If there's one place where celebrities will go to soft launch a relationship or sport a good 'fit, it's Sushi Park in Los Angeles. The "unassuming joint," as Google calls it, has served as a backdrop for campaigns and photo shoots and become a breeding ground for celebs to parade their flings and friendships.
It's the place where Kylie Jenner and Jordyn Woods were first spotted together after famously rekindling their friendship and where Bad Bunny and Kendall Jenner did their first group hangout. Justin and Hailey Bieber practically live there, and despite being based in Paris, Saint Laurent's creative director, Anthony Vaccarello, has also been quoted as a "regular."
Anyone who is someone in the biz — from Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez, Beyoncé and Jay Z, to Emma Stone, Harry Styles, and more recently budding couple Dua Lipa and Callum Turner — has been spotted either entering or leaving Sushi Park's premises. But what is it about this restaurant that has such an A-list pull? We launched a full investigation, and there are four key elements to consider.
1. THE PLACE
Let's start with the basics. What exactly is Sushi Park? If you've spent some time on the internet, chances are you've seen the metal railings outside the strip mall that houses Sushi Park more than a handful of times — or the neon signs that read "Wild Lotus" from the yoga club right next to it.
Sushi Park is inconspicuously located on the top floor of a small two-level strip mall called Sunset Collection on Sunset Boulevard, nestled between the aforementioned yoga club and a beauty parlor. Sunset Collection is also home to a Joe's Pizza, a Starbucks, and a local FedEx — not establishments you'd necessarily associate with Hollywood's elite, and yet here we are. There's no Instagram, no TikTok, no website… nothing promoting the spot.
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Sushi Park is an omakase-only Japanese restaurant, meaning it only serves recommendations by the chef. The restaurant is called Sushi Park not because it's located in a parking lot-adjacent mall (though technically that's also true) but because of its owner and founder, Peter Park. It only opens Tuesday-Saturday for three hours a day, from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Reviews on Yelp date as far back as 2008, but Sushi Park actually opened its doors in 2006.
The place has been open for almost two decades, but when did it become a celeb hotspot? Though the last couple of years have definitely seen an uptick in celeb spottings, it's been a go-to longer than you might think. A Yelp reviewer and frequent Sushi Park customer called the spot "a secret amongst A-list celebs" back in 2010.
According to Vanity Fair's In The Limelight podcast, Meghan Markle (back then, not a royal but a Suits star) recommended Sushi Park in her lifestyle blog The Tig back in the early 2010s, calling it her favorite sushi spot in L.A. and the place had been officially crowned as a "secret hangout" back in 2018. So, do we have Markle to owe for the celebrity craze? Maybe, but let's get into the food.
2. THE FOOD
Aside from their celebrity clientele, perhaps one other thing the restaurant is notorious for is its infamous sign, which some love and some call "incredibly pretentious and tacky," that reads: "Attention. NO TAKE OUT! NO SALAD! NO TERIYAKI, TEMPURA! NO TRENDY SUSHI! NO CALIFORNIA ROLL! NO SPICY TUNA ROLL! We serve only Traditional Sushi! Sushi bar is chef's choice only." Suffice it to say, with all those prerequisites, the food is also the main attraction for some.
A quick Yelp scour, and you'll see visitors are divided on whether Sushi Park is worth it or not. While some call it "the best sushi you can find without having to go to Japan," many others claim the food is overpriced and overrated. "The price for the quality and what you get is just criminal. I feel so wronged," a reviewer wrote.
Still, you have to give credit where credit is due. Though it might not be "authentically Japanese" (since Park is of Korean descent), Sushi Park is often praised for its freshness. In 2020, Condé Nast Traveler picked Sushi Park as one of the 18 best sushi restaurants in Los Angeles, describing its offering as "crowd-pleasing sushi" for "flavor-seekers with expense accounts." (Cough, celebs cough.)
"Sushi Park is a sliver of a space upstairs in a West Hollywood mini-mall," the magazine wrote about the restaurant. “Chances are, your fellow diners haven't eaten traditional omakase sushi in Japan, but they're ready to graduate to the next level of sushi eating — and this is the place to do it. You could call it 'high L.A. sushi,' which is different from the 'high Japanese sushi' served at other omakase-style restaurants in the city. You're here for the food; no need to dress up.”
Brant Cox of The Infatuation agrees in his 2023 review, offering more intel into Sushi Park's appeal of yesteryear. "While a meal at Sushi Park is still a fun night on the Strip, the quality of sushi no longer matches its hype or the high price point," his review reads. "A meal here [feels] much like the famous sign out front: fun and kitschy, but no longer the staple of L.A. sushi that it once was."
3. THE PRICE
Judging by reviews online, a casual dinner at Sushi Park will set you back an average of between $200 and $400 per person — sans drinks. Are you starting to get the celebrity appeal now? "Spent about $600 for two people. And, yes, I did see a celebrity while I was there," a reviewer wrote.
It seems like Sushi Park's prices have more than doubled in the last decade. "It'll probably run you about $100/per person, but I think it's well worth it," a 2013 Yelp review reads, which we now know is not the case anymore because of #inflation but also #celebinflation.
Judging by most reviewers, the average time spent in Sushi Park is around two hours, essentially the entire time they're currently open. (You are expected to tell the chef when you are 80% full; seven or eight courses are the average but you can go ‘til you can’t no more… paying for each extra plate, of course.)
4. THE AMBIANCE
Though we all know the outside of Sushi Park almost by memory at this point, the restaurant's inside remains a mystery for most — mainly because of its strict no photos, no videos policy. However, there are more than a handful of clues sprinkled online.
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Many describe the place as "humble and cozy" and highlight how tiny the space is, with just a handful of tables inside and a sushi bar operated by multiple chefs. "We were sitting two tables away from Kendall Jenner, which probably tells you the sushi must be incredible if she chose to go there since she could probably go anywhere she wanted," a reviewer wrote.
Some have dared to film inside the restaurant, and the decor is definitely not a selling point. The walls are a mix of bright orange and bare plaster white, and black or gray granite countertops line both tables and the bar. The cutlery of choice? Disposable wooden chopsticks. It's anti-TikTok, and yet it's flourishing.
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IN CONCLUSION
Why would celebs spend $400 on a simple night out to dine with disposable chopsticks? Is it the food? The privacy? The pretentious-meets-pretentious? The lack of choice required for the menu? Is it a mix of everything? Well, yes, but it's also simply because they can.
Sushi Park's existence is shrouded in mystery for us regular folk. "They've gotta be selling more than sushi," someone said about the place. "If the walls of Sushi Park could talk," another person added. The truth is they probably wouldn't say anything interesting.
Sushi Park has become a safe haven for celebs because it's affordable and accessible — for them. It's not a fancy night out, it's just a regular dinner. It's located in the northernmost part of West Hollywood, which means it is just a walk away for Hollywood resident stars or only a 30-minute drive from Calabasas, that also serendipitously avoids the city center. Not many people can afford it, and not many can fit inside, so, as the Brits would say, Bob's your uncle. (There you have it.)
"Celebrities just like going to places other celebrities go to… Looking at the Sunday spotting on D.M., it's repetitive. It's the same 20 restaurants in NYC and L.A.; Come on! For sushi, if it's not this, it's Nobu Malibu," someone commented on Yelp. And that's precisely it. Sushi Park's star power is… the stars. It's the IYKYK for celebs. But by now, we all know — and they know we know.
