Izakaya Osen
Japanese restaurant · Silver Lake ·
Sushi, skewers, bowls, and Japanese fusion dishes.
Sushi, skewers, bowls, and Japanese fusion dishes.
"“I’m from Japan where there’s an izakaya every ten feet that feels like it’s a home away from home. That’s hard to find [in LA]. But with [Izakaya Osen’s] decor—posters, old-school albums, and art—they just make it feel really cozy and closer to what I’m used to. And the food is really good, their hotpot is my favorite thing. I must be dying, because my body always needs soup.”" - brant cox
"Osen Izakaya is a neighborhood Japanese restaurant along Sunset Boulevard. It specializes in kushiyaki (Japanese skewers) and offers meat, vegetarian, and seafood options. Beyond skewers, find sushi, hot pot, and signature bowls on the menu, including a toro unagi bowl with fatty tuna and charcoal-grilled eel. Make sure to make a reservation on busy nights as the wait times can get long." - Rebecca Roland
"This bustling Silver Lake izakaya is more of a crowd-pleasing sushi spot with a wide menu that features prepared appetizers and entrees (like age dashi tofu or miso-marinated Chilean sea bass) that appropriately model the Nobu menu. There are even yakitori skewers grilled over charcoal. But the sushi situation is very good, including fresh fish flown in from Japan like nodoguro (the “A5 of whitefish), bluefin toro, and Hokkaido uni. The boisterous surroundings and easy-flowing sake make this more of a celebratory place to enjoy sushi instead of a more staid counter-only omakase situation, and its central location in Silver Lake makes it a good gathering spot for those coming from various parts of the city." - Matthew Kang
"For $45, Silver Lake’s Izakaya Osen is offering an eight-course lunch menu. The meal starts with salad and miso soup before moving on to mussels, sushi, sashimi, a spicy albacore hand roll, beef and negima kushikayi, and yuzu sorbet." - Rebecca Roland
"With wood paneling and smoky yakitori grills that stink up your clothes, Osen in Silver Lake hardly feels like a Sunset Blvd. strip mall spot. This is an izakaya, so you want to get involved with small plates and meat skewers, but it would be a huge mistake to ignore the sushi menu. Whether you just grab a few a la carte nigiri or go for one of the four different omakase options (they range from $40-$150), you’ll have some of the freshest fish in the neighborhood." - brant cox, brett keating
