Ichiban — Restaurant in Brea

$$ to $$$

My Pick for Restaurant of the Year Award 2019, (also 2017, 2018)!

Ichiban in Brea is easily my favorite restaurant for 2017! Finally, a restaurant that gets it ALL right. Thirty years in business tells the story, there is much more to the story of this Ichiban Restaurant for me. We had a great time visiting this wonderful Japanese Restaurant in beautiful Brea, CA. This was my first visit; I was invited and almost passed on going; C told me it was Ichiban... I already knew that Ichiban is Japanese for number 1.

I am very glad I accepted; I have found a great, must return to Japanese Restaurant experience that I can only rave about!

The owner, Tom was our greeter and I was immediately impressed as Tom is very personable and quite willing to share some smiles, his humor (a couple of jokes.. as I had one to share with him) and some interesting information on Ichiban. As he took us to our table he told me that his wife Masako is the visionary of this exceptional restaurant as I was commenting on the pleasing interior decor.

A restaurant to get inspired by; everything unfolded perfectly after being seated. Julio (they call him Juliosan he told me later) was our server. Young, mild, well mannered... a super server in my opinion; took our order and proceeded to make our dining experience as perfect as he possibly could.

Tom checked up on us also and he brought Masako over and introduced her to us (They check up on all of their customers). She was very gracious willing to talk and listen; I told her how much we were enjoying her beautiful restaurant; I mentioned that the Sake was excellent (very smooth and favorable), the Chicken Karaage was the best (first time I have had this delicious Japaneses style fried chicken), the plating was gorgeous (see some of my photos) and I also mentioned my appreciation of the minimal interior design. She smiled and thanked me as I went on and on and on...

The food at this Ichiban was delicious and artistically plated; they serve generous portions (plenty left to take some home) and we consider the pricing to be very affordable to us!

There is nothing Tom, Masako and Juliosan could have done to improve our experience. 100 percent satisfaction... easiest 5 Star of the year and we visit a lot of restaurants, many fine dining. C and S travel far more than I do; they search out the best (I do also but sometimes I look for the diamond in the rough). Ichiban is a diamond for sure but a diamond cut by an expert.

This was C's choice to celebrate her birthday out of all the restaurants she visits (a whole lot). Also, in this regard there was a group seated next to us that we're celebrating; they told me that they love this Ichiban and have been loving it for 30 years..

Thirty Years of getting it ALL right! I highly recommend this Ichiban. On my favorites list for sure!

Note: I read all the reviews. This restaurant has mostly 5 Star reviews with a lot of praise for quality, good atmosphere, friendly staff and friendly personable owners.

However, I notice a few reviews at 1 Star. In my opinion I find it hard to believe any of those reviews; they read like a vendetta rather than a review (my take on them). I am a level (8) Guide for Google Maps. I eat out more than anyone I know or have met. I would easily give this restaurant 10 Star review if I could.. I hope you read between the lines like I do. Best to you all.. I hope this helps you!

by cmilton111 Google Guide for Laguna Beach 7/10/2017... update 7.2029 _ &

CAM - Staff Writer World Traveler wrote:

Ichiban: I "Came here for the first time last year & was impressed with the food and service.

The food is delicious & in good portions, for a reasonable price - They have many varieties of Japanese American Entree's plus Shashmi & Sushi's - and a Sushi Bar -

The waiters are friendly & knowledgeable -

It's a cute place in Brea nestled in a strip mall off...

I wish I could give a negative star rating. My fiancé and I had just finished shopping at the mall across the street. We headed over to this restaurant after my fiancé saw the red and white sushi sign. She was stoked. As we arrive, another couple is walking up to the waiting area. The gentleman that was seating everyone (Jim?) went up to the couple that was within earshot of us and asked them “for how many?” They said “2” and he let them know that it might be a couple of minutes before they were seated. This seemed normal as the place was really busy. He then comes outside and tells the couple in front of us that he’s going to bring a table outside for them. I thought “wow the service here must be good”. I was excited now because this was our first time visiting and I thought we found a great new sushi spot. He seats the couple and then comes over to us and blankly stares at my fiancé and I. I greet him saying “Hey how’s it going?” He didn’t reply and just stared at us. At this point I thought maybe he didn’t hear me with my mask on and all. So then I said “Hello, may I have a table for 2 please?” He raised an eyebrow and asked “Do you have a reservation?” To which I replied “No” because, as I mentioned before, we were just driving by. The man in question told us that since we didn’t have a reservation it would be several minutes before we could be seated. At this point I just said “that’s fine” because we didn’t mind waiting for what seemed to be a hospitable establishment. As he’s walking back inside from talking to us, an older woman walks right passed us and yells, “Hey (Jim?), I have a 6 o’ Clock”. To which the (Jim?) replied “oh yes come right in”. So I’m thinking, man this place must be good if people make reservations. I didn’t think anything past that. We continue to wait. It had been about 30 minutes when he comes out again and tells us “Hey guys, like I said, it’s going to be several minutes.” Again, I replied “that’s okay”. (Jim?) didn’t say anything back and started to walk away again. As he was walking back, a group of 3 women came behind us talking rather loudly. We heard “Oh my god it’s full”, “what happened to the other table that was here”. One woman asked another “did you make a reservation?” to which the other woman replied “No”. The woman that replied “No” yelled “Hi!” at (Jim?). He turned around and said “Oh hey!”. (Jim?) approached the women. The one that said she didn’t make a reservation pulled her shades down under her eyes and asked “Do you have a table for us?” (Jim?) didn’t say a word but instead nodded at them and waved them over to follow him. My fiancé and I just looked at each other and didn’t say a word. We both knew what had just happened but didn’t want to even speak about it. We were in such a state of shock that we both just walked back to the car silently. I’ve taken some time to think about this situation. I’ve given every person the benefit of the doubt. I feel that one has to be extremely careful and conscientious when it comes to talking about discrimination in the current political climate. However, after taking some time and reflecting on my actions and the actions of those around me, I feel saddened and disappointed. The couple that showed up moments before us? White. The group of women that clearly didn’t have a reservation? White. My fiancé and I? A young Hispanic couple. I truly feel that we were discriminated against on that day. I don’t wish bad upon anyone because my mama taught me better. What I do wish, is for those who feel this way, for whatever reason. Remember that we are all human beings and we all deserve to be treated equally. Do unto others what you wish done to you.

I wish you well in your future endeavors.

Will not be returning. Do not...

SUMMARY: Below-Average Quality and Portion at Above-Average Price. The Good: -Service - Friendly Waiters/Waitresses -Menu - Fairly wide selection of lunch specials on the menu.

The Average: -Quality - Fish quality is average. It's not fishy but it's bland. Probably fish is farm-raised, not caught in wild. -Authenticity - Menu and taste cater more to non-Asians. Taste tends to be on the sweeter and saltier side. Some people like this so I don't mark this as good or bad.

The Bad: -Dishonesty - If you use coupons or Groupon deals, you will get much less portion and lower quality ingredients (cheaper fish, more batter than meat) than regular to make up for the discount. They will also try to upsell you on sides and extras like miso soup, additional rice, salad, etc. I understand food cost matters in restaurant business but the management shouldn't utilize coupons and promotions if they are not going to honor them. -Portion - Large plates but small portions. Fried chicken has more batter than chicken. Fish on sushi is not generous at all. -Price - Lunch special will run you around $15-$20 and dinner $20-$30 with tax. For similar price, there are many other Japanese restaurants with either more portion or higher quality. -Location - Sort of hidden and hard to see from the streets.

A big disappointment. We spent about $55 for lunch (3 people) and we won't...