Farringdon, Japanese Restaurant Guide

“Beyond sublime and truly original” – sushi at its authentic, high-end best is not as rare in London as it was when this tiny 7-seater in a Clerkenwell alley first opened its door almost 15 years ago, but that has not dampened enthusiasm for the multi-course omakase experience delivered in an intimate setting by sushi master Toru Takahashi, assisted by his equally welcoming wife Harumi. Securing your seat at the counter can be a frustratingly complicated business – the venue has no website or online presence, with an uninformative booking link to be found on Seven Rooms – but that is about the only complaint we ever hear. The meal lasts about three or four hours and costs upwards of £200 a head once drinks are factored in – and leave your phone in your pocket or handbag while you’re there. Top Tip – email info@sushitetsu.co.uk for all the details.

Spanning the eighth and ninth floors of what was once the Daily Telegraph’s (and more recently Goldman Sachs’s) Fleet Street HQ, this ritzy new pan-Asian fusion rooftop is set to open in late 2025. It’s one of three planned for Regis’s new mixed-use development of the site, with restos from brothers Arian and Alberto Zandi (owners of Emerald Hospitality, who run Como Garden, Zuaya, etc). This one will major in Japanese cuisine – with a dedicated sushi counter and open robata grill – but also with Thai and Chinese dishes. The ninth-floor rooftop terrace will adjoin a bar overlooking the nearby cityscape.

At the top of New Fetter Lane in Holborn, this specialist in Japanese yakitori – serving different cuts of chicken grilled on skewers – opened in autumn 2024. Billing itself ‘beak-to-tail’ dining, its offering incorporates a full blow-out of 17 cuts, which requires 48 hours’ notice. In his May 2025 review, the FT’s Jay Rayner declared it “as if each skewer is the very best part of the Sunday roast that you were holding out for” – and the equal of its type to any he had tried when visiting Tokyo.