Sushi Sasabune

SO GLAD ONE OPENED UP IN GLENDALE. This is by far the best sushi bar in the area.
If you are one of those «sushi lovers» that loves «special rolls» smothered in sauces that you can’t even taste how bad the fish is in the roll, then this place is NOT for you.
This sushi bar is for the people that can appreciate where the fish itself is highlighted and not covered up.
Sasabune, any of the locations, are in my top 5 favorite sushi places.

Its tastes and plating remind me about sugar fish. Honestly I don’t know it’s because of the fish quality or skills, sugar fish tastes way better. Services was very good tho.

When you go out to a sushi restaurant it should always be the best. If you have to drive far do it. sushi is not something you settle for second best. This place is different in a very good way. They keep it traditional yet flavorful. I’m a chef myself who also went to sushi school, so I know my sushi baby! The bar is omakasi where I sat. Expect a wonderful experience you won’t be disappointed. I’m serious. Walk away still feeling light even though I must of tasted 20 different sushis! That’s why I love omakasi. The uni was the best I’ve ever had. Chef Toshi and David very friendly smiling. It’s worth the money.

I love it here! I’ve been here a couple of times already and my review is long over due. I have been to many omakase restaurants but compared to many of them this place is so good! With the fresh fish and price and service…
Because it’s in Glendale, I think, it doesn’t get enough praise but the fish is so fresh and prepared to perfection! The rice is perfect temperature. Everyone that loves and knows sushi knows that perfect temperature of rice is the key to a perfect piece of sushi art that melts in your mouth! And the portions of the fish on the ever perfect rice is so mouth watering that I want to come back the next day. So happy that they are near me… And my husband craves their sake from Akita. We have to Japan and it is as good as a lot of the Michelin Star restaurants we have been to.

Got sick eating the sushi here. Quality was suspect and def not as good as other sushi places charging the same high prices. I def don’t recommend this place as the fish they serve doesn’t seem that fresh and lesser quality than what their prices would indicate. There are better choices out there, don’t get sick like I did!
p. s. Complained to the business and their only response is that am I still sick? Well I felt better after throwing up and diarrhea and that was apparently good enough for them. No attempts at all to remediate the situation, I guess I got tricked!

4 ½ stars really… Super exciting to get a reputable and delicious sushi restaurant in the neighborhood. I recommend sitting at the sushi bar.
The omakase was delicious. Note that each order of nigiri is 1 piece for the omakase. It was expertly prepared and the service was on point. It was about $ 150/​pp without alcohol. There was a nice variety of sushi and sashimi. It was no frills, which I appreciate. Everything was fresh.
I would definitely make reservations if you want to sit at the sushi bar.
This is comparable to my other favorite omakase sushi place in Glendale, Sushi Nishiya but I would give the slight edge to Sushi Nishiya.

The meal portion of our night wasn’t intended to be the highlight of our first date anniversary as we went to the Alex theater a block up Brande St. to see the ballet. The ballet was great, but dinner was amazing! We couldn’t make it to the restaurant in time to eat before the show so we asked if we could come afterward. They penciled us in and said their last seating was at 10:00pm. We didn’t arrive until just after 10:30 and there was just one couple left in the restaurant and they were finishing up. They let us in anyway. They were so friendly!
We were expertly served by Chef Hiroki, who was also as friendly as could be while he was surely hoping to get home to his wife and one-​week old baby. You would never have known it though as he made us feel comfortable as can be all while the staff must surely have been waiting for us to finish before they could close up. So service was definitely 5-​star.
I’ve been in California for only six months but my fiancé is an avid lover of sushi. We’ve been all over the place and I have to say this is the first time I can honestly say I get her infatuation. The sign by the door said the special of the day was «trust me» and so we opted for the omakase. So glad we did. I can still taste the uni (which I normally don’t like because of the texture). It was sweet and had a structure to it – not pasty as I have had in the past. Perfect texture. And I can still taste the cool buttery tuna over the warm mound of rice… My least favorite – if there could be such a thing was the tuna hand roll, but that’s probably just personal preference. It was still very good. If he never stopped serving his masterful creations, I would never stop eating. Food was definitely another 5-​star.
I’m sure we will see Hiroki again, but maybe this time as the main attraction.

Oh this place was awesome!
We came in about 20 minutes after our reservation (we did have one) as our ballet ran late, and Hiroki served us, although he had a two week old at home. It was the best meal we have had in so long I can not recall. It was awesome. Worthy of photographs and a full breakdown. But neglectfully, our cells were dying or dead, and we were tired and tipsy so my memory is not 100% on pointe.
I have eaten at Sasubune in LA many times, but I preferred the intimacy and warmth of the staff here. Although I rarely venture to Glendale, this meal was one of the best I have had in a very long time. It was our anniversary so we were really happy it was so delicious!
The only real way to eat here is to order Omakase. You are doing yourself a disservice if you do not. Their uni was so fresh my fiancé — who does not like uni — Loved it!

