Harden's survey result
Summary
When Matsuhiro Araki opened this nine-seat Mayfair venue in 2014, it broke the mould. He set the bar for the new omakase-style revolution that would sweep London; introduced the capital to a £300+ per head price point, which was almost double what anyone else was charging at the time; and became the world’s first chef to have won three Michelin stars for a Japanese restaurant in both London and Tokyo. In 2019, he returned to the Far East, leaving his protégé Marty Lau and daughter Manae Araki in charge. The tyre man wasn’t happy and removed all three stars in one fell swoop, not even leaving one to remain! Ever since – not helped by a multiplying number of new rivals offering a similar experience – media interest in the place has dwindled, yet each year it has inspired nothing but upbeat feedback in our annual diners’ poll. This year is no exception, with (albeit limited) feedback praising “an intimate dining experience with exquisite and fine sushi” – and we’ve maintained a high rating on that basis.
Summary
When it first touched down in 2014 under founder Matsuhiro Araki, this nine-seat Mayfair venue broke the mould for London in the level of ambition for its top-end sushi omakase (gaining three Michelin stars in the bargain). When Master Araki returned to the Far East in 2019, his protégé, UK-born Marty Lau, took over and Michelin removed all three stars never to return any. Why always puzzled us, as little other than very good or outstanding meals are reported here. “You sit at the sushi bar, watching the chef produce the most incredible sushi ever, with the theatre of exceptional fish being filleted”, and if there’s a quibble it’s that “even though the sushi is superb, it’s hard not to wonder what it was like when Master Araki himself was still here”. There is also the issue that this genre of high-end sushi experiences have multiplied in the capital in recent years and so it is no longer unique in the way it was in the early days.
Summary
Matsuhiro Araki returned to the Far East in 2019 (he had moved to London while his daughter went to uni in the UK) and left this nine-seat Mayfair venue (for which he gained three Michelin stars) in the hands of his apprentice – UK-born Marty Lau – who has run it along similar lines ever since. Of course, it’s a second-mortgage job, but the sushi omakase menu here is very seldom rated anything less than “outstanding”, and why Michelin now chooses to ignore a restaurant which satisfies such a high proportion of customers at one of London’s top price points is baffling. One quibble – “it’s £300 a person, but you still have to leave after your 2-hour sitting”.
Summary
“The team that took over from Matsuhiro Araki is outstanding”, and under Marty Lau this Mayfair nine-seater continues to deliver “stunning sushi, immaculately served and presented”. When the maestro moved on in 2019, Michelin not only removed all three stars, but completely deleted the restaurant from its database – a fantastic example of the capriciousness of its decision-making and the partial nature of its ultimate listings. As a result, this Mayfair venue inspires very much less attention and feedback than once it did, but it can still deliver “a meal you’re likely to remember for the rest of your life” (even if the same can be said about the price tag…).
For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at The Araki?
Unit 4 12 New Burlington St, London, W1S 3BH
Restaurant details
Prices
| Availability | 2 courses | 3 courses |  |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dinner | £310.00 |  |
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| Drinks |
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|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £60.00 |
| Filter Coffee | £6.00 |
| Extras |
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|---|---|
| Bread | £0.00 |
| Service | 15.00% |
Unit 4 12 New Burlington St, London, W1S 3BH
Opening hours
| Monday | CLOSED |
| Tuesday | 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Wednesday | 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Thursday | 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Friday | 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Saturday | 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Sunday | CLOSED |
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