Hidden away in the city of Los Angeles is this amazing bar that serves one of the tastiest omakase. Entering the bar, you see a bar top that seats approx 10-12 people, with a open kitchen vibe. My partner and I had a great time. The Sunday crew was very nice and attentive, engaging with the customers and making things fun! The selection of fish was amazing, definitely a different experience compared to other omakase establishments I've been to.Parking was very easy since they provided easy simple instructions on their website :). Will definitely visit again on a Sunday ??Parking: Easy to access garage and the elevator close by. Very nice :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sushi
Tai A.
Last night after I left Sawa, I drove home smiling to myself just reflecting on what a delightful experience I had!! I wanted to shout it from the rooftop but I will settle with shout typing a yelp review! Thank you so much for Chef Ryo, Gabriel, Lynn and Kaoru for taking care of us. They take care of you like you're one of their own. This omakase hit the nail on the head for me. I love the laid back atmosphere. Everyone at the bar was talking and conversing about the food and drinks which really brightened the experience. Each piece of sushi was so layered and intentional. My favorite was the 10 day aged hamachi with topped with finger lime and I believe shishito salt? The finger lime acted like little citrusy tobiko balls exploding in your mouth. Bombs away!!! I'm not even a big ocean trout gal but wow was that tasty. Seemed like it was aged in flavortown but it was hickory smoked topped with pickled shallot and ground sesame. If I were to see it on paper I probably would have not had been excited about it but it ended up being a star for me. Instead of ending with a traditional tamago, they concluded the course with a basque soy sauce infused cheesecake. Creamy, sweet, umami flavors. I've had different basque cheesecakes flavors before but never soy sauce. We were also blown away by the cocktails. We tried the yuzu highball which was so refreshing and light. My favorite was the RED SHISO. First of all, can someone tell me where I can find red shiso? Holy moly this was so good. The plum flavor hits straight away and the shiso comes in at the end. But then there's a lingering familiarity that we couldn't pin point so other diners joined in and tried to guess what it was. A lot of people said that it reminded them of haw flakes which is a Chinese candy? I've never tried them but add them to my shopping cart along with the red shiso. I can't wait to take more people here to try. Would 100% return. What a fun evening, I had a blast!
Yossi G.
Best omakase I've ever had in my life! Such a small private unique experience. Chef John was beyond pleasant and fun to talk to, also he does speak english which sometimes doesn't happen so its also a plus to connect with your chef a tiny more than just hand-to mouth connection. The time and dedication for the prep that is put into each dish is absolutely admirable and cant be appreciated enough since its just leaving you speechless.I had there a few things I usually don't like and they were better than so many things I do like normally in real life lol. The staff is also great, very nice and great level of customer care. We did the cocktail pairing as well and it was great as well. 10/10 experience will definitely come back and recommend.
Tiff E.
Was disappointed. Thought a Sushi Kaneyoshi sister restaurant would be better.Too much yuzu salt on my sushi. Rice wasn't fantastic either.Ambience is nice though.
Alyanna M.
Amazing omakase experience. It is VERY pricey, but this is definitely a good place to go if you want to splurge on a special celebration. It's a 19 course meal (with a dessert cheesecake at the end). There is an optional $45 3-cocktail pairing of your choice, which I highly recommend adding. I wasn't planning on getting a drink, but I tried the yuzu saketini from my friend & it was amazing, so I ended up getting my own cocktail pairing. The saketini's are a great choice if you're into sweet cocktails. Aside from the drinks, each dish that was served left us speechless as everything tasted amazing. It was fun watching the chefs create each unique dish. This was an experience to remember & hope to come back again in the future.
Viviana G.
Was looking for an omakase for my best friend's birthday and decided to go with this one and glad i did! Its one of the best, if not the best one i've tried. All the courses were amazing and unique. The chefs interacted with us and were very knowlegeable about everything being served. The servers were also very attentive to us and also recommended drinks based on what we liked. At one point i ordered a drink i didnt enjoy much and they went out of their way to make it taste great for me!The restaurant was very nice and gave me a speakeasy vibe. It looked nice with the liqour bottles lined up on the walls. The bar was very spacious and clean. Had an amazing experience, definitely look forward to coming back. Also we were told they had monthly unique events such as uni night and sake night so its definitely worth looking into!
