Yuni Sushi

Yuni Sushi
1928 Lincoln Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90405
(310) 396-4037
Type: Japanese food / sushi
Map

After Candle Cafe & Grill, we met up with a homie that moved out here from my area. We asked him what was a good sushi spot nearby and he mentioned a cheap place he likes to go to called Yuni. It's a few blocks from the beach. I read it's a Korean-owned spot. Many don't like that idea and they just "know" it's not gonna be good. I personally don't care who owns and runs a restaurant. As long as they offer what I'm hankering for at the moment -- whether it's quality, price, quantity, exoticness, coolness, awesomeness, or a mix of those -- it's all good.

To save us all time, this place is decent. If I lived close by it might be worth returning to every now and then. Some of the prices for certain things are relatively appealing.



The salmon sashimi ($6.55) and yellowtail sashimi ($6.95) at 6 pieces each were a good deal. They were a little warm but they tasted good.



The dynamite appetizer ($7.75) was cool. I guess it was so cool that I forgot to take a picture of the dish til after a few bites.

whoops. still looks good though.


The baked spicy lobster roll ($11.20) and the super spider roll ($9.60) were eaten without any notes left about them. This looks good too.



I have no idea which hand rolls were which but I remember they gave us a shrimp tempura hand roll by accident and let us have it. YES!!!! One of those is the spicy scallop hand roll ($3.65).

freebie in the heezy


Damn, we ordered a grip of food! The last one looks like the rainbow hand roll ($4.95).



Between two people, that's a lot of food. I think I was barely able to finish everything. Maybe I took some home. Not sure. In my notes I put down everything was good. The Yelpers gave this place mixed reviews. Some gave it 5 stars while a few gave it 1 or 2. If you ain't a sushi snob, your chances of coming away happy with this place is good. If you are, eat here, and hopefully you don't enjoy your meal! You deserve it. Just kidding.

Restaurant Shizu - West Covina

Restaurant Shizu
116 N Grand Ave
West Covina, CA 91791
(626) 966-5279
Type: Japanese / sushi
Map





I don't remember too much about this place. I just took some pictures and wrote the prices of our food. Sorry -- once again.

Shizu is located off of Grand Ave. right by the 10 freeway. It's in the same plaza as House of Louie. I've always wanted to try this place and my girlfriend said she used to come here all the time back in the day. So we went during lunch time on a weekday. I think we were one of the first ones, but more people started coming in just after us.



There's nothing fancy about the place. It was pretty plain actually. But who cares about that right? Right. Let's make this quick. I ordered the combination with salmon teriyaki ($14.99). A little pricey for lunch from my experience. Like I said, I don't remember anything about the place or the food. So let's just say it was good. I would've complained and remembered if it was really bad or good.







Next up, the dynamite appetizer ($9.95). Again, relatively a little pricey. From the looks of the picture, it seemed good.



The two handrolls we got were the salmon lover hand roll ($4) and the yellowtail with spicy crab hand roll ($4.50). I'm sure we finished these. Can't describe it though.





We also got the salmon with scallop tempura roll ($7.95). That's somewhat decent in price but then again you only get 6 pieces instead of the usual 8. Tricky, tricky, tricky. It's an intersting dish from the norm and that's why we got it.



What? We got sashimi? I don't even have it in my notes. Well here it is....



Ahh shit. I give up. I'll go back here in the future and take better notes. From the two reviews on Yelp, they really like the place. I mean it wasn't empty by the time we left. There were a good amount of people still eating. Then again, Wesco isn't really a mecca for first class sushi.

Koji's - Hollywood / Los Angeles

Koji's
6801 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028
(323) 871-0200
Type: Japanese / sushi / shabu shabu
Website
Map



I think we went to Koji's the same day we went to Galanga. We didn't eat much here. We didn't even plan on coming here. We were just hanging out at Hollywood and Highland to kill time. That same day, they were having a big premier for Iron Man (part one. yes this is very old). Anyways, we saw Robert Downey Jr. but from far away. We were actually on the 3rd floor or something at the Highland Center. That's the same floor where Koji's is at, and also the Highlands club.

can you spot Robert Downey Jr? Look hard.

just kidding. he's not in the picture!

