Greetings, Ballard! I'd like to take a moment to tip my hat to the masterminds behind the construction, concept, and organization of this restaurant: the owners. I'd like to think that the majority of city dwellers support local businesses, especially when so many corporations are flooding our neighborhoods and cramping our creative spirit. I, for one, support the "audacious", the people that devote their labored efforts in an effort to build something with so much unyielding heart and travail without a monetary guarantee. I've physically-seen the stages of this restaurant change and mold into something beautiful and warm. I enjoy everyone at my place of work; we've all become something similar to family in such a short amount of time. Not only did Kevin and Tracy select such a strong team, but we are grateful for their support throughout our nightly shifts. I've dined at Bricco [their other Queen Anne restaurant/wine bar] and it is JUST as consistant. In such an economy, this restaurant is such a grand success and I am thrilled that Ballard has welcomed it with open arms. I am grateful to be there and I am also grateful that I am able to serve those that dine at Moshi! Thank you all for supporting!

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted."

Had dinner there for the second time last night. The nigiri was perfectly cut and fresh, and the rice held up very well. The rolls were good but not amazing. Had a few cocktails including the Angel Share and think I've found my favorite drink. Atmosphere is great and I think it's the best sushi of Ballard, although that's not a hard mark to earn.

We went to dinner at Moshi Moshi last night, and I don't know what all you are raving about! The sushi rolls are wet, they don't have the rice down. The drinks are an inch short of regular portions. The service was slow, and inattentive, letting cocktails linger at empty for far too long, and it took many requests to get even place settings...The waitresses did have time to primp in the bathroom, and chat up how they were looking though. Overall the food is not so hot. On the upside the tree is cool.

Our meal was delicious tonight. We had the medium sized omakase for $38. The prices are $30 for a small and $50 for a large. We ordered many other items besides the omakase and went home very pleased with the quality and service. I'll be back often.

I have been waiting for this place to open and am excited to try it out!!!
I heard they got thier heating issue fixed and are putting up a curtain in the entryway (soon) to stop the cold from coming in so much upon entry.
Cant wait to try Moshi Moshi out this Friday for happy hour... plus, they use most places "top shelf" alcohol for the "well" drinks!!!

adam--what was the bill for your omakase?

I went Saturday and thought it was pretty damn good. I planned to get there early, about 5pm, and get omakase. I sat at the bar and they handed me the happy hour menu. I didn't want any of that and said I came for omakase. The chefs said they couldn't do that until happy hour was over!? So I got up and said I'd come back in an hour. The manager, I presume, quickly came over and asked what the problem was and I explained. She told the chefs they could serve the dinner menu and I sat back down. Ordered omakase and several glases of sake and had a delicious meal.

Despite a down economy & pricier menu, Moshi Moshi will definitely find a loyal following (Ballardites & non) and much success. Everything from the service and decor to the food and drinks were stellar! We especially loved any dish with the seared scallops - they were high quality and made to perfection! The cocktails also offer some daring choices - some made with egg yoke - but they proved to be delicious.

LOVED it! The nigiri and sashimi were melt in your mouth fantastic and the amberjack was a show stopper. Fun atmosphere with TALL ceilings and lots of windows (i agree with the comments here on Shiku, too "trendy" and a dark hole-in-the-wall with the flickering light from a tv) and Moshi's tree..well the tree is mezmerizing. On the downside, there's a draft everytime the door opens but the waiter said they're working on it). Looking fwd to O-Shan, the new sushi place opening in the Austin Cantina spot and Sam's Sushi well, Sam's is crossed off my list.

The Toro was $5.00 per piece and was really not remarkable in any sense- and I do like Toro. I am a fan of the spicy tuna roll which was excellent once I removed the cucumber. For whatever reason, I hate cucumber (wish I didn't have this aversion, it seems like it should be a delightful vegetable).

Went there tonight. Everybody there was VERY nice. Lots of people coming by to check on us. Waitress came to the table right way. While there were couple mixups, the overall experience was better than most restaurants. The sushi and sashimi was good but not great. It was nice to NOT have a TV in the dining room. I will certainly try them again but with four sushi restaurants in Ballard, it might be while.

