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yamatorestaurants.com
A charming space with high ceilings and a view of the sushi
bar from the top floor, Yamato offers sushi from the hands
of Chef Katsu Hanamure, formerly of famed Matsuhisa.
Start off with Black Cod Saikyo Miso Yaki, broiled to buttery
perfection with a side of pickled vegetables for a nice sweet
and sour contrast. Chef Hanamure’s specialty rolls, like the
Soft Shell Crab Roll and the Rainbow Roll, are fresh and
surprisingly light. You can’t go wrong with the Yellowtail
Sashimi with Jalapeno atop tangy ponzu.
*An honorable mention goes to UCLA’s own Hedrick
Residential Restaurant. Served twice a week, students come
in as soon as the sushi menu is setup. Have you tried this
place? Please write in (e-mail food.editor@campuscircle.net)
and let us know what’s the scoop on scoring the sushi during
the week.
NEAR USC
If you drive about five minutes (or if you don’t have a car,
you can take the DASH and get there in 10 minutes) to
Downtown, namely Little Tokyo, you will find a maze of
sushi spots that are so good, you won’t want to go anywhere
else.
Arashi Sushi
1111 S. Hope St., Ste. 100; Downtown (213) 749-1900;
arashisushi.com
One happy hour that’s a must try at least once, is at Sushi
Arashi, (Mon-Fri, from 5 p.m.-8pm). Arashi is all about
beautiful food through beautiful art. The Lemon Roll, with
spicy tuna and avocado wrapped with tuna and sliced lemon,
and the robata-yaki are the best. For those of you unfamiliar
with robata bars, it’s literally food on a stick. A single bite
of goodness ranging from Japanese eggplant to sea bass to
chicken and green onions, you can get full off a plate of these,
especially during Happy Hour when they’re only $1.
Hama Sushi
347 E. 2nd St., Little Tokyo (213) 680-3454
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Now, Hama is fun. If you sit at the bar with the chefs, you get
to yell our your order and have it hand delivered to you. The
roast seaweed that envelops your warm sushi rice is a nice
touch, as are the hand rolls that have a nice snap to them. Red
snapper and albacore sashimi are really top notch here. Make
sure to check the board for the daily specials!
Mako Sushi
123 Astronaut E. S. Onizuka St., Ste. 307, Little Tokyo (213)
613-0083; makosushi.com
On the third floor of the Weller Court Shopping Center –
home of the popular Orochon Ramen and Curry House
– lies one of Little Tokyo’s hidden gems. The service is
exceptional, and all of the selections are simple, yet fresh
and delicious. Serving traditional omakase meals that range
in price and volume of food, Mako offers a truly Japanese
dining experience with dishes like chawanmushi and the
heavenly Scallop Grill.
Octopus Japanese Restaurant
729 7 St., Downtown (213) 402-1500; octopusrestaurant.
com
Just off Flower Street, lies Octopus. One thing I like about
this spot is the fish is served cold and with really good
accoutrements. Octopus is known for their fusion-style
specialty rolls like the H.O.T. Roll with spicy tuna, cream
cheese, and jalapenos all fried in tempura batter. I like the
Ichiban Roll – with spicy tuna and asparagus, wrapped with
tuna and shrimp – and the Mexican Roll – spicy crab, avocado
and jalapenos. It’s not traditional sushi by any means, but it’s
solid and won’t set your pocketbook on fire.
Restaurant Komasa
351 E. 2nd St., Little Tokyo (213) 680-1792
Second Street in Little Tokyo is home to at least three
amazing sushi bars, one being Komasa. This tiny restaurant
gets filled up very quickly, but the staff is really nice when
telling you how long your wait time will be and taking down
your phone number. Once you do get seated, order the uni
and yellowtail. You can cheat a little and get the beef teriyaki/
sashimi combo … it’s worth it.
Campus Circle > Culture > Food
Sugarfish
600 W. 7th St., Downtown (213) 627-3000; sugarfishsushi.
com
Downtown is home to another branch of Sugarfish by Sushi
Nozawa, so Trojans, you too can delight in the wonderful
flavors there. (See Sugarfish under UCLA for more details.)
Sushi Gen
422 E. 2nd St., Little Tokyo (213) 617-0552; sushigenla.com
Rounding out the parade of sushi on 2nd Street is Sushi
Gen, which is hands down the go-to spot for Trojans looking
for the freshest fish this side of Hollywood. I’ve never had
a bad meal here, from the Spanish mackerel to the ankimo
(monkfish liver). Make sure to try the octopus sunomono
and ask for the specials.
Sushi Go 55
333 S. Alameda St., #317, Little Tokyo (213) 687-0777;
sushigo55.com
Up on the third floor of an unassuming mall called the Little
Tokyo Marketplace lies Sushi Go 55. You’ll want to visit this
spot during Happy Hour time for a bit of a price break. If
you choose to splurge though, get the omakase, personalized
just for you! Chirashi bowl and the Kaki Fry Lunch are the
ones to try. The Kaki Fry is panko-crusted oysters over rice
– so delicious!
Wokcano
800 W. 7th St., Downtown (213) 623-2288; wokcanorestaurant.
com
Just when you thought you had to go out for your sushi, here
comes Wokcano with quick delivery! The menu is similar to
Octopus with the fusion style, and they take it up a notch
with Spicy Crabmeat Tempura rolls and striped bass sashimi
with fried garlic ponzu.
As you can see, there’s almost no end to the sushi that
abounds from the neighboring cities to UCLA and USC.
You really don’t have to travel far from your campus to get
the best!
Campus Circle 10.5.11 - 10.11.11
Amanda D’Egidio
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