I am so happy to see that Palm Springs is coming back to life! This town is basically a second home for me, and I love checking out all these new fun restaurants. This blog is about my experience at Chef Engin Onural’s Sandfish Sushi & Whiskey, the best new sushi joint in town!

The decorations were adorable and had some sort of tie to the sea. The tiles against the back of the bar were resembling fish scales, the wallpaper in the bathrooms were blowfishes, and the light fixtures looked like they came from an old Fishermans boat. There were 2 menus, one menu was beautifully designed and laid out with al of the signature rolls and specialty dishes, and the other fanned out with cocktails and other normal thing you’d see at any other sushi place, (California roll, dragon roll, sashimi, nigiri, etc).

Cocktails

I love a good restaurant that has fun and creative craft cocktails. I ordered the Norwegian Garden, made with the liquor that taste like black liquorish. I HATE black liquorish and didn’t taste it at all because it was perfectly blended with cucumber, lime and soda water. Trust me, it taste way better than I am describing it. There is one drink you can order on the menu called Omakase, where the bartender creates a cocktail based off of your favorite spirit. The boys asked for a smokey whiskey and received the Penicillin.

Starters

I always order a Miso soup and think the bowl is just too small and there is never enough. This bowl of miso was massive and I was worried I would fill up on liquids (definitely didn’t!). The Hamachi Crudo was perfectly sliced and paired well with a fun sesame seed crunch. You have to order the Braised & Grilled Spanish Octopus with Edamame Hummus! No questions asked, just do it! If you’re feeling lucky, order the jalapeño poppers, it’s like playing Russian roulette with the spice. I don’t eat dairy, but I had to try one of these and was the perfect mix of spice and crunch!

Sashimi

I always get a little sashimi with a few rolls, but normally I get Yellowtail and Maguro tuna. The waiter recommended us to get the Yellowtail and the Albacore slices. SO GLAD HE DID! The Albacore was literally butter!

Signature Rolls

The first roll is The Experiment made with snow crab, mango, avocado, and cucumber, topped with tuna, thin slices of jalapeños, cilantro and yuzu aioli. Hands down my favorite roll on the menu. The second roll is The second roll is the California Dreamin’, made with crab meat and avocado, topped with salmon, pound sauce and bonito flakes. The third roll is the Venue Roll, and as they say “this is where spicy tuna, salmon and tobiko come together like a symphony”, and it truly did. Filled wi spicy tuna, cucumber, and gobo topped with seared salmon, spicy aioli, teriyaki sauce, micro greens and tobiko. The final roll is the Baby Langoustine made with delicious crab meat and avocado, topped with tempura style baby langoustine with spicy aioli, teriyaki sauce and micro greens.

Dessert

I asked the waiter to bring the most popular deserts and sorbet (since I am dairy free). Of course I took a bite of each dish and have to say that the Espresso Creme Brûlée was to die for! The Japanese Green Tea Cheesecake was delicious as well, and you can never go wrong with a Wild Berry Sorbet.

Be sure to call and make a reservation for when you are in town visiting Palm Springs! Expect to spend $$$ on really delicious food. I would spend any amount of money on delicious food, especially sushi!

Hours:
Sunday–Thursday 
4:30pm–10pm

Friday and Saturday 
4:30pm–11pm

Address:
1556 North Palm Canyon
Palm Springs, CA 922262

Email:
info@sandfishps.com

Phone Number:
760.537.1022