(310) 659-8887

134 N La Cienega Blvd (Wilshire Boulevard)
Beverly Hills, CA 90211 34.0667 -118.3762

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Neighborhood: Beverly Hills

gonpachi.jp/en/casual/home/we…

Years in business

Established in 2007

Hours:

Mon-Sun 5pm-11pm

Price:

$$$

Last updated 8.15.11

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, Discover, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Family-Friendly Dining, Late Night Dining, Outdoor Dining, Private Rooms, People Watching, Business Dining, Family Style Dining, Date Spot, Group Dining, Happy Hour, Dine At The Bar, Bar Scene

General Info:

Open 7 Days

Cuisine:

Japanese, Sushi

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Gonpachi

Featured Review

Martha Burr

Contributor

More like a dramatic Kurosawa movie set than a restaurant, the first American outpost of this successful Japanese chain spent millions importing 300-year-old wooden houses to transform the long-ago Ed Debevic's space into a luxe izakaya (Japanese small plates) arena. The result is three levels of elegantly rustic dining spaces include garden views, an inner courtyard with sumiyaki bar, balcony perches, plus a sake-tasting room. The huge menu is all about upscale traditional tavern fare. A salad of lotus root and burdock is a springboard to sputnik-like shrimp fritters, or octopus with green…

Editor's Tips

Where to Sit:
Romantic tables for two overlook the garden, singles find the sumiyaki bar lively, and families are comfortable at surrounding tables or window booths.
What to Drink:
The serious sake list ranges from standard Junmai-shu to premium Ginjyo-shu, by glass and bottle. There are also specialty cocktails and an extensive wine list; a full bar sits at the entrance.
The Extras:
Two private tatami rooms are available for eight to10 people--there's a $500 minimum. The sake tasting room is also available for private dining.
ambiance
95.0% positive
  1. “The atmosphere is just great, but the food and service is just alright.”
  2. “Imported wasabi, authentic ambience, Japanese Garden, fresh handmade Soba Noodles daily, imported Japanese charcoal.”
  3. “The ambiance and decor are stunning.”
  4. “Very romantic garden, large rooms for parties available, and a nice bar off to the side for after work happy hours.”
  5. “will return to this restaurant because it is not too expensive, and I love the atmosphere.”
  6. “Great decor!”
  7. “But only if the food was as great as the decor.”
  8. “The overal decor and ambience is amazing.”
  9. “Decor is still nice but their decision to close the upstairs due to lack of business has ruin even the atmosphere.”
  10. “Unbeliably affordable for a Japanese restaurant with such great food and decor.”
  11. “would NOT recommend this place to anyone and it is not worth going for just the ambience.”
  12. “Great food, Great service, fun place to be”
  13. “But the prices weren't terrible, considering that the food is pretty darn great, it's located in an expensive area, and the ambiance is the best.”
  14. “Great atmosphere, food and service.”
  15. “only wish that the food was just as good, didn't live up to the decor.”
  16. “Reasonable priced, fun friendly staff, and really savory food.”
  17. “Very chic yet comfortable atmosphere.”
  18. “love gonpachi's food and its ambience.”
  19. “Overall, great food, great decor, great service, whats not to like.”
  20. “Big red comfortable lounge chairs.”
drinks
94.44000244140625% positive
  1. “The cocktails were great, you could tell everything was made from the freshest ingredients.”
  2. “The Bartenders were so friendly and knowledgeable about everything, we ended up dining at the bar!”
  3. “come here every other week, and eat at sushi bar since I am a big sushi fan (no Americanized rolls for me though.”
  4. “There is happy hour every day as well from 5-7pm in the beautiful sake bar, so come on in for a cocktail and sample the chef's tasting menu of the day if you'd like!”
  5. “Very romantic garden, large rooms for parties available, and a nice bar off to the side for after work happy hours.”
  6. “wide screen flat panel t.v.'s and the happy hour food/drinks were awesome, and inexpensive!”
  7. “There is space for families (kid friendly) to have a nice dinner, the bar is perfect for dates or singles, the third level has two private rooms ideal for business and surrounding tables overlooking the second level for dates or friends.”
  8. “From the 300 year old front gate, the walk through the zen garden, the AWESOME bar, all the way through the scenery from KillBill!”
