Back in 2019, LemonShark Poke opened its doors to Tucsonans — a restaurant chain founded by guitarist Tobi Miller of rock band The Wallflowers and race car driver Richard Gottlieb.

The 1,644-square-foot restaurant at 2501 E. Grant Rd. made it out of the 2020 pandemic, has ridden the waves of Tucson’s slower seasons, and is now embarking on a new journey: becoming a full-on locally-owned restaurant.

Tucson eaters, the Grand Opening of Desert Shark is upon us!

New owner Fabian Moreno, who’s also making his debut as a restaurateur, is aiming to have the brand-new concept open by the end of August. Moreno, wide-eyed and amped about making the restaurant his own, has been redesigning just about everything from the menu to the graphics seen inside and outside of the restaurant.

“I will still have a lot of different menu options as far as poke — the Build-Your-Own-Poke,” said Moreno. “Pairing down the menu, though, gives me the ability to bring something seasonal to mix and then take it away and bring it back.”

So, Moreno and the Desert Shark crew are excited to offer new, fresh, and sustainable seafood options. As mentioned, the Build-Your-Own-Poke — also known as “the heart of its menu” — is here to stay, allowing folks to tailor their poke bowls to their preferences, including vegan and gluten-free choices.

“I’ve changed a lot of the menu so that it’s more gluten-free,” he added. “I’ve changed a lot of it flavor-wise — different aspects. A lot of the recipes I’m using right now are mostly new. So, with the Maui Heatwave, it will still have the heat aspect… but we’re in the desert so it’ll be the Desert Heatwave! This means it’ll have my signature sauce — the Shark Bite. It’s surprisingly spicy!”

The Desert Heatwave is a blend of sushi rice, crispy wontons, ahi, and shrimp, all topped with fresh green onion, cilantro, corn, mango, togarashi, takis, and Shark Bite sauce.

Another one of Desert Shark’s “Signature Bowls” is the Shark Bait. This mix comes with coconut shrimp, edamame, red onion, and a refreshing cucumber salad.

However, don’t stress if you’ve been a frequent customer of LemonShark, and have a particular go-to poke bowl, you can still order it.

Complementing its poke bowls are bento boxes like the Kaluah Pork bento box — marinated barbecue pork served on sushi rice, topped with pineapple, green onions, and white sesame
seeds.

There’s more to eat on the menu, too, like a few sushi rolls, potstickers, miso soup, crispy tofu, and a variety of other sides. This is where the Build-Your-Own-Poke options come in clutch.

“The bowls are going to have different ingredients in them but at the same time, you can still make your favorite bowl,” said Moreno. “They already know what they like and they’ll have the option to build it.”

As Moreno mentioned earlier, seasonal specials will rotate throughout the year, ensuring there’s always something new to go viral at Desert Shark.

And, just in time for the new semester, the restaurant will accept CatCa$h, catering to the needs of University of Arizona students.

Stay tuned for the official Grand Reopening but expect it to be by the end of August (they’re open now but with LemonShark branding).

But wait, there’s more!

The restaurant is sharing the space with another concept of Moreno’s.

Sometime in the near future, walk through the doors of 2501 E. Grant Rd. and you’ll have the option to order from either Desert Shark or Moreno’s brand-new sandwich shop, Sandwich Slut.

“It’s going to flirt with being borderline inappropriate,” Moreno laughed. “But, at the same time, it’ll be silly and will also serve a cause. We’re going to have pictures from women’s protests with signs like ‘Less clothes doesn’t mean consent’ — stuff like that. I’m working right now to find women’s shelters to work with. We will round up a certain amount from each sale and that’ll go toward a local shelter or facility. I want to get involved in the community more!”

Think of it as a way cooler Taco Bell/Kentucky Fried Chicken combo.

Hang tight for the Sandwich Slut concept and in the meantime, standby for a soon-to-be-announced opening date for Desert Shark. LemonShark is still open now and during the rebranding process.

Desert Shark is located at 2501 E. Grant Rd. For more information and to keep up with the latest, follow Desert Shark on Instagram.

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