Ten years ago I went to my first Nobu (in London) and I was speechless. And since then every time I've visited (mostly New York and London) the novelty wears out and it feels more generic and 'chain-like'. We went on a Friday night, and were seated at the Patio which I read in an earlier Citysearch review was the place to be. Its OK, but it just does not work very well as a space and feels a bit cold, with the cement walls around you its not really a garden. The room inside is noisy to an insane degree I would never sit through dinner there. The waitress was lovely albeit overly excited, but things we ordered were not available, and we found out when it was time to serve the food (e.g. the cauliflower). We tried to re-order (the duck) but they did not have it even though it was on menu. The food we got i thought was excellent everything tasted really good. They do their cod really well and great sashimi. We had great specialty cocktails and they were tasty but the staff repetadly took the glasses away before they were done, and we complained and they did it again but did not fell obligated to comp us the next. As soon as the place got busy the staff started losing it a bit, too. The crowd was getting increasingly tacky - lots of people who look like they put way too much effort to show up in this place which for some reason they consider really hot (just like I did i suppoze), but in my mind the place just doesn't have an edge anymore. Living in this part of LA, there are so many great options for creative Sushi, and you really don't have to go to this high maintanence place to enjoy a Friday night out. Nobu is still Nobu, a great place that many will enjoy, but for me personally it has lost its appeal.
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