Nanban-kan Restaurant Reviews

Tasty skewers of grilled meat. The grilled rice ball was delicious as well. Lots of variety. Great atmosphere. A must-visit.

Amazing food, service and vibe. We just asked the waiter to bring us their recommendations. Everything was delicious, fresh and cooked right in front of you. I’ll be back!

I've heard that South Bay had a great selection of Yakitori (and other Japanese) restaurants but we did not feel like making the trek all the way south so our next best option was in Sawtelle (Japantown). After doing a bit of research, Nanban-kan was the decision. I called around 6:30 PM on Friday to get a reservation for three people at 8:00 PM that night, but was told that 8:45 PM was the earliest he could do. Now, we had a bunch of different dishes to share (because the style is relatively small portions) - I will try to comment on all the ones that I can remember. 1) Chicken Skin - 5/5 This was the dish I was most excited to try. I think it pretty much exceeded my expectations. Perfectly crispy and salty. Loved the texture and the flavor. It was basically a chicken chicharrones. Wonderful! 2) Chicken Wing - 5/5 I was also looking forward to trying this dish because I never had a "grilled" chicken wing before. They almost "butterfly" or "filet" the chicken wing so that it's much easier to eat than your typical chicken wing. The outside gets a nice crispy texture and the inside is very tender. It was well-seasoned and very delicious! 3) Australian Lamb Chop - 3/5 I am not a very big fan of lamb. But one of the my friends really liked lamb and so we ordered it. I usually don't like lamb because of the "game-y-ness" but it was not bad. Because of my lamb bias, I would give this a 3/5 and maybe for lamb fans, it could be a 4/5 dish. 4) Top Sirloin Beef - 1/5 Was not seasoned particularly well, and was over-cooked. I'm a firm believer that beef, especially beef cooked over a fire, should be served medium-rare. Overcooked, and I do not recommend. 5) Black Cod - 5/5 Boy was this tasty. The fish was buttery and flaky. It absolutely did not have the "fishy" taste or smell. I think this had to be one of my favorites. 6) Japanese Sweet Trout (guts in) - 1/5 The server asked if I wanted it whole (with guts and everything) or with guts out. When faced with similar questions, I usually ask for however the chef recommends or usually prepares it. It came with the guts in. I think that's why it may have been too "fishy" for me. I do not recommend this one at all because it had a relatively small amount of meat on the fish and was hard to eat. If you must try, I would recommend that you order this one with the guts out. 7) Pork Belly - 3/5 While I still believe that the pork belly is one of my favorite cuts of any animal, I tend not to really order it at restaurants. Usually, it's something I'd buy at the market and prepare myself. It wasn't amazing, it wasn't terrible. Just pretty average in my opinion. 8) Duck - 4/5 If a restaurant has a duck dish, I usually like to try it. In this case, I was very glad I ordered it. It was very tender and delicious. I don't really have much to comment about this, except, I recommend it! 9) Stuffed Shiitake Mushroom - 4/5 Not sure exactly what it was stuffed with, but it was a nice change from all the meat dishes we were getting. Nice, earthy flavor and was surprisingly juicy (?). 10) Shishito Peppers - 1/5 I knew what I was getting myself into, but I wished that the restaurant would've done something to transform it, even if it was just the slightest. Just your regular shishito peppers skewered and grilled. Very underwhelming, and I recommend that you pass on this one. 11) Chilean Sea Bass - 4/5 This was my second favorite fish dish (after the black cod). Flaky, tender, and not overcooked at all. If I remember correctly, it was served with some scallions that complemented the fish very nicely. It was very delicious and I recommend this be on your list of things to try here! 12) Baby Octopus - 1/5 I don't remember exactly what the name was, but it was a small bowl with whole baby octopuses (octopi?) in some broth. I usually love ordering octopus at restaurants because the ones that do it right cook it to a very nice tenderness. Asian restaurants tend to overcook octopus (and squid) so that it becomes entirely too rubbery. This was the same case. Octopus was too rubbery and not enjoyable at all. 13) Chicken Meatballs - 3/5 Not really much to say for this one. Okay texture, good flavor. I'm glad I tried it but nothing "to write home about." 14) Asparagus Wrapped in Pork - 4/5 I was expecting a skewer of just some asparagus wrapped in bacon. However, it was not as simple as that. Yes, they were asparagus on skewers, but the pork that wrapped the asparagus was not your typical bacon (or at least I don't think it was?). The asparagus was super tender and I really think they were cooked very well. The saltiness from the pork was awesome and now that I think back on it, I'm wondering why we didn't order seconds! 15) Clams - 3/5 Not sure exactly what the name of the dish was, but I believe it was small cast iron skillet with clams and some broth/sauce. It wasn't particularly memorable for me, so I can't really recommend it. It was just okay. I can't compare to any other Yakitori restaurants because I haven't really been to any others. However, I did enjoy the food very much and it was a great experience. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to people looking for a Yakitori restaurant in Los Angeles.

