Japanese Yakitori

54 Frith Street, London, W1D 4SL

London, England

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Overall Rating (out of 10): 7.00

Stand Out Dish: Tuna Tartare on a Seaweed Crisp with Chive Mayo

Meal Time: 1.50hrs

Ave Cost Per Head (excl. drinks): £41.5

Summary: resist the urge to play it safe, the best dishes require a sense of adventure

Would I Go Back? Yes

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Humble chicken is slap bang in the middle of the action in London’s Soho. We kicked off proceedings with a couple of pre-dinner drinks at a nearby wine bar which put us in the perfect mood for this fun relaxed restaurant.

The restaurant is a relatively small oblong footprint with the back wall being dominated by the Yakitori grill encapsulated in a L shaped wrap around bar with fixed high top stools.

The concept is simple … every part of a chicken is offered to you on a skewer with other dishes before and afterwards for variety. The chef behind the idea, Angelo Sato, has a strong fine dining CV having cooked at Eleven Madison Park and Clare Smyth which was reflected in both the dish construction, presentation and service.

The meal started with nibbles from the land and ocean. The Miso Foie Gras Tart was simple and tasty whilst the Oyster with Seaweed Kosho Beurre Blanc, Sea Lettuce Relish and Burnt Fat divided opinions.

The stand out star, of both the nibbles and and the whole meal, was tuna tartare. It looked great and tasted better. The chive mayo and seaweed were a strong supporting act for the tuna. A contender for best nibble this year.

In total there were eighteen different skewers to choose from. These ranged from the adventurous soft knee and cartilage to the unusual Achilles to the comparative boring breast and thigh.

We opted for a selection and found them to be hit and miss. In general the less adventurous the dish the more underwhelming it was. So breast and thigh were fine but not exceptional whereas whereas soft knee and cartilage with spicy miso and chive was the standout.

After the yakitori we shared the two mains between us: (i) hakata pork belly, daikon, egg yolk and mustard, and; (ii) crispy chicken leg, cured vegetable, ginger and citrus. These were solid but not stand out dishes.

Verdict
We would go again. The high highs of the best dishes more than cancelled out some of the pedestrian choices. Whilst not covered in this review their lychee martini was dangerously drinkable and well worth a try.