Sapa
722 State St, Salt Lake City
(801) 363-7272
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Sapa used to be the place when I was in college. I left Utah about 5-6 years ago and have wanted to go back. I took my family praying that it was still as good as I remember. And it was. From the drunken noodles to the dragon balls, this place has still maintained great food. The service was a touch slow for the rolls than I remember. And I think the dragon balls are much smaller. But the fact my family and I still enjoyed everything speaks volumes. Our server was very attentive and kind.
Parking was easy in their lot (paid, about $6, which felt reasonable), and the building itself is beautiful—huge, open, and thoughtfully designed. There’s plenty of space with multiple rooms that would be perfect for group dinners or parties, plus what looks like a great outdoor area for summer.
We walked in through a large sliding door—unexpected and fun—and were warmly greeted right away. IDs were checked for drinks and our hands were stamped, which gave the entry a bit of a bar or club-style feel. Once inside, we were seated immediately with no wait. Our server was wonderful—very knowledgeable and happy to recommend several items, including the secret menu and special supper rolls.
We started with gyoza, which was a great way to kick things off. For sushi, we tried the Lucky Seven and the Wok & Roll, and both were delicious. I also had an albacore hand roll, which was fresh and well balanced. The rolls lean a bit heavier on heat and spice, which worked, though I personally prefer more traditional, clean flavors where the fish really shines. We started with Sapporo, keeping things casual on what ended up being a last-minute night out.
The atmosphere inside is striking—well lit, stylish, and elevated, with a beautiful red glass chandeliers that really stands out. It’s easy to see why so many friends rave about this place and consider it one of the best sushi spots in town.
We’ll definitely be back. Sapa feels like a great choice for either a date night or a lively group dinner.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sapa’s food is “OK.” Their venue is v cool. Lots of rooms. All seem cozy, mixed with fun, vibrant energy.
Two giveaways on the quality of a sushi place:
(1) If sashimi and nigiri are not prominent on the menu, that means they aren’t using quality fish that they trust to serve alone. (sashimi = fish slice alone; nigiri = fish slice on plain rice). What you really want to see is a sashimi/nigiri menu that was printed that day, or at least that week. Sashimi & nigiri are last on Sapa’s menu, and there was no presentation of what was current.
(2) The prevalence of “crab” and especially “crab mix.” Anything “___ mix” is likely imitation. When there’s imitation once, there are all kinds of corners elsewhere that may be cut. Always ask. “Is your crab mix imitation crab? It’s ok if it is. I just want to know.” They will tell you. The more crab mix shows up on the menu, the more it says, “they are just stuffing roles with cheaper ingredients not caring whether it’s good.” Look at Sapa’s rolls. Loads of them have crab mix. That knocks out 25 (of the 57) options, with another 2 being questionable.
If you don’t care and want a good vibe … go. Have a good time.
If you want good sushi … go elsewhere.
Food was fantastic! Service left something to be desired. Very cool vibe, will try again, maybe our waitress was having a bad night?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Amazing sushi spot! Vibe and ambience is great. Sushi was awesome and drinks were good. Location is meh but everything else is stellar
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sapa is a good restaurant but is also hugely popular so the wait can be a bit insane at times. As much as I like it, I don’t think it’s worth a 45 minute wait.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
This place has great food. But they don’t do reservations and you will stand in line for an hour outside waiting in the cold. It doesn’t matter if you go right when they open at 5:00. It sucks. Not worth the wait. Wish they’d treat customers better by offering a reasonable reservation policy. Do not recommend unless you enjoy standing in long lines outside freezing. 😞
The building is cool and the atmosphere a fun vibe. Couldn’t believe how large this restaurant is. Awesome artwork, fun furniture.
The food was great. Well prepared and very neat. The wasabi was okay - nothing to write home about.
The service was insanely slow, the place opened at 5 we got there at 5:20. We waited 40 minutes for two rolls. Normally I don’t time it but I took a picture of our edamame so I had a time stamp- and it REALLY was 40 minutes!
When we asked the server pulled up her little tablet thing and acted aloof. “Let me go look for it” she said “oh it has been about 25 minutes” —that’s when I pulled out my timestamped photo—I didn’t show her or say anything, but yeah it was actually 35 minutes and we didn’t get it for 6 more minutes.
We only ordered two regular rolls nothing super special or deep fried or anything.
Even the table next to us said “hey do not order anything else we’ve been waiting over a 45 minutes for our second roll.”
If the rollers can’t keep up stop seating so many people.
Looked around the room and only two out of maybe 12 tables had food.
We were late to our show because dinner took a full hour longer than expected.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Why qlmist all special sushi has cilantro in it? Otherwise good experience
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
I was in again as I love this place. Unfortunately tonight I was broad sided from very high priced drinks and sushi without given knowledge of said high price. Our server, I'll just say R, in the bar made high priced choices with out letting us know the upgrade we'd be making. I appreciate the service, but also feel if said server is up-charging us for top dollar liquor and food we should be asked if that's what we want. I'd appreciate more communication in the future. In the future I may request a certain server.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
Best sushi
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 3
Brought my wife for bday dinner and was amazing food and cool vibe. Will be definitely going again
We had a blast hosting our company Christmas party here. It was a real treat to prepare for and experience on the day of. The team was incredible in helping us create a menu that accommodated all our tricky allergies, and they were so accommodating. They were quick to meet our needs and make us feel right at home. The food was absolutely delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place knows who they are. They are a japanese restaurant honoring some japanese foods in an approachable way Traditional names on menu items with great descriptions for those that might not know.
Fish was of good quality and fresh. Food was prepared with attention.
Staff was friendly, welcoming, and had good knowledge of the menu.
Tried several items on the menu and enjoy them all. I appreciated that several dishes came with special sauces. A lot of flavor but also had the ability to control the spice.
Definitely wouldn't go back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great vibes and a fun place to grab sushi and drinks with friends!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
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