Kifune Sushi Bar, Marina del Rey

Kifune Sushi Bar used to be on my daily commute to Malibu but Thursday was the first time I ate there. It’s spacious on the inside and for a Thursday night, it wasn’t that crowded. The decor is kind of cheesy because they have Christmas lights strung up everywhere (multi-colored and plain white). Half of them don’t work.

There isn’t anything really special about the place and I thought it was a little pricey. Of course, at Kifune, I was having a semi-serious catchup session with a girlfriend who’s moving back East so I think our moods were somewhat subdued. I think Naked Sushi, which is a little further west on the opposite side of Washington Boulevard, is much better and has more unique sushi choices. Kifune offers a lot of fully cooked menu items for those who aren’t into sushi (think: baked cod, chicken teriyaki, beef bowls, etc).

The tuna nigiri was really fresh and melted in my mouth, which I’ve found to be rare in my experience with the fish. The spicy tuna handroll was okay but the seaweed wrap had absorbed too much moisture so it was a little hard to take bites. I hate having to pull on the sushi. The shrimp tempura roll was edible but nothing to write home about. The mussels (an appetizer) had good flavor from its broth but they were slightly overcooked. The green tea mochi was great but probably from Trader Joes.

Kifune gets rave reviews from its regulars, which I don’t get. Maybe I ordered the wrong things but I think our choices were fairly standard. All in all, I doubt I’ll go back although I heard their scallop dynamite is fantastic. I just don’t think it’s enough to draw me back in.