Zen Sushi & Bar
3001 Cinema Pl, Bellingham, WA, 98226
Zen Sushi & Bar Menu
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Address :
3001 Cinema Pl
Bellingham, WA, 98226 - Phone (360) 734-7888
- Website https://www.zensushibellingham.com
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :11:00 am - 10
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Dinner
Parking : Private Lot
Bike Parking : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Classy
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Full Bar
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : Free
Has TV : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : No
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M M.
Bottom line: Looks great but Fred Meyer has much better sushi. Unless Zen gets better = no go. This rating basis: Food, service, cost / value = 1 star 1 add-on "understanding" (pity) star for just opening 2 days before we went. It WILL go away if things are the same when we visit again. 1 bonus star for the decor (described below) This is a large conveyor belt sushi restaurant with a full bar at one end. "Conveyor belt sushi" on Wikipedia if not familiar with it. Good first: The decor is impressive. Dark colors, nice finishes, glass art, and a giant Buddha statute. Based on looks I'd give this 5 stars. I'll add that the wait staff matches the decor: They are female, young, pretty, and dressed in short black skirts. The place also looks "clean", like it will stay polished. The wait staff, while a bit "opening night", was earnest and fairly competent. The problems seemed outside of their control. Though perhaps an older person built like tank would have gotten better results from the kitchen. Probably not. Sushi "chef" near us was friendly (I'll throw a "bad" here - you are only supposed to order through your waitress = screw ups) Chairs were decent. Condiments were abundant. That pretty much covers the Good. On to BAD: Hmm, where to start? I'll put an (x) next to the ones that I figure they may get fixed. The "just opened" stuff. Prices! The best sushi I've had is in a sit down place in Portland OR called Mio Sushi. If I order Mio's combos I will pay less per piece for VASTLY superior sushi. Is also higher than the Marineopolis chain in Seattle and Portland. I'd expect higher in Bellingham, this much is pushing it. With this quality? Obscene. Value. I'll just pick on one thing, but trust me, I could list lots more: The cucumber roll. It is, of course, on the "cheap" color plates. So far, so good. BUT. They are really, really, dinky... We are talking rice & cucumber here. The expensive thing is the labor, WHICH IS THE SAME no matter what size you make the roll. Actually cutting the cucumber that small probably takes more labor. I mean we're talking less than half-crayon thickness cucumber here. Each one of these pieces is about half the rice and one fifth the cucumber of a Marineopolis piece. $1.75 is about right for the Marineopolis ones, for this? This is a sign that somebody does not understand basic food service concepts. One of which is that you skimp (if you have to) where it saves you real money, preferably not where it shows, and you don't skimp where it doesn't save you enough to pay for the customer feeling screwed. (Short order cooking 101: Don't skimp on hash-browns, potatoes are cheap) Quality (and bad management). I can't tell you how the raw fish was, because they didn't put out any nigiri. I did see two plates towards the beginning, but no more. Since the stuff we ordered never showed up (see below) I didn't bother ordering any nigiri (sashimi not on the menu). They just kept putting out rolls... Almost all being the "squishy" type, i.e. fake crab salad, fish salad, and so on. I did have a roll that had fish in it, I have no idea which one, it was unrecognizable. While I noticed the management types interacting with the wait staff and going in and out of the kitchen (for strong reasons I suspect), I didn't notice them around the sushi "chefs"... While this may have been a (x) situation, I think somebody should have said: "We seem to have several hundred squishy rolls on the belt, maybe we should make something else". This did not happen. The rolls with solid ingredients were purchased, the squishys just kept being put out, and out, and out. Various tables ordered fish items and while overpriced for the size, they looked ok. (x) Seated with no menu. (x) No signs to indicate prices, until a fellow came around with "fresh from the color printer" pieces of paper that he kind of tucked here and there behind the condiments. They fell over. Guess he should 've printed both sides. Miso soup was ok, not the worst, but in the lower half. (x) Anything ordered from the kitchen went into limbo. We decided to leave once they showed up (if something great HAD shown up on the belt I would have tried it). After a bit more time, a management type came over and politely asked if we still wanted it after all this time. (given the miso soup) I was grateful to say no. (x) Waitresses use memory instead of writing things down. Works for the pros, newbies should not try. The folks next to us had more intense orders, the short trip from them to the computer where she put it in involved several repeats. Another management boo boo: The reason for the colored plates is so you don't need a complex (aka slow) ordering system. You ask for something $$$ from chef he puts it on $$$ plate. Fast. They ordered a drink = came wrong. I hit the limit on review size :(
(3)E C.
Took my daughter her today for lunch. Needless to say it was terrible again. No tuna on the belt like normal so she ordered maguro nigri and when it came it did not look like what it should. Ate a bite and it did not taste like it either. Let our waitress know and the chef fellow told her that is what it was. I completely disagree and let her know that, she was good about it and did not charge for it. But then we decided we were going elsewhere but waited 20 min for her to return to our table to get our small bill. Needless to say we have given this place many tries but always falls way short on quality of food and service. Will never return and will never recommend. They should close and put a real restaurant in that location.
(1)Maggie M.
Great sushi and great service! Good job Zen! Beautiful restaurant too. Loved the Godzilla roll.
(4)Thomas P.
Oh no! I can't say anything good. :(
(1)Ron Q.
Great location, it was really nice to get some sushi before our movie because its next to the movie theater. The staff at the bar was really friendly and did a really good job of getting our food & drinks to us in a timely manner. Sushi quality was pretty good. If I pass through town again, I wouldn't hesitate to come back again.
(4)Mark M.
