You Still Shouldn’t Ask Him for a California Roll

0

Attitude is everything.


Sushi Nozawa, whose master chef and owner Kazunori Nozawa is dubbed by locals as the “Sushi Nazi,” has dropped from being the No. 1 restaurant in Los Angeles to 24th in the latest Zagat survey.


With an average dinner tab of $52, the Studio City eatery still boasts sushi that is “sublime,” “superlative” and “undeniably exceptional,” despite its plain interior and location in a mini-mall on Ventura Boulevard, according to the 2006 description of the restaurant, based on the results of questionnaires turned in by diners.


Survey participants made more note of the less-than-pleasant attitude of the “Sushi Nazi,” a play-on name taken from an episode of “Seinfeld” featuring a “Soup Nazi” who throws people out of his restaurant for the most innocent remark. Nozawa’s “‘his-way-or-the-highway’ attitude means you may feel ‘like you’re spending an intimate evening with Mussolini,'” says the write-up in the 2006 guide.


Nozawa, who has been known to throw out diners who ask him for a plebian California roll, hung up on the Business Journal after demanding, “Don’t call me never, OK?”


In last year’s Zagat survey, diners acknowledged the “no-nonsense” atmosphere, but said they would “gladly ‘bow’ before ‘master’ Kazunori Nozawa and ‘adhere to the mantras’ for the ‘euphoric sensation’ of eating his ‘perfect’ fish.”


Merrill Schindler, senior consulting editor of the Zagat’s Los Angeles and Southern California guide, acknowledged Nozawa’s less-than-accommodating attitude but noted that the eatery remains one of the highest-ranked restaurants in town, above A.O.C. and Spago.


He also said many top-rated sushi places aren’t that much different. “Many of the higher-end sushi bars want you to follow the rules,” he said.

No posts to display