Uni Ice Cream Is Waiting for You

BY TAMARA PALMER

Uni ice cream is served at Chateau Hanare, the exquisite Japanese restaurant behind the Sunset Strip’s notorious Chateau Marmont, but it’s not on the dessert menu.

Instead, you’ll find the popular selection under the Chef’s Recommendation section of savory items, served with a dollop of Santa Barbara uni and gold leaf on top. I enjoyed it as a kind of intermezzo between more substantial courses and found it to be a surprisingly harmonious application for the buttery seafood. There’s just a slight sweetness that brings it all together (and signals the usual pleasure centers that ice cream does).

I’m curious if this dish would win over people who haven’t had uni before; it’s certainly a novel way to try it for the first time!

Who’s in?

Chateau Hanare, 8097 Selma Ave., Los Angeles