Prompt service. The sushi conveyer always seemed to have something new and interesting to enjoy along with favorites. The sushi is fresh and full of flavor. I found the atmosphere relaxing and classy but not crowded. I've eaten at many sushi places in town and this is my new favorite.
(4)B. C.
Great place to grab a bite after a movie. You can watch the chefs make sushi right in front of you and grab food off the conveyor belt. It's not the most high quality sushi I've had, but it's not bad either, especially since you're not exactly in Chinatown.
(3)Michael A.
Barkley VIllage is starting to get pretty fancy! You are never ever going to get the best sushi by going to kaiten (sushi conveyor belt), but Zen Sushi has some pretty fresh sushi and some tasty creations. The first thing that you notice when walking in is how modern Zen is - from the giant floor to ceiling Buddha in the front of the restaurant to the sleek and sexy bar in the back. i have no complaints about the sushi at all. All the sashimi was fresh and the pieces were meaty - unlike the thin slivers you get at some sushi bars where you mainly just taste the rice. They have all of the staples - California rolls, spicy tuna rolls, Seattle rolls (salmon and cream cheese), and salmon rolls. They have some pretty decadent and fancy creations. One of my favorites was the Dragon roll - a shrimp tempura roll topped with tuna and avocado and drizzled with teriyaki sauce. A lot of the kitchen staff are Japanese, so you know they are making an authentic product. The proximity to the movie theater makes it easy grabbing a couple cocktails before watching a movie. If you are still undecided about this place, visit during Happy Hour when all of the sushi is $1 off per plate and cocktails are $2 off and beer is $1 off.
(4)Holly L.
It's not that their sushi is bad, necessarily, it's that they are making it stingily. What I mean is that compared to every other sushi restaurant that I have ever been to (and I've been to a lot), they give skimpy portions of the good stuff (in my case, that is avocado, eel, and related sauces) relative to the amount of rice. It is not as if this is a matter of opinion, they are giving noticeably smaller portions of the more costly parts of the rolls, not to mention that their rolls in general are small. They must be making a fortune there, having their chefs make sushi rolls that lack the appropriate amount of meat and avocado while selling it to all of us at a bulked up price. This is something they could easily change and improve on, but as of about a month after they opened, this is the sad reality. I'm a big Gordon Ramsay fan and I'd be interested to hearing what he would say about Zen Sushi's food. The sushi across the street at Little Tokyo is better and even cheaper. Anyway, hope this helps.
(2)Janetti K.
The worst service I ever had!!! Waitress was very rude and mean..! Never will be back ! The food wasen't that great.. Relly disappointed!
(1)Tiona S.
Not good. The only good part was the waitresses were nice but they weren't very attentive. It took 20 minutes(no exaggeration) to get our drinks which were quite possibly the worst drinks I have had in Bellingham to date. Quality was clearly not something they cared about. My girlfriend and I shared roughly 12 plates and sampled all different varieties of fare they had to offer. The let down was a big one to say the least. The rice was gummy and not well prepared. I believe the belt length may play a part in the issue of temperature control for the different rolls. All were mostly warm thus making most unpleasing to the palate. I would not recommend Zen sushi, especially when there are so many great, quality sushi restaurants in town to choose from.
(1)Stephanie M.
Tried a week after opening and as to be expected, there were some major issues. Our experience wasn't that great and our bill was hefty. We tried it again last night and I was so pleasantly surprise. Service was great and timely, unlike the time before. Menus were presented and we were asked a few times if we wanted to order anything. They have lowered the prices since last time and added "daily special items". We had a glass of wine, tea and sushi for 2 and it came to $37. Reasonable to me and I thought the sushi was great. Would definitely return, glad I gave it another chance.
(4)Scott B.
good sushi but very pricey, i walked out still hungry and after tip I paid 16 dollars.
(2)Johannes L.
Try Kuru Kuru sushi, half the price and 100 times better quality. This place is a joke!
(1)jody b.
I'm a little stunned by some of these reviews as well! First of all, can I just say...this is hands down, the CLEANEST place I have ever dined at! I appreciate this. I thought the service was great. If something was not floating by then we ordered it and received it quickly (maybe they have corrected some errors). I thought the prices were reasonable compared to other Bham sushi bars. It is family friendly, because there was a family with 3 kids sitting close by and the kids were loving it. It has high ceilings and is a little more noisy than usual, but it hides noise too! No, it's not high end sushi, but it's tasty and fresh. I thought the entire experience was lovely.
(4)Jen A.
Downright AWFUL!!! The bar service was terrible. We opted to sit in the bar for sushi and a few drinks one night and the waitress, Andronica was terrible. She instantly looked annoyed that we were there. She was very quick to tell us when the last call was, she didn't smile once, She couldn't bring us our drinks as she had no cups. Ok, not her fault. But then she forgot about a drink we ordered, asked us for a recap of what we ordered to make sure she billed us correctly. Umm, isn't that your job, not mine? It was really her overall attitude of annoyance that was such a turn off for us. Unfortunately for a business like this, I think the wait staff plays a very important role in the dining experience and Andronica lost our business with Zen sushi for good. Oh and she was dressed like a complete whore. She must feel the need to do that to compensate for her poor people skills? Didn't work for her though as she got no tip from us.
(1)Lisa G.
Great sushi and atmosphere near the movie theaters! Even my seven-year-old enjoy the Gyoza, fresh fruit and rice.
(4)Joshua P.
If I could leave zero stars I would. The food was fine, our waitress was a sad excuse for a servant, the only good thing was a sushi chef was a rock star. We went there for happy hour with our family so that we can afford to go out, only to order whatever we wanted and get a bill for $90. It was supposed to be happy hour... But Happy hour is only good if you order a drink, each person has to order a drink. You will not find that FinePrint anywhere on their menu. It wouldn't of been so bad had her attitude not sucked. Too bad we will not be going back to that place, nor anybody that I know because of the lack of communication and service. Too bad customer service is not in their top priorities. On another note, if you want good conveyor belt sushi in Bellingham, go to Kuru Kuru. Much better, true Japanese artists, and great service & better prices.
