Food was great. Service was great. They were slammed and still excellent in both quality of food and professionalism in service. The restaurant itself was really nice and great place for a date or a nice evening out. read more

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Wasn't sure what to expect, sushi in Colorado is hit or miss. I was highly recommended to try this place. I went in open minded. Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed. I know it's the only sushi place around and so the reviews are a bit bloated. The ambiance reminds me of a Mexican restaurant in parts, and then a new age 2010 bar in the other parts. I ordered hot tea, very good. The first roll I ordered was a lemon salmon roll. Unfortunately, the waitress shared that it was refreshing: but it tasted like hand soap. Next roll we tried to order was a Las Vegas roll, to which the waitress didn't know what that was, nor did she have any recommendations. I like to order a standard California roll to test the chefs. Their California roll tasted like it was sitting under a heat lamp for 2 days before sending to us. And, they have an upcharge if you want real crab. I then ordered a specialty roll called the 3x tuna which was supposed to be spicy. It didn't seem spicy as much as just kind of spice on top. Overall I think going to a gas station for sushi might have been a better option. Way too expensive for what it was. read more

Don't get the spicy poke bowl to go. It's a disaster, weighing in at about a pound. Doused in some kind or spicy sauce. So sad for the tuna. No need for chopsticks. Inedible. But here we are, in SW Colorado. Stick with the bar food, people. read more

East by Southwest - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

Ok. Sushi in Durango CO could almost be an oxymoron. But seriously just because there are no Asian people behind the counter is actually ok and better than the alternative of not having any sushi. When you walk into the restaurant it's mostly full of happy people. It doesn't look like a traditional sushi restaurant more like a hybrid western bar with a full western bar, an additional sushi bar service and tables. All with a sushi type menu. Thankfully no hamburgers or chicken wings served. They do a pretty good job on the rolls, didn't try the hamachi. Had some apps- good. Not lights out but good and think a "3" is pretty good rating. Think: you go into a Mexican restaurant and it turns out to be TexMex /Gringo but you still like it. 3. read more

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Stopped in for a quick weekday lunch. Delicious sushi, fast delivery. Service was polite. $60 for bento box, one caterpillar roll, a hand grenade(single bite app) and a soda. read more

East by Southwest - Salmon Sashimi Bento Box - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

We dined at East by Southwest in Durango tonight and were impressed. The sashimi was surprisingly good considering the distance from the ocean. The freshness of all the dishes stood out and the portions were more generous than expected. Serving raw fish at 6400' elevation is no small feat. The service was on point. A couple of the sashimi pieces were cut a bit too thick, but that's splitting hairs. A wonderful overall dining experience. read more

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We were recommended this place by our friends so we went here for dinner. It's alright... if half stars were a thing I'd give this 3.5 stars. Let's start with the food. We were able to catch the tail end of happy hour & ordered some apps... the Philly roll was huge, the sashimi nachos were big, & the sashimi pizza was plentiful. Everything was presented nicely, & the happy hour deals while still pricey offered a decent discount. As a vege, I ordered the avocado roll for $7 plus the tofu fried rice. I was very disappointed in the portion size of the avo rolls but will admit they tasted great. The rice was just meh - weird blend of veggies including celery & mushrooms. Overall not bad, but seemed to be lacking in flavor. Good portion size for the rice & nice presentation, enough for leftovers, but I wouldn't order it again. The service was alright. The hostess forgot to bring us a high chair which wasn't a big deal & immediately apologized & brought one over when we asked again. Our server was okay. Nothing extremely memorable, but order was correct & food was brought over relatively quickly after we ordered. Nothing extremely special stood out to me, no major complaints either. Overall I think this place was okay. I would eat here again if someone wanted to go, but would likely look for a better spot if given the option. read more

Best food in Durango - hands down. Next door is an incredible Italian restaurant same owner/chef and I'm telling you- do not miss these places! Great service, line out the door at opening (4:30), packed house within minutes, great happy hour, and seriously best food we ate in Durango and top sushi we've ever had. read more

