kanpai izakaya

sushi heaven. we have dined more than once at kanpai izakaya and have yet to be disappointed. the sushi is fresh and tasty and the seaweed salad is a spicy delight. the service was attentive and professional. we will be back soon.

i ate here before i read any reviews.  it seems that the consensus is correct, and that the food is great while the service is not.  i initially had reservations for a special “milwaukee downtown dining week” 3 course meal.  the host sat us in a booth with the regular menus.  we probably would have said something, if she had returned.   no big deal.  even average sushi is delicious, so we’ll just order from the regular menu.
     ten minutes later, after several servers had passed back and forth, it began to look like no one was coming to our table.  well, it’s probably just an unusually busy night and they’re understaffed.  no hard feelings.  we were about to leave and head to one of the many nearby restaurants… but what’s this?
     there is a button on the side of the booth to call for service.  maybe they operate like a brazilian steakhouse, where you hold up a green circle, or otherwise signal that you would like to eat?  or is this the flight attendant model, where a lit sign lets the server know that we need help?  i press the button, which lights up while you’re pressing it, but gives no other feedback to indicate that someone is on the way.
     a server shows up after a minute or two and seems to be surprised that we hit the button.  i don’t remember exactly how the conversation went, but the general message is that we were wrong.  there are buttons on the booths just in case nobody notices you.  at that point, we all sort of exchanged looks, and i’m not really sure that any of us knew what was going to happen next.  but, it seemed to be a restaurant, and we were hungry, so we ordered.
     the server was very personable, made us an excellent drink, and as far as we could tell, the poor service was through no fault of his own.  we ordered 4 pieces of sushi, and two maki rolls.  it was all delicious, and reasonably priced, though one of our maki rolls was replaced with something that was clearly not maki.  we pressed the button again, but after nobody came to fix the problem, we decided to go ahead and eat it.
     it was a weird, surreal time.  i can’t understate the absurdity of an entire row of booths equipped with an emergency “we would like to eat” button, and i can’t imagine the circumstances which led to their installation.  on the drive home, we came upon a red stoplight, which then began flashing red, then turned off completely.  i next expected to drive off a cliff, and wake up thrashing in bed.  we won’t be eating here again.

good service, water was never empty. sushi was extremely fresh and well made! roasted chicken meal was over cooked unfortunately.

worst sushi i've had. went to kanpai on a wednesday night. ordered three rolls: spicy octopus, kamikaze, and their signature roll the kanpai. first took a bite from the first two rolls (i always like to save the best for last, and i was assuming that their signature roll would be the best). when both my husband and i took our first bite of the kanpai, it was so awfully fishy that we had to spit it out. when we called the waiter and told him of the problem, he stiffened up, grabbed our plate and left. he returned with the plate less the kanpai (we now have four pieces of the other two rolls left) and set down the plate. he didn't offer an apology, he didn't offer us a menu to order another roll.

i've been to many of the sushi places here in milwaukee and the metro area, i would say avoid kanpai, there are better choices out there.

kanpai’s extensive menu features traditional sushi and sashimi along with classic and unique maki combinations and an impressive list of tapas; our generous samples focused on the creative. just think along the lines of… if i were a sushi chef, what distinctive ingredients would i add to my rolls?

tried some of the small plates. the mussels were tasty and the order was large. the miso braised pork had a nice kick to it. delicious scallops with good presentation. in terms of sushi, the spice was off. i ordered spicy crab and there was 0% spice. overall good, would return.

had a great atmosphere, but the service is a bit slow. they have pretty good sushi quality and a good selection of rolls. however some of the rolls are non typical which can be fun but some are not as good as the normal ones

not impressed. we have ordered from kanpai twice now. both times we have had carry out because we live so close. the first time was so-so. this second time, however, we were beyond unimpressed. the sushi rolls were not properly rolled and kept falling apart. the tuna looked questionable. the edamame was mushy and unsalted. the udon soup, though it had flavor, looked as though it contained leftover seafood. i recently saw an article on jsonline.com giving kanpai three stars. i would never recommend this place to anyone. we have eaten at numerous sushi places and this place doesn't even compare. we will continue to get our sushi from other milwaukee businesses.

it is clear that kanpai is trying to make a name for itself within the third ward and throughout milwaukee. as mentioned, the service and food were great. in our opinion, that is a pretty good start. we recommend giving kanpai a try.

my new favorite sushi place in milwaukee. try the typhoon sake in the cedar boxes.

wasn't impressed - i was grossed out by the tuna - not sushi grade - it was tough and chewy. everything there had a different taste all the way down to the seaweed salad. there wasn't one thing we  liked about it. i wasnt comfortable eating the raw fish served there. screaming tuna and meiji are the best.

great location with a variety of amazing rolls... it's a must try!

outstanding!. soft-open review: went last night to kampai and really enjoyed it. finally a restaurant in milwaukee w/ a great mix of asian foods, well prepared. to give it a solid run through, we picked items from across the menu. after incredible disappointment at screaming tuna and thinking that i’d never get good sushi in milwaukee, kampai’s sushi and rolls were really outstanding. tight, flavorful and fresh. the squid ceviche was really nice, but felt it would be better included in the salad portion of the menu. it was flavorful and tender; citrusy but not sour. the real standouts were the stuffed calamari and the bibimbap. the squid was so well prepared, and the stuffing was tasty enough to want to lick the plate. the bibimbap was simply sublime. served in a piping hot stone bowl, the egg and rice combined to create a crispy delight that honestly was the best i’ve ever had. i’d say even better than my trip to seoul.

the only fault was the service. the menu obviously is new to them and they need more practice in service and describing the menu. and one waiter hovered annoyingly around the owner’s table like a sycophantic gnat. but this is the soft-opening, so i’m sure it will get better w/ time. the owner did come by to ask how the food was and was very nice and honestly interested.

he said the menu was still stabilizing, but i really hope he adds a bit more variety in a couple areas. the great korean food was screaming for some kimchee sides to round out the experience. and some thai/vietnamese items would really compliment the “autumn/winter” korean/japanese flavors with some brighter, fresh tones. some crisp green papaya salad would go great, as would some lemon-grass stir fried squid.

all-in-all, i’m so happy this restaurant is in the neighborhood. and i look forward to becoming a regular.

great rolls! if you come here order a signature roll, the chef came from one of my favorite sushi restaurants in chicago called nobu. and if you come with someone who doesn't like sushi they have a full korean kitchen with great dishes. the waygu steak specifically was delicious! definitely a recommend