Izakaya Onsen

SILVER LAKE----Izakaya Onsen is a small restaurant located in Silver Lake that serves a variety of Japanese dishes. I had been wanting to dine here for months and recently got the opportunity to visit with a friend. We booked a reservation on Yelp an hour before we arrived and were able to skip the line crowding outside.

I really enjoyed the mood lighting as well as the traditional Japanese and minimalistic style of the restaurant. Izakayas are known for their alcoholic beverages and bar food, which pairs well late at night. However, my friend and I were not old enough to drink so we started with the Prime Beef ($5.50) and Jidori Negima ($5.50). The skewers came with three cubes of grilled beef and three pieces of roasted chicken thigh with scallions. Overall, they were pretty flavorful but the beef skewer was slightly overcooked and not as tender as we would have liked.

However, I was really impressed with the Jidori Negima as the chicken was juicy and the scallions were cooked to perfection, with a slight char on the surface. We also ordered the Maguro Kajime ($24); eight pieces of sushi consisting of spicy tuna, avocado, and scallions, with seared bluefin tuna on the top. I don’t usually eat fish/seafood but I thoroughly enjoyed this roll. The spicy tuna and avocado were great together, as it created a rich and creamy filling. While I couldn’t taste much of the scallions, the fatty bluefin tuna had a nice melt-in-your-mouth texture, with little of the fishy taste/smell.

The star of the show was the Beef Tobanyaki Hot Pot ($38). I expected a traditional Japanese hot pot like sukiyaki, but was pleasantly surprised with the mountain of beef tenderloin, mushrooms, and shishito peppers. Cooked in a sweet and savory sauce, this dish was served with a roasted lemon and a bowl of white rice. The hot pot contained the perfect balance of flavors and I loved how the mushrooms were cooked.

Our bill came out to be around $45 per person (including tax and gratuity). I would rate Izakaya Onsen 8.7/10 and would definitely recommend it to those looking for a new restaurant to try in the LA area.