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Categories: Sushi Bars, Japanese
Neighborhood: DowntownMon-Sun. 11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Mon-Sun. 5:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
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Here is an excerpt of my recent review -- all details are at http://www.SushiLush.com.
We arrived at 1:30 pm on a Saturday and were lucky to have Chef Toshihiko personally describe the way he marinates his halibut and mackerel in seaweed to enhance its flavor. Before the days of refrigeration, fish was wrapped in seaweed to both add flavor and serve as a preservation technique. Both the halibut and mackerel were excellent. Equally as good was the salmon, tuna, amberjack, yellowtail and and albacore. We had the Toshi Sushi Combination ($19.95); Toshi Chirashi Special ($19.95) and Sashimi Combination ($15.50). Toshi is a litle more expensive than the lunch specials at Sushi Go 55, but the quality and taste of the fish is superior. I have 4-5 more spots to try before making my recommendation of the best low-cost sushi lunch spots in Downtown LA. Stay tuned...
I love Toshi Sushi! It is a cute, little restaurant located in the Little Tokyo. Very friendly service but kinda slow. Maybe there was only one waitress when we were there!
Something it was so funny......we saw a lady and a little boy were sitting at the sushi bar and they have order pot stickers and crab cake (we believe) which looked VERY yummy. However, we could not find these dishes on the menu, so we asked the waitress that we wanted to order the same dishes as our appetizers. The waitress told us that the lady is the owner's wife gave us the complimentary salad with seasonally fresh ingredients and she said it was from the chef (the owner). How nice!
We have ordered nigiri sushi:
Yellowtail (2 orders) - Sooooooo FRESH and Yummy. Well balanced of rice and fish. The rice was a little bit under cooked but still very tasty!
Salmon (1) - I did not try this one but it looked so FRESH
Sweet shrimp (1) - so sweet and FRESH
Spicy Tuna Roll (1) - nothing special but very spicy
Scallops (1) - Fresh
Sea Urchin (1) - sweet and rich but it was in nigiri style, I prefer the normal way which is the seaweed wrap around the rice
Fatty Tuna (1) - TASTY! Sooooooo FRESH
At the end, the waitress gave us the dessert and it was from the owner. It was mango mochi ice-cream with some fresh fruits. The mochi skin was soft and the fruits were so fresh! And this is FREE!
The bill was $80 with tips ($40 each). It was a little bit pricy but for this kind of service and quality of the fish, I think that is worth it!
Man, am I going to rain on these fellow Yelper's parade, sorry!
Maybe I missed something big. Not only was the sushi average for J-Town but the prices were too much and the pieces were small. For a place to be so tiny but cute, I guess they have to charge more since they have so few seats.
I usually give sushi restaurants a second chance but I think I'll pass on this one. With all the other positive reviews, maybe you should try it yourself. Maybe I missed something, maybe I didn't. I actually read all the reviews up to date of this review and in my humble opinion I think the high ratings come from Yelper's just liking Mr. Toshi and they are not rating on price versus food. One Yelper stated that he noticed the prices went up after a good deal was had
I feel if you are dropping $$$, you shouldn't leave hungry.
My new favorite Sushi spot downtown. Stopped by on Friday night after a very interesting panel discussion with Jimmy Lizama @ JAT.
WOW- first off you walk in and you are promplty greeted by lovely ladies and owner. Every seat was filled so we waited for abt 20 minutes and then sat @ the bar.
We ordered a variety of sushi (halibut, saba, yellowtail, albacore, salmon, maguro, uni, spicy tuna hand roll,) and were given a delicious complimentary seaweed salad. We ordered a tasty miso with clam soup (could have been 10 degrees hotter). Everything was super fresh and perfectly cut, for my liking: not too thick or too thin. The rice was just ok, possible a bit too much vinegar (not sticky enough).
I love Toshi and the gang and look forward to my return!
Of course we opted for the truer omakase. Not the menu prix fixe.
The fish kept coming and coming and coming. There was so much food, and we weren't sure what it was costing us, but it turned out to be an incredibly good price. A really good deal.
