St James's, Japanese Restaurant Guide

2022 Review: This tranquil veteran hidden away in an alleyway just off Piccadilly Circus has provided one of London’s “best Japanese experiences” for nearly 40 years. It’s “run by the nicest people” – “the welcome from Lisa is always amazing” – and if you sit downstairs near the counter, she’ll choose a wonderful meal for you from the sushi, sashimi and cooked dishes on offer. Upstairs, there’s waitress service at tables.

“Genuine Japanese-style ramen and dumplings” from Japan Centre owner Tak Tokumine hit the spot with “generous portions, excellent flavours” and “very good service” at his expanding group based in the West End. There are now seven venues in London, plus Ichiba food hall in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush and offshoots in Oxford and Manchester. The summer 2022 launch of a branch in Kensington High Street was expected to be the first of several under a new franchising arrangement.

“Asia meets France” at this Mayfair yearling from French TV chef Cyril Lignac, named after his Paris restaurant in St Germain des Prés. “There’s a large team of sushi chefs and the place has a lively, Parisian feel”, with “French desserts, which are superb” – as they should be, given that Lignac trained as a pâtissier. It’s no shock that the place is pricey, but fans say it’s worth it: “absolutely top class, can’t wait to return”.

“It feels like you’re in a nightclub, and it’s very expensive” at this oligarch playground in Mayfair, run by Arkady Novikov (who in past times boasted of his personal friendship with Vladimir Putin, but who more recently hoisted a ‘Peace for Ukraine’ flag on the restaurant website). For some folks the whole vibe is a complete turn off (“this is what’s wrong with London!”), but for Eurotrash in party mood it’s still just the job for nibbling on sushi, robata and other luxe bites. (There is also a grand Italian dining room to the rear, but it inspires practically no feedback this year).

This “wonderful Japanese noodle shop just off of Regent Street” is modelled on the ‘yokocho’ alleyways of old Tokyo, its retro 1970s theme lending itself well to pedestrianised Heddon Street. There’s “great-tasting ramen with regular specials” and it “can be busy”. Launched two years ago by the Japan Centre team, it also has branches in Panton Street, Soho, and Westfield Shepherd’s Bush.

2021 Review: “Always there to satisfy a Japanese food craving”: this conveyor-belt sushi-stalwart in Soho rates well for “fast, good-quality plates” – less so for the “uncomfortable stools and loud music”. But nobody is complaining with “fresh hand-made tempura and salmon rolls for £4 – a steal!”. It lost its spin-offs last year, though, in Covent Garden and South Kensington.

“It’s easy to walk past” these “unassuming” Japanese canteens, but “don’t – go on in!” There’s a “great choice on the menu of both cooked plates and sushi”; “the food is always delicious” and prices are keen for a cuisine that can be very expensive. After two decades in Soho, the group has now pushed into Balham, Kennington and Finchley, with Pimlico and Walthamstow scheduled for late 2022.

“Genuine Japanese-style ramen and dumplings” from Japan Centre owner Tak Tokumine hit the spot with “generous portions, excellent flavours” and “very good service” at his expanding group based in the West End. There are now seven venues in London, plus Ichiba food hall in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush and offshoots in Oxford and Manchester. The summer 2022 launch of a branch in Kensington High Street was expected to be the first of several under a new franchising arrangement.

The “very rich and extremely meaty pork broth” wins plenty of admirers for what some consider “London’s top ramen”. Founded by former cycle racer Kazuhiro Kanada in Kyushu 14 years ago, the small group now has four branches in the capital – Angel, Piccadilly, Covent Garden and Carnaby – and provide “food to savour on a chilly winter day”.

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”.

2021 Review: “Good quality Japanese comfort food” including “proper tonkatsu – rich pork served with cabbage” – is on the menu at this rather “cramped” venue off Leicester Square from the duo behind Kanada-Ya, Aaron Burgess-Smith and Tony Lam. “Also of note is the speakeasy bar in the basement”.

These “busy and bustling fusion restaurants” offer a “wide choice” of East Asian dishes, headed by “Japanese-style favourites” – including various sushi or sashimi options and miso black cod – that are “competently and surprisingly well prepared”. Israeli-born founder Ohad Kastro celebrates the 10th anniversary of the original launch in Primrose Hill this year; branches in Soho, Marylebone, Chelsea and Barnes have followed.

“Genuine Japanese-style ramen and dumplings” from Japan Centre owner Tak Tokumine hit the spot with “generous portions, excellent flavours” and “very good service” at his expanding group based in the West End. There are now seven venues in London, plus Ichiba food hall in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush and offshoots in Oxford and Manchester. The summer 2022 launch of a branch in Kensington High Street was expected to be the first of several under a new franchising arrangement.

The “surprisingly delicious and wide-ranging menu” combines sushi with yakitori skewers (the so-called ‘sticks’) at this extremely popular Japanese-inspired group, whose “bustling” branches betray the Scandi style of their Copenhagen-based owners. It’s “a perfect choice if not everyone wants sushi” (even if it’s “expensive and portions are a bit on the small side”). A tenth branch is promised in late 2022 in Westfield W12.

This “classic Japanese stalwart” has offered an authentic taste of Tokyo in a Mayfair backstreet for 45 years – and is always “full of Japanese consular employees” from the nearby embassy. Top Tip – “go for the good-value lunchtime set menu”.

Too limited feedback for a rating on this Mayfair Japanese centred around an open kitchen, which – in its six years of operation – has never seemed quite to fulfil its potential. Nowadays owned by famous food importers Atariya and supplied by Zen-Noh (Japan’s agricultural cooperative), it should be an undisputed champion of NIpponese cuisine, but is still sometimes accused of being “incredibly expensive for what it delivers”.

The Selby brothers’ “very snug little basement venue for counter-top fine dining” shows “levels of skill and technique to compete with much better-known places that leave you with a far higher bill”; with cooking that’s “consistently well-thought-out, imaginative and bold”. “Ultimately there can be a clash between the expectation of enjoying fine cuisine and fine wines, while being perched on a stool with people brushing past”, so “file this under ‘one to watch’ as they plan to build out the ambition even further”.

2022 Review: “Our daughters love this restaurant – especially the cubed steak and iceberg lettuce!”. This manifestly cool Soho three-year-old offers sushi and sashimi as well as a wide range of fish and meat from the robata grill.