If it seems that there are far more sushi bars around town than are really needed, you may be right. Sixty-five Japanese cafes are slicing raw fish and wrapping it with cool, special rice. One of the reasons for the expansion is that opening a small sushi bar is almost a turnkey proposition. The suppliers of the fish, the menus, the special plates and right down to the fake parsley are just a phone call away, and they can get a would-be entrepreneur started in short order--regardless of his skill level at actually serving food. Standing high above that level of the business is the long-running local Little Tokyo chain, where the staff can turn out almost any Japanese dish with first-class ingredients.
The is the new, much larger location of what has been for twenty-five years one of the best purveyors of sushi and other Japanese fare. The old place, despite its small size, always put forth an astonishing range of both raw and cooked creations. In its new quarters that program has only been revved up, to the point that reading the menu's dozens of dishes is a puzzling chore.
Little Tokyo is second only to Shogun in longevity among sushi bars. Yusuke Kawara opened it in 1988 to such uniform raves that the Little Tokyo name spread to a few branches and franchises. There was always some inconsistency from one location to another, but most have been well above average. The one being reviewed here is the recent relocation (four blocks toward the lake) of the original Little Tokyo on Causeway Boulevard. The branch on Bienville and N. Carrollton is also good, but emphasizes the hibachi side of the menu. The best of the franchises is the one in Mandeville.
The new restaurant occupies what looks like an entire small strip mall. The longest sushi bar in town stretches along at least half of it, with rows of tables lining the exterior windows. There's a karaoke bar in the rear for some after-dinner fun, especially if you've had a few Japanese beers. The service style is different. Instead of soft-spoken Asian waitresses, the servers here have a gabby, American approach. The advantage of this is that you actually get full information on what's available from the sushi bar, and what exactly all that is.
For a really incredible evening of Japanese eating, you can order ahead for the all-evening kaiseki, a procession of small, elegant courses.
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