Skip to main content5-10 pm Wednesday-Sunday. $$ Moderate.
[JAPAN-ISH] The name of Micah Camden's sexy yet homey izakaya and sake bar references the Japanese mob. To be honest, if most gangs created Northwest-tweaked Asian grub this good, we'd be members, too. The roster of house rolls and sashimi, served in a long chamber decorated with earth-toned tiles and hand-drawn cherry blossoms, is fresh and inventive, from mellow chunks of mango and avocado wrapped with house-cured gravlax to perfect grilled octopus brightened up with ponzu and cracked pepper. The friendly bartender can zip you through a brain-bending tour of reasonably priced sakes—a crisp glass of "Wandering Poet" or a sip of "Divine Droplets" that tastes faintly of bananas—while you nibble. Yakuza's real wonders are often cooked: Citrusy scallop tempura comes fried with a Don King crown of spiky phyllo threads, nestled in a pool of creamy chile mayo; Dungeness crab gets dressed up with crème fraîche and smoky pork cracklin's. And then there's the burger: a tall mound of Highland Oak beef rolled in togarashi spice blend topped with chèvre, potato crisps, housemade ketchup and that spicy mayo. It's a killer. KELLY CLARKE.
Ideal meal: Refreshing cucumber salad with sesame and togarashi, ginger-spiked ahi and avocado poke, Yakuza burger and a funky-sweet bright-green cocktail made from freshly juiced sugar snap peas, vodka and lime—best enjoyed on the leafy back patio.
Best deal: A big bowl of simple chilled soba noodles, enlivened with ginger and ponzu and a mountain of green onion; "Really Spicy" cocktail made with house-infused Thai bird chile vodka and cilantro. Just one will tear your face off…in a good way.
Chef's choice: "My new sushi chef, David, just put a house-cured ahi tuna sashimi on the menu that I love." (Micah Camden)
WWeek 2015