What’s on the menu this week? Hand rolls! Saijo is a new restaurant that opened in Culver City, serving both hand rolls and kushiyaki (skewered and grilled items)! There is no parking lot, but you can find street parking nearby!
I was surprised that the restaurant was not packed during lunch time on a Sunday. With only bar seating, the restaurant can seat around 20 people, so it is probably better to go with a smaller party. There is also a nice outdoor area right outside the entrance, although it was hard to tell if that area will be used or it was just leftover from the previous owner.
The menu has sets that include both hand rolls and kushiyaki (2×2, 3×3, or 4×4), but you could also order items a la carte. I got to visit during DineLA week, so of course I had to check out the DineLA menu! For $35, I got miso soup, edamame, three one bite hand rolls, two hand rolls, and one kushiyaki.
Appetizers
Miso Soup – The miso soup had more tofu and seaweed than I would typically get in my miso soup at a Japanese restaurant!
Edamame – Each person gets their own bowl to put the edamame skin in.
Very soon after we got our appetizers, the main items started coming out really quickly – a bit too quickly. I didn’t even have time to finish my miso soup and edamame until after I finished all the hand rolls and kushiyaki! I wish the pacing of the hand rolls was just a bit slower so it didn’t feel as rushed.
One Bite Hand Roll
Every time the chef makes a one bite hand roll, he would hand it directly to you, which I thought was interesting. I thought he would set it down on the paper for me to pick up myself, but I guess the seaweed would just fall down. Speaking of the seaweed, it was really good and definitely a highlight. The seaweed is toasted before the hand roll is made, making the seaweed very crisp and fresh. When you bite into it, the seaweed is not difficult to bite through or hanging on to the other half of the piece.
Albacore Jalapeño – I liked how this had a spicy kick to it!
Bluefin Tuna – Mmm…loved the Bluefin Tuna!
Salmon with an Escargot Butter – This was definitely my favorite. I loved the sauce that came with it, and it was not overpowering so you could taste the freshness of the fish. The salmon was so delicious!
Hand Roll
Next up, the hand rolls.
Bluefin Toro – Initially, I was like, okay, bluefin toro, cool. After I took a bite, I was like wow, this is good. The hand roll was not just made up of bluefin toro, but also had another veggie element to it, adding some texture and a pleasant surprise for this roll.
Signature – Blue Crab, Shrimp, Salmon Belly – Honestly, this was probably my least favorite roll. In the first bite, the entire piece of shrimp came out too because I wasn’t able to bite it into two pieces. The blue crab and salmon belly were both good individually, but together, the flavor seemed a bit off. I felt like I wasn’t able to fully enjoy each item in the hand roll. I do like how this hand roll came in its own stand (and nice plate) though. It’s a lot easier than grabbing a hand roll from the chef’s hand!
Kushiyaki
Tsukune – Chicken Meatballs – I didn’t have high expectations for the kushiyaki, but this turned out to be delicious! The meat was really soft and there was just the right amount of sauce to keep everything flavorful. I tried to get every piece of meat off of that skewer!
Saijo was a great choice for lunch. I’d definitely have to come back to check out their regular menu, although the part of the menu that really stands out to me is their omakase, which includes the delicious one bite hand rolls. Hopefully, the pacing of the omakase is a bit slower so I can fully enjoy the experience more! The other hand rolls are pretty standard (but with amazing seaweed texture) and I wonder how it compares to other hand roll places! Next time, I’d also want to try some more kushiyaki too. Maybe I’ll get their 3 x 3 next? We’ll see!