Not-So-Sweet Valley High...

Name: Kabuki Japanese Restaurant
Coordinates: 20940 Ventura Blvd. 91364
Neighborhood: The Valley. Like, duh!
Happiest Hours: 3-6pm, M-F

Let me tell you something about being from the Midwest.

Growing up on the Heartland isn't all catching fireflies, the smell of freshly mowed grass, and bottle rocket fights. It's not like the Coug says in "Jack and Diane" -- well, at least not entirely. There's a dark side to it that you don't read about in "Winesburg, Ohio" and the like. A dark suffering overlays the whole area at certain times and in certain ways. But what ways, you might ask?

Well, for one, you can't get good sushi.

I know. Shocking, right? But being 600 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, 1200 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, and 2500 miles from the Pacific Ocean does not augur well for the freshness of any given catch. Lake Erie perch and walleye are all well and good, but you'll likely not find those on the special board at Urusawa.

Let's just say that our favorite staple from the bounty and bosom of the seas, aside from the aforementioned native species, comes in a box with the picture of a man in a yellow slicker.

Mmmm....fish sticks.

But I digress. My point here is that when a Midwesterner like me moves to California, he's bombarded with all these options as to where to get sushi. I mean, that first drive down Ventura Boulevard was something to behold. Sushi place after sushi place, each with deals and each with beckoning signature rolls...how's a barefoot boy with cheek of tan supposed to decide?

My first decsion, and first favorite sushi place in LA, shows these six years later my stunning naivete. Kabuki Sushi, although rife with deals and value, just doesn't have that great of sushi. It's well-priced, and to the uninitiated, it'll do the trick, but there's many a better option for sushi, and even for Happy Hour sushi, in this fair city of ours.

If you have a rube that's fallen fresh off the turnip truck, though, I say you stuff him with it.




















The Vitals: As I mentioned, Kabuki's sushi is pretty mediocre. If you can deal with that, though, then by all means, roll in between 3pm and 6pm. There's a variety of rolls, sushi, and appetizers that are priced between $3.95 and $5.95, and giant beers are $4.95 with deals on various cocktails, wine, sake, and the like. The Ventura Boulevard location in Woodland Hills is nice and clean, if filled with Valley high schoolers (shudder!), and parking is ample. If you can overlook the gnawing feeling in your gut that keeps telling you that you could be doing better -- a LOT better -- then you should, like, TOTALLY go. You know?