Sushi by Scratch Restaurants: Montecito

Absolutely amazing experience. Every piece of sushi melted in your mouth

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Halouk and his team were exceptional! So glad we were able to experience the food, atmosphere and service ....So impressive..

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

My wife and I had dinner here for our anniversary. The staff was excellent in their service from start to finish. All 17 servings we delicious and left us extremely satisfied. One of our highlights from this establishment was our conversations and interactions with the staff. Definitely come if you want to have a memorable experience with both your partner and the staff!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Omakase

Amazing experience! My husband and I went here for our anniversary and had the best experience! Each course was fresh and inventive, drinks were EXCELLENT, and the chefs was entertaining and skilled (:

Can’t wait to come back!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

If you know, you know—this is hands down the best sushi experience you’ll find outside of Japan.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Omakase

9/13/25 9:30 seating

The host, chefs and bartender were all fantastic and made our honeymoon very special. Everything was excellent!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We had one night in Santa Barbara and my mom and I were able to get the last reservation here. I love omakase and this one was Michelin rated so I was very excited to dine here. 10/10 experience. All of the nigiri were unique, unexpected and DELICIOUS! The bone marrow unagi was incredible. Highly recommend a visit!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

One of the best sushi I had this year! Very creative but also aligned with highly quality edomae sushi. It has very limited seats, better book ahead.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The best omakase sushi experience. The sushi chefs are so fun and interactive and make the most delicious sushi. Everything is so fresh and the highest of quality. We have been twice and can’t wait to be back soon.

This is a belated review of Sushi by Scratch, after my boyfriend asked me to rank the best omakase experiences we had in 2024; we've had pretty good ones in LA and CDMX. Sushi by Scratch was by far the best. It was so good it's still on our minds.

We went for my birthday last August and had the best time, the chefs were so efficient, and a marvel to watch and had great people skills as well.

The food was of course, incredible. The cocktails were also well crafted and strong. I typically shy away from dinner cocktails because they feel lackluster, these proved me wrong. I never wanted the experience to end.

They took polaroids of us after dinner (can't remember why, maybe it was just for my birthday? maybe everyone did it and I just can't remember) but I was too shy to ask the chefs to take a photo with us to keep, they are basically celebrities to us. We keep the photo on the refrigerator.

Highly recommend and will definitely return the next time we visit Santa Barbara/Montecito!

Exceptional in every sense of the word. Top 5 meals of my life. Thank you chefs and som. Incredible.

Memorable!

A top-notch omakase experience with a charming team of sushi chefs (plus a sake and beverage coordinator).

Fabulous omakase 17 course dinner in Montecito. Super service. Creative Japanese inspired cuisine. Options for saki pairings but also broad wine, cocktail and Japanese whiskey options. A fun experience rather than something that is too serious. Can’t wait to go back. Kudos Chef & your team!

Started with their delicious tessin nigiri, and then the buri which had a very balanced taste similar to tuna, and is high in fat content. The toro was a classic, and one of my favorite bites time and time again is the hotate. The striped jack was firm in texture and paired very well with the second sake. One of the best bites of the meal was this new iteration of the spot prawn with an egg custard on top. It was a savory bite, something I wouldn’t really think would go well with the prawn. A classic amongst all of the Sushi by Scratch locations is the albacore with the onions that had a shaved texture versus being crispy, and this nigiri preparation is inspired by Katsuya, another Japanese restaurant in Southern California where the Philipe is originally from. I was impressed from start to finish once again with the nigiri, the combinations of complex flavors, the service of course, and it’s amazing to see how not only are you taken on a culinary journey, but you also get to engage with the Sushi by Scratch team and learn even more about the bites you’re having.