Omaniku - San Gabriel

“Visited in 2021 without a reservation and was luckily seated at the bar. The bartender was very hospitable. 13-course is a lot, but it's nice that you can eat at your own pace and the lemonade with alc-free beer combo beats the fattiness of wagyu(it does literally melt in your mouth.)”

“This place isn't a typical restaurant, and they get hardly any exposure as one tucked away into a high-end hotel. When I went with my family a week or two ago, both the restaurant and the hotel were very empty while we were there, as well. I can't say that a reservation is required to dine here, but we did make one ahead of time. As for the experience itself - aside from an extensive drink menu, there were only two options for each guest for an 11-course meal: beef or seafood. The majority of us chose beef, so I includes pictures of just those in that course. We had multiple servers throughout the visit, and they were friendly and explained each dish after bringing them out. The portions were, of course, small as the bulk of the meal was split between 11 different courses from pairings of meat and veggies all the way to dessert. There was about 10 minutes between each course, so we spent quite a while there. The flavor was definitely great, and there was excellent plating for each course. I can't say I'm much of a connoisseur, but if food came out looking like a mess, it could detract from the experience overall. There were some courses that were misses, such as one that was just cold green beans and a bamboo shoot (I think). But overall, it was a delicious course full of a variety of textures and flavors. I'd say, come for the experience at least once and come with an open mind!”

“One of the best omakase in town, came for a date night and left with a full stomach. The seafood and the beef were delicious and 11 courses is insanely good. Their vibe definitely is great for a first date. Parking is validated for free parking first 3 hours! Highly recommend the beef menu, the a5 Japanese wagyu melts in your mouth!!! The service is amazing too!”

“Update as of October of 2025: we came over to try its new menu. I think the new dishes were a tad better than before, but not quite at the 5* level yet. Keep trying! We’ve eating here a few times and have always enjoyed the ambience and the modern but comfortable sitting area. The food here is always fresh and decent, though not great. You can choose between a seafood or a beef omakase meal. This time we both had the beef. Please note that the first two courses of the beef dinner contain raw seafood or beef, but you can ask the kitchen to cook them for you if you don’t eat raw food. Overall the quality was good, but the quantity was on the light side. At the end, there was a bone marrow kimchi fried rice, which was pretty good. This place’s website has a detailed list of the dishes for both the seafood and the beef menu.”

“Omaniku is a fine dining restaurant located in the Sheraton hotel in San Gabriel. Guests have the option between a beef or seafood tasting menu. We came as a party of 9 for my friend’s birthday and all opted for the beef - the Omaniku tasting course. We were seated in a private room. It was relatively quiet with few other guests. The ambiance didn’t feel quite right. I felt like I was sitting in a hotel lobby or an office conference room as opposed to a luxury restaurant. The lighting was a bit too bright, and the table, made up of several other tables with a tablecloth on top, had several bumps and gaps. I started with a Tokyo Night cocktail from the bar, which set me back $18. Sake base with grapefruit, grated ginger, nutmeg, and sparkling water. It was good. Sweet and refreshing with a strong rice wine flavor. The actual meal left me disappointed. It started strong enough. First, we had the Butterfly Yuzu Cleanser, a palate cleanser made of butterfly pea flower and yuzu. Then, our servers brought each of us an ornate black sphere. Opening it revealed a cloud of mist and a “one bite” beef tartare topped with uni and served on a nori cracker. The uni was fresh and buttery and melded beautifully with the raw beef. The nori gave a nice surprising crispness. The A5 Amuse was good too - more beef tartare served on a “one bite” spoon with truffle jelly. For me, the meal reached its peak here. I found fault with the remaining courses in one way or another whether it be their flavor pairing or quality of cooking. The next dish for example, the USDA prime skirt, was cooked tenderly, but its natural juiciness and aroma were vastly overpowered by the ponzu sauce and onion. The ponzu was very tangy. The onion was sweet, caramelized, and biting. All together, however, it was too much and the meat did not shine. In addition, there was too much onion. In terms of volume, I felt like there was more onion than meat on the plate. The chive on top was just overkill. Next was the short rib, which was largely unimpressive. The meat itself tasted bland with most of the flavor coming from the dill garnish. In this dish, the eggplant, which should have just been a side, outshined the beef. The vegetable trio dish was refreshing. I liked the pickled bamboo shoot and the tangy sauce. The green beans kinda just tasted like cold green beans. We then received a crab chawanmushi on the house because it was my friend’s birthday. It was one of the better dishes of the night. The egg was silky, warm, and filling. The broth was umami and delicious. Then, we were each served an overcooked scallop with a side of garlic bread. The scallop was very disappointing. It was tiny. The texture was all wrong - mealy, stringy, and tough. It did not taste fresh. I was not getting truffle from the truffle butter. The broth and scallop were bland. The best thing on the plate was the garlic bread. The ribeye was fine. I don’t remember much about it other than it was served with a Bordelaise sauce. The A5 Wagyu with goma sauce was.. Fine. Objectively, it tasted good. But when I compare it to similar dishes I’ve had, I wasn’t too impressed. I think it was slightly overcooked as the edges were a bit charred. It was not as tender and buttery of a bite as I was expecting for A5 Wagyu. The bone marrow rice was a huge let down. I don’t know why they chose to sear the bone marrow. It looked dry before they even began mixing it. I did not taste the bone marrow in the rice. I was expecting a fatty richness to coat the grains of rice, but I did not get that at all. Mango pudding was good. At $128 per person, this tasting menu is definitely expensive. Was the food disgusting? No. It was decent. But at this price, I was expecting so much more and was severely disappointed”