Yum. This place has amazing food and terrific service. You cannot leave without having the crispy shrimp, so crunchy and delicious. I don't know what they do with their rice, but it is the perfect mix of flavors. The staff is so kind and helpful. The menu can feel confusing at first, but the staff is so quick to help and very friendly. Tonight, I was especially impressed when I called to order takeout during a rush, and said I would call back a little later. Within five minutes, staff had called me back. I have never had a restaurant do that, and so appreciated the service.
Fabulous fresh ingredients, friendly, attentive service. Spicy tuna and seared salmon rice were to die for! Thanks to John and his hard working staff for such a memorable dinner.
Exceptional service, quality food, umami good. Salmon seared with a loving perfection, spicy tuna on crispy rice was the highlight of my day, and the tuna pok complimented it all. The chef will explain the menu to you, and with the ethusiam you would expect of such tasty food. An unexpected lunch rush was handled by the team at PinkU with style. The artwork is fabulous. I could nosh here all day long, but the polite thing to do is enjoy your meal and free up your table promptly to allow others to experience everything wonderful about PinkU!
Chef John - My wife and I have only been to your place twice. once in December and once a few weeks ago. I also appreciated that you remembered us form our first visit. Your passion and love of food shows each time my wife and I have been in PinkU. The food is absolutely hands down, the best Japanese food in the Twin Cities. I have to give a shout out to your rice cakes!
Beautiful food. Delicious sake. I love the cultural nod to having the menu displayed on wood, but a western audience might enjoy pictures, or even Japanese-style plastic representations of the food on display, just for people walking by -- saw one guy pop in yesterday to "check out the menu" and clearly he had no idea what he was looking at. Not a big deal to me, personally, but I really want this place to succeed and stay around!
there are not enough words in the english or Japanese language for how delicious everything here is! I have personally eaten everything that does not have actual fish and i am head over heels in love! The staff is amazing and the owners bring so much warmth to the table... My one complaint: I dont make enough money to eat here every night.
Love this place!! Fast, friendly and fresh!! Always made to order and you can tell they only use the highest quality ingredients. Excellent flavor complexity, good spice, but the food truly does speak for itself! Slightly expensive in my opinion and I wish they had bigger water glasses, BUT I keep coming back and love it Every. Single. Time.
Japanese isn't just sushi; this is awesome, flavorful soul food. My favorite casual lunch spot in the cities.
Fantastic service, beautiful little restaurant. And the crispy shrimp is an explosion of flavor in your mouth that you will never forget!
Awesome place!,unique food choice/Menu...Saw this place featured on local 📺...Suggested to the wifey for a spontaneous advanced birthday Lunch treat with the Family!...it worked perfectly!..special shout out to Mr. X,who was amazing!..will surely come back...
The food was absolutely delicious and the staff was welcoming and very friendly. We all ate and it was so good, I had to order some more to go. Highly recommend!!!
Some of the best sushi I have ever had! The jumbo crispy shrimp w/ rice, red pepper tofu potstickers, and spicy tuna fat roll were my favorites. Fantastic service and fun atmosphere!
The seared salmon and tuna pok special we had were incredible, and John was kind enough to take the time to guide us through the dinner and sake selections. We can't wait to come back and try everything else on the menu!
Simply amazing!! The food is delicious, the atmosphere is wonderful, the chef is impressive!! Eat their food, well worth every penny!
Great first visit here. Tried the jumbo shrimp on rice and legitimately think it might be one of the best things I've ever eaten. Happy to only be a few blocks away!
I loved the food... The crispy shrimp and noodles rice was so so tasty and the pot stickers were great. I will definitely eat here again.
Wonderful lunch in a charming space! The menu is inviting, exciting, and was really well explained by my server. I had the crispy shrimp on rice and the gyozas, both solid regular items worth ordering. There was also a chicken karaage special, which honestly was the best thing there—such juicy, well-marinated, and crisp bites of chicken. Definitely get it if it's available! Three of those dishes came up to just over $20 for me, and I had some leftovers to bring home.
Delicious food, great service, cool vibe and not hard to find! We were excited to try this place out and not disappointed! We loved everything-- the crispy salmon was particularly nice. Got the house specialty drink which was also delicious.
Absolutely love this place. Small menu but every thing is an amazing bite. I've been here about 4 times and also had delivery 4 times. Each time the quality has been outstanding no matter in-store or at home. My favorites include the crispy shrimp, gyoza, and without question the spicy tuna crispy rice. I could eat these from here daily and still be excited as the first time.
Absolutely loved this place! I believe they have rotating menu guessing by how they have placed their menu. We got spicy tuna crispy rice, salmon cakes, ikayaki and tuna poke. They were all very good. The idea is to get a couple of dishes. They also provide small basket to hold your bags so they dont have to sit on the floor. This is a counter service which makes it fast!
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PinkU continues to impress, and with it's original and creative menu, it is easy to get addicted. PinKU's food, with its changing weekly specials and not-so-common dishes, and its casual dining atmosphere help show just how unique this place is. It's where authentic Japanese dishes and treats meet a creative and original way to get your food. This isn't a sushi restaurant, this isn't a teppanyaki grill: this is Japanese Street Food. And the best part? They make it all about you. Really!