(1)Jeff M.
We came to Zen Sushi on Saturday night after a late afternoon movie next door. It's a busy day of the week so we didn't mind waiting. The waiting area was full so we waited right outside the door, just feet from the front desk. Bad idea. They never called our name, only after practically every waiting party was seated did we go inside and find that we had clearly been skipped over. What's the point of taking a list if you don't make a half-hearted attempt to find the folks who are waiting. The hostess realized she'd skipped us and asked if we had been on the list and then got us seated quickly, seats on a part of the restaurant they clearly were not expecting to use. We had no utensils and no soy sauce trays. I asked a chef in front of us for them, he told a server. Still none came. So I turned around and faced the front desk (the wait staff were busy doing other things) and the owner asked if we needed something. I told him, it took another few minutes to get. Too long, particularly after waiting nearly 30 minutes to get a seat. The food was fine, the place was busy so there were a lot of fresh dishes coming out. There were also a lot of hot dishes, too. Little egg rolls and pot stickers were a nice addition. After a rocky start, we finished our meals with smiles on our faces. The food was good and our water glasses were kept full. We don't usually order off the menu here, though we do on occasion order specific nigiri if we don't see it on the conveyor. We keep coming back, but it has been over 6 months since our last visit. It might be even longer this time before we return.
(3)Katie P.
If you're grabbing drinks before catching a movie at the only commercial theater in Bellingham, this is the only bar you can go to. So Zen has a huge monopoly, but it turns out I'm pretty okay with that. This place kind of makes me laugh because the decor and ambiance are very Las Vegas and therefore very NOT Bellingham. On a 50 degree February afternoon they seriously had the wall-length doors in the bar wide open to create a lounge. This was totally just for effect too, because the bartender was wearing a North Face. My mom and I shivered at the bar deciding if we really wanted to order a drink. In comes the bartender, who tells us we can order at the bar and sit inside the restaurant, where it is actually warm. Their drink menu is huge and very reasonably priced. My mom and I each got giant Hurricanes for $8 that came in tiki mugs with umbrellas and the works. They also have happy hour every day, if you can time your movie right. Staff are friendly and having watched the sushi chef put some stuff out, their food looks pretty darn good. So thanks, bougie sushi restaurant, for the awesome drinks.
(4)Princess S.
First time here. Great location, seated next to the movie theatre. Great atmosphere and music. The sushi options were ok. The sushi on the belt didn't taste so fresh, but it was to be expected. Menu is color coded for price which was reasonable. The plates came with 4 pcs. Prices ranged from $1.75 to $4.50. The quality wasn't too great. But the concept was good. Unimpressed. Unfortunately won't be dining here again.
(2)Jane D.
This place was AMAZING in the beginning.. It went down hill QUICK. I liked that they had labels for everything on the conveyer belt.. Now nothing is labeled.. And it's just all around poor. Don't even get me started on the service.. I mean, can you even call that service? They bring you your drinks and then ignore you until you wave them down for your check.. I just hate the attitudes now a days with everyone expecting tips.. You didn't do ANYTHING.. Sorry, but I won't come back. Wasabi sushi down town Bellingham is better. Their hours are wack and the place is small, but I feel it's worth it for fresh sushi, anyways.
(1)Jennifer J.
I've been here a couple of times now. They definitely seem to be trying very hard to create a good sushi product, and it seems they've lowered their prices a bit since my first visit. The service was still a little spotty, but was redeemed by a free piece of cheesecake for my bday.
(3)C B.
Mostly this place has California rolls with some not-so-fresh fish scraps thrown on top. The wait staff generally ignore the customers when they are not treating them as if the customers sole intent was to bother the waiters. The hostesses judgey glares as you are walking in makes the whole place really unwelcoming, and I have literally been laughed at when I sat down at the bar before being told that they were closed by a group of snotty, apparently off work waitresses. That being said, its really convenient if you want a California roll before your movie, and the building itself is gorgeous and the décor is great. Seriously, fire all your wait staff, and get better sushi and I'm coming back!
(1)Heidi H.
Love this clean, fresh and convenient place next to the theaters. Try their yummy dragon roll.
(5)Scott K.
The food was good quality, but the menu was slightly limited. The bar is nice and has 3 HD televisions for viewing sports etc. The main area has a huge Buddha statue that is worth a look. The conveyor is always a fun addition I think. The location is good for seeing a movie before or after your meal. Overall very clean and inviting. Definitely recommend giving them a try next time you are in the area.
(4)Anthony B.
I'm literally sitting down right now devouring these rolls of sushi with my girlfriend. I love the simple rolls and I absolutely love the Seattle tool and our service- AND just gave us a lemon cheesecake as an early birthday present! #JENforEOM Plus she remembered us. Back to the food. It was delicious and the portions were perfect. Keep the sushi comin'!
(4)Amber K.
Bellingham is not the best place to go out for Sushi in general, especially being a vegetarian. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Zen Sushi. They have a full vegetarian menu, with unique veggie rolls and not just the same old avacado roll and such. Their Zen Roll is amazing. The service was fine, they aren't too attentive, but being that it's a sushi belt you tend not to need the servers as much. As far as vegetarian sushi, this is a great place to go in Bellingham.
(4)Lind S.
Just out of curiosity, what happens when the waitresses at Zen Sushi drop something? C'mon guys, I wore more clothes to frat parties in college.(Also, the sushi here is aggressively meh.)
