Latest Reviews
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Worst service I've experienced in LA. Went here the other night, and won't be back. The waitress was horrible, never came to check on us or get us mor…
Heather
Hama Sushi
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Grumpy Snotty People. They are busy and their sushi is good, but they wouldn't seat my son who is 13 but looks 10 at the sushi bar on a Saturday night…
Bgarden
Hama Sushi
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Hama Sushi Luncheon. Hama Sushi is tiny, 18 seats at the sushi bar and two small tables in an adjoining room, if I recall correctly. There is always a…
Lizzie S.
Hama Sushi
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Hama Sushi serves Japanese and Sushi. Incorrect or missing information? Make a report, or claim the restaurant if you own it!Details
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6 Reviews on “Hama Sushi”
Worst service I’ve experienced in LA. Went here the other night, and won’t be back. The waitress was horrible, never came to check on us or get us more drinks, despite forgetting one persons drink through the entire meal. It took us forever to track her down for the check, which was double what it should have cost. When I asked her to see an itemized breakdown of the cost of the sushi we ordered, she suddenly forgot how to speak english. All of the people at our table found this odd considering she took our orders and answered our questions in english only 30 min prior…finally another waitress came to our table, apologizing, claiming she mixed up our checks. funny… they must’ve mixed it up with some other group in this tiny place who ordered the exact same drinks and # of miso’s as us… The other waitress brought us our corrected check, of which the sushi was HALF the price. We paid and were about to leave, when the 2nd waitress runs up to us claiming she forgot to run our card for the beer we’d ordered.I’ve been a waitress and bartender for a decade and we all know that if you forget to charge someone for an item, you pay the difference. Especially if you were caught trying to swindle the customer so you can pocket the difference (Yes this is what happened, I’ve known servers to do this time and time again, especially in sushi restaurants. Check your receipts, people.)Instead of Hama, try Oomasa (on the other side of the mall/plaza) or if you’re really looking for the BEST sushi in LA and feel like blowing a ton of cash, try Shibucho in Silverlake.
Grumpy Snotty People. They are busy and their sushi is good, but they wouldn’t seat my son who is 13 but looks 10 at the sushi bar on a Saturday night. We had been there previously on a week night and had no trouble. We were shocked, after driving an hour and a half in heavy traffic, to hear this news…But to make matters worse, as the hostess was offering to seat us at one of the two tables in the front of the restaurant, the man who seemed to be in charge of the restaurant told us over and over again to go down the street to another sushi bar. It was embarrassing and felt discriminatory.
Hama Sushi Luncheon. Hama Sushi is tiny, 18 seats at the sushi bar and two small tables in an adjoining room, if I recall correctly. There is always a wait line in the evening. This afternoon I was excited to walk right in and take a seat at the half full bar.I started my meal with a wonderful cold sake. In a previous post for Wakasan, I mention a cold sake that tastes of honeydew melon. A commenter asked what sake it was, and I had unfortunately not taken note. I am a bad blogger. Hakutsuru Junmai Ginjo cold sake is similar to the one we drank at Wakasan. It tastes delightfully light, with a trace of melony sweetness. Not sweet in a cloying way, sweet in a fruity back of your mouth kind of way. This could replace Sayuri unfiltered as my favorite cold sake.To start, I ordered the monkfish liver sushi. The chef suggested I try instead the monkfish liver appetizer. It was delicious. Topped with green onion, a radish/ginger mixture and swimming in a shallow bath of ponzu, this is a destination appetizer. The liver was perfectly textured and fresh, and the strong flavors (strong compared to the other fish, not compared to beef or calves liver) balanced nicely against the onion and ponzu.D and I shared the seared albacore sashimi appetizer. The preparation may look different from the monkfish prep, but doesn’t taste remarkably different. It was tasty. However, I think it was a little overcooked. I prefer my albacore truly raw in the middle and some pieces were nearly cooked through.We also shared two orders of oysters on the half shell. The preparation here may seem to be overly repetitive: ginger, radish, green onion and ponzu. I just don’t think you can lose with these flavors on any kind of light protein. Oysters were heartily sized and fresh tasting, not overly briny. We gobbled them all down quickly.D tends to prefer the path most frequently traveled when it comes to sushi. And by frequently traveled, I do not mean California rolls, although a Cal roll does come across the bar at us every now and again. This afternoon he started with the tuna sushi. It was very fresh, soft, cut perfectly so there was no noticeable sinewy bits. More than enough wasabi, he tearfully noted.He also loves a spicy tuna roll. Several people on Yelp mention Hama’s spicy tuna roll. Personally, while I enjoy a spicy tuna roll, I don’t find much to comment about one unless there is something wrong with it. They just do not excite me. This one was good. No mayo or miso mixture in the mix that I could detect. (Yes, I have seen and tasted spicy tuna made with mayo and/or miso, and so have you.)D asked what they had that might be unusual, and I piped in asking on his behalf for crab. They had two kinds of real crab, and D opted for kani (snow crab) sushi. I didn’t dare take a bite, it is one of his favorite things. And this was too beautiful not to let him enjoy the whole thing solo.Still hungry, the bottomless pit ordered a shrimp tempura roll. I loved the generous crunch of tobiko in this, and the thin way the chef sliced the large roll. I can never eat a piece of sushi or maki in one bite anyway, and unless they are on the small side the maki tends to fall apart in my hands.Tempted by the chef’s friendly and indulgent nature, I asked if there was anything else he thought I should try. He coaxed me in the direction of red snapper. I surely have had snapper sushi before, but it doesn’t stand out in my mind. This was amazing. Light flavored and slightly meaty in texture, the flavor did not overwhelm the rice and the chef went lightly on the wasabi. I will be ordering this again.Overall, I had a great experience at Hama Sushi. I enjoyed having the attention of the sushi chef late during lunch hours, as the bar was nearly empty when we finally left. I really want to visit again for dinner but my dining companion hates to wait for food. This unfortunate conundrum will surely lead me there sooner for lunch again then dinner.
Amazing. This is by far one of my favorite sushi places in Little Tokyo. Real traditional and nicely priced. Even though i did spend $200 there. It was worth every penny.
Real traditional sushi. Hama is no joke. They have the freshest sushi you could ever find and they are reasonably priced. They don’t have the modern decor and it’s a small restaurant but you’d be hard pressed to find anything better. Try the salmon sushi, the spicy tuna hand rolls are a must and the albacore sashimi is incredible… And it doesn’t end there either but don’t go there if you want to have teriyaki chicken because you wont’ find that on their menu — go to have sushi that will melt in your mouth. You will love this place! My friends and I go ALL the time.
? i dont understand the negative comment. Hama is the best hidden sushi spot in los angeles! ive had the most fresh sushi here and for really reasonable prices. i love it and i go all the time.