Mike's Birthday at Sushi Sasabune and Sip Matcha

Mike's Birthday

Sushi Sasabune

Abalone and Australian hirame (yellowtail) sashimi. Abalone was surprisingly good.

Toro and bluefin tuna. Good but a little short of the best.

New Zealand snapper and East Coast halibut. Nom nom nom.

Scallop (Washington), mussel, oyster. Good but cooked/buttery is a little distracting.

Salmon and albacore (I think?) was quite good.

Botan ebi (Santa Barbara) and hotate (Boston). Former was excellent, latter was very good.

Spanish mackerel is tasty, Norwegian mackerel (background) was okay.

Deep fried shrimp head. Just right!

Hokkaido uni was ridiculously good. And the ikura was almost as good!

Halibut fin and surf clam. The sea salt was perfectly done.

Albacore toro and Japanese unagi. Both quite tasty.

Blue crab hand roll. NOM.

Happy Birthday, Mike!

Unassuming interior.

And a slightly more modern, yet equally unassuming exterior.

Having a good time.

Sip Matcha.

Sip-ly the best?

Matcha ice cream topped with crush ice cream cone and bittersweet cocoa.

Sasabune is one of the long-established sushi chefs in Los Angeles, housed in an unassuming storefront on Wilshire Blvd. A few items were merely very good rather than excellent; given the price, that is a serious consideration... However, there was more than enough excellent or better to justify their reputation. Abalone was among the best I've had, uni was sweet and delicious. Halibut fin with sea salt was also a winner, along with the Spanish mackerel.

And the botan ebi (live sweet shrimp) was so good, Mike ordered seconds.

Sip Matcha for dessert. Matcha soft serve with cone crumbles and bittersweet cocoa chips were nicely complimentary.

Happy Birthday, Mike!