(2)Jackie S.
The restaurant was clean and the waitress was really helpful. I was overwhelmed by the plate system on the conveyor belt, but to each his own. Some sushi was really good and some was lack luster.
(4)Lorien S.
Incredibly unimpressed. Despite the perfect location, this business was not well run and the food was not what I expected. The service was awful. We sat at the bar due to a long wait in the dining room (Saw many empty tables), and it took at least 20 minutes to get our drink orders. The waitress did not card us. Took another 20 minutes to order our meals. We didn't receive our drinks until probably 45 minutes after we first came in, and it took almost 70 minutes to get our food from when we first came in. One of the items didn't come at all, but thankfully we didn't deal with any argument about obviously having it removed from the bill. The sushi was alright, but the options were pretty slim. The waitress was friendly enough, but obviously very distracted and constantly chatting with coworkers instead of checking up on us or other customers. Won't be dining here again; I don't recommend it.
(1)Ashley U.
Is their sushi good? Meh. The basic rolls are fine. The location and decor is nice. I suggest that if you are picky sushi eater skip this place. However if you can handle average, typical American style sushi this is the place for you. It is a good option for people new to sushi-nothing too scary to freak out your 55 year old mom. The traditional sushi belt is fun option. You can also order from the menu.
(3)Eric F.
Good sushi, nasty customer service. Dined at Zen Sushi four times earlier, always enjoying sitting at the counter and watching the plates roll past. Went tonight, and almost immediately experienced condescension from the Host/Manager. Was told we'd have a ten - twenty minute wait, even for a counter. After ten minutes, saw lots of open counter seats, but told we couldn't be seated ahead of folks looking for booths since it could upset them. Then heard Host speaking in loud whisper to waiters about "difficult guests". This place has fine food, but why put up with condescension.
(1)Darcy W.
I love this place. Great ambiance, I mean, seriously! These folks work hard to make your experience wonderful. Sushi is good, jasmine tea & saki bombs are fantastic. Service is excellent. Conveyor belt sushi is... Well, I just never know how fresh it is, and I always order my favorite (monster roll) so it's fresh. Happy Hour $1 off plates 2:30-5 weekdays and 9-close every day! Giant Buddha, popular music, modern decor, separate bar w TV. One of our favorite places for date night, lunch, or family dinner out. Try it!
(5)Rachel G.
Pleasantly surprised! NOT grocery-store sushi. Stopped in with my boyfriend before a movie, even though we had heard bad things. We were seated promptly, but it took forever for the waitress to come by for our drink orders. My boyfriend ordered the chicken teriyaki and loved the sauce, though the chicken itself was pretty bland. I had the spicy California roll, Seattle roll, and dragon roll. Sauce on dragon roll was AMAZING, and everything tasted fresh. Me and my boyfriend would both go back. Not the best sushi I've had, but good for the price, atmosphere and location.
(3)Marsha S.
Like everyone else, I really WANTED Zen to be fabulous. We went for a snack after the movie - got there at 10 (they close at 11 on Sundays). Hardly anything on the belt, but they were happy to make us whatever we wanted, and it was $1 off for happy hour. We had the spicy tuna roll (mushy), salmon skin roll (okay), spicy tempura roll (meh), himachi nigiri (very thin slices and weird color), and ungainly nigiri (too much teriyaki). The rolls are only four small pieces, not six chunks like at Wasabee. Service was very good, though. No complaints in that regard. Even if I go to the movies, I will head over to Wasabee - better quality and better prices! Sorry, Zen.
(2)Zackery M.
This place was awesome everything here was great came here right after the movie great service also
(5)Megan S.
Zen Sushi is a beautiful place to be. The sushi is delicious and plentiful. And they have interesting dishes that aren't sushi as well. I want to cry when I am here because the food is so good. It's worth the 10 minute drive on the freeway that was flooded with rain tonight (I almost died on my way here - but it was worth it)
(5)Matt C.
Pleasantly Surprised... After hearing comments like "the sushi is awful" "way overpriced" "'other places' in Bellingham 'is/are' better" I was a skeptic. When my wife and I went out to dinner and a movie we decided to try it. I thought the sushi was great. They have plenty of variety, I tried 4 different rolls, all clearly described on the conveyor belt (I've never seen that other places), and all delicious. If you're a sushi snob, and freshness is important, you can order every single roll right off the menu. However, in my opinion, the freshness was still there off the conveyor. As far as price, another yelper actually said to try Scotty Browns... What?! That place (which I enjoy...) is extremely overpriced. I've eaten a ton of sushi, and been to many places in Bellingham, and I can honestly say you get what you pay for. Bottom line, sushi was delicious, and I will definitely be back. F it... I was going to give them 4 stars but they deserve 5.
(5)Christi K.
Love the macaroons there. Love that they have take out. & I can order a huge tray of sushi for a party. I have been there a few times. Not a fan of sitting there eating while others complain about what they don't like or do like. We sat down next to a couple who wouldn't stop complaining about the place but still grab things off the belt to try. They would try one and toss the rest. As if there aren't people starving for food. But not my money not my business. We were there to enjoy the desserts :)
(3)Kristin G.
I wanted to love it. I did. The decor is great, its clean, and it's a great location for a date night, right next to the theater. That's where my compliments end. The rolls were almost all PILED with toppings that masked that they are quite small and filled with sub par quality fish. I ordered some nigiri and the tuna slices were thick, oily, tasteless, and off color. Our "waitress" only came over once to take our drink over and then to deliver the drinks. I had to wave her down to order my nigiri, ultimately the sushi chef saw me and I ordered it directly from him. There were only 3-4 other tables in the restaurant at the time (it was mid-afternoon, after lunch but before dinner) so it wasn't that she was busy.. they just stood around chatting at the hostess booth. My friend who only eats cooked fish rolls, and the sides, loves this place. But I'm admittedly a sushi snob, and frankly it was a huge waste of my money. If you aren't picky, its fine. If you like raw fish, skip Zen. The search for the perfect nigiri sampler in Bellingham continues.
