01/26/09

My favorite Japanese restaurant in SA

by SergeyF

In every restaurant there are hits and misses. Sometimes you need to know what to order to enjoy the best side while avoiding the other one.

The best thing in Fujiya are the rolls. They have a huge selection of rolls, starting with cheap and simple ones and ending with such rich creations like Philips and Twin Dragon. Not everything is in the menu! Check the suchi list for the complete selection. The other thing that usually excites me is the large sashimi set. The ingredients are freshest and rich in taste. They also have a couple of salads (Tsunami and Fujiya) that they call Japanese style seviche and those are truly beautiful.

On the other hand, I was never impressed with anything that they do with meat. I tried some teriyaki, and sukiyaki, and shabu-shabu, and many more. This stuff was always okay at best.

So, in Fujiya go with the seafood, preferably raw!

• Pros: rolls, sashimi, YUMMY!

05/24/08

A San Antonio Tradition!

by Kimonosan

Established over thirty years ago, the Wester family (Japanese-American) paved the way for Japanese cuisine in San Antonio. "Mama" Wester's spirit and legendary homestyle japanese cooking has kept multiple generations of regular customers coming back year after year after year. This locally owned restaurant stands the test of time in the midst of trendy sushi joints that mislead the general public into thinking that sushi is fast food. Trends, especially in the restaurant industry, tend to go out of style, but Fujiya will always be there and will always be the best! With a strong Japanese customer base, you can rest assured that Fujiya's menu and fresh fish are considered to be the next best thing to actually dining in Japan. If you're sitting in the Tatami room (aka Japanese dining room) you may actually feel like you're in Japan when your waitress comes to take your order and you see that she is wearing a kimono. Are they real kimonos?...Yes! Fujiya is also one of the few Japanese restaurants that still has it's waitresses wearing real kimono! While the casual diner may automatically order teriyaki of some sort, the brave and saavy can test their palate with the many more traditional items like donburi(try the katsudon) or nimono. I'm one of those who has been forever jaded to the sushi scene. Every sushi bar after Fujiya has high standards to meet.

To the person posting as Misawa: To answer your questions about the soup...Your soup was a different soup than your companions' and is not the house Fujiya soup. It is simply called the #1 soup. What your friend had- Shabu-shabu and didn't come with another soup, but a special broth to either pour into the main dish or dip the pieces of meat in. If you ask for tea in this place they will give you iced tea because we live in hot texas and it's the common drink of choice, but if you ask for "ocha" you will get hot green tea. If it's not hot enough for you, why not try asking them to make it hotter.

• Pros: Totemo Oishii desu! practice your japanese skills, kimonos, good prices for EXCELLENT SUSHI
• Cons: sushi may take a while if the restaurant is busy, but GOOD SUSHI is ALWAYS WORTH THE WAIT!

06/01/07

My second visit was much better.

by misawa

I am the person who entered the previous review as McGrew and I have revisited FUJIYA. Unlike my previous visit which was made on a holiday weekend, this time I visited on a quiet Sunday noon. While the tea was the same as on my previous visit, the rest of the meal was much better. I had the Bento box sushi meal, while one of my companions had a sushi selection with one or two additional a la carte Sushi pieces. Both of these meals were quite tasty. My wife ordered a meat dish which she found to be very good and which she compared to the Korean dish "Bulgogi." Our fourth dining companion probably had chicken teriyaki, but what ever it was she, too, found it quite delicious. My conclusion is that I may have been slightly too harsh in my original review. As with any restaurant, some things are done better than others, and I think FUJIYA's forte is sushi. I'd recommend it.