Asthma Awareness Month: The Winded Foundation

Team WindedAsthma is a common disorder that causes the airways of the lungs to swell and narrow, leading to wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and coughing. In 2009 almost 25 million people in the United States had Asthma making one of the most common disorders. Of the 25 million people, 7 million are children.

Jay and Trisha Suarez’s have 2 children that were hospitalized due to Asthma, they became frustrated with the lack of education surrounding Asthma so they formed The Winded Foundation, a 501c3 organization that raises funds for asthma research and spreads awareness of asthma through exercise programs.

The Winded Foundation funds junior teams or athletes consisting of any sport type that will help in the benefit of spreading awareness of asthma. The Winded Foundation supports Team Winded; a junior team of athletes and/or individuals that spread knowledge about asthma. The Winded Foundation believes, with appropriate diet, exercise, treatment and technology, anyone with Asthma can achieve their dreams.





In recognition of Asthma Awareness month, Blue Wasabi has created a special roll, we call it the “Mikey Likes It Roll”. During the month of May, $4 will be donated to the Winded Foundation from each roll purchased. Ingredients in the Mikey Likes It Roll are:
Spicy crab, cucumber and pop rocks inside, rolled in soy paper and rice, topped with more pop rocks. Oh, and the kids with Asthma from Team Winded took 1st and 3rd place in the Arizona state cycling championships!

Come on down to Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar and support this important cause.

Blue Wasabi: The Valley’s Happy Hour Destination!

Happy Hour

Wango Mango Roll

What’s the perfect way to unwind after a long day? A stop in to Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar for our rockin’ Happy Hour!

If you haven’t yet, make sure you check out the new Happy Hour page on our website! We’ve made it super easy to see all the great food and drinks we have for you at Happy Hour prices every Tuesday thru Saturday!

Make Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar your place to get happy during the week and come in for your favorite rolls, martinis, and small plates at smokin’ happy hour prices.

From the Gordon Gecko to our Crab Wontons and the oh-so-delicious Berry White — there’s something for everyone!

Get down to Blue Wasabi in Scottsdale or Gilbert, sit down with a martini and enjoy a roll or two to fill your stomach without emptying your wallet!

Happy Hour in Gilbert is from 4-6pm and in Scottsdale we’re bringing the happy hour from 4:30-6:30 every Tuesday thru Saturday!

Hope to see you at happy hour!

Gluten Free Sushi

Blue Wasabi Gluten Free Sushi Menu

Blue Wasabi Gluten Free Sushi Menu

Going out to eat should be fun. Entertaining and of course delicious. Nothing is worse than looking at the menu of a restaurant and realizing there is nothing for you. Lately I have noticed a trend in our guests requests. It started as 1 per week and then went to one per day, then 2 then 5. It seems like everyone is asking

“Do you have anything Gluten free?”

We started to look into what it would take to make some of our Rock star sushi rolls Gluten free. Gluten is a protein that is found in foods processed from wheat and certain grains. Because Gluten is found in foods processed from wheat you would think it is only in breads, but you would be wrong. Gluten can be found in ice cream and ketchup as well.

In order to create a roll that was Gluten Free, we had to first know which rolls had Gluten in them. That meant we had to track down all of the ingredients in each dish. Not Is there Gluten in the Spicy Crab Mix? but is there Gluten in one of the 7 ingredients that make up the Spicy Crab mix, or the 6 ingredients that make up the spicy mayo or  the 7 in the Yum Yum sauce. And what about the Vinegar? Is it 100% vinegar? We had to find out. We talked to our vendors who then talked to their suppliers. Suppliers that were not here in Arizona but all over the world,  Japan, Korea and Vietnam. You would think that a simple

“Excuse me sir, but does [X] have Gluten in it?”

would be good but there was a language barrier.  We couldn’t simply send an email either as the alphabet is totally different as well.  They say “that that does not kill you makes you stronger” and I would have to agree. We spent a lot of time investigating and recreating some of our rolls and dish’s without Gluten. It made us better.

Check out the menu below and look at the delicious Gluten Free options we’ve developed for our favorite gluten conscious fans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blue Wasabi Gluten Free Menu

Next time you’re in to Blue Wasabi’s Gilbert or Scottsdale location, ask to see the gluten free menu and enjoy your meal without that pesky gluten!

Let us know what you think of our gluten free offerings by commenting below, tweeting at us, Facebooking us, whichever you prefer!

