Tekka Japanese Restaurant

Really great authentic sushi. This is my favorite place to go and get sushi I just wish they were open all day!!!

One of our must go place for sushi. Sitting at the bar area will give you the best experience ever.
I just had sushi at this place twice with minimum twenty visits. The first time was a cold rainy day. The second time is a 3 hours wait. Yes! This place is hard to get in. Tekka can take 10 customers each round. Two rounds a night. That is only 20 people a day. Wish you the best luck,
Food is extremely good. My favorite piece Nigiri is Fatty, Juicy, Delicious EEL Nigiri. The old man is very generous. Nothing is small in this restaurant, so you don’t have to order too much. Honestly, I overeat both times I eat there.
Don’t believe anybody behind you. There was a couple times, people behind us told us the place is closed down. We waited an hour before the place open, but left because I trust the guy next to me. However, we walked by this place after a crappy dinner, Tekka is open. We were so depressed. Guess where the guy who told us the restaurant was closed had his dinner?
5 Stars for sure

EXTREMELY RUDE and DISRESPECTFUL.
The worst service I have ever seen before. Me and my friends waiting on the line for over two hours and then they told us they dont service us. Without any reason and mean mugging us.

Great food and service
We got there early about 2 hours before the opening time because they can only sit 11 people per service.
Our order got taken quickly and soon after we could see the sushi chef prepare all the orders and it was fascinating. The portion are generous (traditional nigiri size), sashimi combo is a great choice to sample most the seafood offered. Warm dishes were amazing also!

Worth the wait
GIANT Nigiri
Freshest Sashimi combo

(Why people keep spreading rumor about close of this place? They have been here forever and will be here forever!)
I can’t say it is the best in SF but it sure is one of the best Hole in the wall. Starting with limited sitting so we had to wait 2 hrs to get in. Good 2 hrs so friends can talk and do all kind of stuff… girls stayed in the closet tea house across street. Once we got in, Yoshimi greet us with hot towel and tea. We started with sashimi combo and hamachi Kama, then some more sushi. The portion is outrageous but in a good way. Hamachi is my favor and Eel sushi is highly recommended. Over all very unique Japanese experience must go place in SF.

«How long have you been making sushi?» I asked the must be 80 year old veteran sushi chef smiling at me behind the counter.
I just finished a very good sushi meal. In fact, one of the best I’ve had. Perhaps because I put in my own work into it too. I had waited over 2 hours to get in to this exclusive 10 person sushi house. It was both a feat and a celebration when the door opened to admit me in.
«I’ve been making sushi my whole life.»
Cha Ching! That’s where the magic is. the 10,000 hours of work to birth a master. He is a true artist to his craft of sushi making, and his wife is his faithful business partner.
Get the unagi, hamachi kama, sashimi plate and skip the rolls, be prepared to be WoWed over and over again.
The best things in life are worth the long wait.

i waited like 3h …
but food here …
is just soso
You can find more dilicious sushi or sashimu in SF/​Bay area … I believe！
About the service…
You will face the cold face…
Anyway foods are not bad… service is ok
but you have to wait several hours for this.
Worth or not worth？ Its up to you！

Incredibly deserving of 5 stars. As many have said before, come in on a night you have time to kill waiting in line. Line up at 5:30 to secure a spot. BE WARNED: this place has an occupancy limit of 11 people, and parties can and WILL save up to four people in a party. Meaning if you have one person ahead of you, expect their 3 friends to show up later.
Be friendly with the other few people you’re sharing this experience with. It’s a homey place. Ask them how many people they have in their party so no one needs to waste their time. I’ve seen it happen before.
If you get in, which you will if you’re there at 5:30, you’re in for a treat. It really felt like I hired my own personal, traditional Japanese chef. He basically cuts and prepares everything in front of you. Order the sashimi combo, unagi nigiri, and enjoy the fresh fish and simple atmosphere that you can’t get anywhere else. All I can say is prepare to be amazed.

