The new Asians - SPECIAL RESTAURANT ISSUE: LOTUS LAND - Los Angeles Times

L.A.'s new generation of Asian restaurants | A revolutionary chef
The new Asian clubs | The hot spots | The twists and trends
2005 dining guide

Fabulous japanese food in Los Angeles is nothing new. Don't forget, it was here that Nobu Matsuhisa developed the distinctive chili and garlic-edged cuisine that globe-trotters in New York, Paris, London and even Tokyo must have. Or that Masa Takayama, now the toast of Manhattan, started out at Ginza Sushiko in a modest mid-Wilshire strip mall.

But if you think the Japanese restaurant scene has run out of steam, you couldn't be more wrong. Japanese chefs, both innovators and traditionalists, are striking out in new and exciting directions.

Sushi fanatics with deep pockets can still find amazing toro, uni and, in season, the notorious blowfish meticulously prepared. The Franco Japanese restaurants that dominated the scene a decade ago have given way to casual, hip cafés that turn out worldly Japanese food. An elegant tofu restaurant has landed in Beverly Hills. Avid foodies are finding their way to far-flung neighborhoods to fill up on char-grilled yakitori or soothing soba, lacy tempura or lusty Japanese pub food. Japanese restaurant chains are looking to Los Angeles too. Gyu-kaku, for instance, offers a stylish Japanese spin on Korean barbecue. And for those in the know, the city harbors the occasional well-disguised dive, where Japanese baseball players go to chill out, or the sake counter with no name on the door. It's all out there if you want to find it.

Umenohana turns everything you think you know about tofu on its head. Hippie food? I think not. This sleek new Beverly Hills restaurant specializes in yuba, the paper-thin skin formed on top of a bubbling pot of soy milk. Plucked out with chopsticks, the yuba resembles fine sheets of pasta. Eat this delicacy plain or with a splash of shoyu, some finely grated ginger and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds. It appears as a tofu siu mai dumpling, or in a martini glass topped with caviar as part of Umenohana's set menus. Some involve cooking the yuba or a tofu hot pot at the table. You also can order a la carte, advised by the unusually gracious and well-informed staff.

When Ginza Sushiko's Masa Takayama went to New York, Hiro Urasawa, who had worked with Takayama, moved into the same tiny space. He didn't change a thing, but Urasawa is a subtly different restaurant. Though you can still count on superb sushi, the one-price menu now includes more kaiseki-style dishes based on the Japanese tea ceremony. Urasawa, trained in the kaiseki tradition in Kyoto, shines with the series of delicate small courses. He's retained the same high-quality sources for his seafood, and plenty of Japanese businessmen and aficionados are happy to spend $250 and up for a meal at this intimate Japanese restaurant.

In Japan, tempura chefs are trained in their art every bit as rigorously as sushi chefs. A good one would never use just one batter, but prides himself on matching the weight of the batter to the ingredient being fried. He presents the perfect shrimp or pepper on a square of white paper, the better to show off the finesse of his frying. The closest thing to the experience in Japan is Komatsu Tempura Bar in Torrance. You can sit at the bar and watch the tempura chef's every move, or, if they're available, you can nab one of the three minuscule private rooms with shoji screens that slide shut. The best strategy is to order from one of several set menus. The tempura will just keep coming — asparagus, kabocha squash, shiitake mushrooms, whitefish, shrimp and on and on. Stir some grated daikon into the dipping sauce and you're good to go. The waiters seem a bit undone by non-Japanese diners, but they do their best.

In an airy space in the Helms Bakery complex, Kazuto Matsusaka and his wife, Vicki Fan, have created a minimalist Asian café with much more than neighborhood appeal. Matsusaka, who was Chinois' first chef, has been around the block a few times. His cooking at Beacon is fresh and modern, casual and inviting. It's a thrilling combination of Japanese and California cuisine, with occasional touches from Thailand or China. He's strong on salads, such as green beans with julienned smoked tofu in a Banyuls vinegar dressing. Fried oysters come wrapped in lettuce with yuzu-drenched tartar sauce. He does a marvelous ahi tuna pizza with a slip of wasabi-mayonnaise beneath the raw fish and a terrific grilled hanger steak served with Chinese long beans in sesame sauce. Slip in for dinner before a film or a concert at the Jazz Bakery. Indecently good food for the price.

