Slideshows

A Look at The House Omakase at Shunji, West L.A.

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Grilled conch with conch liver and dashi

Experiencing the omakase at chef Shunji Nakao’s tree trunk sushi bar may be the closest one gets to eating in Captain Nemo’s quarters, where all sustenance is sourced from the sea in a novel procession of previously unseen shapes and forms. Nakao’s parade of dishes feel spirited straight from the surf, served in extraterrestrial landscapes and rich arrangements expressing unfamiliar but addictive new flavors.

Slicing sashimi to a slow jazz soundtrack, the Asanebo co-creator is a captivating, cool magnet for the eye, pulling a tangle of seaweed fine enough to stand in as a mermaid’s weave from a plastic box, rhythmically grasping and replacing a squeeze bottle of squid ink with the speed of a gunslinger holstering his pistols, and balancing a Voss vessel filled with a pinkish-orange vinegar, hypnotically straying our attentions from the comings and goings of the neighboring adult bookstore. The staggering seasonal beauty of each plate is marked by meticulous craftsmanship and adventurous adherence to outsourcing ingredients, offering West L.A. rare tastes of Japanese mountain peaches, kinki fish, and karaage made from live, freshwater unagi that the chef dispatches himself in the kitchen. Come take a look at last night’s $80, nine-course omakase at Shunji in our slide show look at the chef at work.

Sashimi of red snapper rests on a tangle of vinegar-marinated seaweed.
On the right, baby abalone, on the left cooked red snapper with mustard spinach, bookending purple carrot, spring peas, summer squash, lotus root, and okra.
Served with bluefin and kelp-covered mackeral.
Blacker than the Tar Pits and nearly as thick, the thin squiggles of squid in squid ink with truffles, quail egg, and uni is an umami overdose we’d happily die for.
Served cold, taro rests on the bottom while the surface is topped with foie gras, yam, and grated yuzu. The dish also incorporates lily root.
The centerpiece of this conch dish is a fat piece of conch liver, tasting like a marine take on foie gras. Once the conch is eaten, diners tip the broth through the shell’s tip to have a drink.
With two weeks left in bamboo season, Nakao offered bamboo hearts with uni, fava bean, and squid ink.
The fish tastes like a cross between lobster and butterfish, complimented by a tiny mountain peach.
Unlike much of the frozen eel seen around town, Nakao gets his live for this karaage.
In Shunji’s signature dashi broth, with enoki and shitaake mushrooms, and mizuna.
In addition ot the omakase, the chef prepared sterling nigiri to patrons at the bar. At $80, we suggest saving your En Sushi dollars for a far superior omakase.
A Look at The House Omakase at Shunji, West L.A.