You’re lucky if you get a lottery seat here.
No reservations.
CASH ONLY.
Serves food at 7pm or 930pm.
Seats 11 people.
First come, first serve.
We got here at 5pm, froze til 7pm (when doors opened), but we met some great fellow foodies along the way.
For a Japanese cuisine hole in the wall in San Francisco, I’d say this is a hidden gem in the Richmond district. Its run by an elderly Japanese couple, where the Chef stands at the counter slicing fish and making the sashimi and nigiri portions, while the wife is in the kitchen making the hamachi kama and sauté items in the kitchen. Very mom and pop.
The owner is a self-​taught chef, incredible story of the love for his craft. Ordinary elderly guy who turned his cooking hobby into a small hole in the wall spot that everyone raves about on social media, including Unilocal.His English isn’t that great, very reserved, speaks the fastest Japanese ever, and when observing him from your chair. well… you’ll have to experience it for yourself.
The butchering and slicing of fish is an art in itself. I’ve seen too many wannabe cooks mess up a beautiful cut of fish. This guy takes the cake for slicing sashimi.
By far, Tekka has the largest nigiri portions that I’ve been ever been served in the United States. However, taste wise. not too impressed.
Sashimi Combo.
Fresh. Palatable.
Great presentation.
Nigiri.
Fish was fresh, the texture was spot on, except the rice for the nigiri lacked the flavor of traditional sushi rice. If you know what goes into the making of sushi rice, it is a tasking process during the preparation phase, I just didn’t get a hit of it either.
Service:
This is old school and I won’t judge. Order, eat, pay, go. Period.
Restrooms:
If your waist size exceeds a 38, you won’t fit through the door. This is United Airlines economy class tight fit with dilapidated tile flooring and some ventilation if you’re lucky.

So looking on different review sites and other public review posts, people generally say that this place is small, get here early for seating but also expect huge portions…
True, True and True… I got here at 5:00pm and they don’t really open the doors for you till 7pm. And that’s granted if they owners didn’t decide to take a vacation and not leave a sign for you to read.
There are a few key things to note when you decide to come here.
1.Parking Sucks Donkey Dong…
2. Cash only.
parties of 4 or bigger (The sign says 5 but 4 is already pushing it because this place is the size of 3 maybe 4 Airplane Bathrooms for customers.)
Complaining and No To-​Go
And also, what in my opinion is important. No Special Rolls. (ie:Dragon, dynamite, lion king, golden rainbow, GGB etc… you know, the stuff that looks good on the plate cause of the pretty colors)
Food and Service :
The sashimi combo here that’s offered is given in huge chunks, like cow tongue chunks. but what you don’t know ahead of time at first visit is that even tho its listed solely as «Sashimi Combo» on the wall, you need to specify if its for 1 person or 2 people. The lady who takes the orders will not specify for you as she will just assume it’s for 1. (My fault for not knowing ahead of time)
The scallop pieces in the Sashimi has a fresher taste and texture than the nigiri order. My best way of describing it is, the sashimi taste like what you would expect in a japanese serving at any reasonable sushi place while the Scallop nigiri taste like chilled saran wrap…(-1)
The Tuna Nigiri came one piece per order as expected, but holy crap, the piece was bigger than my tongue. Portion wise its worth the price by no comparison but what came through in the taste for both the sashimi pieces as well as the nigiri order was the crunchy feel of butting through frozen fish on ice… that was the unpleasant part of the evening. (–1)
The best parts of the meal were as follows.
Scallop pieces in the sashimi, the Salmon cuts given in the combo, the Hamachi Kama that a fellow patron next to us shared was pretty dam moist, but also their hot tea that holds up pretty well overtime and doesn’t get cold so fast like the teas served at chinese restaurants
Now keep in mind, this place is primarily for sashimi lovers with a more limited palette. Not to say people don’t have a taste, but depending on what you are used too, if you just want straight fish but from a smaller pool to choose from, this will be your spot and frankly one of the more upper-​middle tier selections within the area in terms of how much you get
But if you’re like me who wants a lil flavor and modernized technique in how a different selection of fish is prepped and served… I would usually refer people to Sushi Ran in Sausalito…
Both places can be pricy. but it just depends what you want…
If you want Hamachi Kama + Simple selection of fish, then come to Tekka.
If you wanna see whats new in the in the kitchen with a wider range of fish choices, then Sushi Ran may be more appeasing for you. but either way… your wallet will burn…
As a reference point for tekka: Sashimi Combo for 1 Person is already 30 Dollars before tax and Tip…(Sash Comb– Octopus, salmon, tuna, scallop, maguro and toro)
No reservations allowed…
It’s not really a place to be wowed at, but if you wanna go just to compare than i guess why not… I headed over to Ariake Sushi on Geary following my meal here…

