Sushi Note Omakase

There’s a specific thrill in watching a movie trailer. Music roars. Aliens and hot people whip across the screen. Morgan Freeman is there. If these clips are gripping enough, they'll convince you to buy a $17 ticket and pray the rest of the story is just as good.

Sushi Note Omakase has a grabby trailer in its own right. The omakase-only sushi bar is set in an underground parking garage in Beverly Hills, below several floors of plastic surgeon offices on Rodeo Drive. Hearing about Sushi Note Omakase’s location alone might convince someone to buy a ticket (in this case, at $190 per person, admission costs slightly more than a movie). Thankfully, unlike teasers that turn out to be mediocre movies, this closet-sized paradise exceeds its own first impression.

Every meal at Sushi Note Omakase begins by driving down the ramp of the underground valet for The Rodeo Collection shopping center. When you reach the bottom, you’ll see brick walkways zigging around a bubbling fountain and a drop ceiling of fluorescent lights painted like clouds opening up to the heavens. It would be reasonable to ask a valet attendant if you’re in the right place. But before you have time to track someone down, you'll spot a beige wooden door with someone in a suit. Yep, this is it.

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

Inside, Sushi Note Omakase’s dining room is surprisingly homey, like a finished basement that comes with raw fish and a well-trained sommelier. The 16-seat dining room has personal touches like family photos, books, and knick-knacks on the shelves. You may technically be sitting below a surgical art studio in Beverly Hills, but you’d never know it once you’re inside.

Then comes the fish. The restaurant’s simple, perfectly executed 20-course omakase showcases technique rather than bells and whistles. Compared to other flashy sushi bars in the area, Sushi Note Omakase focuses primarily on nigiri. You’ll eat 15-ish pieces—including an entire dry-aged section—of compact, expertly cut fish, plus a few appetizers, handrolls, and dessert.

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

Similar to what goes down at the team’s original Sherman Oaks restaurant, your meal at Sushi Note Omakase will revolve around great fish made even better by great wine. Because, sure, eating a piece of fatty tuna is nice, but following it up with a sip of old-world nebbiolo sends that umami into god mode. Funky pinot blanc makes caviar-topped squid even sweeter and saltier. Smoky, deep-red barbaresco transforms a piece of A5 Wagyu nigiri into a doll-sized steak dinner. If you’re down to ball out and learn a little along the way, get the $110 wine pairing. It takes the omakase to new heights.

Between the wine pairings, the easy room, and a seamless nigiri parade, the two-and-a-half-hour meal will fly by in what feels like 25 minutes. By the time you stumble back out to the valet area, you might even have to remind yourself how you got here. Look up at the fluorescent lights painted like clouds for a sign. It's just like the trailer—the one with sushi, aliens, and hot people. Morgan Freeman must be close.

Food Rundown

photo credit: Jessie Clapp

Omakase

Sushi Note Omakase doesn’t have a menu. So no matter if you sit at the sushi bar or at a table, the only thing you're eating is the sushi omakase. At $190 (before tax and tip), this is a luxurious experience worth saving up for. The night features around 20 courses, including appetizers like scallop tartare with aji amarillo and gold-crusted tofu. Expect a steady stream of thick, traditional nigiri like red snapper and bluefin, plus hand rolls and yuzu gelato. If you like your sushi simple sans gaudy distractions, you'll love it here. And while you’re at it, spring for the $110 wine pairing. It’s another splurge, but one that takes a great omakase and makes it elite.