I used to go here when it was Ahi Sushi and was big fan. However, if you order from this place like it is your typical sushi restaurant, you will be sorely disappointed. That was our first and only mistake. The basic rolls are nothing special. You can find those at any place in town. We also got some basic udon. But I think we recovered nicely. Being the big eaters that we are and out for a birthday, we decided to splurge. We added on the salmon 6 ways and we were very happy with the dish. First, it's displayed beautifully. The waiter basically said we were not allowed to use soy sauce on that dish. Each slice of salmon was dressed differently with subtle but sophisticated differences in flavor that would be masked by soy sauce (I rarely use soy sauce with good fish anyways). We finished it off with green tea ice cream and black sesame ice cream. These desserts do not have a lot of sugar. You can really taste the green tea and black sesame. We would have tried the omakase meal but it was sold out. The waiter said that they get their fish straight from the Tokyo market, so when they run out, they are really out. I think the shipments come in every two days. We happened to be there on the third day. So we will have to try this out another time. Also of note, because I think some people care, the sushi chefs were all Japanese. read more

After going to many Sushi restaurants, we were looking for fantastic sushi, however we were greatly disappointed. The staff was very busy trying to care of the customers picking up food and incoming diners. We were told it would be ready about 30-40 minutes. The waiting area was packed and we waited an additional 20 minutes. When arriving home, we immediately saw the issues. The Korean fried chicken were dark brown nuggets that looked they had been sitting around and then refried. Totally undesirable. The gyoza were browned nicely, but inside was a sliver of meat with no flavor. The rolls had rice on the outside but were completely falling apart. The special SunSushi roll had 2 flavors cream cheese and salmon, nothing else like the description. I would not recommend. read more

Favorite sushi spot in Santa Barbara County. Everyone there is so nice, and the fish quality + pricing is exceptional. Salmon and Tuna 6 step will show you just how good this place really is. Great sake selections as well. read more

Best sushi bar I have been to. Great staff Ming, Max and John. Kelly is a great server couldn't ask for better

By far the best sushi in SB. Red dragon roll + albacore sushi is our go to order - so good!

The fish is very fresh as all the reviews report. I like the sake list and how it indicates how dry it is. I would never order sushi here again though because the seaweed was not crisp. There's no excuse for wilted seaweed. Our server was friendly and we liked the green tea dessert at the end of our meal. Imported from Japan, it was a new taste but it's small. read more

Don't go to this restaurant, unless you want to have some over-fried chicken and short rib made with tons of seasoning sauce

Awesome food, super fresh sushi, great service, exciting new beers.

This has always been my go-to sushi place. I usually order takeout and am impressed by the plating and impeccable quality of Sun Sushi but that could not be more opposite from the container I received today. Half of the pieces of my Box Roll were lacking fish and I didn't receive any ginger which feels like a sushi staple. I feel like I could have gotten better quality sushi at a Ralph's for half the price. It's been a while since I've come in and it's apparent the quality has gone down. read more

Sun Sushi - Supposed to be Box Roll, more like a pile of rice and crab with some tuna scraps - Japanese Near Me - Santa Barbara, California

This is a great place for fresh, delicious fish! I don't know how I had never tried this place. I eat a lot of sushi here in Santa Barbara, but this might be my favorite in town now. Great value and variety of fish. Absolutely delicious!! I will be coming back regularly. The blue fin tuna melted in my mouth. So good! Thanks for a great meal. read more

Wasn't great but wasn't terrible. I didn't think I got the amount of food that it was priced for. The service was slow. The vegetable roll and vegetable tempura were both $7.50. I enjoyed the vibe of the restaurant and it was clean. read more