  9. “We like the "Genmai" tea that has popped rice grains with the tea leaves that gives the tea a sweeter, roasty flavor.”
food quality
86.11000061035156% positive
  1. “love sushi, but when i ordered sushi it was very small.”
  2. “the food was good and service was decent.”
  3. “come here every other week, and eat at sushi bar since I am a big sushi fan (no Americanized rolls for me though.”
  4. “The food is the best quality, since many of the chefs from the Tokyo restaurant were brought over for the LA restaurant, and new fish comes in every day locally and from Tsukiji Market in Tokyo, so you don't have to worry about what you're eating!”
  5. “Reasonable priced, fun friendly staff, and really savory food.”
  6. “Amazing space, amazing food, great service.”
  7. “The interior does look a little like a movie set, but it is still beautiful and speaks authentic Japanese style and architecture with more sleek and simple quality than glam.”
  8. “wide array of rare and interesting Japanese sake and shochu provides a perfect, balanced complement to the cuisine.”
  9. “Quality of fish is good but I had better and cheaper.”
  10. “know their japanese, but i've been to other japanese restaurant where the sushi is not ridiculously big for "american" customers.”
  11. “Last weekend I went as part of a large group who are no strangers to spending $$$$ for a good Japanese meal.”
  12. “My belief is that the food is ok- less than expected- the place is nice - and the service is so bad.”
  13. “Please do try this place if you want to feel transported to Tokyo and enjoy a satisfying meal!”
  14. “the food was good but the worth was not there.”
  15. “The food itself was extremely good and tasty.”
  16. “The best Japanese food in town.”
  17. “They serve bad quality, bad tasting, badly prepared food in bad presentation.”
  18. “Soba noodles are AWESOME!”
  19. “love gonpachi's food and its ambience.”
  20. “only wish that the food was just as good, didn't live up to the decor.”
  21. “But only if the food was as great as the decor.”
  22. “The waitress was rude and the food was terrible.”
  23. “The grilled black cod was amazing, and the cold soba noodles were made fresh right in front of us.”
  24. “Great atmosphere, food and service.”
  25. “But the prices weren't terrible, considering that the food is pretty darn great, it's located in an expensive area, and the ambiance is the best.”
  26. “We like the "Genmai" tea that has popped rice grains with the tea leaves that gives the tea a sweeter, roasty flavor.”
  27. “Between everyone at the table we had a little of everything (Sushi, Warn/ cold dishes, the food on a stick, etc..) so there wasn't much we didn't try.”
  28. “think the only thing worth going back is the fresh soba noodles they make in house, sumiyaki, and their mochiso (their version of mojito).”
  29. “Great food, Great service”
  30. “We went on a Wednesday night expecting great service & food.”
  31. “The atmosphere is just great, but the food and service is just alright.”
  32. “The lunch menu is an incredible value: tons of top notch food at half of what you'd pay elsewhere on restaurant row.”
  33. “The maitre'd came to our table because our friend, a chef from Vegas was there and he explained every dish, told us wonderful background info and introduced all the wonderful waistaff.”
  34. “Great food, Great service, fun place to be”
  35. “love the spicy tuna on crispy rice.”
  36. “We had a tuna tostada appetizer that was excellent, it was spicy tuna mix with home cut sweet potato fries that you scoop the tuna mix up with.”
  37. “The waitress never wrote what food was order by who, so when the food arrived the servers just guess who ordered what.”
  38. “usually order the Omakase so that I get the best fish of the day and add a few Kushiyaki (skewers) because they are not ignorable.”
  39. “Our meal, again, was good.”
  40. “think this restaurant is beautiful and actually really delicious.”
  41. “Unbeliably affordable for a Japanese restaurant with such great food and decor.”
  42. “wide screen flat panel t.v.'s and the happy hour food/drinks were awesome, and inexpensive!”
  43. “Fresh soba noodles from buckwheat flour are threshed and milled right on the premises daily.”
  44. “Overall, great food, great decor, great service, whats not to like.”
  45. “Imported wasabi, authentic ambience, Japanese Garden, fresh handmade Soba Noodles daily, imported Japanese charcoal.”
  46. “Great food”
