My husband and I went on a Wednesday for lunch omakase. To our surprise, we were the only customers there. There was free underground parking as well that you can take an elevator to the 2nd floor. The chef was an older Japanese man, and the server also spoke Japanese. It's hard to find authentic Japanese sushi restaurants, and we were pleased to find one. The omakase was enough to fill me up, but my husband got additional lunch special that added more pieces. The location is about 1 mile away from the busy Sawtelle area, but I hope they get more customers to keep them open. It was affordable, and we enjoyed our delicious meal. We will be back and recommend others to try it! read more

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Echigo is a local sushi spot that pioneered the lunch special. For 20+ years locals have enjoyed good sushi at an affordable price. There's ample parking in the complex with the underground lot. For the food: They're best known for pre-seasoned warm rice sushi. The wasabi and fresh ginger are delicious, but the sushi comes the way it's suppose to be. The fish and crab portions have gotten much smaller and knife-work needs work. The best bite was the unagi. It's hard to beat $21 lunch special in quality, but there's a lot of new players in the sushi game and Echigo hasn't kept up with the competition. If you're in the area, give the lunch special a try. read more

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My wife and I had a wonderful experience here! The sushi is fresh and of great quality, yet priced very reasonably for the area. The Omakase was on $80. The entire staff is attentive, friendly, and goes out of their way to provide great service. Highly recommend! read more

Best sushi for the price. Owner was former sasabune chef. I love their rolls, but also love their stuffed squid with the sauce. Specials always changing. Service is always spot on and I like their sake. Omakase only at the bar, but the omakase is always good if you want to pay for it. read more

We gave Echigo a try due to its strong reviews and it was a solid Sushi spot. The restaurant was simple and old school with no frills and it offers primarily nigiri, sashimi, and hand rolls. It was empty on a Tuesday night but service was great and we were quickly taken care of. The sushi itself was solid. It did feel very overpriced for strip mall sushi which would say in the biggest downside. While good, I think there are plenty places to get more bang for your buck. read more

The service here was excellent. They per-warned us that this was traditional style and there's no spicy tuna before seating us. We ordered omakase and we felt like the dishes would never end. We tried a good bit of the menu. I have to agree with most of the other reviews that the butter fish and the blue crab hand roll are not to be missed. The toro was rich and decadent. The sauce n the kampachi was delicious and refreshing. Really every piece in which we were instructed "no soy sauce please" was perfectly seasoned. The rice was warm which really kept the fish at perfect tasting temperature. read more

One of the most exceptional sushi bars in Los Angeles! Omakase at the bar or à la carte at a table, either way you won't be disappointed. Perfect spot for the Sushi purist. read more

This place knows sushi. This unassuming location is the place to go for authentic, high quality sushi at a great value. If you like gimmicky rolls, fancy ambiance but with only okay quality sushi, then go someplace else. If you appreciate no-frills, fresh and tasty sushi, without the pretentiousness of overly done places like Nobu, look no further. read more

Best sushi if you love the real thing. Rice is delectable. Fish is amazing. Perfect marriage of rice and fish. Chef is a true artist. I could eat here every day! read more

Some of the best sushi in west LA! They're never too busy and every employee is so sweet!

Great staff. Always happy to support them. Omakase at the sushi bar. Uni is always amazing. Highly recommend. read more

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Came here for lunch. I was actually surprised that my co worker knew about this place because the restaurant is pretty hard to spot. It's on the 2nd level on this run down plaza and the sign only says "sushi". The restaurant is small and decor is simple and minimal. I believe they only have nigiri and hand rolls so you know it's legit when they don't have any dragon rolls. I got their Omakase which was 8 pieces + blue crab rolls. For about $37, quality of the food is great. I enjoyed all their nigiri on the Omakase but the best thing was their blue crab roll. It was so good we ordered another one after the Omakase. Hole in a wall. Pretty good. read more

Went here again and it was still a delight. Great low key place to meet friends and colleagues while enjoying an underrated restaurant capable of reaching Michelin status. Food 10/10 Service 10/10 Ambiance 6/10 - 2nd floor of shopping center. It works for me but might not for most. read more

Echigo has been consistently great for years and is probably one of the best sushi restaurants in LA. Fyi: the sushi bar is reserved for omakase. read more

Lunch special review: delicious but tiny! The price is right at $19 (the sushi is sliced deceivingly thin!) but next time I will know to supplement with additional pieces and rolls, so it'll wind up being more like a $40 lunch. A great option if that's in your budget! read more

Echigo - Takeaway lunch special - Sushi Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Been going here for like 15 years, mostly for the lunch special, which is by far the cheapest way to go. You can order multiples of it. Sushi is top notch. read more

Overpriced... restaurant vibes is totally off. I thought I was in dentist office or some kind of an office.

