WOKCANO IS A GREAT FIND. A GOOD sushi bar, great Chinese food, a beautiful ambiance and a great late night venue. When the world discovers this place it is going to be packed. The outside walled-in patio is spectacular and a great place to sit under the sky on summer nights.
WHERE: 1413 Fifth St., just south of Santa Monica Boulevard.
WHEN: Lunch and dinner, seven days a week. Open until 2 a.m.
BEST DISHES: The sushi bar downstairs is as good as any except those few gourmet Japanese restaurants, such as Kiriko on Sawtelle and Olympic. There is a great selection of exotic rolls. As is usually the case, I prefer the spicy tuna and the yellowtail rolls. But don’t ignore the Chinese dishes. I found the black pepper beef mignon delicious, and a great bargain at $12. I took enough home for another meal. The steak was cut into tender pieces with sautéed onions and just the right amount of pepper in the brown sauce. The Peking Duck ($26) was a bit of a disappointment because I prefer the steamed buns instead of pancakes, but the quality of the duck was excellent. The spicy seafood soup was wonderful.
BEST FEATURES: Just having a good Chinese restaurant in Downtown Santa Monica is wonderful. But this one has the added feature of a broad menu of excellent Chinese food, a sushi bar, and a place to go for music and a late night drink and snack. Finally, the prices are very reasonable, and we dined like kings for about $25 per person.
WORST FEATURE: I didn’t find any negatives here.
WHAT TO DRINK: This is a chance to try well known sake brands. I had the Nigori unfiltered sake last time I was there. This tastes similar to unsweetened coconut milk, and looks the same. The wine list has all the usual suspects on it without a lot of discrimination, but it has the advantages of breadth of selection, and a variety of wines by the glass, which is a big plus for me, because I like to try three or four different wines at a restaurant like this with a great selection of different foods.
BOTTOM LINE: Get there soon, because in time, even though it’s a very large restaurant, it will be standing room only.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 4, 2008. Read the original PDF.