Catch

Used to be great. They changed. don’t bother anymore.

Went here with my father because he was craving fish and chips for lunch and our regular place was inexplicably closed that day. Catch’s relatively new so we gave it a go.
I feel like the space is too big for the restaurant. And it’s decorated like some weird 80s yacht club. The latter is cool to me and the former may not bother anyone, so take those tidbits as you will. Service, all around, was excellent for a late lunch.
Strangely enough, we didn’t end up getting the fish and chips because they didn’t look like what we wanted. So he grabbed some fried calamari strips and I got clam chowder. Chowder was good. The calamari strips freaked me the hell out, though, because they didn’t seem natural. They tasted like the kind of calamari strips made up from ground up «whitefish» and were very thick and gelatinous in your mouth. I don’t know about you, but that sort of thing grosses me out a lot so yeah.
On the bright side my dad enjoyed his calamari strips. I think he just wanted to eat. He’s also like 83 or something. Reflecting on that, I think Catch is very much geared toward old people at lunch. It wasn’t super bad by any means — «Meh. I’ve experienced better» — but it didn’t impress me like I want restaurants to impress me.
Take your geriatric father. He’ll be okay with it.

Hmmm I’ve always been a fan of fish houses and Catch is OK, but lots of room for improvement.
Décor:
So. Much. Sea Green. Aside from that, interesting blown glass that is seafood themed.
Food:
Carlsbad Steamed Mussels: Yummy, large and juicy. Cooked perfectly and that white wine mussel soup is perfect with their toasty bread.
Carlsbad Oysters: Large sized oysters, well shucked and very clean tasting. Almost too clean… missing that briny sea taste– but to be expected from aquafarmed shellfish. This is great for introducing oysters on the half shell to a first timer.
Local Seabass: I’m a huge fan of local, and especially sustainable fishing and this seabass is both! Seabass is a very meaty whitefish and mild in taste. The portion size was a large cut of seabass, cooked perfectly but underseasoned. And as you will see later, all their fish was underseasoned.
Fujian Ono: this fish has a firmer texture, like mackerel. This one spent a little too much time on the grill and came out a bit on the dry side. Needed more salt, or something to give it flavor.
Mahi Mahi: This was a bit on the smaller side portion wise. Cooked nicely but underseasoned again.
Gulf of California Shrimp: Hmmm, this wasn’t as fresh. The shrimp was a bit on the mushy side and small. U-14−16 size. This was well seasoned though, which lots of garlic butter.
Overall, the seafood is great, but it needs to be seasoned more!

This is 1^st time I’ve ever written a review. I have enjoyed The Catch since it opened and particularly like the pan seared sea bass, yummy!
However, they have new sushi chef, his name is Gary Yin and this guy’s an artist. I’m not kidding, the last two times I have eaten there for sushi is was without question the best sushi I have ever had, anywhere.
I won’t even begin to tell about the various little slices of heaven he prepared for us.
Everything was fresh and incredibly imaginative in style, taste & presentation. Just sit down, tell Gary what kind of stuff you normally like and let him feed you.
You will be amazed! The Uni was incredible!
So if you want to try something out of the ordinary and truly excellent visit The Catch when Gary is working!

i write this with a heavy heart. the quality of food and service (and martinis) at CATCH is headed the wrong direction. nothing’s bad just not quite as good as it was last week, last month or the month before that. over our last five or six visits, it would be hard to miss the slow but steady decline.
our GRAY GOOSE DIRTY martinis were made with well vodka.
the BUTTER FISH (line-​caught, ALASKAN sable) was still rich and delicious but the portion size continues to shrink and the number of bones we have to pick thru seems to double every visit.
fish were conspicuously absent from the RAINBOW POKE SALAD but there was an astounding amount of a sort of radish thing that looked like wafer thin slices of cucumber sized watermelons. the rolls weren’t wrapped tightly and fell apart when we picked them up. nothing was awful just a bit off.
the server was shuttling an order of calamari strips to a couple at the sushi bar that she managed to scatter across the dining room and delivered our order to the couple sitting next to us. she walked away and they had to call her back to re-​direct the food to us. so it went …
CATCH has never really caught on, never captured the hearts and minds and tummies of us should-​be regular locals and i’m not sure why. okay, the décor package is enough to give you a migraine (when KENT B. said the place has «a young fishy vibe» i’m pretty sure he was referring to NEMO of FINDING NEMO fame) but the food and service are still pretty good even if they started off better still. a busy restaurant breeds its own success and CATCH has just never gotten busy.