Justine H.
Brought my boyfriend here to celebrate his birthday and we had an amazing time. Sawa has a speakeasy vibe and is initiate with only 10 people per seating. I loved the dim lighting and the modern, classy interior. Reservations can be difficult to get, but we were lucky enough to get spots on the first attempt. The chefs are really funny and it is so fun watching them create the dishes in front of you. They are really attentive and even noticed that I was left-handed, switching the angle they placed the nigiri on my plate so that it would be more convenient for me to pick up with chopsticks. The bartenders were sweet and always checked up on us to refill water and take any other drink requests. There were a total of 18 courses including a small cheesecake for dessert. The sushi was definitely great quality, but nothing particularly special or new for me. Their cocktails, on the other hand, were really tasty and strong. I loved the aesthetics of the entire restaurant, but their drinks were crafted so beautifully and were very well thought out. For drinks, we tried the Sawa Highball, Matcha Cocktail, Gyokuro, and I think the last one was a Sawa Martini. They also gave us little samplers of their Yuzu Martini as part of the course, which was also delicious.One con prior to the meal is that we were a bit stressed finding the location. The email instructions listed the address of the restaurant and not the address of the structure we were supposed to park at. This led us to drive in circles for 20 min thinking we missed the correct parking lot. FYI - Just enter the only parking structure's entrance on Sawa's side of the street. There is a small sign that it is the parking lot for Kaneyoshi (Sawa's sister restaurant). Parking was $15 cash. Overall, would definitely recommend giving Sawa a try. One of the more affordable Omakases in the area, and their drinks set them apart. Service was excellent and they even brought out a little happy birthday sign and ice cream Mochi to celebrate my boyfriend's birthday!
Yurun Miao (MP)
Been there about 5 times and still love it. Wonderful place with nice cheif and excellent Omakase. Definitely a place that I
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Van D.
I was researching a glorious Omakase restaurant to celebrate my boyfriend's birthday. With the guidance of one of my most trusted Yelp friends in regards to sushi and omakase, Kevin P., I was pointed to Sawa. Sawa is an intimate omakase restaurant where traditionalism meets the city nightlife vibes. Reservations on the Tock platform are required, as they only have 8 seats for each service. Very exclusive!! The original time and date I wanted was completely booked, but with much prayers and checking daily, I was finally able to secure an opening. Pricing varies depend on the tasting menu you opt for. I opted for the September 2023 Chef Tasting Menu ($185/person). The restaurant can accommodate for shellfish, nut, fruits and dairy allergies, but they cannot accommodate soy or gluten since it is required of most of their recipes. The reservation charge hold varies. The more expensive the tasting menu you choose, the higher the reservation charge would be. In order to reserve the spot, it is $75/person + service charge, and it is refunded after 3-5 business days from your visit. This is interesting because I feel like they should just take the difference from the bill. On the day of our visit we followed the directions from the email you received after making the reservation, took the elevator down to the basement and waited in this trendy modern lobby. They checked us in, and it seemed like we were seated in the order we arrived. I really liked our seats since we were right in the middle of the sushi side and the cocktails side so you can see everything that's going on. There was actually 10 seats during our meal, and not the 8 seats advertised on their website. For our dinner, we had Chef Ryo with the assistance of Chef Andy and then on the bartender side Kaoru and another bartender was crafting up phenomenal drinks. The September 2023 Chef's Tasting Menu consists of 4 Appetizers: Blue Crystal Shrimp Eggplant, Smoked Ocean Trout Shiso Vinaigrette, Cured Mackerel Blue Cheese, Monkfish Liver/Braised Oysters, 11 Nigiri, 1 Temaki, Shrimp/Clam Dashi and a Soy Cheesecake. To be completely honest I was not too blown away by the sushi experience. The fish slice was on the thin side compared to some of the other omakase experiences I have enjoyed. I appreciate the extra attention for the protein with the scoring on the fish to provide a softer texture and absorb sauces better, but I feel like a lot of their sauces used during the evening was monotone. Similar sauce application with the nigiris and then many items just seared. And I didn't really see or try anything I haven't had elsewhere. The most