Sora Temaki Bar - Review - Beverly Grove - Los Angeles - The Infatuation

"Much like its sibling restaurant downstairs, Sora could benefit from doing a little less. Nearly every dish at this rooftop handroll spot at the Original Farmers Market comes cluttered with unnecessary sauces, oils, and clunky fried garnishes. The red snapper that the server says is flown in three times a week might be great, but we wouldn’t know underneath all the olive oil, truffle salt, yuzu, and cilantro. Stick to the simpler temaki instead, like spicy tuna with jalapeno and a vegan roll with miso-marinated Japanese eggplant, and then enjoy Sora’s best attribute: the peaceful, second-story patio and an interior bar with well-functioning A/C. Food Rundown The Trio Sora’s core issue can be summed up by this $32 handroll (that’s a single handroll, not three). Perhaps individually the toro, uni, and caviar on it are good, but when heaped together onto a two-bite temaki, they become a fist fight of competing flavors. And it's you wallet that loses. photo credit: Brant Cox Kumamoto Red Snapper Truffle Yuzu This sashimi plate works because, thankfully, you don’t taste much of the truffle salt. The tart yuzu does most of the heavy lifting instead. Does it overpower the red snapper? A bit. But we’ll always take yuzu over fake truffle. photo credit: Brant Cox Spicy Bluefin Tuna Jalapeño Sora’s best handrolls are their simplest, like this straightforward marinated tuna. It’s not particularly spicy, but the bits of jalapeño mixed in add a pleasant crunch. photo credit: Brant Cox Everything Smoked Salmon There’s a version of this roll that could work, but this isn’t it. As it is, the only thing you can taste is the mound of crispy onions on top and sticky bloomy-rind cheese underneath. photo credit: Brant Cox" - Brant Cox