We came here specifically for the sushi although we did look at the dinner menu. We arrived for dinner and were the first ones in the door. The ambience is great. The music was perfect — some 70s and 80s rock, some James Taylor and Rod Stewart — stuff you can sing along to when you think no one’s listening.
Our server was great — very personable, helpful and all-​around efficient. She offered a wine suggestion which we took her up on. It was ok and I thought it went well with the sushi.
We got some bread that felt like they had just come out of the oven. Crusty and delicious with real butter. The miso soup was a pretty large portion and tasted delicious.
I ordered the 12 pc sashimi plate which is actually $ 25, not $ 35 that’s listed on the menu. My husband got a variety of sushi and sushi rolls. Everything arrived within 15 mins of ordering and the servings were generous. Very filling so we didn’t have room for dessert. Even so, I would’ve ordered the flan but hubby was in a rush to get back to our room to watch the presidential debate. Oh well …
It’s a great restaurant and they do sushi well. Maybe next time we’ll try something off the dinner menu. I would definitely come back again.

Attractive — But Disappointing
It’s a lovely place, in blues, greens and red coral hues. Comfortable tables and booths, outside patio (though on a very busy street), sushi bar and lounge area. The service was very attentive, starting with Steve, one of the owners, who greeted us at the door, and then Andrew, our waiter. The service guys were overly so, ready to take my bread plate away at a moment’s notice, though I still had bread and butter yet to eat. The menus, sushi and dinner, are expansive and inviting. A good-​sized wines-​by-​the-​glass list was also very good and so was the price: $ 7.00/glass, decent sized portion. We had their Arrogant Frog Sauvignon Blanc, which I really enjoyed-​very dry, and crisp.
Now for the disappointment: the food. The quality of the fish (halibut for my husband, sea bass for me) was excellent, but there was no seasoning, no real preparation. Just a nice piece of fish sitting on the plate. And while I had asked for my grilled, it came out pan sauteed. I ate it anyway. There is a choice of sides, but they were also bland: a mélange of root vegetable (squash, fennel, cauliflower, snap peas) had texture but no flavor. My Spanish rice was okay, but could have used a little more «zip». My husband’s red skinned potatoes were also flavorless.
The menu prices are expected for seafood: $ 18.00 to $ 23 though my husband’s halibut was $ 32.00. But I expected and hoped for more attention to the fish in a presentation, a dish, with flavors. High hopes, not realized.

We read the reviews on Unilocal and decided to try this place.
Sat at the sushi bar and had the sushi chefs undivided attention due to the fact that it was a slow night and the place was empty. We ordered off menu, told him the fish we liked and he created three fantastic plates for us. The fish is so fresh it melts in your mouth. He made a salmon sashimi dish with yozu sauce that was to die for. The next was a yellowtail sashimi that was equally delish and the third was a maguro that was divine. I would highly recommend this place if you have a craving for sushi.

Food might have been good, but with the restaurant more than ¾ EMPTY the hostess thought the kitchen was overloaded and refused to seat anyone for 30 minutes.
Which I might have been okay with, except the hostess ignored the 6 people (2 or 3 parties) lines up at the door while she casually strolled around making change for one of the waiters — not even a «I’ll be right with you», completely ignored us.
We went across the street to Paon and had were seated immediately.

Visited Catch again last night with my husband, Hottie McButter-​pants. Another great dinner thanks to our server Will. What a good guy. We were very impressed and appreciated his knowledge of the menu, recommendations and his service.
All the staff are friendly and welcoming and the food is beautifully prepared! You just have to try this place!

I’ve been wanting to try Catch since they opened up in November of ’11 and so did all of the gals that attended the bUZZ Night. It’s located in the same building where Blockbuster used to be on Carlsbad Village Drive. Easy parking, great location! Walking in, I was overcome by the use of aquamarine, but it’s such a calming color that it was not in a negative way. Not like other restaurants where they try to be too modern and end up with white everything, which is cold and uninviting.
Having trouble reading the menu and forgot your glasses? Don’t worry! You can find a number of reading glasses at the host stand for you to borrow. I love that small touch!
Our server was extremely friendly and knowledgable. She even clued us in on a special roll that’s not on the menu. Of course I had to get it and try it. It’s somewhat like a philly roll, but with salmon and extra goodies. Nope, I can’t go into much more detail than that except we all LOVED it. So when you are going in for the first time, make sure to order the «Jessica Roll» from Chris, the sushi chef. You will not be disappointed!
North County has been needing Catch. It’s a more upscale restaurant with absolutely reasonable prices, a variety of choices on the menu (not just sushi), comfortable atmosphere, great food, and friendly staff. I hope you give them a try. Let’s try to keep this new place around for awhile.

