Shinano Restaurant — Restaurant in Monterey Park

Old school Japanese and sushi restaurant with many traditional menu items. Food ranged from good to excellent and service was top notch, although may have been a little overwhelmed when the restaurant hits its peak (around 6-7pm on the day we went which was a Sunday).

We were celebrating my mom’s birthday and in a large group of 11. We were able to use a side room, just off the main dining room, which was very cool as we were loud and messy :). They also have some traditional Japanese dining areas, sit down style, which looked to accommodate groups up to 8 people or so. Not sure if they are staffed for that, but may be an option with up front notice - sorry, forgot to take pics :(.

We ordered too many items to list, but some key takeaways. Their “boats” can definitely serve more than 2 people as noted. The sashimi and California rolls that come with the boat is very small, but otherwise huge servings and probably serve four people, especially if you add a few sushi, sashimi or rolls. Steamed clams appetizer was delicious and again, larger serving than anticipated. Grilled squid was also a standout. Whole squid, grilled to perfection. Spicy tuna nachos, Brussels sprouts and jalapeño Hamachi were also table favorites. Nigiri sushi, which is what I ordered was good. Not really a standout, but if you are there with a group and want to try different types of dishes, this is the place to go.

Service was really friendly and helpful, except when they were very busy, but we were there from 5-8pm and for the most part very happy. Especially how helpful they were with some of the extra service that comes with a birthday (think cake, extra plates, candles, lighter, etc) and large group (think extra plates, bowls and chopsticks for sharing).

Consensus was that we will be back for future group dinners due to the side room, food and service.

The one thing I would ask them to work on is their restrooms. Women’s restroom didn’t have liners and men’s restroom didn’t have paper towels. They addressed it as soon as we brought it up, but seems like an easy item to fix before opening.

Hoping to update to a 5 star review after...

I do not recommend calling or using an app for takeout. I only recommend dining in.

My sister used Postmates to order takeout for our family. The app said the food was ready as we were driving over there.

First of all, the place looks shady when driving up. You have to park in the back. And the door looks like something you'd see for a house, not a commercial building. And when you enter, you're transported back to the late 1980s. The couch had that squiggly abstract pattern, and the restaurant was carpeted. And there are no windows.

We told one of the employees that we ordered through Postmates, and she said it would be ready in a few minutes. Ten minutes passed, and nothing. Once ten turned to 15, we asked how much longer. She said she would tell the chefs to hurry. So that means our order wasn't ready at all. Not sure if that's the app's fault or the restaurant for marking that it was done.

Fifteen minutes turned to 30, and our order was finally complete. We ordered six rolls and fried calamari. It should've taken the usual 20 minutes to make. And as we were waiting, other people were also waiting for their orders, some using an app and others that called it in.

I understand that restaurants had to adapt very quickly due to the pandemic. But if the chefs can't prioritize online/phone orders with dine-in orders, then the restaurant needs to either train them or not have online options. I should note there were 2 sushi chefs and not many people dining inside, along with maybe 4 more people in the kitchen. So I don't think staffing shortages were the issue.

Speaking of the diners, they also look like they've been going there since the 1980s. Which I guess is a good sign- they all looked local. And as for the sushi: it was actually pretty good. I wouldn't say it was worth the wait, but I'm glad they were tasty.

I'd probably come back here to dine in and check out their menu. Sometimes the apps don't show everything or don't...

Overall, a pleasant dinner experience 🙂! My friend recommended it since she lives in the area. All of the employees are really friendly and courteous ☺️!

We came here for dinner after watching a movie at the nearby AMC Atlantic Times Square. Since it has been colder than usual in Southern CA these past several days, we decided to get udon. My friend got the regular udon. I got the Nabeyaki udon.

Our waiter was friendly, and checked on us and refilled our green teas 🍵 at least once. They might have been shorthanded because he wasn’t able to be as attentive after more people came in. We had to wave him down to ask for the bill 💸.

A fly seemed to have entered the restaurant at some point when perhaps the front door was opened by a customer. It was flying around and we found ourselves constantly waving it away from our food.

Finally, our waiter came with a fly-swatter and tried to swat and shoo it away. I don’t think he meant to make a commotion. But there was just so much swatting and shooing activity right around where we sat in his attempts to try to get to the fly.

If it wasn’t for that, we would have had a much more relaxed dinner without having to look constantly around us for the fly possibly landing on our food.

The udon 🍜 was hot and delicious 😋 and our green teas 🍵 kept us very warm as well on a cold day 🥶!

There is a small parking lot in the back of the restaurant and we easily parked there 🙂!

Overall, it’s a really nice and quaint restaurant in the heart ❤️ of Monterey Park where you can get seated and served...