Ichiban Japanese Restaurant Steak House & Sushi Bar

I ate there this evening after reading a mixture of reviews about this food on Google and CitySearch. I’m not sure how this won a Best Of award… We thought we would try this out for our «date night» and while the atmosphere was decent, and our server was friendly and attentive, the food was not impressive and the prices were fairly expensive. We ordered the Flounder Tempura appetizer. It came with five small pieces of flounder, a piece of sweet potato, a mushroom (which was old tasting) and a cucumber. It was $ 7.95, and for the amount of food you actually get, it was pretty steep. We also ordered sushi. There were five rolls in total. The special roll, which was the Kugetsu roll, had brown salmon on it (salmon should be an orange fleshy color). The flavors were also overpowered by the chili sauce inside. We also ordered the Donna Roll, the Spider Roll, the Unagi Roll, and the Ichiban crunchy. In all honesty, the rolls were quite bland and the fish was not fresh. Our server was really nice and very attentive, but the food was not as good as it should been for the cost of the bill ($ 51 tip not included). I recommend trying somewhere else.

I’m going to keep this short. The menu is extensive and you’ll will be hard pressed to find something you do not enjoy.
I would like to see a larger beer selection; preferably some local craft beer.

I went there for the first time last week. My friends and I were the only table in the restaurant for quite some time. Originally planning to not eat, I was enticed by the mizo soup that was served to us and decided to get a sweet potato roll. I also ate some of the avocado roll they had bought for their little daughter. Overall the sushi and mizo soup was good, I left full and satisfied.
The one knock that I would have against Ichiban is the quality of the service. We had to ask the server twice for several items we ordered and he appeared a bit disinterested. As we were the only table in the restaurant, I would’ve thought he could’ve paid a bit more attention to us.
A good option for sushi but I will go to Umami Moto if I want something really special./

I was taught if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. So I am not going to focus on what was probably the worst sushi I have ever eaten: the horrible Screaming Tuna roll that tasted like balls of pure wasabi and had me yearning to spit it out; or the other maki which were so very bland, warm, and heavy on the rice. Instead I want to tell you about the commendable service: how the hostess moved tables and rushed to set an additional place for me, how without being asked the waiter offered to split the check for our large group, and how the busboy kept our water glasses filled (believe me that was truly appreciated while trying to consume that awful spicy tuna roll).
The staff at Ichiban should be commended on their efforts to provide good service. And the sushi… nope, I can’t think of anything nice to say about it.

Looking for a new sushi place to go, we went here tonight. We had some trouble finding it wedged into a strip mall next to a Chinese fast food restaurant and Pizza Hut/​Wings and weren’t expecting much. But the sushi chef let us in 15 minutes before opening and it was peaceful and quiet inside. It wasn’t insanely packed like a lot of the over-​rated popular sushi restaurants which was a bonus.
The menu had so many things I wanted to try– and so many vegetarian options! The only complaint I have with the menu is the lack of bubble tea (they have Ramune instead in a bottle like you can find at the Asian markets) and lack of dessert menu (mochi or even green tea ice cream. But the extensive menu options made up for all of that this time. Instead of the usual edamame, we tried the amazing nori chips which are now a favorite. Everything else we ordered was amazing as well: isa rolls, veggie maki, veggie gyoza, and spicy salmon rolls.
We will definitely be coming back to try some of the other menu items!

I like Ichiban. So what if it’s in a cheesy strip mall? The sushi is great and the miso soup is phenomenal. I come here at least once a month and look forward to it every time. The service is usually good and the atmosphere is ok, but nothing special. The sushi and sashimi are very well priced and you get a decent amount. I would recommend Ichiban.

