Genki Sushi (111 E Puainako St Prince Kuhio Plaza)

Fun and delicious for a quick meal - the sushi is all made to order and delivered directly to your seat on a little boat that rides on a track like a train but it is definitely supposed to be a boat. I was glad to have the wide variety of roll shapes.

I placed an online lunch order for my family and received a notification that it was ready for pickup. However, when I arrived, I was told they were still working on it. I waited patiently, but no one checked in with me or apologized for the delay. While I was waiting, at least 10 other groups were seated and received their food before I received any updates on my order. It ultimately took nearly three hours to get clarity on what was happening. To make matters worse, an automatic tip was added to my charge without being clearly communicated. When I brought up my concerns, the cashier appeared to laugh it off rather than take initiative to follow up with the kitchen or provide helpful coordination. This experience was extremely disappointing. If you’re placing an online order, I would reconsider. It’s especially frustrating given the limited dining options in Hilo. I truly hope management addresses these issues to prevent this from happening to other families.

Extremely disappointed in Genki Sushi Hilo. Pretty sure it’s due to poor management. Both sides of bar seating is closed and one side of booth seating is sitting with dirty dishes. They have 5 employees just standing there with 7 parties on the wait list. I’ve been going to Genki since I was a kid, I really hope they shape up and don’t close down but it’s hard to keep going with this kind of service.

Food 3/5 - Ordered salmon sashimi, rainbow roll, tamago udon and some poke bowls. Salmon sashimi and the rainbow roll was fine. The poke bowls were fine, albeit small portions. The tamago udon looks sad. You get 2 slices of tamago and the soup was lukewarm and watery. Price $$ - Price isn’t a good value with the portions that were served. When ordering from your phone vs what you get when the bullet train delivers to your table, everything looks shrunken. Service 3/5 - Service is average, our server did stop by once to check up on us otherwise you’d need to flag them down for service. Atmosphere 1/5 - Interior is tired, and when you look up at the ceiling you’d definitely be concerned there is something growing. The bullet train delivering our food had a bad wheel, so you hear it grinding by as it delivered to tables adjacent to us. During the duration of our visit, the tables surrounding us were left unbussed, yet we can see workers chatting at the counter. Overall - I’d be hesitant coming back until the ceiling is addressed. For the cost of the final bill, you can find better quality / portioned sushi at other nearby Japanese restaurants.

We enjoyed this for a quick lunch. Sushi was decent for the price. Order using a digital menu and your food comes on a boat conveyor belt right to you. Atmosphere is where this place gets lower points as it had a cafeteria feel to it- something the location in Kona does feel like.

Overall, underwhelming experience. One server was great but there was a point where we had to ring the bell a few times to get our waters filled. The food came out quickly and was average quality. Nothing amazing but not too terrible that we wouldn’t go back. There is a girl with a tattoo arm sleeve that was really sour when bringing us the check and checking us out. Until she saw the tip then she was all smiles, waving and thanking us as we walked out the door. She did nothing but seat us and check us out. Don’t know why she had such an attitude. I wish we could have given the tip to the other server only. So sad she has to share it with other servers. We would have left 1/2 what we did if she hadn’t been there.

What is better than eating at a sushi bar watching the chef prepare it front of you? Sitting with your friends or loved ones and your orders arriving on a little train within minutes of ordering it. The service was quick and easy at Genki Sushi. We had to wait at least 15 minutes for a party of 7, but it was worth it when the first rolls and poke bowls showed up. Having eaten sushi on the mainland in multiple west coast states and on the islands, I must say, Genki Sushi is some of the best sushi I have ever eaten. It’s a meal and a train show! Chop choo and chew chew! 🚂 🚂🍣🍣

It was very good food, and the staff were very kind. Not a long wait for just one or two people. The main thing I wish they had were descriptions of each sushi roll describing what ingredients were used, but you can call a server and they do know the answer. Primarily you order by the picture of the item, and can order up to four items at a time. Sushi train delivers, but is not a revolving buffet style like I'm used to. Definitely a new go to restaurant for me.