syori the foodie: Little Tokyo

Saturday, April 20, 2024

Hayato@Little Tokyo ★★★

2 Michelin Stars Restaurant Hayato. Exquisite Kaiseki Cuisine handcrafted by Brandon-san with his careful attention to detail. Various traditional cooking techniques used for the courses. Like a Food Artist/Scientist. Freshest seafood arrived same day from Japan from US Sakasyu. Fresh vegetables from Torrance Farmers Market. He explained each dish at the beginning of each course with the cooking method, ingredients, and why. Love the amazing Charcoal Grilled Kinki Rockfish w/ Roasted Onion, which brought me back to the taste of Japan. Nodoguro Rice Pot was all-you-can-eat (woohoo). Good idea to refill a bit to get the crispy rice on bottom of pot. Experience was quite different from last visit in 2021. Brandon-san has a serious look when he's cooking, but he actually has a nice personality. He's honest, straightforward, & quite talkative with a sense of humor. We enjoyed chatting about everything from Japan, food, people, to getting on his waitlist on Tock. He likes to play it fair and give new customers opportunity to try it. Server Kaori was nice & friendly. Impossible to book with only 7 seats (counter) & 1 seating per night. Reservation was made on Tock within 2 seconds at release time. Limited 2 people per party. Door opens at 6:30pm. Dinner was 3.5 hours. $350 per person ($400 starting 5/1). Plus 18% gratuity automatically added. Complimentary hot tea. Parking at the Row DTLA structure or street.

Juyondai on the house this time

Yuki no Bosha Junmai Daiginjo $150

Sakizuke: Seared Kinmedai
tosa zu jelly

Shirano & Sweet Potato Tempura (browned edge style like Tempura Kondo in Tokyo)

Hokkaido Surf Clam "Nuta Ae"
mix all together

Live Santa Barbara Spot Prawn

Shinogi: Aji Bo-Zushi
w/ grated ginger on top

Owan: Okoze, Fresh Bamboo

Otsukuri: Japanese Sea Bream, Akagai
sliced shiso leaf, myoga (Japanese ginger bud), Seaweed (eat in between sashimi)

Steamed Abalone

Steamed Abalone w/ Liver Sauce

Charcoal Grilled Kinki, Roasted Onion

Panko Crusted Bamboo Shoot

Anago Tempura, Tokyo Turnip

Nabe: Okoze, Fresh Wakame, Bamboo Shoot

Complimentary Sake for Dish Pairing

Chinmi: Konoka (Sea Cucumber)

Nodoguro (Black Throat Sea Perch) Rice Pot, Shell Peas

Japanese Pickles

Nodoguro (Black Throat Sea Perch) Rice Pot, Shell Peas

Soup to go w/ Rice

Nodoguro (Black Throat Sea Perch) Rice Pot (2nd refill w/ crispy rice from bottom of pot)

Mizu Mono: Nashi (Asian Pear) w/ Sake Jelly

Raspberries

Birthday Treat

Hayato
1320 E 7th St Ste 126
Los Angeles, CA 90021
(213) 395-0607
hayatorestaurant.com

Friday, March 8, 2024

Hayato@Little Tokyo ★★★

2 Michelin Stars Restaurant Hayato. Exquisite Kaiseki Cuisine handcrafted by Brandon-san with his careful attention to detail. Various traditional cooking techniques used for the courses. Like a Food Artist/Scientist. Freshest seafood arrived same day from Japan from US Sakasyu. Fresh vegetables from Torrance Farmers Market. He explained each dish at the beginning of each course with the cooking method, ingredients, and why. Love the amazing Charcoal Grilled Kinki Rockfish w/ Roasted Onion, which brought me back to the taste of Japan. Specially prepared Karasumi Mullet Roe paired perfectly with sake. Nodoguro Rice Pot was all-you-can-eat (woohoo). Good idea to refill a bit to get the crispy rice on bottom of pot. Experience was quite different from last visit in 2021. Brandon-san has a serious look when he's cooking, but he actually has a nice personality. He's honest, straightforward, & quite talkative with a sense of humor. We enjoyed chatting about everything from Japan, food, people, to getting on his waitlist on Tock. He likes to play it fair and give new customers opportunity to try it. Server Kaori was nice & friendly. Impossible to book with only 7 seats (counter) & 1 seating per night. Reservation was made on Tock within 2 seconds at release time. Need a lot of "good luck" to book. Limited 2 people per party. Door opens at 6:30pm. Dinner was 3.5 hours. $350 per person. Plus 18% gratuity automatically added. Complimentary hot tea. Parking at the Row DTLA structure or street.