Itsumono — Restaurant in Seattle

In summary, while the drinks are worth a try, I cannot recommend Itsumono for its food or service. Constructive feedback would be to focus on better food quality and training staff to handle customer concerns professionally and empathetically. It's unfortunate that my first visit left us with such a poor impression.

I understand reviews are all subjective and different people with different experience will have another perspective. Below is mine:

It was my first visit to Itsumono on a Saturday night, served by waitress Kielly, left much to be desired. While the evening started out seemingly fine, the experience quickly took a downturn due to the attitude of our server. Kielly's demeanor came across as judgmental, particularly when she made a remark about us ordering only three items. Though this may have been intended as an inquisitive comment, her tone conveyed disapproval, setting an uncomfortable tone for the evening.

My partner and I ordered the lechon don, loco moco, and cauliflower dish. Unfortunately, none of the dishes met expectations:

Cauliflower Dish – This was underwhelming. It lacked crunch and was soggy, leaving it feeling quite ordinary.

Loco Moco – The dish was just okay. However, the ground beef had a strange aftertaste, and the macaroni salad carried an odd, old smell that was off-putting.

Lechon Don – This was the biggest disappointment. The pork belly had a strong, gamy smell indicative of either poor quality or improper preparation. When I brought this up to the waitress, her response was defensive and dismissive. She attributed the taste to the foie gras glaze, yet she couldn't initially recall what the glaze was and had to check the menu. Her tone came off as accusatory when she asked if I realized it was foie gras, despite my familiarity with the ingredient from experiences at high-end restaurants. Her insistence that I was wrong about the meat being bad, and that I should simply say I didn’t like it, felt dismissive of valid feedback.

To make matters worse, the food left me with a queasy stomach—highly unusual for me, as I’ve traveled through Southeast Asia and eaten street food without issue. This reaction further solidifies my belief that something was off with the preparation.

The saving grace of the evening was the bartender, who was friendly and served an excellent...

It is a rare and delightful thing to experience a restaurant that reminds you what childlike wonder feels like. To be able to ask yourself, "what is holding me back from expressing myself and why shouldn't I create the thing I find myself consistently daydreaming about?"

Chef Sean and his crew are the embodiment of this. Their skills in the kitchen do not need to be legitimized further as they have had their praises sung by many reputable publications, so what I will focus on is the playfulness and high tier execution of the food at Itsumono.

They always stay on the brand of being a Mukokuseki gastropub, which is an izakaya with no one affiliation with a nation or cuisine. I have had Hawaiian, Filipino, Korean, Japanese and Chinese inspired dishes. Jokes on you if you think they stop there. I have had tteokbokki shrimp alfredo, a Chinese doughnut (youtaio) with clams and garlic sauce, a Nashville Hot karaage chicken sando on shokupan, nacho wontons that tasted like the best crunchwrap supreme on planet earth, an amuse-bouche bánh mì with a delicately fried egg on top, and the most luxurious Portuguese style cheesecake that had a raspberry coulis that sent me into the stratosphere.

This all barely scratches the surface of the inventive, fun and playful dishes that have rotated on and off the menu throughout the years. Every meal here has been an inspiration and a delight. I do wish the bar had as much consistency, but they always have Sapporo on draft and that won't ever let you down.

In addition to all of this, the owners care deeply about preserving and protecting the CID, the people and cultures that forged the area. They are quick to support other businesses, participate in fundraising and offer a safe space to anyone who needs it in the area.

The final thing I will say, in response to some of the negative reviews I've seen on here, is if you take yourself too seriously or believe that a business should cater to what your idea of them should be...don't come here. This is a creative endeavor that isn't trying to fit any mold or box. Please come here to enjoy them for who they are and you will not be disappointed. Maybe you'll even find a spark of...

This has been somewhere I've been looking to try for a while, especially the Loco Moco Scotch Egg, which is what I ordered The dish is an fascinating combination of a couple different things - Loco Moco, which is a hamburger patty with egg and white rice, and a Scotch Egg, which is a boiled egg wrapped in ground beef, that's then deep fried.

This leans more onto the Scotch Egg part of things, as it's a fried & breaded ground beef ball with a soft-boiled egg in the middle, but the Loco Moco part of it is that it comes over rice and with gravy, and also mac salad

For me, the concept of this dish ended up being more interesting than the actual result There were certainly some highlights. The egg was perfectly soft-boiled with a slightly runny yolk inside, the ground beef tasted quite good, and the mac salad was especially excellent - it had a certain spice to it that was delightful The gravy was fine, but nothing special

The main issue was with the breading of the beef. It was really soggy, to the point that it just didn't taste like anything except like a covering that was wet from the gravy. There wasn't the slightest hint of crunch, or anything more than a damp blanket over the beef. Since the breading comprised a large portion of the volume of the meal, since there wasn't much to like about it, this lowered the overall experience Also, the rice was on the drier side. This got better after mixing with gravy, but it was not great at the start

We also got the fried cauliflower as an appetizer - and this was decent - the upper parts were a bit lacking in sauce, but the light breading worked wel here

The price was on the expensive side, as it was $40 per person. The portions are decent, but not overwhelming. I think there are cheaper spots all along Chinatown that work better if you're looking for value

Overall, it's an interesting concept, but there are some issues here that prevent it from being a spot I really...