Absolutely outstanding menu, well timed so you don’t walk away hungry or stuffed. The cherry smoked trout and miso were perfectly done and portioned. But the daifuku mochi was out of this world.
Sander Brouwers
Great place! Looking forward to going back soon. Ignore all the one one star reviewers, most of them unsophisticated diners from other parts of Asia and have no clue what the Japanese food or experience was suppose to be like. It is pricey but this is to be expected given the bespoke nature if the dining experience.
Maurice Wong
Omakase wasn’t what I expected. For the price paid the quality of the dishes was under expectations.
Meredith Woo
The food was extraordinary: authentic, fresh, natural, elegant without being fussy, and made with great care and craftsmanship. It feels like the best of temple food, except the omakase has fish and even beef, should you ask for it. The first course of the omakase was a home-made tofu, fresh mountain yam with miso sauce, and little squids in sweet soy sauce. Everything that followed was fresh. The omakase has less number of plates than the kaiseki, but ampler: you feel like you have eaten! The meal ended with a home-made mochi with fresh strawberry in it — a perfect finish. I couldn’t find fault with any of the dishes. The service was wonderful. When I couldn’t book the table for five, I emailed the restaurant and the chef himself called me to say he would make it happen. Amazing. This place is a treasure, a gem for Los Angeles.
Elizabeth Berrigan
Sashimi and in-house miso is amazing! The rice ice-cream desert was so tasty. Loved the craftspersonship in the food and diningware. It was the perfect amount of food. Romantic date night. I liked the casual and intimate setting. Will go again.
Law Hsu
Always a fantastic experience with Chef David and Chef Derek
Max Zelinski
Shibumi doesn’t deserve the time or money they’re asking for. This is not a 1* Michelin-starred restaurant, nor is it an omakase experience. In the 20 years I’ve been going to Michelin-recognized restaurants, this is the first time I’ve started to doubt Michelin’s reputation. I felt deceived that this establishment earned one star.
First of all, we arrived right on time, and the hostess tried to seat us at the worst spot at the chef’s table - on the corner, so my wife and I would be seated at a 90-degree angle to each other and right next to the entrance. It was the equivalent of those scenes in movies where people are offered seats near the restroom door. The restaurant seats around 16 people, with only 6 others there at the time, yet the hostess still thought it was a good idea to offer us these terrible seats. Naturally, we refused. I don’t know if the hostess has some way of deciding who gets stuck with those seats, but she didn’t offer them to anyone else who arrived after us - only to the last couple, who were late and thus had no other choice.
From that moment on, our celebratory mood began to decline.
Next, this is not an omakase experience - the chef is nowhere to be found, and dishes simply emerge from a kitchen in the back. The entire design of the “chef’s table” doesn’t allow for a traditional omakase experience. There’s no cutting area in front of the guests, you can’t tell who the chef is, and the chef never came out to speak with anyone to explain what they were doing. 50% of the dishes we were served were just placed in front of us without any explanation or context.
There is also no pairing menu, no sommelier, and no one to advise on the best drinks to accompany the dishes. The alcohol menu was uninspiring, with no notable Japanese beverages; you can buy Suntory whiskey at Ralphs.
To make things worse, out of all the dishes we tried, only the yellowtail sashimi was good. Everything else was mediocre at best. From what we observed, nobody seemed to enjoy the chilled oyster in custard - it was simply a very bad combination. There was no creativity, or, if creativity is lacking, at least no use of unique Japanese ingredients.
The dessert was hilariously bland - a plain old chocolate tart, small strawberries, and whipped cream. Not even gelato - just whipped cream.
We felt robbed of our time and are now having serious doubts about Michelin’s objectivity in their ratings.
Victor
Like the salmon and sashimi. Everything else either very salty or plain... even the chef admitted salty. I dined most of the michelin starred restaurants from one to three stars but this one is not what i expected.
