My friend Talia and I went to the anniversary party I posted about yesterday. By the time we got there which was around 7:47pm the valet parking line was literally down the street with lots of cars just waiting, we opted to park the car at a meter. When you approach Gonpachi, it's a feeling of going to Japan, with its traditional Japanese architecture. We walked in and there were loads of people. Who are we kidding? We are in LA and with free food + free booze, we might as well have seen all of LA tonight. As we walked in, our nice hostess lets us know that there is a food station on the main level, two stations on the top level, as well as a sushi station. Since we could hardly get around, we decided to go to the top level. Of course by the time we got there, it was pretty much leftovers, but enough to make a plate (the pic above). The rolls which I believe, were tempura soft shell crabs were "bland" according to Talia, and it was pretty much just plain for me. The salad was a salad, nothing special, but nothing horrible either. The best thing on that plate was the Salmon and Tuna Sashimi which were meaty and fresh. I also tried the edamame, which had a fishy taste to it, but it was different and good.
After we were done with that, we headed out and got a nice Sake Sangria, it was sweet, and I noticed some oranges and apples. The poor girl who obviously needed more help pouring the neverending demands of the drinks into the ice sculpture said it was soaked for 4 days, it may have been 4 hours, I could hardly hear anything with everyone talking. Then we headed for the main level food station. We got a plate full of stuff (picture to the right). First, I tried the Soba noodles, something I grew up on because my mother is a Soba Connoisseur, and I felt it missed the mark on taste. It was again on the bland side. I tried the tuna steak skewer, and it was okay, almost had the aftertaste of a defrosted frozen tuna. The seafood salad was mediocre. The tomato bacon wrapped skewer was smokey and juicy. The crabcake felt like it came out premade, then defrosted, and then fried. It had a freezer burn aftertaste. The best thing on the plate was the seaweed salad, that was fresh, clean, and refreshing. Sorry to say, but most of everything had pretty much one or two bites and were placed back on the plate. After that we headed to the 
sushi station. We picked up an array as you see on the left. We also got some cones stuffed with tuna and salmon. Also, some dessert which consisted of coconut cookie, green tea cookie, and a regular butter sugar cookie. Let me keep this short. The sushi was probably the best thing we ate tonight, but I wouldn't say its the best sushi you will find in LA. Talia loved the cones, and when I say cones, only cones. She had to take out the insides. I tasted the cone and the tuna together, and the sweet and salty just went off the mark, it almost felt like an afterthought. And the cookies, those were the best, even beat the sushi. Sorry about the pictures, it was so dark, shadows were bound to be cast in all directions. I tried to make best of the situation. All in all, unfortunately, I don't know if I would go back and pay money to eat there. The ambiance is great, and I'm sure when there are not 300+ people cluttered in the restaurant, I would probably take in the architecture more. But also, I got to give it to them. They were trying to mass produce menu items that are usually portion controlled. If this was a wedding buffet or some mass event, such as this one, the food would be considered good but not great. Talia and I said we would like to come back to take in the ambiance and really try out the menu individually. I'm sure it would make a difference. Lucky us, on our way out we both got $25 certificates for our next time there, so another meal on them. All in all, I will go back to use my certificate ;-)
sushi station. We picked up an array as you see on the left. We also got some cones stuffed with tuna and salmon. Also, some dessert which consisted of coconut cookie, green tea cookie, and a regular butter sugar cookie. Let me keep this short. The sushi was probably the best thing we ate tonight, but I wouldn't say its the best sushi you will find in LA. Talia loved the cones, and when I say cones, only cones. She had to take out the insides. I tasted the cone and the tuna together, and the sweet and salty just went off the mark, it almost felt like an afterthought. And the cookies, those were the best, even beat the sushi. Sorry about the pictures, it was so dark, shadows were bound to be cast in all directions. I tried to make best of the situation. All in all, unfortunately, I don't know if I would go back and pay money to eat there. The ambiance is great, and I'm sure when there are not 300+ people cluttered in the restaurant, I would probably take in the architecture more. But also, I got to give it to them. They were trying to mass produce menu items that are usually portion controlled. If this was a wedding buffet or some mass event, such as this one, the food would be considered good but not great. Talia and I said we would like to come back to take in the ambiance and really try out the menu individually. I'm sure it would make a difference. Lucky us, on our way out we both got $25 certificates for our next time there, so another meal on them. All in all, I will go back to use my certificate ;-)
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