My advice: If you’re thinking about going to Kinjiro, do it ASAP.
We had a fantastic dinner there last night, perhaps the best ever (and we’ve eaten there 6-8 times). But when I asked Jun about his recent closing, he said that they’re trying to figure out future directions; in the meantime they’re offering only limited seating as it’s just him, the chef, and the dishwasher. The restaurant was never more than half full, and Jun turned away walk-ins. So they seem to be in some sort of trouble/transition.
There’s not much change in the regular menu, and there were maybe half a dozen off-menu specials.
We ate a lot, and not one dish disappointed; these were the standouts (no photos, sorry):
We started with the trio of chinmi to pair with sake by the glass (one of Otokoyama and one of the Cowboy). The katsuo shutou–“tuna guts”–is gone (too few people ordered it), replaced by a very savory marinated ikura. The firefly squid and squid marinated in ink both remain and are bowl-scrapingly good.
Marinated mackerel with yuzu kosho–always one of our favorites, the mackerel is “marinated” by being sandwiched between pieces of kombu (“kobu-jime”), with a touch of vinegar. The kelp draws away some of the moisture from the fish, firming it up, but also lends a sweet brininess and incredible umami to the dish. Sometimes we repeat this order, we like it so much, but we restrained ourselves this time.
Uni risotto, which was one of the specials–In less skilled hands, this could be an ugly, mushy mess of a dish. But this was sublime. Creamy, yet each grain of rice was separate and toothsome. Smokiness from the dashi it was cooked in combined beautifully with the rich sweetness of the fresh uni. I wouldn’t call the uni flavor “bright”–not sure I expect that in a coked uni dish–but it was soulful and deep-tasting.
Grade A5 Miyazaki Wagyu, grilled over bincho charcoal–this was on the specials menu, and it was amazing. My husband eats almost no meat, so I was surprised he wanted to order this, but glad we did. We were getting full at this point, so shared an order of mozuku seaweed as a palate cleanser; this worked very well. The beef had been cut into log shapes before grilling, so that more of the surface area was exposed to the heat than in a standard steak preparation. We ordered 5 oz. ($100, in case you wonder) to share, and were served a plate of 20 square slices, maybe 1 inch on each side, seared well around the edges and raw in the center. The meat was grilled without seasoning, and served with sides of sea salt, wasabi, and an especially rich ponzu sauce. We dipped each slice in the ponzu, then topped with a tiny dab of wasabi and a few grains of salt. Phenomenal flavor, and each bite gave just a bit of resistance before dissolving into juicy fattiness that, paradoxically, seemed light and clean and even refreshing, without a hint of greasiness. This was one of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time.
Since we don’t like sweets, we ended the meal with ume chazuke, and tea, and shared a glass of Nanbu Bijin unsweetened plum wine (sake-based). Jun said it’s hard to find unsweetened ume-shu even in Japan, and that’s a shame. It was very refreshing; dry with a hint of sweetness, somewhat like a good cider. Rather too easy to drink!
Kinjiro is one of my favorite restaurants in Los Angeles, and I sure hope it can find a way to survive. I’m not going to wait too long before going back, though, just in case…
Yours looked amazing.
and have been to a couple of “foot wetting” places (reports to follow). This made me re-think the sushi as a birthday dinner thing. I’ve been having fun exploring on my own without having to disrupt a companion’s meal with my questions or picture taking. So I thought Aburiya Raku would be perfect. My husband can enjoy grilled meats; plus I don’t have to take pics, as yours beautifully represent already. I’ll just report what we ate and about our experience. But as it goes with my big, lovingly irritating family - my bday has been hijacked by my cousins. They’re taking us out for Italian 
. But we will definitely fit Raku in soon! And maybe Kinjiro 
. Thanks!