This was my first date with my current future husband. Very small and intimate, just how both him and I like it. We did the omakase which was extremely fresh and delicious. The waitress was extremely personable. Echigo was the main link between me and my love. Thank you! read more

No. I showed up to an almost empty restaurant at 7pm on a saturday night, and the guy seated me at the only table in the entire place that had no place setting. Then proceeded to not bring me a place setting at all. No napkin, no chopsticks. He brought me the miso soup I ordered, but I had no way to mix it without chopsticks. So I couldnt' drink it. And i couldn't get his attention. So after a while, I had to get up and walk over to any other table and take the place setting from that table myself, so I could then stir and drink my miso soup. I looked at the menu and thats when I realized the prices were twice that of any other sushi restaurant in Santa Monica. The cheapest nigiri was $11. Thats your salmon, or your tuna. Anything pricier started at $15 and up. Even Noma down the street was only $5-$7 for these same items. I put in my order for 5 sets of nigiri (2 peices a set, you know the deal). And the waiter proceeded to bring me the absolute smallest peices of sushi I have ever seen in my life. Literally half the size of a nigiri at any other restaurant. See the photo for reference. Each peice was spread with such a sharp tasting sauce that I couldn't taste the fish at all. In the end I did something to a peice of salmon (my absolute favorite) that I have never done before, and put soy sauce on it. I found that the "sauce" on the salmon wasn't even sauce. It was some kind of premade strip of flavoring. Something gel-like that I was able to just peel off with my fingers. I did so on the second peice so that I could try tasting the salmon without the overbearing sauce, and thats when I learned why they had covered over the fish with condiments. It was that farmed alaskan salmon you can buy at Costco, thats perfectly servicable as salmon, but also flavorless. I gave him my card, and he brought me the check to sign. Thats when I realized.... Where is my fucking card. He kept my card. I had to ask for it back. After all that I couldn't stomach my usual 20% tip. So I gave a minimum of 16%. So that was a total of $72 for 10 half sized nigiri, terrible service, in a dead restaurant. The food has left such a lack of impact on my stomach that I had to drive through McDonalds, which was, fortunately, just a few blocks down the street. I had tried to go to Noma, but they were to busy so I ended up here. Now I understand why this place was almost completely empty at 7pm on a saturday night. Now I've learned the lesson so many other locals have. I should have waited the 15 minutes for a seat at Noma. The good? Fast service? Friendly weight staff. The miso soup was tasty. Quiet (because of no clientelle). The Unagi was tastey, but you can't really mess that up. Eel is the "orange chicken" of sushi. read more

Echigo - twice the price for half sized nigiri. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Was... surprised. The lunch special is a tremendous value, and for $5 more you can get a miso soup and edamame added. Dine-in is well spaced due to COVID-19, and they were not only empty for a late lunch, but they had a seat right by an open window. And for a piddling $23, I had five pieces of sushi (maguro, sake, hirame, fluke, hamachi, I think it was) plus a blue crab hand roll. All quite fresh, and at that price, a superb value. Sure, you go up to the 2nd floor, the space is kinda spartan looking, the ambiance casual, but it all fits. read more

