SUGARFISH by sushi nozawa

My favorite sushi place in LA! It’s no frills so don’t come here if you’re looking for complicated combination rolls. Come here if you’re looking for consistently high-​quality fish at a very affordable price. They don’t take reservations so if you want to avoid a wait, come during off hours!
The service can be slow and sporadic when they get busy but other than that – no complaints! Love this place!

Im a man of many vices and Now I have a $ 200 biweekly addiction. Thanks in the most sincerest way possible.

Went here for lunch this past Friday. Had to wait for a table so I thought that was going to be a positive sign for a popular spot. My whole feeling about the place was, meh. They have the whole «trust the chef» menu which is awesome. I got the one where it was the most courses for the hungriest of eaters bc I was starving. 80% of the sushi that came out was good. The other 20% just tasted bland and had no flavor. But the worst part was that my friend and I were still really hungry after eating all the courses. (I think there was about 6?) We ordered another roll but I couldn’t eat anymore bc I had to be somewhere. The kicker was when I got the bill it was $ 90 for two people for lunch! Seriously? It’s just sushi. I’d rather go somewhere less expensive where they have all you can eat and better tasting sushi.

Sugarfish is located in a little baby plaza with about 8 parking spots. I visited right when it opened so I didn’t have an issue with parking. If you go during busier hours, it will most likely be harder to park there. I came here for a quick, light lunch before heading over to Universal Studios (super close by!!).
You can order sushi a la carte or go with their set-​course menus. If it’s your first time, I would recommend the Trust Me! It comes with some nigiri, edamame, and a hand roll. It’s a nice option since it lets you try a little bit of everything and, from what my server told me, is the most popular item. The hand rolls are a little bit different here. Instead of being cone shaped, it’s wrapped like an open ended burrito or crêpe. Super easy to easy and so yummy!
We supplemented the Trust Me with an order of the 8-​piece salmon cut roll. The roasted sesame seeds on top added such a nice extra dimension of flavor!
The service was attentive without being overbearing. I told the server it was our first time and he explained the menu well.

I ordered the ‘Trust me’. It was pretty darn tasty and I do recommend it as an easy way to sample the food.
The location is very small and very loud, so be warned. Hence why I docked a star (I dislike loud restaurants).
The service was friendly and helpful.
Don’t bother ordering a green tea — it’s just a tea bag in hot water.
I would go again, but would like to try another location.

Sugar fish is the best. I literally get cravings for this sushi. It’s not your typical Americanized sushi and california rolls. They have real simple but amazing tasting sushi and hand rolls and a few specials depending on the season. There is always a line and no reservations allowed so make sure you plan adequate time for that if you go during hight of dinner hour. There are a lot of locations and some are more busy than others, this one is one of the busy ones because it is small inside. The service is great and the staff is super friendly. The pre-​set Trust Me menus are the best. Make sure you check this spot out!

I recently went to the Studio City location with the husband and daughter for my birthday. It was one of the most perfect birthday experiences I’ve ever had! Not only is the sushi and sashimi perfect and fresh, but the service was fantastic. And, they were perfectly accommodating for my ten-​year-​old daughter!
My hubs and I shared the Nozawa. They were very nice about substituting scallops for the snapper. We also shared the split-​cut roll with lobster and blue crab, and I also had the ikura (one of my favorites). Everything was phenomenally fresh and tasted wonderful. Good seafood is supposed to taste and smell of the salty ocean air and water, and this didn’t disappoint.
Up until this weekend, my daughter only liked California rolls (with the fake crab and sans avocado! Hurumph.) It so happens that I took her to another wonderful place the day before that served Back-​East style lobster and crab rolls (think sandwiches — seafood in a roll /​bun). We discovered that she loves lobster and crab. At Sugarfish, our server told us that they could do a blue crab roll for her, where the crab is mixed with a little bit of mayonnaise. We decided to try it for her along with a little bowl of rice and strips of seaweed on the side (which my daughter loves). My daughter went nuts and wanted more! Hurray! Hopefully, we can move her to the next level of sushi soon!
Sugarfish is an amazing restaurant. Kozunori Nozawa is a master, and I was happy to be a partaker of his genius, if even for one night.

I’ve been wanting to try Sugarfish by Sushi Nozawa for such a long time. Now for those of you who like Americanize sushi with toppings and a bunch of sauces of over your sushi roll, this is not the place for you. If you are a traditionalist and love authentic sushi, this is a must.
Sugarfish by Sushi Nozawa was founded by renowned Sushi Chef Kazunori Nozawa. They are known for their Trust Me-​style sushi menu. Guests choose from three core menus called Trust Me’s, which is inspired by the traditional Japanese omakase. All of the chefs are behind the kitchen to ensure proper quality and efficiency.
The wait wasn’t too long, we went on a Wednesday night. It was about a 20minute wait. The only downside is you cannot make any reservations in advance. The restaurant is first come first serve. I ordered the Nozawa Trust Me, which came with organic edamame, tuna sashimi, 2 pieces of albacore sushu, salmon, snapper, yellowtail, halibut, toro hand roll, blue crab hand roll, and my daily special was unagi. I also ordered a lobster hand roll as well. I substituted the salmon for bay scallops, which were delicious.
All of the sushi was extremely fresh and melted in your mouth. What is great is they have dinela menu which is a version of there trust me for only $ 39. I would highly recommend coming here.

