A nice surprise on the way north from L.A. to Monterey. We came in on a weekday afternoon, so it wasn't busy at all--the atmosphere was very chill and friendly (and the sushi chef seemed to have great rapport with the regulars). We had the sashimi-tempura lunch combination, which came with a good quantity of food (tempura, rice, soup, and salad) and fresh fish. We also ordered the green tea and plum wine ice cream. Overall, the food was flavorful, the portions were good, and the atmosphere was relaxed. Couldn't have asked for more out of a last-minute lunch decision on a long road trip. read more

I've lived in Buellton since 2016 and never tried Aru until today. The Santa Ynez Valley isn't the most diverse area ethnically, so I sort of assumed a Japanese restaurant here wouldn't be that great. But today my wife and I had a craving for sushi rolls and decided to go pickup a couple. It was SO good. We can't believe we waited 3.5 years to discover this place. The interior is just what I'd expect for a Japanese restaurant, the staff was friendly and welcoming, and there was at least 20 people in there, so it seems like a popular place. Totally going back. Can't wait to try some more menu items. read more

Out here visiting and was craving some sushi, luckily we found this place! The food was delicious, the service was great and the chef was very friendly with an awesome sense of humor. Will definitely be back when in the area again! read more

Came here after hearing it was under new ownership + new menu! Sushi was great! And service was excellent! We sat at the bar and owner, Tiger was very friendly! We will be back. read more

A couple of things that are hard to believe: 1. That anyone would not like the sashimi here. 2. That Buellton could possibly have one of the best sushi places on earth! I love sushi and have been to places in New York, Florida, Chicago, LA, Texas and even Japan. IMO, A-ru has the freshest and best sashimi around! I know that they get their fish from LA three times a week and she will only get the best and freshest cuts available. Because of this, thier choices may not be as plentiful as other sushi restuarants, but you wont find any place better! It is almost a sin to make rolls out of the sashimi she gets because you will miss out on the texture and flavor that the fish has to offer. My favorites are the yellowtail, salmon, toro, amberjack, prime albacore and my all time fav is the uni. I have to tell you that this is the only place where I will eat uni because nothing else comes close to the creamy fresh texture of what they serve there. Other non sashimi favorites are the potato shrimp, oysters in the half shell, soft shell crab, kobe beef and dont forget the cheesecake! Yes, I said cheesecake. Unfortunately, depending upon the selection that she gets in LA, they may not always be on the menu on a daily basis. If you watch her make the sushi, you will notice how meticulous she is with her preparation. It is apparent how much pride she takes in her trade. I live in San Jose and make the 3.5 hour journey to indulge and satisfy my sushi craving. As stated before, it is a little pricey, but you get what you pay for and it will definitely change your perspective on what great sushi should really taste like. If you get a chance, you shouldn't pass this up. A-ru is worth a try. I guarantee you will be a believer. read more

The atmosphere was very elegant and simple, had kind of dark lighting so it sets some kind of romantic tone. The food however, wasn't up to par. A $20 roll which tasted like it came from the packaged grocery store boxes and was extremely small. The pot stickers were good, ill give them that. The sauce that came with it was very spicy and I didn't care for it. For the 30 min drive it took us to get there and the overpriced food, I am not returning for another visit. read more

Dinner was $100, but found the next morning my credit card was charged $1000 and then $100. I had to call my bank to have $1000 charge reversed because they had made no attempt to reverse their mistake. Unsure if incompetence or attempted fraud, but either way i would recommend avoiding. read more

A-Ru has some of the best Sushi out there, everything is fresh and the staff know what they are doing. great food. for those who complain about the price, that should tell you its not outrageous its what you would expect for fresh fish made well. read more

So the reviews that note the freshness of the fish is spot on...A-level sashimi grade! However, counter to some reviews, we had OUTSTANDING customer service. We ordered to go during the dinner rush. Our sashimi salad accidentally ended up in another bag (lucky people)! We called and Sisi, a young 20 something, had to deal with me (LOL). Her authentic communication and genuine desire to help us echoed through the phone. She answered my million "could you" questions (we already tasted some of the fantastic food and wanted the salad but too lazy to go get it). What she couldn't answer she promised to get the answer and call us back. Sisi followed through and then went above and beyond to drop the food off to us at the hotel. This avoided logistical card refunded etc headache. Well the sashimi salad was SUPERB and Sisi simply impressed us with her kindness, customer service and professionalism. We applaud the management for selecting and growing great employees. We will definitely be back, and recommend this place for any sushi foodie looking to support local business, talent! Thanks Sisi! read more