Vincent Yeung
The omakase experience was very lackluster. We anticipated more from a 1* Michelin restaurant - unfortunately the food fell short massively. The amount of money paid for the food was disappointing.
The wagyu at the time tasted off, the following courses didn't taste anything special and I felt very hungry afterwards. I had the sake pairing but I still felt like the service wasn't up to par. I would suggest spending your money else where. Hopefully it improved since I was there last time.
Emilou Landas
When visiting LA, my husband and I decided to have dinner at Shibumi. It’s been 4 months since our visit, and I am still dreaming of the food. The cannabis tempura and shredded shiitake tempura were my absolute favorite. I ordered thirds of each. We also tried the skipjack tuna, pork jowl with steamed rice, grilled California holstein beef strip, and for dessert, the koji (r)ice cream! We even had the pleasure of meeting Chef David as he brought a course to our table! We’ll be back!
Do not come here, the food is not worth the money. Taste is not a Michelin standard at all. Wait time between dishes is extremely long. The whole restaurant is a bar, not a place for you to enjoy food. You have 0 interactions with the chef, although they call themselves an Omakase. Waiters are not well trained. Save some money and find some fine dining.
Monika
Food is mediocre. We had the omakase and were disappointed. The chef tried to be creative with a few dishes (an odd sweet potato dish and fried wagyu) but we were hoping for simple sushi and sashimi. Not worth the price when there are so many more less expensive options for sushi
Lemore Kayvan
Very simple, standard Japanese flavors. The tenderloin was the best thing on the menu. The fried mushroom was completely tasteless. The salmon was well cooked and flavorsome but extremely simple. The ambience is incredibly underwhelming. The cocktails were great though.
Ryan
Unfortunately, I was so, so disappointed with Shibumi on our most recent visit. We were there on a Saturday night to celebrate a good friend's birthday. And right off the bat, we were greeted by a hostess that made us feel like she didn't want us to be there. No friendly greeting, no smile, and we all felt like we were a burden as we got seated to our table. The same hostess also served us for dinner, along with another person. Both seemed to warm up as the evening progressed, but honestly I hate to say it, we had better service at IHOP or Denny's. What is a Michelin star restaurant doing with servers like these? We were all so baffled, like what in the world was going on? On our last visit a year ago, the servers were so warm and friendly and patient and pleasantly welcoming, like what you'd expect from a restaurant if you were in Japan. And as each course was served, they told a story for every course, even with each of the sake and drink pairing. But this time around, that all disappeared. It felt like a totally different restaurant stripped of all that warmth and welcome. So, so sad to see this....The food was good, but not nearly as "special" as it felt our first time. It wasn't a total disaster of an experience, but it was just heart wrenching to see what once was a beautiful dining experience stripped of what made it great and had faded into something mediocre.
emily
I took my mom here for her birthday who is half Japanese and she had a wonderful time! We all really enjoyed experiencing flavors that were unique and fun to share with each other. We all ordered the omakase and ordered the almonds and chinmi separately. Maybe the only ding in the experience was the servers mispronounced omakase, which was weird considering it's a high-end Japanese restaurant. They don't put the emphasis on "ma", rather they make it sound like kamikaze which is off-putting at the ordering stage. I loved the Grilled California Holstein Beef Strip the most. It was so simple to look at, but the flavor of the beef with the salt crystals was divine. Loved the fresh seaweed shot with grapes! This made all of us say Wow! The omakase came with a mackerel sushi roll which wasn't on the menu, but it was a flavor bomb. The steamed rice was beautiful with the pork jowl. I could eat that rice on its own though! The miso soup was super tasty! I would skip the shiitake tempura but it's part of the omakase. Too oily, don't eat the whole thing. The new katsu with wagyu beef is a huge amount of food. My mom ate 1/4 of it and had to take the rest home, but my boyfriend ate the whole thing! The cocktails were fantastic, along with the sake pairings throughout our meal. The bartender was stellar. Loved the Yuzu Reviver (vodka) and the Old Fashioned. We left feeling full and satisfied, but not stuffed. It was all delicious! Expect a 2 1/2 hour delectable experience! Enjoy!