What a delightful experience. Aside from the 45 minute wait to get in, the time I spent at Sugarfish by Sushi Nozawa was pure delight. I very much look forward to my next visit.
Things to keep in mind when making your way to Sugarfish is that reservations are not taken, and most likely there will be a wait around dinner time. Parking is quite difficult in that area, especially during dinner times, so valet is a steady option.
STOUT nextdoor provides a nice bar to pass time with a glass of wine while you wait for Sugarfish to text you that your table is ready. Once inside, the subtly trendy, and dimly lit seating area helps you forget about your day, and switch focus to a nice dinner.
The menu is easily reviewable and very clear. Aside from your standard options of cut rolls, hand rolls, and sashimi plates, at the top of the menu are three choices labeled Trust Me. In fact, if you look around the restaurant you will see that phrase is themed in different paintings, photos, and other decorative pieces. My guest and I decided to go for the 32.00 Trust Me Special, and we were not disappointed.
Every piece of fish that I ate was almost buttery in texture, and was accompanied with the perfect portion of rice at what seemed to be, the perfect temperature. The albacore practically melted in your mouth, as well as the tuna sashimi, and salmon rolls. The sweet shrimp took me to another world and they disappeared too soon.
I loved the fact that they actively decline extra portions of rice to go along with your meal. I got the sense that this might be an extension of their Trust Me theme. We concluded our meal, feeling full, but we had ordered a few extra dishes after we finished the Trust Me Special. The service was prompt and not pushy throughout our meal, and the place was packed.
I absoutely loved my visit to Sugarfish by Sushi Nozawa and am excited to come back!

Small sushi lounge with amazing traditional Tokyo style menu. Don’t expect to get a colorful roll or dragon roll from this type of establishment. It gets some of the best quality fish and it shines through with rich textures and smooth flavors. Lobster 8– piece roll melted in my mouth along with their albacore rolls and salmon.
Don’t bring more than 4 or else you will be waiting to dine for a small period of time.
No desserts just strictly sushi at its finest with no distractions.
Highly recommend this place for dates.

The sushi here is so good, the only downside is that it’s totally addictive and once you eat here, you’ll never want sushi anywhere else. I don’t care for the hand rolls much, but that is just personal preference.
This isn’t really a downside, but– my husband isn’t much of a sushi guy. He will do simple rolls like a California roll or something along the lines of Chicken teriyaki, and that’s not offered here. That said, I wait for my sushi friends or order take out. Ordering take out is really easy as they box it all up nice and pretty along with instructions.
I’ve never been able to find great parking here. For take out, there’s two curb side meters that are 15 minutes only that come in handy. For dinner, I usually valet and you can expect a wait. Usually 45 – 60 minutes. They don’t take reservations so I grab a beer next door at Stout and they call you when your table is ready. So if you get a beer next door, cash out immediately becomes you never know when they are going to call you and you need to be quick.
Enjoy!!!

Sushi Chef Nozawa’s original sushi location has been on my radar and my sis and I finally got in for lunch.
Parking: tiny lot (I’ve never seen a spot and i don’t think my car would fit in a spot). But there is residential parking nearby and metered spots along Ventura.
Restaurant: small and intimate. Sis and I got the last table for 2.
We were greeted quickly and ordered a bottle of Nigori Sake and the Trust Me Lites. I have been to the Pasadena location, but the quality of each dish surpassed my prior experience. I can only surmise that the Pasadena location was still working out their kinks as a newer establishment. On this visit, everything was perfect. Presentation, quality, flavoring, temperature, etc. This was my sis’s first visit and she was thrilled. We were so happy that we ordered additional sushi, Unagi & Yellowtail.
Service was excellent, too. Attentive, efficient & friendly.
A perfect sushi lunch.