(2)Tiffany M.
Love this place! It was my first time eating sushi and I loved it. We also came during happy hour which was a great plus. Prices are cheap since it is a conveyor belt I guess and the strawberry lemonade was my favorite. Our waitress was very friendly and always checked up on us. I will definitely be coming back very soon!!!
(5)Alfredo V.
So....I'm surprised to see Zen only has 2.5 stars. It's really nice! Coming from Miami where we have TONS of sushi places the atmosphere of this place is that of a high price restaurant and the food is median priced.
(5)Gilson M.
Sushi, conveyer belt, and happy hour is what you would likely expect going to Zen sushi bar. A fun and great place to hang out witn friends and a fun way to experience Japanese cuisine. The idea of choosing what sushi to try and just randomly picking one is fun, but Zen recently removed all the labels they put alongside their sushi, so you will find yourself asking your server what it is your picking up with your chopsticks. Happy hour is also a plus, but having to wait until 9 is a little tedious especially if you have no intention of staying long, but with happy hour they knock off $1 for every plate you pick up from the conveyer belt. They also have a seperate bar area if you want something a little stronger to drink. They also gove the customers the option to order items not on the conveyer belt. If you ever visit, try ordering a bottle of Ramune (japanese soda) and have fun figuring out how to open it :)
(3)Gary P.
After a rocky start I was really starting to like this place. Looks like they have regressed. Service is terrible, it's rare I actually have to walk out of someplace because the service Is so slow and bad but that just happened. Probably won't be back.
(1)Randy F.
Great food and great service! The kids loved the conveyor belt system and the huge statue inside the restaurant. They especially loved the noodles.
(4)T H.
Here's a few observations around service. -Waitress was too busy chatting w/ 2 other waitresses -Sushi 'chef' didn't bother to look up other than to grab an ingredient I can understand the lack in service IF price is around the same ratio. Unfortunately, for what your paying, quality of food AND service are both lacking. Ps: spicy tuna looked a lil dried up... definitely been sitting out for a while. Yikes!
(1)Chelsea R.
Its kind of hit or miss with this place. I would recommend going on a busy night so that the belt sushi is super fresh. On days that it is less busy the sushi seriously is mediocre at best. They usually have very fresh sashimi and nigiri and rolls but sometimes it seems as if its just been out for to long. There fairly slow when it comes to alcohol and drink orders. But I do like the idea of the belt sushi.
(3)K E.
All of the dishes were so fresh and just melted in my mouth! The Pear Sake was excellent! I will definitely be a regular!
(5)Ashley K.
I'd give no stars if I could because of how awful the service was. The food isn't horrible. But our server was the rudest server I've ever had in my life.
(1)Lara C.
The service has gotten worse then when they opened and the rolls are still old. I think they got rid of the one guy who use to make us sushi, better to just drive to Canada, it's worth it instead of this place.
(1)Laura C.
Difficult to rate this place because when we went there was no food! Came by about 90 mins before closing on a weekend. Was surprised to see that there were only a total of about 6 items on the belt, 2 spinach things, 2 octopus and 2 nigiri - none of which were of interest to us. We stayed a while but nothing new appeared, so we ordered some rolls. I've had sushi at many places but I've never had seaweed so tough that I could barely bite/chew it. I don't know what was up with that. They are closeby, so may give them another shot. Hopefully next time is better. And they are more expensive than the other conveyor belt places in town.
(2)Charles B.
Good service, friendly & polite. Great food, carousel sushi. Conveniently next to movie theater!!
(4)Bentley H.
What a great gem here in Bellingham. Totally new Asian design, very upbeat and inviting. Good sushi and a good selection of beer and wine. I will return again soon!
(4)Cody C.
First of all, I have been here MANY times. My buddy and I would come in once or twice a week and have a nice meal and some drinks. Food was tasty, arrived quick, and the employees were great! Sadly, not so much any more. The past few months something terrible has happened. The owner has become more involved. Any good friendly employee gets fired and replaced with people who couldn't give a s#!*. The food items have gotten smaller, have no flavor, and take FOREVER to arrive. I'm currently here, and I am soooo dissapointed. After waiting 25 min for items that take 2 or 3 to cook on a non-busy night I almost gave up waiting and walked out. Lucky for them I always stick around no matter how terrible the situation. I'm hoping they get bought out and get an owner who has a little bit of an idea of what they are doing, until then STAY AWAY!
(2)Scarlett M.
This place has style, the sushi is definitely good for conveyor belt sushi, and the variety of offerings for the dinner menu are great, but it seems like all conveyor sushi places limit their lunch offerings to the same basic bland fake crab, mayo, cucumber, and avocado combinations. I know you can order off the menu, but part of the reason I go to conveyor sushi is to have some peaceful time alone and eat my meal at my own pace. After having a great dinner here I was hoping that their lunch menu might offer more diversity the usual "reconstructed California roll" dishes, but sadly it seems they do not. I would highly recommend them for dinner, but if you are looking for sushi for lunch you might be better off going elsewhere.
(4)Nate H.
Bad! I know it's a cheap and fun place to go, but this afternoons experince was just short of terrible. The sushi is old and has been sitting on the conveyer belt for who knows how long. The server claimed to be busy but couldn't busy herself serving us as she chatted with co-workers. Just a overall bad experince. GROSS! And servers serving at lunch (or anytime for that matter) shouldn't be dressed for the club. TASTELESS!