A quick disclaimer: I don’t east sushi. If you’re coming for seafood, you’re on your own, but if you’re not so keen, keep reading!
I had been here once before a few years ago, and decided to stop in yesterday for lunch. I arrived pretty much right when they opened, so I was greeted immediately and had a seat at the sushi bar (I always feel weird sitting at a table when I dine alone). The hostess/​waitress/​server/​manager was quite nice, and we had a great little chat until it got busy.
The menu is quite extensive! I was surprised to see pages and pages of options, although most of it was sushi related. However, purveyors of land animal flesh, have no fear, there are still several choices for you and I!
I settled on tonkasu (pork cutlet), a bottle of green tea, and eventually green tea ice cream. My seat was set with a napkin, wooden chopsticks, and a resting block for the chopsticks. [Or maybe it was a sushi sauce tray? I honestly forget right now, hehe.]
The bottle of green tea was quite good even though it was unsweetened. It is poured into a glass for you, but you do get the entire bottle.
The food came out quite speedily on a traditional sectioned tray. Thinly sliced cucumber with sesame seeds, two slices of orange, a giant scoop of rice, a salad with ginger dressing, and my meat and the dipping sauce. The tonkatsu was quite tasty. For someone who doesn’t eat without utensils, you can ask for forks and knives, but that’s cheating. :) It can be a little unusual using your teeth to cut meat and then double-​dip it, but it’s quite effective. The sauce was really good as well, although the breading sometimes dropped off into the little cup. The salad dressing is phenomenal, but iceberg lettuce that appears to have come out of a bag is sort of disappointing. It was still great either way. The rice was piled high and warm and sticky, just as it should come. :) I don’t eat fruit either, so I just left the slices alone. The cucumber was super tasty with the sesame seeds, but I didn’t eat much since I was afraid of the seeds getting stuck (Just had a wisdom tooth taken out, that would be very uncomfortable). Overall the food was really delicious. The green tea ice cream was okay. I’m used to a very potent, strong green tea ice cream, and this one didn’t quite compare. It was still good, and you got a really big bowl of it, about 4 small scoops, it took me a while to finish it.
My tab after tip was $ 17.00, which was $ 2.50 for the tea, I believe the ice cream was $ 2-​$ 3. Not bad at all, considering the amount of food and quality of it.
The ambiance overall is alright, but at times I felt it was trying too hard. My sauce cup had a chip in it (not a big deal to me, but some people…), the tray had a few scrapes (probably from a knife being dug into it), but overall the food presentation was nice. Seating is very comfortable, bar and chair were good heights for me.
The restaurant itself is quaint, plain, and quiet. I could easily hear every conversation going on in the dining area, which makes for great tweets, but can be uninviting when you’re trying to keep to yourself. However, much of it was very friendly
Overall, it was a nice experience, but nothing to call/​write home about. I’d come again if I was in the area or a group brought me, like my first trip here. It’s worth a try, definitely.

1– The Host was very nice a 5 star for him and helpful
2– the Sushi chef not very helpful (2 star)
3– Décor the usual nothing out of ordinary (3 star)
4– Taste of the food it is ok (3 star) I took seaweed salad and Sashimi blufn Tuna (check the pics) it costed me 16 $ — you be the judge from the pic — taste nothing out of ordinary

Overall. this place was pretty decent. The price was fair and the portions were about right. My bf got the sashimi dinner and he said that he really enjoyed the variety of fish. all of which he said tasted pretty fresh. We also got a baker’s roll (6 piece for about 8 bucks), not bad. And i also got the beef udon noodles. Very good over all. the chef even came by at the end of the meal to make sure we were taken care of.

definitely not what i expected when i walked in this small restaurant in the strip mall on farwell. what i did expect was fast food quality sushi and i got the exact opposite.
the food is amazing! they have a wide selection and a ton of different vegetarian rolls. the staff is always friendly and willing to make suggestions. we go here regularly now.
prices are fair!

I’ve been going to Ichiban since 1998, and it was always one of my favorite places to eat on the East Side: the experience of sitting at the sushi bar with a little steaming pot of green tea, a bowl of miso soup and then later the beautiful tray of handmade sushi. it was an experience as much as a meal. However in the past maybe 5 years it’s changed, and not for the better. The miso soup is now really salty and is not nice at all: I used to order it every meal but have stopped.
Also worth mentioning… the last time we were there, our waiter had the worst body odor I have ever smelled on a human being. At first we thought it was food that he was carrying… but soon found out it was not. I don’t blame the restaurant for a waiter’s lack of hygiene, but it is their responsibility to enforce employee cleanliness, even when it means the uncomfortable task of asking your waiter to wear deodorant.
The sushi chef, however, is top notch and creates real masterpieces. There is also a female sushi chef I see sometimes, but she’s not very good so if you go be sure to get the guy to do your order and you will not be disappointed!

Ichiban is the place I go when I don’t have time to drive up to my usual spot for sushi or maki rolls. It’s generally pretty easy to get a seat and the food is decent. In terms of quality, their rolls are smaller than most places and the rice is a bit overcooked for my taste. But the food satisfies my craving just fine and is better than most of the grocery store sushi you will find.
As for the whole «you get what you pay for» bit from the other reviewers… I’m not really sure what they’re talking about. In terms of rolls and sushi, Ichiban is slightly more expensive than places like Izumi’s. And price doesn’t necessarily equal quality. I’m not really sure why some people think having sushi is some type of new, cosmopolitan thing, but I digress…
Ichiban is worth a visit at least once. It may not be the hip sushi place in town or have a lame pun incorporated into its name, but it’s been around for a while and it has decent food.

