Katsuya is one of those rare restaurants where the food is consistently excellent yet the menu can still delight and surprise you. For instance, we routinely order the Crispy Rice with Spicy Tuna (which if it were fresher it would still be swimming) plus some salmon sashimi, miso soup, the bright vinegary sunomono salad and maybe — if we’re still hungry — the Chicken Katsu Bites.
This time however the publicist for the sbe Katsuya at LA Live downtown L.A. convinced us to try the new tasting menu which celebrates cuisines from different areas of Japan.
- June: A taste of Okinawa (the largest of the Okinawa Islands in the Kyushu region of Japan)
- July: A taste of Tokyo (the capital and largest city of Japan)
- August: A taste of Hokkaido (the northernmost of Japan’s main islands)
Since we went in June we tried the taste of Okinawa with some old favorites and new discoveries.
All this was just $55 and included a ‘Japanese donut’ for dessert.
The crunchy Japanese Slaw is our new must-have and the Miso Marinated Black Cod was a revelation.
As with all the locations the restaurant was designed by Phillip Starck in ambient, elegant images and white on-white furniture but still buzzing with the L.A. relaxed vibe.
It is definitely a place to take out-of-town guests you want to impress, on a date, or for a special night out.
It has everything including specialty cocktails that make it a destination before an event.
Or just invent a reason.
Writer trying to eat the ENTIRE tasting menu.