Kusaki — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Kusaki was on my to-do list for like two years. I love Japanese cuisine, upscale dining, and the experience of omakase. So, the high-end vegan Japanese spot with omakase was an obvious bullseye for me. Finally made it out a few weeks back, and overall, I dig it. Could a few things be improved? Sure. Will I be back? Absolutely.

The food was really good. Some of it fantastic. We ran the ten-course omakase, and it was well thought out, created deep flavor, and was presented beautifully. We sat at the counter, allowing us to be served by the chef, who articulated every component in depth. I love that. We ran through various nigiri, dumplings, crispy rice, a "steak" with risotto, and even a street corn style taco served in nori. It is evident that the team put a lot of planning into the progression of the omakase, and every touch to a dish was warranted, right down to the delicate micro greens.

The service was... bumpy. The ambiance was stellar, and we were warmly greeted. My wife and I expected a beautiful experience. But our meal took over two and a half hours for a 10-course omakase.. That's wild. After being seated for about 20 minutes without anyone checking in on us, I headed to the hostess to ask for a glass of wine. Our first course came out more than 30 minutes into our reservation. Later in the meal, I had to go find a server for more water after half an hour had passed with empty glasses. Initially, we thought we would go through the ten courses and add some a la carte. But we were there so long we just wanted to get out as soon as dessert was done.

Dropping $250 for two people after nearly three hours and tracking down drinks is not how I think of upscale dining. No matter how pretty everything else is. The servers were polite and helpful when asked... but we shouldn't have to ask, at least not for almost every single thing. When we were finished, you guessed it, I had to get up to find a server to ask for our check. We had early evening reservations, and I think there were maybe six other people in the entire restaurant when we sat down. They were full up when we departed, but how did they start the night so behind? This should have been 90 minutes, tops, and if the kitchen was dealing with difficulties, the service should have been in overdrive to compensate.

Was it worth it? Sure, I think so. There is nowhere else in LA that does vegan Japanese like this right now. Just don't go if you're in a rush. If you haven't tried vegan "fish" nigiri alternatives before, Kusaki does it very well. They probably use the same faux-fish options that I use at home, like Zeastar "salmon" sashimi and Fysh Foods spicy "tuna." But Kusaki elevates them in a way that I certainly don't. Some of the dishes you've likely had before in some capacity. Like the dumpling in broth, or the crispy rice. But they're delicious and executed perfectly.

Everything put into the food is top-notch. The soy, the broths, the house ponzu, and other sauces bring incredible dimension to every dish served. The ingredients are fresh and vibrant. And every bite is a spectacle. I just would really like our next experience to go a little...

I wish I could give this spot 0 stars, which is really unfortunate because it's a local business & the food is actually quite good. But I can't in good faith, recommend this place. I texted their reservation line that it was my friend's birthday, who is a REGULAR, & got no response. I figured they were busy so no big deal. Then, I checked OpenTable & they had tons of reservations open so I just made it on there & specified my friend's birthday in the comments.

We arrived at 6:27 PM for our 6:30 PM reservation (keep timing in mind), I reminded them once more it was my friend's birthday once more. It wasn't until 7:29 PM they served the first tiny course.. 2 pieces of sashimi. 8:04, 35 minutes later 2 more "salmon" nigiri's were served... 8:19 next course was served. We overheard a SINGLE GUY (who was there just a fraction of the time) NEXT TO US complain & the staff was EXTREMELY apologetic to them & said they would "make it up to them" - full on DRAMATICS! Then they just swung by our table & quickly & rudely said "your next course will be out soon" ....

yeah.. Another 30 minutes later, the next small measly course came out (dumplings). Another 35 minutes go by.. And so on.. At this point, it's 9:30 PM. We had been sitting there for 3 HOURS & only had 5 courses out of 10. AND, the wait staff didn't even check on us, never cleared out empty plates during the 30-40 minute wait periods.. empty water for long periods. Would check on tables near us but would avoid us. It was extremely odd behavior.

Finally the owner comes over to deliver us one of our courses & I say to her, "it's 10 PM.. we have been here since 6:30 PM..... We're not even halfway through the courses.. What's going on?" She kept making excuses & was very dismissive. She insisted it was because we chose to do the omakase at a table instead of the bar.. But my friends and I have done this many times because they are plus size & it's uncomfortable for them at the bar. They had always accommodated, with no issues. This night.. it was giving ABLEIST. Even though, we had been there in the past, with the no issues, doing exactly this.. I had to add & clarify "The service as well has been extremely inattentive too. Dirty plates left for a long time, no water refills, no check ins, etc." She just thanked me for the feedback & went away.

It's close to 10:30 PM & a table near us got 5 dishes at once. We were still waiting, yet, another 30 minutes for the next course.. It felt like blatant disrespect or punishment for not sitting at the bar.. But it's not something we could do. (even though, it's been done many times before).

Then in the last 30 minutes of the restaurant being open, they rushed out the last few courses.

We did not finish until 11 PM... I am all for taking time & enjoying with friends.. BUT NEVER HAVE I EVER, spent 3.5 hours at a 10 course omakase & met with such dismissive attitude. It's...

Overall, dinner at Kusaki was worth it for the unique experience of a vegan sushi restaurant. They really do a good job of approximating the flavor and texture of fish well enough that it doesn’t distract from the culinary experience, even for non-vegan sushi lovers. If you don’t eat fish but want to try sushi, this is about as close as you can get to the real thing!

There were some very good dishes, and several that were underwhelming. In addition to that, service was haphazard, with dishes coming out in no particular order.

The sashimi is the most interesting part of the menu, and the salmon shiso was our favorite. The tuna avocado was also great! The sailfish sashimi was much less special and had too much ponzu.

The portabello fries are a must have. They’re fried in tempura batter and come with aioli. There was also a special fried shiso leaf that was topped with spicy tuna - delightful! The spicy tuna sticky rice is also a great appetizer.

Nigiri is tasty but can be expensive, so I would go for the sashimi for a more interesting experience of the imitation fish. I do not recommend the rolls - our dragon roll was not special in any way and lacked delicate construction. The burgers are tasty but really just taste like impossible meat - you can make it yourself at home and miss nothing.

Finally, the desserts were good, but pricey! They are pretty small, so you might not be able to split it...