tasty

Always terrific food, with excellent service. With a very large selection of grilled food on sticks, you will never go wrong here! And prices are very fair. Great selection of beer, sake, and wine.

Make reservations! While any and all are welcome this restaurant is very small and fills up fast. The menu offers a variety of small plate options. If Japanese Tapas was a thing...this is exactly what it is like. Everything is made to order. They offer daily specials in addition to a full menu. The staff is very friendly, knowledgeable, and accommodating. Can't wait to visit again!

I thought the food was amazing! I was brought here by a friend that eats here 2 or 3 times a week. I tried some of everything and they were all great. Fish, chicken, lamb, scallops and veggies. You can't go wrong. Recommended!

This is the place. It's been here ever since I remember and the food remains outstanding! Chicken meatballs, wings and skin are my all-time favourites. It's a bit on the small side and reservations are usually required, however, it is worth the wait.

The food is served in small portions There is a live barbecue in restaurant. We ordered chicken hearts, and cartilage, Kobe beef, even the portion of sticky rice was barbecued.. They have a good collection of sake warm or cold. the selection of sea food, ie. yellow tail, prawns and scallops were delicious. It was my first time at this kind of a restaurant. And I must say the place was great..

I visited there in 2011 and 2015. It was still the same and the food was still great! Also I liked super friendly staffs :)

I can't say enough about this little gem. The food is consistently great: a mix of wooden-skewered deliciousness grilled to perfection, fish, meat, veggies. It's a very popular place, for a good reason. The only occasional challenge is making a reservation. It's old school in that you have to call in. The best time, as I've learned, is between 5:00 and 6:00. Otherwise, they tend not to answer the phone. It's possible to get a table or seat at the grill bar if you show up, but challenging on Friday and Saturday nights. It's so worth the effort. I have a friend who is a Michelin-star-seeking foodie who calls this the best restaurant in Los Angeles.

They can't handle more than a party of two. We were six. First dish arrived 20 minutes after ordering. Last dish came 90 minutes after ordering. Be warned .

