Nobu Malibu

I don't know what I like more here!!\r Both are pretty good.\r \r Service could be faster/better\r \r It's a hit and miss, sometimes you get the best waiter, others you get the wanna be actress who keeps staring at whatever actor is there sitting at the next table and getting every order wrong.\r \r If all the waiters and waitresses in LA could act like they LOVE their jobs, well, then I guess they would be good actors and working as such instead of messing our orders.\r \r Restaurant owners:\r start hiring people who want to work as WAITERS, who are not as young or as good looking but they can bring you what you actually order to the table.\r \r I could care less how they look, if our waiter has been working on his biceps or the waitress just had a touch of Botox on her forehead, or her augmented lips get to our table way before the rest of her face, if they are unable to retrieve food from the kitchen and bring it to the table in the right order to the right person his/hers good looks are not going to make me less unhappy\r \r Back to the Sushi\r It is the BEST in town!............\r When and if it makes it to the table.\r \r more

i must say.... the sushi is pretty good! :) more

6-10 review - I have been coming to Nobu in Malibu since 2001 - Always greeted by the same or similar head maitre de with the attitude of ""its not the tip you give me it's who you know"" [she actually said that] - What once used to be a dinner that rivaled the food served on Mt. Olympus, Nobu Malibu has gone steadily downhill over the past decade relying on name and location and celebrity prestige - Having brought our friends there for an Omikase dinner for 4 @ $150 apiece we hoped to get the best Nobu offered - Over sauced flavorless dish after dish was served with great waiter fanfare - Yes the service was good - Years ago what used to be creative with the most subtle and delicate of flavors has deteriorted to a mocking somber shadow of its former self - I was embarrassed in front of my friends with this meal since I had talked it up and relayed the past gastronomic dreams of culinary delight Nobu once produced - Of course my friends were polite and never said a word - Nor did they say ""wow this food is great."" Omission is as loud as commission. - The extraordinay desserts of years past were ordinary and the proof was in the great pieces left untouched by all - Sake was great - martinis were either too sweet or too dry - Nobu Malibu has slipped and slipped again down notch after notch over the years - The waiter proudly told us that they were moving to a new and bigger location after years of waiting for a permit - Judging by the empty tables on a Saturday night they might be looking at even fewer tables of customers in their new location - At over $1100 for four people we were willing to spend the money for a meal that promised a memory - Alas I have already forgotten the food yet not the overpriced experience of a once proud and quite unique resataurant. Pros: Has the name Cons: Relies on past glory and fails more

I ordered a couple of rolls and each one was fabulous! Awesome FOOD. Black cod is classic! (1) Black Cod:... more

I ordered a couple of rolls and each one was fabulous! Awesome FOOD. Black cod is classic! more

I can totally understand why people go there and have an average experience. Their regular sushi looked totally run-of-the-mill. We sat at the bar (which looked like it seats about 15 people total, though we were on the end with another couple), and I asked for omakase. The chef said that there are three standard levels of omakase; 99, 150, and 200. He could tell I wasn't digging the whole pre-fab idea so he said ""I'll make you something special."" My girlfriend explained what she liked (she'll only eat tuna and veggie dishes) and I just said I didn't want Uni. The couple sitting next to us were ordering totally average stuff that you could get anywhere, and it looked totally average. At one point my girlfriend got a roasted eggplant dish that was really good, and she said her spicy tuna roll was the best she's had anywhere.\r \r We sat down at 6:30 and by 9 we were having dessert (a chocolate suffle with green tea ice cream on the side--really good), though we needed to take off to head over to meet some friends so we felt a bit rushed because of that at the end. A couple of highlights: freshwater eel and fois gras stacked in a bowl with a kind of semi-sweet teriyaki sauce that was insane, not too overpowering. Another item of note was kobe beef tataki with ponzu sauce that was really good. Total bill with drinks and tip: $310. Fantastic evening. Do I have a burning desire to fly back tonight and eat there again? Nah. I'd go to that place at the Santa Monica airport before I'd make a special trip to Nobu again. But still, sitting at the bar was great, especially on the end like we did as we could see everyone in there. Pros: atmosphere, service, star sightings Cons: hard to find, parking lot fills up on weekends, bit pricey for the quality more

