ma soba

05/05/09

OK restaurant

by JDD

We came in to have lunch and we were starving. We ordered real fast and when we saw the food we could not believe they were that little. We had to order more, The food is OK, but the portion is too small. The price is too high for that little portion. However, we like the location and it's clean

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Price

01/15/09

I Liked it and I'm Not a Fan of Sushi

by UncommonMan

My girlfriend and I went to Ma Soba on a cold Wednesday night. She loves sushi but I have been avoiding it. That said the food was excellent. As I said it was a cold night and thankfully we were seated in a warm spot away from the windows. The waitress was very friendly and did not make me feel awkward because I didn't have a clue what to order. She was very helpful and made sugestions after we made a few initial choices. We ordered the Dinamite appetizer. Although I didn't know what it was it sounded different. For dinner we ordered a California roll (so that my girlfriend could compare it to others she's had), Rainbow roll (raw fish), Volcano Roll (baked roll with dinamite on top) and one other that I forget the name. For fun we ordered sea urchin sushi as well. The fish was very fresh, not fishy tasting at all. The rolls were tight, the fish was firm and quite a bit more flavorful than I expected. The only down side was that the dinamite appetizer arrived just about the same time as the rolls. Overall the meal was a positive experience, I would recommend this restaurant to my friends and I would eat here again.

• Pros: Service, fresh food

11/18/08

Fresh and Unique

by yuki0113

One of my friends recommended me this sushi place, so she brought me here Saturday night, and I feel like I wanted to write this review and recommend this to everyone else too. The restaurant itself is very nice, which also includes the atmosphere and music, and they've got good service too. Most importantly, I love their special rolls. They've got some of their own unique special sushi rolls you can't find anywhere else. This sushi place fits for you if you're really looking for fresh fish and good sushi rolls. I had a great experience here. I really like here and recommend everybody to try.

• Pros: fresh sushi, good service
• Cons: waiting line

08/03/08

TERRIBLE DELIVERY

by mengjiejl

i have not been to the place itself but the delivery is unbelievably horrifying. i placed an order at 830 on a sunday night. i called at 9 15 asking if they had my number etc and they were like it should be there, ,it is on it's way. no kidding. it's on it's way it's only been 45 minutes on a sunday night. so then i call back at 10 pm when im STILL waiting for this food and i ask them do i get some kind of compensation for soggy sushi and cold dumplings> and they said they do not give discounts (after being put on hold while listening to faint cantonese in the background. terrible experience. if this is Ma Soba management reading this, please get some new people in charge. jesus christ.

• Pros: cool menu
• Cons: terrible management

08/01/08

Beacon Hill restaurant rolls some of downtown's freshest and most innovative sushi.

by Eric Grossman

In Short
Area residents and nearby hospital workers fill Ma Soba's airy, multi-tiered dining room to satisfy their sushi hankerings. While the restaurant offers above-average interpretations of familiar Asian favorites (cloyingly sweet pad Thai, savory Bulgogi), it stands out for its innovative sushi offerings. Around 50 different rolls are available, including offbeat varieties like the "disco shrimp" (baked shrimp and scallop atop spicy crab) and "ninja" (albacore tempura, crab and avocado).

07/31/08

Bad service, bad sushi, worse management. Ruined our 30th Anniversary Dinner...

by rayrassi

On July 15th I was celebrating my 30th anniversary and had in mind to take my wife, sons, their wives, my mother and sister to Ma Soba. I chose Ma Soba because of the reviews and ratings I saw online and because it was relatively close to the Blue Man Group show which was next in the agenda. I made my reservation for 6PM and explained to the person taking the reservation that this was an important event in my family. I trusted everything would be OK. First the server took forever to come to our table and ask if we needed anything despite the fact we were one of the largest tables that night (10 people), I literally had to get out of my seat to ask for help because waiter after waiter they kept passing by our table and never offered help. Finally someone came up (Name was stated as "Goeun" in the bill) and asked if we needed anything. We had nothing! Finally she took our order for appetizers and drinks and again I had to get up and ask about our service since no one came to bring the stuff we asked for. When I got up I then saw some movement and conversation among the wait staff and our miso soup arrived and the drinks. Needless to say the miso soup was cold and the beers warm. It took forever to serve the food and sushi boat and finally when it came the sushi did not feel or taste fresh. All of this without the customary smiles and hospitalities one expects when waited on in a nice restaurant. Finally we were whacked with a 18% mandatory tip which did not allow us to show how displeased we were. What should have been a perfect night was ruined. Today I took the time to call the restaurant and apparently spoke with Yun (Manager?) and Lina (Owner?). Both offered apologies and asked us to come back so they could provide better service. I thought they were kidding. They did not offer anything complimentary or any refund. I was appalled! Never again!

• Pros: Located downtown
• Cons: Service, sushi quality, lack of empathy by management,

06/22/08

What's wrong with the rice???

by yomoma724

They used basmati rice instead of sushi rice, and it was clear they didn't even bother adding rice vinegar to it! Ridiculous, who do they think they're fooling! On the other hand, f I was only rating the sashimi, I'd give it 3 stars... Needless to say, trying to cut corners by using cheap long-grain rice is unacceptable, never again.

• Pros: Atmosphere
• Cons: Food, service, rice

12/21/07

Disappointing! Avoid this joint if you know your raw fish!!

by foodaddict39

I consider myself as a pundit when it comes to Japanese cuisine. Tonight was my first time at Ma Soba and let's just say after paying $100 for just food for 2 people, I was horrendously letdown. Service between average and a tad below average. Portions are small for the price but apparently Ma Soba thought they could make it up by piling each roll up with rice. Restaurant had both mango and avacado but refused to make mango-avacado roll on the spot for a first-time vegetarian guest. Sweet shrimp hand roll had two pieces of shrimp and more rice than a rice ball plus the seaweed tasted rubbery and old. Uni was not fresh at all. The pieces of sushi were cut unevenly. Overall, there's no real skill in sushi preparation. If you're looking for great and authentic sushi bar offerings, do not waste your time here. Even if money is not an issue for you, you should not squander your pretty pennies here. It's just not worth it. FYI, the soy sauce is extremely salty and the wasabi tasted like the kind made with powder. Edamame comes in a small wooden basket that is only good for max 2 people --- if you're only interested in about 12 edamame each. I'm disappointed with the quality of the food. I don't mind the price, but for the price I paid, I felt like I was not getting my money's worth in both quality and quantity. The one thing that I could not complain about was the miso soup. DO NOT order the vegetable dumplings, it's just not worth while. Most importantly, the Baked Lobster Roll tonight tasted not like lobster at all but crawfish. I don't know how Ma Soba made it to the top 10!

• Pros: Ambience
• Cons: The food!

12/19/07

Can't believe it kicked Ginza's butt

by k1peters

Look, I love Ginza. I LOVE Fugakyu. But there was something just impeccable about the sushi I had last night that i actually felt compelled to write a review. This was, by far, the freshest raw fish I've ever eaten...and I've done my share of sushi joints in Boston. I must say I wasn't a huge fan of the combinations of ingredients in the specialty rolls, but oh my LORD, the fish was DELICIOUS. My white tuna just melted in my mouth; the salmon was so buttery I almost went to heaven, and the veggies were fresh. What a treat!!!

• Pros: Freshest seasfood in Boston; great cheap price
• Cons: Initial slow service (for a Tuesday); all the food came out at once

12/01/07

Great Sushi

by sunshine1985

Amazing sushi. Nice resturant and great service. A little on the expensive side, but definately worth it!