American Harvest Organic Spirit VS Your Favorite Vodka

American Harvest Organic Spirit

How Do You Like Your Vodka?

How do you like your vodka? Neat. On the rocks. In a Martini. With Soda or Tonic. . .

How Do You Like Your Vodka?

Well however you like it, American Harvest, which was created by the original founders of Grey Goose Vodka, is confident you are going to like theirs better. American Harvest wants you to compare American Harvest Organic Spirit to your favorite Vodka and at Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar, we are going to give you the opportunity to do just that.

What Makes American Harvest Organic Spirit Stand Apart?

Well American Harvest Organic Spirit is not actually a Vodka. American Harvest Organic Spirit has a “secret ingredient”, it’s that secret ingredient that sets American Harvest Organic Spirit apart. By definition, Vodka is a “grain neutral” spirit, meaning it’s distilled from grain and no other ingredient. It’s the secret ingredient in American Harvest that makes it unique and “Not a Vodka”.

American Harvest Thinks You Will Like Theirs Better

The guys at American Harvest are so confident you will like their American Harvest Organic Spirit better than your current favorite Vodka that they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. So, me being the nice guy that I am – I’m passing that offer on to you. See the offer below.

 

The Deal

Come to Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar, mention this post, video or email and order your favorite Vodka cocktail. We will give you that same cocktail made with American Harvest Organic Spirit for FREE. This will allow you to compare your favorite Vodka to American Harvest Organic Spirit. You be the judge. Is American Harvest Organic Spirit better than your current vodka? We only have 6 bottles of American Harvest Organic Spirit so when they are gone – they are gone.

American Harvest would love to hear what you have to say. After you have tasted it, please post your thoughts below or on the Blue Wasabi facebook fan page or Blue Wasabi’s Twitter. We want to know what you thought of the American Harvest Organic Spirit. Tell your friends, tell the world. Tell American Harvest and as always, thank you for your support.

*Restrictions Apply

*Must be of 21 years old or over

*American Harvest cocktail is “sample sized”

*Limit one per customer

Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura For 5 Bucks?!

Sushi Scottsdale

Spicy Rockin' Shrimp Tempura

That’s right, you can get the legendary Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura for only 5 Bucks from Sunday March 18th to Thursday March 22nd 2012!*

Ask and you shall receive. No I’m not talking about a genie and the lamp  - I’m talking about the Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar Facebook page.

If you haven’t had a chance to visit the Blue Wasabi page yet please check it out. We have a thriving community over there. A place where our fans can come together to discuss their favorite rolls, martinis, ask questions and leave feedback. Many businesses use their Facebook brand pages to market to consumers, not us. We use ours to listen and share.

What are we sharing?

Our rockstar sushi rolls and our signature martinis! We’re posting pictures and videos of HOW your favorite items are made. We’ve made videos for the:

We were in the process of making another video “Behind The Blue Wasabi Sushi video”  when we got a request for another item from a Blue Wasabi Fan.

Blue Wasabi Listens To Our Fans

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jennie asked for a making of the Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura. Never one to disappoint, we couldn’t resist. We asked the great Chef Robert if he wouldn’t mind sharing some of his secrets with you – our fans. The making of the Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura is below. Thanks Jennie!

 

 

So, how can you get the Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura For 5 Bucks? Simply show this post (or our tweet or Facebook post about the Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura) on your smart phone or other mobile device to your server at the Gilbert or Scottsdale location of Blue Wasabi Sushi. [Limit ONE per party]

After you’ve tasted it, post your thoughts below, on our Facebook page or Twitter. We want to know what you thought of the Spicy Rockin’ Shrimp Tempura! Tell your friends, tell the world and as always, thank you for your support.

Do you have any other rolls you would like to see made? Please leave your requests below and we’ll do our best to make it happen.

 

*To get in on this smokin’ deal show your server our blog post, eblast, Facebook post, or tweet about the promotion!

Sushi in Your Kitchen Anniversary Contest Winners!

February is over and it’s time to announce the winners of what was one of the most successful contests that we’ve ever held!

The eight-year anniversary raffle to win Sushi in Your Kitchen with a Blue Wasabi Sushi Chef for Eight had almost 2,000 entries! Apparently ya’ll love the chance to win free sushi!

We were more than humbled by your enthusiasm, and can’t thank each of you enough for making these last eight years in the Valley everything that a restaurant (and its staff!) could hope for, and more!

Have a look at this short video note from our own Jim Moran, to see him draw the winning entry (you lucky thing!) and deliver an added surprise!