(1)Adrian D.
Loved the decor and lighting service was great price was reasonable Food was 5 star for me and about a 3.5 for my wife. I don't frequent sushi bars and was very pleased, especially with their daily special that was made right in front of me. My wife grew up eating sushi and was not too impressed. We loved the huge statue in the middle of the restaurant. It almost felt a little futuristic in there.
(4)Lindsey O.
Anywhere is better than Zen. This sushi tastes disgusting. Go to Kuru Kuru by the waterfront, it's much better! :)
(1)Warren D.
Very low quality ingredients goes into their rolls. I would not recommend this place if you have high expectations.
(2)Melissa P.
I wanted to like this place. In fact, I wanted to love it, if for no other reason than I wanted it to be worthy of my love. The location is great. The sushi is fine - I'm no connoisseur, but everything I've eaten there tasted good to me (I don't do raw). The problem is the WINE!! Come on, Zen! You have a beautiful bar area with a very nice Olivia Wilde look-alike bartender. But the wine is bottom shelf swill. We've been several times and will not go again. :(
(3)Gillian m.
I LOVED this place. It's so fun to eat right off of a conveyor belt. It always reminds me of the JETSON's :) The reason behind my 1 Star rating is due to the fact that one week apart with the same waitperson. My change was not given to me and kept by my waiter. The first incident happened last Monday 11/10/14. Our bill was $39.45. I paid with $100 and was give back exactly $60....no sign of my $0.55?? I left a tip and felt like I should have questioned her logic. We returned yesterday 11/18/14 and when we received our bill $26.90 I paid with another $100 to see what would happen. And sure enough I was given my change minus my $0.10?? (Granted, I realize it's $0.10 but do that to a busy restaurant full of people over the course of an evening and it's not only probably an extra $20 at the end of the night, but it's STEALING!) When I asked her where the rest of my change was. she said "it's all the way up at the register" and "there's just not a lot change to go around" her excuses made ZERO sense to me. So, again I asked where ALL of my change was. She blankly starred at me and said she would go get it. Returning a whole 8 seconds later with my dime. Jeez, the register WAS really far away wasn't it!? In this time of ever declining customer service. I just didn't expect to have the next step be the wait staff making the call on how much of my own change I'm to given back. I probably won't be returning because I feel if they are bold enough to help themselves to my "unneeded change" then clearly maybe they are also feeling justified in helping themselves to my credit card information as well.
(1)Paris K.
I come to Zen every week! I know all their names and we watch games in the bar, even though my husband Jake and I are Broncos fans! Always good sports lol can't imagine date/movie night without this place!
(5)Taylor M.
This place has really good sushi for being a conveyor belt, but it is slightly over priced. They have a good amount of variety depending on the time of day you go to eat. I really appreciate that they are open for lunch hour; it's perfect if you need to eat lunch (and dinner) quickly.
(3)Kyle C.
After I see a movie I always go here... I love the clean look of the place and even though it is conveyor belt sushi you can still order things made fresh.. Definitely try the spider roll
(4)Kate A.
I've never met any sushi that I didn't like, until now. Truly awful. The fish was warm, the calamari and Rangoon were cold, and the waitress was even colder. It's too bad because its a nice location and a nicely designed restaurant. We won't ever go back.
(1)Brady H.
Zen is a sushi carousel style sushi restaurant in Barkley Village next to the new movie theater. The prices were very reasonable and the food was great. My favorite plate was the Godzilla roll. The atmosphere is very contemporary and upscale without being contemptuous. The staff was very polite and courteous. We will definitely be back!
(4)Sarah F.
Well, it's nothing special but there's a pretty good variety, they label things clearly, and there's lots of seating. Pros? -Plenty of seating even when busy -As fresh as conveyor belt gets -Pretty good variety Cons? -Could be a bit less pricey per plate
(3)Kat D.
My husband and I have eaten sushi around the northwest, in Vancouver and Seattle, and consider ourselves sushi snobs. (but nice ones). While there may be better sushi at higher priced places in Bellingham, in a decent sized college town, this is as good as it gets for conveyor belt sushi. Pros: Nice decor and ambiance. They have a decent selection of fish, pretty fresh, not frozen as we've seen at other conveyor belt places, and good baked rolls. There is a good selection of flavors, although I've never seen pico de gallo on a roll before. We tried it, it was interesting. Maybe they're trying to appeal to the college crowd. One of the best jasmine teas in town - very floral, which I prefer. Good happy hour deals, which run later than most places. Favorites: seared tuna, and the gomae. Cons: Seating can be a little tight, and you're liable to run into some timing issues if you go before a movie (theater is right next door). We were there last night, and a chef was staring at us because ... he didn't have anything else to do? He would refill the philly rolls and california rolls occasionally if he saw a gap, but otherwise, stood in front of us at the bar and smiled at us. Slightly disconcerting. Overall, a decent place for a date, to bring kids (probably not too young though), and for a family night out.
(4)Laura G.
We have been to this restaurant several times and always enjoyed it. Tonight, both the food and service were terrible. A plate from the conveyor that was a hot dish had obviously been on there for a very long time. Another sushi roll topped with a strange crab mixture was disgusting. We sent both back to the kitchen. We ordered some food from the menu and unlike previous trips where it was speedy, it took forever this time. The waitress was not very attentive, which is a common theme of this place. The selection of sushi on the conveyor was very minimal. Not at all what we had seen in the past. Not sure if it was just a bad night for them or if it is going downhill, but I would be hesitant to go back.
(1)A M.
