"Sooooo...I was recently discussing Ariake with some friends and while we all agree that Ariake is a quality sushi Japanese cuisine spot, they disagree on the overall rating. Their opinion was on the 3 star scale, while I deem it worthy of an overall 4 star rating. And surprisingly, one of their points of contention (if you will) is that Ariake is not an authentic Japanese restaurant. You know, James...this place is Korean owned, so how good can it be? Hmmm...that is an odd reason to ding a place since my rebuke to them was, Well, while that may be true, do you think that the majority of cooking occurring at XYZ (famous well regarded French Restaurant in DC) is being done by 'French cooks ' in the kitchen??? I can 100% guarantee, it is not. And for that matter, in many of the Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian, etc. kitchens, the food preparation cooking is being done with chefs not native to those cuisines. So in the end, we had to agree to disagree. Ariake occupies a building that was formerly a Pizza Hut as evidenced by the telltale hallmarks of slanted multi level hat like roof on the exterior and high ceilinged cavernous interior dining room. But other than these architectural hold overs, the interior space is very modern with faux marble table tops, a mix of wooden seating, tile and hardwood flooring, and abundant pendant and recessed lighting choices. My party of four ordered several dishes so as to obtain a wide sampling of flavors. I won 't really comment on the miso soup and house salad with ginger dressing, except to say they were forgettable. But the two sushi rolls the table ordered were quite good. Fresh tasting LARGE pieces of salmon and tuna were lightly seasoned with a spicy marinade, and wrapped in not too soggy sushi rice. Unlike at many sushi restaurants, the fish was not chopped up into a mushy paste (which places sometimes do to mask the flavor of fish that is not fresh), which really allows the quality of fish to be evident to the diner. As for the mains, of late, I 've been ordering ramen at sushi joints; and I was especially intrigued since the special of the night was a Truffle Tonkatsu flavor. The broth was hearty, rich, and had a discernable but not overpowering truffle flavor which enhances, as opposed to overpowered the dish. The pieces of char siu pork were tender and again unlike at many places, a good cut and portion size. The noodles were nice and chewy, and the pieces of seasoned nori provided briney flavor notes. The only detraction was the Ajitsuke Tamago or Ajitama. It was waaay too overcooked, since for ramen, this style of egg should be soft boiled to the point where it 's runny when you break it open. But I can live with it. I tried some of the other dishes, and I thought they were solid. Both the chicken teriyaki and the beef in the bento dinner box, had excellent grilled flavor. The teriyaki sauce was a tad sweeter than I usually like, but my friend and his wife seemed to enjoy the dish. If I hadn 't gotten the ramen, I would 've definitely ordered the bento dinner box. It had such a nice assortment of dishes, from a California roll, meatballs, grilled beef, and crisply fried shrimp tempura. Honestly, for $29 I think the dinner bento is a good value relative to the portion size and quality. I 've been back to Ariake a few times since my initial visit, and can see this being 2 3 month dining spot. I 've found the service to be attentive and most importantly, does not detract from the overall experience. Regardless of who 's preparing the food, Ariake is a four star place to me!"