The food was alright. However, our server was very bad. I didn't catch his name because he wouldn't really talk to us much. He has black glasses and no hair. He didn't have any menu knowledge, and we had to ask other servers several times for help because he was nowhere to be found. ( I really dislike asking other staff for help but we had no choice). No refills on water, both of our drinks were wrong and missing ingredients. When he was at the table, he seemed very annoyed with us and was borderline rude when speaking to us. Even as we were walking out and he was standing by the host stand, we said thank you to him and he just glared at us. In the hospitality industry? He should have at least said you're welcome. He ruined our entire dinner and we won't be back. read more

Excellent food, sushi and tea smoked duck, with espresso and tiramisu to round it off. It was so tasty and the staff was very friendly

Good service, and delicious food! Lots of options, from sushi, ramen, to Japanese fried rice. Such a cute place too, love the fish lights. read more

East by Southwest - Japanese fried rice - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

The chef preparing our sushi behind the sushi bar wiped his dripping nose multiple times and handled the raw fish with no gloves and without washing his hands. Needless to say we canceled our order and they had the nerve to ask if we would like to pay for our drinks which we never had. DISGUSTING. Absolute filth. read more

Great service and the Chilean Bass was the best I've ever had Very enjoyable experience. My husband grilled his own steak on a lava rock- said it was better than the $100 steak he had on his birthday read more

Me and my boyfriend have came here several times so far, and every experience has been AMAZING! The food is to die for, the waitresses/waiters are super friendly and kind & they're always ready to recommend/help you choose an item off the menu. The ambiance is such a calming experience, even when the place is packed :) There's plenty of wall decor & art to look at around the place, a nice big waterfall. The bathrooms are always clean, the bussers are great at scooping any dirty dishes set aside/bringing you water :). I couldn't be more happy with this place, such an experience here. read more

Wow, this food is incredible!! They have a lot of unique flavors in their sushi rolls. We started with their squash blossoms which are a must try! We ate them so fast that I didn't get a picture ;) The High Roller was amazing with the topping of macadamia nuts. The tuna poke bowl was filling and had great flavor to it (a bit spicy). The Hamachi Love roll was very spicy as advertised, but didn't have much fish in it. That would be my only feedback. We finished the meal off with the Thai Boba Tea Lattes which were delicious! read more

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Very confusing atmosphere, the hostesses gives judgment looks that makes you not want to spend money there -- food is very very expensive for what they serve. I've never seen a more expensive bowl of ramen ($26) that wasn't very good. Would not recommend coming here. read more

So far my favorite restaurant in town. Interesting the reviews are not higher because our whole experience was excellent from start to finish. We had the lobster roll the Hamachi collar and some delicious cocktails. This will not be my place to go when I am in town. read more

First, the ambiance is fabulous; lots of traditional Eastern themes. The food is exceptionally interesting,especially the Wagu beef dish which you cook at your table on a slab of granite. Special shout out to Jules, our waitress who was informative & fun!! read more

Went in at dinner and we're able to get seats at the bar. Had a great bartender who made great recommendations on food. Had fun dumpling appetizers and two rolls - he recommended the lemon roll with jalapeños added and the vampiro. Both were great! read more

Durango Trip; located downtown, make sure to get reservations. Small initidate dining place, with lots of scenery to be viewed. Food; Ordered the Pad Thai which was mighty tasty and flavorful, crisp and fresh. Cocktail menu was refreshing and had plenty of choices. Servier; Super friendly, and very helpful it did appear they were super busy, a bit of a wait for food. But would go back for sure. read more

Elegant yet tasteful bites in every direction on the plate. The calamari was probably the best I've had in awhile in Durango. We ordered drinks and that did not disappoint. Great spot and will be back. We did make reservations as well. Came on a Friday night. read more

East by Southwest - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

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We went for lunch today and had great service. My husband ordered a soba bowl and I got a bento box. We added on a specialty roll. Everything was fresh, healthy and very tasty. We are looking forward to going back! My husband thought it was weird that they were showing food videos from the Italian place next door and although I agree- I'm now curious to try it :) Good job East by Southwest! Side note: we didn't try anything but the liquor selection looked good too! read more