I was disappointed to have dinnr at this new restaurant in Carlsbad. We have been to the Paon restaurant across the parking lot (same owner) and expected similar service.
The waiter had no business holding that position in a restaurant like this. Secondly, the Manager should have been aware of the issues/​performance and been in touch.
Upon arrival there were few in the restaurant section and we received immediate attention.
My wife ordered a gin & tonic that tasted like it was 80% tonic.
The waiter had little knowledge of the few wines on the list (many more wines are available at Paon).
The food was ok, but not great.
For people who don’t eat fish you can choose one chicken plate or one steak plate. My wife ordered the chicken and it was average at best.
The big windows that were left over from the Blockbuster that used to be at this location are a plus and minus. The minus for the restaurant owner is that when the restaurant is mostly empty everyone can see that from the street/​parking lot (why go to a restaurant that is not popular?). Also inside the restaurant it would be a little more elegant and warm to have drapes or some window coverings. But the windows also give you something to look through.
Overall, my score would be 2.5, but I would give it more a «2» than a «3» and so that is my score.
We will go to 333 or one of the seafood restaurants in Encinitas next time.

Walked in the door… smelled fishy… not a good start
THE FOOD
Interesting menu selection. A sushi place that has fish and chips. The stuff we ordered was good, nothing knocked my socks off. The prices were a little high for the food, especially since nothing stuck out to me as really great.
THE ATMOSPHERE
Either they want you to feel like you are underwater or there was a sale on everything teal at Home Depot. If 90’s teal fashion and 80’s red lobster décor had a baby, it would be the interior of Catch. Someone else mention the lighting décor… lol, I totally agree. It reminded me of those awkward videos you had to watch at school for sex ed.
The waiter we had was great. He was humorous and very helpful. Anytime we needed something he was there. Everything you want in a waiter/​waitress when you go out to eat.
OVERALL
The food was not bad by any means but if I never go there again, I don’t think I would be missing anything.

Delicious! I really enjoyed this place.
The bartendar introduced me and my family to our new favorite beer, try it out, Palm Beer. The crab cakes and oysters were yummy.
Overall a great place to go!

Boring. I was excited to try a new sushi bar, only to be disappointed.
We had to wait 5 mins for them to bus a table, even though several tables were open.
Our server did not know anything about the sakes available. Then she told us that we could only buy them in a wine glass or would have to buy a bottle. We bought a bottle and had to drink out of a glass. No shot glasses.
They brought us bread (thought was strange at a sushi bar), with no butter.
The music almost put us asleep.
The sushi arrived and was just average. Harney sushi in Oceanside blows it away. It was overpriced and only had a small selection.
When I want sushi, I will not return to catch.

I finally got a chance to check out the latest sushi delights in Carlsbad at Catch and it was BLOCKBUSTER. If you dine here on the weekend I’d make a reservation because everyone and their cousin is eating here (and for good reason the sushi was excellent)!
Catch has a young fishy vibe.
Cool sushi bar, fish related accents throughout the joint, lit up neon bar area and classic rock playing in the background. I’m down with a place rocking Hendrix and the Doors while I’m slamming sushi.
The acoustics here suck for conversation… I couldn’t really hear anyone but whatever I’m here to eat!
We ordered:
The Hawaiian Roll:
Crab, avocado, cucumber on top spicy tuna, Masago and spicy mayo.
Caterpillar Roll:
Fresh water eel, cucumber, avocado and eel sauce (it’s cute, the roll has a little caterpillar face). Not so cute that i didn’t eat it but cute nonetheless: o)
Spicy Tuna Roll:
Tuna, Shiracha, cucumber and Kaiware
Miso soup:
Tofu, broth and veggies and other stuff.
Albacore and Yellowtail sashimi
YUM
The server was nice but the overall wait after ordering was long… like they actually go Catch the fish long. Another ding was the miso soup appetizer was not served immediately? So 25 minutes into drinks the hungry girl that ordered it the added
«Can I please have my soup? I’m sooo hungry»
which seemed to work…
Side note, if you’re really hungry tell the server and you will get food.
OK, the sushi and sashimi were crazy-​good. Will totally come back (just so pleased to have another great sushi option in the village). We had no problem cleaning our plates so we could enjoy the sperm light fixture that hung ominously above our table.
If you’don’t mind talking a little louder than normal this is a great place for date night!
I give this sushi joint 7.5 «trippy sperm lamps» outta 10

