Koi Los Angeles

West Hollywood Celebrity Hotspot Koi Reopens With Sleek New Dining Room | Eater LA

"Reopened on January 3 in an adjacent building after closing on Christmas Eve, I find Koi, a 21-year-old veteran of La Cienega Boulevard’s bustling restaurant zone, has reincarnated itself with a brand-new kitchen, a sleek if somewhat unoriginal design, an energetic covered outdoor patio and a see-and-be-seen dining room that continues to draw celebrities and paparazzi. Founder Nick Haque has expanded the brand to New York and Las Vegas, and longtime chef Rob Lucas still oversees a menu of elevated, Americanized Japanese staples — elegant, saucy takes on sashimi and sushi rolls including hamachi with yuzu ponzu and serrano chile slivers, glazed miso black cod (miso bronzed cod), baked crab rolls, dragon rolls, Koi Crispy Rice (hash brown–like bites topped with chopped, seasoned raw fish and rectangles of fried rice), crispy rice topped with chopped spicy tuna, and the “She’s So LA” roll with soft shell crab and spicy tuna. There’s a lot of sauce on many dishes (often truffle oil or sweetened soy), which makes eating raw fish easier for regulars, though the braised short ribs with plum wine reduction are an excellent meaty entree. Desserts aren’t wildly inventive but are tasty — from the white chocolate–topped cheesecake to the flourless molten cake — and the overall experience remains loud, rowdy, and aspirational, with thumping electronic tunes and sleek servers as Koi enters its third decade." - Matthew Kang