Kaiseki Motoishi@Beverly Hills ★★★

Favorite Kaiseki. Kazu-san's culinary skills were absolutely amazing. Various cooking techniques & wide range of ingredients used. Rice dishes were refillable. Server Mino-san from Sushi Kisen is aways very warm and welcoming. Super friendly environment. $350 per person. Corkage $50 per 750mL. Hot Tea $6. Self-parking $10 at lot. Pop-ups on Monday nights and select Sunday nights at Sushi Yamamoto. Soba lunch pop-ups on Sundays. DM @kaiseki.motoishi to book.

Hassun
Seasonal Appetizers: Chawanmushi w/ Ume Sauce, Signature Potato Soup w/ Caviar, Grilled Eggplant, Akami Tuna Sushi, Akami Tuna Sashimi w/ Ankimo, Kinme Fish

Palate Cleanser
Japanese Plum Wine

Hassun
Seasonal Appetizers: Chawanmushi w/ Ume Sauce, Signature Potato Soup w/ Caviar, Grilled Eggplant, Akami Tuna Sushi, Akami Tuna Sashimi w/ Miso, Grilled Amedai Fish

Soup
Sake Steamed Belt Fish w/ Colorful Tomatoes in Dashi Soup

Fresh Fish
Meichidai Japanese Grey Large Eye Bream w/ Okra

Suzuki Uni Shoyu Ae Seabass Marinated w/ Uni Soy Sauce

Katsuo Skipjack

Katsuo Smoked Skipjack

Katsuo Smoked Skipjack with spicy yuzu, ginger, ginger & scallion

Soba
Signature Housemade Soba w/ Tempura

Tororo for Soba

Tempura
Stuffed Zuccini Flower w/ Ginger Gravy

Grilled Dish
Grilled Amadai Tile Fish w/ Komatsuna Gravy

Simmered Dish
Asian Winter Melon Squash w/ Hairy Crab & Egg Sauce

Rice Dish
Burdock & Snap Peas Donabe Rice w/ Grilled Unagi

Rice Dish
Burdock & Snap Peas Donabe Rice w/ Grilled Unagi
Japanese Pickles
Miso Soup

Hokkaido White Rice Nanatsuboshi
w/ Choice of Wagyu Shigureni, Marinated Egg Yolk, or Marinated Ikura

Japanese Pickles

Miso Soup

Melon Jelly 2 Styles

Melon Jelly 2 Styles

Apricot & Fig Compote w/ Red Bean & Dango Tea Snack

Matcha

@kaiseki.motoishi
Monday pop-ups at Sushi Yamamoto
Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills

Palm Breeze Bar@Disneyland Resort Anaheim ★★

Cocktails & Nice Bar Food. Enjoyed the food. Always like the Beet Salad. Spicy Chicken Sandwich & French Fries were crispy & tasty. I was craving for Mango Smoothie after D23 Expo, so I ordered the Chilly Mango cocktail. Unfortunately, the drink was too much like Michelada and not for me. Will try another cocktail next time. At The Villas at Disneyland Hotel. Inspire Magic Key Annual Pass 15% off on Foods. Advanced reservation or walk-up reservation via Disneyland app.

Spicy Crisp Chicken Sandwich $23
zesty slaw, spicy aioli, bread & butter pickles
served w/ choice of french fries, house potato chips, or fresh fruit

Heirloom Beet Salad $19 (add Steak add $16)
roasted & marinated beets, baby kale, Persian cucumber, whipped stracciatella mozzarella, candied walnut, herb vinaigrette

Chilly Mango $17
Don Julio blanco tequila, frozen mango purée, chamoy, chile-lime seasoning

Palm Breeze Bar by the Pool Area at Villas at Disneyland Resort

Room right Upstairs at Villas at Disneyland Hotel, convenient location

Palm Breeze Bar
The Villas at Disneyland Hotel
1150 Magic Way,
Anaheim, CA 92802
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/disneyland-hotel/palm-breeze-bar/

Holey Grail Donuts@Santa Monica ★★★

One-of-a-Kind Donuts. Pretty, tasty, and good smaller-than-usual size. Prettiest donuts I have ever seen. Made-t0-order and served warm. Got in for a free Tasting Box ($16 value) plus a Fizz drink ($6 value) from Yelp. Beyond what I expected. Wae Waffle Donut (top left) blew my mind. Love the blend of chocolate & nutty waffle cone crunch. Miso Honey (top right) was nice & savory. The Taro they used gives off a doughy flavor. It will get messy. I felt like I wanted to use a fork and knife to eat the donuts to keep my hands clean (which doesn't sound eco-friendly, or bring your own utensils). Since they were out of the Fizz drink, I had a Matcha Latte ($7 value), which was very milky. Also got a free multi-color Yelp highlighter swag. Indoor & outdoor eating area available. Metered parking on street.