Denied service for three adults and one child . Had two open tables and open bar sitting area! Once I walked in with my child in my arms , was asked by a taller lady how many I had and I simple replied three adults and one child, she looked at me up and down and asked if I had an reservation . I couldn't understand the reasoning for the look. Maybe it was Bc I was the only one in shorts. Rather then dressed up like every one else . She stated it would be an hour to an hour and a half till I would be sitting. Which would be fine but a party of four adult well dressed walked in and was sitting right away with out question, no do you have a reservation or how many . which left one table and the sushi bar left open for us . I will never eat or come to this place based off this experience. Was pretty rude and made me fell very un wanted read more

I love ar-u so much is is one of my favorite places to eat i live how there food tastes very fresh tonight i hot the scallop rolls and Caterpillar rolls it was a little bit pricey but it was so worth it amazing people and great service read more

We all fell in love with this restaurant. The food is cooked to perfection. We brought our entire staff here for our monthly Corporate Meeting. The Chicken Teriyaki was one of our favorite dishes. read more

honestly when I realized Gina was gone I knew a-ru wasnt gona be the same. I gave it a shot ordered some rolls off the menu and I must say I wouldn't go back to re order anything from this experience. I might go back in the future and try the ramen but its just the same anymore. Gina was a gem. read more

Went here with my boyfriend for dinner and first thing we noticed was that is was small but we didn't mind. Our waiter was cool but upon some requests we got the feeling that the owner was in total control of certain things. For example, we asked if we could move the table so we could sit next to each other and the waiter looked kind of fearful in the fact that the owner doesn't like when the customers move the table. I then got kind of an uncomfortable sense but it wasn't too big of a deal. Other than that, food was good, but small. we bought five rolls and a bottle of saki. it came out to about 100$. i would give 7/10 read more

What a hidden treasure! Came here with my boyfriend on our vacation because he was craving sushi however, I'm not a huge fan of sushi. I ordered the chicken teriyaki. O.M.G. It was the best chicken teriyaki I have ever had. They use range-free chicken and the taste was unbelievably amazing! My boyfriend really enjoyed the rainbow roll and would also recommend it. The ambiance is really nice and the service was excellent. I highly recommend A-RU and will definitely come back again. read more

This place has very good sushi with exceptional great value! We enjoyed every dish. Highly recommend.

Pittance portions, overpriced, slow service. Pass this place up. Had to go to the Habit across the street after spending 30$ here just to be satisfied. read more

I regularly come here and it's always delicious. I have no problem whatsoever with the food but the service is always sub par. This last time in particular our waitress was rude, unhelpful, and decided to randomly leave but luckily the server after her was incredibly kind and made up for the experience. read more

The food is very good. Prices are reasonable. Service just ok. They got our order wrong this time and they have added a television which is so frustrating to me. I will never understand a television in any restaurant besides a sports bar. I asked for the television to be turned off and they said yes, but they never did it. read more

We went to this restaurant for the first time through the suggestion of winery staff. I give 5 stars for the rolls, 4 for the udon and 3 for the service. They are short staffed. The poor waitress had to serve outside and indoor diners. Plus a lot of take out orders. We had to wait long time for each item to be sent. The rolls are no disappointment. But udon is a bit overcooked. I'd come and order ahead to avoid the wait next time. read more

Staff were friendly, sushi was good, fresh and artistically presented. The meal was a bit more pricey than we are accustomed to in Fresno. The toro was good and we had not had toro in ages. They serve Orion, from Okinawa which is our favorite beer and sushi pairing. The ambiance was comfortable and the waitstaff were attentive. We would definitely go back again! read more

Quaint little Japanese restaurant. The sushi is so good here. I liked how it was bite sized and not the usual gigantic sushi rolls. Not a lot of rice or noodle options. The menu was small but there were a variety of rolls. read more

A-Ru Sushi - Nabeyaki udon, albacore lovers roll and masago nigiri - Sushi Bars Near Me - Buellton, California

This place was EXCELLENT until new ownership moved in. Don't bother eating here- wait for SLO or Santa Barbara

Dinning here is a great experience. I would recommend sitting at the bar where Gina (owner) prepares the most delicious and fresh sushi you could have. The food is always amazing but what makes the experience more magical for me is the never ending stories of Gina and her "friends/customers" who make you feel as if you are part of their community. Gina is very knowledgeable I her craft and so likable. Don't leave this place without trying her cheesecake, it's absolutely sublime! read more