***MAKE RESERVATIONS ON FRI/​SAT NIGHTS ***
Finally, a great sushi place in Carlsbad! I didn’t even look at the dinner menu, I knew I wanted that fishy goodness!
It’s unbelievable that this place is where the old Blockbuster was! The interior has been redone, and decorated with interesting light fixtures… I leave it up to you what you think they look like, but it was a hot topic at our table last night (see photo I added)!
NEG (-): The service was very slow here, it took around 20 minutes for one of my friends to get her miso soup. She also had to remind the server about it. It wasn’t for another 10 minutes did we see any sushi or sashimi arrive. Maybe our order was lost or it’s also possible there was a communication gap somewhere; the restaurant was very loud.
NEG (-): Our server also wasn’t knowledgeable about the menu, or even knowledgeable about sushi in general. The chefs here should give a class to the servers on the names of fish that they serve.
POS (+):Well, I was able to spend that 30 minutes munching on REAL PICKLED GINGER… yeah, not the pink or soggy stuff. This is the crisp, spicy stuff I love! When our food did finally arrive, it was well worth the wait and everything was amazing and FRESH!
POS (+) Me: Albacore and Yellowtail sashimi — Especially enjoyed the sear on the albacore, topped with a slice of jalapeño and one small piece of fried onion. Mouthwatering.
POS (+) Kent B: Hawaiian Roll and Spicy Tuna — He loved it, but you can read his review yourself!
POS (+) Friend: Miso Soup & Caterpillar Roll — MADE TO LOOK LIKE A FREAKING CATERPILLAR! It was delectable and adorable!
POS (+) I will absolutely return as many time as I can get away with!

Food overpriced, lighting overlite, no such thing as a «booth» seating’ and constant piping of unwelcomed music. Between our party we tasted different entrees and sushi bar… Fish overcooked and dry, sushi roll no flavor, soups too much salt.
GOOD TRY, but much needed improvement… Don’t think we will be back and will warn others. Fish House down the road much more authentic, no bells and whistles to impress, and good food (go there and I don’t even work there. lived in area for years and was hoping a new restaurant in town would work) Good Luck CATCH… oh and the lighting looks like sperm clusters. classy???

Slow service, not very organized. We waited about 10 minutes for water, 15 minutes for our first sushi service (only average on the food quality, I’d say) and later, we waited another 10 minutes because the sushi chef forgot to make a roll we had ordered. I hope they become more organized in time… this was only their sixth night of service.
I’d recommend: larger glasses for water and tea. And how about a lil plate for folks sharing sushi rolls, etc? Kind of sloppy to reach across each other and the table to reach the wasabi mixture. Hot towels a nice touch though.
I will wait for a lunch to see if prices go down, service speed goes up.

I had high expectations for this restaurant and was looking forward to it’s opening. However, even after a warm welcome from the hostess, my husband and I experienced the following:
1) Adequate sushi. I’m a bit of a sushi addict, and would say to save your $ 16 and head over to Nozomi’s if you’re looking for good sushi in Carlsbad
2) They accidentally charged us for an extra roll ($ 16)!!! If I hadn’t caught that, it would have added another $ 20 if you include charge and tip.
3) When we pointed out this error, we got no apology and it took 10 minutes to get the correct bill.
4) Their menu is really strange. Who has ever ordered clam chowder with a poke salad? Or a side of edamame with their fried talapia? And to top it off with either flan or a banana split? Sounds like an identity crisis.
5) The place looks like a Little Nemo-​themed bat mitzvah gone wild. Everything is some variation of teal — from the floors to the ceilings, from the menus to the napkins. It’s a bit overwhelming and chintzy at the same time.
Overall, I would have expected more from the people who brought Paon to Carlsbad. Not sure how long this place will make it.