  47. “The restaurant is beautiful and our food was good, but not that memorable.”
  48. “went to Gonpachi because I wanted sushi, but when I got there, the friendly server explained to me I had many options if I wanted to be healthy besides”
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. “went to Gonpachi because I wanted sushi, but when I got there, the friendly server explained to me I had many options if I wanted to be healthy besides”
  2. “The lunch menu is an incredible value: tons of top notch food at half of what you'd pay elsewhere on restaurant row.”
  3. “There is happy hour every day as well from 5-7pm in the beautiful sake bar, so come on in for a cocktail and sample the chef's tasting menu of the day if you'd like!”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “Gonpachi is a really nice restaurant.”
  2. “The food is the best quality, since many of the chefs from the Tokyo restaurant were brought over for the LA restaurant, and new fish comes in every day locally and from Tsukiji Market in Tokyo, so you don't have to worry about what you're eating!”
  3. “The best Japanese restaurant addition LA has ever seen!”
return potential
100.0% positive
  1. “will return to this restaurant because it is not too expensive, and I love the atmosphere.”
service
78.00000190734863% positive
  1. “Our server was great, her name was Debbie.”
  2. “Our server was awesome, but she doesn't work there anymore.”
  3. “Food and service were great.”
  4. “Awful portions; worse service; i would only recommend to someone I dont like”
  5. “The atmosphere is just great, but the food and service is just alright.”
  6. “My belief is that the food is ok- less than expected- the place is nice - and the service is so bad.”
  7. “Overall, great food, great decor, great service, whats not to like.”
  8. “Great food, Great service”
  9. “Great atmosphere, food and service.”
  10. “We went on a Wednesday night expecting great service & food.”
  11. “Great food, Great service, fun place to be”
  12. “Our server was so nice and knowledgeable about everything!”
  13. “The waitress never wrote what food was order by who, so when the food arrived the servers just guess who ordered what.”
  14. “There is space for families (kid friendly) to have a nice dinner, the bar is perfect for dates or singles, the third level has two private rooms ideal for business and surrounding tables overlooking the second level for dates or friends.”
  15. “Amazing space, amazing food, great service.”
  16. “The Bartenders were so friendly and knowledgeable about everything, we ended up dining at the bar!”
  17. “The whole staff was friendly, we even met the chef.”
  18. “give one star since the service levels were terrible.”
  19. “The waitress was rude and the food was terrible.”
  20. “Reasonable priced, fun friendly staff, and really savory food.”
  21. “enjoyed it quite a bit, and service was friendly.”
  22. “Our server, SKY, was really great.”
  23. “It does not take a MBA from Stanford to know that sinec the service is poor- a lot of patrons are no coming back- you only get one time to impress!”
  24. “went to Gonpachi because I wanted sushi, but when I got there, the friendly server explained to me I had many options if I wanted to be healthy besides”
  25. “the food was good and service was decent.”
value
65.0% positive
  1. “Unbeliably affordable for a Japanese restaurant with such great food and decor.”
  2. “will return to this restaurant because it is not too expensive, and I love the atmosphere.”
  3. “wide screen flat panel t.v.'s and the happy hour food/drinks were awesome, and inexpensive!”
  4. “The sumiyaki is alright, the soba is not very good in my opinon, had much better for $8 bucks in other places, and the portions were very small compared to the price.”
  5. “think the only thing worth going back is the fresh soba noodles they make in house, sumiyaki, and their mochiso (their version of mojito).”
  6. “The lunch menu is an incredible value: tons of top notch food at half of what you'd pay elsewhere on restaurant row.”
  7. “But the prices weren't terrible, considering that the food is pretty darn great, it's located in an expensive area, and the ambiance is the best.”
  8. “Awful portions; worse service; i would only recommend to someone I dont like”
  9. “would NOT recommend this place to anyone and it is not worth going for just the ambience.”
  10. “the food was good but the worth was not there.”
wait time
100.0% positive
  1. “Most amazing quick LA getaway!”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