I wanted to give the restaurant a lower rating but the older woman who handed me my food was so gracious that I added a 'circle' for her kindness. To be fair, I'm not familiar with this type of Japanese food -- barbecued skewers -- but I visited the restaurant with an open mind. They don't appear to have a website so I used Yelp as my guide, utilizing the menu that is posted there (which is 'out of date' and has lower prices than what they are charging currently). Yelp rates the restaurant at "$$" (trip advisor rates it as "$$" to "$$$"). As you'll see below, it's more like "$$$" or more. They are only doing take-out/delivery so I walked up to the entrance and was handed a plastic encased menu (that, I am imagining, dozens of other people have touched on this day. Lucky, I have gloves. Why don't they simply post the multi-page menu on the glass next to the entrance?) The skewered foods intrigued me so I asked the young woman about them (and some other items). I selected the scallops which were labeled 'U-10' which I mistakenly believed meant that there were 10 of them. I asked if I needed to add any vegetable skewers (so that there would be 'enough to eat') and quickly added: "How large are the scallops?" The woman thought for a moment and said they were medium-sized (which, as it turns out, was true -- about the diameter of a nickel). What she didn't add was that "U-10" simply means that it would take about 10 of them to make up a pound; said another way, each of the scallops were about 1.5 ounces. PRE-COOKED! That's not much weight especially when I discovered (upon opening the box that contained the food), that there were exactly 2 scallops in it. The woman had advised that I should add a vegetable skewer to the scallop skewer and I did. She walked away to add up my bill (which I never saw, btw) and returned saying that if I used a credit card, I needed to pay at least $20 (I was just short of that). I added two more vegetable skewers (I figured I'd eat some leftovers tomorrow) and the bill came to about $26 and included the scallops, eggplant, peppers and mushrooms along with a bottle of Oolong tea. When I returned to pick up the meal, the bag was as heavy as I expected but when I withdrew the bottle of tea and then lifted out the styrofoam 'clamshell' packaging, I was surprised at how light it was. (It felt like it contained a single slice of bread). That is when I discovered the two scallops and other skewers (which had a little bit more) but overall, it was like eating 4 hor d'oeuvres and took about 90 seconds. My friend who had picked up food at the adjacent Mediterranean restaurant had paid less and had a 'mountain of food' (rice, salad and a hefty chicken kabob). She offered me some of her meal which I eagerly accepted. I called the restaurant the next day, thinking that maybe I had been served the 'appetizer-sized' portion of scallops rather than the entree but, no, the manager told me as his voice grew louder and his word-flow increased in speed. When I asked how many scallops were supposed to be included in the meal, he went off on a rambling tangent, saying that it depended on the size of the scallops; if they are smaller, there are more of them... I, eventually, got him to tell me how many scallops had been in MY MEAL, the previous evening and he told me '2'. I did not tell him that, for $26, there was nowhere near enough to eat; I'm guessing that, maybe, before the pandemic, the portions were larger and the prices were lower; that is the only way, one could say that this restaurant is priced at "$$" for what amounts to a light snack costing $26. Of course, every restaurant is free to price their food as they like. Except for the eggplant, though, I found the food to be utterly tasteless. So, no matter what the price of the meal, it's not worth it, imo. Although the bottled Oolong tea was delicious and my Japanese friend has promised to pick me up a case when she visits the Japanese grocery store soon. In the same way that the older woman had been kind and gracious to me the previous evening, I end the phone conversation with the manager by thanking him for explaining about the scallops to which he quickly responded. "We'll see you soon!" No, you won't.

Nan Ban Kan is a restaurant I've been enjoying for many many years. Superb service; numerous menu choices along with daily specials; Great quality food prepared in a unique manner. It Does Not Get Any Better than This! And the prices are very fair.

Any time I want to have yakitori I go to this place. Don't recommend sushi here, but anything grilled will be tasty.

I used to go here about once a month when I went to UCLA 25 years ago. I was visiting LA and decided to go back. It seemed a little more upscale than I recalled from 25 years ago, but maybe everyone in LA drives a Mercedes these days. The outside has been updated, and the food was the same high quality. I didn't recall the waygu beef from my student days, but my wife and I each ordered the 3 ounce special which excellent and a bargain for $12. My old favorites were still there, including the asparagus wrapped in pork, the quail eggs, chicken "meatballs". Tried the yaki onigiri Char-Broiled Triangular Rice based on yelp and was not disappointed. I'll certainly be back, and much sooner.

