Gonpachi

Gonpachi

Owner

Gonpachi, located on La Cienega, is the first example in this country of the well-known Tokyo-based Gonpachi chain.

At Gonpachi, the fare is definitely fun dining! A high-end izakaya-style spot, it's the perfect place to stop by after work to meet a friend for a drink and a bite. The ambiance is great for either large groups or private romantic dinners and the cuisine includes sushi, skewers, soba tempura and teppan style dishes.

Here, we bridge the old and the new by serving the finest, fresh nigiri and roll sushi in a traditional Japanese setting modeled after the Japanese tea rooms of old. Our fish is flown in daily from all over Japan, and best enjoyed with something from our extensive list of Japanese sake and shochu. Gonpachi, come in and meet the genuine article...

Martha Burr

Citysearch

The Scene
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 Ed Debevic's space into a luxe izakaya (Japanese small plates) arena. The result is stunning. 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 delicate, crunchy salad of lotus root and burdock is perfect springboard to sputnik-like shrimp fritters, or tender octopus nestled with green olives and taro. The sumiyaki (grilling) bar offers a variety of skewers including wagyu beef, huge sweet prawns, silky and smoky Japanese eggplant, and tender bacon-wrapped asparagus. Sushi is pricey, but the buckwheat soba noodles--kneaded, rolled and cut by a glass-encased chef--are dreamily seductive hot or cold and worth the trip alone.