Popular Los Angeles-based sushi restaurant Sugarfish is headed to San Diego's Little Italy neighborhood early next year, it was announced today.
The location, at 2100 Kettner Blvd., will be the company's first outpost outside of L.A., Orange County or New York.
"We're so excited to bring Sugarfish to San Diego's Little Italy neighborhood," co-founder Lele Massimini said. "We don't open another restaurant just to open one — we do it because growth enables us to source better fish and gives our guests a better bite of sushi."
The Sushi Nozawa Group was founded in 2008 and is behind Sugarfish, Nozawa Bar and KazuNori. The company serves "Nozawa-style sushi," a term the company uses for fresh, seasonal simple ingredients to make "sushi at its very best."
The restaurant's menu is anchored by its four "Trust Me" set menus in an omakase style featuring "the highest quality fish sourced from around the world, crisp nori, and warm, loosely-packed rice."
"Our guests know the difference between good sushi and great sushi— that's been the key to our success," co-founder Tom Nozawa said. "The quality of the fish and the simplicity say it all."
The design of the Little Italy restaurant — tentatively scheduled to open in spring 2026 — draws inspiration from the California ranch-style homes of building designer Cliff May. The 40-seat restaurant will feature natural concrete floors, exposed structural columns and large windows that frame sunsets over the harbor, a statement from the company said.
Architect Robert Tsurimoto Kirsten of A-RTK designed the project.
