Paul S.
Yelp
Slightly off the beaten path but that's the way I like it, however, it was the images of the food that won us over immediately. Location is off Highway 1, plenty of parking, and we'll away from the crowded downtown section of Laguna Beach.
Greeted immediately and warmly, we were directed to a nice table and given the nicely bound menus to peruse. Our drink order was placed immediately, which is always an important detail in the service industry. This also gave me time to take in the lovely anesthetics of the restaurant, where the dominant feature is blue lights on pristine white. Very calming.
The 12 piece Sashimi selection was our first choice and additional Bluefin and Salmon Sashimi, which feature five pieces in their house sauces. The presentation is marvelous too and we were quickly done, I was very hungry but tried to slow down to really savor the flavors and textures. Highlights included the scallops with peach and light plum sauce, the Albacore stood out as did the delicate Halibut. The chef took great pride in his work and it showed.
We HAD to order more so some Nigiri was added and two rolls. One, the O Roll, is without rice and features a variety of fish, crab, and roe wrapped in cucumber. The other roll was brilliantly covered in the fantastic crispy onions we first enjoyed on the Bluefin. Their eel sauce is light and delicate, not sweet and syrupy like most places. Another surprise was how we ate just enough but didn't feel too full.
The final surprise was the cost. It was up there but compared to Sugarfish locations or another recently reviewed place in K-Town, we came out well ahead by $50-75! All this quality in a nice setting. There's plenty to explore on the menu in the future, plus, I'd love to try an Omakase dinner. I also recommend their sake selection, it's clearly curated with many styles from various areas of Japan.