Tabu Sushi Bar & Grill

Food is not bad. But the atmosphere is terrible and the staff do not care. We will never go back. 4 children under 10 were sat next to us while parents were at the sushi bar. The kids were fighting, yelling and throwing things. We finally left. The staff did not care that others were leaving too. They would not let us talk to a manager. Never again going there.

DON’T GO here. THEY DID NOT HONOR the restaurant card from Costco. BUT THEY DO at the Del Mar location. I ordered a roll I always get at their other locations and this was so bad, I actually returned it and I rarely return an item. When we went to pay our $ 60 bill, they WOULD NOT NOT NOT take the gift card… even after showing them receipts from their Del Mar place which honors it. I came home and checked to make sure the $ 168 in gift cards are in fact all good. (3 have $ 50 balances and one has $ 18). Will tell you Luis the wait person WAS EXCELLENT. BEST BEST BEST you can find and I think he should find another place to work.

First time I came here the waitress was sick sniffing and coughing while taking our order also hanging all over the chairs and putting her leg up on the bench seat against the wall. It was so unappetizing that we left.
This place is so close to home we decided to give them another chance and went back today. I got the bento box. They don’t brew there own ice tea it’s a Pepsi product.
Their version of teriyaki chicken is weird, salty and just doesn’t taste good. The salad that comes with the bento box is salty. The tempura has a chemical taste to it. The California roll was ok. The service is sub par
If you want great sushi at a fair price don’t go here I would recommend «Hooked on sushi»

Horrible. 3 pieces of sushi $ 22.00. Way over priced. Salmon was good. Tuna was like mush and yellowtail horrible. Granted it was a Sunday. But for these prices I expect fresh fish not two day old crap

Nice place, good atmosphere. Ordered salmon hand rolls, Philadelphia roll and tuna roll. All food was delicious. Salmon hand rolls were nice size with plenty of salmon in them. Really happy with our meal, the only thing I didn’t like was that some of the specialty rolls were expensive, $ 15-​$ 17. That’s a lot in my opinion, though I’m sure they would taste good. ;) staff were friendly and quick, it wasn’t busy though.

We have had a few of our friends recommend this place and decided to give it a try.
I’ll be honest. It was not good and I doubt we will go back. The spicy tuna roll was bland and the rainbow roll did not taste very fresh. Their spin on teriyaki chicken also left me disappointed. We also ordered the Miso Ramen and it was pretty bad as well. It did not have much flavor and did also taste like it came out of a package.
If you want sushi, there are plenty of other excellent places in different price ranges and if you want a better place with a similar feel, Teri Café is hands down the best place to get sushi, ramen and rice plates. I really did want to like this place, but it just didn’t do it for me.

Came here for dinner on a Tuesday night about 7pm, the place was pretty empty. I just assumed it was because it was a weeknight. We decided to take a seat at the sushi bar. The waitress and sushi chef were great. The food came out quick and prices are about average. My BF wanted to try this location out, he’s been ranting and raving about the Del Mar location. Sorry to say but this place did not live up to expectations. This is my first experience at any of their 4 locations in San Diego.
Food: We ordered two rolls the Del Mar and Kai roll. Del Mar roll had some good flavor it was my favorite out of the two. The chef put a torch to the top so you got a hint of the charbroiled flavor. The asparagus inside was a nice touch. The Kai roll is wrapped in cucumber no rice. It was a little difficult to eat, it’s a large roll and its laying flat on its side. I thought the fish was really fresh but it just didn’t give us that wow factor.
Overall food and service was good but there wasn’t anything special that would bring us back. The atmosphere was nice and the décor was very simple tan walls with some art. The sushi bar level did bother us a bit. It felt like the seats were either way too short or the bar was too high. Made it a bit uncomfortable especially when you are vertically challenged like myself.

Our first time here, since our original sushi place was sold and unfortunately all of our favorite items disappeared since we’ve been to various sushi places in search of one that’s at least half as good as our old place. Tabu sushi is amazing! The atmosphere has a nice light feel to it, great if your from California! We started off with the calamari, it was thicker cuts than normal but they were tasty and crunchy. We had a handful of rolls, but the one that stood out was the spicy mango roll, it was delicious and light! It’s a must try if it’s your first time. We can’t wait to go back
The only minus was we went during happy hour but didn’t get any of the happy hour prices, which would normally bother me but the food was super yummy that t wasn’t a big deal. 5 stars!

I recently moved to Vista and I was in the search for a sushi restaurant. I found Tabu Sushi on Unilocal and decided to give it a try because of all the great reviews and pictures. Tabu Sushi definitely exceeded my expectations with quality sushi and tentative staff. Moving forward this will be my go to sushi spot!

