Shojin is an amazing vegan & macrobiotic Japanese restaurant in downtown Los Angeles. I've been hearing about it for the past year and a half and finally went for my birthday date with my husband the other night. The restaurant is adorable inside, it feels upscale and romantic with small tables and low lighting.
I also love the handpainted art they have hanging up on the walls, gives the place a warm and fuzzy feel.
On to the food! I have one word: A-FRICKIN-MAZING! I kind of wanted to just stay there all day and eat everything on the menu, but we had to narrow it down to a few things. We started with the stuffed shiitake mushrooms filled with tofu, miso & shiso and served with a sweet soy sauce. This dish was so pretty and the flavors were perfect. So good.
We also ordered the pumpkin croquettes as a second starter. Sweet pumpkin and tofu inside a crispy shell topped with tangy tomato sauce...perfect combination of flavors.
We ordered two rolls for the main course: The Dragon Roll (shiitake & avocado on the inside with BBQ seitan & more avo on the outside with sweet soy sauce) and the Mother's Soul Roll (green veggies on the inside, shiitake & fried tofu on top with a miso mayo sauce). Both were so so good. I liked the crunch of the veggies in the Mother's Soul, but I think I liked the flavors on the Dragon Roll a little better, the BBQ was a perfect touch.
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| Dragon Roll |
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| Mother's Soul |
My husband told the waiter it was my birthday so they brought out a Nutty Chocolate Cake for me with a candle, gave me a Happy Birthday tiara and took a picture for their Facebook page (they love when people choose their restaurant to celebrate - so sweet).
When they came back with the bill they gave me a little handmade card with our picture in it and a CD of the music they play in the restaurant (loungy covers of top 40 songs - AWESOME!) I was even commenting when we first got there how rad the cover songs were!
This is hands down my new favorite restaurant. The staff seems to really care about their patrons and the food is by far the best I've had in a long time. I can't wait to go back!
What great ambience, and the food looks spectacular. Perfect for a birthday celebration. I will have to check it out next time I'm in LA. Might have to tell them it's my b-day just so I can wear a tiara.
ReplyDeleteI'll be making a trip here so sure!
ReplyDeleteAww happy belated birthday fellow libra! :D My birthday is Oct. 7.
ReplyDeleteMan, my boyfriend and I are always walking around downtown L.A and the name of this place sounds so familiar, but I know I've never been there to eat. So far though the plates you two got look so delicious! I'll have to look up the streets it's on so I can check it out sometime too.
P.S: That's so cute/ nice that they gave you a little birthday present! :}
It's on Alameda in the Little Tokoyo shopping center. You should totally go, the food is SO good!!
DeleteI knew I had seen it before! Thanks, I'll try checking it out soon. :)
DeleteThis was my favorite restaurant when I lived in L.A.! I think it still is my favorite. We would get the Dynamite Roll and Pirates of the Crunchy (my fave) I love their ramen bowls too. Ya know, I bet a lot of people started asking about the music, they must have just started making those cd's. We asked about the music once but nobody working knew who it was. I went there for my birthday 2 years in a row, I should have told them it was my birthday, I want a handmade card!
ReplyDeleteThey really are a great family there, I've never had a restaurant experience as warm as Shojin. Oh, and keep going there, after a few visits, they start giving out hugs when they recognize you!
Wow, that was a perfect birthday experience!
ReplyDeleteLovely touches all of them, and I really wanna try all the food you tried, it sounds so awesome!
Sounds amazing! Kudos to thegEofFgUy for thinking of it! Glad you had a wonderful yummy birthday!
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