If you're a sushi novice, pick somewhere else to dine like Katsu-ya or some other Hollywood smash and grab fish place. But if you're into wild delicious flavors, high-quality product, and attentive service try Nobu Malibu. Yaman, our server, was so funny and truly made our experience unique and fun. Even people who weren't our waiters were helping us out explaining all of the dishes and getting us our food. They make every table feel like a celebrity - especially since we were sitting next to Cindy Crawford! Try the newstyle, yellowtail with jalepeno, and the ribye. And don't forget to ask for Yaman - He's the best! Great for business dinners - not so with romantic dates. Pros: Service, Food Cons: Limited and poor wine list, poor ambience. more

It's frustrating to read the reviews on here with people comparing Nobu to other sushi restaurants, because the experience is not meant to be like other sushi restaurants. If you are looking for a standard sushi dinner, don't go here because you will miss out on the whole point and feel like the restaurant did not live up to your expectations. If you want to enjoy a meal at Nobu, I recommend the following: 1. sit at the sushi bar. You don't need a reservation and it's much more interactive, you get the best food and the sushi chefs are the nicest around. (unless you have more than three people, then a table is more appropriate). 2. ask your waiter and sushi chef for recommendations. There are many daily specials that are not on the menu, some of which are the best dishes they make (ie: king crab tempura, seared scallops with truffle). The waiters know what is good, and they will steer you through a meal you will love. 3. If you do make a reservation, call ahead and if they are full put yourself on the waiting list, more often than not they will call you back. 4. Be prepared to spend money. Resign yourself to it and just accept that it will run you $100-$150 a person for a great dinner. 3. Don't go for the first time on Valentine's Day. (that rule applies to ANY restaurant!) I have never had a bad meal at Nobu Malibu, the kitchen is always consistent and some of the best staff work at this location. Treat them with respect and they will do the same. Go for a good time (not to gawk at celebrities) and to enjoy some innovative cuisine that has since been copied all over Los Angeles. Go for the original. Pros: the original innovative Japanese cuisine, always consistent, friendly Cons: sometimes really loud and tables are close together more

You know i'm a local here in Malibu and every so often I have to remind myself of why I dont bother going here. \r \r Service? Really quite lousy.\r \r Food? Definitely lousy.\r \r Decor? A joke.\r \r You have to wonder why this thing is even on the map. Honestly I cant figure out why this place is such a hot spot because the food is lousy, the decor is non-existent, and the waiters are amateur. Compare to Sage Room, T d Noi or Geoffry's. Its in some half assed parking lot, some half assed non-decor, half assed waiters half assed food. I think this place is great for people who have no appreciation of fine dining but are under the false impression of receiving it once having been here. Its a joke. Nobu is a joke. Starting from its back of the parkinglot location. A JOKE. Pros: The myth of THE Place to See and Be seen. Cons: EVERTHING: Food, Decor, Service - awful more

I love sushi. However, at Nobu's, the servings are small and overpriced. Yes, it is fresh and there are different tastes but if you are celebrity struck, then this is the restaurant to go to see and be seen. You are paying for a celebrity hangout, basically, because I was disappointed with the sushi. There are much better sushi restaurants than this one. The waitstaff were attentive, except for two. One seemed to have a bad attitude when we were seated. Also, towards the end of our dinner, my husband had gone to the restroom and I was trying to decide what to have next and a waitstaff person came up, folded my husband's napkin and asked if I was finished. Did it look like I'm was finished-when we're finished, we will ask for the check. I guess in serving celebrities, the waitstaff get certain attitudes. Maybe they need to go to Customer Service class and understand how to treat a paying customer. I'm not impressed with this restaurant and probably won't go back. Pros: Some waitstaff are customer service oriented, Celebrity hangout, fresh sushi Cons: Too expensive, small amounts of sushi more

