Gonpachi Restaurant Torrance

Gonpachi Japanese restaurant; one of the most satisfying things a savvy diner can do
is discover a phenomenal Japanese restaurant such as Gonpachi, an outstanding find and a surprisingly full parking lot is a tip off to the satisfaction that awaits inside.

Gonpachi is an authentic Japanese cuisine primarilyto Japanese businessmen staying
at the hotel, and locals are expected to flock to the new restaurant. Executive chef Alex Cabrera has a beautiful open kitchen to prepare his Tsukiji sourced sushi or
the hand pounded soba noodles that are a staple of the upscale eaterie.

Now South bay residents won't have to travel to Beverly Hills to the sister restaurant, and the new spacious location features a robata bar and a Sumi-Yaki bar, as well as an outside open charcoal grill and patio. Everything we tried at our amazing dinner
was perfect and the restaurant will certainly become a staple in the Torrance
dining scene. Gonpachi is located inside the new gorgeous Miyako Hybrid Hotel
who also offering excellent rates of $99 for example on the weekends,
although the spa will not be open until February 2010.

Gonpachi's interior defies its surroundings. Fashioned by miyadaiku carpenters from aged wood and roof tiles brought from Japan, the restaurant has an appearance of a traditional Japanese home. The wood was used in an actual old folk dwelling, and
the authentic roof tiles gleam with the luminance of oxidized silver. The building
itself is comprised of three distinct wings which encircle the inner garden and
express the traditional beauty of Japanese architecture, the room creates an
expansive, festive space. Themed in black, the bar is a refined space
dominated by a central, 25-foot counter.

Sapporo Beer Moshiso Martini

Gonpachi serves hand-pounded buckwheat soba noodles, fine sushi, and
Japanese grilled delicacies. In addition to these favorites which express Japan's traditional flavors and styles, we have also created a variety of original dishes which incorporate assorted ingredients and cooking styles drawn from the flexible creativity and thinking of our chefs. They prepare fresh soba noodles from buckwheat flour threshed and milled right on the premises. We insist on using the finest Japanese ingredients brought in locally and from Tokyo’s Tsukiji Market. We also have assembled a wide array of rare Japanese sake and shochu that provide
a perfect, balanced complement to the cuisine.

The space is cool and minimalist-modern, guests have their choice of three dining spaces: a formal dining room, a casual outdoor patio, or an energetic sushi bar with adjacent table seating. The space fills quickly over the course of an evening and the sushi bar becomes a flurry of activity, while the dining room becomes peppered
with couples enjoying a quiet meal. The outdoor patio is a rare treat for a sushi restaurant, and is an ideal space for larger groups, when booked ahead it
can accommodate parties of up to 60 guests. The diversity of the seating
options makes the restaurant well-suited to a variety of occasions.

Garlic Edamame Meijo Tofu

The mostly traditional sushi menu offers over 40 rolls, plus an array of nigiri and sashimi combination. Try the sushi and sashimi combos for sampling, or try to
select just a few of the special rolls and each one is more tempting than the last.
But no matter what you order, the fish is fresh, the prices are
reasonable and, the staff friendly and accommodating.

The restaurant features a very cozy bar that serves a variety of drinks, cocktails,
beer, wines and delicious martinis. Our dinner was memorable, our waiter
Vera was simply divine, she guided us thru our entire dinner and helped
us by selecting the most decadent dishes you could ever try.

Beef Carpaccio

We started with a Kimpira from the cold menu, a soy caramelized burdock root, we never tried before, and we all enjoyed. If you love tofu, don’t miss their Meijo Tofu,
a silken tofu with shibazuke sauce. Still from the cold menu, we tried their Kobe
Beef Carpaccio; thinly sliced Kobe beef with spicy miso pesto, a very light and
great appetizer to start. Next from the hot menu, which we enjoyed very much
their lightly sautéed in garlic soy edamame, I honestly could eat this every
day, is the most delicious edamame I’ve ever eaten so far, the
taste of the garlic and soy taste makes a difference!

Gindara Saikyo Yaki (Black Cod)

Also, another delicious and unique appetizer was the
Ebi Shinjo Age, not only a dramatic presentation but super
delicious, a crispy shrimp dumpling with sweet yuzu chili sauce. You
must see and taste to believe me! Another spectacular fish was the Gindara
Saikyo Yaki, a grilled miso-marinated black cod that was so divine. I could’ve
easily eaten 2 of those. It is light and tasty do not miss this one if you are a fish lover!

