Doraku Sushi Kakaako

Checked out this hip place for sushi in Ala Moana. Doraku has a pretty modern feel to it. If you like modern takes on sushi, you'll like this. Even so it still has the classics. The prices aren't that bad especially at happy hour. Basically sushi is the main thing to get. It's got a pretty big menu. There's simpler rolls and fancier ones. Also cocktails. It's about $8 for one at happy hour, okay prices. Best we had of these was the Lychee Martini. This had a light sweetness. It's about $16 for one of the maki rolls. There's some of these okay for vegetarians. I got the Vegan Roll. This has asparagus, avocado, cucumbers, ginger dressing, spring mix, and tomatoes. Cool place to eat some cool fish or something plant based. It's located on Kapiolani Boulevard, across from the Neil S. Blaisdell Center. There's mostly seafood, but there's a few things for vegetarians.

I am sitting in the restaurant writing this review- service was so slow I also had time to review two other places, if you don't believe me you can go look at my profile, and you should, the two places I reviewed are far better places to eat. I loved Doraku, but lately they have fallen off, the food seems to have suffered from shrinkflation, and the staff are more interested in working at a trendy restaurant than actually doing their job. The hostess didn't greet us at all. The server didn't realize our food had not made it to our table and then tried to give us the check before we even got to eat. The lateness of the food was blamed on "running out of rice." Really? Running out of rice at a sushi restaurant? Maybe it's my lucky day and the McDonald's ice cream machine is working!

Doraku is always our favorite choice whenever we're catching a show at the Blaisdell arena. This location is also special to us, as it is one of the first places my husband and I had our first dates, and 4 years later, where he proposed lol.Our most recent visit was pleasant as usual. I love that they had holiday cocktails. My favorite was the Polar Espresso Martini. We ordered a variety of items to share. Our usuals are the oyster shooters and a couple of sushi rolls. The hamachi garlic roll is a winner. Service is always A+. They're always attentive and friendly. The interior is a trendy Asian aesthetic and a perfect spot for date night in town.

We were welcomed warmly by the staff at Doraku during happy hour and even the parking attendant was kind and cheerful. We had not been able to visit the restaurant since the pandemic so we were happy to be back on the road to happiness. Their regular menu and the happy hour menu had all of our favorite dishes plus more! Austin waited on us today and he was very attentive. Our dishes were served in a timely manner with perfection. Austin was full of energy and had a sense of humor that really brightened our experience at the restaurant. We can't wait to go back! Ambience was calm, serene and full of promises for our future plans.

I used to really enjoy coming here but during my experience today, it has changed my mind a bit. The service was good, but I noticed that the portion sizes have changed substantially.. I understand that it's all apart of inflation but there is a big difference from the last couple times i went vs tonight. To start, I ordered the chicken karaage and noticed that when it came out, the chicken size was so small! Like nugget sized! I was shocked because usually it's bigger pieces and even if you look back in the other photos of Doraku, there are bigger pieces of chicken. It was $10 for those small tiny "nuggets." I also ordered the ahi tataki and the portion they give you is literally HALF of what they used to give you and barely even any of the veggie pieces. I ordered my usual favorite roll, the Hamachi Garlic Roll. I was very underwhelmed as there were only pieces of tempura on the 2 end pieces. There was barely even any tempura pieces in the middle part and if there was, it was small, and I could mainly taste the avocado and rice. For desserts I ordered the brownie tempura and the sizing for that was so tiny as well with the ice cream really only being enough for 1 person instead of something to share with another. The brownie tempura pieces were the size of a fish stick. It was good but the portion sizes are soo disappointing.

We checked in for our reservations and were seated immediately. We ordered the double happiness roll which had no rice, spicy tuna crispy rice and the ultimate spicy tuna roll to start with. The garlic aioli and the ponzu really brought the double happiness roll together. As happy hour was half an hour later, we also ordered the salmon carpaccio, beef tataki, agadashi tofu, and two lychee martinis. Everything was really good! We couldn't believe that the martinis were only $8 and were so delicious and strong!

I'm never disappointed when I go here. All the food is so yummy and the drinks were perfect. Service was great as usual.*Tip: Go for Happy Hour for a more affordable meal.

Haven't been here in ages, used to always be a go to for me. As with any business over time the menu has changed a little bit and I didn't really notice too much change in prices which was nice. Parking was a bit full that night so opted for the $7 valet right next door which is really convenient and not that expensive considering majority of valet places especially in town are at least $10. We chose this spot because we haven't been here in awhile and were in the area. Hostesses that night weren't the friendliest and not like we came in at closing, there was still about 90 minutes til they closed. We ended up sitting at the bar and the workers there were all super friendly. As full as the restaurant was our food came out really fast. Still recommend coming here and maybe try for their regular or late night happy hour which is only Mon-Fri but worth it.

I think the place is pricy compared to the amount of food you get. The portion's fairly small to share. Ordered a couple rolls too, but one of them took 30mins when the restaurant was half empty. Their espresso martini and fried mushrooms were pretty good though, but I probably wouldn't come back.

The most amazing restaurant - the food was top notch and the booth seating had an open window that allowed the Hawaiian air to flow to your seat, all while enjoying a view of the Waikiki Shopping Plaza.This place came so highly recommended by locals that we spoke to. Loved loved loved this place!