Sun Sushi - Japanese Near Me - Santa Barbara, California

We finally got out to try Sun Sushi - so glad we did! This place definitely lives up to its reviews. I had the salmon 6-steps, and in addition to the killer presentation, I found the fish itself to be just perfect. Really fresh, cut just right (I am so picky about that), with correctly prepared and sized rice ball. My husband ordered the box sushi roll and the Albacore Delight roll. He said the Albacore roll was good but the box sushi was completely out of this world amazing, and gave me a bite so I could agree with him. Yes, it was, and I'll order it next time! For those who have been to Sakana and are hooked on their box sushi - this is a great alternative. My daughter got the chef's choice sushi - 10 pieces of whatever the chef thought was best. This was pretty incredible, and I'm sorry for not grabbing a photo. There was no skimping on it as some restaurants try to do - no, this had all the premium nigiri: toro, uni, jumbo shrimp, two kinds of premium yellowtail... The birthday girl was suitably impressed with her order and even more excited when the waitress surprised her with tempura green tea ice cream at the end of the meal. One of the highlights of the service here is that the servers take the time, when they bring your order, to point out and tell you what each thing on your plate is. So if you aren't enough of a sushi expert to be able to tell what everything is at a glance, never fear! I definitely recommend this place - a little pricier but totally worth the spend, and it comes with great service and a pleasant, traditional atmosphere. read more

Awesome local place. This is our new favorite and hasn't been dethroned in over a year. We like to sit at the bar and try specials as well as their Delight roll which is incredible. The staff is super nice. It's not a fancy place until you taste the sushi- then it be like "fabulous." read more

Easily one of the best sushi spots I've ever been to. Quality of fish was top notch and the service was great.

This is one of our favorite spots in Santa Barbara. It's become one of our regular date night spots. The sushi is fantastic and fresh. Our regular order is the salmon, blue fin tuna, scallop, halibut, a couple rolls and then whatever else the chefs at the counter recommend. We always leave full and satisfied. Oh the rare occasion that our sitter can't make it our son helps us devour our rolls and our daughter loves the chicken teriyaki. After a few visits to Sun Sushi our son has decided Japanese food is his favorite cuisine! I think it's mine now too! read more

Sun Sushi is our favourite sushi place in Santa Barbara. I get the Volcano roll every time --a California roll with spicy mayo, eel sauce and bay scallops broiled on top. Delish. Hubby goes for the Rainbow roll and the Sun roll, with which I'm always happy to help him out. Sun's teriyaki salmon is great -- thick, perfectly done pieces of salmon and the right amount of teriyaki. Most places want to drown the fish in it, so I really appreciate the chef's touch. They use a tasty version of wasabi too, a slightly thicker grate to it, and a sweeter taste. I'm usually not a wasabi fan, but I love Sun's wasabi. I'm sharing this with y'all so you help keep this gem in business. Spread the word; I'm willing to wait for a seat. read more

Stumbled upon this sushi spot for a late dinner and we are so glad we did. My boyfriend and I love sushi and trying new places-- this one is a new favorite. Everything from the mango iced tea to special rolls was delightful. Their miso was especially tasty, the rolls were well crafted and had super fresh fish, and the staff was outstanding. Very fast service, wonderful food, and a welcoming, friendly staff. We will definitely be returning. read more

This is probably one of the best sushi places I've been to in America. After going to japan, my bf and I are sushi snobs.. this place is comparable to Japan. Very fresh sushi! The servers and chefs were very welcoming and so nice! Will definitely be back! Thank you sun sushi! read more

The staffs are friendly and helpful, but I have some suggestions for the sushi bar: 1. Please do not place a thawed shrimp head on your sushi plate, the liquid from that head will contaminate the sushi rice right next to it. It turns your appetite off when you see your sushi rice turned pink from the raw shrimp head juice. 2. Please learn the red snapper skin curing process properly, and the chef and the owner need to sample it before the serving. My first experience of the snapper sushi was not pleasant, the skin is as hard as a cowhide. I didn't say anything that time and tried to give the chef a break, nonetheless, the second time is worse, not only is the skin tough, but it has a fish bone in the skin! I gave the piece back to the waitress to show to the chef and hope the chef would be more careful when he preps the food. 3. Please do not place the uni on a soggy seaweed. I can see and appreciate the efforts from sushi chef in which it evidently showed up in the flavorful sushis that he assembles, and it's not a pricy place and you get your dollars worth, nevertheless, I just hope this place would thrive and make improvements along the way. read more

I've been to most of the sushi places in town and this is by far my favorite. The staff are wonderful and welcoming, the food is fresh and delicious and always comes very quickly. I used to go every couple weeks. I wish I still lived across the street from it. read more

Wonderful sushi, first time for kurodai, best eel ever! Lovely people, great sushi chef.

