Oto-Oto Izakaya Japonaise — Restaurant in Monrovia

I've driven by this place so many times, but I hadn't actually considered going inside since I can't eat fish. I actually was brought here by my friend and his wife, who really like this restaurant, after they told me there is much more I can order besides just fish. And they do! Ramen, yakitori, chicken ... so many choices to choose from, and they still offer a lunch price on the weekends.

I ordered the Jidori Chicken Karaage set, which was recommended to me by my friend. I really liked the overall dish. It came with small bowls - salad, rice, soup, and some sweet potato strings or something. The chicken wasn't crispy, but fried lightly on the outside while the inside remained juicy and soft. The rice was also cooked well - sushi rice, I believe but it was such a big bowl for maybe five pieces of chicken.

I also tried the shrimp tempura, which was fried well but still not to the degree of flakiness that I like in tempura. The yakitori bowl and grilled eggplant looked good and my friends said they usually order the yakitori bowl. I thought it was weird that the eggplant had only 2 pieces, but one was doused in sesame seeds and the other in green onions.

For dessert, I tried the watermelon shaved ice. It sounded nice in the description, stating that it was topped off with vanilla ice cream. But they never mentioned that red beans and mochi balls were inside as well. I don't think I would have ordered it had I known that there would be red beans inside, since I am not a fan. Although the ice didn't look very red, it did have enough watermelon taste. It was light and refreshing, but with ice cream, watermelon syrup, mochi, and red bean - too much going on. I would pass on that next time and try another dessert. They have a pretty extensive dessert menu!

We came a little after the lunch rush, but not during happy hour. I still thought the service was really lacking. The waitress who attended to our table didn't seem friendly and was quite off-putting.

tl;dr - food is pretty good, but the service is subpar. Price is pretty decent if you come during happy hour or lunch. From the other reviews, they have strict rules regarding...

Horrible service! The whole experience left a very bad taste in my mouth. Complete lack of professionalism, utter incompetence and ignorance to what client service/satisfaction is. Disrespectful rude, incompetent waitress and unprofessional waiter. Instead of having an enjoyable experience, we were forced to deal with the servers who should be unnoticeable. This was our second time here, both times didn’t like service. We waited for food to arrive for 1.2 hours. We only ordered 2 rolls and bluefin O-Toro tuna sashimi ($29 option). Sashimi was full of white streaks which are connective tissue and are very chewy and stringy so I had to shove the chews in the napkin. I asked the waiter to take it away and bring a better cut. He took the plate and actually brought it back out from the kitchen again and said that all their pieces are like that. Very unprofessional. When the check arrived we said we’re not paying for that sashimi as most of it is in the napkin and we also did ask for it to be taken away. The waitress dared to give me a very angry look and said with a patronizing tone that “NEXT time don’t just leave 1 piece if you don’t like it!” Wow, you’re insane if you think that there will be a next time. She then said she can’t adjust the bill, we asked for a manager and she said he’s at home 🤣. I said “well call him”, I didn’t expect that she would but she did and handed me her dirty cell phone. The man on the phone was a bit aggressive, sounded like we really were bothering him at his home. He mansplaned that sashimi can’t be stringy as he cut it himself. He did instruct the waitress (possibly wife) to take it...

Oto-Oto is exceptional in every way. The food is fantastic and considering the quality, reasonably priced. The presentation of the food is beautiful without being over the top. The staff is friendly, helpful, knowledgeable, and timely without being intrusive. The chefs are professional trained sushi chefs. The atmosphere is lovely, warm, and interesting-- note the giant bonsho (bell) hanging from the cool, high open ceiling and the display of bottles at the bar for example. It is quiet so you can hear yourselves talk. It stays busy without ever feeling cramped or rushed. If you look at the clientele, you will know it is a top-notch place because they are locals and people who keep coming back time and time again -- the staff recognizes and remembers them and there are warm exchanges between them.We often get take-out and one night I sat and just observed the interplay of staff -- it was like watching a beautiful dance as they wove in and out -- making drinks, taking orders, delivering food, and the chefs with hands flying as they made dish after dish and without breaking stride, they smiled through it all - it was better than watching most of what is on television. We love Oto-Oto in every way and highly...