Plum Tree Restaurant

As a lover of Japanese food and an undergrad at Cornell for the past four years, I have eaten at Plum Tree a lot, probably over fifty times. Not because it is an amazing restaurant, but out of desperation as it is by far the best in the Cornell area that one can get to without a car. Plum Tree has OK food. It certainly hits the spot for any who are clamoring for yummy Japanese or Asian food such as katsu chicken, takoyaki, sashimi, etc. One thing to note is that they have something called a Salmon Don which is a plate of only salmon sashimi (10 pieces) but it doesn’t seem to be listed on the main menu, only menus through Ithaca to Go and such. You can also switch out your salad for a miso soup if you want for free which is really nice. However, none of the food is spectacular; most of the rolls are rather overpriced for the amount and quality you get, the fish isn’t fresh and on some days you may get large slices, other days the portions may be very small. Also they overcharge, but everywhere in Ithaca does this.
They do their best at hosting large parties, and do seem to have a good system down pat for hosting large parties. However, their waiters appear to have frequently struggled getting orders for large parties correct, or even parties as little as 4 people… I can remember several times off the top of my head my waiter has brought the wrong thing, and even suggested that I ordered something else. That said, this usually all gets corrected as the manager is a wonderful lady who does try to do best by her customers.
For all the dissing I have just done of this restaurant, it is a good place to take your family or hang out with your friends. But do not expect anything close to the quality of food you’d get in California or NYC for the price you will pay.

As a rule, food in Ithaca is woefully disappointing and yes, as many have noted, overpriced. I think Plum Tree is one of the only places where you can get a decent meal for commensurate value. The sushi rolls are simple, but fresh and well-​prepared. My husband and I like to go there for a light meal; we typically share 2 – 3 rolls. $ 15 for dinner for two? Where else does this happen in Ithaca?

Pretty high prices but I guess normal for collegetown. Pretty good quality sushi, possibly best in ithaca

One of my favorite places in college town. I like the soba noodle, Kalbi lunch box, dragon roll, etc when I’m eating alone. And it’s always more fun with a group. The sushi boat and saki bomb are amazing when you have a group. It’s good for a lunch alone and a group dinner on Friday night. Besides, all the food on the menu are tasty. It’s not first class but you’ll never get anything taste wrong. =)

Popped in here for a quick lunch. Got the bento lunch special which everyone in the restaurant also seemed to be having. Had the chicken teriyaki bento box. The chicken was disappointing as it wasn’t grilled and seemed to just be strips of chicken heated in the sauce. Everything else including the salad, California roll, and gyoza were standard. Decent amount of food but felt the price was only okay for the quality. Not sure why their bento boxes are so popular.

Have tried Bento box with beef and kalbi. I have to say the sauce for Kalbi is too heavy flavored and makes me drink a lot of water. The price of the lunch Bento box is reasonable while in the evening the prices almost doubles with more food inside. The squid tastes good, also the beef roll with asparagus.

Plum. The first place i ever had sushi… I was very happy I dared to. Delicious!
everything was good, even the seaweed salad. Good service and good food.
College town, sake bombs
Enough said

3.5 stars.
I feel a little bad about giving 3 stars. I enjoyed my meal here, it’s just the food really didn’t quite make the 4 star standard.
First of all, overpriced for what they offer. Prices are comparable to similar joints in NYC but not quite as up to par in terms of quality.
Some tables were not set and there is the occasional fly. Service is polite and food comes out pretty quickly.
The special rolls here are delicious. There are many creative choices to choose from and most of them are illustrated in the menu. They’re not loaded with rice and are generously filled with fish and veggies-​very satisfying.
Now the raw fish: not very fresh. Though subtle, the sashimi all had a slightly fishy and unpleasant aftertaste. All were soft and flimsy to the touch instead of firm, so texture was also not amazing. Good news: they do give you pretty big slices, but in this case I’d rather pay more for fresher sushi.
I’d recommend coming here for lunch as their lunch special bento boxes are a great value at 9.95. Their cooked food (teriyaki, skewers) are actually pretty good. Definitely a fun place to go sake bombing with friends– very crowded and loud at night.

