New Times - Taste 2005
"It's amazing what a half-million dollars can get you these days. For Joey Franco, the owner of Mama Mia, it bought an utterly trendy, very upscale restaurant with a chic factor that has skyrocketed since it's recent opening. It also produced a former Nobu, chef, a paid food designer, incredibly adept interior designers, Louis Vuitton furniture, and a menu that is sure to be the envy of the neighborhood. Between the acrylic, backlit seats and the parade of beautiful people, it may just cause the weak to have sensory overload. If you can't handle the luxury that is Daiginjo sake, foie gras mousse and Beluga caviar, at least start off with a simple roll or two, go outside for a breath of fresh air, and pay a visit to the bar. There, you can taste nearly 40 different flavors of sake while a DJ spins tunes nightly. Ahh, shakin' booties, sushi, and sake. What more could one want?"

NewTimes - May 2005
"But everybody looks fabulous at Sushi Room: A Sake Lounge (this restaurant has a name plus a subtitle, like a blockbuster or a master's thesis). The perfect light seems to emanate from all directions without a source. Heaven should be bathed in a glow like this; I hope if I ever get there, it turns out to have such a divine sake list. This little 14-table room is beautifully composed. Owner Joey Franco hired a New York designer to pull together the white Louis Vuitton slipcovers and tabletops, ethereal fluorescent lighting, flat-screen TVs running simultaneous video clips, and a DJ booth floating above it all. The total effect is spare, à la mode, and very, very cool."
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Whats HOT! Review - March 2005
"As our meal began, we were introduced to many types of sakis.Our waiter made it a fun learning experience. If sake is new to you there is a sake sample platter to help familiarize yourself to the different varieties." Read More

The Digest - January 2005
"To call SushiRoom A Sake Lounge in Downtown Hollywood 'just another sushi place' would be doing it terrible injustice.

The hip new eatery which opened on Young Circle in November does offer an array of fresh sushi and sashimi but an ecletic menu and elegant Asian ambiance are unlike anything the area has ever seen." Read More

Hollywood Gazette - December 2004
"...However, you can't ignore the full menu of sushi and sashimi, fresh whole fish, stone grill entrees featuring beef, seafood and lobster, and Hot Pot Dinner choices of Sukiyaki, Shabu Sahub and Yosenabe.." Read More