- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Yamato Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Japanese Japanese
1099 Westwood BlvdLos Angeles, CA 90024
Neighborhood: Westwood
(310) 208-0100
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 11:30 am - 2:30 pm
Mon-Wed, Sun 5 pm - 10 pm
Thu-Sat 5 pm - 11 pm
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Valet
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Trendy, Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
eugi h. said: "Love it! I think this may be the only place in the Brentwood area where those of us that need to watch our wallets can say that you really get a bang for your buck! If you are looking for an insane amount of food, good to split between…" read more »
515 reviews for Yamato Restaurant
Review Highlights
"definitely coming back here for happy hour."
(in 225 reviews)
"My favorites are the BSCR and the Pink roll."
(in 23 reviews)
"You must try the GARLIC edamame and the 911 roll."
(in 20 reviews)
Loading...
515 reviews in English
-
Review from Naz N.
Los Angeles, CA
2/8/2012
I will also put my two cents in this place, even though many Yelpers have already. Great food, great price and great service. Will be back for years to come.
We went with a large party and they were great and we all enjoyed it. -
Review from Nicholas K.
Los Angeles, CA
1/31/2012
I work near Yamato so I'm in there fairly often. Needless to say I've tried A LOT of the menu, and it's all pretty darn good! I wouldn't call it stunning, but for the price it's definitely the best sushi in Westwood, but Westwood's only part of LA.
The restaurant caters to a varietal crowd of the hip young college scene, the business executives from all the high rises, and their VIP clients. When you walk in you'd expect to leave with a $80 per person bill, but I always leave paying between $15-$25.
So why the 3 star?
Service can take forever sometimes, it might be that the seating outweighs the capabilities of the kitchen, but there are times when I go and I'm in and out in 20 minutes, and times when I'm there for an hour waiting for a check.
While the sushi is good, it's kept from crossing the bridge to greatness by the speed of the preparation. Rolls are blasted out at Yamato so you're likely to receive a roll that's loosely rolled and will fall apart on its way from the soy sauce to your mouth, destroying you nice white dress shirt.
The Chirashi was great though. It comes in a box, the sliced fish on one side and the sushi rice on the other, topped with pickled radish(delicious!) The fish are all sliced well, and it's a good portion, but the fish doesn't stand out to me as top of the line. It's fresh, don't get me wrong, but it's missing something.
I will obviously be back as I've already gone close to 20 times, but there are definitely things that could be done a bit better. Overall it's a great meal for the price, and their drinks(Sake Champagne Cocktail) are delicious! -
Review from Eli B.
Los Angeles, CA
1/30/2012 4 Check-ins Here
Wow, this place is really pretty inside (some ppl also like the architecture outside), and the atmosphere is also pretty good.
The prices are kinda reasonable, the combos are the best value deal and the sushis are not expensive. The food is just 'ok' and the drinks are good.
Summary: just visit Yamato if you don't want to spend much money but want a nice atmosphere -- do NOT expect 'great' food. -
Review from Tiffany L.
Los Angeles, CA
2/7/2012
I love, love, love Yamato!
Quick interesting fact: the building actually used to be a church! My friend told me that while i was downing a few drinks. Not the best timing ever.
I started coming here as a freshman at UCLA. I'm super thankful to them for having a great happy hour selection that is college-student friendly. Happy hour, happy me!
The decor is amazing. It's chic, sleek and classy. They have pretty lights and this cool wall of alcohol bottles. Good for people with short attention span, there's always something to look at.
Best places to sit: The seats on the second floor with a view of the first floor. Especially the seat nestled between curtains with a view of the entire restaurant. Very romantic.
Great crowd as well. It's nice to see college kids come here for birthday parties or dates (unless it's a super awkward date. Definitely had some guys sitting at the next table say, "You can order A N Y T H I N G you want..on this page, under five dollars.")
Luckily they have yummy food to match their decor.
Favorite Eats:
x. BSCR roll. so many scallops mixed with yummy sauce and sushi!
x. Orange, Red Dragon Rolls
x. Baked Lobster roll
x. Fried Oysters! I love, LOVE oysters
x. Pink Roll
x. How We Roll
basically I love everything! Delicious! -
Review from James V.