I like this spot. My husband, 1 year old daughter & I had dinner on Saturday night a few weeks ago. The service was good, everyone was very kind & interactive with our girl. I don't remember what we ordered but it was all very good. We will definitely be back! read more

Interest menu for 6 different salmons and tuna sushi! Friendly waiter and nice price!

The Best sushi in town!!! Ask for Max, he will fill all your sushi dreams !!!!!!!!!!

This is my all time favorite sushi spot. Even after having tried sushi spots in Los Angeles after unfortunately having to move away from SB, this is still the top. The spicy edamame is very flavorful with just the right amount of punch. The gyoza and accompanying sauce is delightful. The crunch rolls are delicious and the filling on any of the sushi rolls are generous. I also love the beef short rib and the fried chicken appetizer. Overall, I have never had a disappointing meal here and it will always be my go-to for sushi. I just wish I wasn't an hour and a half away from this place now. read more

Delicious, fresh sushi and ample portions, but expensive. The teriyaki beef we ordered was good quality, but would have been more complete with some vegetables added (I don't eat bell peppers and they said the beef would have come with some sliced peppers). The salad that came with it was a plastic container of mixed lettuces and nothing more. read more

VERY sub par. Not much sushi and it's okay at best. I love sushi and eat it all the time, I suggest to anyone who absolutely loves sushi to find somewhere else. read more

Ahi (the previous sushi restaurant in this location) was my regular "go-to" sushi place and it was very good. Sun Sushi is even better. Stopped in this evening and was pleased to see it was busy but had room or one more. Ordered the steamed edamame spicy tuna roll and California roll (I'm stuck in a 90's rut). It was delicious fresh and worthy of 5 stars. The wait staff were cordial and attentive but not overly so (as stated in other reviews). I have found a new "go-to" place. I will try the 6-step salmon next time. Saw it at the next table and it looked delicious. read more

Good quality and reasonably priced! Staff always polite and takeout sushi is nicely presented in large round trays.

Really good, family friendly and clean place. Service was great, staff was so nice! I will come back when I'm in town again.

Not bad. Not best sushi of my life but good. We are not Santa Barbara sushi experts as we don't live locally but may return if in the area. No complaints. read more

Wayyy overpriced for it being so unimpressive. The sushi pieces are very expensive but the quality of the fish and preparation don't match up to that price. It doesn't hit any mark. There is better sushi. There is cheaper sushi. And there are other places with more thrills. I'm not sure where this one fits in read more

I have officially had the greatest sushi ever. All others will be compared to this place. I had a salmon skin roll, state street roll and shishito pepper tempura. Tomorrow I will try 6-step salmon! read more

Sun Sushi - Japanese Near Me - Santa Barbara, California

Some of the best sushi I've experienced. Great service but without great food, I don't think you can get 5 stars. I'm visiting Santa Barbara on business so decided to take the yelp stars to the test and Sun Sushi passed it with flying colors. Generous well prepared extremely fresh fish. I had the 6-step tuna, Salmon sushi, Kurodai Sushi and Yellow Tail sushi. All were excellent! I'll be back next time I'm in town!!! read more

We went in late last night and they sat us no problem. The sushi was absolutely amazing but our server was even better. A must go!

What a great little place. The waitress was very. Not expensive. Fish was high quality and the appetizers were awesome!

I went here on a whim and it was one of the most pleasant dinner experiences I've had. The place was poppin but we got seated immediately. Service was amazing and the sushi chefs was particularly amiable. Will come back! read more

Sushi is amazing and fresh. They don't use mass amounts of rice in their rolls, and they're very affordable.

If you are looking for fresh sushi, this is the place you should go. The sushi-6-step, that is 6 different favors of salmon is very tasty. The service is very attentive. I'll definitely be going back. read more

Pretty good here. The service was good. We got 2 rolls and some udon soup and it was 48$ so a little pricy. I would definitely be back because it's close to home and very tasty. They are also open for lunch so that's a plus read more