I agree that shiku place looks lame. Fedoras? Why?Maybe they will relocate to belltown or bellvue.

We went for dinner last night, and while the Specialty Cocktails were a bit pricey and small, they were delicious and very unique.
The food was absolutely fabulous. Everything was so delicious, it made me want to eat five more orders of everything we had. However, after an order of clams, age dashi tofu, miso, california roll, moshi moshi roll, and a couple of types of nigiri (this is between two people) I left feeling very satisfied without being stuffed full or heavy.
I will definitely go back.

Tried Shiku - will not bother again. The place tries too hard to appeal to the dreaded urbanhipster... from the stupid fedoras (see above) to the "nouveau twist" on traditional sushi to a damn TV. This place is totally Belltown. Obviously I'm not the demographic they are aiming for - but I prefer a mellow atmosphere with high quality traditional sushi.

Haven't tried Moshi Moshi yet... but if you're looking for late night happy hour sushi and sake, try Shiku, which is just a few steps from there - http://www.shikusushi.com/happyhour.html

Just came from dinner - and really enjoyed it. Started with the Happy Hour menu - good food at ridiculous prices. They could bump the prices by half again as much and it would still be a great happy hour. Stayed through for real dinner and everything was pretty great. Very fresh and wonderfully simple clean tastes. Waitstaff still finding their pace but all were friendly and approachable. Definitely going back...

Decor simple and lovely - obviously the cherry tree is a delight. No gimmicks (stupid fedoras) and no T.V. (hurray!)

We ended up here for happy hour. Only tried a few items on the happy hour menu, overall it was fine. Didn't enjoy the nanbanzuke so much, but the seafood was all right. Obviously fresh as it was the first day.

We left early due to the atmosphere, it seemed rather incomplete and still under construction (not only due to the "new wood" smell). It seemed strange that there were decorations on one wall and nothing on the rest - not sure if this was deliberate but it made me think they "ran out" of parasols. Staff was friendly.

Wouldn't mind trying in another few weeks once everything "melds" together and they establish a firmer rhythm and ambience.

Oops, sorry, I spelled the name of the restaurant incorrectly twice.

Because of this post, I ended up moving my birthday dinner to Mushi Mushi at the last minute. They were able to seat all 8 of us and the staff was very friendly and helpful. They dealt with one of my friends' needs related to a shellfish allergy in a very attentive and professional way - making sure to understand what she could not eat and communicating that clearly to the chef. And by the end of the night it seemed that every staff member in the entire restaurant had wished me happy birthday!

It's definitely a bit of a "splurge night" place, with chic modern decor, a beautiful cherry-tree-in-lights sculpture as a centerpiece, and no under-21's allowed. The drinks are pricey and creative, if a bit small. The quality of the fish is quite high - try the grilled Arctic Char, the sockeye salmon sushi, and the eel and avocado roll. The house tofu appetizer is a beautifully presented and unfamiliar treat.

All in all, Mushi Mushi is a classy and exciting addition to Ballard Avenue.

I wandered by last night with some friends and ended up going in and having a great dinner, with great happy hour prices on food! Everything was really good (food and service) and I too loved the beautiful cherry tree. This is definitely more of a "shi shi" place, so we'll continue to go to Sam's for family-sushi nights.

we just came from there and it was truly delicious. spendy, but we came away full. it won't replace sam's as my regular sushi fix, but it's a great place for a "nice" sushi dinner without parents feeding their children under the tables. i didn't think the cocktails were that special for $8 a piece, but we only had 2 before we switched to sake. the fish, however, was top drawer.
and the lighted cherry tree is really amazing. overall, 2 thumbs up.

We asked about lunch last night and they said they are hoping to extend their hours to include lunch in a few months.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!

Nope, it's still on, just emailed them.

"M-TH starts at 10pm, Fri and Sat starts at 11pm"

Just a website oops.

Bummer! Looks like they are down to one early happy hour! They initially had a late night one on their website from 10:30-12:00.

I'm sure I'll still make my way over however...

Why can't they be open for lunch?