If I had a list of the most anticipated eats 2015, this would easily made it to the top of the list. Tekka, the legendary no name sushi joint that sits 10, came to me in so many different ways. Evening strolls and I became curious over the years and wondered who this older man was behind the counter and what this restaurant was about. Stories from T. He had been here once, with a female friend of his. Then he came alone and got turned away. Stories from M. He had been wondering about this joint. Unbeknown to me, he had been living in this neighborhood, or as he’d call it, «the other neighborhood», and he’d wanted to come here, but was afraid of being seen with me, alright then, I don’t know how to take that one but whatever. «It looked interesting.» M would tell me. I know that! colleague H, who’s moved to 4^th and Cabrillo, told me about the self induced intimidation he once received while dining alone, and he did not have cash so he ran out of the door and ever since then, he had wanted to return but was too afraid. And finally Colleague K, who had been coming here with his girlfriend for years, raved about this place. I had almost made into this restaurant one evening but got a bit intimidated for fearing of rejection. That was over six months ago. I never wanted something this bad.
But was it worth it?
Like going for my very first fight in the ring at a boxing match, my coach, aka Colleague K reminded me to remember to read and memorize the rules. But one rule not posted but should be followed is to never step inside of the restaurant. She will come out and fetch you when she’s ready. Alright. Check. And he said, «rRemember to show up for the second seating, better chance.» «And,» he added, «bring cash. Remember to start with the sashimi combo.»
Equipped with his tips and knowledge, I felt that I was finally ready. Showed up at 7:40 for 8:30 seating. We were the first ones. But within minutes, a northern European showed up. He giddily took photos and informed us that this is the best place in town and totally worth the wait. «You wait this long for breakfast in this town.“I recall Zazie experience, it was 1.45 hour on a Sunday. He’s right. Another couple. A new threesome. Between 7:45 to 8:30. We were still the first. And everyone should be able to get in. Then. the European gets three cohorts to join. Starting to feel sorry for the last three. They did not give up. They should have. Because when the second seating door swung open, she greeted us and gave us the best seats of the house (presumably due to the fact I waited outside and never opened the door like an outsider), and she told the last three, «sorry.» Apparently there were two seats left for a regular. It marked reserved. Thus, pushing the last three out of running.
I’m at the finish line and I felt hungry. A bit dizzy, in fact. Sashimi combo. Hamachi kama. Unagi as dessert. Two pieces of nigiri. Oh, a large Sapporo.
Apparently everyone started with the sashimi special. It was more than a feast. It’s a food vs. man battle. Man almost lost. It’s good, fresh and HUGE.
Kama was delicious and came next.
Unagi nigiri was insanely huge and tasted delicious. A great dessert item.
All that anticipation. All those rules. One hour wait time. Assuming you are lucky and showed up on a right night. Insane amount of food and incredibly inexpensive for what you get: extremely fresh fish.
The only complaint was that it could stand to reduce the fish size. I feel bad for the owner for giving us so much food to eat at such a reasonable price with such a high quality. Is he actually making money? I wonder.
I contemplated about writing about this restaurant. I fear letting the word out for this one. I think this place is already hyped up, and hard to get in… do they really need another raving review? And for selfish reasons, this is the very first time I truly want to write a negative review, just to deter people from going there.
I fought hard to earn a seating time. It was as good as it gets. Possibly the best in this town. Not everyone likes their rules. Perhaps those last three who got turned away would write a nasty review. Perhaps people will be equally discouraged with my review and would give up coming in.
Now I’ve found this spot and got in, Perhaps perhaps I could keep this place to myself, just for a bit longer.

Please note that this establishment only has seats for 10 lucky patrons so please plan accordingly. There’s 2 seatings which are 630pm and 830pm. If you plan for the first seating, it’s recommended to wait at least 30 mins before to grab a seat. For the 2^nd seating at 830pm (which is the one I’ve been to 3 times), waiting at 8pm should suffice. Nobu’s wife even suggested going for the 2^nd seating since it’s usually less of a hassle. Bring a jacket if you plan to line up because it’s pretty windy in this part of town. Also, bring CASH CASH CASH.
It’s really hard to find this place since there’s no neon lights or anything that makes it stand out. You really need to remember the address and general vicinity to find it. It’s about 3 stores down from the corner bigger Japanese restaurant.
What to order? The sashimi combo is probably the best bang for the buck. It comes with many large slices of sea monsters and it just goes great with sake. Note that if you order the nigiris, they will be the size of your iPhone 5. At a few bucks apiece, Nobu-​san really knows that the way to your heart is through your stomach. If you fancy cooked items, they have a few things I want to call out: adagashi tofu, hamachi kama, salmon skin appetizer, and the mushroom asparagus. Please order at least one hot item to give your taste buds a different taste.