So after getting a taste of the tourist-y stuff, we went inside Koji's and sat at the bar. Whaddaya know? It's Happy Hour!

Happy Hour is from 5-8pm Mon. - Fri.
-$3 draft beers
-$6 crunch rolls
-$9 sake
-$3 california rolls

Guess what. That's all we ordered from there. Hey, gas costs a lot to drive all the way to Hollywood. Don't judge. Anyways, I'll make it quick. The crunch rolls were cool. The california roll was a california roll. The beers were beers. The sake was sake. I don't mean to take away from what this restaurant really offers. I still don't know. I know their main thing from the looks of the place is they have shabu shabu where you cook your own food at your table. I think they have a few special rolls up their sleeves. The place is pretty big and a lot of people go there, so I don't really know.

Look at their menu if you really want to know.



crunch roll


cali roll


some sake


I guess if you want the chance to see some stars, this might be the place to be. Afterall, we saw Robert Downey Jr. who's a pretty big star IMO. The highlight of the night came as a surprise. We were sitting at the bar area looking out of the window for a while. After some drinks, I started noticing women walking by. These women were special. They weren't wearing much. And whatever it is they were wearing, was maybe a size or two too tight. They kept passing by. They were walking with guido-like dudes and men in suits (bodyguards?). I see camera flashes going off to the side. What's going on? Then I see a face that solved the whole equation:

scantily clad women + guidos + bodyguards + n = x
if n= Ron Jeremy
then x = porno event/convention!



Ron Jeremy as some of you may know is a well-known porn star back in the day. I don't know if he still "performs" for the camera. Anyways, he came by with a little posse, and he came in the restaurant and schmoozed with some people. Then he went to the bathroom where my girlfriend waited outside to get a picture with him. Great night. The End.

....oh yeah Koji's is cool. I'd possibly go back for the Happy Hour. Maybe for another "event."

Ami Sushi - West Covina

Ami Sushi
2560 E Amar Rd # 3
West Covina, CA 91792
(626) 581-4148
Type: Japanese / sushi
Map

Ami Sushi is a small Japanese spot located right next to Jeun Tong Tofu House in West Covina. I've been here many times before. It's not the best sushi around, but like Taquisa, I go back for proximity's sake. The prices here are also not bad. My favorite deal here is the 12 piece Shrimp Tempura Roll for only $6.95! I don't know if they've raised their prices recently, but even for a dollar more it's still a relative bargain.

On this particular day we got it to-go (cuz we didn't want to pay for tip). We got the mentioned Shrimp Tempura Roll, the Alaska Roll ($8.95), yellowtail sushi ($3.75), and albacore sushi ($2.99). The Alaska Roll is the one with raw salmon on top. It had spicy tuna inside. This one I wouldn't get again. Nothing great or good about it. The two sushis though, weren't too bad. They were good sized and had a fresh taste to them. The Shrimp Tempura Roll as always, was consistent. There's nothing bomb to crave about but it's good and the price makes it better.



Like I said, this place gets my business cuz it's close by and they got the cheap Tempura Roll. If you're not too picky about sushi, or maybe just getting into it, I would tell you you might like the place. Sushi snobs need not apply.

Kamon

Kamon
17855 Colima Rd
City Of Industry, CA 91748
(626) 965-5895
Type: Sushi / Japanese cuisine
Map



For some odd reason, thinking back about this place doesn't get me excited about eating here. Even though the food is good and it's actually one of the better sushi places around the area, it hasn't popped in my head to come back. Because I'm so uninspired by the place I'll make this a no thrills/frills review. Actually I'm just lazy as usual and I'm in a bad mood. My 5 day weekend is over already and I probably won't get another one til late next year, or unless I quit.