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This spot... let me tell you when I say I'm DEF gonna be a repeat customer. My kinda hidden vibe Cleanliness: Clean AF Social Distanced- Not a spec of dirt in sight Ambiance: Super simple/ minimal decor/ open 2nd floor windows/ business white kinda look Food: FRESH! Beautiful sushi choices Not just that boring salmon/ toro stuff. Tho, the salmon was out of this world amazing! Hands down best raw salmon I've had in years. Disclaimer: I usually don't like raw salmon (only like cooked) but this salmon... no words. Absolutely blew my mind. Service: Perfect- Server Shin & Chef Toshi were kind, helpful, & all around just awesome! No stuck up vibes here. Ordered: Live Shrimp- Head in Miso Soup (FAVE) Shrimp Eggs- Drooling yum Salmon- MUST! Shima Aji- Mackerel Barracuda- NEED Butterfish Anago aka Sea Eel Sayori aka needlefish YUM Salmon Skin Handrolls Cucumber Sunonomo Green Teas: Coulda been better honestly Large Perrier Extra Ginger: $3 (large mound) absolutely worth it Ty Echigo team Ps: Let me know when you get hotoru Ika, Iwashi, & kohada again plzzz hehe ;) read more

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Echigo is a hidden gem on the westside. Tucked away on the 2nd floor of a small plaza, the friendly server continuously keep your glasses filled and you get quality sushi. I like this restaurant because it is not pretentious, nothing fancy, but just quality fish. Happy Hour Monday - Thursday 5:30-7:00p, stop by for a beer or take advantage of their specials. Alternatively, you can try the Omakase. Parking is available on both the ground level and underground. Just be careful going down because the space can be tight. Definitely worth trying if you are in the area. read more

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Sugarfish who? Never heard of her. Wow. What can I say? If you're a fan of traditional sushi at a great price point, look no further. As of April 2021, the lunch omakase is $45 pp and includes a miso soup or seaweed salad starter, 8 pieces of nigiri, and a blue fin tuna hand roll. It is located in an unassuming strip mall but the restaurant itself is very clean and the service is exceptional. I was fortunate enough to go with some close friends and it was very fun to pop the sushi in our mouths and look at each other at the same time and marvel at it's fresh fish-like taste. I have had Omakase in San Francisco and Manhattan and I would like to say that for the price point this restaurant delivers an exceptional meal. I was very tempted to get more butterfish and another tuna hand roll. This is definitely worth a try if you're in the area - it's even worth a try if you're not in the area! I wish I could go every day. I love you Echigo! read more

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Yes! Highly recommend. This sushi bar/restaurant is a hidden gem on a main street!!! The food is some of the best sushi I've ever tasted.

I was looking for some decent sushi and chirashi in the area and came across Echigo. Located on the second floor of a non-descript plaza (right above Prime Pizza), Echigo has a variety of sushi cuts and a good lunch special. I came for dinner and was easy enough to make a reservation online (though they have a bit of a dated one on their website where you select a spot and hear back the next day if you got it). Some highlights include the crab handroll, the salmon skin handroll, the salmon nigiri, the barracuda nigiri, and even the monkfish liver was good. Cuts will vary in freshness as some were starting to get less fresh in taste and texture. Overall a decent spot, but lunch may be the best value here. read more

My favorite little hole in the wall hidden gem. Always get the omakase and it's delicious. Blue crab hand roll to finish

I come here for the sushi lunch special - $19 for 5 nigiri and one hand roll. The food is top quality and you can't beat the price. Second time here and haven't been disappointed. Free parking under the building. read more

Hands down my favorite sushi place of all time. I've been to my fair share of places and none have beat the quality and deliciousness of Echigo. It's a little hole in the wall and best secrets in LA. I always recommend to get the omakase to get the best fish they have. The chefs always pick the best pieces. I like to add a bowl of ikura nigiri, you won't regret it! Also add an extra piece of butterfish to top it all off. The staff is always so friendly and quick. Each piece of omakase comes at the perfect time. I can't imagine a better sushi experience! read more

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I almost didn't want to write this review, because this place is my secret gem. My husband and I have been coming here religiously for at least 9 years. While the inside and the ambiencemay seem stark and bland, the quality of the sushi and the service here more than makes up for it. We've tried going to other sushi places that are more expensive or "michelin" branded, but still nothing compares to Echigo. This is a place that you go to savor the melt in your mouth and freshness of the fish. This place is true authentic style sushi that you find in Japan, meaning that there are no California rolls or overly sauced sushi here - the star here is the fish. So if you're looking for western style sushi, don't come here and judge them for their authenticity. read more