I just looked at my pics and counted 30 items, incl tuna collar. We rolled out of there. The only thing I did not like was the oyster, it was not very fresh. But everything else was very fresh, and there was a wide variety of preparations and presentations--sushi, sashimi, baby squid in its ink, shrimp head, veggie tempura, seafood miso, carpaccio style, a mackerel skeleton skewered like a boat, holding the mackerel sashimi, and the collar. The rice was a little bit hard for me, but all in all, very good.
This is the top or one of the top two sushi places in Jtown. Very good sushi at incredibly good prices.
yummy! yummy! i like alot!
went sunday after the artwalk...thanks to papa's iphone app for suggesting this spot =p
toshi is great, good experience sitting at the bar. best uni i think i've had!
beyond reasonably priced, may have found a new sushi spot in little tokyo, YAY!
From the menu displayed outside, it looks like the prices went up in just a few months from the raving reviews from yelpers. thanks, man. haha.
We walked in and found a beached whale with a business account hogging up Chef Toshi's time by meaningless banter and experience with japanese culture and failed when she requested her amaebi deep fried. We decided to try this place quietly with an order of Sashimi Combination for me and a Chirashi Bowl for Nacho. Each was $21.95.
Hands down Toshi Sushi is better than Sushi-Gen. The ambiance has a "eating at the Chef's house" feel. There was no line, no attitude, just great fish. Not the cheap pedestrian stuff but stuff like salmon belly, engawa, orange clam, uni.
Chef Toshi is really friendly. He took care of us and the regular sitting to our right. I think he secretly enjoyed getting the whale to our left try all sorts of stuff she didn't like but that was totally her doing.
Overall, it was a great meal. We'll be back for the omakase.
#5 of Nacho Week - Success
Toshi Sushi is the best sushi I can find in downtown Los Angeles, after trying half a dozen places. Though I find it a little more expensive then I'm used to in Honolulu, or Tokyo, I don't let the price deter me, for the authentic dishes, high quality fish (especially the "Chu Toro" that few places serve here), friendly service, and the minimalist setting are well worth the extra buck. I have been dinning at Toshi at least once a week for the last two months, and though I have considered trying some place new, like Gen Sushi the personal home kitchen feeling I get from Toshi is simply irresistible. You know what they say "if it ain't broke don't fix it".
Enjoy!
Some of the best sushi I've had in LA. Everything is delicious. They actually have real wasabi hand made by the chef so it's fresh and amazing. Absolutely loved it.
Great service. My glass was never empty and my belly was comfortably full when I left. It was very inexpensive for such great fish.
My only complaint was that the sushi bar was small (but the restaurant is small too) and they could use a little help making it a little more exciting on the inside. But seriously this is a very minor complaint and the food and service was great!
I can't wait to go back!!
This new J town eatery is gonna be here a long time, if quality is the main criteria. I sat at the counter and ordered the premium chirashi meal (19.99) and 'oh my' was the seafood fresh. There was tuna, uni, salmon, more tuna, tsukemono (pickled veggies), and more kinds of fish, and the best tasting tamago (egg) I've ever had. I made a point to Toshi that the tamago was WOW and he smiled ear to ear and said, "I make it myself."
I thought they all did, obviously I'm not the sushi expert I perceive myself to be.
I came here on a Sunday night and there was no crowd. There were only two other small parties when we walked in. But this lack of clientele didn't make the place seem desolate - rather it felt real cozy. I think that's because the restaurant is pretty small - maybe 3 or 4 tables of four and then a small sushi bar that fits perhaps 6 or 7 people.
The restaurant is well-lit, though slightly dim. The lights were comfortable. The tables were simple and clean. The decor was minimal. Somehow, the combination of everything just made me feel good. Like, I'd want to chill out there just to have a few beers.
The food...we didn't start off on the right foot. When the waitress (and it is "the" because there is only one) handed us the sushi list, she immediately told us that they were out of regular tuna and yellowtail. I was thinking, "c'mon..." because those are pretty damn standard. It's like if you walked into Mcdonald's and they told you that they were out of french fries.
