Waraji Japanese Restaurant & Sushi Bar in Raleigh NC

08/22/2008 Posted by bleachone

My family and I absolutely LOVE this restaurant. The best and freshest sushi in the Triangle, in my opinion. Nice atmosphere, great service, good place for families or for a couples dinner out. The only disadvantages I can see are that they are not open on Sundays (last time I checked) and that you sometimes have to wait for a table. I recommend avoiding peak hours, especially on the weekend. But, even with the wait, it's well worth it!

Pros: Fabulous sushi!

Cons: Wait for tables at peak times

08/20/2008 Posted by mvrs

Everytime I eat at Waraji I try something new. Today was a new roll. Someone recommended an off the menu item called Scary Jerry,apparently a guy named Jerry created this roll which has a little bit of everything in it. The flavor was spicy(but you can get it mild), delicate, and Big! On top of all the great flavors, if you check out the dinner menu you can practically get miso or salad with most orders, even the sushi! Overall the staff is great, the food delicious, and the time, a delight!

Pros: Friendly Faces

06/25/2008 Posted by zilch321

I've been living in the triangle for several years now and I must say if you want to eat sushi and Waraji is within an acceptable distance for you, you should be eating here. Their fish is always tops, the rice is flavored properly and the beer is cold. I usually sit at the sushi bar so I can watch the action and get recommendations from the sushi chef. If you are not doing that you are missing out on whatever the house is hiding away for the best customers. One word of warning. Waraji is popular especially on the weekends. If you want to eat here on the weekends go early or expect to wait a long time.

Pros: Good food and service that is consistantly good

Cons: Hard to get into on the weekends

06/22/2008 Posted by PJeremyD

Most people tend to rate the food as the best sushi in the triangle. That may have been the case in past years but I think Waraji quality in both food and sevice had dropped from my last experience. I was there for a birthday party with 12 guests. Right after being seated we were informed that they do not split checks for parties of more than 5. Apparently, they will add a certain percentage of the check if they are forced to split the check. Our main server was rude, which makes the automatic 18 percent added gratuity for our party, money poorly spent. Don't get me wrong, I totally understand the automatic gratuity which is standard at many resturants, and we would have increased the gratuity had our server actually been more pleasant. The food took an extremely long time to arrive, with no updates from our server. It took over an hour to finally get our food. One guest ordered Terriyaki, the other 11 ordered sushi. Waraji's food is seasoned well, and their sushi has a little bit of a spicy bite, which does set it apart from other resturants in the area. Overall the food itself was above average in quality, but a step below Wasabi in Cary for freshness, texture, and taste. This was the second birthday party I have attended at Waraji and I'd have to say, that I don't think I'll go to another after this experience. I also doubt that the any one else in our party will be having any celebration or casually dine at this establishent. Waraji has received many awards as well as positive reviews, but I think they've let their accolades go to their head. I doubt, I'll comeback to see if they ever get their act together.

Pros: Food

Cons: Service, order turn around time, reservation and check spliting policy

06/03/2008 Posted by Gracie1986

it's a bit expensive, but that's something you would pay for a sushi restaurant like that. they've got a really good sushi, if you go during lunch time, the price isn't that bad either!

Pros: Good sushi

Cons: a bit expensive

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05/16/2008 Posted by cgb4ever

A lot of you guys say the Sushi here is great. But I have to say that it is not that great, its just average. It is impressive because the pieces of Nigiri and Sashimi are huge, but this is because it is not the best grade of fish. Just like when you go to the fish market, one day you may get lucky and be served very good Salmon or Yellowtail, such as what heppened to me once, only to return and find the quality to be very inconsistent. The place has good ambiance but gets too crowded and noisy to the point that the staff looses control and can't keep up. I have never liked the appetizers or side orders at Waraji which are more chinese in flavor. Bottomline is, if you want consistently good Sushi/Sashimi/Japanese food, go to Kashin in Cary.

Pros: nice decor, good ambience, good sushi

Cons: inconsistent sushi quality, average food/appetizers, unappetizing carpet

04/22/2008 Posted by juantastic

I have been a long time fan (enthusiast) of Waraji, for a smallish city like Raleigh this is THE place for sushi and a selection of traditional Japanese dishes. The place is usually clean and cozy but busy on weekends. They have a good menu, friendly service and chefs with personality and genuine care about their work. Now onto the important stuff... Fish, Chef Masa buys good fish. Period. The rolls/dishes are usually consistent and prepared fresh with care. Presentation is good and if they are not too busy expect outstanding care at the bar. They have a good range of Japanese sakes a Tatami room for larger parties and lots of repeat customers. I believe they have plans to open another location which should cut down some on the wait times and hopefully improve some on the consistency, the true test for any good place when it gets busy and popular.

Pros: Quality no compromise ingredients

Cons: Busy, sometimes too busy to keep the dining experience up

04/08/2008 Posted by ttu3107023

My family and I have been eating at Waraji for 3 years and have always had a great expereicne until tonight. We arrived at 7:15 on a Tuesday night and had to wait 15 minutes to be seated. We were happy to wait since the food is always worth it! We were seated at 7:30, ordered our drinks and filled out our sushi paper to give to the waitress when she came back to bring the drinks. Our food did not arrive at our table until 8:45!!! We waited 1 hour and 15 minutes for 5 rolls of sushi. People that had come in 15 minutes after us had eaten, paid and left before we got our food. The waitress apoligized and said that it was coming in a few minutes time and time again. I finally offered to pay for the wine and appetizer so we could leave to go somewhere else. They were nice enough to bring us a free salad and ice cream for my two year old son....On the way out the waitress told us from now on when we arrive that we should fill out our sushi order while we are waiting for our table so we do not have to wait an hour and a half. I am sorry to tell her that in all the times I have eaten at Waraji that this was the first time that we have ever had to wait this long and we did not order in any other manor than we had tonight. It is going to be a long time if ever before I can go back to a place that I have been eating once a week for years.

03/18/2008 Posted by caseythetarheel

In my opinion, Waraji is the best sushi in Raleigh - hands down. I have tried several other restaurants but I am always disappointed. The fish is Waraji is very fresh and there is lots of it in and on the rolls. The wait can be long but I think it's worhwhile and it is fun if you're there with friends. Just go down the shopping center to the Mexican restaurant and have a beer while you wait. The staff is super friendly and are ready with suggestions. As many have said before, the Scary Jerry is the best.

Pros: Sushi, staff

Cons: no bar

01/28/2008 Posted by euncapher

I LOVE sushi! Can't get enough of it! Waraji is my favorite of all of the sushi restaurants on Raleigh. We always try to get there as soon as they open at 5:30 during the week. That's the only way you can avoid the crowd, unless you've made reservations. There are many rolls and varieties of sushi to choose from. Some of the rolls are just MASSIVE! You may think $11 is a lot for a sushi roll, but when it comes out, you are like...Wow! I ordered too much! We've always had a pleasant experience at Waraji and continue to go back for special occasions or special treats to ourselves. It's a bit on the pricey side, so we do try to only go on special occasions. I'd definitely recommend going! The fish is extremely fresh! If you go for lunch, sit at the sushi bar. You'll get your sushi quicker and the sushi chefs are pretty cool. You'll also get to see the fish right in front of you and see how fresh it is. Definitely good quality of fish! Try it! You'll like it!

Pros: Great sushi! Very fresh!

Cons: Pricey