Just outside of the Culver City boundary line, in a strip mall with pizza and vegan restaurants, sits Michi’s Japanese Kitchen. Oozing class and Japanese authenticity, the restaurant looks wonderful and, when entering, you’re treated warmly by the beaming staff.
“Michi Japanese Kitchen is a Japanese restaurant that is focused on serving others and treating the environment with quality and respect,” reads their online biography. “We do our best to provide healthy, great-tasting foods crafted with care, using only the choicest ingredients… You’ve tried sushi at other places, now come see what makes us different. Visit Michi Japanese Kitchen today.”
Everything on the menu looks incredible, including the vast variety of sushi rolls that range in price depending on the specialty of the item. We were tempted by the Crispy Spicy Albacore Roll, the Japanese Shitake Mushroom Roll, and the Shrimp Tempura Roll. The chef, or chefs, at Michi’s Japanese Kitchen clearly know what they’re doing and they take pride in their craft. A sushi roll, when done right, is art and that is exactly what it feels like here.
As they themselves say, they take great pride in finding the best, healthiest and freshest ingredients, and that mindset shines through when sampling their food. With each dish, the greatest care has been taken to get the balance of each ingredient just right.
This is absolutely evident with the Scallop Roll. The delicate sushi roll is small but gloriously assembled. The rice is cooked perfectly – room temperature and just the right amount of sticky.
The wonderful surprise is that the roll is actually very simple. Rice, seaweed, scallop, and nothing else. But because the scallop is so fresh and delicious, it doesn’t need anything else. The roll is understated perfection. The scallop practically melts in your mouth, and balances magically well with the chewy rice.
For contrast, we also ordered the Vegetable and Shrimp Tempura. Two large shrimp, plus broccoli, sweet potato, green beans and carrot are coated in a delicious, crispy fried batter.
Tempura is a Japanese standard, but it really is great here. The batter is light and tasty, and it enhances rather than covers the flavor of the shrimp and vegetables. The shrimp is juicy and plump, while the vegetables are fresh and vibrant. It all works wonderfully well.
But then, so does everything at this awesome restaurant.
Michi’s Japanese Kitchen is located at 13354 Washington Blvd., Los Angeles 90066. Call 310-301-9100 or visit michijapanesekitchen.com.