I really really love sugarfish and always make a point to have it whenever I’m in LA.
My friend took me to this location because she said the quality of fish was better here than other locations. She’s a sugarfish expert so I went along but I honestly would have eaten at any locations. We thought lunch ended at 3 but luckily it was 3:30 and we made it by 10min! This location is a lot smaller than the other two I’ve been too but it didn’t take very long before we were seated.
I usually order the trust me and add albacore belly but since it was lunch prices and I was kind of starving I decided to just get the Nozawa trust me. Everything taste just as great as I remembered it last month lol. That’s one thing I love about sugarfish; it’s consistent. Seriously always melt in your mouth good! I could just have the albacore, yellowtail, and blue crab hand roll forever. It’s like eating butter but it’s sushi and it’s actually good for you. Wasn’t a huge fan of the snapper but the daily special made up for it. It was unagi that day and I’ve had unagi plenty of times in Seattle but never like sugarfish. This thing was so good I didn’t even want to eat the last piece because I didn’t want the meal to end. Where do these fish come from. Why are they all so buttery and delicious?! And how come Seattle doesn’t have sugarfish. You’d think for a city known for seafood, we’d have sugarfish here. I mean I don’t mind going to sugarfish whenever I’m in LA but there’s days where I’m sitting at my desk thinking about the next time I can get my hands on it. Ugh, I want more.

I am a die hard sushi fanatic and I have heard so many good things about Sugarfish from all my friends from LA. Finally I got to try it today and was I in shock.
By far one of the best sushi places I have ever been to in California. I got the ‘Try Me’ plate during lunch for $ 27.99 and it was incredible. The food is served in a very traditional 5 – 6 course meal style which is great cause then you really get to enjoy every slice of fish. The tuna, albacore, and halibut has got to be my favorite ones! I am not kiddin when I say that it just melts in your mouth.
Try to stay away from the soy sauce cause it ruins the flavor and texture of the sashimi.
The customer service was just on point as well. I forgot our waitress’s name but she just had the most contagious smile throughout serving us!
Highly highly recommend this place and although I just had it, I want to go back already and eat more!

All respect to Master Chef Nozawa… But strictly for historical purposes it is worth a visit to the site of his original restaurant (the shuttered Sushi Nozawa) to see the fabled ‘trust me’ sign. In the evolution of Los Angeles he played a huge role in the proliferation of Omakase.
The thing about the sugarfish concept for me, however, is that it feels like a a step backward. There was nothing really to «trust» here — even the «Nozowa Trust Me» was all the normal cast of characters…
Despite the size of his chain the quality was still quite good — but there was nothing remarkable about my «chefs choice»
All & all it just felt like a kind of over engineered, over simplified McDonalds of higher-​end sashimi.
But hats off to the man behind it.

Sweet mother of god… If i could give this place 10 stars I would.
I brought two friends who said they like sushi… Well, california rolls are NOT sushi.
When we got there they were suprised to find out there is no beef teriyaki or udon… For god sakes this is a sushi place, and probably one of the best on the planet.
Sugarfish is a great name, because truly sushi is done differently here, and i won’t spoil what it is. It tastes different.
The toro hand roll is filling and absolutely awesome, and their teas and drinks are wonderful.
Defintely not where you want to go for a cheap fast food craving, but if you are looking for the best, can get there early to avoid the massive line, this is the place to go for any sushi eater.

I heard so many good things about this restaurant and people definitely weren’t wrong!
The location does not match the amazing food that they serve. Truly some of the best sushi and sake I’ve ever had!
I’ll be back next time I am in LA!

Solid Sugarfish — five stars for consistency. I’ve been to the one in Brentwood, Downtown LA, and La Brea, and this one is just as good as the others. The biggest perk is that there was no wait for lunch on a Saturday!
Sadly, their parking is a bit of a nightmare, but plenty of residential spots on side streets.

This may be the closest to perfect I have ever had at a sushi restaurant. My friends convinced me to go with the $ 40 set menu despite the fact that we had a huge Korean BBQ feast late in the afternoon for lunch … Actually this was after they convinced me to wait an hour and a half for this place to open up even on a week night … It was worth every penny! Actually it probably is worth more than that but shh … Let’s keep that between us. The hand rolls were probably my favorite though the tuna starter was pretty close in second place. With all of it together the meal sung to me in a cacophony of balanced chaos … Beautiful and a masterpiece of flavors, textures and smells. The service was amazing and professional as well! They were super sweet to us despite our hawkish stalkers of our future table during our pre-​dinner wait.

Hands down best sushi I’ve ever had. Really pricey, but you get what you pay for! I am a loyal patron of Sugarfish and although I’ve only dined in a few times, I always enjoy getting it to-​go.
Their take out menu is a little different than the lunch/​dinner menu in that they give you cut rolls instead of hand rolls, but both are really good. I always get the Trust Me which I believe is $ 30 (did they raise the prices?). Nonetheless, I will pay any amount for good quality sushi. The fish is always fresh, the Sashimi melts in your mouth and the sushi never falls apart. I’m not sure what they do to the rice, but it has flavor to it and is always served warm. Everything is top of the line. I love that when you get it to go they have everything ready for you and they are always prepared. The packaging is on point and it even comes with a card that tells you which sauces go with which sushi. Everything is labeled and they always double check to make sure you have everything you need before you leave :)
This location has difficult parking, but if you order to go, make sure you call 30 min in advance and if you talk to the valet in the lot, they let you park for a few minutes to go pick up your food!