One of the better conveyor belts in Washington State. The ambiance is cool to not so cold and plain like most and our waiter was so happy and upbeat he got the best tip out of any conveyor visits.
(5)Phoenix D.
Sashimi is fresh and yammy! My parents said the oyster motoyaki is great. I don't like the dumpling, as Asian, I'm picky about dumpling. Overall, this is a westernized Japanese restaurant. Nice atmosphere and services.
(3)Steve L.
Who ever rates this place above a one star is getting paid to do so, save yourself a terrible time and avoid this place like the plauge
(1)bruce f.
I would have to say that most all of the other comments are right on. They did a beautiful job with the building but chose to have mediocre food. What a shame! I won't go back unless they seriously upgrade the food. It could have been a great place. Still they will probably do well due to the movie traffic.
(2)E B.
Zen is great, especially if you go during happy hour. You'll save a ton on your bill! The sushi was fresh and tasty, and the drinks from the bar were great too. Being right next to the movie theater makes this a great place to grab dinner first.
(4)Kate B.
I have been to Zen several times, each visit hoping for a better experience. Eventually, we stopped going because it was consistently bad. Tonight, we thought we'd give it another shot. Again, not good. Here's the thing. The vegetarian options are mostly fried rolls. I've had excellent vegetarian sushi other places that wasn't all tempura and fried tofu. So, that's disappointing. My husband eats fish so he's a better judge of the traditional sushi. The fish is usually discolored and clearly not fresh. There's no way to tell how long the sushi's been on the conveyor (unrefrigerated). And now, since they did away with the snazzy rings that are supposed to tell you what's in the sushi, you have no idea what you're eating. And, they put things on the conveyor that have no business being on a conveyor like fried spring rolls and edamame which need to be fresh and hot in order to not taste like garbage. Half a run around the loop and they're cold as ice. I can't tell you how many times I've grabbed cold spring rolls from the conveyor. The noodles have way too many sesame seeds and the "sauce" tastes a bit off. The service wasn't bad this time, but we've certainly had our share of bad service. If you're looking for good sushi, don't go to Zen. Go to Kyoto Steakhouse.
(1)David V.
The only thing good about this place was the $4 tiny bowls of fruit and the free water. The sesame noodles were disgusting. The seattle roll ruined sushi for two friends of mine. I would not recommend this to anybody. If you're looking for a sushi place then keep looking cause this is not the place to be!
(2)Ryan G.
I would rather eat gas station sushi, i have eaten sushi around the US and Canada. Hair on the sushi and the waitress only brings you another order (that sat out in the open for over 20 mins, never good with raw fish) without asking if you even wanted it at that point. After being seated most wait staff was in the back presumably on a break. Our waitress came once after we were seated and it was to deliver the food which was ok at best and way overpriced save yourself the hastle and go elsewhere
(1)David M.
I can't believe the number of positive comments about this restaurant. This place looks great, but the sushi is sub-par at best. The conveyer belt is incredibly long and the first time around the food is not covered. I would never go back. There are lots of better sushi places in Bellingham, including one within walking distance, Little Tokyo. However, there is another restaurant that sometimes serves sushi that is also nearby- Scotty Browns. That stuff was seriously dangerous. Don't even consider it.
(2)Niki K.
We love the atmosphere and come often to hang out and "discuss life" over a cup of Jasmine tea. But we prefer the sushi at Kiru Kiru for the quality and price.
(4)Russ H.
Sadly, it doesn't matter whether you like the food here. If someone gets to it on the conveyor belt before you, you might as well get up and leave. Ordering from the wait staff is pointless. On our last (my fourth) visit I ordered crunchy tofu right off the bat because the last few times I'd been there was never any on the conveyor. By the time we'd finished and were about to ask for the check I still hadn't seen those tofu rolls. What's worse is that you will see lots of one or two types of sushi slide past, along with tons of the empty rings with the names of sushi rolls that for some reason they advertise but never make (like anything with tofu). I'm a vegetarian (I go to sushi with non-veggie friends), and the only veggie rolls that are usually out are tamago, and how many of those can you eat in one meal? It would be fine if you could order what you wanted, but...
(2)Lisa C.
You know, I guess I'm just a follower, because when this place opened, I heard a heard a lot of poor reviews. And even though they sounded like they were written by people who would complain about pretty much anything, I still wasn't in a rush to go. Which is unlike me. Then I remembered who I was and that this place is too dang close to my house to not give it a chance. And tonight was my 3rd time there. I've never had a bad experience. Everything's fresh (the most important thing), they've got a lot of the "stuff you see a lot" and they will make your rolls to order if you don't see what you want. The service was great. The waitstaff is friendly and attentive. I had zero complaints.
(4)Chance R.
Worst sushi I have ever had in my life. Old sushi that tastes like beach in July. Wouldn't feed this to my worst enemy. Get haggen sushi its better in both taste and price. Overall shitty and over priced don't go at any cost. Seriously I wouldn't eat here if I was starving or free
(1)Katie T.
The conveyer belt is fun, but Little Tokyo across the street is better quality :) yum! The atmosphere is modern like being in a downtown Tokyo sushi bar.
(3)Rick M.
Two words... DON'T GO! I've had better sushi at Haggen... and that's not saying much. I love sushi but it better be good quality ingredients prepared properly and it better be fresh. Poorly made handrolls with questionable ingredients spending god only knows how much time on a conveyer belt is not my idea of good quality sushi. Sorry Zen... you've missed the mark. Save your dough and head to Vancouver or Seattle for the real thing.
(1)Food D.
