Mikaku

Service was good, Ramen and udon were ok, weekend has no lunch specials, so price is high. 2 stars was due to hardly any heat

Nice calm decorations and appearance. Service was responsive and friendly.
We enjoyed theTakoyaki appetizer, which had large chunks of octopus inside.
The salmon skin roll was flavorful with a crisp texture.
The appetizer tempura was fresh and nicely cooked.
The spicy scallop roll did not taste as fresh as I would have liked.

It’s authentic Japanese food and the sushi is super fresh. My wife brought me here for my birthday and we ordered an assortment of food, including ramen, agadashi tofu, a plate of nigiri sushi, scallop hand rolls, tuna tataki tartare with a raw egg… Anyway it was all delicious. Pass on the fancy rolls and try to actual fish, you won’t regret it.
Oh and don’t be shocked that it is located in a humble strip mall and that the interior is simply decorated.

The floor was really sticky, waitress forgot our soup until we asked for it after she brought the main entrée (there was only 1 other group), the fancy rolls are super expensive and the plain ones… I’m afraid I’ll get food poisoning. In fairness to them, it is a Monday night, but still.

Very solid 4 stars. I had the miso ramen and my wife had the kakiage udon. Both were large portions with excellent flavor. Service was great but we got there right at their lunch opening and we’re the only ones there.
New favorite sushi/​ramen place!

Overall: Solid 4 starts for this place. Really enjoy everything this place has to offer, especially for the area and more! What I really like about this place is the diverse selection of Japanese styled food other than sushi and sashimi. The Northern Virginia area certainly lacks traditional Japanese styled cooking and I know of only a few places that offer such amenities. The price is absolutely reasonable! This has become our new normal spot!
Parking:
Don’t worry about parking, this is located in a big shopping area so there is a lot of parking. We typically go around dinner time during the week and it has ample amount of parking.
Wait:
There’s no wait if you go during dinner time on the weekdays, the place is large enough where all diners are spaced out about 10 feet away from each other.
Décor and Atmosphere:
This place is very on point with their Japanese décor. They even have a private dining area where it’s decked out with tatami mats and a tokonoma. It’s very appropriate and is very intimate. I’d say if they had a tea ceremony here, I’d pay some $$ to come and enjoy a ceremonial cup of matcha with some wagashi if they had any.
Food:
The food here is very Japanese appropriate as a lot of their food is quite mild in taste which is very Japanese. The only thing that is super rich in flavor is typically in their sushi or sashimi. Because we’ve had sushi and sashimi, the fiancée and I come here exclusively JUST for their home styled cooking.
We ordered:
Sushi A La Carte:
Salmon Skin Roll:
This our main staple when we go to Japanese sushi-​ya. This is how we gauge how good the place is, can they perfect a salmon skin roll. This place does so much more than just that. This place, by far, has the best salmon skin rolls I’ve had in the whole Northern Virginia area. They even go as far as to give you extra on the side as a garnish. Very very addictive to eat. If you love pork rinds, this is the alternative and it is so delicious.
Samma Shio-​Yaki:
This is our other starter dish. This is different and is for the more adventurous eater. This is basically Pike Mackerel that is grilled whole. You’ll get about 6 – 8 of these and it is the size of roughly a pen. Be advised that when you’re eating this, you’re consuming everything, bones and all. This fish has very small bones and is ok if eaten, chewing will ensure you’ll be ok. The best part of this is, the samma shio-​yaki is filled with roe and that gives the fish such an intense creamy flavor. It is something to try if you’re willing to try something new.
Tempura Mori:
The fiancée loves this. This is basically fried shrimp and vegetable side with rice. Very simple dish and is quite filling, the portion is nice.
Samma Shio-​Yaki (Whole):
So there are a few things different about this dish. First you have to know the appetizer with the same name is just a smaller version of this where you can consume the whole fish as is. The other Saba Shio-​yaki is the same but instead of the whole fish it’s just a fillet; thus, you won’t have to go through the trouble of picking out all of the bones. So the samma shio-​yaki is really just the whole fish grilled with everything. The fish is cleaned on the outside most likely but everything about the fish is right there infront of you. Eating this is incredibly fun and will take a bit of dexterity. Do be careful if you’re not familiar, this fish has A LOT OF BONES. The best parts of the fish to me is the belly. This part is the most fatty and the closest to the internal organs of the fish. Because the fish is salty naturally, the squirt of lemon sweetens and gives it a tartness. The fattiness gives it a rich flavor and the last bit is bitterness, and that comes from being so close to the internal organs. This part of the fish I think, is the most prized for all flavors converging. This meal also comes with agedashi dofu and it only adds to the big portion they already give you. My fav dish hands down.
Not many places serves this kind of cuisine because there is not enough of a demand for it. I am glad I am within a 9 minute drive to an eating establishment like this.

Probably the best place in Herndon area with Japanese Ramen and Udon and it’s not bad either. Their most popular is Tonkatsu but I have yet to try it. I always get their Shoyu ramen and its not bad. I love their sushi, the quality is so fresh and authentic but the only complaint is that theyre small especially for the price. Also the «poached eggs» are not poached but rather hard boiled eggs. Service there is a little slow because they are very understaffed. Other than that, if youre in the area, I recommend coming here but if not, dont make the trip to come here. There was much better options available.

Def try mikaku if you haven’t! !! One of the few japanese restaurant owned by japanese. :) their sushi is always fresh, and all employees are super friendly :D

Gave this spot a try after a friend mentioned how great it was and I’m so glad we did! Sushi was so fresh and was simply delicious. Great, quick customer service too!

