Went to Mori tonight for the first time. At last. Excellent, and expensive. We did omakase, $120 pp, and a 750 ml bottle of sake, $60. Total damage for two, including tax/tip: $385.

They don’t allow picture taking, and I can’t remember all of the courses, here are the ones I remember off the top of my head:
—tiny squid (yikes, thinking back, they must be babies, oh no), they were maybe an inch long. They were delicious.
—bamboo tips/shoots in broth, that was the best bamboo I think I’ve ever had, and I’ve been eating bamboo all my life.
—wild hamachi: I normally love love hamachi, but this wild one didn’t have much flavor.
—Santa Barbara spot prawn with uni: wow! sweet and lucious
—uni: incredibly fresh and sweet and beautiful, some of the best uni I’ve ever had.
—toro tartare: a bit of chopped white onion mixed in, very nice.
—another type of toro.
—unagi: melt in your mouth.
—mackerel: I’m not a big fan of mackerel.
Many other nigiri and other items that I already can’t recall.
—Finished with this handroll: toro! The nori was nothing like I’ve ever had; the sushi chef told us that only a few restaurants in LA has that kind of nori. It’s a little bit thicker, with a smooth texture, and very crisp, so that there’s no chewiness at all, you bite into it and it breaks apart, don’t need to do any kind of tearing. Nicely toasted and wonderful.
—dessert: some sort of red bean gelatin, strawberries (not in season now), pomelo. And a really nice tea.

Most of the nigiri were made with freshly grated wasabi (very cool to watch the grating). And some of the nigiri were made using yuzu kosho—I love that stuff, it’s like crack!

All of the fish and ingredients were so fresh and beautiful. The dishes and nigiri were creative, beautifully made and presented. The just-warm temperature of the rice was very nice.

I love variety and creativity in my sushi. Mori is now one of my top two, along with Sushi Zo. Zo is more for the very purist. Mori has a bit of a wider range. And I can’t believe I’m saying this because I love Zo, but Mori has an edge on creativity.

Btw, I was able to locate Mori because the business next door has its address in large numbers on the building. No address on the Mori building, and no name, just a sign with a simple drawing of a fish. I only knew I was really in the right place because they had my reservation. The name also is not on the food or sake menus.

Mori Sushi serves up delish cuts of sashimi as well as meticulously constructed cooked dishes that will delight your taste buds. Chef’s tasting menus include choices of 2 appetizers (for $85) or 5 appetizers (for $125) or sashimi tasting menu (for $95), recommended for 1st timers. Small dining room /sushi bar so reservation’s recommended. Not-so-hard parking on the streets.