ma soba

MSG Alert

by Amodamo at Citysearch

Had dinner there last night and the food was fine, but woke up this morning with big MSG eye puff. If you have issues with MSG be sure to ask them to omit it...I forgot!

Was expecting better.

by lbn13 at Citysearch

Below average dining event.

As always, even though there were plenty of tables in the restaurant, we sat at the bar - first, bad idea. We sat down to an abrupt "are you going to be ordering food?" by the female bartender who, once we said yes, was outwardly embarrassed of how she greeted questioning us. We were rushed into ordering because "the kitchen is busy" and we should order all at once. When we finally did, the food came out in a better/faster than average time.

The food was fine.

During our time, we requested the TV be changed to something other than CNN to which we were given the remote control. Continuously through out the night the wait staff would come back behind the bar to drop off used glasses which I found strange and distracting. The bartender seemed very uncomfortable in her position and was getting more and more flustered as the evening went on. She and another female server were obviously frustrated by events in the restaurant as they were speaking angrily to each other in Japanese (assumed), which I found uncomfortable and rude.

With all that said, I'm glad we went and maybe it's our own fault for sitting at the bar and not inside the restaurant which was very nice - but if they do not want people at the bar, they shouldn't have one.

Has improved tremendously

by Backbay at Citysearch

I enjoyed lunch there today and hadn't been for about a year. I was surprised at all the smiling faces on the Servers. The food was excellent. The restaurant was busy; however, people were being seated without reservations. Prices are reasonable.

I don't understand why Boston will not issue full bar licenses to restaurants. All they can serve are wine, beer and weak cordial cocktails. No straight hard liquor. It doesn't make sense.

• Pros: Food, service, cleanliness
• Cons: Boston will not issue a full liquor license.

I would like a plate of everything

by Meghan Christine , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

Fantastic sushi. If you are in the Beacon Hill area, hands down best sushi around. From the outside it looks fancy - which bodes well two ways, first off you get go in dressed casual for a low key dinner with friends, but the flipside also is true - makes a great date location - and you can dress up as much as you want and still feel neither dressed up or dressed down.

Onto the food. If you are a philly roll fan like myself - it is the best I have ever had - the salmon is on the outside with avocado and cream cheese inside.

Other rolls to try:

-rainbow roll**** soooooo good

-fuji roll

-calamari roll

-eel tempura (cooked eel form of philly roll) *little heavy on the tempura but if you peel some off it tastes better. b

• Pros: best philadelphia roll
• Cons: slightly on the pricey side

Ma Soba - Great sushi, Standard atmosphere

by juliacantor , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

Ma Soba is a nice Japanese restaurant on Beacon Hill close to Charles/MGH. It has oodles of choices, ranging from rice, noodle, veggie, and meat dishes to an extensive sushi/maki roll menu. I've gone in small groups and everyone has always enjoyed their meals. My friends have tried miso soup, salad, entrees, veggie shumai, and numerous maki rolls; all have been excellent. Recently I tried spicy salmon, lobster, and crunch dragon rolls... all were delicious and true works of art! They tasted very fresh. While there weren't many other patrons at the restaurant, I still think very highly of it and would definitely go back.

• Pros: Many dinner choices
• Cons: Standard restaurant