On that note, I apologize to Kamon for taking it out on them. Now let's get this over with...

Okay. First thing we ordered was a combo dinner ($18). You get to pick 2 items from the menu. We got an 8oz. salmon teriyaki and sashimi. We asked for all salmon sashimi. It was all surprisingly good. The portion was bigger than I expected. The salmon sashimi was good, fresh, sweet, and fatty. The combo also came with salad, miso soup, and some fried chicken.



what the?


Next up, we got the dynamite appetizer ($6.50). The picture is very deceiving cuz I took it real close. That mother was small. The spoons weren't regular-sized spoons. They were like the spoons you use for chilli oils at Chinese restaurants. But man was it good. Or maybe it was just psychological. Since you only got so little, you cherished and savored every bite. Sneaky.

maybe actual size


We ordered two sushis (yellowtail and cajun albacore) at $4.50 per pair. They were both good but they put wasabi on it. Damn. I gotta get used to that.

We also got a spicy scallop hand roll. It was good but we've had many that were better. Probably wouldn't get that again.



Last and least, we got a tempura roll ($5.75). I think this was ordered just as a filler and cuz it was cheap. All I put in my notes is that I wouldn't get it again.



Man, it seems like we ordered a grip of food. It was mostly me that killed it though. But anyways, Kamon is a decent place. It's a little pricey and if you check Yelp, it got mixed reviews. Some gave it 2 stars while a few gave it 5 stars. I wouldn't give it 5 for sure. Maybe 3.5 stars. I'm right. Everybody else is wrong. F******************K work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Niko Niko - Rowland Heights

Niko Niko
19705 Colima Rd
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(909) 598-7299
Type: Japanese food / sushi
Map



I remember the first time I had Niko Niko. That was in the beginning of my sushi career. I fell in love right away cuz their prices were decent for all the special rolls they had. I think the most expensive one is about $12. The one I tried was in La Habra. I remember one time I drove all the way from West Covina to La Habra just to get some rolls at Niko Niko!

Now, I've grown up, and I can say that I've been to a few sushi spots since then. But to this day, I still don't mind hitting up this place once in a while. Luckily, they have one closer to my stomping grounds in Rowland Heights. It's in the same plaza as Happy Wok, Boiling Seafood, and Albertson's. This time, we went here for my girl's bday. My mom treated us.

I used to love their dynamite appetizer ($7) here. I don't know what happened, but the taste for this has fallen off for me the last few times I ordered it. I probably won't get it again. It was just lacking in taste and I didn't want to finish it. When I say that, it must be ultimate wackness.

dynamite appetizer-- my ex-friend


My mom and bro got the combo meals cuz they don't eat rolls or sushi. My mom got the salmon and beef combo, and my brother got the calamari steak and salmon teriyaki combo ($10 something each?). My mom said her food was okay and my brother said the calamari didn't have much flavor. I wasn't too interested in what they ordered anyway.





I think my girl and I were extra hungry cuz-- or it might have been cuz my mom was paying, but we ordered a good amount of food. We got the Sapporo roll ($10.99). It was yellowtail on top of spicy yellowtail with crab inside. That one was good.



The baked spicy lobster roll ($10 something?) is usually a hit with me. This time around was no exception. I put "very good" in my notes so it must have been..... very good!

can't go wrong with Niko Niko's baked spicy lobster roll


Nowadays, salmon sashimi or sushi is like rice for me when I go to a sushi place. I always have to order it. The 7 piece salmon sashimi got a nod from me. It was fresh-- even though it was late night. I don't know if that really matters.



To round out our sushi selection, we got the 2 piece yellowtail sushi ($4 something) and 2 piece albacore sushi ($4 something). Both were good. The yellowtail was fresh, and best of all, they were fat pieces. The albacore had some ponzu sauce in it which luckily wasn't too tangy.