Our family loves sushi & have frequented many establishments for many years throughout the world, so we decide to take our daughter in law there for her birthday--there were six of us. This was our first time to Nobu. I had heard it was pricey, but good, AND IT WAS!!! Best to order in stages and eat family style--first cold dishes, soup, hot dishes, then sashimi/sushi, dessert. Black cod w/miso, yellow tail w/ jalapenos, shrimp with lobster and lemon grass all were culinary treats (signature dishes)--these specialties went beyond my expectations. Web site states not suitable for children, not accurate. If your children like Japanese cuisine good place to go because noisy which allows children to be themselves and have fun too. Food was served quickly. SO WHY FOUR STARS IF FOOD YUMMY--the waiter. He was obnoxious and patronizing treating us like we were imbeciles of Japanese food and on occasion grimaced or sighed when we asked about an item. He forgot our reorder drinks and one hot dish order as well. We ordered sea eel he brought us sea urchin. I asked when it arrived what it was--so he could acknowledge the error. Instead of apologizing and saying he would replace it with the correct item--he literally grabbed the plate--and proceeded to talk with the manager who was 2 feet from our table--consequently, we could hear everything discussed. He blamed us telling manager it was our fault, we didn't know what we were ordering. Excuse me, but sea eel is one of our favorite dishes. Okay he had to cover his error, but don't talk about patrons in front of them. We told him to cancel the order for sea eel. Since this was the end of our meal, the incident left us with a bad taste. They put the tip into the bill of 5 or more, which was probably fortunate for him--because he really was a two-bit watier. We spent over $700.00 for the six of us (no alcohol)--but the food was worth it--we will probably go again and be sure we do not have this waiter. more

I've been to all of the incarnations of Nobu in Malibu over the years. Delicious, fresh and deceivingly complex rolls make this a Japanese restaurant you don't want to miss.\r A definite standout in the small collection of Malibu eateries. Pros: Great sushi rolls and other fresh creations. Cons: $$$$ and sometimes smallish proportions. more

Another reviewer's statement to the contrary, Nobu IS the best food in Malibu, maybe the best on PCH! The sushi is good, but perhaps better does exist; however nothing tops their Tiradito, which is fluke levitating in citrus, with a Peruvian touch (aji panca or aji amarillo) and their hot items, like the Lobster and Shrimp with shiitakes and china peas, and the Black Miso Cod are outstanding. If the reviewers explore beyond *sushi* items, they all might award Nobu five stars instead of parsing out those 3 and 4 stars. Still, my five stars rating goes beyond the food! This place is just great FUN! The servers love celebs, but we have never been short changed by the wait staff; they are attentive to us unknowns too. We definitely have great times there. It's ALWAYS fun to go to Nobu. and it isn't JUST the celebs. We have been seated next to 'Rocky' Stallone, the Pinkett-Smith family, Loni Anderson, Pierce Brosnan and Lindsey-Lo, while Sharon Osborne sat next to us, at a table full of black athletes, and they all kibitzed with my 12 year old, which sent him home beaming. A consistently fun place is pretty much a rarity, but Nobu is dat place. Bring bucks. Pros: The easy parking, theTiradito, the Shrimp/Lobster dish, the celebs, the fun of it all Cons: The time limit on tables, the noise level and the difficulty with reservations. more

After hearing so much about Nobu Malibu, and after trying so many other Japanese fusion restaurants, I decided to pay this restaurant a visit, with high hopes that the food would be extremely magnificant since so many Japanese restaurants opened following Nobu's footsteps and learning from Nobu's menu.\r \r With that said, I have to be fair. The Japanese dishes are great at Nobu but based on what I have heard and what the dishes are priced at, I felt a slight disappointment when the dishes came.\r \r The staffs were quite nice to us, contrary to what other reviews have said, or maybe I was just lucky to get that.\r \r Anyway, go to Nobu only for the sake of trying it once and be able to tell others you have been to Nobu.\r For similar style Japanese dishes, you can always go somewhere else. more

