Jado Sushi

Here visiting from California, found this Great place and can’t say enough good things about it: atmosphere, service (Tamika was great) and the Food is fantastic! Local or visiting you Must try!

The restaurant entrance is a step down from the street (a little easy to miss if you aren’t paying attention), and the space itself is narrow and long. It was busy and space is at a premium, but the staff went out of their way to accommodate our group of 8. The menu is quite large, and everything we tried was delicious. (The blue ribbon special rolls are a treat.) Gluten-​free was not an issue, and GF soy sauce was available. There are also a few cooked options (eg steak) if someone in your group does not want sushi. Great night out, good food, excellent staff, cool atmosphere.

This place has a cute ambiance, but they changed the menu and it’s not nearly as good as it was before. The speciality rolls are lacking. They got rid of my favorites. They also got rid of mango and passionate fruit mojitos and they just have strawberry daquiri flavor now. It’s cool that it’s in the neighborhood!

Not sure about their standard sushi but if you go to sit at the sushi bar and eat with sushi chef Nakajima it is excellent. The omakase includes both cooked appetizers, sashimi, traditional nigiri omakase, and dessert. The cod milt appetizer and giant clam sashimi were amazing and the cod milt was definitely very unique. Nakajima’s special omakase is from his own source, so the fish he serves is even different from the rest of the restaurant.

Soo… about the wait for food here. Ridiculous. Food was great when it actually came.
We were seated promptly at 7:30 pm on a Saturday night without a reservation/​long wait which is nice for a change. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll wait if I have to for amazing food but I’d rather fight with manfriend over that last bite than with strangers for a seat, but that’s besides the point.
We ordered shortly after sitting — nothing too much to handle (sushi and teriyaki salmon). Unfortunately for our growling stomachs, it took nearly 45 minutes for appetizers to come out and another half hour for our entrees. I was annoyed after 10 minutes and started bitching in my head. If the staff could hear the inner battle I had, they’d have kicked me out and black listed me. What made it worst, the two women next to us who sat and ordered after us received their food before.
If it weren’t for the super cute mixed toddler and her grandparents learning how to use instragram for the first time, I’d have let it rip.
Despite how good the food was, the wait was unacceptable.
Maybe it was an off night… but I doubt it.
I’m afraid to return.

The environment is elegant and comfortable, the waiters are pretty polite, never imagined that there will be such a restaurant in the neighbourhood! The foods are really served by Japanese chefs, there’s even a reserved table where chefs made rolls in front of you, just like the restaurants in Japan!
I tried the roll with four green vegetables, which is ok, but the sauce is too salty. And the fried chicken is good, delicious!
P. S. THERE’S NO RAMEN IN THIS RESTAURANT!

I really want to love Jado Sushi, I live around the corner from the place, and there is no doubt that it’s the best sushi in the area, but the inconsistency of the place just drives me nuts.
I came here once and ordered the nigori sake, the waiter/​bar tender brings it to me and it’s clearly not nigori (the liquid wasn’t cloudy so it was easy to tell). I tell him it’s the wrong sake, he says no, that’s the nigori. I figured I wasn’t as good at this whole sake thing as i thought and drank it anyway. It bugs me till the end of dinner and i finally just ask him again and point to it on the menu. He says, they didn’t have that sake so he brought me something else, but don’t worry he’s charging me for the cheaper one… so very uncool
The same night I ordered the sushi platter for 2 and it was amazing, more than just raw fish on rice, it was expertly done with ponzu and citrus accents, the whole fancy nine yards. Yet, I ordered a piece of toro, never got it, and then at the END of the meal he comes up, says sorry about not having toro and asks if I want something else.
Two weeks later I come back with a friend who is visiting and order the sushi platter for 1 (exact same as above), but this time it is just fish on rice, nothing special, it’s good, but not amazing like it was the time before, and I found it to be really disappointing because i was expecting the same amazing sushi as before.
In short, the food is always good, but I never know which Jado Sushi I’m going to walk into: the amazing one with great service and food and I get exactly what I want. Or the one that’s just has good food for a high price.