Service was a bit slow, the Coke that I ordered tasted old, and the sushi was just so so.

Good restaurant. The edamame was cold and could have been saltier but the sushi and sashimi were delicious. Service could Be a but more attentive, but overall good experience.

We ordered beef yakisoba, takoyaki, and the 007 roll.
The beef yakisoba was really good as I’ve been told (wasn’t my food). The 007 rolls were really good, but the fish felt a little… squishy? Maybe it was because they deep fried. The takoyaki was good, however… I wish they would put the mayo on the balls a little bit better. Not in globs. Usually it’s layed on the balls thinly. Also, it needed a bit more… I think they should try adding seaweed and give a spicy sauce option to counter the mayo. Takoyaki is a Japanese street food worth trying but mayo can easily kill any food.

My favorite sushi spot in Ithaca! Highly recommend the 007 roll and yaki udon.

Good– sake bombing, rice dishes
Stay away– sushi
Sushi in Ithaca is not good. I have stopped trying to eat it here altogether. Plum Tree is a fun place to go with friends for a night of sake bombing and a plate of fried rice, but not much else.

Their food is okay, the servers quiet but polite and nice. Sushi is okay but a little pricey, and sometimes it’s a hit or miss. Their lunch bento boxes, however, are a steal, and quite yummy, so I come here every week for lunch! can’t beat a full meal for only 9 $. Probably the only place to get sushi in Collegetown.

this is a collegetown favorite and a place you would come to have a quality meal. By college standards, this place is considered expensive. I have been here on multiple occasions. My family treated me to a nice dinner here freshmen year and I still enjoy it today as a Big Red alum. You can’t go wrong with any item at this place. If you are hungry, get the Bento Box. You will not be disappointed. I am not a big sushi person, but the rolls here seem to be very good and fresh. Plus, they can accommodate large groups! Treat yourself well college peeps!

I’ve been to plum tree a few times and overall, the quality is decent but a little overpriced.
Appetizers:
The sake kama (grilled salmon collar) is really good, grilled perfectly with nice char and cooked through, but small and overpriced.
The takoyaki are fantastic! You’re definitely going to burn your mouth on the inside. A little overpriced but super tasty
The soft shell crab is 2 crabs cut in half; kinda fried until it barely tastes like crab. I would not really recommend this.
There’s an appetizer with squid in a ginger sauce that was really fairly priced and large; the squid was cooked perfectly too, tender but still tasted like squid.
Mains:
The tonkatsu curry is decent, the cutlet feels thin but it’s fried well and not greasy. Not much to say about the curry.
All of the sushi entrees are pretty good quality, taste good, tastefully presented, but generally overpriced. I’ve had the sashimi dinner and sashimi lovers dinner. All the fish were cut well and tasted fresh; nothing too fishy or tough.
The hwe dup bap was quite good; heavy on the small fish eggs and a little light on the fish chunks but can probably serve two people who aren’t super hunger. Probably a better deal in terms of filling you up than the sashimi entrees.
Dessert:
The fried ice cream was downright terrible. Super thick coating, very greasy. Icy crystals in the ice cream. The chocolate sauce completely overwhelmed the taste of the green tea ice cream of which there wasn’t much to begin with.
Overall though, decent quality sushi and sashimi, tastes pretty authentic. A little on the pricey side, can get loud so think twice before coming here on a date.

