Hiroki

I had high hopes for this place, but the final opinion was "meh", with a healthy dose of annoyance. The food was ok. The space is clean and modern. If everything was perfect, maybe I wouldn't have minded the 30% service charge plus tip. I think this practice should be stopped. They automatically add 20% service charge to your bill and then the waiter makes a point of telling each person when handing them the check that he doesn't get any of it, and suggests an additional 10%.

First time back this year and left disappointed and hungry. Subpar ingredients that did not taste fresh or nuanced. Zensai was bland. Ginger was old and soggy. Waygu was overcooked and tough. Sushi came apart from rice to what amounted to a crumbly sushi-a first. Fruit tart had strawberry that was overripe. Nothing stood out as extraordinary. Just generic.This was an elegant ambiance in an intimate setting. The detail and pride in each dish was evident. The omakase was expertly thought out and a pleasure to partake. But that is all in the past. As mine was the first rave review on yelp upon hiroki's opening, and one that enjoyed chef Hiroki in action many times hence, I now leave this with definite sense of closure. It's a shame this costly experience ($450 for 2) no longer warrants it or any consideration. Stay away.

This is a special experience! Admittedly, this was my first omakase experience, and I was completely blown away. I've seen other reviews from people who are more familiar with this type of cuisine/dining style who seemed to have completely different opinions. That said, if this is your first time, I would highly recommend. It is quite an enchanting start to finish. There feels like a bit of mystery as you wonder down the side alley way in Fishtown, to be immediately met with this beautiful large wooden round door (you cannot miss it). As we stepped inside, we were greeted by a very nice host who had us seated pretty quickly. A lot of dark and rich tones/textures in the restaurant - it is very cozy and relaxing. We sat at the bar itself, which in my opinion, is way more worth it than sitting at a table. If you can request it, do it, because you have a front row seat to all the action. Each seat practically has its own "picture perfect" lighting (which you will see in my shared photos) and you'll want to have the camera ready with how beautiful each plating is. I will say, this is an expensive meal, so we passed on the sake pairing, but if i have a chance to go back, I definitely would consider it. Really hard to nit-pick anything from start to finish. You kick off the meal with a warm towel and are swept away by the appetizers & sashimi. My favorite bite may have been the marinated poached egg yolk, but hands down most interesting bie was the fried river crab. This was super adventurous, so you do have to be open minded with these dishes (we also tried jellyfish for the first time!) I thought all of the fish was superb - fresh, clean, and well paired in their respective dishes. Don't overlook the Misuji Nikomi, which was the wagyu flat iron with red miso glaze - delicious! My favorite sushi bite was the Toro, which was fatty bluefin tuna...it literally just melted in my mouth. As I said before, you are laying down a big check on this, and while each individual plating is rather small, you do get nearly 20 platings. I am a BIG eater, and still left feeling content with the total amount, and felt like pricing was fair. At the end of the day, I feel obligated to give it a 4 star because they offer zero flexibility for vegetarians. Now I get it, if you are planning to go here, you can't miss the fact that they don't make accommodations, so it is not necessarily a surprise factor. However, this is a place I know my wife would love (service, atmosphere, etc.) but she will never get a chance to visit because of it. It's a shame, because this is a place that I feel like everyone should experience, but until that changes, it feels very limiting for all folks to give it a shot.

Hate to make it about the money but when you're the one of the most expensive Omakase experiences in Philly, it's hard not to. $150pp gets you roughly 20 "courses" aka bites. The first 6 were awesome, composed, thoughtful culinary driven bites. 10/10. Wagyu to poached eggs to some of the best fish I've ever had. The following 7-8 sushi bites felt like an after thought compared to the first courses. You'd have to reeeaally care and have a pristine pallet to differentiate between the cuts of fish to appreciate what the purpose of showcasing them so so simply. All were done over a pad of rice. Nothing more/less. Classic and authentic sure, but not very memorable. Again, I get the point of this, it's sushi true to form. How "they" do it, yep got it. But when your check is $455 for two, I feel the need to evaluate the experience from a value standpoint. I'd almost wish the sushi and composed dishes had been flipped in the way of order, would've helped me forget how uneventful they were.In traditional American style Omakase fashion, we felt like we needed to fly through the courses. The 2 person wait staff was quick to nudge you along. They even made an off color comment to us about the other guests taking it slow when we jokingly asked if we were rushing.One last comment- AVOID the sparkling water when asked..it's $38 and not noted as such on any part of the menu. As far as the other drinks (only sake, and a single bottled beer) go, expect to need the same amount of knowledge/intrigue as the prices of the sake bottles are all at least or more than $100. Very pricey altogether.

An impressive omakase. While the zensai (small bite, appetizer) was a little on the strange side (think jelly fish, a poached egg, and fried tofu, everything else we experienced was sensational. The grilled black cod was so flavorful. The personal stone grilled wagyu was a "play with your food" moment and absolutely delicious. The 12-course sushi course is really what you're here for though. The quality, the melt in your mouth flavors, traditionally served (wasabi between the fish and rice and no soy sauce), it was nothing less than sensational. Highly recommend the sake tasting. Many unique types and perfectly balanced and paired with the various courses.I can't end without saying the staff. Thoughtful, knowledgeable, kind. They made this experience what it was. Can't wait to come back!