Went to celebrate my birthday with my hubby and kids. Did not have reservations, but they were able to accommodate us within 10 minutes of our arrival, which is unusual as they are usually packed. I ordered their green beans wrapped in pork, which is my fave dish there, but unfortunately, they couldn't find large enough beans and so they were unavailable. Had the asparagus wrapped in pork instead, which was a big hit with our 14 year old daughter. Also a big hit with the kids were the wagyu beef and the cold sirloin beef. We ended up ordering extra of both dishes. Both octopus dishes were somewhat tough and so I would not recommend. The beef tongue was tasty but again, a bit chewy. The black cod was absolutely delicious and well cooked (i.e. not slimy, which black cod can be at times). The brussels sprouts and baby zucchini were good, but unremarkable. Our 14 year old gobbled up the lamb chops, but they seemed smaller and less meaty than I remember from previous visits. The abalone was well seasoned, but again a bit tough. Overall, a pleasant meal, but not up to the expectations that I had from previous visits. Service was excellent.

Visited LA and some friends took us here for dinner. Could not believe the number of dishes that we tried, including soft shell crab, quail eggs, Chilean sea bass, steak, Calimari, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, mushrooms, chicken meat balls and sausage. Each was amazingly delicious and just not something that we can get in the Midwest. Was surprised at the reasonableness of the bill. Definitely worth trying!

We arrived at the reservation time and was promptly seated. We promptly ordered. It took over an hour to get our first dish and then only after several complaints. It was a regular menu item. Service was so bad that I did not feel like waiting for several more hours if I ordered additional dishes. I went home hungry and had to cook dinner for myself that night.

best yakitori in LA so far. excellent service. prices are fair. reservation is a necessary. very authentic japanese yakitori

As a long-time fan of Nanban Kan, it is the restaurant to which i always take friends when they are visiting Los Angeles, and without exception, they have all, young/not-so-young and olders, loved it. Terrific food, different from most places, friendly help, and very fair prices. When I am gone from L.A. for more than a couple of weeks, this is the place I think of first.

This was my first time here or having this type of dining style. Most things you order are on little skewers and grilled. They come in very small portions so either come not too hungry or be prepared to order many things. Everything is ordered on the skewers had great flavor. I also ordered the miso soup and shrimp/veggie tempura. All very tastey. Their hot tea is also very good. The service is great! All staff is very attentive. When one little plate of food is empty someone is there immediately to clear it from you and refill your tea. (I left my cell phone at the table and realized it about 4 blocks down the sidewalk walking home. When I turned around to go back, the owner was running towards me with my phone in hand. Very nice and honest of him!!)

Great, creative, and very well prepared food! Helpful staff, and very Fair Prices. I will return every time I am in Los Angeles.

This is a yakitori restaurant located in Westside not far from the Santa Monica Blvd. exit of the 405 freeway. The parking is limited, if you cannot find a space, street parking it is. The food is okay but not great, I was a little disappointed since it was highly recommended by a friend. The waiter is a little pushy about getting us out of the door at 2 hrs mark to get the next party seated. This totally defied the nature of yakitori restaurant, which in Japan, people come and talk, drunk, complain about their boss, eat some skewers of grilled meat, drink some more and complain some more and no one is telling you to go home. Not going back ever.

Japanese BBQ or Yakitori. This place is awesome for grill meats, chicken, fish, and vegies. The Yakatori is grilled open on charcoal and wood for added smoky flavor. Order everything and try everything drink some sake and just have fun with friends. Love this place!

Wide selection of grillable morsels--fun!

Was visiting Santa Monica/Hollywood for business and looking for good Japanese restaurant within walking distance - decided to give Nanban-kan a try and was definitely impressed. I walked in without a reservation was able to get a seat at the bar but had to finish within an hour or so. The service was good (plenty of wait staff) the food was delicious (salmon skin salad, various yakitori including duck and chicken) and before long the restaurant was completely full. Nothing fancy but good food. Definitely worth returning.

