Oma sushi on O Farrell opposite the Hilton Hotel in the tenderloin district of San Francisco is a tale of two halves. Open Tuesday thru Thursday 11.30am-10.30pm and Friday thru Saturday 11.30am - 11.00pm and Sunday 11.30am-10.30pm, closed on Monday.
We dined at lunchtime on a Sunday and apart from three take out guests we were the only people in the restaurant which was surprising as the food was cooked to order and in the most part absolutely delicious. The stand out dish was the vegan sushi rolls which were made with precision and had a whole manner of delectable ingredients topped with fresh mango, washed down with a zero alcohol Asahi beer.
We also ordered the spinach salad which was interesting, served cold with a kind of chocolate flavoured sweet sauce I’d never tasted before and avocado and cucumber sushi which was fresh and very tasty.
The veggie spring rolls we ordered two portions of three rolls didn’t deliver the crispy treat we’d hoped for, the outer casing was thick and quite greasy and over powered the vegetable filling. For me it would be better with more crispy vegetables in a lighter casing.
All in all the service was friendly and quick and the food very satisfying. Even though we were the only diners, the energy is the restaurant was great, really good vibes.
The difficult bit was the number of homeless people wandering the streets outside. We sat by the window which made the social divide all the more apparent. We felt empathy for both the restaurant owner and staff working hard to create a wonderful experience for their patrons and the street walking people starving outside.
Looking for a solution we ordered a portion of beef teriyaki to go and asked it be split into two containers for the wanderers outside, the restaurant threw in a pork dish to add to the meal which showed us the kind of people they are, so would definitely return and support this lovely authentic Japanese place.
The bill was very reasonable at $70 for everything so definitely affordable and very satisfying with great vegetarian and vegan options, as I mentioned the vegan rolls were outstanding.
We had enough food to offer a meal to three people outside, two in wheel chairs and one on foot. It was extremely gratefully received. The restaurant provided, cutlery and napkins. Thanks Oma Sushi, hope to see you again on my next trip to San Francisco.