Sake Haus — Restaurant in Phoenix

Sake Haus suffers from an issue of poor customer service and an identity crisis; blending the idea of a youthful and trendy restaurant with one that is upscale. Not that this idea is too far fetched but its lacking in efficiency of its model especially for its customer base per location. For example Sake Haus prides itself on specialties I.e a water machine which very few have or certain aspects of dishes. However if the music is too loud amongst groups of intoxicated college aged people I can’t appreciate any of these things. To further illustrate this point it would be better to have all dishes served at the same time and then give said explanations when receiving the dishes. Not speratically getting my entrees before my apps (yes I was made aware this would happen so I get it but it’s called an app for a reason maybe poor wording for them) as I struggle to listen with overall rude service by a women who appeared to be management making me feel less than appreciated as a customer. If dishes are served out of order traditionally in Japan I can understand that but that wasn’t expressed to me. It seemed she thought I wasn’t of a certain class level to dine there for whatever reason. No, I am simply hungry and wanted to converse with my guest. I am not uneducated and the lengthy over inflated explanation reduces my dining experience. I have the ability to inquire if need be nor do I lack the ability to read. It seemed they were short staffed because she shouldn’t serve. My food although good did take very long and I only ordered simple dishes (no I am not blaming the women for how long my food took it was busy that night). I also had to do everything in my power just to get a box to take a salad home after becoming full and being told “I was fine” by the same women making the assumption I didn’t need anything when I asked for said box and the bill. This felt like a money grab. As if my being there was a waste monetarily for the business and I should have purchased more. This is also evident by how I barely left the table and the water from said machine because they did not have bottled at the time even though it was offered to me was quickly removed from the table. Overall food was good. I am not drinking currently so did not have any cocktails. Concept needs a bit of work. Customer Service lacking. I felt unwanted. Decor is excellent! I was drawn in from Instagram. A little disappointed in this place. Felt a bit embarrassed to have brought my guest here but hope things will change for them as time goes...

TLDR: Best Happy Hour in PHX. Half off sake bombs, apps and maki rolls!

Vibe: 5/5. Located just north of downtown Phoenix, Sakehaus occupies the lower level of the Pedal Haus brewery. When you step inside, it gives off a modern izakaya vibe that is very inviting. The interior is broken up into 2 sections, the front being where the sushi bar is located and the back being more of a high table dining room. The back has larger communal style tables which is perfect for larger groups. During our visit, we had a party of 6 which easily fit at one of the back room tables. One oddity worth mentioning is that there are no bathrooms located inside Sake Haus. You will need to go outside to Pedal Haus brewing (located behind and above Sake Haus) in order to use the restrooms.

Service: 5/5. The wait staff was excellent from start to finish! We arrived at Sake Haus right when they opened at 4pm for their infamous happy hour and the staff was quick to get us seated and the first round of drinks. We ordered several rolls to share and they were all brought out relatively at the same time which was perfect. Overall, nothing to complain about here!

Food: 5/5. Sake Haus has a great menu that appeals to both classic sushi lovers and those that are looking for a modern take. As mentioned above, my group of 6 came for their infamous happy hour which includes half off maki rolls, appetizers and sake bombs. This is a fantastic deal and caters perfectly to the after work crowd. We opted to order every maki roll on their menu to share as well as every appetizer and we were blown away by the quality. The roll combinations were nicely thought out and generous in size. The sake bombs are also an amazing deal, as each sake bomb order is a 22oz Sapporo and a whole 10oz sake container! We each ordered one, so this was more than enough for our visit! Overall, if you are in the neighborhood looking for a chill place to unwind after work, Sake Haus will definitely...

Cute spot! A little pretentious weirdness around no soy sauce (they call it "self-sauced") and a general attitude when we came in. Felt pretty dismissed by staff and spoken down to. We received a big spiel over what was pretty simple and solid sushi. Nothing crazy special though, the whole thing felt over the top to me. Very "we do things differently around here" to just do like, pretty standard stuff? I am from Seattle which is a big fresh sushi city, my friend is from Amsterdam, we have both been to Japan, had NYC Omakase, we've traveled and had amazing sushi and it was just like... Alright then haha.

One other slip up, they had bad cell signal in there and didn't provide physical menus. Made for an awkward ordering experience.

That being said, food was yummy and the spot was cute and curated, nice vibe inside. Their nigiri list was long which was interesting over the more concise roll menu. 2 rolls were sold out while we were there and some of them were a little repetitive in flavor profiles, I love sharing rolls with friends so that was a little bit of a stumble in my opinion. Fun lanterns and great Japanese whiskey selection for phoenix, I don't often see that! Loved my highball.

Overall, I would come back here when I'm in town as it is one of the more vibey spots in phoenix and I like that you could get a nice drink and good snacks. I think their point of view is their more spicy rolls and Mexican flavor influences which I did think was pretty cool. My favorite bite was the seared yellowtail nigirl with aguachile, pretty lovely. Service vibe was weird and unnecessary, I hope they're able to reign in their message and up the service...