Lacayo Sushi — Restaurant in Santa Cruz

My boyfriend and I were running errands in Santa Cruz and came across this place on Google Maps. It had the best reviews out of the nearby restaurants so we decided to give it a try. So glad we did! The restaurant is small without a lot of frills, but it’s clean and features some interesting art. We ordered the Lacayo 50 Sushi Mix which comes with 10 Spring Rolls, Volcano Roll, Popeye Roll, Tora Roll, and King Kong Roll. This is way too much food for two people lol! We were surprised by how good the sushi was. I’m from California so I wasn’t expecting too much here. But, I was surprised by how fresh the seafood was and they pile on the ingredients—you wouldn’t expect that from a sushi place in Santa Cruz. We brought our leftovers home and finished them that night. The rolls still tasted great! And not to mention, the price was definitely worth it. It was essentially two meals for us! If you are in the area I’d highly recommend visiting this restaurant. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as...

First- we had a language barrier on our end. We do not speak Spanish. That is all on us. I tried to do some translations and the young man working was helpful. He did not speak any English.

We ended up with 3 delicious rolls. The space was small but clean. Interesting art.

Our order took a long time but, that may be normal in other countries. We are so used to everything being instant in America.

The menu was really shrimp focused. Since my boyfriend is allergic, it was a challenge to find some things that did not have shrimp, but also were not vegetarian. Mission accomplished.

It was a nice lunch...

I came for takeout and I order 2 appetizers and 1 roll. It took over 45 minutes to make even though I was told it would be ready in 25. The quality of the fish is decent but it lacks flavor. I’ve been eating sushi for 16 years and this was a huge disappointment. Not sure why there’s cabbage and slaw in the boxes. AND one of my shrimps had the poop sack in it. Disappointing to say the least. I wouldn’t recommend this...