What a little gem! This place is really difficult to find as it’s upstairs next to a CPK. There aren’t easy signs to find this place and when you call they don’t greet you with their name. We went here during the afternoon during the week so there wasn’t a crowd. The Omakase was a first for me and it was so fresh and delicious. Everything was dainty and very clean-​tasting. It ended up being close to hundred dollars a person by the end but it’s def worth it if you’ve never had this experience.

My husband and I were transported back to some of our favorite restaurant experiences in Tokyo.
Absolutely loved our dinner tonight, including service, environment, everything.
Highly recommend.

This is a fashion show come to life. The omakase features the most delectable and tender pieces of sashimi and sushi that melts in your mouth. After the first course of sashimi the Nigiris come out in pairs and they honestly look like two fashionable ladies prancing around old Japan. The uni and ikura’s end seaweed looked like the starched straight scarves of Korean air stewardesses! The beautiful colors that they were dressed in was so visually appealing and even the white fish on white rice had sexy colors peeking through from underneath. The trust me omakase was both a visually stunning experience as well as a flavorful tongue sensation where you are left wondering if you forgot how to chew because it literally melts in your mouth. Especially the albacore and toro. I cannot wait to go back for lunch and another special ocassion. Ironic that I used to go to the weight watchers next door. See photos.

If you enjoy baked and greasy sushi rolls or tempura appetizers — YOU’RE IN THE WRONG PLACE! This is an authentic sushi restaurant, a place to savor clean and bold flavors, a place to understand and appreciate the «less is more» concept of warm and tangy rice topped with the most delicious buttery fish! This place, by all means, is SUSHI HEAVEN! It might seem a little overpriced, but TOTALLY JUSTIFIED WHEN YOU TRY THEIR DELICIOUS OFFERINGS!
Must have: yellowtail, scallop, red snapper, albacore and salmon sushi. Without a doubt, this is GLENDALE’S BEST SUSHI RESTAURANT!

I like the third floor location next to CPK. Would not expect such a restaurant to be crammed next to a bunch of American fatty joints. The sushi is decently priced but it racks up when you’re hungry. The sushi was alright. I ordered the toro and the inside was frosty. I understand the fish needs to be defrosted. Guess that piece was a fresh cut from the meat bag. I recently came back from Japan and this is the first place sushi place I ate since I’ve been back. I can attest. Unfortunately it doesn’t compare.
Parking– street or structure. Validation is provided
Sushi– see picture for receipt
Drinks– highly recommend hitachino (favorite beer) and the junmai selection
Overall I can’t say I would come back. I love the service and friendliness of the staff. But what annoyed me is a lot of what we ordered kept running out. It can’t be helped if you only prepare a certain amount. It’s just how life is. Can’t always get what you want. lol. But definitely would suggest friends to try!

**300^th REVIEW** — because Sasabune is the best sushi restaurant in LA I’ve been to so far
Wow… this is by far one of the best sushi experiences I’ve had, probably tied or 2^nd to Sushi Ota. Apparently this is their 3^rd location (other two are both in West LA Beverly Hills and Brentwood). Am I lucky or what that I just moved to Atwater Village half a year ago and they opened one in Glendale?!
L O C A T I O N
Parking available at 101 North Brand parking lot (across from Bloomingdale’s, Americana, & Glendale Galleria). Drive up to P3, park your car and Sasabune is located on the same floor of the building (right next to California Pizza Kitchen)
*Up to 2 Hours Free Parking with Validation to Patrons
We found some metered parking instead, so either way works!
O M A K A S E E X P E R I E N C E
I had the extreme pleasure of coming here with my boyfriend for his birthday, and we of course got the omakase– I happily popped his omakase cherry! If you haven’t tried omakase before, it’s basically where you tell the chef what you (can’t or won’t) eat, and he whips up dishes of sushi/​sashimi/​small plates for you. The dishes come out one by one and you get the full experience of eating dishes prepared just for you. Towards the end, he’ll ask if you want to try anything more, and if not then you’ll just finish your meal & pay up.
We made reservations for 2 on a Thursday night and it was pretty empty, which suited us perfectly fine; better empty than packed for your omakase experience (you get full attention from the chef!) We let him know which items we could not eat (bf has some allergies) before he began and ordered some beer too.
Chef Hiroki prepared our meal and he was amazing– he was super friendly, relaxing-​ly conversational, and so good at what he does. Some items that stood out included toro, uni, yellowtail sashimi, and the sweet shrimp. But to be honest, everything tasted absolutely delicious, melt in your mouth butter style and so so fresh. The overall experience was so pleasant because Chef Hiroki would walk us through each dish he presented, and it was not only a delicious meal but a learning experience for us as well.
Total damage was a little under $ 300 for the 2 of us, but includes 3 beers & tip. Not bad at all, for a splendid meal that I’m just dying to come back again for.
O V E R A L L
5 stars! 5 for food, 5 for service! Love Sasabune!