However, the place quickly redeemed itself. We chose the "omakase" and left it up to the chef to do his thing. It helped that it was a mere $45 per person. I challenge you to find quality sushi omakase for less than twice that cost.
And so, the dishes came:
Appetizers: a nice juicy raw oyster with some yuzu and fish eggs, a piece of king crab leg topped with lightly seared uni, and then a small bowl of monk fish dipped in ponzu or something citrus-y. Grade: A
Next came 3 pieces of sushi: japanese mackeral, chuu-toro (medium fatty tuna), and damnit, I forgot. I must have eaten it too quickly. Grade: B+
Then came a bed of chilled beef tataki with some type of ponzu and green onion sauce mix on the side. This was also served with some type of fish on the side - again, I forget. Grade: A-
At the same time, the lady brought out two jumbo tempura-ed shrimp heads with tempura sauce. Some people might freak out, but damnit, I ate all that brainy mush with a big smile on my face. Grade: B
Then came black cod just done so perfectly. It was nice and flaky and just tasted like something from God's kitchen. It was that good. Grade: A+
The next course was the "main course" and that was an assortment of 10 different pieces of sushi. These included, off the top of my head, a raw oyster sushi, uni, albacore, seared salmon, spanish mackeral, giant clam, ama ebi (sweet shrimp), sweet egg, red snapper with sea salt, and . . . I'm missing one, but that's already pretty good. Grade: A-
While we were munching away on our main course, we each received a big bowl of clam and crab miso soup. There were 3 or 4 clams in there and then 3 or 4 good-sized chunks of crab. The clams and the crab were good, but the soup was probably my least favorite part of our meal. It just tasted somewhat bland. Grade: B-
After we cleaned off our plates, the waitress came out with a dessert menu and told us to choose out of three different desserts. We each got the chocolate souffle. Now, my friends know that I'm not the biggest dessert person, but I'd say that the souffle was pretty decent.
Overall, the food was very good. As far as the fish quality, it can hang with Sushi Go 55 and Hama Sushi. On a good day for those restaurants, I'd give them an edge. But who knows - this was only my first visit to Toshi. It definitely won't be my last.
*****
The waitress saw me snapping away with my camera and she asked me what I was doing (in a very friendly and cute way). She asked me if I was going to put those up on facebook or something. I said yes, and she smiled and said "ok, thank you!" When we were leaving the restaurant, the chef called after me in broken English and said with a smile, "Put. Nice. Okay?" while making the hand motions for taking a picture with a camera and pointing at me. I smiled and simply said "yes, thank you."
My stylist... Yes, I said my stylist.... And his assistant have recommended I try Toshi Sushi for a few months. I like my sushi and I like my favorite sushi restaurants, Matsuhisa and Sushi Nozawa. The two told me try Toshi Sushi because it's better then my favorites. Better? Let's find out.
A friend and fellow sushi fanatic and I wanted sushi for lunch. Finding good sushi for lunch isn't an easy chore, and he and I decided on Toshi Sushi. We tried the "tasting menu". It was... Forgetful and far from being better then my favorites until the we ate our sushi. Again, the hot and cold dishes were forgetful and I'd recommend my fellow yelpers forget ordering them but order the sushi. I'd never eaten egg sushi until then and the owner's variations on the traditional sushi was very, very, very good, and the toro was easily the fattiest piece of tuna i'd ever eaten. Our other cuts of fish and sushi were equally incredible.
I don't know if Toshi Sushi is better then my favorites but it's easily in the ball park.