Great sushi! We’ve eaten here 3 times so far and it rivals our previous favorite. Would definitely recommend.

On a recent vacation to the DC area my boyfriend really wanted sushi so we did a search near our hotel and landed on Mikaku which we decided to try. I have never eaten sushi, I’ve only ever really tried it here and there generally at chinese buffets where it has not been good but I decided to give it a try.
We got there right when they were opening for dinner at 5:30 so there weren’t many people there. We ordered the Crab Gyoza as an appetizer and then ordered 4 types of rolls which were not too crazy to share; Tuna, Shrimp Tempura, Alaska (Salmon & Avocado), Philly (Salmon & Cream Cheese).
The gyoza and sushi were all excellent, the atmosphere was quiet and nicely decorated and our server was friendly. We enjoyed Mikaku!

Service is awful! They get orders wrong and they even served uncooked noodle soup last time. Tonight was the last straw. No more! I will never go to Mikaku again. Your loss, Mikaku! Whenever I came, I always came with a big group.

It had been under a new management– past few months. Service went down a bit– however their sashimi quality is still pretty fresh!

The sushi is delicious, fresh, and they have a nice variety of rolls and combos to choose from. The miso soup is really good, it’s not too salty which is fantastic! Normally when I get miso soup it’s too salty, but this place makes the soup just right. I had a philly roll and an eel & avocado roll both delicious and fresh! I personally can not resist a good philly roll, something about combining cream cheese and fish just tickles my taste buds.
The service is good, all the employees are nice, it is a casual place and it’s not loud so you can converse with friends and family while enjoying your meal. If you’re ever looking for a good sushi place in Herndon I recommend coming here.

Just order to go from this place and very happy with the food. The way they pack the food is professional. The food look nice and yummy. I will definitely go back for more.!!

As a native Japanese, I was quite surprised with the quality of home style Japanese food, which is severely lacking in the greater Washington area. It also helps to have «Sushi Taro», the more expensive sushi option inside the district, as a partial owner.
Pros
— quality home style Japanese food and sashimi/​sushi.
— tempura done right.
— spacious sushi bar.
— clean open interior.
— inexpensive relative to quality.
— cordial service. Friendly.
Cons
— out of the way for most Washingtonians.

I’m a bit sad to see that this place is only rated 3 ½ stars… I finally tasted their sushi/​sashimi so I felt like I can give a review.
I have been coming here since I was in high school school; back then it was owned by a Japanese family with a cheerful old lady as a waitress, but since then I have heard they sold it and that might be why I haven’t seen her since. Despite this, I haven’t found the quality of food to be worse — if anything, it tastes just as good as it was before!
I usually order tenzaru soba since I really love tempura (and like to pair it with something healthier to make me feel better about myself) but today for lunch I tried their chirashi and truly loved it!
Japanese food being expensive is a given, but for the amount I paid ($ 15) I would say it was a good deal, because it filled me up for the whole day! And they give you a miso soup and salad beforehand at lunch. The fish was also fresh, and wasn’t bad like other people claim it to be.
Lunchtime is also a lot more crowded since they have business workers come in for lunch; I usually go for dinner and finding a crowd during dinnertime is a hit or miss depending when you go.
Regardless, I have never found the staff to be incompetent or late with attending to our table like others have experienced; there is a guy and Korean lady who usually take care of my table and they are always on top of things and kind, even willing to stop all they are doing to ask if you need to know which sashimi is which on your dish!!!
Mikaku will always be my place to go for good Japanese food~~

A solid four stars here. I do like that they have more than just sushi (like saba shio) and that the sushi they have is a bit more on the traditional side (not too much in fancy sauces, fruit concoctions, flashy names, etc). Beautiful presentations of food on beautiful dishware.
I thoroughly enjoyed my Mikaku chirashi. Good quality and variety of fish (though I could have done without the crab stick) on the top layer and the bottom layer of rice and assorted pickles. Albeit on the pricey side, but heaven in a bowl.
SX enjoyed his tonkotsu ramen with extra chasu pork. He also got two spicy rolls that were nicely presented and evenly cut. I didn’t care for the takoyaki (felt it was a touch too much of the soft side), but SX devoured them.
Staff was nice, though were a bit stretched too thin the night we went. The restaurant was pretty well. Prices are a bit higher than other places, but it’s worth it.

Whenever I go to a sushi restaurant, I always order a la carte. Their specialty offerings were pretty standard, but I really liked the black dragon specialty roll. The spicy scallop nigiri was also the best I’ve had in this area.
My only criticism with this place was the flies and gnats constantly circling around; it was not a pleasant experience swatting them away while trying to eat with chopsticks. I also noticed the floor in between the booth and the window was filthy (my purse slipped through the crack in between, and it picked up all the grime). This is a fantastic place to go with a friend, but not really ideal for a romantic date night.

This place has been consistent for years. They have good staff, good food, and a nice variety of choices. There is also a private room for about 10 – 12 people.
We recently visited for lunch. Looks like they draw a nice crowd as most of the tables filled up just around the noon hour. They have one of those ‘fake food displays’ in their lobby so if you are thinking of the special bento box of the day, then you can see a plastic version.
I opted for their Tonkatsu dish. It was huge. Freshly fried and tasty. My sister ordered the teriyaki chicken bento box. She enjoyed it.
My only thought is that their prices are a bit steep for their lunch specials. But then again, they have tasty food and people keep coming!