Food is good. Service lags. Took 15 min to get a drink order and restaurant was half empty. When we did order it was wrong and had to wait longer. I ordered a sushi combo and my gf ordered tempura veggies. The sushi came out first and I was almost done with my platter before she got her tempura. They have no timing issues with making sure you paid your bill. Won't go there ever again due to the service!! read more

The service was really poor. It took way too long for us to get over 40 minutes for our sushi and we were out if drinks for awhile. The server didn't ask us for refills until we were finished. A few other tables were served before us, but we ordered before them. The sushi chef seemed way overloaded, so maybe her assistant called in sick? The rolls weren't very good either. I sent back the sunset roll because it was super fishy. I really don't think I'll go back. read more

A-Ru Sushi - Sunset roll is kinda fishy. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Buellton, California

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I'm a yelper. The sushi is not all that great. If you want to pay 100 for california rolls then be my guest. The size of the rolls are so small. Maybe this is the only sushi spot in buellton. I'm from LA so I've tasted amazing sushi. Nice restaurant and great customer service. But 1 star for the food. I expected it to be better. read more

I don't like writing bad reviews, especially during this time, but the service was not the best by far. It wasn't slow and yet it wasn't busy and there wasn't a rush. My boyfriend and I each ordered two rolls and we got everything except one of my rolls. The server was aware that I needed one more & she didn't care to check in with us or ask the chef to see if it was ready. She didn't come by to check in at all. We literally sat and waited about 20 minutes ( if not more) before I asked another lady who looked to be the owner if I could have a refill & my roll to go. She was nice and tried to get things right away & seemed apologetic. The food was delicious, however the service from our server and lack of communication she had wasn't good service. read more

What a great experience. Chef Gina created our meal and it was amazing. I'll see if I can post pictures of her creations. read more

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I was turned away. Closed. Lady said @ We were really busy today and we are all out of rice" it's 7:15 on a Thursday. Closed because of rice? Huh? read more

Im so sad we spent $89 here. Their plain Japanese ramen had 2 pieces of pork and their spicy ramen was bland- just full of spice. Two sushi rolls were not fresh (no sauce to go with it either)...the yakisoba had a weird smell and taste...I do not recommend this place and I'm not sure how they have so many great reviews. Best thing was the ginger & rice in the rolls. Had to order a pizza for our kids and ourselves. read more

They are offering curb side pickup and outdoor seating . Service is good and the food is great. We get takeout chirashi and a some sort of roll. We have never been disappointed read more

Called in for a take out. Their outdoor dining area set up looked great. Food was good. Staff were efficient and friendly.

A-Ru isn't what it used to be after new ownership.. I used to come to A-Ru for fresh high quality sushi(not rolls). I've been three times since new ownership and they have been out of Toro every time.... The rolls are ok but I used to come to A-Ru for Toro, Nodoguro, Japanese Scallops, etc. If you like rolls they have quite the selection. After over a decade of eating at A-Ru on a weekly basis it saddens me to see what has be. Edit... I thought I would give A-Ru another chance. Our family was seated and given menus. After 15 minutes we didn't even have drink orders.... let alone sushi. I don't walk out of restaurants. I think this a first. It wasn't even busy and I had voiced to an employee that we would like to order 5 minutes prior to walking out. No Toro on the "specials" yet again. I won't be going back. I used to frequent A-Ru 2-5 times a week. read more

Such a nice place. Friendly service and great sushi at reasonable prices. I'll be back for sure.

Thought we would try since I had heard good things about them. The food was great, but the service was very slow, friendly, but slow.

We happened upon this place randomly after most places were closed by 8pm. We were so pleasantly surprised by how delicious the food was! We had the Yakuza roll, caterpillar roll, yellowtail nigiri, and halibut nigiri, all of which were very fresh. We also got the bimbibap that really hit the spot. The people working there were friendly, hospitable, and engaging. We had so much fun here. Thank you A-Ru! read more

Sushi was very very fresh. I was impressed the sushi rolls were cut to fit your mouth. Also not that much rice thank god cause rice is a filler and we were able to have a great experience. Some people cut the rolls so thick you can't taste the sushi . I would recommend this sushi place to everyone. I tried the fried crab and ate the whole thing including the shell. Wow new experience. The Plum wine was very good quality. Thank to all the Employees very friendly. read more

The sushi is excellent. A bit pricey, but what sushi isn't. Only complaint is that they only offer take out if they aren't busy.

Driving back from LA up the cost, the wife and I stopped at A-RU. Very clean the staff was very attentive and I was hungry. The place looks new, again very clean we had a great meal, older crowd family orientated. Got back in the car and keep on driving North. read more