My mom and I came here for lunch last Saturday after I have heard good things about them. We were just having lunch, so I had a pepsi and my mom had a 7-​up. Randomly the pepsi was great! I don’t know how it was different but it was really good.
We started with Garlic Edamame and it was delish and a very large portion! My mom and I went on to share 3 rolls. One was the spicy crab roll and it was great! I can’t remember the names of the other two. One had lemon, I want to say it was Lemon cilantro? I’m not sure. But it was SO good. The third roll (I can’t remember the name of) I did not care for. I didn’t realize it had seared salmon on it, and I typically don’t care for it.
Our server was good. Attentive but not overbearing. The sushi came at a good speed, and was very fresh.
The restaurant itself is in kind of an odd location, but there is a hotel next door and they probably get a lot of business from there. For lunch there were only a few tables in the restaurant.
Overall, I would probably come back when I am in Vista again and wanting sushi

I had heard some decent things about their sushi but also some warnings from friends that service and stocked items could be lacking; this turned out to be on point at my first and last visit here.
Tempted by the close vicinity to the local business parks, and ample lunchtime parking, my party were able to quickly be seated, and were provided menus in hand and a drink order with expedience.
The two rolls of sushi I tried were quite decent, though did not merit their price. My main dish, which was very late despite the place being half full was the Miso Ramen soup. There may not be a ramen place in North County that rivals those on Convoy St in Clairemont Mesa, but it’s hard to not compare Tabu to that standard. And its ramen misses, sorely. The dashi tasted of chicken broth w/​miso paste and the noodles were doughy. The pork was not bad, but this soup had nothing in it to make it stand out. Every mouthful was a short list of ingredients.
Then there was the bill, which didn’t add up, as my friends had so warned. Prices for beer on the menu are for bottles. We were provided draft beers which have a price hike, shown nowhere on said menu. The explanation was their draft list changes so frequently, they can’t update the menu.
I can’t recommend anyone come here, not given the other options in the area, which is sad given the location is so perfect.

This sushi bar was recommended to me by a few friends, however I did not find anything to be out of this world.
First off, the restaurant itself is set up very nice, it was very clean, the bar was nice.
The chefs were extremely nice as well.
The food itself was Pretty Pricey for what it was, and it took FOREVER to get our order, even though there was only 1 other person at the bar, and 1 table seated.
The Salmon Kama was probably the best thing that I had (should never be a cooked item at a sushi bar!)
I know there are other locations, I would be up for possibly trying a different location as I do not know that I would go back to this one.

I really like this sushi restaurant in Carlsbad. I’ve been here a few times and I’ve ordered almost everything on the menu. I always sit at the bar and the service is excellent. They will even make things that are not on the menu.

I have not tried any of the other locations, but this one is very nice. The restaurant is very clean, nicely decorated, the employees are very helpful and friendly.
The food is very delicious, and some of it is very reasonably priced compared to other places. Some of their specialty rolls are a expensive at $ 15-​$ 20 each, but they taste great!
This location is right on Melrose, and there are some other things to do while you are in this little strip mall.

I’m a fan of this place. It’s very close to my house, so that’s a plus. The sushi chefs are very friendly and the prices are competitive. I would give it 5 stars, but there are too many fried type rolls on the menu. I prefer to taste the fish and the natural ingredients rather than fried items or sauces that overwhelm the sushi. I have never been disappointed by the service or the quality of fish. Overall, a very good sushi restaurant in North County.

Right across the street from my house, so I had to try it out.
The owner is very nice and friendly, even gave us a free sample of some of the tuna. He used to work at Sushi Ota, a very popular and famous sushi place down in Pacific Beach so he knows what he’s doing.
The sashimi was very good and the quality was high. They have the rare Alaskan Salmon as their sashimi choice and it was different from whatever salmon that other places use. The appetizers were good, especially the korean beef ribs. Marinated just right and very soft.
Service was very friendly and accommodating. Even gave us a couple of free drinks.
Always get fresh wasabi for sushi this high quality.

There is no better place to get Sushi than here. First off the chefs are simply incredible and if you get a chance ask them to make their speciality it is beyond amazing they each have their own special sushi dishes and all of them are amazing.
The staff is more than friendly, after a few times of coming here they learned my name and are very personable. They remember what I like and what I don’t like truly an amazing place.
Thank you Gurson, Pancho, Simon, Sylvia, Stavro. You all truly make coming here more than a meal.

This will be my second visit here. My husband and I decided to meet up here with my sister’s boyfriend for lunch.
The restaurant is quite spacious, not what you would think as you pull up to the front. The layout is open with plenty of bar seating. The seating may be a little close for some people, but I find there is enough space between customers. It’s casual and comfortable.
The ingredients are very fresh. The presentation are always precise on the platter that it is served on. One of the surprising sushi rolls that we enjoyed was the Lemon Cilantro, a must try if you like something a bit refreshing. This visit I also tried the Moonstone Plum Sake. It is very smooth with a light hint of sweetness, very yummy.
Our server was very friendly and checked on us now and then to make sure our drinks were full or if we needed anything. Everyone that works here is very friendly and always quick to make suggestions on sushi’s to try the next time we are in. We definitely enjoy coming here, and thank our friends to introducing us to a great sushi stop.