Ebi Shinjo Age

All of the sushi rolls are the creation of Executive chef Alex Cabrera who prepared the
most amazing sushi menu for us to try and we were truly excited by his culinary talents.
Rolls such as the Caterpillar roll offer stunning visual presentations, put together with the ultimate craft and care. We opt to sample a large variety of their famous rolls on
the menu which came in a spectacular presentation; a large boat, that was absolutely not only beautiful to look at, but it tasted like no other in this planet!

Large Boat with Assorted Sushi and Signature Rolls

It contained rolls such as California roll, with red crab and mayo with cucumber,
avocado and masago, the Caterpillar roll; with eel and cucumber topped with sliced
avocado, the Spider roll; with soft shell crab, lettuce, avocado rolled in masago, the
Red Dragon with shrimp tempura and asparagus topped with tuna, avocado, rolled
in masago, the Flying Dragon with spicy tuna roll topped with unagi tempura, and other individual sushi that were to die for in terms of presentation and taste.

Sparkling Sake Executive Chef Alex Cabrera

In between dishes, we got surprised by their delicious signature drink the
Yama Momo Hou Hou sparkling sake, taste like champagne with sake,
a perfect light drink that went well with our menu.

Assorted Sushi Rolls
The entire boat innocent appearance belies the flavor that waits. The intoxicating flavors of all the rolls we ate lingered long after the pieces were swallowed, tingling
the tong, enticing us back for more. Tenacious slivers of jalapeño are responsible for
a good kick of the heat and some of them cleverly buried beneath the sauce, masago,
and green onion. We also tasted a variety of ala carte rolls and sushis such as
Sake Salmon, Unagi; the fresh water eel, and Taraba Gani a king crab roll.

Assorted Temoura Burdock Root

Do not miss their Tempura dish served with shrimp, fish and a delicious
assorted vegetables that were crispy, crunchy and fresh, this is truly
how a tempura should be always be served! Not every restaurant
prepares their tempura the way Gonpachi does. We loved it!

Pork Loin Flat Iron Steak

From their salad menu; their Jako Spinach Salad was also fresh and magic, with
baby spinach, crispy whitebaits sprats, apple-onion dressing, very satisfying
even as a simple meal to eat by itself. Delicious no doubt!

Jako Spinach Salad Miso Soup

Their miso soup was also fantastic, I never tried a miso soup that tasted so good,
this one came with manila clams which make a difference, you should not miss it…

We mentioned that we loved rice, so Chef Alex sent us a treat from the
kitchen, the Tem Don, a crispy rice that has a format of a box, it was
fried and on top garnished with salmon and shrimp. The result is
sublime; Who knew sushi could be so decadent?

Tem Don Crispy Rice Flat Iron Steak

Our faces must have displayed our pleasure, because Chef Alex soon insists we
try something simpler. "You have to try our “Flat Iron Beef Steak." A plate with
a delicious meat arrives with ume plum honey sauce; simple and unadorned, a smile
and nod is all that's needed to acknowledge this is some of the best meat around.

But we are not done, Vera our server comes back with a selections of their delicious
desserts, that I truly enjoyed, simply because they were not too sweet, a variety of
mini desserts were truly satisfying and perfect to try after a sumptuous meal.

Assorted Desserts

I feel as if we could stay all evening, simply watching the chefs spin together their endless creations. The room is bustling, and the activity behind the sushi bar is
more so. Both pairs of hands work deftly and gracefully, pausing only to dip
their fingertips in a nearby bowl of water or call back into the kitchen for a
piece of tempura. But alas, our empty plates are cleared and there are
guests waiting for a spot at the near- full bar. As we walk out the
double doors I look back longingly, already eager to return.

Assorted Desserts

Gonpachi is a place to be welcomed by a smiling sushi chef, be seated where you choose, and leave with a smile on your face. It is a place where the prices are reasonable, the fish is high quality and fresh, and the selection is creative and
enticing. Whether you are just introducing yourself to sushi, looking to try
more adventurous items, or simply want to order reliable favorites,
Gonpachi is a place to return to again and again.

For map and location click Here!

For more information please visit their
website at www.gonpachi.globaldiningca.com

Today is: Thursday, November 21, 2024