taisho's meal at shibumi, dtla.
the first reservation i really wanted to make post-vaccination was shibumi. we’ve been several times before, and it truly is our favorite dining experience in the city. however! they’re indoor dining only, so we waited a spell before going, just so we were more comfortable being around people in public situations again.
shibumi negroni: amass gin, bruto americano, cappelletti aperitivo; shibumi martini: amass gin, vermouth, cocchi, orange bitters.
fresh seaweed shot: junsai, mozuku, mountain yam.
18 month-aged quince and yubeshi (yuzu stuffed with miso)
they are currently only offering a tasting menu (ikkyu’s meal), with a couple of upgrades (taisho’s meal, emperor’s meal). we did taisho’s meal so that we could replace the grilled holstein beef with the option of grilled wagyu or unagi, plus a separate add-on of raw wagyu because why not. even with our high expectations and all the anticipation, we were still blown away by how good the food and how warm the service was.
3-month aged hokkaido scallop in koji, daikon.
pick-your-own sake cup!
chilled peeled eggplant, smoked vinegar gelee, shiso flowers.
wild japanes aji sashimi with 3-year aged shoyu koji, fresh cucumber and wakame seaweed, 3 year aged ginge.
original tempura: tai seabream, grated daikon, green onion, warm shoyu dashi.
original tempura.
to be honest, i don’t have much to say that i haven’t already said before. everything, everything, was so, so good. i loved every dish, even (especially?) the rice and tsukemono and miso. the smoked vinegar gelee on the eggplant was surreal, the aji was spectacular, the tempura was unlike any tempura i’ve ever had (in the best of ways), the wagyu! the unagi! all the cocktails and sake!
wagyu served raw.
raw wagyu assembled with seaweed, fresh wasabi, salt flakes.
grilled unagi eel.
grilled hokkaido wagyu.
iron pot rice with house made tsukemono pickles.
house miso in shiitake broth.
ao-me young green plum, shaved iced, plum syrup; kyoto carajillo: two stacks irish whiskey, licor 43, cold brew coffee, chocolate mole bitters.
hojicha.
soft castella cake.
‘time machine’ amber sake.
enough of the superlatives though. at the end of the night, we had a really great time, ate some excellent food, and shibumi reminded us why we love it so much. i can’t wait to go back.
815 S Hill St, Los Angeles, CA 90014