I really wish more restaurants like Echigo existed around here. While you will find basic maki rolls on the menu, Echigo's focus is definitely on serving simple, traditional nigiri sushi. No Americanized rolls. In fact, I don't even think you can order a bowl of rice here. Authentic sushi is what you come here for, and the quality does not disappoint. Tried Echigo last Saturday night (3/10/18) for my first time. From the outside, one would expect this place to be just another American-style hybrid sushi restaurant. You definitely wouldn't expect this place to be as authentic as it is, and you may not even think to try it, unless from a recommendation. Located on the second floor of an unassuming strip mall, Echigo is full or surprises, and offers a reason to be excited. A recommendation and solid Yelp profile is what brought us here. I often scour Yelp looking for authentic sushi restaurants to try, and this one looked as legit as it gets. The prices seemed more than reasonable, and the pictures were promising. The menu was possibly the most impressive part, featuring rare, hard-to-find items, as well as some of the pinnacles of Edo-style sushi. I was convinced. A bloodbath of sushi ordering ensued. Awesome specials/daily offerings posted on the wall by the sushi bar added even more to the anticipation. My order included Suzuki sea bass, Itoyori snapper, Managatsuo, Barracuda, Belt fish, Kanpachi, Halibut, Red snapper, Sardine, Skipjack, Spanish Mackerel, Kohada, Ono, Shima aji, Bonito, Butter fish, Mackerel, Baby tuna, Skip jack revisit, and an itoyori snapper revisit. In total, I ate over 30 pieces. I may have gotten a little carried away, but their menu was pretty irresistible, and I wanted to try a lot. My first order was a success, which lead to a second and third round. Everything was so fresh and delicious, I couldn't stop. The rice was perfection, as well, served nice and warm. My favorites included the itoyori snapper, barracuda, skip jack, shima aji, and bonito. The halibut, baby tuna, butter fish, and ono were good, as well. The Mackerel was definitely better than most I've had. The belt fish reminded me a lot of eel. The red snapper was the only piece that disappointed. It was overly fishy and just OK. The ambiance and decor won't blow you away here, but the service is good, and the sushi at Echigo is sure to impress. The variety cannot be beat, and the price point is extremely reasonable for the quality and freshness. If looking for a high-quality sushi restaurant that won't break the bank, Echigo is a great option to try. Echigo serves fresh fish on warm rice that melts in your mouth. read more

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Yay! They're open for take out during the LA "shelter in place" period. This is our favorite sushi place. The master chef is talented as well as a kind man. Humble, soften spoken and a true artist. The prices are amazingly affordable when compared to other LA sushi restaurants with the same level of quality. It's easy to get a reservation and the staff is very polite and well trained. It's in a strip mall, but don't let that discourage you. This is why some think of it as a hidden gem. read more

The good: no wait and free parking in the plaza The bad: mediocre at best sushi quality, as in Mitsuwa sushi is comparable to their sushi. The miso soup is bland and does not have much flavor. Rice is too dense and wet. For such a mediocre sushi restaurant, they might as well sell rolls, because for the price, Mitsuwa will get you better quality fish. Try: not wasting your time or money here. You might as well go to sugar fish. read more

My wife and I had dinner this past Saturday night at Echigo. We got there at 5:30 and sat at the bar. We left dinner "up to the chef" and sat back. We've been to Echigo many times mostly for lunch. It had been a while since we'd been there for dinner. It was a special dinner. A birthday. We ordered saki. Not much. Just enough. What followed was dish after dish of delicious sushi. It was quiet. We were the only customers for about an hour. We ordered a few more types of sushi and then finished. Satisfied. Happy. Every one there had quietly made a perfect evening for us. No loud music. No glitches. Everything flowed. We've eaten in some of the finest restaurants all over the world. Echigo was the best. Special. Michael Franzblau read more

Food is delicious sooo good I enjoyed every bite of it. The service is excellent I love how they do it. My favorite foods were the scallops , the crab roll,and the rice.5 stares for me. read more

We have been going to Echigo for more than 20 years, and it still one of the best sushi places on the Westside!

