This was our first time at the Sushi Bar and it didn't disappoint. The sushi was sure of the best we have ever had, and the staff was very friendly and welcoming. We enjoyed 17 servings 16 of sushi and 1 as dessert. At the end they let us revisit any dishes and also explained some off the menu dishes.I would highly recommend this for anyone who is a connoisseur of sushi and would like to experience it in an intimate setting with 10 other people.
They do flavoring very well complementing the fish with new unique flavors. However, if you are looking for a traditional sushi place, this isn't it.Features: None
Amazing sushi. 17 courses has a Michelin star now and with the house pairing of drinks ($65) except to pay around $200/person. No chopsticks, they give you a warm towel to use to wash your hands between courses.Highly recommend it!
My wife and I came here a couple weeks ago on our honeymoon and we were blown away. We did a 2 week food and wine tour of Cali starting from Santa Monica and ended in Napa. This was close to our top spot, and we did The French Laundry thing. Couldnt have been happier with the host, the chef's interactions, and the sushi was just incredible. Hard to get fresher Santa Barbara Uni than in Santa Barbara.Can't recommend enough.
This was a fantastic experience and an amazing meal. The flavors from start to finish are phenomenal, the rice is perfectly seasoned, and the ingredients are top notch. If you are wondering if it's worth it, the answer is yes. Thank you for a wonderful evening!
Hands down the most spectacular omakase experience that I’ve had. The seventeen piece experience is simply amazing. The house (drink) pairing made for a perfect complement, and was quite generous.
Omg this was the best omakase we’ve had so far (out of NYC, Bay Area, and Seattle). The whole experience is impeccable. Too bad we live out of town. We are already talking about making more trips down here just for sushi.
Made a reservation for this two star Michelin restaurant. The omakase consisted of about ~10 nigiris and dessert. (Some people in other reviews say it was 17 items, I can't recall having that many items (maybe because I did sake pairing) definitely not 17 sushi nigiris) I got the sake pairing for 110$ and the person coming with me got the wine/sake/beer pairing for $60. Omakase is about a $100 per person, so the total plus tax plus tip goes high! Amazing sushi and sake and service. After 8 sushi pieces and $500 we left quite hungry and convinced ourselves it was worth doing it once in a lifetime. We went for ice cream and McDonald's afterwards as we didn't feel like spending more than $10 on more food. Would recommend the place for any $u$hi lover.
I should clarify that this rating is in the context of the price we paid for the restaurant. If this was a $100 meal, it would have been, perhaps, a four star meal with some minor complaints (with tip and no add-ons, we paid about $360 for two). Further, because this is a Michelin star restaurant, the experience should be on par with the food.I am definitely less wealthy than the average Montecito resident and from the clientele that is being served in general by this restaurant; after attending, it is clear that I am not the target market here. However, I am very familiar with Japanese food and have eaten at a few Michelin star restaurants, including omakase sushi restaurants in Japan (all very special occasion foods for us) which were mind-blowingly amazing and worth every cent. It is impossible to not compare Sushi Bar Montecito to Michelin-star omakase sushi we have had, and, unfortunately, the former fell short on absolutely every metric.We were greeted in the relatively unappealing lobby of the Montecito Inn, where they were clearly trying to ensure that all members of the seating arrived at the same time. They served drinks (nonalcoholic available), which were fine (but overly sweet) but were not served elegantly and were spilled on the table in every pour we received.We were seated about 15 minutes after our reservation. You are seated at the sushi bar, which is L-shaped such that a percentage of people seated cannot view the food being prepared. It’s a very chatty setting, which is a very American presentation of omakase.I wasn’t quite aware of how corporate this restaurant was— it’s a part of a restaurant group that owns a range of properties and appears to have priorities in line with this. I don’t want to include identifying information for fear of getting employees in trouble but I came away with the strong impression that the folks working were not particularly interested in either this location or in sushi in general and that corporate structuring was the driving force behind who was there and why and that employees did not have much choice where they were located or what cuisine they were serving. This is not a complaint about the folks making our food but rather about the ownership and managerial style.We were served 17 courses including dessert. Our food was delicious. I do not drink alcohol and thus did not do a wine or sake pairing, which meant that we were having the alcohol announced and described alongside the food even though we were not consuming it, which felt like an inelegant solution in this situation. (I should note that I could have paid for a mocktail pairing.)It is unusual for me to have a restaurant experience where I feel that the parties around me affect my experience so substantially, but that was definitely the case here. If nearby people are unpleasant, it will make a noticeable difference in your meal experience. This is not the fault of the restaurant per se, but was really stark in our visit. We may have experienced things differently in a different group.Finally, the thing that left the most substantial bad taste in my mouth, personally, was the end, when we were asked if we wanted to pay additional money for additional courses, which ultimately left us as the only people in the restaurant sitting there, ignored and doing nothing, while more wealthy people ate. It left the entire meal on a sour point. I imagine there is little reason for the restaurant to change this practice— they clearly did make a buttload of money during this period of time and our obviously wealthy dining partners appeared unbothered. But it felt crass, contrary to the concept of omakase, and extremely money-centric right at the end of our meal. I feel that it is unacceptable for a Michelin star meal to leave you feeling left out and like you don’t belong at the table, which is how we experienced this. The food was not good enough to justify this experience at this price point.I would recommend this restaurant to people with more money than sense.
Worth the money and waitlist for reservations! Wonderful hand crafted Pre Fix menu of sushi with 17 items, wine or sake pairing additional. It was such a wonderful experience with high quality sushi. The seating area is very intimate and you get to know the other parties you are sat with. Honestly, I would say it is a must experience when visiting Montecito, especially now with their Michelin Star!