There is a moment, somewhere between your third piece of spicy tuna roll and the first bite of a perfectly seared flat-iron steak, when you realize that Crave American Kitchen & Sushi Bar has quietly become one of the most interesting restaurants in Sioux Falls. It does not shout about it. It does not need to. The dining room at the Empire Mall corridor location simply hums along, full of regulars who have figured out what takes most visitors a meal or two to understand: this place genuinely does it all, and does it well.
Crave occupies that rare, confident middle ground between a serious sushi bar and a grown-up American grill. The kitchen turns out nigiri and specialty rolls alongside wood-fired flatbreads, hand-crafted burgers, and entrées that would feel at home in a much more expensive restaurant. The menu is long, but it never feels scattered. Every section earns its place, and the kitchen has the technique to back up the ambition.
Start with the sushi. Crave’s rolls are creative without being gimmicky — think clean, fresh fish, thoughtful sauces, and combinations that actually make sense together. The Dragon Roll and the Volcano Roll are crowd favorites for good reason, but if you are feeling adventurous, ask your server what the kitchen is feeling good about that day. The staff here actually knows the menu, which is rarer than it should be.
Then pivot. Order something from the grill side. The flat-iron steak arrives exactly as requested, rested properly and plated without pretension. The lobster mac and cheese is the kind of indulgence that makes you glad you skipped the bread basket. If you are going for lunch, the burgers are among the better ones in town — thick, juicy, and built with ingredients that suggest someone in that kitchen actually cares about the details.
The bar program is equally solid. Crave mixes a serious cocktail, and the wine list is curated rather than exhaustive, which is exactly the right call. The craft beer selection rotates thoughtfully, with a nod to local South Dakota breweries alongside reliable national options. Happy hour is worth planning around if your schedule allows.
The atmosphere leans contemporary without feeling cold. Warm lighting, comfortable booths, and a bar area that draws a lively after-work crowd give the room a genuine energy on weekend evenings. It is a place that works equally well for a date night, a business dinner, or a long, leisurely meal with out-of-town guests you are trying to impress without overdoing it.
Located near the Empire Mall area on the south side of Sioux Falls, Crave is easy to reach from most parts of the city and well worth the short drive from downtown. Reservations are a smart move on Friday and Saturday evenings. Walk-in seating at the bar is usually available and, honestly, a perfectly fine way to experience the place — sometimes the best meals happen when you just sit down and let the evening unfold.
Sioux Falls has a restaurant scene that keeps getting better, and Crave is one of the places that helped raise the bar. If you have been looking for somewhere that satisfies a craving for sushi and a craving for a great American entrée without making you choose between the two, your search is over.