My dad saw a writeup on this place in the newspaper, so we bucked our usual trend of Sushi Gen and made a reservation to this place. The food was of good quality, but only staffing one sushi chef and one waitress on a busy Saturday night is just not cutting the mustard. There were 6 of us and the dinner took close to 2.5 hours. Not because we were dilly dallying and taking our time. The food just took REALLY long to arrive. We would wait 20 minutes before ONE roll would show up. i felt like we were on Survivor or something as we all fought for a small morsel of sushi with our chopsticks. They even knew "crap" was going down, because the waitress came a couple times with some free Edamame and fried shishito peppers to pacify the hungry bunch. The big back up was because they only had one sushi chef (presumably the owner) trying to service the bar AND the 10 tables or so. No matter how great the sushi is, the wait is not worth it. AND it wasn't that great. It was good, even above average I would say, but not to the point where the speed (or lack of) was justified. Even when we finally decided to leave, it took 20 minutes for the waitress to bring the bill and another 20 minutes for her to bring it back after I just gave her the card without even seeing the total in fear that she would not return again for awhile. The waitress and chef were very apologetic when we departed and even offered to not take the tip (20% automatically charge for parties 5+). I appreciated their efforts to make amends. Generally I give high points when a restaurant owns up to their shortcomings and tries to fix it. What warranted the 2 stars is the fact that the chef/owner said that the level of staffing that night is typical. I would have excused it if someone was just sick or something, but if they consistently keep their patrons waiting like that then it's unacceptable. Maybe we just came in with the rush which cause the delay. I really wanted to like this place, but there are just too many good places with a shorter wait to compete with my wallet and taste buds.
I am gonna make the drive form the South Bay to Downtown LA for this sushi. Toshi, who had a couple restaurants in NY and moved here to open this one, really knows how to buy and prepare the best sushi products around.
After suffering through many local disappointments, and having trekked down to Little Tokyo to assist my kiddo in preparing his "Los Angeles Landmark" project (for 4th grade) (I know - what are the teachers thinking?)
I found our way around the Little Tokyo environs to this place - by chance - near the northeast boundary of the neighborhood. The trip was absolutely worth it. The restaurant is well-attended - even on Sunday afternoon - when the rest of the neighborhood joints aren't even open - and the ones which are open are not well-attended - this place is thriving! Sushi-chef Toshi is apologetic for the delay in preparing the many dishes we asked for - but we hardly noticed anything but the really fresh looking inhabitants in the display cases.
MMM---MMM good. The stuff is fresh, high quality, and nicely presented. Some other patrons have placed their pictures of the place on Yelp, so I won't bore you with the one I took today.
I plan to return here many times - soon. Especially on Sunday afternoons - since the traffic is so light...
"Oishi desu!
***3.5 stars***
My weekly must-have sushi requirement landed me here last Sunday afternoon. This place is teenie tiny....with a tiny bar and just a few small tables. I really didn't have high expectations. Probably because it was empty and the odor of fresh paint (or something chemical) lingered in the air. But boy, was I wrong.
What Toshi lacks in dining space, he easily makes up for by serving some really fresh, quality sushi with decent prices.
I ordered the sashimi duet for $12.50 which gives you a pick of two types of fish. I chose the albacore and hamachi. My lunch buddy got the 10pc sashimi lunch special for $15 which also comes with your standard sushi but no choice on fish.
The portion sizes were surprisingly generous. Six slabs of thick sashimi served over a large bowl of warm rice with seaweed and tamago for just $12.50? (not to mention the miso soup and salad?!) Yummy deal!
And, there is definitely something inexplicably unique about how Chef Toshi prepares his sushi. Perhaps he recognizes that paying attention to those minor details in food preparation will leave an even bigger impression on taste. You'll know what I mean when you come here.
I will be back for an Omakase round.
I had been meaning to try Toshi Sushi for awhile and found myself at JANM last night. My friend and I were kinda hungry so we walked on in around 9 and found the place about half full.
We decided to try the spicy tuna on crispy rice, the black cod, and the maguro, hamachi, and unagi sushi (we wanted anago but they were out). We even got a complimentary seaweed salad and green tea ice cream for dessert.
All the food was fantastic. The crispy rice was perfectly crisp and they didn't add the sweet eel sauce which I am not a fan of like other places do. The black cod was tasty and cooked just right. I knew the quality of sushi was high by looking at it but after tasting it, this became my new favorite sushi spot in Little Tokyo. Not to mention that Chef Toshi was friendly and funny.
