11/09/08

My favorite brunch spot is CLOSED!!!

by gastronomist

No sense telling you how great is was, since it's now closed. =( They were in a very hidden location

06/26/08

AMAZING FOOD+SERVICE!

by phinnie

I've been here several times, each time thinking that this place would have caught on by now. It's that good. The sushi is great, as well as the korean stir fry dishes. Presentation is pleasing to the eye, and the service is top notch! We try to go here whenever we're in Santa Monica. Everyone we've recommended this place to loves it, as well.

Location is hidden, so probably why they don't do as well as they should. I really want this place to succeed! Check it out!

• Pros: Top notch food+service
• Cons: Hidden - it's behind Ben & Jerry's on Main St.

02/11/08

Korean-style tapas bar

by liz_b

We happened to visit during Happy Hour, in which the menu items were half-priced. We ordered various dishes to try out the menu. My boyfriend ordered tofu salad and a sushi roll that we shared. I cannot recall the type of roll for some reason. I ordered bulgogi bibimbap (Korean dish) and freshwater eel sushi. He had a pinot noir while I ordered a lychee martini. It was so good! I was surprised to see full-sized dishes rather than smaller Happy Hour bar dishes. They were so attentive, a very Korean style of waiting on the customer. They even give you quarters to feed your meter.

The only problem I forsee for them is that the place is very hidden, in the back of a shopping plaza. We happened to be walking around, looking for a restaurant. We were lucky to wander in. If we hadn't read the signs on the shopping plaza, we never would have bothered. That said, we really lucked out. They serve very good food. Not traditional Korean, but more like a fusion Korean-Japanese-Californian. I'm coming back again and again!

• Pros: food is excellent, especially for happy hour. great service. if you can find parking, you can feed the meter with their quarters.
• Cons: no parking lot, so you will have to hunt for parking. it's very hard to find, in the back of the plaza.

10/05/07

This place was a true find!

by bbehnke

I have been there twice... plan to go again for sure! The food was excellent, as well as, the service. It wasn't that busy however, almost seemed erie at how empty it was considering the size and great atmosphere and design of the place.

07/11/07

Yey for Fusion

by m_raven415

So for a friend's birthday dinner, she chose this restaurant for its location and its interesting description online. Tucked in a corner off Main Street, you can't really see it from the street. It has its own valet parking if you can't find street parking. The inside is a great open space with a very modern feel. We had a party of 7 and the staff was very friendly and helpful even if we did not have reservation. They sat us right away. The drinks are delicious and unique. The manager was so nice when I told him that it was my friend's birthday. He brought out a slice of cake for her. We even broke a glass in the middle of dinner and all he said was that a party is not a party until something is broken. The waiter even gave me a free drink. The food is delicious too. Everyone was very happy when we left the place. I would go back in a heartbeat.

• Pros: Great service, nice atmosphere, great food
• Cons: None

05/25/07

avoid, maybe always

by janerooney

Yellow sushi rice? What? Also, it was sweet yellow rice. Weird. Their version of spicy scallops is to add chili pepper and tabasco sauce. The shrimp tempura roll was on the menu at least ten times with different names and yet it did not resemble any shrimp tempura roll that I am familiar with. It was rolled in something sweet and crunchy. Service was fine and friendly, but mildly clueless. We were the only people in the restaurant on a Friday night which felt like the twilight zone and should have tipped us off to the quality of the food. I'm not sure what other people had to eat here. Perhaps we were there on a bad night, but it felt like they were playing at being a sushi restaurant and getting it all wrong. Sorry to be harsh and apparently other people disagree but I can not in good faith recommend that any fellow sushi lover go here.

• Pros: ambience
• Cons: yellow rice, and questionable rolls.

05/16/07

You pay for what you get, delicious food!

by bellaviv

First get a bottle of champagne relax and the delicious plates will begin coming out. Such a good dining experience and the service was phenomonal.

• Pros: Food and Service
• Cons: None

02/22/07

best sushi in SM

by foodieluc

This is my favorite new restaurant in Santa Monica. Excellent service, great sushi and entrees, great atmosphere. Highly recommend trying this spot out.

• Pros: Food, Service, Atmosphere
• Cons: Hard to spot location

02/22/07

Great new restaurant for Main Street, Santa Monica

by fernfood

I just went here with my fiance and we had the greatest time. The service is impeccable, they are all so nice and attentive, the food was great, I really liked the Ocean Roll, and the short ribs are great. They also have green tea yogurt that might be better than Pinkberry.... I hope the word gets out that this is a great spot since they are located in the old Rockenwagner space and you can't see them well from Main Street. Check it out!

• Pros: service and food
• Cons: hard to see from the street

"Nomadic" Asian fusion and sushi with a Korean twist in Santa Monica's chic Frank Gehry-designed Edgemar arts mall.

by Martha Burr

In Short
Longtime home of Rockenwagner, the space has been updated with a sleek minimalism playing off high wooden ceilings, rough-hewn beams and polished cement flooring. Huge white paper lamps glow over sleek black tables and leather banquettes; a mod lounge and inviting patio finds an artsy Santa Monica crowd sipping soju cocktails and premium sakes. Dishes include braised shiitake mushrooms with avocado yuzu dressing, king prawn tempura, bulgogi bibimbap, and filet mignon with red wine ginseng sauce.