We have always loved sushi Sasabune and now it’s closer to us in downtown LA.
The fish is as fresh and wonderful as the other locations. Hiroki San who learned from Nobi San is a sweet familiar face and his sushi making hands are perfected to a mastery. Come hungry… It is sad when you start to get full as it is so delicious. Pricey but worth it as a treat!

Is Glendale the new Beverly Hills!!! With all the new construction and anchor tenants moving in, it may seem so, but for now… nice try Glendale.
It’s really quite a shame that most legitimate sushi spots are either on the west side or in DTLA. So when a sushi powerhouse such as Sasabune graces the San Fernando/​San Gabriel Valley, it’s a must try.
The parking situation as with any semi-​densely populated area is your choice of metered parking (meter maids check until 10pm with a quarter getting you 15 minutes) or parking structures that charge $ 5 – 10. If you really want to go cheap you can always park at the Galleria and walk over. The restaurant itself is located on the second floor of the Glendale City Center next to the California Pizza Kitchen. If you go from the exterior there are escalators that can take you to the 2^nd floor.
The restaurant itself seats about 75 – 100, with a 20-​seater sushi bar and about 20 table seats. The décor and ambiance is nice and clean, taking elements of a traditional sushi restaurant and adding modern refining touches to it.
Service was impeccable, especially for a Saturday Valentines day service. We showed up at 9pm and the place was still extremely busy yet our servers were always attentive with tea refills and plate clearing.
Now onto the food. As stated before the restaurant was extremely busy so it took a while for the sushi chef to get into his groove. He was busy trying to fill orders for 20 other tables. There really is no menu, just a beer/​wine/​sake menu which brings it down to one choice, OMAKASE:
–Albacore in ponzu finely diced green onion
–Taco with lemon and chopped shiso
–Clam shell with shiso leaf (similar to scallops, almost had a daicon like texture)
–Blue fin tuna from Spain (had a sweetness with a touch of bitter in the end)
–Chu toro (creamy, nice texture)
–Hirame (there was a nice tanginess with the ponzu but it seemed over-​marinated. The texture of the fish was off)
–Kinmedai
–Canadian Oyster
–Hotate with Shitake mushrooms
–Mussel with steamed egg covered in Japanese sweet mayo sauce (a little too sour and tart)
–Kanpachi (more neutral tasting yellowtail)
–Salmon with sweet seaweed and sesame (nice sweetness, sesame brings out the smokiness and compliments the texture)
–Ikura (marinated…very subtle hints of soy and rice wine… very good)
–Uni from Santa barbara (seaweed was not crispy)
–Hotate with sea salt and yuzukosho
–Ama ebi sweet shrimp (nice texture) Deep fried head with sauce… a little gooey unevenly fried batter.
–Grilled black cod with unagi sauce (had a little heat) and sesame seeds
–Awabi with ginger
–Aoyagi shiso leaf and sea salt
–Unagi
–Tamago (very watery, too sweet)
–Blue crab handroll (halved)
*Extra order* Ankimo two ways (1.ponzu 2. miso sauce (sugar, miso, egg mixture)
And to end it all, delicious Lychee sorbet.
Our sushi chef, Toshi-​san, who was very nice and a joy to be around invited us back to try different types of fish. The main sushi-​chef Hiroki-​san was just as good. So for those that don’t want omakase you can order with the sushi chef a la carte style.
The omakase itself seemed very generic and the items served were the same exact items seen in previous Unilocal reviews. To me this lends no individuality, especially for the price paid. On the other-​hand the sushi itself was top notch, the blends of flavors were perfect, and service was impeccable. I will be taking up Hitoshi-san’s offer and hopefully Sasabune has a few more tricks up it’s sleeve.
Food — 5
Service — 5
Décor — 4

