Sabaku Sushi

The sushi was much better than expected for the middle of nowhere Utah. The fish was pretty fresh, and the Spider (roll) and Delicate Arch (roll) were very tasty. My boyfriend ordered Castleton (roll) and The Sunshine Roll, and they were just okay. For the roll size and price, it’d easily take $ 40 per person to fill up without even being hungry beforehand. If they had specials, or even a Groupon/​LivingSocial deal, I probably would have been probably 4 stars. The service was mediocre. They didn’t check on us frequently enough and we ran out water twice for over 5 minutes each time. They also took 15 – 20 minutes to make our drinks and it wasn’t packed as we went in December. My boyfriend and I, along with the table next to us, weren’t fans of the atmosphere. It had more of a bar (and not a fancy one) feel. For the prices, I would except chic restaurant décor.
WARNING: You should call ahead of time for their hours. They were closed for 3 or 4 days a week during the off-​season. They also do not have set closing hours. When we called to ask when they were open until, Sabaku said they were guessing around 7:30pm, but it’s dependent how busy they are that evening.

If this was any other sushi bar in an urban area, I would rate Sabaku two stars without batting an eye. However, as with all my dining experiences, I take into consideration the context and location of the business. Since fresh fish is difficult to come by when you are in a barren area of land with no oceans in sight, I commend Sabaku Sushi for opening shop in Moab. And not only that, Sabaku is quite successful with a loyal following.
The locals say that the fish is flown in fresh from Hawaii almost daily (which is why Sabaku is closed on Mondays because there is no mail service on Sundays). This restaurant is dedicated to providing quality cuts. For a resort town in the middle of a desert, the sushi is not terrible. It’s definitely more expensive than average sushi places but that’s because fresh fish is a luxury here.
If you come with the expectation that your meal will be acceptable but pricey, then you will leave satisfied. Sabaku offers Happy Hour from 5 – 6, which I highly recommend if you want to dine here but have reservations about racking up a large bill. The sushi rolls are discounted (not half price but still cheaper than regular prices). They’re rather stingy with the time so don’t expect any leniency if you’re a few minutes past 6. Sabaku is one of the hipper and more modern restaurants in Moab but I found the service lacking and inattentive.
My boyfriend and I arrived 10 minutes before HH ended. We managed to quickly decide on a few rolls.
HAPPY HOUR ROLLS:
*Tempura Shrimp Roll
*Sake Maki — essentially a salmon roll
*Hidden Valley — fried apples, mango, avocado, macadamia nuts and sweet sauce
We also ordered a bottle of Asahi and Lev Black Lion. We hoped the three HH rolls would partially fill us up but we were still starving so we ordered two more rolls (it was no longer HH).
REGULAR ROLLS:
*White Rim — tempura shrimp, cucumber and avocado, topped with tuna, eel, eel sauce and sesame seeds
*Delicate Arch — rice-​less roll with crab, tuna, salmon and avocado rolled in a cucumber, topped with onion ponzu
After finishing those two rolls, we were STILL hungry so we decided to try their salmon nigiri, which was disappointing because it didn’t taste like salmon at all.
Unfortunately, none of the rolls were noteworthy or particularly tasty. The rice was pretty hard, although they’re fair with the fish to rice ratio. However, the rolls themselves are on the daintier side (be mindful of this if you’re famished and just completed a day hiking in Arches or Canyonlands). The fish tasted alright but I couldn’t have guessed it was flown in fresh from Hawaii. In fact, the texture was a bit funky and the color of the eel was oddly lighter than what I’ve ever had.
After finishing the nigiri, we were sadly still not quite full, but we weren’t going to throw more money away on disappointing sushi. So, we paid and went to get gelato instead. Again, for Moab, this is so-​so sushi – for anywhere else, I’d hesitate about returning.

Lucked out it was not busy at the bar. Giving your order directly to the sushi chef made it so welcoming and I felt like a VIP. I thank Jeff how fast he was to introduce and offered to take my orders while I was still waited for the waitress for a drink order. To her credit, waitress very sweet and was handling tables inside and outside. My rolls came out very good and in honor of a long day/​night at ANP, Delicate Arch and Fiery Furnace! So good I may come back tomorrow unless they’re crazy busy.
Have to add while the fish were good, it’s not much variety. In fairness, we are in the desert! I’m used to unique fish like barracuda from Japan!

If you like sushi you must visit Sabaku Sushi! This cozy sushi bar in the middle of downtown Moab is a pleasant surprise! Unfortunately, due to an exhausting day of hiking we were not able to eat in and placed our order to go. We sat at the bar having a drink while our rolls were being made, be aware in Utah you have to eat while drinking so we ordered edamame which was very refreshing for after our hike.
The Fiery Furnace was delicious and I highly recommend! Spicy tuna with Sriracha and eel sauce… Yes please! The White Rim was refreshing with a lot of flavor. Delicate Arch was a riceless roll with crab, tuna and salmon in a cucumber roll and a nice palate change. Devil’s Garden which lived up to its name, had a nice sweet taste with the mango but the pineapple habanero sauce balanced the sweet perfectly. I always try the spider roll of every sushi place I visit and Sabaku did not disappoint! We then asked for a recommended roll from the staff which was the La Sal Roll, I really like the asparagus and salmon mixture with a lemon and Black Sea salt finish.
Overall, the atmosphere, wait staff, and chefs were excellent! I will definitely go back here on our next visit (eating in this time) and if I lived in Moab I would be a regular at the Sabaku Sushi Bar!!!