Updated review:
In my view, Jado sushi is the finest sushi in NYC… period and Iv’e had sushi in virtually every top tier restaurant. It is among the best in the US. I have eaten sushi all over the world including Japan perhaps 12 times. The chefs at Jado prepare only the freshest fish with the skill of a surgeon and the soul of an artist. I have never had better.
I am truly blown away by the service and quality. I have also had second to none cooked entrees.
I hope that you don’t go to Jado. The wait is still short, the service intimate. I want to keep it for myself. Truthfully… this is as good as it gets.
Safe Journeys,
Rodney

Ok. I just realized my original review was nearly 4 years ago!
Since then we have given Jado another chance, and well it is simply amazing now.
We have gone maybe 4 times in the last month and are dining tonight. The short ribs are to die for! As well is the ginger whiskey. Thanks for being our neighborhood gem

The sushi and sashimi are pretty tasty We ordered the sashimi special (salmon, yellowtail, and tuna) and a spicy tuna roll. We also had edamame and calamari for starters – the calamari could have been a little less greasy, but the seasoning on the breading was flavorful. As someone who’s been to some of the most amazing sushi restaurants in NYC, this small Harlem venue does pretty well for themselves. The staff is friendly and attentive. The temperature of the room is just right – not too cold or too hot, given the current frigid weather. The red wine (by the glass) selection is a bit limited, but I have also had cocktails there in the past – pretty good margarita for a sushi spot!

Great ambiance. Great service. Great food.
I have been frequenting Jado since I moved to NYC four years ago. It’s the best sushi uptown and has a great vibe. In the summer, it’s great to sit outside and people watch.
Love this place. I live downtown and the trip to Jado is always worth it.

Came back recently with my wife, because I really like their food. Menu has changed of course, looks like a new crew runs this place and the food is still expensive. Plus now it has become very average. Another place that bites the dust. So why coming back now? SAD!
even the drinks are average.

Let me start with the highlights before I dive into why you shouldn’t order from this restaurant unless you want subpar service bordering on apathy and incompetence.
So, highlights — the Spicy Ninja roll is delectable. I’ve tried a few of their other rolls, but they don’t come even close. In fact, this is the only roll on the menu I would recommend — all the others pale in comparison, and are far less worthwhile, given the cost.
Reasons you shouldn’t venture to Jado just for the Spicy Ninja roll — because, let’s face it, we live in NYC, and it’s unacceptable to provide subpar service. I have three specific instances:
1) When you order take-​out from Jado, they are very stingy with the soy sauce, sometimes providing only one or two packets, even with several orders of sushi. After being burned several times by this fact, we started asking for extra packets with our orders, because we would always run out, but we would be charged for the extra packets. Really, Jado?
2) During the summer, we like to be seated outside so we can enjoy the weather. We came 1 minute after the time that they stop seating guests outside one day, and they refused to make an exception. This would normally not irk me as much, but in combination with the soy sauce stinginess — really, Jado?
3) Last week, one of my friends ordered take-​out from Jado, and brought it home, along with a Seamless coupon for $ 10 off a $ 15 order. Seemed too good to be true. When we tried to order on Seamless, Jado didn’t even come up. We called Jado, they said they had taken it down due to the storm, and put it back up, but in such a way that it was impossible to order (it kept saying, «closed,» even though it wasn’t closed). We called back, and asked if they would honor our coupon, and they said they would, «work something out.» When it was time to pick up our order, they did not honor the coupon in full, and instead, gave us $ 5.50. My question is — why not just honor the entire $ 10? Really, Jado?
So — if you value customer service, and if you want to be valued as a customer, then Jado Sushi is not the place for you. In NYC, why settle for less than the best?

Let’s start with the Chicken Tinga sushi, the single strangest item of this lower Harlem sushi restaurant. It’s a piece of spiced chicken in the middle of an ordinary sushi roll. Now the tinga is just fine, pretty much the same as featured in a dozen restaurants with five places of this place. However here is wrapped in seaweed and costs $ 10.
So it goes with Jado. I used to live in the neighborhood, and I return every so often to see friends and have dinner. And while the dining options up here have increased, I’m coming to the conclusion that many of the new options simply aren’t up to snuff. Here you have to pay nearly-​midtown prices (Draft Asahi — $ 7.50), with none of the quality associated with the best parts of Manhattan.
Being above 110^th Street shouldn’t carry a tax. With the arrival of Sushi Inoue, there’ s now very fancy and very tasty sushi in the area (although it must be said at a rather luxurious price point). I’m entering some dangerous territory by comparing a high-​end omakase restaurant and something that’s clearly designed to be more of a neighborhood restaurant, but the fact is that Jado invites it by failing to measure up.

