Located in Mitsuwa Marketplace, Misasa serves traditional Japanese rice bowls and bento boxes. With most of the menu items well under $10, this is one of the cheaper eats in the food court. To assist you with your dining choice, Misasa has a window display of fake food.

The shrimp tempura bowl, which costs $7.50, is much cheaper than the one offered by tempura specialist Hannosuke next door. Granted there’s only two lone shrimp sitting on top of a bed of rice with eggs and onions and sauce, so you get what you pay for. Included with the bowl are a bowl of miso soup and a piece of tofu.

Even though I normally would order a deep-fried pork cutlet, I got led astray by the traditional chicken teriyaki and tempura bento box. It was like a walk down memory lane. The bento box included a piece of tofu and potato salad. I have an odd weakness for Japanese potato salad – it also turned out to be my favorite part of the meal.

The chicken teriyaki was fine, nothing out-of-the-ordinary, but I guess one doesn’t expect that from chicken teriyaki. Misasa used dark meat, which I appreciated since it’s much moister than white meat.

There was one lone piece of shrimp tempura and a huge tangle of julienned vegetables that had been fried together. The shrimp was a little soggy, not like the perfectly executed tempura of Hannosuke. The vegetables mass was difficult to eat. They would have been better as single pieces of vegetables fried on their own.

As fate would have it, two people, who were sitting across from me, were eating that pork cutlet curry plate ($7.95). If it wasn’t for that potato salad, I would have regretted my choice.

Misasa is exactly what you would expect from a food court Japanese restaurant, nothing special but relatively inexpensive. For something a little tastier, you’re better off waiting for Santouka Ramen or Hannosuke. However, if you’re looking for something cheap and filling, Misasa fits the bill.

Location: 3760 S. Centinela Blvd., Los Angeles 90066.
Website – none
Kid-Friendly – Yes
Kid’s Menu – No
Pesco-Vegetarian Friendly – Yes.
Vegetarian/Vegan Friendly – Yes
Gluten-Free Options – Yes

Editor’s note: Misasa is now closed.