Arguably the pinnacle of sushi in Los Angeles, I had the privilege of dining here once with my banker friend. A battle hardened financial veteran that makes well into the seven figures, even he evinced momentary hesitation when he saw the prices on the stark menu. The service was impeccable, the fish was amazingly fresh and the environment full of A-list celebrities and LA power moguls made it an entertaining night out. Of course, my friend footed the bill and although he enjoyed the meal as much as I did, I’m sure he enjoyed much less his thrifty wife’s verbal shellacking the day after. And this – among many other reasons – is why we don’t hang out anymore.

Sushi’s other heavy hitter on Beverly Hill’s famed La Cienega Restaurant Row, Matsuhisa leans more towards head chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s fusion cuisine. Although I’ve never been, some of my more financially successful friends tell me that the omakase, or chef’s choice menu at the sushi bar is extraordinary. Very unlike the time I went to KFC and when they asked me “original or crispy” and I bravely replied, “Surprise me.”

Sushi Gen is definitely not anywhere near Nobu or Matsuhisa when it comes to price or flashy displays of conspicuous consumption. Still that’s not to say that it’s cheap, but I’ve found Sushi-Gen to be one of the best all around sushi bars in LA in terms of authenticity, price, service and portion size. Plus the owner’s been in the location for over thirty years, so you know he’s doing something right.

To get back at Koreans stealing money from the Japanese community, I’m thoroughly convinced that Noshi Sushi’s Japanese owners decided strictly on principle to stick their restaurant in the middle of Koreatown. That being said, they seemed to have adopted certain traits from their Korean competitors, namely the tax advantages of maintaining a cash-only policy. Still, their prices are extremely reasonable and two can dine for well under $100 including alcohol and gratuity.

Kind of derivative and uppity without any substance, Sushi Roku is still one of sushi’s major success stories in the past decade. Plus, they’ve started up hip nightspots Katana and Geisha Club in LA too, so they definitely have street cred with the entertainment industry. Don’t look for anything out of the ordinary when it comes to the food, although I will say that the general attractiveness of the serving staff is admirably high.

All you can eat sushi in the valley. Kinda reminds me of that movie where Charlize Theron plays a blonde bombshell and James Spader plays himself, a smarmy asshole.

Thrillseekers ahoy! $2.50 gets you any one item on the menu here. I will caution you that I did receive a gut wrenching case of food poisoning here once. You know the kind where you’re spewing bodily fluids from three orifices at once and are praying to God for relief or death… at that point, either one will do.