Hollywood retro

IT’s come to this. First the famous old jazz club Shelly’s Mannehole morphed into Catalina Bar & Grill, and now it’s gone Hollywood hipster: New on the Cahuenga corridor, right next door to Beauty Bar -- where you can get your nails done while you sip a martini -- is a sushi bar and sometime karaoke spot called Tokio.

Don’t bother to go before 10 or the place will be half empty, just a handful of tables and the marvelous Japanese songstress Mayumi Kaneuki in a pale green mini-suit and matching airline hostess hat crowned with a plunging toy airplane. She coyly waves at the crowd as she tosses out old pop standards from the small stage.

Waitresses in bobbed hair and peony-flowered mini-dresses tied with an obi trot around in fishnet stockings and black go-go boots. I fully expect Bond -- James Bond -- to sidle up to the bar and order a martini. But no, it’s the tattoo/knit cap/leather jacket crowd. The vibe, expat Tokyo nightclub from the early ‘60s, is just skewed enough to be utterly charming.

I wish I could say the same about the food. Boiled edamame with Okinawa salt is the way to start, with a bottle of Japanese beer. Tokio’s “famous sushi burgers” are fun: tuna tartare sandwiched between a “bun” of sushi rice. That’ll fill you up nicely for $7. The tempura, though, is the opposite of light. Marinated cucumber salad strewn with assorted seafood, including an unfortunately rubbery slice of octopus, or any of the other salads, is a better bet.

If you know and love sushi, Tokio’s is bound to disappoint, because the quality of the fish is subpar. You’re better off getting a salmon skin or soft shell crab roll than the sashimi or nigiri-zushi. Try the Tokio special roll if you must. It’s basically lobster with a schmear of cream cheese. Weird, but definitely not wonderful.

Granted, Tokio had only been open a week when I ate there, but in a town filled with great sushi bars, the sushi chefs have to do better than this. Now I wish I’d tried the teriyaki, a retro dish that may be more in keeping with Tokio’s theme. Still, the scene is fun and the entertainment is novel. And Wednesday nights may soon be designated karaoke time. Call for an update.

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Tokio

Where: 1640 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood.

When: 6 p.m. to midnight Tuesday through Sunday; bar open until 2 a.m. Full bar. Valet parking.

Cost: Appetizers, $4 to $10; tempura, $6 to $8; salads, $5 to $12; entrees, $12 to $15; sushi (two pieces), $5 to $14.

Info: (323) 464-2065.