What to get? Everything, but especially the shrimp and the potstickers. But especially everything.
Though their sushi is delicious, fresh, and hits the spot, this isn't a "sushi" restaurant (like I said). Don't expect to get a chef-selected sushi platter. Looking for a large order of fried tempura? I'd go somewhere else. Want to spend like $40-50 a person? This place will run you to $20 or under, each. Imagine that, an affordable Japanese restaurant where you don't have to sacrifice quality.
Instead of looking for that 20-piece sushi platter, plan on selecting 2 or 3 items off PinKU's menu (or however many items you want, you're a hungry Minnesotan afterall!) like the jumbo crispy shrimp on a bed of Japanese rice or radish noodles. They are so tender on the inside and so crisp on the outside, I dare you to just get one order. And the sauce! Oh my goodness, you could live in it.
I also can't not talk about the "Crispy Rice" dishes. Instead of putting spicy tuna or a seared slice of salmon on a cold ball of sticky rice, PinKU does something different and crisps up the rice base. Think a plain fried rice turned up to 11 and used as the rice pad for your fish of choice. My only complaint is you don't get more of them per order!
What about something more "traditional" like sushi? They still have items like seared salmon on rice, spicy tuna poke (pok), and then of course, the "fat rolls" -- traditional sushi rolls with spicy tuna or seared salmon.
Whatever you decide for yourself, be absolutely sure to then share an order of the delicious, hot, fresh, and juicy potstickers. To repeat, because it is important: be sure and get the potstickers. They are perfectly fried and crispy on one side and succulent all around.
The best part, at least for me, is that you can really taste the time, love, and thoughtfulness put in each dish. The depth of flavors is immense, the quality of the ingredients is high, and everything is just so fresh. Whatever you get, I don't think you can go wrong.
And everything is served to you in minutes on a simple, shiny silver bento-box-esque cafeteria tray. How perfect.
Unique take on Japanese street food! Some classic tastes and some others that are different. Brings me back to Japan for sure. I highly recommend the Okinomiyaki, the Katsu Curry, and Karaage.
Staff was extremely kind and helpful! More importantly the food was amazing. So much effort went into the presentation of it, and for the price you can't beat it!
Absolutely delicious. They have their own unique take on sushi and goyza that really transforms it into an amazing experience that will leave you wanting more! Exceptional service and recommendations.
Love this place so much! Truly unique foods and flavors that you just can't get anywhere else. The chef here is so very talented. I wish everyone could eat here at least once in their lives.
We had the Valentine's Day meal for two and were very happy (and full) with our meal. The gyozas and sushi were both delicious, but my favourite was the crispy shrimp, by far. As others have said, even if you don't like shrimp, you will like this shrimp! Can't wait to have that again :) The portions are small, indeed, but there is a lot of skill, care and creativity that goes into making the food, not to mention the quality and freshness of the ingredients. I'm excited to go back for more :)
Amazing food! We ordered the pot stickers, salmon and rice, yellowtail and crispy onions, and the special of the weekend fried okonomiyaki tofu! It was our first time here and we're definitely coming back next time we visit MN!
Friendly staff explains menu and specials. I had the special: crispy shrimp pot stickers and a side of rice. Next time I'll get 2 dishes. I want to try the spicy tuna. You order and pay as you enter the restaurant. They have local beers in cans, Japanese beers, sake, wine, sangria. I had the white sangria, Refreshing! A mirror ball welcomes you. Baskets are provided for cyclists who need a place to hold their helmets. Nice touches! I ate alone and was comfy.
The staff was very helpful and I was very impressed with the salmon dishes! The gyoza and spicy tuna dishes were okay, although I am not that familiar with what authentic Japanese food tastes like. Considering how good everything else was, I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt!
So perfect! 10/10 in the food! Can't wait to come back. So friendly too! Explained all the dishes since it was our first time.
Very interesting flavors. Food was fresh and tasty. Service was great. Only thing is that you pay ahead. During that tranaction, it asked for the tips amount. Hestiated, I tipped before actually experience the service. At the end it was appropriate.
Great place with a great communal feeling permeating the air. The idea is to get multiple items and eat everything together - tastes complement each other. Don't complain about portion sizes because this isn't an everyday American restaurant where you only get one thing, eat it all by yourself and then take the rest home to microwave a week from now; this is quick and very delicious Japanese street food!!
I have never been so impressed by a restraunt on my first time. Genuinely, this has been an unexpected delight to my evening. The impeccably clean orderly atmosphere, and the decorum of their staff demonstrates a true commitment to excellence that shines through in their food. When was the last time you had your sushi roll brought back voluntarily by a restraunt because the chef was displeased with how it was rolled? A true commitment to excellence if I've ever seen any.
I'll be happy to return here frequently.
Nice place, helpful and friendly staff. Food tasted and looked excellent!
Their signature cocktail was great too.
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