White Lotus is the only restaurant in Los Angeles that serves Awamori sake, a rare, smooth, distilled sake from Okinawa.

With the increasing pervasiveness of exclusive Japanese restaurants in the United States, appreciation for and availability of the very best sake are on the rise. Chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s restaurants, Nobu in Manhattan and Matsuhisa in Los Angeles, set the trend. Others have followed, including White Lotus in Los Angeles, Ozumo in San Francisco, Bizen in Great Barrington, Mass., Uni in Boston, Morimoto in Philadelphia, and Matsuri and Megu, both in Manhattan. But sake is also making more frequent appearances on the menus of high-end French restaurants, like Chanterelle, one of a handful of Manhattan dining establishments designated with the top rating of four stars by the New York Times.