Decided to finally try tekka since some friends were coming into town from sacramento. Since they were early they were nice enough to wait in line until I showed up after work. This was a Monday night and people started showing up 2 hours before they opened, however Unilocal said 6:30pm but they didn’t open until 7pm. When you arrive you should ask the people in front of you how many are in their party so you can gauge if you can make the first seating or not. When we went I saw 10 seats total inside, 7 at the bar and 3 at a side table. Yes it’s a tiny place… luckily the 2 girls behind us were lucky enough to get an extra stool squeezed into the Bay Area therefore a total of 11 people were served in the first seating. Second seating is around 8 – 830 (we didn’t see anyone waiting when we were leaving).
Now when ordering, leave your thoughts of the regular portions ordered at other restaurants at the door. The portions and order sizes are huge. An order of hotate (scallop nigiri) usually comes in 2 nigiri pieces but here it’s by 1 cause it’s HUGE. The scallop on 1 scallop nigiri can be used to make 2 pieces of nigiri elsewhere. Same with ikura (salmon roe) it actually comes in a small martini like glass. Let’s just say we definitely over ordered on the nigiri! We also ordered a sashimi combo for 2. Again huge portions, a plate full of fresh seafood (assorted fish, scallop, squid, octopus) if we knew the combo had scallop we wouldn’t have ordered 4 scallop nigiris lol
It’s run by little old chef Nobu and his wife and that’s it. Not kitchen staff or additional waitresses. Definitely not a place to be loud and rowdy.
My only complaint is some of the sushi rice was very vinegary. It was pretty potent in a few bites. I seemed to be the only one who caught the vinegar condensed bites tho.
All in all its a good spot for good quality sushi for a good price.
Good for those days when you have the free time to wait in line and want some sushi or want to try with friends for a special occasion, I’d say check it out. You should at least try it once.

While exploring the streets of Balboa, I happened upon this mysterious, sign-​less restaurant. I looked it up and behold! Tekka! (I later found that they only put their sign up when they’re open.)
It took a while for me to visit since it’s a CASH ONLY joint and the hours are only during the work week. When I was finally able to visit, I decided to come and treat the BF out to a nice dinner. We ordered the sashimi combo, salmon kama, soft shell crab, and yellowtail, tuna, and scallop nigiri.
Verdict: The scallops were amazing. They were so creamy! I also really liked the salmon kama and soft shell crab. They were very well seasoned. I actually saved them for last to keep them as the last flavors that I would have in my mouth. They were that good. TIP: All of their portions are HUGE, so don’t order too much. It’ll turn your lovely dinner into you trying to stuff your face with the things you can’t finish. I did this and at the end… I felt like I was going to burst. Luckily, I had someone to help me finish the meal.
The restaurant: What’s great about this place is that it’s very private and you can enjoy Nobu’s show and see how skilled he is with the knife. You can see your dishes come together before you. It’s a real treat. The restaurant is also very unassuming, a gem.
All in all: Great experience and I can’t wait to come back.

It wasn’t bad but I don’t feel it was worth the 2.5 hr wait just to get in line. We ordered the sashimi combo, [hamachi, unagi, hotate, sake] nigiri, soft shell crab and the ankimo. They tasted great for the most part, but I am not a fan of the rice because it has too much vinegar and is a little too mushy for my tastes. In total, we paid about 96 $ which was great. the fish was pretty fresh and not a bad deal, esp for the portion of food we got.
Service wise, it is alright, esp when it was only Nobu and his wife working there. Pretty good with attending to my everyone.
oh yeh, it is cash only! :o

