Utamaro Serves an $80 Omakase From a Michelin-Recognized Chef on Barrington

A Michelin-recognized omakase chef opened a neighborhood izakaya, and the ten-course runs eighty dollars.

Utamaro opened at 2535 S. Barrington Avenue in West Los Angeles from Hide Takeda, the chef behind Sushi Takeda in Little Tokyo, which the Michelin Guide has recognized. Hiro-san runs the sushi counter here. The format is a neighborhood izakaya rather than a destination omakase room, and the pricing reflects that in a way almost nothing else on the Westside does.

The eighty dollar omakase

This is the reason to go. Utamaro runs a roughly ten-course omakase for about $80, a number that would be hard to believe if the chef's other restaurant were not a Michelin-recognized sushi bar. The Infatuation described the nigiri as tasting like what you would find at far pricier sushi-ya, singling out gently cured mackerel. For context, the counters most often mentioned in the same breath as this quality start north of $200.

If you want to eat lighter, the Omakase Otsumami Platter is the other move, seven kinds of small bites chosen by the kitchen and the dish regulars point newcomers toward first.

The izakaya half

Nearly everything on the cooked side runs under $20. The tempura is light, the soft-shell crab rolls are oversized, and the braised pork belly is tender enough to cut with chopsticks. The menu runs four pages, which sounds unwieldy but functions as several restaurants under one roof: a date-night omakase, a Sapporo-and-karaage table for coworkers, and a corner seat with a few rolls and a book.

One honest note from early diners. The kitchen has not been perfectly consistent. The same people praising the grilled fish have flagged the crab cream croquette as well below the standard of the rest. Order toward the sushi and the signatures rather than broadly.

Drinks

The sake program is taken seriously, including Kuheiji Human, and staff recommendations are worth following. Corkage runs $35 per 720 to 750ml bottle if you would rather bring your own. The cold brew green tea is $4 and better than it needs to be.

Visiting

Utamaro is at 2535 S. Barrington Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90064, in the Westdale and Rancho Park stretch of West Los Angeles, next to a 7-Eleven and south of Olympic. Reach the restaurant at (213) 712-6662.

• Dinner: Monday through Thursday 5:30 to 10 p.m. with last call at 9:30. Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. with last call at 10.

• Lunch: Friday and Saturday only, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. This is the detail most listings get wrong, so do not plan a Tuesday lunch.

• Closed: Sunday.

• Parking: strip mall lot on site, which on that stretch of Barrington is the whole argument.

• Reservations: available, and advisable at dinner.

• Dress: casual. Guests have made a point of noting that a t-shirt drew no reaction, which for a Westside sushi room is worth saying.

Order directly through Utamaro's online ordering, follow updates on Instagram, and the omakase side of the operation is at Sushi Takeda.

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