Aiki Sushi & Ramen

Nice smaller spot with great service and prices.
The lunch all you can eat option is very affordable.
But I did hope for a few more non-fried options.
This is somewhat made up for with a few uncommon nigiri options like red snapper and ono. Still a very solid option.

We did not enjoy our experience at this place.
We dined in.
Lazy service- we had to write our order on a piece of paper, dirty plates were not picked up in a timely manner.
Some odd music for the entire restaurant came from the server's phone.
The food was very unimpressive.
Pho looked and tasted like it was prepared with spaghetti noodles, which is very strange.
The prices are way too high for the quality of food.
We will not return.

I've shelved my expections on sushi after my timing living abroad, as it would not be fair to the restaurant to grade it by those standards in a landlocked state. However, I was overall disappointed with my experience here.
Aiki Sushi and Ramen feels like a cafe when stepping in.
I was greeted by one of the two people behind the sushi bar. After sitting and one of the two sushi chefs took my order, I realized that the ordering system would be written down.
The owner behind the cashier counter stood there with little to do but look at the TV.
When he did bring food, he was extremely soft-spoken. I felt like some nigiri, and ordered a few salmon, hokkigai, saba, and hotategai. I also ordered a veg yakisoba. First, my sushi came out.
It was smaller, but that was to be expected at $1 per piece.
The rice was refrigerated and clumpy, and off-putting.
As far as each fish went, the salmon and hokkigai were okay, and the saba was off even with its usual vinegary taste.
The hotategai is where I was disappointed, as nothing on the menu said that it would be spicy.
While I do love spicy food, I try to avoid it with sushi, as it taints the palate.
Luckily, I was saving that for last in this visit. For the little bit of soy sauce that I did use, do be careful when pouring it out.
The containers spill a lot.
I lost my napkin to that. Miso soup came out during the sushi (as well as the entree). The broth was okay.
Not overly strong but reliant on miso rather than dashi, and I was happy to see soft tofu as well. The entree was the star here, taking me back to yatai yakisoba at festivals.
While the veggies tasted like they were cooked 8n a different sauce, the overall slightly tangy savory flavor was wonderful.
Having it served on a house dinner plate was odd, but it too gave a good feeling. I did my best to leave Japan in Japan, but it is places like this that make me think why it is okay for us to expect excellent burgers, steak, chicken, pizza, etc for a top dollar, yet we settle for mediocrity when it comes to Japanese food.