Yummmy Dish: Honda Ya Japanese Restaurant

City: Tustin, CA.

Address: 556 El Camino Real, Tustin, CA 92780

Food type: Japanese – sushi, noodles/rice, yakitori

Price range/person: $15-25/dinner

Wait time: 15-45 mins. Arrived 20 mins after restaurant opened for dinner and wait was still 15 mins. A long wait is likely, but DO IT!

Service: Courteous, prompt.

Ambiance: Casual, Asian influence. Traditional Japanese décor jazzes up the room.

Dish Focus On:

Yummmy Dish's item ranking:
(#1 - best, based on our orders only)
1. Eel
2. Crab Shumai
3. Meatballs
4. Hearts (Chicken)
5. Beef tongue
6. Nikujaga (served in pot)
7. Special Hearts (Chicken)
8. Wings (Original)
9. White meat
10. Wings (Spicy) -I'm not a big spicy fan
11. Spinach garlic (House special)
12. Beef

Nikujaga – beef, assorted vegetables in broth

Deliciously flavored broth, slightly sweet yet still savory. Tender beef slices and refreshing veges. Special house item.

Crab Shumai - freshly wrapped and topped with crab

Amazingly fresh and original. Stuffing inside wrapper was light, fluffy, and hot! Likely some kind of egg? Crab topping was meaty and tasty. House special item.

Hearts (chicken) and beef

Yup - chicken hearts on a stick! Crisp yet tender meaty texture. I preferred the regular "Hearts" over the "Special Hearts." Beef on a stick was OK - slightly tough, but still flavorful.

Eel and meatballs

Two thick slabs of eel - YUMMMY! Sweet, salty, tender, and perfectly grilled. Love it! Meat balls are steamed first and then grilled to perfection. Both were tantalizingly good!

Wings (chicken)

HOT and tender wings. Available with spicy sauce. YUM!

Yummmy Factor: 5/5

Yummmy Rambles: Fantastical! We probably had the best seats in the house – right in front of the Yakitori grilling station. We watched the chefs put together and grill fresh ingredients over piping hot coals. Each item was freshly prepared and carefully infused with flavor. Seating options: bar, booths, tables, Tatami floor mats (no shoes). My stomach was not big enough to try all that the menu had to offer – cannot wait to try the udon, sushi, and other yakitori items! House special items are indicated on menu. Yakitori items range from about $1.75 - $5.00 per skewer. Preferred Yakitori here over that from San Diego's Yakitori Yakyudori. So excited to go back again! Sake isn’t bad either. Wine/beer options reasonably priced.

The sticks from all our orders, next to an empty bottle of “Aladdin” sake – smooth, warming, and yummmy.