I was expecting a lot more when I went to Nobu. Being a sushi lover though, I will eat almost anything, and would much rather pay less. Sushi is sushi, and I felt as if the items were a tad overpriced, and the service was not fabulous. However, it is beautiful inside and I did get my money's worth - spotted Cindy Crawford, her husband Rande Gerber AND Pierce Brosnan all in the same night! more

The food is absolutely delicious and served in a timely fashion. However, the staff is NOT as welcoming as you'd expect such a beautiful place to have. The prices, though high, are not unreasonable considering the quality of the food and beautiful place settings. But, the service does not do the atmosphere justice which ironically leaves the customer dissatisfied with out any intension to stay for any other reason then that of placing the first order. more

Okay,Okay, I'll admit that when myself, hubby and our two kids headed to Nobu in Malibu , it wasn't for the the Sushi, but rather what ""star"" we might see. We went down on a beautiful summer night ( Saturday ) a couple months ago ( no reservation ). The paparazzi's were in full force in the parking lot, so we knew someone was inside. The hostess informed us that without reservations, we could be seated at the counter and sit there as long as we wanted, or we could get a table, but would have to limit our time at the table to an hour !! Of course we understood since we were walk in's. We opted for the table. We sat right next to Rob Reiner and his family and one of the Olson twins were also at a nearby table, guess that's why the crazy camera guys were outside. Our waiter was friendly and was making many food suggestions ,....already in the hundreds of dollars, so we decided to ""not"" take his advice and we ordered what sounded good. The food arrived promptly, but everything was just ""FAIR"", My son ordered the Teriyaki Chicken ( just one small breast sliced) with a bit of cabbage type garnish on the side......... $ 21.00..YIKES , way over priced and dry to top it off, our daugther got two Teriyaki skewers, no sides with this one..they were so tiny...about $ 13.00...hubby and I got California Rolls and Crunchy Shrimp Rolls and Miso soup..... soup was average, and honestly both rolls were very small in size and hard and somewhat dry. We were so dissapointed, we thought people flocked there for the food, maybe people go to spot a celebrity... but, I guess that's what we did !!!... Maybe there's a separate kitchen for us ""commoners"" and the ""celebs"" get the good stuff, Ha Ha. Well, anyway, there are much better places to eat in Malibu, that are much cheaper and the food much better. Not Sushi, but walking distance from Nobu across the street is Marmalade Cafe.....Great food, Good prices, cute atmosphere and the staff is always really nice. Pros: nice atmosphere, very clean bathrooms, parking usually easy to find Cons: over priced and food just barely average, no kids menu available more

This place is very overrated, no stars, no ambiance, I felt over dressed. I've had sushi that was better or definately comparable for MUCH less. For $135 just for myself including tax and tip I expected to be impressed. I'm glad I went just to have had the experience but definately wont go back. more

Nobu Malibu is the exact same as Nobu anywhere else, except smaller. I have eaten at almost every Nobu location and wish they would update the menu a little more often. That said, there are some great classics that are now being duplicated at sushi restaurants all over the globe. The black cod with miso, the yellowtail with jalepeno, tuna with vegas salsa, tempura shrimp in creamy spicy sauce etc. You need to make reservations far in advance for weekends but can usually squeeze in early on week nights. You always know what you are going to get and its always good. Pros: food Cons: no menu changes...ever more

Nobu is a state of mind! Everyone says it is the place to be so we go...........we want to be seen, it is not about the food, there are a zillion great sushi places in LA. What shocks me most is the sense of importance of this place. In the past it was no problem getting a reservation and we have enjoyed our meal and service seeing people that we knew a friendly local establishment. Now when you call for a reservation and you are told if you are calling less than 30 days out that you can dine at 6:30pm but you must be out by 8:30 pm with a ""do you understand""? I am an adult, I can well afford to dine there, to be told what time I must vacate my seat is an outrage. Do they have a timer at your table so you know when your two hours is up? I will be happy to spend my money elsewhere where our business is welcomed and appreciated. Nobu listen to your public, here today gone tomorrow Pros: Great parking, great ambiance, people watching if you are interested Cons: Reservations are not friendly, way too many paparzzi's more