Absolutely outstanding menu, well timed so you don’t walk away hungry or stuffed. The cherry smoked trout and miso were perfectly done and portioned. But the daifuku mochi was out of this world.
Great place! Looking forward to going back soon. Ignore all the one one star reviewers, most of them unsophisticated diners from other parts of Asia and have no clue what the Japanese food or experience was suppose to be like. It is pricey but this is to be expected given the bespoke nature if the dining experience.
Omakase wasn’t what I expected. For the price paid the quality of the dishes was under expectations.
The food was extraordinary: authentic, fresh, natural, elegant without being fussy, and made with great care and craftsmanship. It feels like the best of temple food, except the omakase has fish and even beef, should you ask for it.
The first course of the omakase was a home-made tofu, fresh mountain yam with miso sauce, and little squids in sweet soy sauce. Everything that followed was fresh. The omakase has less number of plates than the kaiseki, but ampler: you feel like you have eaten! The meal ended with a home-made mochi with fresh strawberry in it — a perfect finish. I couldn’t find fault with any of the dishes.
The service was wonderful. When I couldn’t book the table for five, I emailed the restaurant and the chef himself called me to say he would make it happen. Amazing. This place is a treasure, a gem for Los Angeles.
Sashimi and in-house miso is amazing! The rice ice-cream desert was so tasty. Loved the craftspersonship in the food and diningware. It was the perfect amount of food. Romantic date night. I liked the casual and intimate setting. Will go again.
Always a fantastic experience with Chef David and Chef Derek
Shibumi doesn’t deserve the time or money they’re asking for. This is not a 1* Michelin-starred restaurant, nor is it an omakase experience. In the 20 years I’ve been going to Michelin-recognized restaurants, this is the first time I’ve started to doubt Michelin’s reputation. I felt deceived that this establishment earned one star.
First of all, we arrived right on time, and the hostess tried to seat us at the worst spot at the chef’s table - on the corner, so my wife and I would be seated at a 90-degree angle to each other and right next to the entrance. It was the equivalent of those scenes in movies where people are offered seats near the restroom door. The restaurant seats around 16 people, with only 6 others there at the time, yet the hostess still thought it was a good idea to offer us these terrible seats. Naturally, we refused. I don’t know if the hostess has some way of deciding who gets stuck with those seats, but she didn’t offer them to anyone else who arrived after us - only to the last couple, who were late and thus had no other choice.
From that moment on, our celebratory mood began to decline.
Next, this is not an omakase experience - the chef is nowhere to be found, and dishes simply emerge from a kitchen in the back. The entire design of the “chef’s table” doesn’t allow for a traditional omakase experience. There’s no cutting area in front of the guests, you can’t tell who the chef is, and the chef never came out to speak with anyone to explain what they were doing. 50% of the dishes we were served were just placed in front of us without any explanation or context.
There is also no pairing menu, no sommelier, and no one to advise on the best drinks to accompany the dishes. The alcohol menu was uninspiring, with no notable Japanese beverages; you can buy Suntory whiskey at Ralphs.
To make things worse, out of all the dishes we tried, only the yellowtail sashimi was good. Everything else was mediocre at best. From what we observed, nobody seemed to enjoy the chilled oyster in custard - it was simply a very bad combination. There was no creativity, or, if creativity is lacking, at least no use of unique Japanese ingredients.
The dessert was hilariously bland - a plain old chocolate tart, small strawberries, and whipped cream. Not even gelato - just whipped cream.
We felt robbed of our time and are now having serious doubts about Michelin’s objectivity in their ratings.
Like the salmon and sashimi. Everything else either very salty or plain... even the chef admitted salty. I dined most of the michelin starred restaurants from one to three stars but this one is not what i expected.
The omakase experience was very lackluster. We anticipated more from a 1* Michelin restaurant - unfortunately the food fell short massively. The amount of money paid for the food was disappointing.