Ichiban is a lot of things: economical, accessible, quaint…
Ichiban is also not a lot of things: overly concerned with ambiance, high-​end, innovative…
I like Ichiban, though. I do. Situated in a small strip-​mall on Farwell, it sits between a Chiropractic joint and a Pizza Hut and there used to be a Blockbuster there, too.
Modestly decorated and reasonably priced, it’s a great place to pop in and grab a roll or two for lunch/​dinner. There is a small sushi bar at the back of the room, and a full-​service kitchen behind that which has the capacity to crank out hot entrées. Insofar as beverages of the adult persuasion are concerned, they serve all the usual suspects present at any good Japanese restaurant… plum wine sake cocktails, Sapporo, and green-​tea vodka martinis. They also carry a selection of teas and N/​A beverages as well.
The trick to understanding this entire establishment is to revel in it’s simple charm. The maki, nigiri, and sashimi are always well-​done, yet not insanely flavorful. The décor is clean and simple, yet not overly-​thought out. Don’t expect to be blown away by Ichiban, especially if you’re super into sushi and looking for the best in town, but don’t expect to be disappointed, either. This place is definitely a quality establishment that provides excellent food and service at reasonable prices.

When I like a restaurant, I love to support it. I have been a customer of Ichiban since I first moved to Milwaukee 10 years ago. I appreciate the quiet, casual style of Ichiban and the great service. Their fish is always fresh and tasty and the Spider Roll at Ichiban is one of the best I have EVER — and that includes through my many travels.

Simply put, ick.
Sushi at reasonable prices should have been a clue. As someone else said, you get what you pay for.
We ordered edamame, pork gyoza, a tuna roll, salmon roll, spicy tuna roll, and sake tuna (I think)…yuck! The edamame was overcooked to the point that you couldn’t get the beans out of their shells without the shells disintegrating in your mouth (blech!). The gyoza was ok, but also overcooked, and though the menu offers veggie, pork and chicken, our server told us we would be getting pork. And finally, the sushi had no flavor at all. Even the spicy rolls had some kind of sauce on them that was neither spicy nor consisted of any flavor other than mayo. Additionally, the wait staff was severely overwhelmed by the amount of people in the restaurant on this random Wednesday. There were two waiters (and the place isn’t that big), but the single sushi chef got overwhelmed by orders so one of the waiters then became her sous chef… it was all very strange. It took almost 2 hours for a dinner that was ultimately not worth the wait.

Not bad. You get what you pay for, though it’s disappointing to know that the miso soup is made out of beef stock (guess I’ll never get THAT again, being as I’m a vegetarian). The goma-​ai is decent and I like the little sodas with the marble on the top that you have to push down with a little plastic «plunger». It’s cute.
I’d recommend other places, though, like Izumi’s.

Wow, I am gobsmacked at the low rating Ichiban has on this site. This is one of my favorite sushi sites in Milwaukee. Small and unpretentious and straightforward. Tends to be devoid of the annoying hipster crowd and filled with patrons who appreciate classic sushi.

Out of all the Sushi places ive been to in Milwaukee– this is defiantly my favorite one. The sushi is fresh and the prices are great. After speaking to the owner i found out the fish is brought in from San Fran daily. Which is GREAT to know. They even have all the Japanease beers and even Japanese soda’s available.
Would def recommend!

We only ate sushi. The fish was very fresh. Average size pieces. The tuna was bight red and flavorful. The rolls were good especially the dragon roll.
The service was good. The waiter was knowledgable and helpful. Plenty of soda and tea refills, never had to ask for them.
The décor in pretty. The bathrooms are clean and well stocked.

After reading the reviews we thought we’d try this place for sushi. We consider ourselves pretty experienced with sushi and looked forward to a good lunch. Since it was late for lunch, after 2, we had the place to ourselves and the full attention of the sushi chef. We both ordered the sashimi lunch for $ 16. Miso soup, 9 pieces of chef’s choice sashimi, a tekka maki roll and bowl of rice. The fish was fresh and he provided a very nice array including tuna, white tuna, mackeral, salmon, fatty salmon, yellowtail, shrimp, and eel. There were often several pieces of the same, so we got more than 9 pieces each and it was a full platter. Considering that 2 pieces of sushi cost an average of $ 4, this was a good value.
The restaurant was clean and the server and employees were friendly and knowledgeable. It is located in a little strip mall, but if the restaurant is clean and the food is good, I don’t count that against them. We would definitely go back for more!