ORLANDO, Fla. – Sushi Saint, a hand roll sushi bar in Orlando’s Creative Village neighborhood, is preparing to expand with two additional Central Florida locations in 2026, according to owner and chef Mike Collantes.
“We’ll be opening Sushi Saint Winter Park in a few weeks now, as well as Sushi Saint Icon Park, in Q2 or a little in the spring of this year,” he said.
The original Sushi Saint location, he said, was designed to be approachable while still highlighting a focused sushi program.
The two planned openings would broaden Sushi Saint’s footprint beyond its Creative Village location.
Collantes also operates other concepts in the area and described Sushi Saint’s place in that lineup as “a sister restaurant… a hand-roll sushi bar, one of the first in Orlando that we got that opened about two years ago.”
“Our first venture was Soseki- a modern omakase. It’s a one-Michelin-star restaurant, just 10 seats in Winter Park,” Collantes said.
Collantes began working in restaurants as a teenager. “I started off just 16 years old. I wanted to get a phone. And so I worked at one of the best pizza spots I could find… Sbarro’s in the Fashion Square mall,” he said.
Sushi Saint’s menu is built around restraint and timing, with an emphasis on fish quality.
Collantes described the restaurant’s philosophy this way: “What you find here… is we hope… we do simple well… so that you can still taste the fish, which is the most important part.”
The restaurant serves familiar items, too. “We can’t get away from the California rolls, unfortunately. So we do serve California here, but we have real crab,” he said.
Sushi Saint also offers an omakase format.
Collantes described the experience as “a 12-course, tasting omakase… about one hour, 45 minutes.”
He explained that the offerings shift with supply: “It means leave it to the chef. So, we change our menu daily to what we get from the markets and the fish markets.”
During filming, he pointed to ingredients slated for service, including “the beautiful bluefin tuna that we just received this morning.”
Collantes said hand rolls are the restaurant’s defining item.
“That is what we are known for. It’s our sushi hand rolls. It’s what makes us really, unique here,” he said.
The kitchen also focuses on sourcing seaweed for texture. “Beautiful Nori coming out from just right outside of Tokyo,” he said, describing the supplier as a family operation that is “still kind of new to making Nori. They’ve only been doing it since the 14th century.”
The goal is “more crispiness… that perfect bite,” he said.
Timing is central to the concept. “You’re supposed to eat your fish and sushi right away… we only really give people like 30 seconds,” Collantes said.
If you’re craving sushi that feels elevated but still relaxed, make Sushi Saint your next stop. Swing by for a quick bite or settle in for the full chef-led experience—either way, you’ll leave already planning your return.