66-post tangent split to
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Went last night with some friends. It was a protein heavy meal this time which I was very happy with.
Some incredible rib eye and filet wagyu that were some of the best wagyu preps I’ve had. Also he did a dry brined beef tongue that was wrapped and brined for 8 days, then boiled, then grilled. So tender, could split it in half with my chopsticks.
The filet, a grilled fish course, extra chicken hearts were additional courses added (an extra $90 for the 3 dishes)
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Hardest working man on Sawtelle. On New Year’s Day I stopped by the restaurant perchance to wish him a Happy 2026, only to find Kojima open and serving a room full of customers on what should have been the biggest holiday in the Japanese calendar. Respect…
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Went back to Kojima and enjoyed it as much the second time as the first. And based on @formersushichef ‘s recent review, I’m sure glad I didn’t spring for Yakun down the street which I had been considering.
Dining for the second time at Kojima made me realize that for me a restaurant is not any particular dish, but rather the entire sum of all the parts, including the ambiance and just generally how you feel after having dined at the restaurant. And with both meals at Kojima, I left feeling that the weight and worries of the world had fallen off my shoulders.
Unlike Yakun, Kojima didn’t spend millions on a build-out and yet when you pass through the norens and have a seat at the comfortable chairs at the counter, you do feel that you have been transported to a better place, leaving behind the dross and flotsam of the world.
What did we eat? A lot of dishes. Everything was good. Perhaps most memorable was the beautiful shiso leaf and flowers (never got served shiso flowers before) which not only looked beautiful on the plate, but seemed to taste like the very essence of shiso itself. And some delicious Japanese vegetable that tasted like nothing I had ever had previously and the name of which I unfortunately now do not remember.
If you are celebrating a birthday, it turns out that they do something very charming at Kojima (of the 9 people at the bar, 3 were celebrating birthdays). The jazz goes silent and you hear bells ringing. At first I was perplexed and was wondering if there was a fire or some other problem. But then the server comes bursting out of the kitchen with cheesecakes with candles and the sound system starts singing the most charming version of “Happy Birthday” that I have ever heard. It was very sweet.
I don’t remember being charged last time for tea unless I just didn’t notice it, but this time it was $10 for tea. I don’t begrudge it though because it was a perfectly brewed cup of very high-quality sencha.
We were the last to leave the restaurant and Kojima-san and the server went outside and bowed to us as we left, just like in Japan.
This is a place I want to return to again and again.
P.S. Mimi-san was not working the night we went and we missed her. And I learned she is no longer doing her beautiful calligraphy for the menu because they have pivoted more to omakase so they don’t need a menu and, in any case, calligraphy is so labor intensive and the chef changes the menu so much that it just didn’t make sense to have a calligraphed menu. But if anyone is looking for a calligrapher for any reason, I highly suggest asking the restaurant to hook you up with Mimi-san because her writing is so beautiful.
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Went here on Saturday night, it was quite delicious. The wagyu was served with a salad and dressing that they were saying they were tweaking to possibly sell as bottled product? Does anyone know what could possibly be in it? Tasted like a salty vinaigrette with a bit of tanginess. Oil (possibly from cooked onions), salt, rice vinegar. If they ever sell it I would buy a few bottles but for now I would love to make some at home!
It was a lovely meal. Crab chawanmushi, forgot what the second course was - think it was a blanched fish, chicken hearts, bamboo with kelp, sea bream, toro medley, mackerel onigiri, prawn tempura, duck with dashi cooked veggies, grilled beltfish, wagyu with salad, rice and miso soup, and a hojicha cheesecake.
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welcome
Could possibly be dashi inside the salad dressing. A high quality dashi or tsuyu from a Japanese market or online store like Rice Factory could be a good base for it. Try to choose one with kelp or katsuo as a base. There are ones with lots of sodium guanylate that are OK but can taste generic. There are high quality rice vinegars but also citrus juices and ponzu available too for acid
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Welcome to FTC!!!
Thanks! I found this while googling Kojima to see some discussions!
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Going next month to celebrate a friend’s birthday. I know Indigo Cow is across the street, but would it be crazy to head over to Sirena in Santa Monica for dessert? I miss Chef Thessa Diadem’s handiwork.
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Booked 2 for 1/31, 5pm seating. Yahoo!
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Yes. lol that is far! Waymo it
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Hahaha…good catch! We are not insane.
We really weren’t gonna stroll stroll. Definitely gonna give Waymo a try.
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please don’t give Waymo a try. Support your fellow gig-workers in these dire times.
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It’s a 1hr 28min stroll (per Google maps). Walk off that Kojima meal! #fitnessbychrishei 
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What a resplendent experience! Kojima-san and his team are so joyful and welcoming. We had a wonderful night celebrating a friend’s birthday and we were treated to the best meal of 2026, thus far. The cooking and execution of the meal is extraordinary…we were already thinking of when to plan a return trip.
Sorry…so busy having a great time that some explanations were missed.
Chawanmushi, Hokkaido hotate
Signature grilled chicken heart…so delicate, but also kind of beefy-like. What a treat!
Chicken thigh, flowering green, yuzu kosho
Oyster, dashi gelée, snap peas…so refreshing! I would kill for this on a hot summer day.
Ika & rice stuffed ika, Hokkaido uni
Kegani dumpling, kombu dashi…break into the dumpling and it releases its own juices to fortify the dashi.
Bluefin (otoro & akami), pickled shallot, wasabi
Tempura yurine (lily bulb), ebi, greens…one of the most significant bites of the night. The tempura yurine felt like a sweet potato and mochi had a baby.
Grilled nodoguro, Brussels sprout
Wagyu Hamburg, romanesco, greens…best Hamburg I’ve ever had. Kojima-san could make a fortune if he bottled his salad dressing.
Kamameshi with Sakura shrimp & asparagus…those little shrimps were divine.
Bonus kamameshi with kinmedai & takenoko
Daifuku with fresh-made warabimochi, strawberries imported from Japan and adzuki
What a meal! A friend selected a wonderful sake for our meal and we got to try a beer made with koshikari rice. Kamameshi was accompanied with our choice of green, hojicha, or genmaicha tea.
We are really lucky to have Kojima-san sharing his talents with us in LA.
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