Garden Grove, CA
1/31/2012 1 Check-in Here
Decent food. Don't get the nasty dynamite appetizer. Terrible service. They should stop hiring students to work here; plus they are rude
-
Review from Michelle Q.
San Francisco, CA
1/20/2012
What was this place before it was a restaurant?!? It seriously looks like a city hall, turned into a nightclub, turned into a restaurant. Whatever it is/was, the dining space is absolutely amazing. And that's where 2 of those stars are coming from. Kudos to the youthful, fun atmosphere and for the cool, elegant details.
The food was was just ehh. Pretty standard Japanese fare--rolls with lots of sauce, bento boxes, sashimi, salads, etc. Nothing blew me out of the water, and again nothing was too memorable either. However, each plate is presented beautifully, and my handrolls were overflowing with fish (snaps for that!).
The service was pretty incredible. One guy, 12 guests--how did he do it? Water was always filled promptly, he was always there but never seemed present, no meals were mixed up or orders forgotten. Overall, a pretty seamless night, server-wise. Up a star.
So, all in all, I can't complain about this place. Nothing is offputting or distasteful. The food is decent although nothing that will wow you. But this place is beautiful and the sheer size of it and its attentive staff makes it ideal for groups and perfect for celebrations. -
Review from Liangzi H.
Los Angeles, CA
2/3/2012
Love this place! The grand inside makes it a perfect dining destination. Downstair is a bit casual, and also has a bar, decorated with various wine bottles. The upstair is more like an intimate place, fit for close friends or couples. The sushi here is super delicious, u can't go wrong with anything. The price is also very reasonable. Just love this place. The only inconvenience is parking, u can park at a lot a bit far from the place.
-
Review from Sarah P.
Updated - 1/10/2012
Time for an update...we still eat here pretty regularly (once every couple months.) i get the same thing every time, the combo with tempura, rotating between steak, salmon, and chicken. today the tempura was overly greasy and tasted like the oil needed to be changed, and my steak tasted like a really cheap cut and overly charcoal-ed. :( they still have RAD salad dressing though, and our server was totally cool.
of course i'll go back. it's the best japanese food deal in westwood.
OH one thing i HATE is that it ALWAYS smells like bleach when we walk in - not appetizing at all.1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
5/29/2010
We like to come here for lunch. I always get the two item combo which is a great deal . I've had… Read more »
-
-
Review from Michael C.
Los Angeles, CA
1/12/2012 1 Check-in Here
Typical, predictable California-roll laden menu. If that's your thing then you might love Yamato. Anyway, the prices aren't as hot as they were when I was here two years ago. Bummer.
At the end of the day the atmosphere is pretty neat and service is fast, so you could probably do worse in Westwood. -
Review from April K.
Los Angeles, CA
1/5/2012 1 Check-in Here
I really wanted to like this place, but first impressions are lasting and mine was awful.
The building and decor are hopeful, but sloppy...sort of like the restaurant. I went here because my friends and I were craving sushi and one of my friends said that she used to come here a lot and that it was decent food for a decent price. With all of us being college students, how could we say no?
The food is what you'd expect for the price. It's not great, but it's not bad by any means. The reason I'm giving my first one-star rating is because of the TERRIBLE service. Having been a waitress myself, I'm pretty lenient about most situations, but I can also get pretty irritated with bad service and this was probably the worst I've ever dealt with.
The restaurant barely had any patrons when we got there so I was a little annoyed with the fact that it took 10 minutes for our waiter to get to us when there were 5 other guys walking around, apparently doing nothing. Strike 1. This is something I would have let go if things had improved, but of course they didn't. When our waiter finally came over, it was only because I stared him down as he walked by for the umpteenth time. He wasn't friendly at all, took our order like he was doing us a favor and didn't apologize for the fact that he had left us there sitting and staring around when we were clearly waiting and ready to order. Strike 2. Again, I could have let all of this go if things hadn't continued to get worse. When our food came out, the food runner spilled sauce on my friend's lap, looked at it and walked away without apologizing. Strike 3.
