U-Zen - Underground Kappo

Took a couple friends visiting LA here today, since I was trying to avoid both extremes of “Sugarfish” and “$250+/head”.

Tuna wrapped in cucumber

No idea what the sauce on it was, but it was interesting, almost bbq-like.

Sea snail(?)

Deeply stewed, moderately funky, very delicious.

Fresh Octopus

Awesome - not your usual tako. Chewy & crunchy in a good way.

Sayori

Don’t see this all over the place. Delicate.

Toro

I mean, you know.

Fuck if I remember… sea bream, I’m guessing?

Forgot to note down what this was, but by the look it was madai or something similar.

Maguro (bluefin)

Textbook.

Kohada

Nice kick of vinegar, without overwhelming the fish. Really well-balanced.

Aoyagi

Sweet & crunchy - been a long time since I’ve had any orange clam (maybe since before covid?). Great to have such a nice specimen to bring it back.

Intermission - Miso Cod

Just the right balance of delicate & fatty.

Kegani

Masa-san showed us the shell of the crab he’d emptied out for us. Super fresh, but not much like zuwaigani (snow crab) - hard to say which I prefer, both are fantastic.

Oysters (Grilled?)

I’m not huge on cooked oysters, but there were pretty good! Nice saucing, not too heavy. Each oyster was also hiding a couple small pieces of grilled asparagus, which were a good counterpoint.

Kanpachi

Does what it needs to do :slight_smile:

Ankimo

Delicious - super mild (one might even say beginner friendly), very traditional prep with ponzu, negi, & momiji oroshi. Extremely tender, but held itself together well.

Smoked Salmon & Friends

Topped with some kind of Italian dressing & “salad”. Surprisingly fun & successful combo - I’m very much neither a “smoked salmon as sushi” or “a few extra flavors” kind of person, but this worked.

Hotate

Fresh, sweet, nice bite. I’m sure there’s better out there, but it’s hard to complain while you’re eating it.

Albacore

I honestly have no idea what was going on here - it definitely wasn’t the pedestrian albacore typically served as sushi. A bit chopped up. Topped with shiso and ???, also a bit of light saucing. Definitely a bit on the experimental side, but tasty.

I forgot to snap a picture of the ikura (fine, but not exactly their strong suit), the maki & bonus rounds, and the lychee ice cream.

Total damage was ~$135/head (before tip & tax).

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