushi chef is rude and makes me not want to go back more

We have been frequenting Yoko's for a little over a year and a half now - and granted, the food is wonderful but the service (with the exception of Yoko herself, who is only there twice a week) is unbelievably unfriendly, arrogant, and rude! The sushi chefs have by far the worst attitudes ever. They are unfriendly, never say hello to you or greet you when you sit down at the sushi bar, sneer at you and act put-out whenever you ask them a question about how to go about ordering something off the menu, and have obvioulsy not been taught proper etiquette when it comes to saying thank you and you're welcome to their paying customers. Truly the rudest service we've ever experienced, and we are very friendly individuals - really. Fed up with the nasty treatment, we asked one of the sushi chefs if he were deliberately going out of his way to be rude to us, or if we had somehow offended him? He actually leaned into the bar toward us and growled, ""LOOK, I AM NOT TRYING TO BE RUDE!! This is a true story. It was incredible!! And there is more! Sorry, folks... but another example of the kind of service you can, without a doubt expect from Yoko's is... you will be turned away several times due to their wait ""policy"". There will be tables wide open, but despite the fact, an over an hour wait will be posted or worse, they will flat out refuse to serve you because they close at ten and they'd prefer not to be bothered by having to stay longer than necessary. We were turned away one Friday evening just recently at 7:30 P.M. (!!!) Having worked in the food industry for years, I am appalled by how these individuals get away with this type of behavior. It just so happens \r I am a freelance writer now and often write reviews for restaurants. Good thing I wasn't ""working"" on a write-up when this incident occurred. Friendly service is important. We've finally given up. Badly done Yoko's, badly done. Pros: Fresh fish. Cons: Long wait. Rundown facility. Rude, Rude... and did I mention RUDE service?! more

.. if not best I've had recently in the US!\r \r I was originally skeptical about Yoko's as I'd heard a few negative things about the service; all I can say is ""what alternate reality did those guys go to?"" Yokos ROCKS! This is the best Japanese food I've had in a long time. I lived in Japan when I was a kid and have been fond of Tendon Donburi ever since.\r \r For those of you who don't like sushi, remember, Yoko's has a ton of other things you can order. they do gyoza, donburi, terriyaki, udon, soba... you name it. Also, the portions are very generous. I can't always finish the donburi I order.\r \r Tendon Donburi means tempura over rice. The tempura at Yoko's is very light, NOT greasy, and it is delicious.\r \r The service is prompt, the food delicious, and the popularity on the rise ;). If you go earlier on a weeknight you should be okay. If you go later, just put your name on the list and scoot next door to the C for a drink.\r \r Friends, eat the sushi here and love it. I'll take their word for it as sashimi and most sushi doesn't do it for me. Pros: Food, Swift Service Cons: Can be busy more

Before I went to Yoko's, I did not like sushi. I decided to try a roll when I went with my friends, and now I'm a convert! The veggie wedgie roll is the best, with tempura vegetables and a spicy sauce. The edamame are a great appetizer, and the tempura is the best I've ever tasted--it's light, not greasy and has a great mix of vegetables.\r Go prepared for a long wait--it's tiny, but that's what gives it its character. Just put your name on the list and head next door to C Bar for a sake cocktail. When your table is ready, they will go next door and get you.\r Yoko's is THE BEST! Pros: Veggie wedgie, tempura, edamame Cons: Small space more

I have eaten at Yoko's several times. The fish is always very fresh. I highly recommend the sushi. The miso soup is very good as well. Good portion for your dollar. The only down side is the size of the restaurant. It's a small place and if busy the wait can be an hour or more. You can go next door to C-Bar and have a drink or glass of wine while waiting. They will call over to the C-Bar when your table is ready. You will love the food at Yoko's. It's worth the wait. Pros: Great Sushi, Fast Service, Good Prices Cons: Small Building more

Everything I've had here has been wonderful. I've not yet been able to stray from the sushi menu, though. The Batman Roll (eel) is to die for. I have seen tempura items there that look so light that they could float away. I live well away from the Gladstone neighborhood and have no problem with making the drive for this top notch restaurant. Pros: THE FOOD!!!!!!!!, servers are low key, great aquarium Cons: on street parking, small-worth the wait more

I've been to Yoko's about 50 times since I heard about it a year and a half ago. It is the best, most consistently great sushi in town. It also happens to be the best value, where else can you get amazing and creative rolls for $6? It is not fancy, but I love the atmosphere, its intimate and the lighting and music are great. Its our sexy little sushi shop and I like the fact that if you are a stuffy, uptight person you won't like it because it doesn't need you. The people who come to Yoko's know they have found something special. And if you don't want to wait at the swanky little C-Bar right next door where Yoko's calls you when your table is ready (where you can order sake cocktails and edamame while you wait) then get there early. Pros: Food!, Price!, wait system more

I cannot recommend this place enough. The fish is as fresh as can be and the specials are AWESOME (I recommend the Poki Roll, the seared albacore, and the Taka's Tuna). The waitstaff is busy but attentive. There are a couple of idiots who made comments below suggesting the wait for a table was somehow the result of an incompetent staff. But that's because they don't understand anything about how restaurants work. It's busy cuz it's the best. Be patient and ENJOY! more

The sushi was good and the desserts were bland, but what really set the Yoko's dining experience apart was the utterly abyssmal service. The server was surly, lazy and inconceivably slow. After an hour, we were asked to give up our seats because 'there was a huge list and a big line.' Upon leaving, there was neither a list, nor a single person in line. So in addition to being surly, lazy and slow, our server was also a liar. Pros: Sushi Cons: Bland Desserts, Wretched Service more

My husband and I recently tried Yoko's again after many years, and we were very disappointed. We waited slightly over an hour with only 4 couples ahead of us. Waiting itself isn't bad, most hip restaurants in Portland have a wait... but I would hope for incredible food! The waiter grabbed our sushi menu and did not wait around to ask if there was anything else we wanted... so our food ended up coming out at different times. I was shocked that for the price, my dinner of Maguro Sashimi did not come with rice or miso and unlike other restaurants in town you only get two Mochi ice cream balls instead of three. I think there are other great sushi places in Portland with ambience that also has good value and great service. Pros: Cool fishtank Cons: Long Wait, Expensive Food, Unhelpful Service more