No waffling, no rounding, no need to reconsider just how good the experience was. One of the easiest five star reviews I’ve ever handed out! And an even easier choice for my 900^th review, though I was seriously tempted to switch this after my dinner at Liholiho Yacht Club this past weekend…
Now, if there was ever a quintessential «hole in the wall», Tekka might be it. Really, I’m only half joking when I say that you could walk by without noticing it. At most, the restaurant seats about eleven — maybe seven at the sushi bar and another four by the door. At the same time, it’s about right, given how the place is run by a cute, elderly couple, Nobu-​San and his wife.
Like the rest of the restaurant, Tekka’s menu is simple and modest, though the quality of the food is off the charts. Don’t come here looking for bento boxes and the like though. While there are some hot dishes offered, it’s all about the sushi here. Or more specifically, given their more traditional nature, sashimi and nigiri (as opposed to rolls).
– SASHIMI COMBO — Salmon, Tuna, Hamachi, Albacore, Scallop, Octopus, Squid…$ 60
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I don’t know if we actually got extra like they said (since we were sharing), but even if we didn’t, the portion was still HUGE! Not only was everything exceptionally fresh, but the cuts were sizable as well. Although they were all great, the stand outs for me were the salmon, octopus, and scallops — silky smooth and delicious.
– LARGE HAMACHI KAMA…$ 18.50
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On the one hand, given the sashimi, a large order was unnecessary. On the other, this was so good, we easily could have finished a larger piece. One of the best renditions I’ve had — lightly fried and crispy on the outside, tender and buttery on the inside. Every piece was just a mouthful of deliciousness.
Given Tekka’s limited seating, arriving early for one of their two dinner seatings would be highly recommended (~7pm and ~9:30pm, though it doesn’t seem set). While there isn’t always a wait (my friend and I walked right in this time), there’s a decent line more often than not (my friend and I were turned away once when the couple in front of us snagged the last two seats). In the event you do get rejected though, do come back. Even with all the hype, Tekka will not disappoint!
CASH ONLY.

It’s been over a year since my initial visit, and I’ve been to Tekka three more times. Each time has been an equally wonderful experience.
Nothing has changed, really, except now those «secret» dishes that everyone complained about are not-​so-​secret anymore. The other night at our table we found a small laminated card with 10 or so additional small options listed (including the soft shell crab we’d gotten a taste of on my brother’s birthday). The haters will need to find something else to complain about.

I have been going to the place for the past 4 years and continuously recommend it to sashimi lovers
This is a mom a pops place that only serves 10 people a seating at 630 and another at 830 CASH ONLY
Here’s a few tips to follow by:
— you always want to be first or 2^nd in line since there’s only 10 seats and you never know how many spots people in front of you are saving (arriving around and 430pm would be safe)
— if you miss the first seating make sure you ask the owners if you can come back for second seating (sometimes they have regulars that just come and get a seat and people who wait for second seating might not get a chance to eat)
–no more than 4 in a group should ever be told to the owners they will not let you in.
Favorite dishes
1. Sashimi combo
2. Hamachi Kama
3. Any of their Nigiris especially hamachi and unagi
4. Mushroom asparagus
5. Salmon skin appetizer
6. Ankimo (monk fish liver)
Do try to ask if they will do an omakase dinner chef’s choice about $ 75 a person. It’s about 10 courses of heavenly goodness definitely won’t leave you disappointed!
For 2 people, average cost is about $ 100 dinner. Enjoy!

Every time I think about the sashimi here my mouth waters! Small restaurant with very limited seating (think 12 – 15 people, maybe). The restaurant opens at 6, so if you don’t get here by 4 or 4:30 at the latest, you definitely won’t make first seating. They have a second seating at 7:30 I believe, I think you have to line up again for that.
I came with 3 other friends and we got 2 sashimi combos to share between us. For ~$ 50, the plate came with multiple cuts of all the freshest fish you could want. Totally worth the money and it was among some of the freshest sashimi I’ve ever had. It’s too bad they’re only open on weekdays and I was able to snag a place in line because I had a half day off work that day.

3.5 STARS
Came here on a double date with a gf and the roommate a couple years ago. Since my gf and her boyfriend at the time had been here before, they showed up early and grabbed 4 seats at the bar for us. Luckily, we showed up after they were seated, so we didn’t have to wait at all.
I basically left it up to my gf to order. We have similar tastes in sushi, so I trusted her judgement.
*Uni over rice
*Spicy tuna handroll
*Sashimi combo
*Hamachi kama
*Agedashi tofu
*Fried oysters
*Steamed clams
The sashimi was nice and fresh. The sushi guy is a really cute older gentleman, but I found his cutting to be a little off. It wasn’t smooth. But rather kind of jagged in the sashimi cuts. The pieces of fish themselves weren’t very pretty. But the cut didn’t seem to affect the taste, so I didn’t really care. My sushi chef of a roommate however, was not impressed with his knife skills.
Out of the hot plates, the only thing I really remember were the steamed clams. Why? Because the taste of the sake was so strong, I could have gotten drunk off this dish! Okay, all kidding aside, this was very boozy. But I didn’t mind being the functioning alcoholic that I am. Hehe!
Service was… I don’t know how to describe it. It’s very matter of fact. No frills. So know what you want and be ready to wait for it.
I’m all for mom and pop shops, so I rounded this review up to 4 stars. But honestly, if I had to wait with my gf, I probably would have rated them 3. Their sushi was good, but I don’t think it was good enough to wait over an hour.