“It’s the basic law of economics: supply and demand. We wanted to offer really excellent Japanese food, but Santa Barbara was saturated, and Solvang just seemed perfect,” Deborah said.

 

Shin and Deborah had been long-time Santa Barbara residents, working respectively as chefs in various establishments, when they began to look for a place to call their own.

 

Japanese seemed a natural for the couple, especially with Shin’s heritage and his experience working with sushi masters in Tokyo as a teenager.

 

Shin’s restaurant career started almost accidentally. He was an aspiring musician, hungry and broke; the restaurant life provided stability and at least one meal a day. Also, his job cutting countless heads of cabbage by hand, day in and day out, was unexpectedly giving Shin what he calls “knife skills” that would prove invaluable in his future career.

 

Shin realized he had developed a talent with a knife when he emigrated to the U.S. in 1984 and began working under someone he considers one of Santa Barbara’s master sushi chefs.

 

“I watched his employees and realized I could do what they were doing -- only better.” Shin said.

 

But Shin still had a lot to learn, and confesses that in the fourteen years he worked for his mentor (for whom he sought confidentiality), he learned how to make and present sushi in America the right way, that is, how to honor the tradition while still satisfying the American palate.

 

Shin and Deborah met in 1986, during Santa Barbara’s lesser-known days, but nevertheless in a time when the 1980s’ decadence was brimming, and the town knew no culinary bounds. Deborah worked as a chef at the El Encanto, San Ysidro Ranch and various establishments that bejeweled the streets of Santa Barbara. The two were married in 1991, around the time when Shin realized he had not only found love with Deborah, but he had also found love in sushi.

 

“For the longest time, I just looked at it as a job, but then I realized I really liked it -- I was good at it. My interest in mastering the art just went deeper and deeper,” Shin said.

It would be almost eleven years before Shin and Deborah would realize the dream of owning a restaurant; but they admit those were years of paying dues, working hard, and learning every inch of the restaurant business. In 2002, the existing Kabuki Restaurant went up for sale and the Kuboyamas jumped at the chance to move to the quaint town of Solvang.

 

“There was no doubt we would have a niche. No one was doing Japanese in the land of Smorgasbord. We thought it was a great opportunity to offer something unexpected and in demand,” Deborah said.

 

In demand is right. Most weekends, both the restaurant and outdoor patio are packed, and patrons are often willing to wait upward of an hour for a table. During the week, wait times are often nonexistent and diners can still choose from an extensive menu and a full board of “specials.”

 

“What surprises people, and keeps them coming back, is the quality. We buy only the best fish, and only what is freshest,” Shin said. “I opened my doors with confidence in the fact that we had nothing but quality. I will tell people we’re sold out of something rather than have lesser quality, just so we can offer it on the menu,” he said.

 

Shin runs the sushi bar with a few assistants and therefore makes every roll, and inspects every plate that leaves the kitchen. He is driven by consistent quality.

 

“If I see it go out, it has my stamp of approval,” Shin said. That means diners might have to wait a few extra minutes for their orders, but it is always worth the wait. This is evidenced by his faithful local patrons, many of whom consider Kabuki their favorite valley haunt.

 

Counted among Kabuki’s fans are young and old alike. Shin and Deborah have designed the menu to be family friendly. “It’s not strictly a sushi bar, it’s a Japanese restaurant with something for everyone,” Deborah said.

 

Beyond the unique sushi, sashimi and specialty menu, diners will find a full kitchen menu, such as spicy chicken, teriyaki chicken, tempura, soft shell crab, fish dishes and any other accessible offerings.

 

“We cater to the extremely adventurous, as well as the less adventurous,” Shin explained. “We don’t want to scare anyone off; at heart, we are a family restaurant,” he said.

 

With this in mind, the Kuboyamas mix traditional Japanese with an American family twist. They named most of the sushi rolls after their employees, whom they consider family, and they also offer a wide range of prices on the menu, not just the money-making items.

 

“It’s good to love what you do,” Shin said, “And we really do.”