Noteworthy Tokyo restaurant La Bombance has expanded to Los Angeles in the form of Asakura, a near-hidden strip mall kaiseki establishment from chef Makoto Okamoto. Asakura takes over the former Yamakase space on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Los Angeles on February 6, 2025, as a multi-course tasting experience at the counter or at its few tables, with most of the former restaurant’s wood block-themed decor essentially held over.
While kaiseki in its most elegant forms hasn’t had a long history in Los Angeles, Niki Nakayama and Carol Iida-Nakayama helped popularize the seasonally driven Japanese tasting menu format with their Palms restaurant N/Naka in 2011. (N/Naka was preceded by the now-closed Urasawa in Beverly Hills and A Thousand Cranes in Little Tokyo.) Since then, Brandon Go has prepared a California-influenced kaiseki at Hayato in Downtown’s Arts District, while Uka in Hollywood serves a nine-course kaiseki from chef Yoshitaka Mitsue. Kaiseki restaurants tend to attract the attention of the Michelin Guide; La Bombance held a Michelin star from 2008 to 2018, Uka and N/Naka have one star each, and Hayato holds two. Sakurako in Little Tokyo opened in early 2024 with kaiseki-style fare but closed after less than a year.
The format differs from sushi omakase in that there tend to be fewer courses and more composed, multi-faceted dishes presented as intricate tableaus. Okamoto, who will drop by Asakura every few months, tells Eater over email that he had been looking for a Los Angeles restaurant space and initiated a conversation with Yamakase owner Kiyoshiro Yamamoto, finding it to be an ideal location.
Asakura, named after the Japanese word for hemp, will be helmed by Takumi Nakamura, who worked at La Bombance with Okamoto for eight years before relocating to Los Angeles. Meal sets start with a luxurious duet: steamed spinach topped with snow crab and julienned pickled daikon next to a fatty chunk of wagyu crowned with uni, then dusted with black truffle shavings. That’s followed by a nugget of cooked Japanese eggplant covered with more uni and ginger gelee. Namakura and his sous chef work quietly and quickly to plate the next course on a woven basket with six bites: bluefin tuna nigiri; Japanese white strawberry slices with a soft brie cheese; a white bean soup; more tuna sashimi; and surf clam with sliced steamed greens.
Counter seats at Asakura.
Okamoto says the kitchen sources produce from the Santa Monica farmers market for ingredients at their peak flavor, while cooking techniques are all rooted in Japanese traditions. Later courses include lobster chawanmushi with shaved truffle, yellowtail soup with daikon radish with shredded aromatics, homemade tofu with ground sesame seeds, seared ground wagyu tartare over brioche, and smoked caviar over cold noodles. Across the board, expect luxury ingredients laid out in artistic, detailed forms. The service is personalized and warm, with the meal moving relatively swiftly in just under two hours.
Given the ambition, Okamoto says he aspires for Asakura to earn a Michelin star so that both diners and the team can “feel a sense of purpose and pride.” Already, the place has earned a four-star (out of five) review from Time Out Los Angeles, with the outlet describing the approach as a more “native Japanese chef’s interpretation of modern kaiseki.”
Asakura offers a shorter six-course tasting for $200 and a longer eight-course dinner for $300. The times may be adjusted in the coming weeks, so check the website for more information. The restaurant is open Tuesday through Saturday and is located at 11901 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA, 90025. Reservations are available on Tock.
Smoked caviar in a heart-shaped dish.
Storefront of Asakura in Los Angeles.
Sign up for the
newsletter
Eater LA
AloJapan.com