My friend finally decided to talk to the manager, not to be an asshole, but because he is a manager himself at a sushi restaurant and decided that something needed to be said about the absolutely sh*t service. The manager was understanding and apologetic and even discounted our meal, but the bad service still persisted even after he talked to the guys. First the food runner came over and said "Is there a problem?" in an extremely confrontational manner as if he hadn't been already told why we were upset. I'm sorry, WHAT? That is NOT how you talk to a customer. Then the server came over and said the exact same thing. Now I understand that these guys weren't exactly fluent in English, but apparently they aren't fluent in customer service either. Later, I spotted them making faces at each other while obviously expressing their not-so-nice feelings about us. Cool.
I honestly do feel a little bad about giving such a low rating to this place because the manager did what he could to remedy the situation and the food wasn't that bad, but these guys really pissed me off. I have never left such a lousy tip before but they earned it, plus this lovely review. -
Review from Kayla H.
Los Angeles, CA
1/12/2012
Absolutely amazing!! This restaurant not only has AMAZING sushi, but also a very hip, modern atmosphere, a great bar (featuring Devotion Vodka, which is my favorite) and the staff is wonderful!
Their spicy tune is unlike any other and I could stay there for hours thanks to the wonderful atmosphere and wide array of delicious cocktails! Absolutely wonderful A++ -
Review from Maggie H.
Pasadena, CA
1/30/2012
Love love this place, the sushi is some of the best I have ever had, but do not listen when it says that it is kid friendly, it is not kid friendly, they have kids cups and that is as far as the kid friendliness goes. They have no menu items for kids, but there sushi is to die for
-
Review from April F.
Los Angeles, CA
1/30/2012
This place is super awesome. The sushi is fairly cheap but the options are plentiful and delicious. Sometimes the service is a little hit or miss but never terrible. I think Brandon helped us last time and he was definitely the best waiter we've had there. Really cool place if you want to go on a nice easy date and not spend a lot of money
-
Review from Tom R.
Los Angeles, CA
1/10/2012
I have been there for many times. The restaurant is located middle of the westwood near UCLA, so lots of younger generation are over there. They have pretty good stuffs with cheap price, and taste very good.
The most thing I like this restaurant is their interior at the dinner time. It is very beatiful just the best place to bring a girl at the first date! Very nice people are working there, the food stuff are served rapidly even in rush hour. This is the excellent japanese restaurant to hang out with anybody! Just one thing I think ti's ganna be better is make more main dish menu not only side food or appetizers. -
Review from Steven P.
Garden Grove, CA
1/8/2012
What happened to the Darth Maul?! :sigh: It has now been replaced by an obelisk that may or may not be part of an underground conspiracy only to be uncovered by Nicolas Cage or Tom Hanks.
Food wise, I do not like the sushi at all. Yes, it is a common place for people to go with lots of friends for a birthday or something, but if I'm craving sushi, I just drive back down to Orange County to get some really fresh fish.
Over the years, I've ordered both raw and cooked sushi. I usually stick with the weird, novelty ones just because I don't want to get a Dragon roll and then lament on how I could be getting better sushi at home. Still, even the novelty ones aren't that amazing. For the price I'm paying, I was hoping for better food (yes, even happy hour prices, they should do better).
The service is really good, they often have to deal with extremely large and obnoxious groups of college students (I am one of them), and they always do so with a smile. Which brings them up to 3 Stars for me. -
Review from William Q.
Los Angeles, CA
12/29/2011
I got a lobster roll here
And it was really good.
Like really really good.
Then I got the bill, then it didn't seem that good anymore.
The rolls have a little bit more flavor and taste than Ami's but I wouldn't say there's that huge of a difference between the two.
Again this place lucks out since it's basically the only place around near UCLA, so students have to go to here or Ami's if they want sushi.
Rather expensive, but the location, decor, wine closet, light arrangement, and architecture of the place is kinda nice, with private tables at the top -
Review from Michael L.
San Francisco, CA
1/19/2012
This place was pretty amazing. youre like walking into a castle looking at it from the outside. and once you hit inside it looks like those fancy resturants celebrities dress up to go to in the movies. it isnt your regular japanese resturants. they have a huge christmas tree sitting in the center of the room on a platform. sojo bottles around lid up with colored lights. and an up stairs for dates and couples looking down on group parties. looking at the menu you wanted to order everything, many unqiue orders. and at a fair decent price 7-9 dollars a roll unlike some where it cost 10-12 a roll.
def a good place to come to dress up and eat some good ass sushi. -
Review from Colleen L.
