Japan in California: Yamashiro Japanese Restaurant

I love Japanese food. People close to me (and those who see me wolf down sashimi) know how much I just adore it. And every time I eat out, one of the cuisines I consider is Japanese. I'll either crave for salmon sashimi, ramen, tempura, udon, or whatnot. It must be my anime addiction that caused this. Anyway, on my last night in Los Angeles, my aunt R treated me to this nice restaurant overseeing LA. 

Hello, Yamashiro!

The place is so Japanese! It felt like I was really in Japan though I'll never know because I have never been there. I wanted to capture every corner of the place with pictures. I was like a kid trying to ingrain every bit of detail in my mind as this place is simply... amazing. At least for me. 

 It was rather chilly that day but we didn't care and took pictures like it's nothing!

We ordered though before we went out to capture the beauty of the place. We ordered Wakame Seaweed Salad ($12), Pistachio Salmon ($16), Truffle Hamachi ($16), Spicy Seafood Hot Pot ($10), and Duck Confit Asian Cobb (forgot to take note of the price of this one). For dessert, we had Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich ($12) and Banana Fritters (price was not in the menu as well).

The Wakame Seaweed Salad's serving was pretty stingy. Luckily though they gave us an extra serving for... FREE! The power of the people I'm with. :D The taste though was your typical seaweed salad. You could get a huge serving of it if you buy the ingredients yourself.

The Spicy Seafood Hot Pot wasn't spicy at all. It was served warm and it was a good appetizer. All the ingredients (shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, mussels, and scallop) were fresh. Yum! However, the serving, again, was too small.
Next served were the sashimi plates.

The Pistachio Salmon was amazing! The salmon was the type that melts in your mouth and the crunch of the pistachio added texture that goes well with the smooth salmon. 

The Truffle Hamachi though is my favorite. I never thought that something else could surpass my love for salmon. I guess there are a lot more to discover. I really do not care much for the truffle but the hamachi was so good! The texture was similar to the salmon and I was told that it has to go with the tomatoes for a complete foodie experience and indeed, it went well together! Heaven!!! 

The Duck Confit Asian Cobb has a generous serving so I'm guessing this one is slightly pricey. It had grilled fruits and fried tofu on the side. The Duck Confit was so-so though for me. Or maybe it's great, only, I'm not really fond of duck. 

Now for the desserts...

I got a sweet treat and had an early birthday celebration! They know how much I love birthdays! :D 

The ice cream cookie had a yummy crust made of macadamia and the ice cream was rather interesting too. I'm not exactly sure of the flavor but it had a caramel taste. IT also had slices of apples in between.

The banana fritter was filled with banana puree. It's your classic turon, LA style. The chocolate ice cream had liquor in it and was rather dark too. I had a few spoonful and became a bit woozy after.

Overall, the dinner was great! I love the sashimi orders! The wait was fairly okay given that the place was packed. 

I'll definitely visit again soon and try the Darth Vader dish B recommended. :)

Yamashiro is located at 1999 N. Sycamore Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90068, USA.