Katsuya Brentwood — Restaurant in Los Angeles

I don't want this four star review to ruin my street-cred in finding "good-valued" places around town...but Katsuya is one of those scene-y restaurants that's worth a splurge every once and awhile, especially if you're taking friends from out of town or just have a craving for something different from your everyday neighborhood joint.

Sure the sushi is by no means the "best"--but a few items on their menu are so unique and different that I would dare say (GASP), they're worth the price you pay: the robata grilled king crab legs, the spicy tuna with crispy rice, and the Kastuya roll. The crispy rice is perfectly flavored and topped with a thin sliver of Jalepeno, which is just enough to get it a little heat without burning your mouth. The Katsuya roll is wrapped in a thinly sliced skin of cucumber (instead of seaweed) and each piece is held together with short wooden dowels making them look like lollipops! I guess I'm a sucker for presentation but no pun intended (hah!).

There's definitely some attitude here that's a bit annoying--ie, having a reservation and the hostess makes everyone wait even though there's clearly empty tables around the restaurant--but I guess it comes with the territory, unless you're Michael Bay who has his ferrari parked out front each time he's there (and he seems to ALWAYS be there with a different hot chick). The servers however, are always awesome and extremely attentive.

The valet can take awhile sometimes, but don't make the mistake that I did and read the signs if you opt for street-parking. Up the block, the parking becomes a tow-away zone after 10pm on one of the side streets, and your $100 dinner soon becomes a $400 meal by the time you get your car out of the impound lot.

Also--am I the only guy who thinks the urinals at the bathroom are a little creepy?! Why would they install a full body mirrored wall and mount the urinals within the reflective mirror? Strange...but I digress...

Overall, four stars for inventiveness and great ambiance--not a five star because of the creepy...

.....(edit 9-11-2025. went to katsuya last night and I want to say that my colleague and I got Fantastic service yet again. We had a brief chat with a great employee named Lody, as he was very nice and our waiter was Francisco and he was pure charm. In addition, we were seated by Young Sophia and she was really friendly with me. Although I must say I was a little disappointed not to see my buddy the general manager working last night, and was a little disappointed not to see Luke and 'lil Nicky. Yo No icky!!! A very good night at katsuya!!)-Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! Two nights ago myself and a close colleague had dinner here at KATSUYA and we were treated so beautifully! The young Asian at the front was so welcoming and friendly upon entering the restaurant. While we were enjoying our meal, we had the distinct pleasure to be met with a great smile by the General Manager Sharto and then had a wonderful conversation with her. Wow! She is by far one of the most friendly, outgoing, and irresistibly charming General managers I've spoken to and conferred with at a restaurant in over 17 years. Brilliant! We had a great chat and shared some good laughs (I'm so glad the dear lady didn't get offended at all BRAVO). She was just a breath of fresh air, and so clever. In addition, I can't leave out 'lil Nicki. About a week and a half ago I called the restaurant to make a reservation for 8:00 p.m. I spoke to young Nikki who took my reservation, and I discovered that she had an absolutely fantastic sense of humor, as I made a few comments and jokes while I had her on the phone. And yes I was a little disappointed that she was not there two nights ago because I wanted to say hello to her, E bongiorno, and put a face to a name. Her customer service on the phone was beyond reproach, and absolutely ingenious! I look forward to going to katsuya again very soon, in about 2 weeks. Thank you! Grazie mille! Review by: STEFAN ROSS, an emissary of The Devil 😈👿 😈 😈 😈 😈 😈 😈 😈 😈 😈 👿...

Katsuya is great, been to the Valley, Downtown and now Brentwood. The one in Brentwood can feel more like a mini club, with two bars and very modern decor.

The front desk ladies are always beautiful and always warm. We made reservations, sat us pretty quickly once we got there.

We were about 10 feet from the bar which isnt the best location to be int he place, there is a couple of private booths but all were taken, next time ask to sit in one if you can. Where we sat there was tons of traffic people walking to and from the bar. Behind us was large open table with 7 or 8 women who seemed drunk and were just loud, laughing and annoying. The place is really hard to hear, we were there to discuss business and my friend felt like he had to scream to me.

The Rock Shrimp Tempura is excellent, Albacore is really good and fresh, the crispy onions on top were great. Yellowtail with Jalapeno has just enough heat and is really good. You can never go wrong with the Baked Crab hand rolls.

Our waitress sucked, we were sitting for about 10 minutes or more before she finally came over and asked if we wanted something to drink, way to long of a wait. We ordered at that time because we didnt want to keep waiting, the food came out pretty quickly and the rest of the staff was really nice. My iced tea was empty multiple times and took a while for her to ask if I wanted more. When she asked us about desert or how things were going, she really sounded fake.

Its not cheap, Crispy Rice with Spicy Tuna although really good are sort of small and at 14 bucks wish it would have filled me up bit more.

Its in Brentwood, so that is another reason they can charge so much.

The Valet was quick to get our car, parking...