memorable and my favorite bite of the night was definitely the monkfish liver, as the preparation they have here is tastier than even the one I had at Nobu. The craft cocktails were the more impressive part of the experience for me. I love Kaoru and her attention to detail and thoughtful garnishes. I did the Cocktail Pairing ($45) where you can select any 3 from their menu of highballs, martinis, saketinis and cocktails. I went with a Sawa Highball, Yuzu Saketini, and a Japanese Old Fashioned. All the drinks were amazing. I can see myself drinking any one of those frequently. The whole meal was like an extravagant production to enjoy. We actually made friends with the couple next to us. But on the other side, you can get some annoying people in your groups too, but I guess that's just life. There was 4 birthdays in our group and they were all given an additional special celebratory mochi and a happy birthday sign on their primary dessert. I like that is made my boyfriend's experience even more special. I was waiting for my $155 reservation payment to be refunded before writing this review. It was 4 business days after our visit, but I did get my money back. I worked so hard to seize the reservation and I was so excited anticipating the experience. I expected a little more, but it's definitely not bad. I'm just not sure I would come back before I explore the rest of the omakase restaurants out
Summary: The meals and bartending are perfect!There are not many seats in the store, so everyone is in the Itamae style. You can see the chefs cooking and it is easier to interact with the chefs. The dinner night was a special event called "Tuna Night", where various parts of Japanese black tuna and Mexican tuna were carefully selected to create a series of menu-less dishes. I never thought that tuna can be expressed in so many ways. After finishing each dish, I can’t help but look forward to the next one! For the bartending part, you can choose sake pairing or cocktail paring. For cocktails, you can choose three types. The specialty here is whiskey paring. We ordered two pairings and a single classic paring. There were 7 glasses in total without any surprises. ! In addition, the chefs were all fun and friendly, and it was really a great dinner. I almost came back during the second week of the trip! A reminder to friends who want to come to dine, the restaurant is located in the basement of the building. There is no signboard, so it is a bit difficult to find. After arriving at the address navigated on Google Maps, you will find a building. After entering the second floor of the building, you need to take the elevator to the basement. There is no entrance or exit on the first floor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amy Y.
Overall, I did enjoy the experience. The chefs and servers were really engaging! It felt very intimate and upscale. If I recall correctly, there was a total of 12 chairs per a "seating." I was SO full after the 17 courses and 3 drink pairings. The drinks were good and strong, and there were some unique and flavorful fish pieces. As an FYI, this is an Edomae omakase, which means all the fish are expertly treated (cured, sou vide, dry-aged, etc.), so for those who are expecting/wants a "plain raw" piece of fish, this isn't for you. I would recommend this place for someone who like this style of omakase or has never tried this style of omakase. My only con about my experience is...I wished I had more variety in my omakase. My friends and I felt like we got served a lot of mackerel...although to be fair, each piece of mackerel was different and seasoned differently. And also, although I am a fan of shiso (perilla), we felt like a lot of the fishes had shiso as a topping. FYI - give yourself some time to find the restaurant. The reservation email from tock came with instructions, but my friends and I had to circle the plaza a couple of times to identify the right entrance since we did street parking.
Miko Garcia
Underwhelmed & Disappointed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Marielle L.
Celebrated our anniversary here. Such a memorable experience. Other than the fact that the omakase was amazing, Anthony and Ryo definitely helped set the tone. 10/10 would recommend!
Jessie G.
Let's start off with the service was amazing everyone was engaging but the food was so underwhelming maybe because we came in it with high expectations and was really let down the whole experience for two people cost $500 (drink pairing, tip) and we both came out of it thinking we've could eaten at other spots and spent haft the cost. we were told today was experimental of hand rolls. Let's just keep it that way experimental cause it really fell flat. no one wants to spend that kind of money and have handrolls. That's our fault as we didn't see that that was the menu for the night.