Sushi on Sunday.
While Sunday is a day of rest for my regular sushi place Sushia, I had to find a backup plan.
I was a little hesitant about going deep into Vista because of safety reasons but to my surprise, this was actually in a nice part of town. Tabu Sushi was pretty large on the inside, with plenty of seats bar-​side and many tables with benches. Place was CLEAN, and staff friendly. Of course, this was Sunday so it was also pretty empty for lunch.
2×2×2 sashimi appetizer.
— Tomahawk slices of Tuna, Salmon, and Yellowtail. In general, I don’t particularly care for yellowtail, but this was the best of the three. What was cool were the carrot/​beet garnish nests.
Teriyaki Chicken Entrée (comes with Salad and soup)
— Nice side salad, good dressing, bit of bitterness. The Chicken also had tasty mushrooms, so if you’re not into fungi you might want to let them know before hand.
Crunchy Roll
— Pretty standard. Roll fell apart in some places.
Rancho Roll
— This was the only fried roll I could find. Interesting that they used Salmon as the fish of choice. Because of the oils in the salmon it’s not usually a fish that is used in frying. None the less, it was a good roll for the texture and the hint of heat with the jalapeño slices.
Lemon Cilantro Roll
— This was my favorite (and the most expensive). This sweet tang of the roll played a foil to some of the bitter notes of the side salad and the carrot/​beet garnish nests from the sashimi appetizer. I’ve had similar to this at Roy’s.
In summation, everyone was very pleased with the food here. Of course I was paying the bill so I wasn’t that happy. This is Tabu’s weakness. While some of the rolls were larger than say a «50% off roll», and the quality was better, at the end of the day their price point makes it tough to digest.
— The main issue is that it’s expensive. No discount sushi here.

This is where I struggle with the star rating. Debated back and forth whether it was 3 star or 4 star worthy and here’s why:
Tabu Sushi Bar Vista is part of a chain of Tabu Sushi Bar restaurants that stretch from the East County (El Cajon and Santee) to the Riverside border (Temecula) and parts in between (Del Mar and now Vista).
While I don’t have an aversion to chain restaurants, being part of a chain means things are done a certain way across the board and there is little room for leeway. Which can be both positive and negative for diners.
I came across Tabu thanks to our awesome community manager, Trish, who had bookmarked it in her feed and since it was date night last night we decided to give Tabu a try. I was glad we did, however, perhaps not for the reasons you might think.
We arrived around 5:45 p.m. and parking was already a bit tight, we parked to the South of the restaurant closer past Mrs. Taco. There was a party of about 6 seated, and a few couples here and there but it was pretty much empty. But by the time we left almost every table was occupied.
We were seated immediately and greeted by our server. The menu is extensive i. e, 11 different sakes, so if you like to read all the food descriptions or have a hard time deciding you may want to study the menu before you go to Tabu.
For an appetizer we choose the fried pork Gyoza — you have a choice between beef or pork, steam or fried. Yes, a boring choice but it’s gyoza so theoretically it should be good, not something the kitchen can mess, and a good way to gauge how the rest of the food is going to taste.
However, they were out of pork gyoza (before 6 p.m. on a Friday?) so they gave us steamed beef gyoza. Not sure how we went from fried to steamed…
Unfortunately, it was the worst gyoza I’ve tasted. The beef had the same consistency as that of a Taco Bell taco.
My husband loves sunomono salad so that was a natural choice. While it was delicious Tabu’s sunomono salad was what I imagine they serve at a shi-​shi Beverly Hills sushi bar — a small bowl of thinly sliced cucumber with pieces of octopus and krab (yes, krab with a «k» because that means it’s not real crab with a «c») seasoned with red pepper. Very light on the vinegar, no seaweed, and missing the advertised ponz sauce.
For our sushi we ordered 2 orders of tuna and yellowtail, a Tabu Roll (spicy grab, cucumber, avocado, topped with eel, avocado and eel sauce), a Cucumber Roll, and a Tuna Roll. The Cucumber and Tuna rolls were ordered using the same reasoning as ordering the gyoza — basic orders and wanted to see if they could be done correctly.
The Hamachi (yellowtail) was melt in your mouth delicious and flavorful. The Maguro (tuna) not so much. The intense bright red color threw us off as it looked nothing like maguro we’ve ordered at any other sushi restaurant any where. The portions were extremely generous but it was gummy and had no taste. :(
The Tabu Roll, Cucumber Roll, and Tuna Roll were good. The cucumbers were fresh and crispy and the sushi rice held together without being too sticky.
All and all the food was tasty but there were a few misses (gyoza and tuna). It’s a bit more expensive than other sushi restaurants. I’m guessing that the proximity to all the new hotels allows them to charge what they’re charging. Otherwise, I’ll stick to my local favs or drive to San Diego or San Clemente.
Our tab (including 1 beer) came to $ 71.07 with taxes, not including tip. Ouch!
Happy hour between 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday include:
— gyoza $ 4
— stuffed jalapeños $ 5
— calamari $ 5
— california roll — $ 4
— spicy crab roll — $ 4
— ranch roll — $ 8
— large hot sake — $ 5
— large Sapporo/​hot sake — $ 12
Pros:
1) Another sushi restaurant in Vista (an area dominated by Italian, pizza, and Mexican restaurants)
2) Food was served quickly
3) Sushi rice wasn’t too sticky or vinegary
4) Decent portions
Cons:
1) Some of the sushi wasn’t very good
2) Price
3) Parking