And the winner is….

Roseanne!

Rosanne, Jim will be reaching out to you himself to deliver a congratulations and to work out the details for the most rockin’ dinner party you’ll ever have!

And that’s not all! Just because we were all so grateful for everyone’s support, Jim has drawn an additional eight more lucky winners who’ve scored a [free roll] to redeem in there next Blue Wasabi visit!

Congratulations and another round of thanks to:

Yvonne Lara
Fran Oliver
Mike Henkelman
Juan Rodriguez
B. Burr
M. Gonzalez
Danny Saveski
Laurie Campbell

We’ll be reaching out to each of you to let you know how to redeem your free roll!

Happy anniversary to all of our awesome fans and followers – thanks for supporting Blue Wasabi and making it all that it is today!

Got an idea for what we should do NEXT time we’re celebrating [insert holiday, occasion, random love for ______ here]? Take to Facebook and Twitter and let us know! Be sure to check in with us on Foursquare to unlock access to more awesome exclusive offers for our biggest fans!

Blue Wasabi Sushi Introduces The Three 6 Mafia Roll

Blue Wasabi Sushi

Three 6 Mafia Roll

Have you heard about it? You will. It’s called the Three 6 Mafia Roll and it’s “poppin” more than collars. To say the Three 6 Mafia roll is making waves at Blue Wasabi Sushi and Martini Bar would be an understatement.

Introducing rolls at Blue Wasabi is nothing new, let’s see – there is the Kiss My Bass, the Tail of The Dragon, the Marilyn Monroll, Wango Mango Roll but this one, this one is unlike any sushi roll you have had or likely will have. This one is special.

Think of this roll as the secret club only the “in crowd” knows about. That’s because the THREE 6 Mafia Roll is not on the Blue Wasabi Sushi menu. Only the “in crowd” knows about it – YOU.

If you have watched our videos in the past you know that Jim is always yacking about “texture and flavor”. Well, Sushi Chef Chris [below] has decided to take the texture and flavor thing to a whole new level by adding POP Rocks. Yes – this is the Three 6 Mafia Rolls secret ingredient.

Try The Three 6 Mafia Roll!

Take a look at how the Three 6 Mafia Roll is made below.

 

Come on in to Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar either in Scottsdale or Gilbert and ask for the Three 6 Mafia Roll Today!

Ladies Night Promotion At Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar

Online Fashion Boutique

FREE SEL Tank Top

Ladies Night just got better. I know, I know what you are thinking “How could it possibly get any better – Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar already offers half off their signature Martini’s?” and you would be correct, but never one to rest on our laurels we couldn’t leave well enough alone.

Your favorite Scottsdale and Gilbert Sushi restaurant is bringing ShopElizabethLauren.com to Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar. Yep, the best fashion, the best martini’s and the best sushi all in one place on Tuesday nights in the month of March at Blue Wasabi.

ShopElizabethLauren.com

During the month of March, when you buy a signature Martini you will receive a FREE ShopElizabethLauren.com tank top. Shop ElizabethLauren.com is an online boutique with designer clothing labels like Boulee, Frankie B, Chaser LA, Finders Keepers Label and more. ShopElizabethLauren.com is offering $10 off any regular priced item and [if you sign up for their free newsletter] 15% off your first order with ShopElizabethLauren.com

 

 

 

Watch the short video below to see what you will find at ShopElizabethlauren.com



So ladies, we hope to see you for Ladies Night during the month of March to receive your special offers from ShopElizabethlauren.com and Blue Wasabi Sushi. Oh and fellas. . .I know where I would be on Tuesday’s during the month of March.

#justsayin

 

The Fine Print [Everyone Has Some Ya Know. . .]

* Limit One Tank Top Per Customer For The Duration Of The Promotion
* Tanks limited to size and stock on hand
* $10 off and 15% [percent] off are one time only during this entire 4 week promotion
* Each Of These Offers Is One Time Only
* You Can Have As Many Half Off Martini’s As You Would Like

Ferrari – Carano Winery Selects Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar

ferrari carano

The Perfect Wine For The Perfect Sushi

How do you thank your top performers? If you are the NFL you invite them to the PRO Bowl, if you are Major League Baseball  you invite them to play in the All Star game, if you are Ferrari Carano Winery you invite them to Blue Wasabi Sushi and Martini Bar.

