Sawtelle Boulevard

The oddly named Barbecue Lager Tei, on the second floor of the Sawtelle mall, is directly across the street from Manpuku Tokyo BBQ. Together, these restaurants give Little Tokyo West about half a basketball court’s worth of hardware — the little tabletop grills in Korean barbecue places. Lager Tei, a branch of a large chain of like restaurants in Japan (20 branches, I was told), does attempt to be more or less Korean. "We get our kimchi in Koreatown," my waiter told me confidentially. Although the dishes on the menu (beef with bone, beef without bone, marinated, unmarinated and so on) seem like the ones on any Korean menu, a Japanese sensibility sneaks into the food.

It is at Mizu 212, a stunning new traditional Japanese shabu shabu bar, where the story of Sawtelle comes full circle in a real L.A. way. "Who’s the owner?" I inquire, wondering whether this is another imported Japanese chain. Heejin Kim, an attractive young Korean woman, is quickly summoned. She tells me she’s in partnership with James Leff and Weston Suh, whom she met as exchange students long ago. And none of them, she acknowledges, is Japanese.

Location Info

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Asahi Ramen

2027 Sawtelle Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90025

Category: Restaurant > Asian

Region: West L.A.

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More About

• Asahi Ramen
• Sachiko Ota
• Gardena
• Eating Out
• Japanese Food and Cooking

SAWTELLE RESTAURANTS AND SHOPS

Asahi Ramen, 2027 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 479-2231; Barbecue Lager Tei, 2130 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 478-5232; Café Muse & Bar, 1130 Olympic Blvd., (310) 268-7855; Furaibo, 2068 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 444-1432; Granada Market, 1820 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 479-0931; Hide Sushi, 2040 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 477-7242; Hurry Curry of Tokyo, 2131 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 473-1640; Manpuku Tokyo BBQ, 2125 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 473-0580; Mishima, 11301 Olympic Blvd. (No. 210 Olympic Collection), (310) 473-5297; Mizu 212, 2000 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 478-8979; Mousse Fantasy, 2130 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 479-6665; Nanban Kan Yakitori, 11330 Santa Monica Blvd., (310) 478-1519; Nijiya Market, 2130 S. Sawtelle Blvd., No. 105, (310) 575-3300; Place Foods Bar, 2101 Sawtelle Blvd, (310) 478-7450; Restaurant 2117, 2117 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 477-1617; Safe & Save, 2030 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 479-3810; Sawtelle Kitchen, 2024 Sawtelle Blvd., (310) 445-9288; Yakitori-Ya, 11301 Olympic Blvd. (No. 101 Olympic Collection), (310) 479-5400.