LAReview
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“Hey, I’m in Hollywood with 45 minutes to kill, where should I eat?”
On any given day, our phones light up with a variation of this text. That’s Hollywood for you, though—a place where Angelenos often find themselves with time to spare before a show or concert or meeting with no idea where to go. Sure, there are plenty of excellent restaurants, but finding that Goldilocks spot with good food, brisk service, reasonable prices, and a relatively mellow atmosphere can feel like cracking a bank safe. That’s why our default reply is straightforward: Go to Iki Nori.
For anyone who’s ever been stranded in Hollywood for an hour, this casual sushi bar from the Iki Ramen people is a prayer answered. The sleek space on the ground floor of an office building is walk-in-only, sells filling handroll sets for under $30, and boasts a marble bar pouring cocktails, natural wine, and craft sake. During lunch, office workers crowd the 12-seat bar, snacking on daily nigiri and scallop uni handrolls while checking their phones to see if there’s enough time for another glass of chenin blanc. Come nighttime, the place transforms into the neighborhood’s most centrally located pre-game spot.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Dates with tickets to the Pantages splurge on omakase (for $88, you get 10 pieces of premium nigiri, two handroll sets, and a dessert) while friends walking to Hotel Cafe crush negronis and chat up the young chefs as they sear fatty tuna and pack spicy yellowtail handrolls. Sunset and Wilcox isn’t one of LA’s most picturesque intersections, but Iki Nori’s floor-to-ceiling windows offer a cinematic view of a streetscape that, if nothing else, is never short on people-watching. The whole experience subtly achieves everything you’d want from a before-show dinner destination: getting you full, getting you buzzed, and getting you out the door and on with life. This is Hollywood, after all—we’re on the clock.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
4-Handroll Set
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Nigiri
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Crispy Tuna Taco
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Cocktails
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Toro Caviar Handroll