Ferrari Carano could have chosen any restaurant, any WHERE to reward say thank you to their top sales performers. Like Ferrari Carano, they wanted something special. Ferarri Carano’s western United States sales manager said he loves Sushi, he lives in California, so he is used to good sushi.

The boys at Southern Wine & Spirits said “If you like sushi, you will love Blue Wasabi!”. They came in on a Thursday night where I took care of them. From the food to the drinks, I took the keys to the castle and ran with it. The only thing I didn’t select was the wine. You see, when you are the Western United States sales manager of one of the best wineries in the country you tend to have a little pull.

What kind of pull?

Well in addition to the classics including Fume Blanc, Sonoma County Chardonnay and Siena, they brought some sold out wines from the winery:

It was a great night, the next time you are at Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar  you too can enjoy the  Ferrari Carano experience by trying the traditional Yellow Tail Sashimi with Farrari Carano Chardonnay or better yet – ask for the secret stash of Ferrari Carano Fume Blanc and pair it with Blue Wasabi’s New Style Stryped Bass Sashimi or Nigiri

-Jim Moran

 

It’s Our 8th Anniversary. Win Sushi For 8 At Your Home

Eight short years ago, Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar opened in Scottsdale. Wow, so much has changed over those eight years. The housing market exploded and then promptly imploded, the Arizona Cardinals made it to the Super Bowl, the Boston Red Socks finally won a World Series – while, the Cubs STILL couldn’t win one – and all the while, Blue Wasabi Sushi & Martini Bar was serving the freshest and most unique sushi and martinis in Arizona.

We want to celebrate our eight year anniversary with you, our loyal guests.

While many give cards, flowers and chocolate for anniversaries, we want to give you free sushi! Did we mention we’re talking about in your home?Just picture the surprise on your guests’ faces when they see that Blue Wasabi Sushi has moved into your kitchen, sushi chef and all. Yep, we are offering to bring the Blue Wasabi Sushi and Martini Bar experience to your place.

Between Valentine’s Day this February 14th and Leap Day, February 29th, each time you enjoy a Blue Wasabi dining experience we will enter you into a raffle with the chance to win sushi in your kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef. And to show his appreciation, Blue Wasabi Sushi’s owner, Jim “The Irish Dragon” Moran, will be serving you in your home.

When your guests ask, “Who’s that goofball serving us?” you can say, “Oh, that’s Jim. He owns Blue Wasabi Sushi! – Yep, you got it like that!”

Imagine, your guests tweeting away, checking in on Facebook and Foursquare from your home. You’ll be the talk of the town!

Check in on Facebook at Blue Wasabi

Tweet your experience at Blue Wasabi using the Blue Wasabi Hashtag #BlueWasabiSushi

Check in on FourSquare

Can’t want to celebrate with you!

Now, normally when you hear about a promotion on the radio or TV there is a nice calm voice telling you WHY you should enter the promotion and the BENEFIT of doing so only to be followed by another voice listing the TERMS AND CONDITIONS at lightening speed, well we aren’t going to do that to you, what’s the point of entering anything if there is a long list of RULES right? We only have 9, they are pretty straight forward:

Official Rules for the Anniversary Sushi in Your Kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef Giveaway:

1. Every Blue Wasabi customer is eligible to win Sushi in Your Kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef after submitting an entry form to your server.

2. Entry slips will be given to you and your guest with the final check.

3. To give everyone an equal chance to win Sushi in Your Kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef, we can only allow one entry per visit. The Sushi in Your Kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef contest will run February 14th through the 29th 2012.

4. The winner of the Sushi in Your Kitchen with a BW Sushi Chef will be chosen on March 1st 2012 and will be announced on the Blue Wasabi’s Facebook, Twitter, and blog, yep we want everyone to know you are the big winner!

5. Because it’s our 8th Anniversary, The Winner will receive one catered dinner for 8 at their home prepared in your house by a Blue Wasabi sushi chef and the owner of Blue Wasabi.

[Surely you can find seven other people that want to enjoy Arizona's best sushi with you right?]

6. The catered party must be on a Monday thru Thursday (Friday, Saturday & Sunday excluded) and be used no later than April 30, 2012.

7.  While we would love to bring every item to your home, some items from the Blue Wasabi menu will not be available for the catered dinner (they don’t travel well). We’ll collaborate with the winner to create the perfect menu for the meal.

8. If you can put a value on this promotion, we would have to say it’s approximately $500, this depends on the finalized menu chosen by the owner of Blue Wasabi and the winner.

9. No beverages will be supplied (this is a food and service only gig).