Sushi Sake Opens Tallahassee Location, Bringing Miami Rolls and Hibachi to a New City

Sushi Sake opened its Tallahassee restaurant on Nov. 2, adding a downtown destination with sushi, hibachi tables, a full bar and traditional Japanese tatami seating. The Miami-based chain announced the grand opening in an FSView & Florida Flambeau feature published by Yahoo.

Inside Sushi Sake's Tallahassee Opening

Owner Steven Marin told the FSView that the new location carries the Miami menu, including the Calle Ocho and UM rolls, plus hibachi and fried rice. "I wanted Sushi Sake to be somewhere people go for great food but stay for the overall experience," Marin said. He said the Tallahassee build-out added a full bar, hibachi tables and floor-level tatami seating around lower tables.

Marin described the expansion as a chance to grow an established Miami brand. "The biggest thing I want to bring is the quality, consistency, and energy that have made Sushi Sake successful in Miami," he said. He also traced his family's hospitality background to his grandmother, who worked as a waitress at La Carreta in Miami.

The opening drew a full dining room. Most parties that spoke to the FSView waited more than an hour and a half for their main course, and staff said the restaurant ran out of salmon by the end of the evening, offering tuna and white fish in rolls and sashimi instead. FSU student Nina Diaz, who is from Miami, said she had eaten at the Sushi Sake there and "knew I had to try it."

Sushi Sake's South Florida Footprint

Sushi Sake is a privately held Miami-based chain founded in 2009, according to akta.pro company records. The same records describe a 2024 national franchise program offering low-investment sushi restaurant franchises with hands-on training and six-to-twelve-month site opening timelines, and a 2024 expansion of the product line into Japanese-inspired cocktails, sake flights, catering platters and a kids menu.

The records put the chain at more than 40 dine-in locations across the South Florida metropolitan area as of 2024, up from a single Miami location in 2009, with a headcount range of 501 to 1,000. They also cite $3 billion in Asian dining industry revenue, with industry growth of 3.3% over the past five years.

Other Sushi Openings Across the Country

Bondi Sushi signed a 4,400-square-foot space at 1221 Sixth Ave in New York, its 15th NYC location and largest, the New York Post reported. A San Antonio Walmart at 1515 N. Loop 1604 E. is adding a sushi bar alongside Dalmoros and Dunkin' in a $100,000 renovation expected to open by November 26, Yahoo reported. Kōbō sushi bar debuted in Hyde Park, Community Impact reported.

What Comes Next for Sushi Sake

The FSView feature gives no opening date for any further Sushi Sake location. The chain's 2024 franchise program lists six-to-twelve-month site opening timelines for new franchise restaurants, according to akta.pro company records.