Wae Waffle (waffle cone, almond espresso, single-origin chocolate), Miso Honey (miso local honey, black lava sea salt) , Lilikoi (local passion fruit), J Dilla (single-origin chocolate, coconut butter)

Holey Grail Donuts
2441 Main St,
Santa Monica, CA 90405
(424) 345-0311
holeygraildonuts.com

Súp Noodle Bar@Buena Park ★★★

Best Pho in Town. Soup base is a 48-hour bone broth. Very tasty. Free unlimited noodle refill. Free basil and extra onion upon request. Short Rib Pho increased by 50 cents since my last visit in April. Also like their Lomo Saltado and Garlic Noodles with Shrimp. Great service. Free Herbal Iced Tea per Yelp check-in per person (dine-in only), which is $4 value each. Free Súp Gift upon Yelp photo upload – choice of pin (sold out), key chain, spoon, boxed chopsticks, or sticker. Get on waitlist on Yelp within 5 miles of restaurant. Could shop at Daiso or Korean market nearby while you wait. Free parking in lot. Also has branch in Irvine (relocated from Cerritos).

Short Rib Pho $17.50

Filet Mignon Lomo Saltado w/ Fried Egg $26

Free Noodle Refill

Vegetables For Pho (Onion available upon request)

Herbal Iced Tea - Free w/ Yelp Check-in ($4 value each)

Free Gift upon Yelp photo upload

Súp Noodle Bar by Kei Concepts
5141 Beach Blvd
Unit B
Buena Park, CA 90621
(714) 521-2444
www.supnoodlebar.com

zoku@Redondo Beach ★★★

New Yakitori from 鳥貴族 Torikizoku in Japan. Opened 10 days ago. Nice Yakitori. Reasonable price. While all dishes at Torikizoku Japan is only 370 yen (tax included), zoku is more elevated. Zoku Salad was nice & refreshing. Brussels Sprouts were too big to eat as a whole in one bite. Cutting in 1/2 would be better. I also prefer them crispier. Hojicha Panna Cotta dessert was light and easy to digest. Using Binchotan. Americanized vibe. Accepts reservations and walk-in. Nice to see old face from Tonchin. Street parking is a bit challenging & could be a few blocks away. Torikizoku will be opening soon in Torrance. Will have to come back to try their sold out items such as the Grilled Rice Ball & Peach Parfait.

Teba $4.80
chicken wings

Zoku Salad $11
Japanese style caesar salad w/ chicken breast & miso dressing

Buffalo Cauliflower $7.50
fried cauliflower w/ Japanese spicy sauce

Mekyabetsu Age $9
brussels sprouts w/ balsalmic glaze

Momo Teriyaki $4.30
chicken thigh w/ teriyaki garlic mayo

Chicken Soup $6
warm, nourishing, finishing broth

Unagi $4.80
w/ sansho pepper

Wagyu Beef $7.80
w/ apple steak sauce

Tsukune $4.50
chicken meatball w/ Japanese tare

Colorful Potatoes (butter soy sauce) $3.80, Zucchini (garlic onion oil) $3.80

Hojicha Panna Cotta $8.80
roasted tea finfused w/ salted caramel syrup

zoku
261 Avenida Del Norte,
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
(650) 376-5476

Otafuku@Gardena ★★★

Sudachi Soba. All I want is a bowl of Sudachi (Japanese Citrus) Soba in the hot summer. My first time trying, finally. Off-the-menu & limited supply. Only available once a year every summer in July/August. Signature Seiro White Soba uses 70% polished buckwheat & 30% flour. Amazing Soba. Udon is ok. Various Doburi available. Because the kitchen is open, it can feel a bit smokey/ oily in the seating area. Call-in for reservations as well as reserve Sudachi for the summer. Will need to come back to try other dishes.

Cold Signature Seiro Soba $14 + Sudachi (Summer Limited Availability) $15

Grilled Tebasaki $6.50

Wild Shrimp Tempura (3 pcs) & Vegetable Tempura $15

Hot Udon $14 + Tororo $4

Cold Signature Seiro Soba $14 + Sudachi (Summer Limited Availability) $15

Otafuku Restaurant
16525 S Western Ave
Gardena, CA 90247
(310) 532-9348