Rain Japanese Restaurant & Sushi

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#104 of 789 Restaurants in St. Petersburg$$ - $$$, Japanese, Sushi, Vegetarian friendly

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Ratings and reviews

4.5

55 reviews

#104 of 789 Restaurants in St. Petersburg

RATINGS

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Service

Value

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CUISINES

Japanese, Sushi, Asian

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

features

Location and contact

5267 Park St N, St. Petersburg, FL 33709-1011

+1 727-545-1781

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Is this a sushi restaurant?

Yes

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CUISINES

Japanese, Sushi, Asian

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

FEATURES

Takeout, Reservations, Seating, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Table Service

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4.5

55 reviews

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MonsieurPamplemousse

145 contributions

Consistently amazing

Apr 2020 • none

We eat (now take-out) at least every other week, so by Trip Advisor guidelines, I could write 26 reviews a year. I'll stick to one. Amazing sushi, excellent Thai food. Couldn't ask for better.

Written April 15, 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jonathan T S

St. Petersburg6 contributions

Almost 5 stars

Feb 2024 • solo

Nice venue, friendly staff, nice menu. Sushi was good, top-quality fish, generous portions, specialty rolls were a bit more innovative than most, tastefully prepared and well balanced. Only complaint is that the shari (sushi rice) was far too soft and tightly compacted, also not well flavored. Fix that, and this place would be one of the best in town for sushi.

Written February 18, 2024

Business

39 contributions

Rain Japanese and Sushi

Jan 2022 • none

The food and atmosphere was excellent. We were having a blast until my friend looked up and saw exposed insulation and busted out ceiling tiles! Gross! We will not return until someone indicates this has been repaired as this is a health hazard. Who wants insulation in their food? Please, please fix.

Written January 5, 2022

LaBoricua87

St. Petersburg787 contributions

Disappointingly mild

Aug 2022 • couples

Oh man, we REEEEALLY wanted to love their food. Presentation was fantastic and the menu is full of creative, seemingly bold-flavored rolls and entrees. After a bite however, they fell flat :( I ordered the stalker roll, which supposedly has spicy crawfish inside with smelt roe and scallions, covered on top with tuna, salmon, and spicy teriyaki sauce and wasabi mayo. Once you read this description, you are expecting a bold, spicy explosion of flavors in your mouth. However, once I tasted... this happened to be one of the mildest rolls I've ever had. Just a tiny zing after putting almost the entire sidr serving of wasabi on top of the other 2 presumably spicy toppings.i had to dip it in gochujang sauce and spicy chili sauce that I had at home to have some flavor. Also, couldn't taste the smelt roe? Either nonexistent or such tiny sprinkle inside I couldn't taste it. My husband had the house special fried rice. It came with huge chunks of chicken, beef, shrimp, and many other ingredients, which made it look GREAT. But then again, after you taste it, it really is nothing to write home about. We were respecting way more flavor and everything seemed way too mild. Maybe most positive reviews are dated. Rain should really take note of their older reviews and make their dishes BOLD again! Please! With your amazing- looking menu, there's so much potential!

Written August 2, 2022

bluejeans727

St. Petersburg20 contributions

Changes?

Oct 2021 • friends

Have been going here for years as is usually our favorite Thai/sushi restaurant. Not sure if it has changed owners, but changes in the menu are not for the best. Used to love salad with peanut dressing, but now so thin and little taste. Vegetables still crisp so not all bad. Service was slow but maybe because the restaurant was full. Maybe more than 3 servers needed on Friday night. Sushi was still good. Will be a while before we go back though as an hour and half dinner is not what we expected

Written October 9, 2021

amarie7410

Seminole12 contributions

Best Japanese restaurant in St. Petersburg!

Aug 2024 • friends

My friend loves the sushi in this restaurant and has been coming for many years. I love; the soft shell crab and wonderful vegetables that come with it. The staff is friendly and helpful and they make everyone feel at home.