Incredible omakase experience, great value
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Hidden away in the city of Los Angeles is this amazing bar that serves one of the tastiest omakase. Entering the bar, you see a bar top that seats approx 10-12 people, with a open kitchen vibe. My partner and I had a great time. The Sunday crew was very nice and attentive, engaging with the customers and making things fun! The selection of fish was amazing, definitely a different experience compared to other omakase establishments I've been to.Parking was very easy since they provided easy simple instructions on their website :). Will definitely visit again on a Sunday ??Parking: Easy to access garage and the elevator close by. Very nice :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sushi
Last night after I left Sawa, I drove home smiling to myself just reflecting on what a delightful experience I had!! I wanted to shout it from the rooftop but I will settle with shout typing a yelp review! Thank you so much for Chef Ryo, Gabriel, Lynn and Kaoru for taking care of us. They take care of you like you're one of their own. This omakase hit the nail on the head for me. I love the laid back atmosphere. Everyone at the bar was talking and conversing about the food and drinks which really brightened the experience. Each piece of sushi was so layered and intentional. My favorite was the 10 day aged hamachi with topped with finger lime and I believe shishito salt? The finger lime acted like little citrusy tobiko balls exploding in your mouth. Bombs away!!! I'm not even a big ocean trout gal but wow was that tasty. Seemed like it was aged in flavortown but it was hickory smoked topped with pickled shallot and ground sesame. If I were to see it on paper I probably would have not had been excited about it but it ended up being a star for me. Instead of ending with a traditional tamago, they concluded the course with a basque soy sauce infused cheesecake. Creamy, sweet, umami flavors. I've had different basque cheesecakes flavors before but never soy sauce. We were also blown away by the cocktails. We tried the yuzu highball which was so refreshing and light. My favorite was the RED SHISO. First of all, can someone tell me where I can find red shiso? Holy moly this was so good. The plum flavor hits straight away and the shiso comes in at the end. But then there's a lingering familiarity that we couldn't pin point so other diners joined in and tried to guess what it was. A lot of people said that it reminded them of haw flakes which is a Chinese candy? I've never tried them but add them to my shopping cart along with the red shiso. I can't wait to take more people here to try. Would 100% return. What a fun evening, I had a blast!
Best omakase I've ever had in my life! Such a small private unique experience. Chef John was beyond pleasant and fun to talk to, also he does speak english which sometimes doesn't happen so its also a plus to connect with your chef a tiny more than just hand-to mouth connection. The time and dedication for the prep that is put into each dish is absolutely admirable and cant be appreciated enough since its just leaving you speechless.I had there a few things I usually don't like and they were better than so many things I do like normally in real life lol. The staff is also great, very nice and great level of customer care. We did the cocktail pairing as well and it was great as well. 10/10 experience will definitely come back and recommend.
Was disappointed. Thought a Sushi Kaneyoshi sister restaurant would be better.Too much yuzu salt on my sushi. Rice wasn't fantastic either.Ambience is nice though.
Amazing omakase experience. It is VERY pricey, but this is definitely a good place to go if you want to splurge on a special celebration. It's a 19 course meal (with a dessert cheesecake at the end). There is an optional $45 3-cocktail pairing of your choice, which I highly recommend adding. I wasn't planning on getting a drink, but I tried the yuzu saketini from my friend & it was amazing, so I ended up getting my own cocktail pairing. The saketini's are a great choice if you're into sweet cocktails. Aside from the drinks, each dish that was served left us speechless as everything tasted amazing. It was fun watching the chefs create each unique dish. This was an experience to remember & hope to come back again in the future.
Was looking for an omakase for my best friend's birthday and decided to go with this one and glad i did! Its one of the best, if not the best one i've tried. All the courses were amazing and unique. The chefs interacted with us and were very knowlegeable about everything being served. The servers were also very attentive to us and also recommended drinks based on what we liked. At one point i ordered a drink i didnt enjoy much and they went out of their way to make it taste great for me!The restaurant was very nice and gave me a speakeasy vibe. It looked nice with the liqour bottles lined up on the walls. The bar was very spacious and clean. Had an amazing experience, definitely look forward to coming back. Also we were told they had monthly unique events such as uni night and sake night so its definitely worth looking into!
