Kitayama is located at 101 Bayview Pl Newport Beach, CA 92660 and it somewhat hard to tell it’s there because the main street you’re on is right next to the 55 freeway and the restaurant is blocked by trees. If you glance over and drive by slowly, you will see it.
I had no idea this place Kitayama was going to be this fancy. As you walk in, you will instantly take notice of the traditional Japanese elements like the beautiful kimono on display, the paper walls, traditional Japanese tea cups, and the rooms where sitting down is the only way to eat. Sitting on the floor to eat is not new to me since the Korean culture is similar. Koreans usually dine on the floor and use a flat sitting pillow to sit on.
The waitress took us into a private room where the doors slide shut and was quite dark. It’s the perfect room for having a personal space with friends and family. The dining table is leveled with the height when you sit and it’s very comfortable for me, although, it wasn’t for my friends. They thought it was difficult to sit on the ground and was not used to folding their legs. As we moved closer to our table, we noticed that you could actually place your feet down on the ground and not have you fold your legs so my friends were so much more comfortable that way!
When I go to a sushi restaurant, I typically order the lunch specials and lucky this place offered it.
Lunch combination comes with a choice of meat such as cooked salmon, beef, or chicken. Then it comes with a side of udon noodles, fried shrimp tempura, salad, pickles, and rice. As a group, we ordered a side of Spicy Tuna Rolls. I was surprised the amount of food you get during lunch hours and it seemed like it was a dinner portion!
AND to finish off the awesome lunch, we ordered strawberry mochi which was presented so beautifully and placed on a bamboo leaf I believe.
This was such an awesome experience as if I was really dining in Japan. I enjoyed the dining room, the seat, the beautiful presentation of the food, and the traditional elements throughout the restaurant.
I definitely recommend this place if you want to experience the environment and also the great selection of food.
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