TL;DR:
AYCE - 3/5, lower quality, service a bit slow…read more However, less expensive than other AYCE places in London, so this is taken into consideration. If it was equally priced, I would say 2.5/5. Equivalent to the quality of a sushi restaurant in a smaller town.
A-La-Carte - 5/5, amazing portions, fresh, flavourful, consistent, best variety and quality as well as cost in London.
I have had Hanata Sushi numerous times. I would not be lying if I said I have spent over $2000 there in total in the past 4 years I have lived in London. (That's not just for me though, I have ordered for friends too)
Firstly, their dine-in AYCE experience is very different from their a-la-carte experience (which I have typically ordered delivery via sites like Just Eat and once came in for take-out).
DINE IN ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT
The interior of the restaurant is a bit run down and dark due the paint. It could use a refresh, the booth seats are rather worn in, and the mudroom/entry is always very dusty.
Their AYCE menu is priced cheaper than the others in London.
The quality of the food is mediocre, which I was originally surprised with because I was only familiar with their a-la-carte. The miso soup is definitely somewhat watered down and I'm unsure if they use a dashi stock as the base, and just use miso paste (you can really notice the difference compared to the take out miso soup). The fish in the maki rolls aren't quite as fresh.
The reason I tend to come here for AYCE still is when I want to eat a lot of sushi, but don't want to spend quite as much. If you are fine to spend the extra ~$10 for AYCE, I would recommend going to Heart if you want better quality.
A-LA-CARTE/TAKEOUT
I have never, ever had a poor experience with their a-la-carte menu. They consistently provide high quality sushi as well as hot food. They have had the lowest cost compared to other a-la-carte sushi restaurants in London, but the quality has always been better in my experience.
Compared to other restaurants, the selection for fish and hot food is very good. You can't get super "premium" kinds of fish like ikura, uni, or tuna belly. However, they still provide yellow tail, scallop, and tuna. Also, the pieces tend to be larger and fresher than other restaurants, as well as priced less expensive. For example, a standard sashimi combo will have several kinds of fish with 3 slices each. However, they will provide you more than three if the slice or type of fish is rather thin to compensate (i.e they will provide 4-5 pieces of surf clam)
They have always maintained a high standard of quality, they've never forgotten anything I've ordered, and if there is a type of fish they have ran out of (which is rare), they will call and offer a replacement of the same price range if you wish.
There have been circumstances in the past where I have purchased VERY large orders later in the evening, and at bizarre days of the week (Tuesday at 9:00pm? no problem) and they still delivered the quality they have consistently held. Having previously worked in the food industry, I know this can be difficult to maintain (and also incredibly annoying) but they have been excellent.