I still like Hama for the handrolls and Sushi-Gen for the price point, but Toshi has a neighborhood bar feel, serving excellent sushi in a cozy and friendly environment. I can't wait to go back and try the omakase.
i guess they fixed the undercooked rice problem.
their chirashi is a great deal.
for ~$20 you get premium sashimi in a big bowl of sushi rice.
if you sit at the bar, and you have way too much rice left, he gives you more fish!
whoo hoo!
3.25*
The sushi combo is pretty decent but kinda $$$ (21.95 for 12 pc.) tamago w no rice and raw…
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I came here for a farewell meal with my friend who was going back to Japan, and we ordered the 12 pieces nigiri sushi combo and the teriyaki chicken combo with nigiri sushi.
The fish is fresh, and chef Toshi has good skills, even though I did not sit at the counter, I can tell by the fish on the nigiri.
My friend said it was good too, and coming from someone who work in a sushi bar in Hokkaido, he has good knowledge of what is good sushi.
It is a little more expensive, but that is what you are paying for, - QUALITY!
Rushed to Toshi after reading LA Time's blog here: http://theguide.latime...
Thought to self: possibly the only affordable yet edible sushi in Little Tokyo? You don't say? Is LA Times on fire? 2 good sushi joints in 2 months? (The last being the restructured Kappo Ishito in Weller's Court, a yet try for me seeing the full blown omakase is $85/pp, replete with house made ponzu, soy and pickled ginger, see this Metromix blog: http://losangeles.metr... )
Toshi's bar is only 6 deep, 3 on side side of a 40 degrees angle. The entire house can't seat more than 30 people and there's only 1 waiter, 1 itame (Seki-san himself) and 1 hostess with perhaps 1 more person in the kitchen. It's a very simplistic operation occupy 1 small storefront between Daikokuya and the Japanese American Museum.
Above all became moot when I saw the menu: $35 for omakase with 12 pieces of fish, etc.
Much like the other famous Seki-san in the LA Sushi Scene (Keizo Seki of Sushi Zo), Toshihiko Seki believes in the "old school", which, in this case, means Edo style from "30-40 years ago". For him, this means no sugar in the sushi rice, less vinegar and more salt in the tighter compact nigiri and more natural cuts of fish that don't always look like perfect rectangles. He even wraps certain fishes in kelp since Saran wrap didn't quite exist in Japan back then. This all suits me perfectly.
End result: sunomono consisting of miso-vinegar paste mixed with yamaimo and various root veggies + tuna, etc. 3 small kaiseki-style appetizer served together including roes, octupus, etc. A huge bowl of manila clams miso soup was followed by a miso black cod (needs more miso and obviously, not made by itame) & 10 piece set which included toro, shima aji, Japanese red snapper, albacore, torch seared kobe!?! etc. (I did ask for more shiromi, but nothing as exotic as engawa, or sanma/aji were served, NEXT time). Topping off the omakase were a few pieces of mochi ice cream and some fruit.
Easily the best bargain in all of Little Tokyo at the moment. Toshi-san is amiable, convivial but respectful of those seeking the higher path in sushi dining.
That bowl of huge chirashi? $21. I know people rave about Sushi Go 55's bowl, but this far exceeds that proffering in terms of cut and thought.
for more pictures, google image Toshi & Sinosoul
Very cute. I'm a fan of Little Tokyo as a concept, although I wish it were bigger.
I rarely order sushi combinations - I prefer either omakase, or to pick my own - and I didn't here, either. I prefer smaller pieces of better quality fish to large pieces of crap, and I was not disappointed. But in general, because sushi is really about the quality of the fish, you get what you pay for. This wasn't half bad, but it's not the best I've ever had, either.
My favorite was the sweet shrimp, because they also served us the delicious fried heads.
So your looking for somewhere small, quite, cool, clean, downtown, and your not sure where to go... there are six thousand whole in the wall places in J-Town and then BLING!!! Hey a new place!
TOSHI SUSHI - like a Beverly Hills mom, fresh out of plastic surgery - this place has a new name, new paint job and bounces with fresh, wrinkle free desire to be liked.