Brought my boyfriend here to celebrate his birthday and we had an amazing time. Sawa has a speakeasy vibe and is initiate with only 10 people per seating. I loved the dim lighting and the modern, classy interior. Reservations can be difficult to get, but we were lucky enough to get spots on the first attempt. The chefs are really funny and it is so fun watching them create the dishes in front of you. They are really attentive and even noticed that I was left-handed, switching the angle they placed the nigiri on my plate so that it would be more convenient for me to pick up with chopsticks. The bartenders were sweet and always checked up on us to refill water and take any other drink requests. There were a total of 18 courses including a small cheesecake for dessert. The sushi was definitely great quality, but nothing particularly special or new for me. Their cocktails, on the other hand, were really tasty and strong. I loved the aesthetics of the entire restaurant, but their drinks were crafted so beautifully and were very well thought out. For drinks, we tried the Sawa Highball, Matcha Cocktail, Gyokuro, and I think the last one was a Sawa Martini. They also gave us little samplers of their Yuzu Martini as part of the course, which was also delicious.One con prior to the meal is that we were a bit stressed finding the location. The email instructions listed the address of the restaurant and not the address of the structure we were supposed to park at. This led us to drive in circles for 20 min thinking we missed the correct parking lot. FYI - Just enter the only parking structure's entrance on Sawa's side of the street. There is a small sign that it is the parking lot for Kaneyoshi (Sawa's sister restaurant). Parking was $15 cash. Overall, would definitely recommend giving Sawa a try. One of the more affordable Omakases in the area, and their drinks set them apart. Service was excellent and they even brought out a little happy birthday sign and ice cream Mochi to celebrate my boyfriend's birthday!
Been there about 5 times and still love it. Wonderful place with nice cheif and excellent Omakase. Definitely a place that I
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I was researching a glorious Omakase restaurant to celebrate my boyfriend's birthday. With the guidance of one of my most trusted Yelp friends in regards to sushi and omakase, Kevin P., I was pointed to Sawa. Sawa is an intimate omakase restaurant where traditionalism meets the city nightlife vibes. Reservations on the Tock platform are required, as they only have 8 seats for each service. Very exclusive!! The original time and date I wanted was completely booked, but with much prayers and checking daily, I was finally able to secure an opening. Pricing varies depend on the tasting menu you opt for. I opted for the September 2023 Chef Tasting Menu ($185/person). The restaurant can accommodate for shellfish, nut, fruits and dairy allergies, but they cannot accommodate soy or gluten since it is required of most of their recipes. The reservation charge hold varies. The more expensive the tasting menu you choose, the higher the reservation charge would be. In order to reserve the spot, it is $75/person + service charge, and it is refunded after 3-5 business days from your visit. This is interesting because I feel like they should just take the difference from the bill. On the day of our visit we followed the directions from the email you received after making the reservation, took the elevator down to the basement and waited in this trendy modern lobby. They checked us in, and it seemed like we were seated in the order we arrived. I really liked our seats since we were right in the middle of the sushi side and the cocktails side so you can see everything that's going on. There was actually 10 seats during our meal, and not the 8 seats advertised on their website. For our dinner, we had Chef Ryo with the assistance of Chef Andy and then on the bartender side Kaoru and another bartender was crafting up phenomenal drinks. The September 2023 Chef's Tasting Menu consists of 4 Appetizers: Blue Crystal Shrimp Eggplant, Smoked Ocean Trout Shiso Vinaigrette, Cured Mackerel Blue Cheese, Monkfish Liver/Braised Oysters, 11 Nigiri, 1 Temaki, Shrimp/Clam Dashi and a Soy Cheesecake. To be completely honest I was not too blown away by the sushi experience. The fish slice was on the thin side compared to some of the other omakase experiences I have enjoyed. I appreciate the extra attention for the protein with the scoring on the fish to provide a softer texture and absorb sauces better, but I feel like a lot of their sauces used during the evening was monotone. Similar sauce application with the nigiris and then many items just seared. And I didn't really see or try anything I haven't had elsewhere. The most memorable