Izakaya Tora — Restaurant in West Hollywood

Izakaya Tora is truly an exceptional Japanese restaurant that's located in the heart of West Hollywood. The restaurant looks quite small from the exterior so you may miss it walking by but the signs there. When you enter, the restaurant is brightly lit up by natural light, thanks to the large windows in the front. As you walk in, you have the option of sitting at either the sushi bar or at the tables. I definitely recommend you sitting at the sushi bar so you're able to witness how all the dedicated chefs here prepare your meal in a very meticulous manner. You'll be able to see the amount of concentration and energy they put in to make your plate presentable.

Omakase: Every single fish that was served was perfection. The amount of flavor and umami melts in your mouth at first bite. Although I forgot most of the names of the fish, the Santa Barbara uni (sea urchin) was decadent. When the chef was preparing the omakase, I could see how detailed he was in terms of presenting the dish and topping each fish with a garnish; whether it be gold flakes, caviar, or yuzu.

Chicken Karaage: lightly fried but immensely juicy on the inside. Unlike most places who serve the same dish, the skin is typically fried well done so it tastes dry and unpleasant. Whereas here, it tastes light but still has the same composition as a heavily friend chicken. The sauce it comes with also adds a good kick in the flavor.

Miso Eggplant Tempura: I personally hate eggplant with a passion because I can't stand the taste and texture but the Miso Eggplant Tempura blew my mind. At first glance, it doesn't remind you of an eggplant because of the tempura batter covering it. My initial bite of the tempura made me believe it was some type of tofu because it didn't really have that eggplant texture and taste I abhorred. In addition, the miso and yuzu sauce that was drizzled on the top of the eggplant was more overpowering that it completely negated the terrible taste. It was the amazing sauce that made me enjoy eggplants again but then again, I can only enjoy it if I only ate at this restaurant.

Okonomiyaki: Unlike the okonomiyaki's I've had in Osaka, the one served here is very different in terms of taste and looks. At first glance, the portion size is smaller than a typical okonomiyaki restaurant but then again, it is an appetizer and not a full entree. The texture is more on the crunchy side which I extremely enjoy. Every bite was as crunch as the first so I think they've perfected a great okonomiyaki dish to serve.

Salmon Carpaccio: favorite part of this dish was combining the fried onion and salmon into my mouth. I've never had a dish quite like this where they serve sashimi with fried onions. The sauce that is served with this dish was more on the sweeter side but I have a more sensitive palate when it comes to sweetness so it may be just me. It's beautifully served with a flower on top. I thought the flower was edible but I realized I was wrong, whoops.

Pork Belly Skewer: great in taste and with a hint of yuzu as a garnish on top of each pork belly. Each skewer comes with 3 pieces and at this point in my meal, I was already stuffed but I had to sample some skewers before I left.

Miso Chilean Sea Bass: Holy fish this was a melt in your mouth foodgasm. By far my favorite skewer at Izakaya Tora. The portion size of this sea bass was generous in my opinion, especially for the price of it, you can't get that size anywhere else. The glaze paired well with the sea bass with a hint of sweetness. You can't go wrong with sea bass with any dish but how it's prepared can be a struggle. I would most definitely come back and order more of this skewer because it's worth my money.

If you haven't tried Izakaya Tora yet, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND you trekking out to West Hollywood and giving it a try. I cant stress enough on how wonderful this restaurant is and the quality of seafood they bring to the table. I guarantee you that your experience will be amazing and no matter what dish you order, you won't be...

I visited Izakaya Tora for lunch on a Friday afternoon & had quite the feast! There’s indoor and outdoor dining, and I opted to sit indoors at the bar because I had the omakase set.

I’ve had omakase at fine Japanese restaurants, so I was pleasantly surprised at how good the quality of fish was at this Izakaya joint. Each piece of sushi had unique toppings & flavor profiles with a good range of fish. My sushi chef was Phil, who’s such a friendly & entertaining guy!

9 PIECE OMAKASE SET BY PHIL: ⁃ Red Snapper top with yuzu ⁃ Black Snapper tiger tobiko ⁃ Goldeneye snapper with tobiko and green onion ⁃ Salmon belly with tobiko ⁃ Yellowtail with tobiko ⁃ Chutoro with A5 Wagyu, kizami wasabi & green onion ⁃ Otoro with caviar, truffle & gold ⁃ Santa Barbara uni with shaved truffle ⁃ Engawa with shiso leaf and ankimo ⁃ Fried baby crab ⁃ Tamago made on stovetop

APPETIZERS & AL A CARTE: ⁃ MISO SOUP: Classic miso soup with cubes of tofu and seaweed. ⁃ SALMON DONABE: This stone pot with salmon and salmon eggs was so delicious! I loved that the rice at the bottom got crispy. ⁃ KUSHIYAKI SKEWERS: There’s such a wide range of proteins you can choose from, and even chicken skin! Each skewer was glazed in a sweet & savory sauce and had a nice smokey flavor. ⁃ SWEET & SOUR SWAI FISH: This tastes like Korean tang suyuk, but rather than pork it’s swai fish! The sauce was sticky, sweet & sour. ⁃ TUNA SASHIMI: The presentation of these fatty fresh slices of tuna sashimi was so cool, it sat on an icy tuna fish! ⁃ YELLOWTAIL SASHIMI SMOKED IN APPLEWOOD: I love when fish is torched or smoked, and the applewood flavor really came through! Super tender & loved the tangy sauce it was dressed in. ⁃ A5 WAGYU: You get a generous amount of A5, probably like a dozen pieces! You can grill it on your own on the stone slab, or have a server do it for you. It was so fatty & tender!

I love that Izakaya Tora has a casual ambience, but the quality of food is so too notch! Will definitely return to try the other items...

Based on the pictures and the reviews I saw on Google I was very excited to give this place a try, As they have a 4.6 rating. I was really shocked and surprised when I arrived at the place. This place is a dump. From cheesy decorations to piled up boxes everywhere, you would not expect to walk in to a place like this with a 4.6 rating. And then there was the food. Almost Everything we ate was overly sweet. We ordered the sashimi salad. It was extremely sweet with a drizzle of strawberry yogurt on top. I have never experienced anything like that and hope I won’t ever again. It was so nauseating. They also forgot to add the gobo and avocado to the salad. The waitress told me different chef at the restaurant prepare the salad differently, which made no sense to me. Later on she came over with a plate of avocado and gobo on the side and told us that the chef had forgotten to add it to the salad but we can go ahead and enjoy it with the rest of our meal. We had the crunchy albacore roll that had a sickly sweet sauce Followed by Sea bass tempura with more sweet sauce. We had the miso sea bass skewers which were delicious And the yellowtail jalapeño sashimi was also good. We had the salmon Donabe Which is a bowl of fried rice with cooked salmon, salmon egg, and masago All smashed together in a pile of gooey mess. The whole experience was so disappointing.Considering Nobu Malibu is rated 4.4, I’m not really sure how this place has a 4.6 rating. The bill came and we were shocked by the price. It was super expensive. I do not recommend this place and do not be fooled By the pictures and...