My wife and I were walk-ins and were actually seated right away, and from there it went downhill. The menu called for happy hour from 4:30 to 6:30, and we were there at 5:00 PM. The menu also noted that the happy hour prices were not valid on weekends or holidays. This was a Wednesday and not a holiday; nonetheless, the waiter stated the happy hour prices were not available. After some discussion, we placed our order of two entrees and two appetizers. We got one appetizer after a while, then 10 minutes later the other, 10 minutes after that, one of the entrees, and then 10 minutes later, the final entree. One of us was eating cold food or while watching the other. The food was mediocre, and then the bill came. Viola, one line item was an "Inflation Fee"? In summary, the food was poorly served and mediocre. The owners feel like they can nickel and dime the customer by charging fees that are a surprise and prices in conflict with their menu. Buyer beware. read more

1 star for Sergio and the manager,Lauren Brown. If the restaurant can't manage or commit to do the open table, then they should reconsider to stop using it. As I called earlier to the Restuarant in order to make reservations, he assured me they could not take reservations unless we come before 5.45 pm. My husband was able to get us on open tables as there were lots of slot opened. So we did. I let it go with his unprofessional over the phone. We decided to come earlier with the children and see what happened. Sergio was there, no greetings but made sure I knew that he was the one on the phone with smile. He insisted that he would not seat us until the exact time we reserved and asked us to come back. Plenty of tables opened before 6 pm by the way. Sergio should greet customers properly instead of saying they were short staffs and ignored what importance in restaurant business (tourist?) ... we came back right on time.... still he could not perform and the table was not ready. I would not have come back but the children really wanted to come. Worst experience!! The owner needs to know that the management team specifically Ms. Brown should have taught her staff especially Mr. Sergio some manners when talks/ deal with clients whether over the phone or in person... and herself too. First impressions are so important and this beautiful historic town does not need this kind of rudeness. I can't say enough that his/ her attitude were horrible and degrading Asian cuisine. We passed through Durango for the first time and spent a night with our children. So sad for this experience! I; however, give 5 stars to Caden and all the servers. Service was great & the Food was good quality and fresh. They worked their hardest and strived to do the best they can while there was a shortage of staffs as advertised. Caden was attentive to details and was able to deliver special requests to our children. Greatly appreciated!!! He was a gem. Thank you!! read more

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Great place! Best food we've had all week in CO. Highly recommend this restaurant. Great food and great service. read more

The ambience, service and food are all great! The lunch menu also, has some decent prices!

Have been there twice , sat at the bar, very good food. Will go back for takeout tonight. Had the daily special shown in pic and pad thai, well appointed furnishings/decor, friendly efficient service. 4.5 stars read more

East by Southwest - a platter of ribs with sauce and garnish - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

East by Southwest is quite good! We heard great things about it today and decided to try it. Pro tip: Make a reservation! This place was jam packed and the only room for us was at the sushi bar (unless we wanted to wait an hour). The fellow who hosts isn't the friendliest. He makes it very clear he is in a hurry. Luckily we got a server who was totally delightful. He was very sweet and liked to talk about his feelings on the dishes. The appetizers were very well done. The sauces are flavorful and their flavors work well with their pairings. I got chicken pad thai spicy, my sister got a lemon sushi roll, and my Dad got a Boomshiki. The Boomshiki was VERY spicy but delicious...my pad thai was not. It was very one note and nothing about it excited me. My sister said her roll was good, but she wasn't too keen on the wait...it came out about ten minutes after our other entrees. The mousse was wonderful and they give complimentary cotton candy! We also loved chatting up the guy working the sushi bar. The atmosphere is great, and they carry local beers. EXSW, like my beloved Austin Texas's SXSW, is hip, current, and definitely a tad overhyped. read more

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We're Durango locals, I remember when East by first opened and had seating on floor cushions. I've always loved sushi and have been here many times, and usually it's pretty good. But the last couple times I've done takeout, they've messed it up and it seems impossible to contact them to work it out. The phone tree goes around is circles, telling you the selection they just told you to make is invalid. Haha. Their email listed on the site bounces back as delivery attempts failed. Two nights ago we got ramen, a Philly roll, and a hamachi roll. The ramen was good. The rolls were not. The hamachi roll had no avocado (one of three ingredients) the tempura Philly roll had no sweet soy sauce which made it super dry, no scallions, and the entire order had not a drop of soy sauce, ginger, or wasabi on the side. I mean seriously, aren't these staples for sushi?!! Giving three stars because I know it's after new years and restaurants are getting slammed. And I get that things happen. But, my primary issue is ya gotta have customer service. A way to leave a voicemail, send an email, or talk to someone live. Even the "get help with your order?" option on the ordering platform they use didn't work. May update my review if I ever hear back, otherwise I'll unfortunately likely go elsewhere in the future. read more

