I truly do love the restaurant. The food is good and I’ve had great experiences with the waiters I’ve had. The only thing… I come here VERY often and notice everything, especially the differences in how they treat black customers vs white customers. As an experiment, I sat there for a few hours one night just watching the entrance. Every white customer or group received the Japanese greeting from the sushi chefs at the bar. Every black customer who entered got simply, just a glance. Not a single greeting for the few hours. I’m not sure if they notice these biases but I do. I’d like to remind them that black customers notice these things and it’s not appreciated. I know the area can be a little dodgy, but please treat all your customers the same. The money is all the same color :) Love your food but tell your sushi chefs they should treat all your customers the same. Not just the ones they are familiar with.

This is such a good restaurant!! The decor and atmosphere is amazing! All the staff my boyfriend and I have encountered on our two trips so far have been so welcoming and friendly towards everyone in the restaurant. There are authentic Japanese style dining rooms and tables and a full sushi bar. There is plenty of sushi to choose from but there is also a full kitchen that prepares other classic Japanese cuisine. They have an extensive sake list and some great fried cheesecake. This is a new favorite spot for my boyfriend and I. Can’t wait to go again!!!

My daughter and I went here for her 21st birthday and we really enjoyed ourselves. The food was great. They even came out singing Happy Birthday to her. The service was great along with the food. We will be coming back soon.

One of the best sushi places by far. They have an impressive medley of fish, sake and Japanese cuisine that will leave you flabbergasted. I've been deeply impressed on each of my dozen or so visits and I'm confident you and your cohorts will enjoy it as I have.

Good sushi. Excellent sushi bar. Fast service. The pricing was also agreeable. Pretty cool atmosphere with some sit down Japanese style shoeless areas.

Amazing restaurant, relaxed atmosphere. We ordered the Inakaya Boat for 2 and sushi (Firecracker Roll), the food was great and the staff has a great sense of humor and will make you feel at ease. I will be returning!!!

Just the best! Fresh authentic Japanese food or some American type sushi also. Never disappoints. A+

Always a pleasure to eat at Inakaya Japanese Restaurant. Everything on the menu is fresh and flavorful. The variety of sushi is be far the best I have come across. The service is great and the place is very neat and tidy. I highly recommend anyone to dine at Inakaya Japanese Restaurant for a delicious meal.

This was a truly traditional Japanese experience in dining, from the food to the decor, and down to some of the seating. The decor was beautiful and interesting, capturing aspects of Japanese living and culture. The food was delicious and reasonably priced. Although we were just visiting, I would absolutely become a regular if I could.

Great staff and a very warm welcome. The food was excellent and fresh. Wait staff were kind and wanting to help. Lunch specials are great value. Behind the sushi bar I found the lighting a bit bright and intrusive into the eating area. I will visit again and overall a good experience.

Of all the restaurants in Columbia, this is probably my favorite. Inakaya's has a great selection of both traditional favorites and unique specials. The sushi is always fresh and each meal is rewarding - but if you really want a stand out experience, skip the tables at eat at the sushi bar! The staff are incredibly friendly and will always help make absolutely killer recommendations. Every time I'm in, the owner helps explain the dishes, how best to eat them (and in what order) and tells me a bit more of his story! If you want top notch sushi and reasonable prices (reasonable for sushi, for sure) but still want a local feel, stop in. You won't regret it!

Superb sushi. Excellent cost to value. I highly recommend and will be back.

The best sushi restaurant in town! The other places I’ve been to didn’t taste as fresh or the sushi just fell apart …. But oh not here !! They are the real deal! Very authentic, even the teriyaki beef was surprisingly good and filling. The black dragon and Godzilla was our favorite ! Will definitely be returning soon!

Great dining experience at authentic Japanese restaurant as recommended by a coworker.👌 Great, attentive service. Pictured: miso soup with seaweed salad, shrimp tempura and sushi rolls. Also, felt it was a great value. Will definitely return.

This is the best place for sushi and authentic Japanese dishes in Columbia without a question. Sit at the sushi bar if you can and chat with the chefs. They are super friendly and will always make you feel at home. My personal favorites are the habanero and pink dragon rolls. If you like a fried roll, don’t miss out on their Godzilla!

I was brought here by a close grid who highly recommended the place and it did not disappoint one bit. First off you walk in and the host was so respectful and concerned about getting us a seat. After seated server was quick responding and delighted to be with us. The food is 10/10 so even if everything else had been horrible it would’ve made up for it! Highly recommend this place if you want to bring your family, a date, or even alone!

This was my first time here normally if I'm on that side which is rare....I'm at the karaoke bar next door. Anywho the atmosphere was great, staff(masked) and service was delightful. I ordered their godzilla roll,wings, and drinks. The godzilla roll was cool, just use to tsunami size portions. They lollipop their wings which is fine, it was just over cooked. Because of my experience with the front of restaurant was great, I'd be willing to give the kitchen another chance. Also their prices are awesome!!

The food here is suitable for my taste and the price is right , neither too expensive nor too cheap.I love it🩷 But the staff rarely smile at customers when serving. And i ordered a dessert and they said they will bring it to me later but it was almost time and it looked like they didn't want to anymore i haven't seen them give it to me they just gave us the receipt and I asked them, they came in and brought me mango mochi, I was surprised but it's okay.

We got to the restaurant just before the dinner rush and were seated immediately. The beer was ice cold the service was quick and friendly and the sushi was amazing.

Everyone is so friendly and polite. I have got takeout from here upwards of 20 times on my lunch break from work. Never a bad experience. You cannot beat their 3 sushi roll lunch combo special. It's around 10-12$ and even comes with miso soup and side salad for approximately $2 more. Very fast service, great atmosphere inside and love the energetic, friendly greetings from sushi chefs when you enter.

On our long road trip from Florida to Pa, we stayed the night in Columbia. We decided to try this place out for dinner. The sushi bar was very popular and looked like a lot of fun. The sushi chefs were interacting with the guests. If you sit in the seats, they do offer a happy hour menu during the weekdays. My boyfriend ordered the 3 sushi roll deal and the chicken teriyaki deal. Which included soup, veggie tempora, and a roll from the list. I had the steamed pork dumplings and Cha Shu Men. All of the food was delicious, and the sushi was fresh.

The food was absolutely spectacular the atmosphere was great and the staff were super friendly and professional. I had the sashimi lunch, surf clam, redfish and giant fin squid. It was all spectacular and served up by the head chef Maru who is a great person. This place is one of the best sushi places in the state of South Carolina. It's just unfortunate that it is so far from my residence. I highly recommend this place for those that enjoy quality sushi and authentic Japanese cuisine. The variety at this particular sushi restaurant is greater than the majority of the ones throughout the state. 👍

Fantastic experience. Sushi was great. The chef was very fun and explained the difference between Japanese and American sushi. We even got the entire bar to do a Sake bomb! Will definitely come here again!

From the reviews, we had high hopes. It sounded like this was the best sushi in Columbia. Unfortunately, the food just wasn't that good. Nothing was actually bad, but it was a long way from great sushi. I don't know, maybe this really is the best in Columbia, or even the best in South Carolina, but I hope not.