At Orris in the historic Japanese neighborhood on Sawtelle Boulevard in West Los Angeles, Hideo Yamashiro is cooking up a storm of small dishes — his take on the tapas trend. After years of churning out deep-fried catfish at his namesake South Pasadena restaurant Shiro, Yamashiro is trying on different accents — Italian, French, a word or two of Chinese — but underneath them all is a very Japanese sensibility. Lightly battered halibut dipped in Okinawan sea salt or a smoldering curry powder heightened with cumin and cayenne is sheer fireworks. He's got flaky spring rolls stuffed with shrimp and scallops, and Sonoma duck breast with a dab of yuzu and green chile paste. Jump into the menu anywhere: It's strictly mix-and-match, with most dishes under $10.

At tiny Orochon — a terrific ramen parlor in Weller Court in Little Tokyo — you'll find a wildly diverse crowd sitting at crammed-together tables and slurping steaming bowls of noodles. Ordering is simple. Choose one of three broths — miso, soy sauce or salt — and the spiciness desired, from Step 7 (non-spicy) to Step 1 (extreme). Before you order, check out Orochon's "wall of bravery," where Polaroids are posted of patrons who have managed to finish a bowl of the spiciest ramen in less than 30 minutes. I salute them. Competitive types might be wise to take it easy, starting at Step 4 to see if they can take it. The broths are particularly good, especially the miso in which bob bean sprouts, bell pepper and seaweed. For about a dollar extra, you can customize your ramen with a slice of cha-shu pork or an egg. I haven't had the chance to prove it yet, but this stuff should stop a cold in its tracks.

These days, izakayas, or Japanese-style drinking places, are part of any serious foodie's address book. The fare is rustic, and sake or beer flows to shouts of Kampai! Torafuku is a bit of an oddball, a handsome West Los Angeles restaurant with a menu of Japanese pub food. Go for the rice cooked in heavy iron kamados lined up at the front of the kitchen, a process that gives each grain a slight toasty flavor. You can order the rice topped with cured salmon and marinated vegetables or mixed with tiny dried anchovies. Other dishes are pure comfort food, or ofukuro no aji ("just the way mom makes it"). These include steamed manila clams, grilled grass-fed beef, free-range chicken and black cod. I can't get enough of the potato balls.

At Musha in Torrance, regulars sit around a communal table or take a seat at the counter. No need for a menu — just look. There's a tall omelet stuffed with rice noodles and slivered octopus, and served in big wedges, and a huge pan of steamed clams in garlic sauce with a touch of cream. Delicious marinated mackerel is finished with a blowtorch just before serving, and meats are cooked over individual braziers. The beautiful thing is that you can eat and eat and it's hard to spend more than $20 a person. There's also a branch in Santa Monica, with an even more wildly eclectic crowd.

Yakitoriya at Sawtelle and Olympic feels like a neighborhood dive in Tokyo, fast-paced and urban. Look for the cloth banner with a line drawing of a chicken hung out front. Inside, cooks behind the small counter grill skewers of chicken (you name the part, they've got it) over a Japanese hardwood fire. You also can choose vegetables threaded onto skewers, each sashed with a fine slice of chicken. The taste is smoky and irresistible, each piece of chicken slightly charred at the edges. Especially recommended: the wings, heart and thighs.

At Ka Ga Ya in Little Tokyo, shabu-shabu is the thing. It's a set meal that begins with a bite of sashimi or seared duck breast, soup and a little something else. Then comes the main event: your choice of beef (or, if you like, seafood) and a platter piled high with cabbage, chrysanthemum leaves, whole scallions, shiitake mushrooms, rice noodles and cubes of tofu to cook in a simmering bowl of broth at the table. The broth picks up flavor through the evening. In the end, it's returned to you as a marvelously flavored soup laden with noodles or rice.

With all this exquisite variety, who needs a California roll?