Bushey Heath, Japanese Restaurant Guide

On Golders Green’s main drag, this well-established kosher-Asian is mostly known for its Chinese dishes. It has a clean-lined modern interior and – typical of its genre and area – is often judged “generally good, if a little ovepriced”. (A similar business under the same name in Edgware is apparently under separate ownership).

This “great-value Japanese” near Golders Green station has been “reliably consistent for years now” (decades, even), serving “excellent sushi as well as a good choice of hot and cold dishes”. The owner is Japanese fish and seafood wholesaler T&S Enterprises (who run the Atariya brand), which explains the “ultra-fresh” ingredients and “skillful chefs”. Top Menu Tip – “the daily specials are interesting too”.

“A reliable option for Japanese food on a budget” – this chain’s “functional decor” “looks and feels authentic”, while the “great, light tempura is always a good indicator of quality” and the sushi and sashimi tend to be “so much better than average”. Service can be “swift”, even “rushed”, and the venues “noisy” and “crowded because of the exceptional value” – but they’re “deservedly popular to eat in or take away”. Top Menu Tip – they sometimes have sea urchin, a real delicacy.

“A reliable option for Japanese food on a budget” – this chain’s “functional decor” “looks and feels authentic”, while the “great, light tempura is always a good indicator of quality” and the sushi and sashimi tend to be “so much better than average”. Service can be “swift”, even “rushed”, and the venues “noisy” and “crowded because of the exceptional value” – but they’re “deservedly popular to eat in or take away”. Top Menu Tip – they sometimes have sea urchin, a real delicacy.

This 15-strong London noodle chain (now with branches in Brighton, Birmingham and Bristol) is “a good stand-by” – perhaps it’s “not as good as some of its competitors”, but it is widely seen as “good value”: in particular “the lunch-time meal deal” is a winner.

The “reliable, delicious ramen” available at six sites across the capital, offering “tasty twists” on traditional Kyushu-style noodles from former pro cyclist Kazuhiro Kanada, is many people’s favourite Japanese fast-food option. “A newly opened branch in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush, although finding its feet, is still one of the better options for a bite to eat” in the mall.

Long a beacon for “exceptional and authentic Japanese” cooking – and at “great value for Hampstead” – the ratings have dipped for this restaurant since it expanded into the premises next door a couple of years back. “It’s twice the size and quite posh now, but the service is not as great” and “the sushi, yakitori skewers and so on are good, but didn’t blow me away as they did in the past” – “maybe the standard of London sushi has risen but it all felt rather lacklustre several years on from my previous visit”.

2022 Review: “The food is very good” at this “typically impersonal” – but actually, by the standards of the genre, pretty “convivial” – Japanese joint near Ealing Common tube, which serves a variety of set meals at lunchtime and izakaya-style dining in the evening.

2022 Review: “A sushi bar in a shop” may not sound appealing, but these cafés operated by a Japanese food importer – in Ealing, Swiss Cottage, Golders Green and Marylebone – provide fresh, “clean-tasting” sushi, and they’re “good-value”.

“A perfect evening out” is reported in most accounts of this masterful culinary experience created by chef Endo Kazutoshi and delivered in the memorable setting of the luxurious 16-seat space at the top of the old BBC TV Centre in White City (complete with floor-to-ceiling windows and superb views). At the heart of the meal is an omakase dinner menu served over 18 courses (for £290 per person) at a 200-year-old Hinoki wood counter. Ultra-fine sushi and seafood – langoustine, caviar, spider crab, scallops, oysters – are of course a dominating feature; and interspersed with fusion dishes such as a Japanese-style chowder or soufflé; often with wagyu beef to finish. For most reports the only complaint is that it’s “just so hard to get into!”; and it is typically booked out months ahead. This year, though, there were also one or two unusual gripes about “daft prices” although no-one rated any element of the experience as less than “good”. Top Tip – Friday lunchtime service is also available.

This 15-strong London noodle chain (now with branches in Brighton, Birmingham and Bristol) is “a good stand-by” – perhaps it’s “not as good as some of its competitors”, but it is widely seen as “good value”: in particular “the lunch-time meal deal” is a winner.

2023 Review: This tiny Japanese near Little Venice is “well worth seeking out”. “The food is served in a friendly manner and the sushi and sashimi is always very fresh”.

“Outstanding sushi and friendly service” in a chic minimalist setting make star-chef Endo Kazutoshi’s Notting Hill venture a very adequate (and significantly cheaper) alternative to his superlative flagship, Endo at the Rotunda. Named after his mother, it features a handrolled ‘temaki’ style of sushi developed by the Kazutoshi family, as well as a selection of hot dishes from the robata grill. Terrace seating is “great for lunch” in warmer weather.

“Really fresh sushi” and “authentic Japanese cooked dishes” belie the modest appearance of “this ever-buzzing local” near Turnham Green tube. It’s also “great for a takeaway”.

2022 Review: Hidden beneath Smith’s Bar & Grill in the Paddington Basin development – a spring 2020 Peruvian newcomer named for the Ayllu community of the Inca Empire, and serving Peruvian-Japanese fusion dishes and cocktails.

This Japanese grill near Stamford Brook is a “great local aging well”: it may be “a rather spartan place, but the quality of the food is good” – and is best enjoyed at one of the “four seats at the counter, watching the skewers sizzle and smoke their way on to the plate”. Top Menu Tips – “stand-out mackerel” and “excellent sashimi”.

“With its eclectic Mexican/Japanese fusion fare”, this duo of funky bar-restaurants offer a “fun” time as a “great location for drinks and snacks with fabulous cocktails and tacos” and is “especially good if you’re dining with a few people so you can share dishes”. At least that’s what most folks feel about these surprisingly vibey and “buzzy” haunts in Notting Hill and by Liverpool Street station. On the downside, “it is easy to rack up a large bill and service can be erratic”. Where such criticisms are made, it’s mostly concerning the larger, newer EC2 branch (“had a rooftop meal in the City and although we knew it would not be ‘bargain basement’, we felt we were treated like cash-machines to be brought in and moved out again as quickly as possible”). See also Juno and Luna. Top Menu Tip – “nearly everything is gluten-free” and also nut-free.