Review: Baku

Baku is a sushi restaurant and robata lounge in South Park, Charlotte. They offer creative rolls and hot dishes in an upscale environment. I dined here on weekend night for a birthday celebration with my family.

The Food and Drinks: 8/10

To start, my husband shared the Tatsuage Fried Chicken (Fried Japanese-style popcorn chicken, soy & sake marinated, sweet chili aioli). The texture was light and crispy, but it was a bit dry. The sauce helped to remedy this, but overall, it's not a dish that I'd order again.

As a treat, I ordered the Tuna Tasting (three cuts of bluefin tuna). These few bites alone carried my culinary experience at Baku and boosted its rating. They were impossibly fresh, soft and buttery. They were perfect on their own, but kissed with wasabi and soy sauce, they melted in my mouth. The o-toro piece was one of my favorite things I ate in 2024.

We also ordered the Shujin Salmon roll (Fresh salmon, avocado, topped with torched salmon, togarashi, serrano pepper, & spicy aioli) and the Kochujan Akami (Bluefin, gochujang, masago, scallion, & avocado topped with flash fried gluten free crispy red onions & spicy aioli). I enjoyed the Shujin Salmon a lot, especially the little bite of serrano that balanced out the richness of the fish. The Kochujan Akami was delightfully fresh, but I can't say I was a huge fan of the crispy red onions on top. It didn't let the fish shine on its own enough.

I washed everything down with a club soda with housemade simple syrup. It was fine, nice and refreshing.

The Experience: 7/10

I had somewhat of an odd experience at Baku. The menu and the servers state that "dishes will arrive in any order and are meant for sharing," which apparently means that food comes slowly and in no particular order. Our group waited quite a while between receiving dishes, and it made the dining experience feel disjointed since there was quite a lot of waiting.

Another strange aspect was the panhandlers — one coming by each table asking for cash and another parked and waiting outside — which made our group uncomfortable, though I can't say it's the fault of the restaurant. I let the staff know what was going on. It was just a weird experience.

However, the servers were helpful and did apologize for things taking as long as they did. It's the thought that counts, I suppose, and I did have a nice time overall. I liked the interior of the restaurant, dimly lit and spaced out enough so that it didn't feel like our group was overcrowded. I always enjoy restaurants like Baku with upscale ambiance.

The Value: 7/10

My favorite bite of the evening was a piece of o-toro sushi, which was one of three pieces of a $24 dish. You're paying for quality, but it isn't particularly a good deal. Another thing? Paying $8 for an impossibly simple mocktail (club soda with housemade syrup) also rubbed me the wrong way. I left fairly satisfied, but could have eaten more.

The saving grace of Baku's value is that the fish is super fresh, which is exactly what you want from a sushi restaurant. You may not leave completely full, and your check may be a shock, but you can feel confident in their quality.

Overall: 7.3/10

The food, experience and value of Baku is good, not stellar. Though a few things, like the tuna tasting, wowed me, but there were several aspects that I would offer suggestions on. If you're craving fresh sushi in an upscale environment, I'd head to their sister restaurant Yama.