Ishi’s Sawtelle Kitchen Was Well-Worth the Wait

There were those who went into foodie mourning when Ishi’s Grill, the tiny house of excellent Franco-Japanese cuisine, closed its doors more than four years ago. Rumors about its chef, Masayuki Ishikawa would surface from time to time--he was trying to open a restaurant in the San Fernando Valley, he was developing recipes for Noa Noa. . . .

Finally, he’s opened the Sawtelle Kitchen, 2024 Sawtelle Blvd., (213) 445-9288, which opened quietly and just for lunch two months ago. This week it opened for dinner.

The new place is what the old place might have been if it had opened in 1990: Ishi’s moved with the times. Where Ishi’s Grill had a spare, ‘50s Atomic Age look, which fit the Zeitgeist of the early ‘80s, the Sawtelle Kitchen, almost as small as the original Grill, is carefully designed to look earthy and rustic--like the kind of restaurant you’d hope to stumble on in the French or Italian countryside.

The food is rustic, too. There are tortilla pizzas (like Italian quesadillas), one with anchovies and capers, another with three cheeses and herbs de Provence; also, several pastas and salads. The dinner plates are the same bargain they were at the old restaurant: For $9 to $14.50 you can get, say, sea bass sauteed with mussels or lamb ragout, served with one of Ishi’s delicious, silky soups or a beautifully composed salad.