West Los Angeles, CA
11/26/2011
The service left something to be desired. Dinner date was hungry and suggested this restaurant, which I had not been to since it was Eurochow. Opted for a booth upstairs.
When asked what we would like to drink, I ordered the usual hot water with lemon. The waiter served up a glass of cold water. Professor date immediately brought it to the waiter's attention, "she ordered HOT WATER" to which the waiter made a hasty retreat and returned with the tea cup of hot water.
The professor ordered us vegetable tempura to share. It was very good, until I dropped a slice of squash with my slippery chopsticks, which I placed aside.
I ordered a vegetable roll, which was fair. My mushroom salad was better. My Robata Tofu squares on the bamboo skewers were great with (he pointed out) their grill marks. I felt him looking at me as I slid them off the skewers horizontally.
Then his Robata combination dinner arrived, very late into the dinner. There was a party of 2 that came in after us, were seated, ate & left before his dinner ever arrived.
By the time he started into his dinner, I had almost finished my dinner. I was trying to go very slowly. He quickly slid the meat off the skewers vertically. One chopstick on the left side of the skewer, one chopstick on the right side of the skewer. In a second, they were off onto the plate. His skills as a physics professor revealed.
Doubt I will be back, if it is one thing I cannot tolerate it's slow service when hunger calls. The excuse for the deliverance of his late dinner "a party of 30 just came in the door." -
Review from Jenna P.
Los Angeles, CA
12/10/2011
Uggh. I've been here many many times; it's the popular 'let's go somewhere fancy but cheap' place for UCLA students. Up until recently, I've been pretty satisfied. It's not good sushi but again, it's not expensive, so who cares?
But considering the past few visits, I don't think the price is worth it. The service has declined and the specialty rolls (at least the ones I tried during my last visit) were basically inedible: either made with chewy and tasteless low-quality shellfish or smothered in mayonnaise. Making reservations did nothing for my group; we waited a very long time for a table. Then the service itself lacked something - they couldn't even manage to serve everyone water.
If going, I'd say stick with the basics (sashimi, California rolls, etc.) which are decent.
The atmosphere there is nice, the old building is beautiful and has a good ambiance for a date or a dinner with friends.
Personally, I'm not planning on going back because I think their prices don't justify the low service and quality. But unfortunately, I can't think of another sushi spot in Westwood to recommend that's any better than this, so I just might end up there sooner or later... -
Review from Regina C.
Torrance, CA
1/13/2012
Sushi is good. Service is good. The atmosphere is better. I like it.
-
Review from Shveta A.
Los Angeles, CA
11/15/2011 3 Check-ins Here
Great place for dinner when you want some inexpensive sushi with a nice atmosphere.
My favorites so far are the yamato roll, bscr roll, and baked lobster roll. I've tried a good number of others and will continue to try more! They're all good and hit the spot for a sushi craving.
Its student friendly prices also make it a really cute date place. -
Review from Robert P.
Malibu, CA
12/4/2011
The restaurant is housed in and old, cathedral-ceiling building with cement. It amplifies all the noises and gives a train station ambiance.
If you don't mind this or being surrounded by UCLA students, many of whom are on first dates than read on.
The sushi is average and reasonably priced for Westwood. There are plenty of specialty rolls but lack creativity. The Westwood and Pink rolls are very good.
Their menu of Japanese dishes is extensive so sushi isn't all you have to choose from. Most dishes are good. The garlic edamme is good and so is the poke salad.
The sake selection is ok as well.
Parking can be tough in Westwood so be prepared. -
Review from Madison M.
Santa Monica, CA
1/10/2012
Great restaurant, Ive been coming here for a bit since it is next to my school(UCLA). It has a great atmosphere and the service has always been good. The best thing about this restaurant is the prices, I guess they try to cater to the typical college students budget which is nice. I usually only eat the sushi here, but maybe next time I will try the entrees.
-
Review from c k.
Los Angeles, CA
1/2/2012
Inexpensive with a good ambience. The wait is long for walk ins, so be sure to make a reservation. I had one, and I still had to wait about 15 minutes.
Its near UCLA, so be prepared to see a lot of college students.
And stay away from the ramen - very salty. -
Review from Darius R.
Los Angeles, CA
1/4/2012
Bomb!!!
That old description for something amazing can be used for this Sushi Restaurant
I have not eaten 1 thing at this place that I have not loved! The Sushi Rolls are amazing, they even name some after local things like UCLA ... Compared to most other Sushi places it is also VERY affordable! -
Review from Susan L.
Los Angeles, CA
11/18/2011
I have been here many times, but this is my first review. I went there for some cheap sushi because I had this major craving. If you are looking for an A-grade sushi place, this is not it. But if you are hungry and want cheap sushi and don't care about quality, this is the place.
What happened to the Happy Hour pricing? I swear the last time I went there everything was half off. This time, while still on the cheaper side, I paid $50 with tax and tip, which is double what I am use to paying.
Well this time I paid more and still got cheap sushi, so yes, I was a little irritated when my sushi rice was not cold, but hot. My 5-year old asked why the sushi was hot and why the fish was rubbery---that's all I have to say on that.
Considering the raise in prices and the very low quality. I won't go back there. I'd rather go to Tomodachi. -
Review from Dominique M.
Beverly Hills, CA
BEAUTIFUL BUILDING. LOVELY PRESENTATION. CRAPPY SUSHI.
My friend and I ordered a bunch of rolls and two bento boxes. We left hungry as we barely ate what they served us.
The spicy sea scallop weren't spicy at all.
The spicy tuna roll was ever a little spicy(We seriously thought the were $#%%@ with us)
The dragon roll was missing Unagi LMAO!
The salmon sashimi was so so...
Philadelphia roll was made correctly... congratulations!
My salmon teriyaki was not all that bad...
The Ice green tea was good though...
I know for a fact that I won't be back. -
Review from Karen Y.
10/13/2011
For the area, price, quality, and ambiance, you get a lot!
I ordered the kitsune udon which was very tasty! It came with edamame, salad, rice (which was weird cause there's nothing to eat it with), pickled veggies, and the udon. All for under $9! Very good deal!
Westwood isn't great with parking (though I hear there's a free lot in the back for 2 hours). I couldn't find it. Street parking in the day was only like $1/hr though. -
Review from Yahya E.
Long Beach, CA
1/11/2012
Two friends from spain flew in and took me to this place, the spainards, of course are always looking for a reason to go out, even if it is during working, and studying days. But this place is uniquely designed to say the least, when we got inside, it is so big, very very very big, and the workers numerous. It is kind of reminds me of something like willie wonka and the chocolate factory accept it is japanese style. The thing is that when we were seated we were seated upstairs, it felt like a completely different resturant!!!!! it was so quiet and tranquil compared to the chaos downstairs. The thing is this place was so crowded that there weren't enough waitresses, and waiters, to go around. But I must say we probably laughed the whole time during our eating there, to a point were tears were coming out of our eyes I can't remember what we were even laughing about but it had something to do with another friend. who wasn't present. But besides this the food, was pretty good, the thing is since it is a sushi place you can't really expect much on the plate. As these type of places specialize in as they say finger foods. The sushi was good, and also the fried tempura was good as well. I think really what is better was the fact that upstairs is completely different from sitting down stairs, and it is very tranquil. Nothing can really be changed about this place, really, I mean going to west wood as expected you will encounter snooby superficial people, but hey the area itself is very nice, and I have been back here before, and we sat outside the second time, that setting was just as pleasant as sitting upstairs. The food I have kind of neglected but it is very good food. and tempura batterd vegetables make for a fattening snack, but still with significant health benefits. Overall I see why the japense people manage to have nice healthy looking skin, and good overall health, because of their diet, and where better to try japanese food than in a place were you can laugh so hard you cry, while enjoying food, with friends,family, and loved ones.
-
Review from Charmaine G.
Los Angeles, CA
9/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
I LOVE YAMATO FOR LIFE AND FOREVER. THE SUSHI IS AMAZING AND SUCKS FOR YOU IF YOU DIDNT LIKE IT lol
Okay so seriously Yamato gets an A for decor, its so pretty and elegantly decorated with posh seating, intimate lighting and a staircase that changes colors. The waiters are very nice and so are the hostess.
The best part is the prices, each roll is discounted for about $4 to $7 a roll. The full plates/ dinner meals are around $12 and my favorite lobster roll is only $7.00. Their sake is wonderful and the desert is my favorite: Mochi ice cream :)
The prices are great. I just wish they were open earlier than 5 pm every night.
Love !!! -
Review from Dean S.
Santa Monica, CA
12/30/2011
Beautiful restaurant with very modern, cool seating. Sushi rolls were a little pricey, but on the whole the meal combined with atmosphere was very legit. Probably a standard close-to-campus date spot for UCLA students.
-
Review from Julia P.
10/2/2011
For the poster who says they "love yamato for life and forever...", I feel you either own this place or are a little too overzealous about it. Yes I love Yamato too but not because the sushi is amazing (it's not bad, it's not good either). I love this place because the happy hour rocks.
Be prepared to be surrounded by little UCLA undergrads talking loudly about their latest midterm and how their love lives are unfolding. If you can get past that, you can definitely enjoy the place (it was a nice reminder of much easier and relaxing times).
The food again is good, but not stellar. The service is pretty decent and getting a group of 5-10 people here for some sake bombing after work with some great sushi prices doesn't hurt either. Keep in mind that alcohol prices are not discounted at happy hour. -
Review from Richard C.
Los Angeles, CA
11/6/2011
Atmosphere is interesting. Reminds me of those bright light karoake bars in K-town except on a much grander scale. Lots of college kids mixed in with a young professional crowd.
Sushi was so-so. Fish was relatively fresh but presentation was average. However, price was insanely cheap --- beyond belief! I probably paid less here for my entire meal than some other sushi joints for a single item. -
Review from Lois K.
Los Angeles, CA
10/21/2011
The dinner happy hour (which starts at 4 - yay) makes this a great place to go for half off their entire menu of unique and tasty rolls and sashimi. These are my favorites:
Appetizer: shishito peppers - very unique dish of japanese peppers sauteed in sake and soy sauce (surprisingly, not spicy!)
Salad: crab avocado salad - their best salad in my opinion. the creamy miso dressing is awesome! the sashimi salad is another good option.
Hot dishes: agedashi tofu (can be hit or miss - sometimes the batter is soggy but when it's crisp, it's really good!). their dynamite is goood!
Special rolls/sashimi: pink roll, white dragon roll, baked lobster, crunchy roll, crispy rice, seared amberjack sashimi, albacore sashimi.
Yup, I usually order all of the above every time I go! :)
As for the non-food aspects, the restaurant is pretty dark ("romantic") and can be very loud when you are seated very close to another table. Waiters are nice but can be slow so I am used to flagging them down and getting their attention. Tip: for some reason, at the middle section of the second floor, the floor vibrates. I usually ask to be seated on the first floor or on the end of the second floor (furthest from the stairs). -
Review from Mariela M.
Lynwood, CA
12/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
I think they have definitely improved the taste of their sushi over the past few months, but their service-esp when being seated in the upstairs level of the restaurant- sucks. The waitresses take forever to provide service: taking the order, bringing the bill, and even bringing eating utensils. overall, i recommend eating the crunch roll and the shrimp tempura roll. When eating here, ask to be seated in the lower level and when ordering steak, ask for a knife and a fork, or be prepared to eat with chopsticks.
-
Review from Jenny N.
Garden Grove, CA
9/17/2011
I LOVE this place! I keep coming back. I can't say I've ever had anything bad here. Years from now, when I look back on my college days, I will think of Yamato.
I don't consider myself a sushi expert at all. But between me and my boyfriend, whom I took to Yamato's last night, I think we've had enough sushi in both our lifetimes to tell you what's good and what's not. (He also used to fish a lot, and has had sushi that was still writhing and wriggling 30 seconds earlier. Now that's FRESH.) We had the orange dragon roll, crunchy roll and rainbow roll, and he loved everything. My favorite is the orange dragon roll. The salmon just melts in her mouth. Mmmm...
Starters were also fantastic. Garlic edamame was delicious. The fried oysters were good, but a little on the greasy side for me.
I will say that the service is spotty. Our waiter last night was lovely, but the other times that I've been here, the service varies. When they're really busy, the staff seems to get really flustered and sometimes they forget your order. And it can be slow. But for the price I'm paying, I don't really care. Just don't go here if you're in a hurry to get anywhere. If you go when it's not busy, there should be no problems.
We had the pomjito drinks. It's basically a mojito flavored with pomegranate. We came just 5 minutes after happy hour ended, but the waiter was nice enough to let it slide. As for the drink, I thought it was ok. It was nothing great.
The green tea creme brulee was different and fantastic. It wasn't overly rich and the green tea flavor was present, but not too strong. Rick thought it was great.
Bottom line: I think the sushi here is delicious. The building itself is nice. And for half the price, what more can you ask for? I've been to places where I've had to pay twice the money. It's not like the sushi was in an entirely different league or anything. -
Review from Janna R.
Los Angeles, CA
12/5/2011
I wish there was a 3.5 option. It seems like every time I come here its happy hour--no matter what the time.
When I first moved to CA, some newly made friends brought me here and I was totally in love. The place itself is in a great location and the interior design was very eye-catching. Not to mention the great sushi rolls we ordered for half the price! I was definitely impressed.
Second time around, I came with my mom and some for my bros birthday. This time, we ordered sashimi with some beef teriyaki--eh Ive had better sashimi at kifunes. Great miso soup though!
Third time around, probably a year and half later, a friday night with the bf, I wanted to try this place again. We forgot to ask the host for a booth until it was too late and we didnt wanna be a hassle. Ugh I cannot stand being seated so close to other people in restaurants. Especially shared booth seats and tables!
Anyway, 10 minutes later a group of very loud and non english speaking asian college kids were seated right next to us---- just a little too close. There's about 7people trying to squeeze in their 4 person table.Food was great Id have to say, although still cant beat kifunes sashimi. Close to the end of our meal, my bf has had enough. One kid kept staring at him for no reason at all as he ate. He gave this kid a look of "wtf are you looking at this whole fucking time." Awkward and annoying. I just started laughing. It seems like the kid was so fascinated with every bite my bf put in his mouth. hahaha.
I would come back again, Id just have to remember to ask for a booth the next time :) -
Review from Jessica K.
Los Angeles, CA
10/1/2011 5 Check-ins Here
I came with a group of friends for a birthday, and it wasn't that great. Two of us got there at 8 PM, and they couldn't seat us until half of our party was there, but the hostess knew it was going to be a large group. We waited until 9 to be seated. I was so annoyed the whole time because they didn't even think to prepare our table when they were fully aware of how many people were coming. The place wasn't that busy either. After being seated, my mood got a little more pleasant, but the lighting in that place is too damn dim. Everyone had trouble reading the menu, and the atmosphere just made me sleepy. Our waiter wasn't that great either. He was slow and not attentive. He took our orders fairly promptly though. The food was served in a decent amount of time, but one of our appetizers was served after we had hungrily devoured all our rolls and salads.
I got the orange dragon roll and the mentaiko caesar salad. My salad was really delicious. Sure, it's just a caesar salad, but there's a certain umami in the flavor of the dressing that I really like. My roll was just average. I thought it was a little too sweet, but the rice crackers topping the roll were a nice touch.
I come here often, but I would prefer to go somewhere else. It's not a bad place for a cheap sushi option in Westwood, but the service is definitely spotty. -
Review from Andrew A.
Los Angeles, CA
12/12/2011
Decent spot. Sushi is delicious. Service is friendly and kind. Just didn't have the full five stars....no drink specials, half offs, knowledgeable customer service.
-
Review from Esther K.
Manhattan Beach, CA
1/23/2012
I think they are so busy sometimes it is hard to get the attention of the server. However, the spicy tuna on crispy rice is the most delicious of anywhere! Yummy! Highly recommend. Fantastic prices!
