YESS Restaurant is a progressive Japanese restaurant from Chef Junya Yamasaki and Team YESS Restaurant celebrating the surrounding Southern California nature. We focus to work with only the best local seasonal ingredients and treat them with a reverence inspired from traditional Japanese cuisine. The restaurant is housed in a landmark 1920's former bank building in the heart of Los Angeles' Arts District. We cook from an old-style Japanese wood-fired stove and charcoal grill, surrounded by a long cypress counter and a spacious, comfortable dining room.
RESERVATION INFO
Reservations can be made one month in advance through RESY.
If you encounter glitches or problems with Resy’s system, please reach out to them via email at help@resy.com. We are sorry, but we are unable to troubleshoot issues with their platform.
LARGE GROUP
For the dining parties of 7 or more, we work with the host to confirm the menu together ahead of the reservation and request a deposit. Please contact us directly:
PRIVATE DINING ROOM
We have a Private Dining Room and Mezzanine Lounge on our 2nd floor. Please feel free to contact if you are interested in using this facility in the future:
PRIVATE EVENTS
If you are interested in hosting an event at the restaurant, small or large, please contact us directly:
CORKAGE FEE
Our corkage fee is $50 per bottle.
BIRTHDAY CAKE
If you are considering bringing a birthday cake, we have some options to order a Custom Birthday Cake. Please contact us directly:
PARKING
We have paid Parking available in the adjacent lot on 7th St.
OUR CHALLANGE
CONNECT TO NATURE
Celebrating the ‘Here and Now’, the flow of the seasons and the nature around us; and tasting the momentary gifts of the mountains and the sea – this is the spirit of Japanese cuisine. We bring with us this simple spirit as our foundation. Chef Junya hikes, forages, dives, camps, fishes; he enjoys the surrounding land and sea and his cooking at the restaurant is his way to share that enjoyment with guests.
EMBRACING CHANGE
It is our big challenge, but also pleasure, to always be learning about nature in and around LA, and to cook and use fresh ingredients only from the surrounding area. We accept that every day conditions are different, and so how we make the menu, how we care for the ingredients and how we cook the dishes differ accordingly every day. If we follow nature we must embrace constant change. We are all connected, indeed all one, and always in flux. This sense is a key to Japanese cooking and hospitality and an important part of the essence of YESS.
LOCAL FISH
After moving to Los Angeles, we have been spending a long-time with local fisherman - fishing with them, learning from them about their boats, their technique, the environment, and the different local fish species. To prepare for this challenge, in Japan we learnt from the most cutting-edge fishermen and fish mongers. And so at the same time, we have been communicating with the local fishermen about "IKEJIME" and “SHINKEJIME” - traditional Japanese fisherman's techniques to kill and bleed the fish with no stress. We have helped them to apply and adapt these techniques to local species and developed the way to maximize their quality. We have also been helping them to build and advocate a new market for the quality local fish – helping them with restructuring their businesses, transport initiatives, education of fish merchants and contemporaries and connecting them with talented chefs and like-minded restaurants in LA. Our goal now is to continue to develop and work with our wonderful local fishermen to help build their logistics so that they can continue to deliver the best quality local fish to their customers. And in tandem, we strive to match their commitment to their craft, in how we treat the fish when it comes to our kitchen so that their pristine quality, and their nuanced changes through the seasons, are best expressed on the plate to our customers. This constant challenge is one of the underlying joys and privileges of our project.
HOURS & LOCATION
- 2001 E 7th Street Los Angeles CA 90021
| MON | CLOSED |
|---|---|
| TUE | CLOSED |
| WED | CLOSED |
| THU | 18:00 - 21:00 (L.O.) |
| FRI | 18:00 - 21:00 (L.O.) |
| SAT | 18:00 - 21:00 (L.O.) |
| SUN | 18:00 - 21:00 (L.O.) |
CONTACT
- GENERAL INQIRES
- info@yess-restaurant.com
- RESERVATIONS
- reservations@yess-restaurant.com
- MEDIA & PRESS (CARVINGBLOCK)
- kate@carvingblock.com
- PRIVATE EVENTS
- event@yess-restaurant.com
NEWSLETTER
Please sign up for our newsletter! We send information about upcoming event, special menu, seasonal ingredients, holiday hours or staff picks.
GIFT CARD
You can purchase gift card through Toast from this link:
it’s non refoundable. The maximum value of the gift certificate is $500, and it does not have an expiration date.
If you have any questions regarding the purchase process, please contact to:
