Hamasaku Hamasaku
11043 Santa Monica Blvd. (Camden Ave.)
Los Angeles, CA 90025
310-479-7636
Map
Cuisine: Sushi / Japanese
Sleek and stylish, despite its strip-mall location, this celebrity-frequented sushi bar also offers entrées.
Openings: Lunch Mon.-Fri., Dinner nightly

Features

  • Valet parking & parking lot
  • Dress code: Casual dressy
  • Reservations suggested
Hamasaku, Los Angeles, CA


Hamasaku Restaurant Review:



About the restaurant & décor: With Hamasaku's backing from Hollywood heavyweight Mike Ovitz, it's no wonder that familiar faces load up here on soy paper-wrapped burritos and about 30 different inventive rolls (some named after those very patrons). The setting, which includes a substantial number of linen-clad tables for leisurely dining in addition to the polished bamboo sushi bar, features traditional and modern art, soft lighting and a curvilinear, slatted-wood ceiling.

Food & Drinks: Set in one of the Westside's ubiquitous strip malls, Creator of Seafood Dishes --- translation of its Japanese namesake --- Hamasaku indeed turns out some creative and colorful dishes. But the able chefs can also provide food deeply grounded in tradition. Indeed, the presence of so many rolls --- which to the sushi purist suggests a lack of seriousness --- does not detract from the simple beauty of bluefin toro sashimi or creamy ankimo (monkfish liver). Choices change daily, so let the expert chefs surprise you with an omakase dinner. Some customers settle in for entrées, while others just pop in for fresh uni washed down with Horin saké. To balance the savory, look for matcha budino or passion fruit mochi for dessert. The wine list is minimal but choices are reasonably priced.