Yojie Japanese Fondue

Ashley: This past weekend, I went out with the people from my research program, and after spending a day at the beach, Yojie was our long awaited stop for dinner. I found Yojie while skimming through the list of Dine LA restaurants in the $25 bracket. This was the best value for a Dine LA priced meal that I've had so far. And the food was delicious. Everyone in my group throughly enjoyed their dining experience--especially those who had never had Japanese fondue before.

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the restaurant (besides the delicious smell of shabu shabu) was the restaurant decor and ambiance. Is it possible for a restaurant to be so perfectly classy and casual and the same time? Look at what they even did with the napkin! The dots on the napkin neatly align with the lettering on the chopsticks.

Small things like these do get noticed! Anyway, our whole table ordered the dine LA special. I ordered the Sumo (12 oz. of beef). I wanted to order the half salmon half beef plate, but for the value, Sumo was more worth it. The regular price for the Sumo entree alone (not including the appetizer or dessert) is $22. So for a 3 course Dine LA meal, the Sumo had already allowed me to get my money's worth. Customer service here was excellent! My friend had asked for a the salmon/beef combo entree, but they had made a mistake and given her only the beef instead (not the Sumo, a different kind). When she mentioned it to the waitress, the waitress brought out another salmon serving free of charge!

The appetizer came first. I had ordered the regular Miso soup, although they did have a spicy version on their menu. It came in a decently sized bowl but the soup itself was nothing special.

The main entree was the real highlight of the meal. It was quite a lot of food actually, especially with the 12 oz. of beef. All entrees come with a side serving of vegetables, which included a nice assortment of carrots, broccoli, cabbage, mushrooms, and noodles (I probably left out something), and a bowl of white rice. The sauces were delicious as well. One was soy sauce based and the other was peanut. After showering the sauces with additional toppings, they both went very well with the meat. The waitress was really nice and patiently showed everyone who didn't know how to eat fondue style all the details. And then....the feast began.

Just look at all that meat! Needless to say, I was stuffed by the end of the main course as I ate every last piece of beef. The beef itself was not that flavorful, but that might be because my soup base was just plain shabu shabu. Dipped in the sauce, however, and the beef was heavenly. Maybe a little bit tough--but overall, delicious! Anyway, I was so so full after the entree. So when they announced that dessert was about to be served, my stomach started to churn. I told myself that I would only take a sip of the ice cream float. Guess what happened...

So obviously there was no way I could resist that and I ended up finishing all of my dessert as well. It was so yummy. The strawberry soda went really well with the vanilla ice cream. My friend who ordered melon flavored soda said the same thing about his float. All in all, it was a great meal. Especially for Dine LA, I thought it was a great value. If you guys ever get a chance to try this place out, I would highly recommend doing so. You won't be disappointed. Great customer service, great food, great ambiance and decor, what more could you ask for!

Happy eating!

-STASH