and my favorite bite of the night was definitely the monkfish liver, as the preparation they have here is tastier than even the one I had at Nobu. The craft cocktails were the more impressive part of the experience for me. I love Kaoru and her attention to detail and thoughtful garnishes. I did the Cocktail Pairing ($45) where you can select any 3 from their menu of highballs, martinis, saketinis and cocktails. I went with a Sawa Highball, Yuzu Saketini, and a Japanese Old Fashioned. All the drinks were amazing. I can see myself drinking any one of those frequently. The whole meal was like an extravagant production to enjoy. We actually made friends with the couple next to us. But on the other side, you can get some annoying people in your groups too, but I guess that's just life. There was 4 birthdays in our group and they were all given an additional special celebratory mochi and a happy birthday sign on their primary dessert. I like that is made my boyfriend's experience even more special. I was waiting for my $155 reservation payment to be refunded before writing this review. It was 4 business days after our visit, but I did get my money back. I worked so hard to seize the reservation and I was so excited anticipating the experience. I expected a little more, but it's definitely not bad. I'm just not sure I would come back before I explore the rest of the omakase restaurants out
Restaurantji Recommends
Summary: The meals and bartending are perfect!There are not many seats in the store, so everyone is in the Itamae style. You can see the chefs cooking and it is easier to interact with the chefs. The dinner night was a special event called "Tuna Night", where various parts of Japanese black tuna and Mexican tuna were carefully selected to create a series of menu-less dishes. I never thought that tuna can be expressed in so many ways. After finishing each dish, I can’t help but look forward to the next one! For the bartending part, you can choose sake pairing or cocktail paring. For cocktails, you can choose three types. The specialty here is whiskey paring. We ordered two pairings and a single classic paring. There were 7 glasses in total without any surprises. ! In addition, the chefs were all fun and friendly, and it was really a great dinner. I almost came back during the second week of the trip! A reminder to friends who want to come to dine, the restaurant is located in the basement of the building. There is no signboard, so it is a bit difficult to find. After arriving at the address navigated on Google Maps, you will find a building. After entering the second floor of the building, you need to take the elevator to the basement. There is no entrance or exit on the first floor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Overall, I did enjoy the experience. The chefs and servers were really engaging! It felt very intimate and upscale. If I recall correctly, there was a total of 12 chairs per a "seating." I was SO full after the 17 courses and 3 drink pairings. The drinks were good and strong, and there were some unique and flavorful fish pieces. As an FYI, this is an Edomae omakase, which means all the fish are expertly treated (cured, sou vide, dry-aged, etc.), so for those who are expecting/wants a "plain raw" piece of fish, this isn't for you. I would recommend this place for someone who like this style of omakase or has never tried this style of omakase. My only con about my experience is...I wished I had more variety in my omakase. My friends and I felt like we got served a lot of mackerel...although to be fair, each piece of mackerel was different and seasoned differently. And also, although I am a fan of shiso (perilla), we felt like a lot of the fishes had shiso as a topping. FYI - give yourself some time to find the restaurant. The reservation email from tock came with instructions, but my friends and I had to circle the plaza a couple of times to identify the right entrance since we did street parking.
Underwhelmed & Disappointed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Celebrated our anniversary here. Such a memorable experience. Other than the fact that the omakase was amazing, Anthony and Ryo definitely helped set the tone. 10/10 would recommend!
Let's start off with the service was amazing everyone was engaging but the food was so underwhelming maybe because we came in it with high expectations and was really let down the whole experience for two people cost $500 (drink pairing, tip) and we both came out of it thinking we've could eaten at other spots and spent haft the cost. we were told today was experimental of hand rolls. Let's just keep it that way experimental cause it really fell flat. no one wants to spend that kind of money and have handrolls. That's our fault as we didn't see that that was the menu for the night.