My husband took me for a change of pace. We ordered an assortment of small plates, each was delicious! We had a yummy avocado and crab salad, grilled black cod(so fresh and flaky), chicken meatballs, wagyu beef, a triangle of grilled rice o-nigiri (each of us had a different filling that was tasty), spinach and grilled eggplant! What a lovely interior setting and the wait staff was very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. They had quite a saki menu, but we ordered deliciously icy Asahi lager beer. I had never been to this established westside restaurant and really enjoyed my evening.

I welcomed my friend's home. The food was fried with many kinds of cakes and all were delicious. But some facilities are like the atmosphere of a restaurant ^^ It's good to go when you want to feel the atmosphere.

First experience with yakitori - small bites all char grilled on skewers. Simple but so delicious. Two or three Japanese grillers are manning the tiny grill. Sit at the bar so you can watch the guys do their magic. The restaurant's not big and it's popular so make a reservation if you don't want to wait. The sausage was phenomenal although it seemed non-Japanese. The chicken skin is to die for and yes, it'll probably kill you someday. The corn on the cob - Yum! The yellowtail collar was a piece of heaven. There was so much that I can't list it all. Very full and very happy.

This restaurant is amazing if you like Yakitori and they have been in business 40 years! They have quite a diverse selection of Japanese food and we felt their pricing is reasonable. We are sharing with friends already and will return!

Believe it or not, I have been coming to this restaurant for over 35 years and have received a friendly greeting at the door from the same manager every single time. What a legacy of fine service and fantastic Yakitori in Los Angeles. They offer table seating as well as bar seating. It can be fun to watch the food being grilled, if you are ok with not facing your dining companions. All of the Yakitori dishes are great, but I especially recommend the Tsukune (chicken meatballs), Shiso Chicken, Tebasaki (chicken wings), and their specialty Nanban Yaki (top sirloin). The best recommendation is to pay attention to the daily specials. They often have Hamachi Kama (Grilled Yellowtail Collar) and it is amazing. This is a very popular place, so it is best to make a reservation, especially on the weekends.

Great place for kushiyaki/yakitori. Great food Great Service Great Value!!!

We have so many meaningful memories at this fine Japanese restaurant. This time, we sat at a table and enjoyed the same excellent dishes that we have been accustomed to for so many years. They had the Hamachi Kama (Gilled Yellowtail Collar) on special again and the meat is just so buttery smooth and delicious. The chicken breast wrapped in shiso leaves with onions was also especially tasty. The service is always friendly and impeccable. I sure hope this restaurant outlives us and we can continue celebrating here for years to come. As always, reservations are highly recommended and you can usually find street parking on Corinth south of Santa Monica Blvd.

Just off Sawtelle's 'Japan town' restaurants. Delicious small plates, freshly cooked to order. We over ordered because everything was so tasty. Very reasonable pricing, especially for the Westside. Eclectic group of diners, locals, Japanese and some who travel a distance because they have been coming for years and enjoy the food. It appeared as if many were known by name.

Popular yakitori restaurant in Sawtelle. Came here for an early dinner and made a reservation over the phone a week beforehand. I noticed that quite a few people without reservations were turned away at the door, so I would highly recommend making one. There’s table seating as well as bar seating where you can watch the chefs cook. My mom got the set menu while my dad and I ordered things a la carte. Of the things I tried, I would recommend getting a grilled onigri (it was my first trying one and it had a nice texture), the Soboro Don rice, and the black cod (special menu item). Of course, everything we tried was nicely grilled and it was fun trying different things. Service was very attentive and cleared plates quickly. We had the green tea ice cream as dessert and it was a nice palette cleanser. Credit cards accepted but only a maximum of two are allowed. Restrooms available in the back past the meal prep area.

