omakase | Eat. Taste. Savor.

When I found out that Josef Centeno, chef of one of my favorite LA restaurants, Baco Mercat, had recently opened a new Japanese/Italian inspired Omakase restaurant, I was… excited, to say the least. I made reservations to visit with a friend the very next day.

Upon arrival, we were escorted to our table and seated immediately. The menu was simple and plain, and we were presented with 3 choices: Family style for $50/person, 5-course for $60/person, or 9-course for $95/person. There is another SUPER omakase option, which is 20+ courses for $195/person, and requires a reservation. On the back of the menu, there are à la carte dishes you can order as supplements to your meal. I thought I’d test the waters first before I went overboard with the Super Omakase, and am I glad I did! We each ordered the 5-course menu and, as you can see from the photos below, we were able to enjoy a total of 11 different dishes! The photos below show the order our dishes were served. Everything started out on the smaller scale, and after the second plate was served, my friend and I exchanged glances… Are we going to leave full?! Do we need to add some supplements? After awhile, it was clear that this would not be a problem.

Aside from the “promised” dishes, we were served delightful little plates compliments of the chef. The pomegranate infused shaved ice was presented as a “cleanser” to prepare ourselves for the dessert dishes. This was such a wonderful surprise, and it definitely was the perfect transition to our rich and flavorful dessert items.

Would I visit again? Definitely. Next time, I think I will attempt to conquer the 9-course… That may be as far as I can physically take, though! Enjoy photos from my meal below!