Written September 19, 2024

Dan Y

5 contributions

Good sushi

Oct 2023 • couples

Sushi very fresh ,heavier cuts of fish, great ,service okay owner friendly clean place,got a recommendation from our local

Written October 1, 2023

RON

Cliffside Park315 contributions

A Place of Tokyo in St. Petersburg FL

Feb 2023 • none

Having lived in Tokyo many years ago we fell in love with the city, the people and the country. It was wonderful. We learned to do everything in Japanese. Including the way we learned to eat. And that was whether we ate in our home or went out for a meal over the weekend. So finding a place here in St. Petersburg was not easy. Especially if you want to find something close to what you would have in Tokyo. Welcome to RAIN Japanese Sushi Bar & Thai. It is unexpected. You might drive by the location and not think twice. It is small and in a strip mall. But stop and park. Open the door and you step into a place that is not fancy but more Japanese in concept. There is a sushi bar you can sit at. There are tables and a team that can help you. It is all there as they hand you two different menus. One is pure Japanese. The other is Thai. It is your choice here, which is ideal for people who visit and do not know what they might want. But it is here. As you look through the menus you can always have a beverage to start with. There are Japanese beers, wines, softdrinks, and even tea. It is up to you. We placed our starter items while we considered the next course. We received our typical Edamame and Fried Tofu. They were both warm and fresh. The edamame came in a good size bowl. It was warm and topped with salt. Very much like what you have in Tokyo. The tofu was cut into slices that were in a dip of soy sauce and onions. It was crisp and moist. Had the right flavor. It was as you would expect. Next we placed our order as we enjoyed the appetizers selected. We also asked for our chop sticks since we use those when in these establishments. It is a habit. As we enjoyed this course the crowd came in. What was empty when we arrived, within 30 minutes all tables were taken. There were people sitting at the bar watching the chefs slice the fish and make the entrees for the guests. Whether it was sushi, sashimi, or rolls, the chefs were busy creating something good. The next course up was the salad and miso soup, Very typical here. The salad was topped with ginger sauce. This was very fresh and had texture. With some little onions it added to the flavor and freshness before you had the main course. As for the Miso soup, it had some tofu inside. There was a piece of nori and some scallions. The soup was warm and fresh. Just the right flavor expected. Again,having lived in Japan I do enjoy it the way you would in Japan. I drink it. No spoon. You stir with your chopstick and then drink. That is all. Like having a warm tea before you start the meal ahead. Then the entrees arrived. We had a Chef's Special. This is actually where you do not know what you will receive. You know it is sushi. And there are several portions of this. You also have several pieces of sashimi. This is followed by a Tuna roll and then a reversed Shrimp roll. A good combination for each other that compliments each other. For the sushi you will have tuna, and salmon, and mackerel, and cod, and sea bream. There is even some golden eye snapper. It is all fresh and thinly sliced. That is the way it should be. There is no other flavor. You can dip in the soy sauce, maybe add a little wasabi, and take a bite. That is all. It tasted ideal. The one bite, which is all you need, was perfect to the taste. As for the sashimi, it followed the same course, but without the rise the sushi is placed on. The slices of fish were a little bigger. The fish was fresh and at room temperature. Not cold. The rolls were ideal. Everyone likes tuna rolls and this was perfect. All wrapped in the nori sheet that is fresh and has a taste that compliments the tuna and rice inside. It is very typical for many Japanese restaurants, but here it is authentic once more. Again, no additional additions. The shrimp roll had a little extra flavor of ginger and was heated a little. There was fried shrimp inside each piece. A meal to itself. For the other entree it was similar in style. Sushi Jo. This time it was all 10 pieces of sushi. And, in true style, you started with the heavier pieces and worked to the lighter ones. It is the same arrangement of fish for this dish. Even the tuna roll was the same in size and format. The most important part is that it was all fresh. This was the fish of the day. In a true Japanese restaurant you never truly know what fish you might have. It is whatever fish was fresh that day and prepared for enjoyment. This is how you have it in Japan. This is how you had it here. On this occasion they brought over to guests a special dessert. It looked like a small piece of green cake. Very different. It was actually a cake that was made of nori and miso. It was light and delicate. Have a mild taste. It was not heavy or had a strong flavor. It was perfect after a meal of fish we had. Overall, RAIN Japanese Sushi Bar & Thai was a new experience to walk into. Unless you know of them you would just pass it by. But by going in we found a place that was home. Domo.

Written February 17, 2023

David O

Seminole9 contributions

Third visit here. Excellent Thai and Japanese.

Feb 2020 • couples

Excellent food and atmosphere, very friendly and helpful staff. Hard to find in small strip center, but worth the effirt.

Written February 11, 2020

Arden S

Dublin54 contributions

Great Sushi

Oct 2019 • none

This restaurant has great sushi in a strip mall. The food was fresh, the owner was preparing it. The server was knowledgeable. There is a sushi restaurant on very corner but this one stands out and we will definitely return.

Written October 31, 2019