This is a great restaurant in LA for Japanese food, overtime I'm in LA I eat here Get a seat at the counter next to the chefs is fun and you get serve as they make it Love the menu

All the Yakitori is amazing. Whether its pork, chicken parts, cod, lamb, it's all really tasty. They also have good soups, salad edamame etc. If you want to, you can also eat quite healthily there. Prices are very fair. We also love the atmosphere. There are tables and a bar--we always eat at the tables. The place is cozy, has great jazz music and a very nice couple who are the active owners of the place. My husband, my three grown boys and numerous out of towners that we have taken here all love it. It is small so hard to get in but takes reservations and is a great experience if you like Yakitori.

I definitely recommend this restaurant if you want an authentic Japanese alternative to sushi. They clearly take pains to provide high quality food with each of their dishes and offer a wide variety of choices for all tastes. Having said that, not everything we ordered was perfectly tasty. The seafood and vegetables we tried were mostly delicious, but the meats mostly were not as tasty. We absolutely loved the grilled ocra, mushrooms, scallops and abalone. The Australian lamb chops were very nicely grilled, but the other red meats just were not very tasty. The miniature octopus with ginger were way too chewy and tasteless. So you have to choose carefully, but if you order a variety of dishes and stick mostly with seafood and veggies, you should come away quite happy. Reservations strongly recommended. This place is busy and popular, and small.

They serve both yakitori and sushi here, and since it was my first time, I concentrated on the yakitori. Most skewers were between $10-$20 and they had specials hand written on a blackboard. I asked my waitress what she recommended for a vegetable and she said the asparagus with bacon was a favorite. I could taste why when it arrived. A thin layer of bacon draped over the grilled asparagus made it a nicely luxurious and meaty bite. One of the blackboard specials was the sea bass and it was probably my favorite skewer of the evening with freshly chopped scallions and an almost sushi presentation of grated radish with ponzu. I don't know if it was my desire for iron or my love of pâté, but I had to order the chicken livers. They were nicely done but I would have like a bit more salt on them instead of the slightly sweet teriyaki glaze.

pretty good japanese grill but i was not too impressed to go back.

Skewers were not dry at all. Chicken meatballs didnt taste heavy. when they messed up on the reservation, the owner gave us two gigantic bottles of Sapporo on the house. Great service. Highly recommended.

They don’t have a web-site and they are not on OpenTable. Why bother, if the customers keep on coming, moreover, they are often completely booked and if don’t have a reservation, they won’t sit you. Cheap printed menu – pages inserted into files. Why get a better design, this one is ok too. All Japanese names, thanks God they indite in English what’s that mean. And some specials are written on the blackboard. Like Wagyu Beef (14$ a tiny little piece) which was more boiled if you ask me than grilled. Pork belly tasted better to my mind. All portions are very small and you have to order a lot of different things to feel full. But better know what you want and like – cause we ordered a lot of variations and half of them were not really delicious. Okura is very popular, but I didn’t like it that much. The octopus was very unsuccessful this time if you know what I mean – very rubbery and rigid. Grilled rice was a bit burnt. They have typical sushi and sashimi of course. So may be if you love Japanese grill and all that – it’s a place for you. But it’s very specific and peculiar. The ambience of a typical Japanese place and a lot of guests like to sit around the counter and see how they actually cook. They say it’s customary if you buy your chef a beer. They bring to each table small plates of a market garden in the beginning and a sauce. And they use too much oil I guess, cause I felt uncomfortable and some heartburn. They don’t take American Express, by the way. And out of three cards I gave them – two were “denied”, but in reality, the money was authorized on all three cards and they were holding it for two weeks.

Straightforward yakitori. Make reservations for the bar. Order salmon, yellowtail collar, gingko nuts, tsukune, bacon-wrapped asparagus, tebasaki wings, corn on the cob (basically one of everything).

Traditional Yakitori with all the fun parts, but something for everyone. Can’t say enough good things. Wish I lived closer!

Second Japanese restaurant this month, and this was another positive experience. Lot of different small dishes. Great for family style sharing. Place is small, and the weird selection of jazz music make it a little weird. But the food and service is great.. We were 6 people and we all filled our stomachs price (w tips) $280