Yasu: From the Japanese Sea to Beverly Hills
Since 2019, chef Yasuhisa Ouchi offers a unique omakase experience in Beverly Hills. At the age of 17, chef Ouchi, an Osaka native, started learning the art of sushi. After exploring interests in art and graphic communication, he returned to his passion and perfected his culinary skills in contemporary sushi and in Edomae — sushi made with fresh seafood caught near the Tokyo Bay. In 2010, he moved to Canada and opened a westernized sushi takeout restaurant in Toronto. In 2014, armed with experience and a firm belief in his ideology of a perfect sushi restaurant, chef Ouchi opened his first namesake location, Yasu, in downtown Toronto. As the first omakase sushi bar in Canada, it soon garnered critical acclaim and multiple awards. Following this success, he moved to Beverly Hills and opened his second restaurant. The chef’s philosophy is based on kimochi: “I put a lot of feeling and care into the dishes.” Paying homage to ancestral methods, he shares his passion for bringing out the essence of each ingredient: “I wanted to bring the Japanese Sea of Umami to LA.” In order to offer the best tasting experience… READ MORE
Orsa & Winston: Asian and Italian fusion of exquisite complexity
At Orsa & Winston, chef Josef Centeno serves inventive dishes that skillfully merge Japanese and Italian flavors, which earned him his first Michelin star. Next door to Bar Amá in Downtown Los Angeles — Centeno’s second restaurant that pays tribute to Tex-Mex cuisine, Orsa & Winston offers a nightly-changing 5-course tasting menu in an elegant, intimate setting designed by Amaryllis Knight. “I wanted to get back to my fine-dining roots and be able to cook in a much smaller style and format.” Inspired by the endless possibilities of combining ingredients of each culture, Centeno is constantly searching for new connections between the Japanese and Italian cuisines in order to create an unforgettable gustatory experience… READ MORE
Merois: Wolfgang Puck elevates fine fusion
With Merois, an Asian-inspired restaurant located on the stylish rooftop of the Pendry West Hollywood, famous Michelin star chef Wolfgang Puck is writing a new chapter on Sunset Boulevard, where he first opened the legendary Spago in 1982. 40 years later, the icon who redefined California cuisine passes the torch to his second son, Byron Lazaroff-Puck, who cooked at fine- dining restaurants in France, Spain and New York before managing Merois. And Wolfgang hands the reins with pride: “My dream is to look down from heaven and say: Oh my God, the kids are doing better than I did.” At Merois, Puck’s exquisite, modern California cuisine is based on French techniques and infused with flavors from Thailand, Singapore and Japan. The 11th-floor rooftop, designed by the acclaimed Martin Brudnizki, offers… READ MORE
Mírame: Elevating Mexican gastronomy
At Mírame, Michelin star chef Joshua Gil elegantly combines contemporary Mexican cuisine with a California sensibility. Through an inventive, daily changing menu, the chef makes you discover ingredient-driven, consciously motivated Mexican cuisine, honoring a rich heritage of bold flavors in a charming decor and warm atmosphere. With locally sourced products, the chef offers vibrant tastes and compositions like the Mírame Tostadas, with bluefin tuna, uni, summer truffle and avocado; the Prime Dry-Aged Côte de Boeuf with baby corn, summer squash, tempura avocado and pine nut salsa macha; and the Mezcal Flan with cacao soil and nixtamalized papaya. “Our cuisine is whimsical, playful and rooted in techniques and flavors with nuances that merge familiarity and new experiences.” Equal importance is attached to the bar. Representing a variety of Mexican distillates, it features a selection of genuine spirits… READ MORE
Mélisse: The ever-evolving, progressive culinary experience
At the intimate, 2 Michelin star, 14-seat Mélisse, chef Josiah Citrin offers a journey through different textures, flavors and cultures, where particular attention is paid to the harmony of food and wine: “The wine highlights the nuances and creativity of the food while the food brings out the nuances in the wine.” Using the most exclusive ingredients from all around the world and working with California farms, Citrin and Chef de cuisine Ian Scaramuzza have designed an avant-garde 7-course tasting menu. Opened in 1999 and reimagined in 2019, the storied restaurant boasts a unique setting, where the dining room and kitchen become one, and a modern take on fine dining with its 2.5-hour culinary experience. The ever-evolving menu that once focused on classical French cuisine, has evolved into contemporary American or what chef Scaramuzza calls progressive Californian. “The dishes are rooted in French techniques, but certainly more playful and inspired by travel throughout the world.” However, two signature dishes… READ MORE Share your experience at Mélisse with #MelisseRestaurant
Da Lat Rose: Pioneer of high-end Vietnamese gastronomy
With Da Lat Rose, located above the iconic Crustacean in Beverly Hills, Chef An wanted to tell her story through an upscale 12-course tasting menu. Developed with Chef Tony Nguyen who was French trained at the Culinary Institute of America, the restaurant pays homage to their Vietnamese roots. Each course being inspired by An’s dramatic life events, the chefs offer an unprecedented gastrobiography experience that elevates traditional Vietnamese cuisine. Forced into exile from Northern Vietnam, An was 11… READ MORE
Katana: A modern interpretation of Japanese tradition
In a glamorous setting boasting an elevated terrace overlooking the famous Sunset strip, Katana offers a diverse, imaginative menu which combines Japanese tradition with modernity. Opened in 2002 by the Innovative Dining Group, the restaurant has become a landmark of West Hollywood. Inspired by the ancestral culinary techniques from the Japanese village of Wakayama… READ MORE