10/03/10

Best Restaurant in LA

by Brianna90210 at Citysearch

From the moment you walk in you feel like your entering japan... Amazing zen garden/koi pond.. The food was really really good... I would recommend the crispy tuna tower, ebi shinjo (shrimp dumpling-friter), tuna tostada & the yellowtail carpaccio special are all great for apps. Then for main course the whole seabass sukiyaki was the best fish I've ever had. Anything is amazing there.. I've been to gonpachi tons of times and I always leave with a smile and a happy belly.. That staff is very friendly. They have the best happy hr EVERYDAY, $3 Japanese beer (18oz) and food and drink specials.. Try it, they will not let you down!!

4 Star Rating: Recommended

08/28/10

Labor Day Weekend's Kill Bill Costume Party

Contributor at Citysearch

eVita Parties Presents

Labor Day Weekend's Kill Bill Costume Party

This is a upscale sexy mixed crowd

Bring Your Friends & Come Party from 10pm-2am

This event will be filmed like a music video

$1000 – Best Costume Contest Prize

Red Carpet Event with Confirmed Celebrity Hosts

DATE:

Saturday September 4th from 9pm

SPECIAL:

Complimentary Champagne, Sake Cocktails & Sushi only with presale tickets

Bottle Service: $500 for Goose + Patron + Champagne

PERFORMANCES:

Singing Sensation Karlos Farrar and Reason 'Life of a Star'

Hip Hop / Top 40 music by DJ Intensity & Tom Taus

LA's most sexy & popular go-go dancers

VENUE:

Gonpachi, 134 N. La Cienega Blvd. & Clifton Way Beverly Hills, CA, 90211

Valet & Self Parking Available.

DRESS CODE:

- Please wear a costume for fast & discounted entry

For Bottle Service & Entry call 310.400.4690

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

04/24/10

The Place to Go!

by ImTheOne at Citysearch

The food was exceptional! Everything tasted good and came out pretty quick. We had a tuna tostada appetizer that was excellent, it was spicy tuna mix with home cut sweet potato fries that you scoop the tuna mix up with. The grilled black cod was amazing, and the cold soba noodles were made fresh right in front of us. Our server was great, her name was Debbie. The whole staff was friendly, we even met the chef. I'll be back to try the all you can eat deal.

  • Pros: Atmosphere is straight out of Japan
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

08/03/09

feels like I'm in Tokyo

by dineoutluver at Citysearch

Since I used to go to Gonpachi in Tokyo all the time, this place makes me feel like I'm in my hometown. I come here every other week, and eat at sushi bar since I am a big sushi fan (no Americanized rolls for me though... I go for the traditional nigiri!). I usually order the Omakase so that I get the best fish of the day and add a few Kushiyaki (skewers) because they are not ignorable. Tsukune and Enoki maki are my favorites!

Although this place does make those Americanized sushi rolls, this place serves a very traditional Japanese food. Sushi, the edo-mae style, Kushi-yaki on a Sumi (charcoal?), and their daily handmade Soba. I cannot go home without finishing my dinner with their super delicious pumpkin zenzai. I could eat that everyday! Unbeliably affordable for a Japanese restaurant with such great food and decor.

  • Pros: Great Sushi and Kushiyaki. Never forget the pumpkin zenzai!
4 Star Rating: Recommended

07/11/09

Great food, Great service

by hop78 at Citysearch

Everytime I come to Venice to visit my Brother I just insist on coming here at least one nite.

Great food, Great service, fun place to be

Thanks for being there

The Details on Gonpachi

Place Categories:

  • authentic ambience
  • friendly whole staff
  • knowledgeable bartenders
  • not ridiculously big sushi
  • authentic architecture
  • flat happy hour fooddrinks
  • disappointing gonpachi
  • good quality
  • stunning ambiance
  • beautiful building
  • best benihana
  • great japanese food
  • great service
  • really great server
  • beautiful new restaurant
  • great overal decor
  • just great atmosphere
  • fresh soba noodles
  • never order food
  • not recommend place
  • awful experience
  • enjoy satisfying meal
  • beautiful japanese garden
  • comfortable red comfortable lounge
  • beautiful sake bar
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