I decided to bring my group of friends to Sushi Ippo because it was 5 minutes from the Marciano Art Foundation where I had tickets for the Yayoi Kusama Exhibit and it went with the Japanese theme for the evening. The museum tickets were free so I didn’t want to end up having the group pay an extraordinary amount for their dinner. I checked on Yelp and it averaged 4 stars and it said they take reservations but upon calling, I was told that reservations only apply to parties of 6 or more Monday through Thursday but at 6 p.m. when we were planning on arriving on a Saturday evening, we would have no problems. I also read that there was metered parking and a parking garage so off we went. It’s on the south side of Wilshire and the parking garage is off of Western which shares a parking garage with Wiltern guests. We were asked by the parking attendant where we were going and after I told her Sushi Ippo, she let us in for free. Upon walking out, we noticed that Wiltern guests had to pay $10. The entrance to the restaurant was accessible through the garage. We arrived a few minutes before our friends and the restaurant had a handful of guests dining at the time. 

Once our friends all arrived we were finally seated. None of us had ever eaten at AYCE sushi let alone this restaurant so it was a bit of adjustment trying to come up with a strategy. Truth be told, we over ordered in our first round. We were more conservative on our second round but threw in the towel before the third round. There was a sign that hot and cold sake as well as beer was buy one, get the 2nd 50% off though our receipt comped us for the second sake. Also, there was a sign that if we tagged Sushi Ippo on Facebook and Instagram we would get a free macaroon or green tea ice cream which a few of us did at the end of our meal. 

We ordered a variety of appetizers, salads, soups, sushi and nigiri. Having vacationed in Japan recently, every Japanese restaurant is cursed with the unbeatable comparison to the quality, freshness and flavor of sashimi and sushi in Japan. The quality of the fish at Sushi Ippo was around a 3.5. The peppered fish had some flavor. The rest of the fish was fine but lacking in the creaminess and butteriness that exists only in Japan. All the fried options were around a 2. They just tasted fried with no real distinct flavor. The sesame chicken was unfortunately flat out horrible and chewy, possibly either overcooked or expired because my husband and I both got sick early the next morning.  On the upside, the vanilla macaroon was melt in your mouth good. 

All in all, Sushi Ippo was a fine experience. The service was a 4, seafood was a 3.5, non-sushi/seafood items were a 2 but the desserts were a 5. It’s a good value for a fun casual outing with friends. I would have no issue recommending it to people who aren’t as familiar with Japan, sushi and sashimi or those who eat for volume rather than quality. I would definitely pass on all the fried food and any chicken dish because it’s a waste of calories and space in the belly. 

Sushi Ippo

3800 Wilshire Blvd, #110

Los Angeles, CA 90010