Sawtelle Kitchen

I have to confess, I eat at the Sawtelle Kitchen on a regular basis. Why? When a restaurant consistently offers high quality food at a reasonable price, I will consistently spend my money there (well, what little money I have left after the California tax hikes...but I digress). Sawtelle Kitchen is located at 2024 Sawtelle Blvd, and serves fusion Japanese-Western Cuisine.

The interior reminds me of a casual Italian bistro, not a huge interior, therefore giving a cozy feeling to the patron. Chandeliers hang from the ceiling and interesting, tasteful artwork (at least I think it is, its all personal isn't it?) adorns the walls. The outside patio is small but inviting (although not in today's heat, thank you very much).



The menu is wide-ranging and includes small dishes, pasta/gratin, katsu and curry dishes and a very reasonably priced lunch special menu. The menu also includes a pretty extensive beer, wine and sake list. With Dutch blood (on my mother's side) coursing through my veins, I opted for an Amstel Light (just to be patriotic, you understand). I have eaten just about everything on their menu, but my two favorites are (a) Red Snapper (grilled) with a citrus-soy sauce, a bargain at $9.95; and (b) The Katsu Jumbo Shrimp priced at $13.95. Today, my buddy Kimberly and I both opted for the Katsu Jumbo Shrimp, which includes a bowl of miso soup.



The shrimp is breaded and fried and served with a shredded salad (topped with the most delicious citrus soy dressing), potato salad, a side of brown or white rice, with a small plate of tartar sauce. The tartar sauce contains egg and capers and is wonderful ! Katsu sauce is also brought to the table in a syrup jug and poured liberally (in my case) in great quantities onto the plate (Kimberly is far more sophisticated). The portions are large, in fact, the only reason I got through almost all my lunch was because I had failed to eat breakfast. Kimberly had to have hers boxed up (again, Kimberly winning hands-down in the ladylike department).

The wait staff are friendly, fast, courteous and happy to help. Well, they are when you can get their attention. This is not necessarily a criticism, more an observation. Allow me to explain. In a restaurant, you can't win, can you? Every time you want to talk to your fellow diners, the wait staff constantly ask you "Is everything okay", their question usually immaculately timed to coincide when your mouth is full of food (or about to be proposed to), but when you NEED something (salt/extra dressing/heimlich maneuver), they are nowhere to be found. In Sawtelle Kitchen, it veers more to the latter, but in fairness, with no romantic proposals in sight (certainly not from Kimberly) and my mouth full of food, it was probably best that I could rarely get my waitress' attention.

Our total bill came to $38.03 (including our drinks) which is very reasonable. I did leave a good tip for the waitress, because although I didn't often see her, I felt badly that I was going to snitch on her about it on this blog. Hopefully the extra few dollars will take the sting out of it for her. All in all, I give the Sawtelle Kitchen 9/10 and honestly recommend you go there. It is a testament to the quality of the food that they are ALWAYS busy...