Torikaya

Reviews

• CM

  Catherine Margaret

  2 days ago
  5.0
  If there was a way to give this place more than 5 stars we would. The quality of the food was incredible, everything we ordered was delicious and fresh, and the cost left us feeling just as satisfied as the food. Portions were perfect to not feel like we were overpaying but also not make us feel like we were over eating either. Derek was an incredibly pleasant server and we will with, 100% certainty, be back, with friends, as often as we can!
• LF

  Lorraine Forman

  4 days ago
  5.0
  We visited for the first time last evening, and it was an outstanding experience. The staff were friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive from start to finish. A special shoutout to Ava and Tyler, who made our evening even more enjoyable. The yakitori was incredible. We ordered the tenderloin, chicken thighs, and crusted salmon, and every skewer was perfectly cooked and full of flavor. We also shared a fresh, delicious Caesar salad. The sushi rolls were especially unique—almost like tacos, with nigiri-style rice forming the "shell." They were incredibly fresh and bursting with flavor. We also enjoyed the grilled pork chop with broccolini, which was cooked to perfection. By the end of our meal, we were debating whether to order dessert when Tyler, the manager, suggested the cornbread. We're so glad he did. It was crispy on the outside, soft and crumbly on the inside, perfectly sweet, and topped with honey and a buttery pesto. Even today, I'm still craving another piece! We'll definitely be back and highly recommend this restaurant.
• MS

  Matilda Swanson

  Jun 29, 2026
  4.0
  Chattanooga is seriously lacking when it comes to elevated Japanese food, so I was genuinely excited to try Torikaya. The pez limón salmon and the toro nigiri absolutely stole the show. I’d go back for those alone. The izakaya chicken thigh, pork belly, and bacon-wrapped okra were all enjoyable, and while the hand rolls were decent, a few of them leaned a little dry. The yellowtail with seaweed salad was a miss for me, the flavors got lost in each other and ended up tasting muddy rather than balanced. Then came the tonkotsu ramen. As someone who loves ramen, this one broke my heart a little. Tonkotsu broth is famous for being rich, silky, and deeply creamy from hours of simmering pork bones. This broth was the complete opposite—thin, clear enough to see through, and lacking the signature depth and richness that make tonkotsu so comforting and craveable. I genuinely don’t know if this was an intentional reinterpretation or simply their version of it, but it didn’t resemble any tonkotsu ramen I’ve had before. The meal felt like a story with a fantastic opening and a disappointing final chapter. Even so, I left appreciating what Torikaya is trying to do because Chattanooga has so few places offering this kind of Japanese dining experience. There are definitely gems on this menu.
• SK

  Shanna Sunshine Kirby

  Jun 28, 2026
  5.0
  Beautiful atmosphere with welcoming staff from the time we walked in to the time we left. Sushi and drinks come fast. The Japanese Snapper Nigiri was hands down the best I’ve ever had. We order two rounds of it. Can’t wait to go back and try the spicy ramen. Parking didn’t bother us too much but it would be nice to validate or have any area. Certainly not a deal breaker for us. Beautiful little outside area as you walk up to the doors. I hope to see some creative seating for outdoor dining at some point. Very happy this place is in Chattanooga and look forward to visiting again.
• AA

  Aaron

  Jun 23, 2026
  2.0
  This is an overall review of the whole restaurant experience I had. The food is good but there are tons of negatives that will keep people from coming back. Tourists will come here and suck it up to pay for parking but I have a very hard time seeing locals come back after their 1st time. Negatives: - No changing table in women's bathroom. This is a very easy fix and will make parents happy. - no parking fees validation. If you want to be a legit restaurant, need to validate otherwise who wants to pay $10-$20 just to come here - small portions and very high prices - ok, so the food is genuinely good but you get extremely small portions for very high prices. You can drop $50 plus and still leave hungry. - 1% kitchen appreciation fee - this is the worst slap in the face. I don't care that it's 1% fee, this is ridiculous and most people probably don't realize this extra fee. You should have done some market research here before implementing this cause the overwhelming majority of people and locals in general probably have "tipping fatigue" to start with and then you add this and it's just not good. Just add the 1% to the menu food prices and remove this extra charge. It's like going to pay with your credit card and the merchant tells you there will be an extra fee for that. C'mon now. Most people if they knew, would not be in favor of this extra charge. Positives: -really good and tasty food. -good atmosphere -good service -I liked how the server gave us a mini tour of the kitchen/Japanese grill and discussed how the coals were imported from there. That was a nice touch Some of the stuff can be attributed to just a new restaurant opening and figuring things out. Some of this can definitely be fixed very fast to improve the experience. This place has potential but currently the negatives outweigh the positives which is the good food. If you want locals to come back over and over again, you gotta work on the negatives.

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