I've mentioned before that I've been here already. I think I've been to Niko Niko restaurants about 5 or 6 times. A couple times in Rowland Heights, a couple in La Habra and a few in Long Beach. They're all about the same. They're usually consistent with their stuff so I'm not worried about going to any other of their locations. It won't be my first choice, but I won't whine if we have to go there.

Wasa - Newport Beach

Wasa
1346 Bison Ave
Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 760-1511
Type: Japanese food / sushi / dining
Website
Map



Every time I drive to my girlfriend's house out in Newport Coast, I pass by this place. I always look at it while driving. Eventually, I couldn't stand just looking at it. I wanted in. So my dining partner-in-crime (girlfriend) and I went here on a weekday night I believe. There was a few minutes' wait, but who cares. I'm trying this place dammit.

Inside, the place is pretty damn small. This isn't a very intimate place to eat as there's probably only 3-5 booths. The rest, you're sitting next to other customers so you can easily peep out what their fat asses got and they can see what your lard ass got. Okay, maybe not the best term for a sushi place, but we always order a lot, unless we're restaurant hopping.

Being in Newport Beach, I was afraid to look at the menu for one reason. The prices. I mean, this is the land of Benzs and Bimmers and Botox and mansions and millionaires. The average person here probably makes more in one day than I do in a month. Seriously. Sadly. But the menu took off a few weights off my chest. The prices-- they weren't that bad. They weren't cheap or a great deal that I recognized, but not bad. This place is also Zagat Rated. There's a small army of 4 sushi chefs working for that room.

Even though the prices as I explained weren't that bad, this wasn't a special occassion (actually it was, cuz I was with my girl. 2 points), so we still had to be a little choosy with what we ordered. This is what we came up with:

The baked dynamite appetizer ($8.95?) was small but good. I didn't put any descriptions on it under my notes, but I think it was.

baked dynamite


We got the Garlic Ponzu Treasure ($9.95). It came with 3pcs of salmon, yellowtail, and toro (fatty tuna). All 3 were seared. There was a little wasabi in it which I usually hate, but this wasn't as strong. I'd get this one again.

Garlic Ponzu Treasure me matey!!!! yarr!!!!!


We usually throw some hand rolls in the mix. Newport Roll ($4.50) and Spicy Scallop Roll ($4.25). Both were good but the scallop was a little better. I don't remember what was in the Newport Roll, but don't be scared about ordering it.

Newport Roll and Scallop Roll did their thangs.


I've been having some bad experience with "nice" places and lobster rolls. Like the time we went to Zipangu and ordered their most expensive roll the Maine Crunch Roll. Wackness. The lobster roll ($15.95) here.... no thanks. Plain as a Boeing 747 but it wasn't fly. Get it?!

strike two for "nice place's" lobster rolls


Last up, the Ninja/Spider Roll ($9.95). It was 6 pieces of "had it before and wouldn't get again." It pretty much tasted like any other spider roll that wasn't super great for me. Actually, come to think of it, I rarely get any spider rolls that are super bomb.... note to self.

soft shell crab (spider) roll. just a filler.


So 3 of the 5 orders were good. I'd still go back some time-- possibly. Just probably no more cut rolls unless they're used as fillers to get me full. There's too many damn sushi places around that this is not a place I would get attached to. My girlfriend still prefers Sankai which is like 4 miles further down the freeway. So do I.

Akasaka - Walnut

Akasaka
505 Grand Ave
Walnut, CA 91789-2144
Phone: (909) 598-8816
Type: Japanese food / sushi
Map

Local Sushi Hopping: Part 2 (click here for Part 1)



After some good rolls and a little less decent sushi at Denno, my girl and I went straight down Grand Ave. to Walnut where another sushi restaurant was situated. Originally, we wanted to try Jubei and see if it would redeem itself from our last visit, but they were closed. So Akasaka it was...