Yes, I agree that the decor is very nice and does feel like a big city restaurant. But it is strange to be close to a movie theater and have a mob come out after a show then stare at you while you eat. Some of the seating is like you are in a fish bowl. I started by ordering green or it could of been jasmine tea. Surprised that it came in a french coffee press (what the heck), trying to make it fancy I guess. Well the white cup came with a huge red lip stick mark on it. Yuck! I think that set a tone for me how many raw dishes I took that evening. The worst part of the tea was when I got the bill it was $3.99, I guess I was paying for the french press. (other sushi places range from free to $1.50) What a rip off !
(1)Lucy K.
Talk about an utterly underwhelming dining experience. What with the somewhat earnest but sadly substandard service and - more disappointingly - the food which was sorely lacking in appearance and taste. I question the the Executive Chef's grasp of Japanese cuisine in particular and their palate in general. The menu items were consistently murky/muddled in flavor and unappetizing in presentation - neither a feast for eyes nor a treat for the taste buds. The gomaae was more like a greyish flavorless ohitashi with sesame seeds on top, and the agedashi tofu was bland, soggy and served on a sorry bed of wilted lettuce. As for the veg rolls, they were boring at best. Thank God we had some hot sake to wash it all down...although our sake actually didn't stay hot for very long, as it was inexplicably served in a tumbler glass as opposed to a flask. And, not all the sake in the world - hot, tepid or otherwise - could mask or make us forget the fact that a fruit fly flew out of the condiment container when we went to grab our ginger. Can we say, "Ewww, I vomited in my mouth a little bit...and WTF would a health inspector have to say about that?!" Perhaps Zen is shooting for an Asian Fusion kinda thing - in which case the lack of authenticity in the Japanese food can be forgiven - but whatever the goal may be, please go back to the culinary drawing board and develop a better understanding of flavor combinations and aesthetics. Also, please consider hiring a floor supervisor to monitor food & service quality and guest satisfaction. Location and fancy decor alone do not deliver excellence or ensure success.
(1)E O.
We had long wait even though there were empty tables. Then after all that wait a server wanted to put us in a small corner where two people would hardly fit. We needed to talk to another server to sit somewhere else. The second server was polite and attentive. However I don't think I will ever go back.
(2)Nicole N.
Great atmosphere but wrong location. They needed something family friendly, and this seems upscale date night. Looks great inside, but felt weird and out of place in the middle of the day. Bad service. They never looked at us, had to call over all the time. The ordered items took forever to come out, we were done and waiting for them so we could leave. Prices are too high for the quality. You can find better quality at many other sushi places. Sushi was also tiny for the cost. I hope they update in the near future to get more people in.
(2)Chris F.
This evening we were told we would have to wait about fifteen minutes to be seated. When I asked what the problem was, given that there were not only several spots available along the sushi conveyor belt as well as three or four booths unoccupied we were treated rudely by the manager/host. We then were referred to as 'difficult guests' and were treated in a very condescending manner. We opted not to eat here, given that we were not feeling respected or welcomed.
(1)Lala V.
I got a man hair in my sushi twice in a row, and the raw fish was old , you could see the rice green was disgusting , in my opinion
(1)Cale C.
Zen Sushi has a great atmosphere, friendly staff, and tasty sushi! My wife and I just tried this new place out and we both agree it was super tasty. The staff was also very friendly, especially Damian who constantly engaged us on conversations on the food, and what we wanted to have to eat and what exactly would be in each roll we've been eating. When we had a question he would answer immediately, and would often ask us if he could do anything else for us as well. All the ingredients we tasted were fresh, and we only had one piece of salmon nigiri that was a bit too fishy than we like. One of the best things was an unusual piece that had no name and was made by the head chef, which we decided was called 'Jalapeno Tempura Poppers', which is basically jalapeno poppers but made with tempura breading! It was absolutely delicious! We're definitely planning on heading there again in the near future.
(4)Josh H.
I agree that there is definitely better sushi in town. The thing that surprises me is that nobody has mentioned the menu: it is totally uninspired. I'll sit there forever just waiting for something decent to come by and ordering from the menu is no better. When I go to sushi, I intend on being rolled out of the place on a cart. Even more so with conveyor sushi. I leave this place frustrated and hungry. I live nearby and desperately wanted this place to be good. I've been about five times starting when it opened and running until January of '14 and I see no improvement. Not to plug other places, but Blue Fin, Kuru Kuru, Osaka, Wasabee, A&W Asian and, yes, even Haggen like another reviewer mentioned - all of those places are far superior to Zen.
(2)Cheryl J.
Nice conveyor-belt-type sushi bar, and happy hour prices are great. We went after a movie, and if you buy a drink all colored plates are $1 off... Which saved us $14. Sushi is pretty good... The dessert plates were very good, especially the little brownie. Spinach rolls were amazing. The tempura which we ordered was above average, we had both veggie and shrimp tempura. Will have to come back for the roaring outside fire pit at the bar! I don't agree with previous reviews about price - they are very low and even beat out grocery store pricing for sushi that is much better than the grocery stores. We will definitely be back for more!
(4)Rebecca H.
Such a pretty restaurant, and the food pretty good as well. The only thing I would really complain about is probably the variety of sushi. I would see the same sushi type go by a lot of times but there wouldnt be anything that new on the belt. Price is a little bit more on the expensive side.
(3)Mary M.
Great service, nice for a private, romantic dinner - the conveyor belt adds to fun - but the sushi was just mediocre. Bellingham has spoiled us with some really great sushi at other restaurants. Luckily, Zen Sushi could easily get 5 stars by upping the quality and variety of its sushi offerings.
(3)Marisa P.
Double Pepper Roll delicious.
(5)Dina L.
For a kaiten place I felt it was very expensive. Not good at all compared to similar places in Portland or Seattle. Big disappointment for us.
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