POSSY's
- really good sushi chef with lots of experience
- clean, fresh, and organized
- simple, priced right and efficient
- service - very good - same guy serves, hosts, cleans, - its small
NEG's
- parking - good luck - go for the governs spot
- place is so small, you can hear what others think of you and their food.
We have tried many Japanese restaurants in the Little Tokyo area, and this one was by far the best!
Having lived in Japan, my standards are pretty high when it comes to sushi, and this place didn't disappoint.
Not only was the sushi some of the freshest I've had, but the presentation was beautiful as well. Some of the details often left out in American Japanese restaurants were included here like the fresh shiso leaf, the shredded daikon with fresh ginger on top, the pickled radishes, and the tiny flecks of dried plum sprinkled over the rice.
The chef even sent over a complimentary salad with seasonally fresh ingredients and balanced flavors.
We ordered the sashimi/sushi combination plate and a bento box, and they let us upgrade the salad to a seaweed salad for a minimal charge. The wakame salad came with lettuce underneath (a nice touch) that had the dressing on the bottom. What a brilliant idea, separating the dressing from the seaweed. Plus, the dressing wasn't too mayonaisey, like at many Japanese restaurants.
The bento box was large for the price ($8.95, not including the seaweed upgrade).
All total, the sushi/sashimi combo, the bento box, a spicy salmon roll, and two iced green teas came to $40, including tax. That's not bad for two people, but I'm not sure what the dinner pricing is like.
Afterwards, we chatted with the owner/sushi chef, Toshi. He was funny and friendly and engaging, as was our server. Both were born and raised in Japan, which helped validate our experience as authentic.
This place is highly recommendable!
Today, my parents treated me to lunch. It was a nice meal. THere were a few things that bothered me a little bit but not enough so that I would not return. First, the waitress asked my parents and I what we'd like to drink. We all just asked for water. The water did not arrive before we ordered. It didn't arrive after we returned our menus. The water did not arrive until I had to ask them a 3rd time or so, about the same time that I had received my meal. I had asked that my tempura entree selection be ONLY veggie since I am allergic to shrimp and just wasn't willing to take the risk of getting sick. My california roll was made correctly, without the cucumber. That was fine. And, the use of the real crab meat was nice. I also particularly liked the firmness of the avocado that they used. It was really tasty. I felt that maybe there was a lot of rice used in this roll, to make it look larger or something...to try and hide how small the roll would have been because there wasn't any cucumber in it. Either way, it was tasty. There was no need for that much rice. It's OK. I understand. I really liked the bowls that were used for the service and presentation of the chirashi. My mother commented that she liked the way that their sushi chef uses chunks of sashimi (raw fish) rather than the tiny thinly sliced stuff. My dad felt the same way. The restaurant definitely lacks space. But, I think, for now it is a good size. The would not be able to handle too much of a bigger place. I'm glad to see it is doing well. I was surprised at the variety of things that this restaurant offered. The prices are more than just decent. They really are spectacular. $12.50-$15 isn't anything to complain about when you're devouring such high quality, fresh fish. Prices here are amazing. The selection is great. The quality and presentation of the food are beautiful. THeir service, however, isn't the best or greatest. But, it is definitely not such a huge deal that you wouldn't come back. The tempura was fried very well. It was not fried in old reused oil. The veggies were still crisp and the shrimp (according to my father) was very tender. I liked that I also was able to find parking. Otherwise, I would have parked at the Village Plaza and just walked from one corner to the next. No biggee!! Good Food. BEAUTIFUL presentation.
my favorite sushi place in little tokyo b/c no lines.
sushi quality is better than sushi gen (i dont like sushi gen), about equal with komasa.
service is better than any other restaurant in the area.
I went here for lunch and it was very good for the price. I don't have much to say for this review since the meal was quick and tasty but not extraordinary. The service was efficient and very nice...they were very accommodating when I asked for mackerel instead of tuna. Basically, I wouldn't mind going back but it's not a priority. The place is intimate so I can see this being a good date place.
Neighborhood: Silver Lake
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: Downtown
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: Downtown
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: Downtown
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Downtown
Category: Sushi Bars
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