With virtually zero fanfare, a new omakase option appears in Culver City!
Hailing from Fukushima, owner/Chef Yasu Kusano is the one-man show at his namesake sushi-ya, Kusano. Having worked stints at Gonpachi (both in Tokyo and Beverly Hills), as well as sushi-yas in Seattle (I Love Sushi and Shiro’s) and also Sushi Zo here in L.A., Yasu-san is no stranger to helming the counter.
Most recently, Yasu-san had been working at Yasu (now newly rebranded as Rockpool) on Robertson Boulevard. But when the spot for Sushi Mashiko in Culver City became available earlier this year, Yasu-san jumped on it. I was lucky enough to try his omakase on opening night.
Here we go!!!
Reservations: Online and easy! Resy is the platform, and omakase start at 7PM.
Ambiance: Classic SoCal mini-mall style restaurant space. There is no front signage (yet). For now, look for the frosted glass storefront. Kusano features an L-shaped bar, seating eight total.
… let us commence with the omakase:
Kaki… An absolute behemoth of an Ishigaki oyster from Washington State, perfectly shucked, served with ikura, uni and a hint of negi. Super fresh, with lots of wonderful brine. Superbly satisfying - This was a great start. Huge bite!!!
Chu-toro… Diving straight into the nigiri pieces! The tuna is Japanese honmaguro (from Ehime). Complex and creamy…
Yasu-san displays the tuna from Japan…
Shari notes… This is subjective, of course, but I thought the sushi meshi at Kusano was terrific - I liked the temperature (very, very faintly warm); with light vinegar, medium hagotai, medium nebari.
Hirame kobujime, with sea salt and a dash of lemon… Really enjoyable.
Hotate… From Boston, scrumptious.
Shima aji… Nice, summery, fatty. A highlight of the meal! Huge bite!
Kasugodai… What’s not to love about baby sea bream ?!
Tako yawarakani… Braised octopus is super tender. Really a joy to eat.
Aji (Kagoshima), with gari, negi, shiso… Wonderful hikarimono!
Botan ebi with roe… The sweetness caught my immediate attention. Huge bite!
Kinmedai seared… Minor points deducted for butane sear, but terrific nonetheless!
Ankimo (Boston)… Fairly good monkfish liver.
Miso with fish broth, shrimp head “mottainai”…This. This soup transported me to a higher plane. Prepared by slow-cooking fish bone, shrimp shells & heads, this miso soup alone could be the reason for coming to Kusano. Huge bite (or rather - Huge slurp?)!!!
Akami zuke (two weeks) & o-toro…Great aging technique. The complexity of the honmaguro is really brought out here. Both were outstanding. Huge bites!
Aori ika, with uni, nori… What a marvel of balanced textural and flavor composition! This is similar to what the chefs in Tokyo were doing on my most recent visit to Japan. Huge bite!!!
Toro sawara (Mie)… Excellent king mackerel.
Torotaku temaki… Always a crowd pleaser! Quality nori. And that toro is sublime.
Anago (Tsushima, Kyushu)… Fluffy and soft. Extra credit for this piece looking very Ghibli-esque. Huge bite!
Kasutera tamagoyaki… Made from whitefish, ebi.
Bonus rounds!!!
Yamame (Hokkaido salmon), with sea salt… Fantastic!
Zuwaigani seared… A bit of a butane aroma.
Ikura gunkan… Pearly and crisp; top quality.
Dessert time!!!
Housemade yuzu sorbet… As refreshing as it sounds!
High quality sushi overall. No truffles, no gold flakes, no caviar… Just good rice, well-sourced seafood and kokoro (heart). Furthermore, the omakase at Kusano currently clocks in at $150 per person. Yes, folks: $150. I’m pretty sure Yasu-san makes virtually no margin here, given the caliber of sushi he is serving. So please, buy some sake during your visit. Big plus for all you sushi lovers: Kusano is open on Mondays!
In a city where sushi prices seem to be spiraling out of control, along comes Kusano to restore some semblance of sanity. My initial omakase there was really enjoyable. His fishbone stock and shrimp head broth miso soup rocks. Yasu-san is an affable, experienced and able chef using top notch sourcing. Kusano is a gem of a sushi-ya.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Kusano
10726 Jefferson Blvd
Culver City, CA 90230
Resy link
(Full disclosure: Yasu-san saw me taking photos and asked me if he can use them, and I agreed. Zero compensation.)
. Just friends eating. Sometimes it’s sushi. Sometimes it’s not. Just the few times he’s gone it’s been sushi.