Ordered door dash during my stay in Durango. I ordered the Tonkotsu pork belly ramen, Japanese chicken fried rice and gyozas. Food didn't have much flavor. The ramen was supposed to be spicy but it wasn't. Broth was getting cold by the time it was delivered. The soft egg was delivered and contained in half an egg shell which is unique. The fried rice had too much going on and the bean sprout killed it. Gyozas was pretty good. Just wanted some Asian food during my travels but this place was mediocre. read more

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Wonderful food, atmosphere and service. They were VERY acccomodating w our party of 8 including small kids-food delicious. Will definitely go back read more

So good! Lived up to all the reviews. Give the Hand Grenade at try. The Colorado Cooler is delicious. Service was excellent as well. read more

East by Southwest - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

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The food is amazing the sushi is super fresh and tasty. It is the best sushi in Durango by far and having traveled a lot of West Coast it is still ranked very high in my book. Gets crowded fast Friday and Saturday nights make a reservation read more

I went here first for a business meeting and loved it. When my daughter and nieces came to visit they wanted sushi so I took them here. Everything was so good and we had a great time. Our server helped us pick food because we didn't really know what to order. It's very tight in there and I recommend reservations. read more

East by Southwest - a woman eating a meal with chopsticks - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

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So many options! Our party of 5 ordered drinks first: I had the Librarian drink - Thai iced tea and vodka - which was sweet & good; little niece had the Ramuné carbonated melon drink ( fun to open & see how it kept it's carbonation), her mama had the Durango and the Cucumber saki (both sweet and good), her hubby had a Martini & husband opted for water. Our waiter was very good about keeping his and our water glasses full. For dinner, we started with Edamame which was so good that we ordered another at meal's end. We also had the Brussels sprouts chips - light & delicious & they disappeared quickly. The five of us had, and shared, Chicken Ramen, Chicken pad Thai - not spicy, but ordered spicy, Shrimp pad Thai - ordered bland but delivered spicy, 2 orders of California rolls (8 each) & a Cucumber salad. Everything was delicious. We had no leftovers and no room for desert. This was our first time and our family's umpteenth time. We hope to visit again! read more

Really unremarkable, grocery-store level of sushi. Nothing we ordered that night was compelling. The decor and style inside the restaurant is really dated, and not in a good way -- it was depressing and stale, like a government office building built in the 70s and never refreshed. Service was slow and it took forever to get our check. All the other sushi places in town are way better. We'll never go back here. read more

One of the best meals I've had in a long time. Reasonably priced. Great service. Sushi rolls were fresh and large! I had the Flat Iron Steak Teriyaki. This was honestly THE best flank steak I've ever had. The presentation was beautiful. Garlic mashers inside the stacked onion rings. Veggie roll was fresh and was a great way to incorporate veg! The portions were perfect (I shared half my steak with my son). The cotton candy was a fun surprise to finish to the meal. We will 100% go back there! read more

East by Southwest - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

The food is OK, nothing special, but your bill is filled with surprise charges including a 3% "inflation fee" and $2 for everyone at the table who asks for sriracha to spice up the bland food. I'm not sure if they know how inflation works, but it means you raise prices not charge a percentage of the bill in fee... we were also not informed that the sriracha cost $2 per person when we asked for some. Pretty ridiculous, imagine if a restaurant charged you $2 for ketchup??? read more

Service was slow, but they were busy. Sushi was good. Actually better than some of the sushi places I've eaten at in Hawaii. The smoked salmon sashimi is amazing. Prices were reasonable but they are now adding at 3% inflation fee to all meals. We will would go back. read more

East by Southwest - Hamachi Love - Sushi Bars Near Me - Durango, Colorado

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Great atmosphere and great service. Sushi was okay. Expensive for what we received. I ordered sauce on side with the roll but they put it on. I was starving so I took it anyway. It was still pretty good. The masago was smaller than I'm accustomed to, and the seaweed wrap was dry. Kirin light draft wasn't very cold. read more

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