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In today’s review… we’ll cover the Georgetown sushi showpiece that promises luxe with extra opulence on top.

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The Ratings

Our simple & honest checklist covers a restaurant’s key ingredients:
Ambiance, Service, and Food.

9/10

Kyojin is hard to come across if you don’t venture off the main roads. If you don’t know about it, then you probably haven’t been adventurous enough — just kidding — but, do go explore this little hideaway. Kyojin is located in Georgetown’s Cady’s Alley, somehow finding itself situated in the center of a bunch of high-end furniture and lighting stores. If you make your way around all the elegant home upgrade ideas, the restaurant can be found in the back alley and built underneath these shops, which almost gives it a cave-like feeling.

Now, depending on the time of your arrival, and, more importantly, the day of the week when you have your reservation, this sushi spot goes from being an over-the-top-sushi-extravaganza to an EDM-disco-party-cocktail-hour-sushi-lavishness.

From a spectacular interior design with hand painting murals and kimono seats and a layout that resembles an underground private lair for sushi show-offs, Kyojin is bustling with all kinds of affluent Washingtonians and tourists.

The restaurant is only open for dinner every day of the week, starting at 5PM and closing its doors at 2AM on Fridays and Saturdays… or should we say Saturday and Sunday mornings. Let’s just say, if you just want to experience the food and not all of the craziness, do come on a Sunday through Wednesday. Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays are for the more party-goer types, and please note that on those days, after 9PM, those under 21 will be shown the door — politely, of course. Kyojin is quite the scene (prior to the restaurant’s opening, the space literally used to be a nightclub!), so plan accordingly.

7.5/10

Good stuff. Just know that Kyojin is going for that more party-type of atmosphere, which only gets emphasized depending on when you’re dining. So beware if the waitresses are a little too flirty and a little too much in your personal bubble for your liking. Yes, we sound like senior citizens — ha ha, but hey, this is worth the heads up.

While the food comes out decently quick (and your money leaves your pocket even faster), getting waitstaff to stop half-flirting with another customer so you can order another dish may take some time. After all, when each bite here costs dozens of dollars, we suppose waitstaff “rizzing up” customers for a larger tip isn’t the worst idea.

8/10

Bling. Bling. Sparkle!

Lights. Camera. Action!

You want the feeling of driving up to the red carpet in a Rolls Royce Droptail.

You’re looking to purchase [insert the most expensive Japanese ingredients, all stacked on top of one another, for no other reason than having the ability to say you’ve eaten them all in one bite.]

Imagine: chu toro nigiri with a generous covering of uni, scoops of caviar, foie gras, and endless 24k gold leaves. That’s basically Kyojin.

Sounds… like a lot. But look, it’s actually… quite yummy!

So, while, yes — you will be breaking the bank at Kyojin, the high quality ingredients make the splurge acceptable and totally fun for a great night out.

When you visit Kyojin, here are some dining tips:

In the Cold Small Plates section, do go for the Avocado Salad, if you’re an avocado lover, as this is such a great way to kick off your meal with lots of big chunks of avocado dazzled in either a tataki or pink ginger dressing. You can pair that with the Hot Small Plates section’s Kyojin Signature Bun that has A-5 Wagyu beef in it.

Next, you’ll come across the Custom Signature Dishes section. In essence, pick your choice of fish and the presentation you’d like (tataki, carpaccio, etc). Then, plop foie gras or uni on top, and add that 24k gold sprinkle.

As you flip the menu to the Signature Dishes portion, The Winner — a tower built with a foundation of sushi rice, layered with barbecued eel, topped with seared foie gras, bluefin tuna, french caviar, truffle oil… and black bamboo salt — is the obvious selection to try out. Friendly reminder though, even though this dish costs $30, it’s small.

Afterwards, as you make your way to the Signature Rolls, the Spicy Toro with Uni — a four piece roll filled with toro, sweet garlic ponzu and chili yuzu sauce and stacked with Hokkaido uni — make for some juicy bites.

If you want to finish out your meal with simpler nigiri or sashimi, you can do that too. We sampled some Yellowtail, Maguro, Unagi, and Salmon Nigiri — all of great quality, but nothing to be beyond ecstatic about.

Lastly, explore, have fun, and know that your wallet already belongs to the restaurant the moment you walked through their doors. See you on the other side of sushi-palooza!

Reservation & Menu: