Los Angeles 2009: Katsuya

While I am still a bit behind on finishing of my Hong Kong posts, I had an amazing meal in Los Angeles last week. My friends suggested we try one of Los Angeles-based SBE group's outposts of Katsuya "by Starck".

We met at the Hollywood location, and when I arrived to meet my LA-based friends, the paparazzi were already swarming. I didn't know how popular I had become with this little blog. In all seriousness, the photogs were out to click shots of the star-studded table next to us (Liv Tyler, Orlando Bloom) lounging with their crew in the sharp, Philippe Starck interior.

We noshed on a huge bowl of edamame while we perused the menu and allowed the helpful and knowledgable waitstaff help us to choose a number of delectable courses from the menu.

Our party sampled about seven different dishes; unlike most sushi retaurants, food is served "family style" - and the portions always included one or two pieces per person. The highlight was the crispy rice with spicy tuna, a fried rice cake (almost a bun) topped with finely chopped and well-spiced raw tuna. It was really a unique taste and texture. We also had a nice albacore with crispy onion topping; a refreshing yellowtail with a mint, cilantro and cucumber combination; and a crab roll (which was my least favorite of the meal, decent but too salty). My other favorite dishes included the creamy shrimp tempura (an awesome crispy fried rock shrimp with a smooth, creamy sauce reminiscent of Nobu), the grilled halibut cheeks, which were very firm with good flavor and the kobe beef with foie gras (delicate and smooth).

I will definitely return to this excellent (if a bit overrun by stars) sushi spot in LA.

Los Angeles 2008: Shima

Tucked in the trendy portion of Venice beach (the part with a La Jolla-on-weed feel, not the New Jersey-on-steroids bit) I was introduced to a fabulous find of a sushi restaurant on Abbot Kinney.


Shima (with no apparent website, but located at 1432 Abbot Kinney, and can be reached at 310.314.0882) is an organic, local-ingredient focused (not as hard in LA as elsewhere given the sushi-based menu). They had a very nice, short sake list; my dining companion and I opted for the Dewazakura "Nama genshu", which was lightly sweet, but clean and dry. An excellent match to every dish we tasted.


My friend had dined at Shima in the past, and we pitched the menus and requested the chef's omakase (tasting) menu.


The omakase consisted of 10 total courses, detailed below. To a one, they were well-executed and made of the freshest ingredients. On the margins, I could find a few nits to pick, but overall a tremendous meal displaying not only the fine art of simple, good sushi but also some innovation and inventive dishes.


Course 1 - Toro Tartare with black roe, topped with chives in a soy broth an served in a martini glass: a very nice star to the tasting, delicate with a creative presentation.

Course 2 - Spanish Mackerel salad, with ponzu sauce: a solid dish, with a salty and sharp sauce.
Course 3 - Maine Lobster ceviche with cucumbers and avocado. The lobster was firm and spicy/citrus sauce: very tasty, but also very bold and tart. That said, the sake cut the flavors nicely.
Course 4 - Red Snapper carpaccio with truffle oil and lemongrass: An adventurous course and bold for a traditional sushi house. A very well-done dish, and I award extra points for the contrasting flavors and the concept of truffle oil with sushi, generally.
Course 5 - Homemade Tofu Steak: Crisp outside, silky inside, a little less flavor than I would have liked but a perfect execution of textures.
Course 6 - Grilled Abalone with mushroom and asparagus. Unexpectedly flavorful with a hearty mushroom sauce and perfectly cooked Abalone.

Course 7 - We sampled two non-traditional Miso soups; neither stood out to me, but a good break late in the meal.
Courses 8 and 9 - The meal was rounded out with a high-quality selection of sushi (I even liked the Uni which I typically do not). The chef also asked us if we wanted to try a handroll, and made us one of spicy tuna; the stand out from this final dish was the crisp and light seaweed, with none of the "chewiness" one typically sees from many sushi restaurants.
Course 10 - A finishing sweet course, a gelato-like non-dairy surrounded by various fresh fruit. It had a semi-fredo texture and some tapioca and coconut flavors, a good cap to an excellent, long meal.

I would run, not walk, to this hidden gem in Venice if you are in LA, before it gets too swarmed.

Los Angeles 2008: Beso

In the late days of 2008, I had the occasion to be in Los Angeles and was lucky enough to gather with friends to celebrate the holidays at the cavernous, dimly lit Beso.

Eight gents gathered for a mid-week boys night out at the celeb-heavy spot by Todd English (and Eva Longoria). We spotted a few star athletes and my fellow Clevelander Drew Carey noshing on the "latin-inspired" cuisine.

For starters, the menu has a nice list of appetizers and shared plates. We sampled a very good guacamole with crisp tortilla strips, crispy lamb ribs (amazing and must have - crispy outside and tender inside with just the right spice of peanut chipotle sauce) and a nice selection of hand tacos in all varieties (fish, vegetable, steak and pork).

As the entrees arrived, we swapped out our cocktails for a spicy yet light syrah recommended by the waiter. I had a fabulous portion of whole branzini, with sides of sweet pot tater tots, asparagus and mashed potatoes. All were excellent, particularly the sweet tater tots. The branzini was prepared simply and whole with salt, pepper and oil.

A surprise finish to the meal, fresh churros with sweet cream were brought out to the table. We finished them off quickly, and ended the evening stuffed from the many courses.

Additionally, the real star seekers should stick around for the later night scene at Kiss, the upstairs lounge at Beso.

A well-done addition to the LA scene.