I’ve been waiting to review Jado because I was really hoping to like it. Sadly, the more I go to Jado the more negative my review becomes.
The sushi is above average. It’s comparable to the quality of sushi I used to get in Seattle. I am a sushi addict so this is very much appreciated. There is nice seating and good mood lighting which is rare in sushi joints.
But every time I’ve gone, the service has been… strange. The servers don’t seem familiar with Japanese cuisine and don’t understand what me or my co-​diners order. Twice of about 5 visits the orders have been incorrect and they weren’t complicated. There are limited options for nigiri rolls and sashimi with probably less than 10 non-​specailaty rolls listed. Also, this place is quite overpriced. Prepare to pay two to three times what you would typically pay for quality that is only 1.5 times better than typical. For example, one specialty roll with salmon as the protein is $ 22.00. I ordered it, it’s decent.
The item I recommend the most is the seaweed salad. It comes with three types of seaweed and no corn syrup coating, like you get on cheap supermarket seaweed salad. It’s amazing and definitely worth the price.

I wanted to like this place. The décor is wonderful, it’s a warm environment with mood lighting, waiters in traditional server uniforms milling about to fill water glasses and refold white linen napkins in as little time as possible. The atmosphere, (maybe) drinks and light appetizers are reasons you would come here. Aside from being a great place to bring a date for a quick snack.
The lighting is soft and makes all sorts of people look great. I didn’t like that I asked the waiter for a recommendation on a wine and he suggests a Rioja. When I ask him to suggest something on the list closer to a Malbec, he brought the rioja without a word. Had I not recognized the smell of the Rioja, I would have been disappointed. He tried a true switch and bait. That’s not cool, man. Not cool at all.
I had the monkfish liver special as my appetizer which was a healthy portion for sharing, despite my dining companion deciding it was not worth trying. For the mains, my company had the crab roll and I had the crispy shrimp roll from the special rolls menu. The rolls were huge, but nowhere near the best rolls I’ve ever had.
Service was creepily attentive: Midst conversation we would turn to notice our waiter watching our conversation closely while staring at us tableside for extended periods, until we had to pause and ask if he was alright. Very odd.
I want to like this place but a restaurant should serve cuisine and train for better service! I will return to see if this experience was a one-​time fluke.

Best sushi that I have had so far in New York, love the place and the quality of the rolls
Friendly staff and very professional
Definitely a place to go for fresh Sushis
I only gave 4 stars because of the length of the service it usually take between 40 –60 minutes to get your plate served and the place can become quite busy especially on week ends
Special recommendations for the fruit tempura on the dessert menu it is a must

The ONLY place in NYC you can taste authentic tokyo style «EDOMAE SUSHI» by master sushi chef Nakajima.
Must try his Omakase if you consider yourself as a real sushi lover and want to experience the best sushi in the world!
Only available at chef’s sushi counter and it’s hard to grab a seat, so call now and plan your visit to Jado in Harlem!

I really do still enjoy the sushi here but since the several turnovers of staff and the change in chef it’s really not as on-​point as it used to be. Gone are the days of the seared tataki starter or the mango dessert and not to mention the fact that staff doesn’t stick around for more than a few months. That’s not a good sign.

Review for a dinner couple months back. I am still dreaming of the anago!
Got the tips that chef Nakajima (previously Sushi of Gari, Sushiden) now is at Jado and went there on Friday with bunch friends. Yes, it is all the way to Harlem (I live downtown), but it is totally worthy the trek!
I will save you the labor reading through the sushi we had piece by piece. Just check out the pics! Just order the omakase and enjoy the ride. Make sure you sit at the counter (you can ignore their regular menu; that is not what you should go there for).
PS. price wise, if that matters, is cheaper than you would at those downtown hot spots, i.e. Nakazawa, 15 East, Ichimura, Azabu etc.