My girl loves the stuffed tomato sushi that some chefs prepare. It's usually raw scallops with some crab meat and sauce wrapped around with raw tuna or salmon. What do you know? Akasaka had stuffed tomatoes on their menu for a $15 dent on your bank account. This one was wrapped with salmon. I don't know how much most sushi places charge for their stuffed tomatoes, but that's a grip for 2 small pieces. I'm complaining about it mostly because it was the worst stuffed tomato I've had ever. It was super plain. There was no crab meat to give it some flavor. The salmon was kind of lacking in taste. The only way I'll get that again is if they charge $5 at the most for both pieces.

the worst (blandest) stuffed tomato we've had


Salmon being my favorite sushi, we ordered the 5 piece salmon sashimi ($8.95). At first I thought it was cool, but after a while it kind of just tasted like water. It was the same story as the stuffed tomato.

water sashimi


We decided to cut our losses and keep the money we had left. I don't know if it was an off day for Akasucky, but I've heard some bad reviews about this place from family and friends. Regardless, you gotta be consistent with that stuff or it'll make people like me never want to come here again. I never want to come here again.

Dono Sushi - West Covina

Dono Sushi
1230 Lakes Dr
West Covina, CA 91790
(626) 919-2750
Type: Japanese food / sushi / dining
Website
Map



Back in my hometown, we haven't covered all the sushi joints around. I think I've been to most if not all of them in my area, but I haven't reviewed them. I've been to Dono Sushi before, but it was a few years earlier. Dono is located in the same area as the Edwards Cinema, Cold Stone ice cream shop, and Fatburger. You can see it when you're driving on Glendora Ave.

Last time I was here, it might have been for my birthday so I got to order whatever I wanted. I remember ordering only the fancy rolls because I didn't eat sushi back then. I really liked the rolls but they were a little expensive. Maybe at $13 or $15.

This time around, it was just my girlfriend and I that ate there. We were on a budget, but we wanted Japanese food/sushi. Not really the best of places to go when you're worried about the price. Unless of course, you go for the lunch special, which is on Mondays - Fridays from 11am - 2pm. It's $1.25 for select sushis, $4.50 for 4 pieces of some sashimis, and $2.50 - $3 for some handrolls. The catch is that you have to buy a drink for each person. (On a side note, we went here for the lunch special a few weeks later, and the hand rolls were good-sized and not bad and the yellowtail and salmon sashimis were good for the price, but we wouldn't get it if the price wasn't hooked up)

So anyways, I couldn't really order the good rolls this time. I had to try to find the best bang for the buck-- the dish that would fill me up the most with the least amount of money. Usually if that's the case, I'll order the combo boxes or the bento boxes. I ended up getting the salmon bowl ($8) because it was cheaper than the combos. It was pretty good. I still think it's a little expensive though. It's just your usual teriyaki salmon on top of a thin bed of cabbage and some rice under.

salmon bowl. fills your stomach for less-- but not that much less.


Still in the cheapskate mind state, I found one of their cheaper rolls which was called the Mr. Kani roll. I don't remember what was in there. Looks like some kind of crunchy roll. Not that great. Maybe after doing the math at $6.95 for 6 pieces, I should've got a better full 8-piece roll for a little more. Oh well.

Mr. Kani roll. I wouldn't want this roll named after me.


My lady ordered the spicy sashimi bowl ($11.95). She and I were expecting a simple bowl of rice with sashimi on top. This thing came in a wok-sized bowl with all this filler. It had some shredded lettuce, daikon with tiny chopped pieces of sashimi. They give you a bowl of rice and spicy sauce on the side for you to mix in. It looks like they had salmon, maybe some yellowtail, tuna, shrimp, and octopus. Straight on the octopus. I felt sorry for her. It just looked like a huge salad with some raw seafood sprinkled here and there. She said it was okay, but she wouldn't get it again.

spicy sashimi bowl. a huge bowl of stuff, and you might find some seafood


Because this place is in my town, I would possibly go here again. I'll go either for the sushi lunch special or if I had more money to spend on the better rolls. Then again, if I had more money, I might be wise to consider a better place to eat. So maybe just for the lunch specials.