We loved our meal at Hiroki - it was a wonderful celebration meal (we went on NYE). It was absolutely sensational and not a meal I will forget anytime soon! The people who are saying in other reviews that it's not outstanding... it's just very unclear how you would get that impression. The fish tasted incredibly fresh to us. Every bite was so delicious! I highly recommend trying to get a spot at the sushi counter - it will still be fun in the dining room (just behind the sushi counter, it is a small place) but it is fun to watch the preparation and have the sushi chef pass you the dishes directly. I couldn't believe we were in Philly, you are really transported as soon as you walk in - an unforgettable evening! Just for reference, 20% gratuity is included in your bill. For two, with two glasses of sake, it was around $450.00 so $$$$ but a very special meal, and I think it was worth it for the experience.

I have so many wonderful things to say about our evening at Hiroki. The ambience creates the perfect vibe and there are so many details that my husband and I appreciated from the miniature replica of the building's original exterior to the cinder block chop stick holders to the lighting (and don't get me started on the bathroom....wow). The courses get progressively better as the meal goes on and each is plated in a unique way on such different and special plates and serveware. The wines were served in the most amazingly delicate glasses. As we worked our way through the menu we found things big and small that we loved - the uzu lemon salt for the sashimi course was so good, I almost asked to take some home. The ginger shoot with the one course was surprisingly delicious and I wanted to take home a dozen to snack on. Each bite of sushi was so delicious, there's not much more to say about them, other than they got better and better and it was so fun to watch them be made right in front of us. Our absolute favorite course was the cheesecake - it was just so different and so delicious, we raved about it. It ended an amazing meal full of so many different tastes with a bang! Last and 100% certainly not least, the staff was so amazing - welcoming, knowledgable, polite, unobtrusive but helpful, and just wow. Definitely 5 star service. On the flip side, I will say the building was hard to find - the name of the restaurant blends in with the wall and is easily missed after the sun has gone down. The only other issue we had was the wine list - Within the "Red/Rose" section there were four wines - one rose and three red. So to start, the selection of red wines is limited. Then we discovered they were out of two of the reds. So, there was only one red wine on the menu - they had an additional by the glass red available, which was good because we did not like the pinot from the menu at all.

This place is suck a scam. They charged me extra $42~. For what? 20% tip is already included. Please don't waste your time and your money here. Don't book here so they can't get your card information

Hiroki. Wow. A must-try experience in Philadelphia for any fan of excellent Japanese cuisine. I first heard of Hiroki from a co-worker who loved it so much, she's been multiple times. We snagged reservations in between my husband accepting a new job and graduating with his PhD, so we had a lot to celebrate. There are limited seatings each evening, so a spot is coveted but oh so worth it. The restaurant is pretty hidden in Fishtown, but once you find the subtle wood door, you're greeted by a host/hostess who escorts you to a seat at the sushi counter to start the experience. Even from entering the doors, we knew it was going to be memorable night. The interior is dark & moody with minimalist vibes, allowing your attention to be on the food and experience. The staff was extremely receptive (I dropped a chop stick and had a new one in less than 1 minute) and respectful (giving us time to savor each plate). Watching the chefs in real time was amazing too, as you could tell the passion and skill they possessed. As an omakase, the menu is pre-selected and presented to you on a card to guide you through each of the 20 courses. Every dish brought to us was plated so beautifully and with such attentive detail. The quality of the dishes was outstanding, and this was certainly the finest sushi I have ever had, not only in just Philadelphia. We loved walking through the menu starting with zensai (favorite was the onsen tamago with the poached egg yolk) to the sashimi, small plates (LOVED the black cod), nigiri, sushi (toro handroll was a standout), and dessert (the mango custard was the perfect ending), feeling like we had the fullest of experiences. Their is an optional sake pairing, which we opted for and I 10/10 would recommend - it was a great way to experience each dish with another flavor profile and expose us to the varietals of sake. We are still talking about our Hiroki experience now months later, and we highly recommend it to all our friends as the finest way to omakase in Philadelphia. While it is not a "cheap" meal by any means, it is 100% worth the price tag for the quality and quantity of freshly prepared dishes and for the overall vibe. Truly a memorable dining experience in the city. We would be honored to dine at Hiroki again, and we are already looking forward to scoring a coveted reservation for the next special occasion. Thank you for the wonderful meal, Hiroki!

This is definitely a splurge meal, but the quality of food is unmatched by any other sushi restaurant in the Philly area. I highly recommend the sake pairing as it really evaluates the entire dining experience. The grilled cod, fluke, toro, and uni were standout dishes.I wish they would clarify how much tip they expect since there is already a 20% service charge added to the bill. It would honestly make more sense if they included the service charge in the total omakase price.