Sushi Izakaya Gaku

I had such a pleasant dining experience here! I haven't really had omakase before but the items I tried from Gaku's omakase such as the otoro was delicious. We also ordered the soft shell crab roll, unagi nigiri, chawanmushi and shrimp & vegetable tempura. Everything was such high quality and very filling! Although we ordered a lot of food I didn't want to stop eating even though I was full because of how good it was haha. The service was quick and efficient. I would definitely come here again to treat ourselves for a nice meal and great omakase!

Every time we visit Honolulu, our best meal is always at Gaku. The sushi is simply perfect. Service is excellent. Ambiance takes me back to Japan. Food: Excellent dumplings, fantastic shishito peppers. Perfect sushi assortment. Perfect spider roll. For dessert we ordered oh toro, and it wasma perfect way to end our meal. We gorged on top quality sushi and really enjoyed our meal. Service: Great serviceOverall cleanliness: excellentBathroom cleanliness: above average Value: The quality to price ratio yields an overall very good value Tip: Reservations required

Best meal and experience I've had in a while. Very Izakaya type restaurant (hence the name!) that reminded me of Japan.Don't come here for a quiet intimate dinner, come here for a fun evening with great food, great smiling service, and a few drinks. The menu is huge, but of course includes all the standard sashimi, nigiri, and sushi options you would expect. There are lots of creative dishes, but not at the expense of delicious fresh fish and seafood. Everything we ate, and our group of 7 ate a lot!, was delicious. Prices aren't cheap, but they aren't as expensive as other sushi focused restaurants. Come for a good time and leave with a big smile like we all did!

I guess I have been missing out all these years bypassing Izakaya Gaku for some other place. Turns out the service and sushi chef's are wonderful. Most importantly, the food was great and I loved how everything was so fresh and tasted so good! The price point is a little steep but this intimate and small restaurant made me forget about the price as we just kept ordering and enjoying the food!

They did it again! I absolutely love this place and always enjoy coming back whenever I can. While the parking isn't great, street parking is usually not too difficult to find. The restaurant is small and easy to miss on the busy street, but they serve some of the most authentic Japanese food on the island.My absolute favorite is the Tuna Tartare--I had to order two of them just to satisfy my craving! We also enjoyed tempura, chawanmushi, some sashimi, beef tongue, and more.We were seated in the back of the restaurant, where it was more private, so we didn't notice the noise from outside. It did get a bit warm in our area, but that might have been because we had a larger group.Our waitress was fantastic--she was attentive all night, keeping our tea and water filled and offering helpful recommendations on what to order.It was a wonderful night, and I'll definitely be coming

I tried Gaku in 2021 and was not impressed. I returned due to the overall high ratings and my return back to Hawaii. There is a small parking lot in the back but it is on King street so you have to go up one more street to access. We ordered:* Tofu jelly (one with ikura and another with uni) - 5 stars recommend. They also got rid of the Wasabi with ikura which I enjoyed. * King crab cake - served warm, and full of crab chunks! * Pork dumplings (shumai) - wow one of the best - they use high quality meat for the filling and STEAMED PERFECTLY * carpaccio of the day- this was just ok- I didn't like the oil vinegarette dressing * crab cream corn croquettes - came hot with a nice crust and creamy filling * tamago - can't go wrong * unagi - was good but not the best * homemade custard with fruits - this was just average to me* green tea ice-cream- basic * sushi omakase - my friend got all his pieces at once (they do that here) and he said it was pretty mid. "Not bad but not the best" - definitely not worth the price. I feel this place is a star due to their izakaya menu items ! They have a large selection and I would return for this items but not a place I would recommend for omakase. For all the food plus a bottle of sake, bill was around $300.

My SIL and nephew took me to one of their favorite restaurants, Sushi Izakaya Gaku on King Street. There are about eight parking stalls in the back, accessed by a narrow driveway through the building. We got there before 5pm (opening time) so we were able to pick our parking space.I left the ordering to my hosts but started with an Ohoro gin and soda. This gin comes from Hokkaido with sweet gale and mint as botanicals. It's strong for a gin at 47% alcohol but has a nice clean taste with a light aroma of citrus. My nephew went with Asahi draft.The first dish was Omatsuri Natto ... with natto as the base, pieces of salmon, ahi, squid, ikura, uni, yamaimo, chopped green onion and okra topped with a quail egg. It's mixed together and eaten on nori. I found it refreshing with the natto being very mild.Next was Uni and Oyster shooters, Seared Otoro with garlic sauce, Tako Basil, Gyutan (grilled beef tongue) Salad, and assorted nigiri. The uni and oyster shooters were excellent, as was the seared otoro. I thought that was the best dish of the evening. The beef tongue was tender and the salad dressing was great. I enjoyed the tako basil as well.I found the dishes to be very good ... My SIL thought some of the ingredients were of lesser quality than during her previous visits. She noted a change in staff though one of the "old timers" came by later in the evening to say hello.All in all, I enjoyed my dining experience. The place was filled with diners, so service was slow and inattentive at times. The kitchen put out dishes quickly despite the crowd. 4 stars for me.

It's been 3 years since my last review and I can honestly say the food is just as amazing. This is still my favorite izakaya on island and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. The spicy tuna roll, udon, tempura are my go-to's but I will also order a special dish (which they change out regularly). I will always get dessert. I love that it's a small restaurant and that I can see all the food being made. The price is still reasonable. My only complaint is that it is hard to get a reservation unless you book it at least 2 weeks out (but it's understandable)

We had the opportunity to eat at this amazing restaurant and it did not disappoint! We got to the restaurant early, not knowing how crowded it might be and to give ourselves time to park. The vibe for us was an upscale Izakaya - not as loud but still with great energy. Our servers were amazing and very attentive! Definitely some of the best service ever! This has to be one of my very favorite Izakayas that I have ever been to. We ordered the 6 types of sashimi and it was so ONO! My personal favorite was the Omatsuri Natto (natto with uni, ikura, ahi, ika, yamaimo, okra & quail egg). All of my favorites in one amazing bowl! We also ordered the negi hamachi roll, kabocha karaage, Gaku's original tofu jelly (another amazing dish!) and tori karaage. If you like Japanese sashimi, sushi and Izakaya food, you will LOVE Izakaya Gaku. I highly recommend this fabulous gem!

Went here to try the sushi/sashimi omakase for a late Mother's Day dinner. Upon entrance it felt like I was in Japan. In a bar. Felt kind of cramped in the front and then all of a sudden a huge rush of haole and Japanese people showed up. Very confused. I guess somehow the tourists show up here? Oh well.I think the first thing I want to say is that the sushi took a long time to come out. We sat at the table and I'm not sure why it took that long. Lots of people sat down after us and got their food and then the chef just forgot us I guess. That was a minus star. The fish itself was delicious, but I think you can get on par sushi grade quality to here at Kaiten Ginza Onodera. Also, omakase from my understanding is an art form supposedly.. I thought they would be serving the sushi one-by-one to allow us to taste the freshness of each fish but it was all served at the same time. The ikura also was spilled over a bit when served... At other omakases not a single egg falls over from the sushi - just a little thing to note. I mean I paid a hefty amount and I feel like I could spend that money elsewhere and get a better omakase experience. I think if you went as a single person at the counter you would probably enjoy yourself and get effed up with the alcohol and sushi but that would be for another time.