Still my favorite spot for sushi in LA, and I don’t think it will ever change. I have been coming to Sasabune for many years now. I will always remember having a moment when I first tried their clam sashimi. It was like I just saw a unicorn and rode it into sashimi heaven. Not exaggerating at all.
I mostly come to celebrate special occasions and every visit in the past was always great and consistently good. My last visit at this new location though was by far the best. I came here for my birthday and was so happy to see that my favorite sushi chef has also moved from their Beverly Hills location to the Glendale one. The omakase was deliciously prepared, fresh, with beautiful presentations, and service was spotless. The reason why I love Sasabune’s omakase is because of its variety. Their taste and quality is unbeatable but it’s really the variety offered in their omakase experience that makes it such good meal. I like that they start off with sashimi, then move onto sushi where raw, seared, and fully cooked fish is served. Then it’s finished off with a delicious blue crab hand roll. I also got to try the limited edition Fukukomachi’s 400^th anniversary sake from Japan. Again, that same unicorn took me to sake heaven.
For a restaurant that just opened for two weeks, they had everything down from food to service just like that. Their slightly warm sushi rice that falls apart if you don’t know how to use a chopstick, their incredibly fresh and melt in your mouth raw fish, their laid back, non-​pretentious yet classy atmosphere, and their ever-​so-​attentive service. What more can you ask for? I will always be a loyal patron of Sasabune, until I’m old and gray and can’t chew anymore. I’ll just ask them to purée my fish. Sit at the sushi bar, order their omakase, and finish with the blue crab hand roll. You won’t be disappointed.

Finally I get to try Sushi Sasabune on the east side! The area that Sasabune occupies was vacant for so long. It used to be a subpar sushi spot so seeing it replaced with this noted restaurant truly adds to Glendale’s diverse and poppin’ agenda.
Sasabune is for authentic sushi lovers. If you’re into spicy mayo, baked lobster covered in mayo atop a California roll, or any form of innovative Japanese fusion, I’m going to be bold and say it outright… this place is not for you.
Every single item on the menu comes as is, rarely accompanied with anything more interesting than a sweeter than usual soy sauce. It is for true sashimi and sushi lovers. They do not serve rolls, only handrolls which include only rice + the fish.
We ordered half a dozen Kumamoto oysters, amberjack sushi, golden snapper sushi, toro sashimi, yellowtail sashimi, and a toro handroll. The highlight of the meal was definitely the toro, from Spain, which was accompanied by a sweet soy sauce. The amberjack and golden snapper were already dressed so there was no need to dip them into the soy sauce. Everything was extremely fresh and delicious.
One of the many positive sides of a restaurant that has recently opened up is the personal feel you gain upon visiting. We got a chance to talk to the chefs, who used to work at the Wilshire location (the head chef now at Sasabune in Glendale used to work for many years under the founder of Sasabune). These chefs wake up every single day at 3:30 am to prepare to select the best fish when the fish market opens up! Because fish markets are closed on Sunday, Sasabune is also closed on Sundays, as it cannot offer the freshest fish of the day. RESPECT.
I can’t wait to visit again! Great experience and finally, a notable sushi restaurant in Glendale!

All my friends from the west side swear by Sasabune. They goto Express for any sushi fix. It is a go-​to. I couldn’t wait to try it.
Décor: very clean and plain. needs work. Still no personality at all. But very clean.
Service: amazing. I had a great experience w the service. Extremely nice servers and active chefs.
Plates: straight to the point. No thrills. Yet clean.
Fish: yikes, we had a fishy day. I liked it but the others kept hinting at fish. We didn’t cancel our order but it got so bad that someone at the table actually confronted the server and chefs about the extreme fishiness. they got defensive. I personally did not have a fishy experience. I liked my fish but had other issues.
Style: #1warm rice that isn’t sticky. The signature of trust me. I really don’t like it. Nothing more annoying than when the rice falls all over the place. I found it hit or miss. Some sushis did not fall while others did.
#2 ponzu another signature. Way too much. By the end of the night, my palate was ponzued out!!!
Price: I think this is normal pricing for the west side. Glendale rent should be lower so why charge extra? All the market fish is regular fish at Buko, or Enya, or Gen.
Drinks: very good selection and really priced well.
Overall: I recommend this as second best sushi in Glendale. Best is still Buko. Sasabune are limited to sashimi, sushi and hand rolls. Sloppy rice. Excessive ponzu. A bit pricey if you have an American appetite. $ 80 – 150 to get full.
I wrote this to help Sasabune. I hope they don’t become stubborn or defensive. Fix the fishiness, lower the prices by 10%, and add more appetizers or cut rolls. Decorate the place to feel like your not in LA. I felt a little hard to breathe in the building. An open window or oxygen tanks or air flow should be considered. Potential is there but right now, needs a lot work.
Good luck!!! Cheers

*** SASABUNE IN GLENDALE ***
FINALLY!!! it was due to open in july 2015.
now, the wait is over. this is the closest sasabune to me. this one’s headed by Chef Hiroki Totsuka. (Chef Ei: i will still come to visit when i can but glendale is much closer.) fish is the same freshness and quality.
nice, modern feel with limited seating. omakase is the only way to go. call for reservations.
best thing ever? i can get to sasabune in 20 minutes… maybe even 15. =D