Orris

• Cuisine(s): Asian, Asian Fusion, Pan-Asian, Small Plates
  Hours: Sun, Tue-Sat 11:30am-2:30pm, Sun, Tue-Sat 5pm-9pm
  Price: $$$
• Payment Types: MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover
  Features: Family Style, Kid Friendly, Patio/Sidewalk Dining, Vegetarian Friendly, Wheelchair Accessible
  Serving: Dinner
• Alcohol: Beer/Wine
  Reservations: Not Accepted
  Parking: Lot Available, Valet

Description

Orris, sometimes described as an Asian “tapas bar,'' is a marriage between California casual and the Japanese izakaya, a great place to drop in for a beaker of daiginjo sake and a plate or two of smoked scallops garnished with salmon roe, seared tuna with sweet onion marmalade, or even what amounts to lamb sashimi - food to wash down with sake, not with a glass of Bierzo. Its location, convenient to the Nuart and the manga-intensive shopping strip anchored by the Giant Robot complex, couldn't be better, and the small wine list, as well as the sake list, is swell. And although chef Hideo Yamashiro isn't cooking the fried catfish with ponzu that made him famous at his South Pasadena restaurant Shiro, the fried seafood is awfully good, especially the tempura shrimp dusted with house-made curry powder and served with a moist little mound of Okinawan sea salt. See full review.