The wagyu at the time tasted off, the following courses didn't taste anything special and I felt very hungry afterwards. I had the sake pairing but I still felt like the service wasn't up to par. I would suggest spending your money else where. Hopefully it improved since I was there last time.
When visiting LA, my husband and I decided to have dinner at Shibumi. It’s been 4 months since our visit, and I am still dreaming of the food. The cannabis tempura and shredded shiitake tempura were my absolute favorite. I ordered thirds of each. We also tried the skipjack tuna, pork jowl with steamed rice, grilled California holstein beef strip, and for dessert, the koji (r)ice cream! We even had the pleasure of meeting Chef David as he brought a course to our table! We’ll be back!
Restaurantji Recommends
Do not come here, the food is not worth the money. Taste is not a Michelin standard at all. Wait time between dishes is extremely long. The whole restaurant is a bar, not a place for you to enjoy food. You have 0 interactions with the chef, although they call themselves an Omakase. Waiters are not well trained. Save some money and find some fine dining.
Food is mediocre. We had the omakase and were disappointed. The chef tried to be creative with a few dishes (an odd sweet potato dish and fried wagyu) but we were hoping for simple sushi and sashimi. Not worth the price when there are so many more less expensive options for sushi
Very simple, standard Japanese flavors. The tenderloin was the best thing on the menu. The fried mushroom was completely tasteless. The salmon was well cooked and flavorsome but extremely simple. The ambience is incredibly underwhelming. The cocktails were great though.
Unfortunately, I was so, so disappointed with Shibumi on our most recent visit. We were there on a Saturday night to celebrate a good friend's birthday. And right off the bat, we were greeted by a hostess that made us feel like she didn't want us to be there. No friendly greeting, no smile, and we all felt like we were a burden as we got seated to our table. The same hostess also served us for dinner, along with another person. Both seemed to warm up as the evening progressed, but honestly I hate to say it, we had better service at IHOP or Denny's. What is a Michelin star restaurant doing with servers like these? We were all so baffled, like what in the world was going on? On our last visit a year ago, the servers were so warm and friendly and patient and pleasantly welcoming, like what you'd expect from a restaurant if you were in Japan. And as each course was served, they told a story for every course, even with each of the sake and drink pairing. But this time around, that all disappeared. It felt like a totally different restaurant stripped of all that warmth and welcome. So, so sad to see this....The food was good, but not nearly as "special" as it felt our first time. It wasn't a total disaster of an experience, but it was just heart wrenching to see what once was a beautiful dining experience stripped of what made it great and had faded into something mediocre.
I took my mom here for her birthday who is half Japanese and she had a wonderful time! We all really enjoyed experiencing flavors that were unique and fun to share with each other. We all ordered the omakase and ordered the almonds and chinmi separately. Maybe the only ding in the experience was the servers mispronounced omakase, which was weird considering it's a high-end Japanese restaurant. They don't put the emphasis on "ma", rather they make it sound like kamikaze which is off-putting at the ordering stage. I loved the Grilled California Holstein Beef Strip the most. It was so simple to look at, but the flavor of the beef with the salt crystals was divine. Loved the fresh seaweed shot with grapes! This made all of us say Wow! The omakase came with a mackerel sushi roll which wasn't on the menu, but it was a flavor bomb. The steamed rice was beautiful with the pork jowl. I could eat that rice on its own though! The miso soup was super tasty! I would skip the shiitake tempura but it's part of the omakase. Too oily, don't eat the whole thing. The new katsu with wagyu beef is a huge amount of food. My mom ate 1/4 of it and had to take the rest home, but my boyfriend ate the whole thing! The cocktails were fantastic, along with the sake pairings throughout our meal. The bartender was stellar. Loved the Yuzu Reviver (vodka) and the Old Fashioned. We left feeling full and satisfied, but not stuffed. It was all delicious! Expect a 2 1/2 hour delectable experience! Enjoy!
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