This is probably the most popular place for Cornell students to get sushi in Ithaca. Overall think this place is pretty average for a Japanese place.
This place is pretty pricey for the food. Most everything is $ 10+. If you are looking to get full on something from this place I suggest getting the Nabiyaki Udon. It come with chicken egg bamboo tofu and a shrimp tempura. If you are looking for sushi I guess this place is also decent. They have installed an all you can eat buffet as well. I don’t recommend this unless you really like sushi. From what I’ve seen of the buffet you can’t order sashimi. All the sushi comes with more rice than normal I feel like. They also kick you out if you don’t finish eating in about an hour so you better stuff yourself quickly.
Green tea is free is you ask for it. I don’t know why you always need to ask them and they just don’t offer it out upfront.
Overall this place is good for large crowds. There are two long big tables in the back. You can often see frat/​sorority formals sake bombing here during night time.
The lunch special bento boxes are pretty good and are also cheap ($ 10) so I recommend getting those if you are going for lunch.

Not amazing, but a step up from Miyake.
I came for lunch and got a bento box, which tasted good, although not as great as the bento box lunch specials you can get at the Korean restaurants in town which are cheaper and have more flavor in the meat.
You still get a crowd of sake bombers, even in the middle of the day on a weekend, but I guess that’s what happens when there’s nothing to do in Ithaca. It makes the place loud but it’s not that disruptive.
Service is pretty good here. Waiters are pretty attentive so I didn’t have to do anything to catch their attention. I guess when they don’t have to cater to several groups of kids doing sake bombs they can actually cater to other customers.

Having come here a little too early last week (they don’t open until noon on Saturday’s), a couple of friends and I decided to eat at Plum Tree for lunch this weekend.
The Grub –
* Chicken Katsu Box ($ 9.95) — All lunch boxes come w/​rice, house salad, dumplings, edamame & California roll or vegetable roll
Venue Review –
Tucked into a corner of Dryden Road, Plum Tree is a cozy restaurant with the majority of seating being booths and comfy red couches. They feature a sushi bar near the front of the restaurant and larger group seating in the «second level». The location is convenient for Ithaca’s student population being right below Collegetown Plaza, across the street from Eddygate, and half a block down from Collegetown Center. It doesn’t have much of an authentically Asian vibe to it.
Food Review –
Plum Tree has a great selection of rolls, sashimi, and warm udon dishes. I have previously tried the 007 roll and a couple others here for dinner, so this time I decided to try my luck with the lunch boxes (served between 11:30am and 2:30pm). At the low price of $ 9.95, I assumed that if it turned out badly, not too much harm could come of it.
From a long list of lunch specials I ordered the chicken katsu, lightly breaded and fried chicken. It came with rice, a small salad, two fried dumplings, a handful of edamame beans, and four pieces of an avocado roll. It was already looking like a got a bang for my buck! The breading on the katsu was a little overcooked, resulting in slightly dry and overly crispy chicken.
A friend of mine got the spicy tuna & salmon roll combo and she was kind enough to let me swipe a couple off her plate. I was pleasantly surprised by the ratio of rice to fish in each bite. Plum Tree doesn’t skimp on the sushi filling. The spicy tuna also had a nice kick to it.
Service Review –
Our waiter was very quick with taking our order and then he vanished. Luckily, one of the guys I’ve seen working there is always cheerful enough and he gave us a big smile and cheerful «hello» and «goodbye» in Japanese (I’m assuming) as we left.
Overall Impression –
Competing with Miyake for the best sushi in town, I’d have to say that Plum Tree is my favorite of the two. Although a little pricey with some of their items, Plum Tree’s lunch special will not make a dent in your wallet and still leave you feeling pretty full. Although Miyake does have a tasty signature dish, their Super Bowl, it goes for an outrageous $ 17.95 and with tax & tip you end up forking over a ridiculous $ 20+. It’s been hit and miss for me at Plum Tree when it comes to food, but if you’re looking for a good place to Sake Bomb, this is the spot. SAKE SAKE BOMB!

This Japanese restaurant is supposedly the best around here. Why? Not sure.
The service was good and the speed of the food coming out was decent.
I ordered the vegetable naruto and it was decent. How can it get bad? It’s just sliced vegetables wrapped into a circle. But I do taste a difference btwn very good vegetable narutos and decent ones. What’s the diff? Flavor. I guess it’s how ripe their veggies are and how they decide to balance each veggie in the roll.