Feb 2020 - had the omakase special $46 lunch and the Valentine's Day special $60 (has a different seaweed appetizer, soup and cream puffs). Sushi was delicious and fresh with warm rice. Real wasabi is a plus. Toro, halibut, bonito, scallop, red snapper w Yuzu, baby tuna, Japanese snapper, and butter fish. Omakase special has the Cho tuna instead of toro tuna. Overall it was a good experience. read more

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I'm picky with Sushi and rarely eat Sushi on the west side. Found this gem after my yoga class at Laughing Frog. Sushi lunch special was exellent. $19 for 5 pcs + Blue Crab handroll - can't get this quality for the price around Santa Monica! read more

Echigo is yet another beautiful dining experience to add to my list for 2010. Fresh sashimi and decently price omakase. I was schooled in the technique that Nozawa and students of Nozawa use in terms of nigiri. Warm rice with subtle amounts of vinegar. Boy was it delicious. Not too warm and not too soft. Fluffy. Aromatic sweet vinegar taste. The cuts of sashimi were all fresh and the omakase kept coming with almost what seemed like no end (great for three hungry girls). Memorable courses included the fresh like it just died scallop, delicious melt in your mouth albacore, kanpachi, and the heavenly crab roll. The cuts of sashimi are thin so if you are a hungry monster (or a large male), you might want to order a la carte until you are full. Everything was scumptious. read more

Echigo is a no nonsense type of sushi restaurant. You're not going to find any special rolls here, just straight up sushi. Initially, I had high standards based merely on the reviews. I'll admit I was skeptic upon entering the plaza and parking in the questionable underground parking lot. Skepticism continued when we walked into an empty restaurant at 7PM on a Saturday. All doubts washed away upon first bite. Albacore -- Medium firm fish lightly dressed with ponzu sauce and green onions. Perfectly flavored, perfect temperature, served on a perfectly seasoned block of warm sushi rice (all nigiris are serve with warm sushi rice here). Kanpachi -- In the same family as the yellowtail, the Kanpachi isn't typically served at sushi restaurants. Whenever I see it on the menu, I always get it. Echigo's version did not disappoint. Beautifully cut with the more timid flavor to match. The sushi rice gave it a nice sour kick. Skipjack -- A teency mushier in terms of texture but it is also seasoned with ponzu sauce and topped with green onions. The skipjack is the cousin of tuna but the color looks similar to the yellowtail. Eel -- Slightly toasted eel drizzled with unagi sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. You can tell by the texture that the eel is fresh because it wasn't rubbery with a layer of gooeyness underneath. Blue Crab Hand Roll -- Mouthwatering blue crab. I like Shunka's (Costa Mesa) version much more because they stuff it with far less rice and much more of the blue crab. I could barely taste the blue crab but what I could taste, simply fresh! Keep in mind, each order of nigiri is served individually - 2 pieces per order, 1 piece per dish. Service was perfect but I suppose that is to be expected when you're the only party in the restaurant. You can tell the sushi chef puts a lot of love into all of his orders, so be patient! Everything tasted great but the prices were indeed a bit steep. If I were to come back, I'd probably stick to their omakase. read more

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I don't know what happened to my beloved Echigo. I used to come here all the time when I lived in Brentwood years ago. At least once or twice a month for a few years. Last time I was here was about 7 years ago, so it's been a while, but I still remember how much I used to love their sushi. I wanted hubby to walk down memory lane with me so I dragged him here last weekend, and we had the omakase at the bar. Price-wise, it was $49/pp, so totally reasonable. We got white fish sashimi, toro, halibut, scallop, skipjack, kanpachi, kinme snapper, amaebi, butterfish, and blue crab roll. Out of all these, I only enjoyed kanpachi, amaebi, and blue crab roll. The knifework was really poor, the sushi chef didn't interact with us at all, he had a helper that would baste the sauce/seasoning and hand the sushi to us without any fanfare. Scallop had a fishy aftertaste, salmon wasn't even included in the omakase, and I found the butterfish too fatty. In short, I didn't have any sushi-gasm moments, and I was left unsatisfied. I'm not sure if it was an off day, or I had a different palate years ago, but I don't think I'll be coming back... there is just too many great sushi restaurants in LA to go to a mediocre place. Lack of ambience doesn't bother me at all, but I want a little better omakase experience than what I had at Echigo. Too bad. read more

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