We were in London for the weekend and met up with our good friends who luckily had reservations at…read moreDinings. We have been to Dinings a couple of years before and had a great experience. We couldn't wait to go again. Food: To make it easy we went with the omakase. Our menu was the following: 1) Toro Tar Tar Chip 2) Wagyu Tar Tar Chip 3) Appetizer 4 Ways (4 tasting spoons per person) 4) Chargrilled Lamb Cutlets with Sakura Saikyo Spicy Miso Sauce and Seasonal Vegetables 5) Grilled Chili Garlic Black Cod 6) Aubergine "Nasu Miso" 7) Burikama - Salt Grilled Yellowtail Collar 8) Nigiri Special Toro "Shimofuri" with Malden and Black Pepper 9) Nigiri Seared Razor Clam with Yuzu Kosho and Lemon 10) Nigiri Yuzu Garlic Yellowtail with Caviar Sushi 11) Nigiri Japanese Wagyu Beef Sushi with Truffle Salsa 12) Spicy Tuna Roll 13) Double Crab Roll 14) Seabass Carpaccio with Fresh Truffle 15) Mixed Berries with Green Tea Cream Cheese and Apricot Yuzu Sorbet 16) Yuzu Posset with Shortbread and Raspberries *Everything was DELICIOUS and full of flavor!! Drinks: We ordered one bottle of sake, two glasses of white wine and three beers. Price: It's not cheap. For the four of us we paid £606.21. In hindsight we shouldn't have ordered the extra 8 pieces of the Special Toro Shimofuri nigiri because they added an extra £71.80 to the bill - yikes - but they are so good. Service: Excellent service. We had an Italian woman who was very helpful, professional and friendly. Ambiance: It's a very very small restaurant with a small sushi bar upstairs and about 20 seats downstairs, so there's no real ambiance per se, but you go for the food. Other: My only "complaint" I have is that, as expensive as this restaurant is (and me being Asian), they should really invest in nice chopsticks. They have the crappy cheap disposable chopsticks you get when you order take away, which have splinters when you break them apart. I really feel this is unacceptable, especially because 1) there are not that many seats in the restaurant itself so they can definitely afford nice chopsticks and 2) having nice cutlery is part of the whole dining experience. Would I go back? Absolutely, but with my own chopsticks :) We have tried many of the high end Japanese restaurants in London and feel that Dinings is definitely one of the best. It's not a place where you can go all the time since it's very expensive, but it's definitely a place to celebrate a special occasion.

This is a glamours, high-end Japanese restaurant/sushi place in Marylebone London. I honestly would…read moregive it five stars but the price limits it for me. If money was no object, that's fine, but for the price/competition, I think it should stand out a bit more. What I did like is the inconspicuous outside that hardly shows it's a restaurant, it's as if, you should know it's there. That reminds me of true Japanese restaurants in Tokyo. This is in a residential street too, with cars that cost more than my home parked out front. This maybe top for some people, I still recommend it.

Got my Japanese food & culture fix here! Very authentic with small tight tables, timely service,…read moreand great food. We arrived early at 5:30p and didn't have to wait for a table.The Salmon Don was simple but perfectly done, tender and very tasty. Bento Boxes are huge sized meal.s The Chicken Katsu is the best my son has ever tried! We recommend and would go again!

Small cozy spot right in the center of Chinatown near all the action of nearby soho and covent…read moregardens as well Quite a long wait outside on the street for a table but thought the service was pretty quick Overall nothing about the experience stood out as great. The chicken was good as well as the other featured items in the bento box but nothing overly appealed to me or is pushing me to go there again.

I was never a big fan of Japanese cuisine until I went to this place…read more Every dish is just phenonemal and the service is superb! Every dish looks like a small little piece of art. Im used to a lot of fancy and good food and couldnt imagine to expierence another next level of quality until I was here. The Bar is also very good. Its pricy but worth every penny. When Im in London again, I will be there for sure!

High quality Japanese food in a nice environment. I came for weekday lunch and got the premium set…read moremenu (48 GBP). The first course was some spinach leaves in a sweet sauce and it was actually better than expected. It then came with 3 pieces of sashimi which I could tell were very fresh and melted in my mouth. There was also a tiny container of tuna tartare. Lastly, for my choice of protein, I went with the black cod, which was a nice soft consistency and cooked well. The sauce on the side also added some nice sweet flavor to complement the fish. While the food was good, I do feel that 48 GBP is slightly on the high side considering the small portion sizes. The interior of the restaurant has some elegant and classy decor. That's probably why so many people come for business lunches here (plus the location). The staff are average friendliness, although the service speed was kind of slow. It was also weird that they for some reason couldn't find our reservation in their system but we were still able to get a table nonetheless. Overall, I think ROKA is a very choice choice if you are looking for a fancier Japanese meal than your typical sushi restaurant.

As we look for places to eat amongst coworkers, we decided to go to a Japanese place. Not being…read morefamiliar with places to eat here in London, I looked to Yelp, and of course someone from our hotel recommended this place too. So I can say it wasn't bad at all, but it wasn't the beat Sushi I have had. I would go back for sure as the service was good, minus my coworkers chicken dish took forever to come out, as we kept having to check on it. The Uni was definitely not a bad batch as it had a sweetness and creamy texture that I would expect. Amaebi was not the larger shrimp with the fried heads, so not what I was expecting. As for the Natto Rolls, I could tell you that our young waitress made a surprising face, which made me laugh, as I could tell she was from Japan, as I was told not many Japanese even eat Natto. Of course I had to ask later and she is not a fan. Hahaha... I enjoyed it though. Enjoy.

As another reviewer says, this is an undiscovered gem! Hidden away inside an arcade, it was filled…read moreon a weekday evening with mostly Japanese patrons. Plenty of wait staff who were quite attentive, including some who were preparing table side shabu shabu (cooking thinly sliced meat and veggies in a broth). They have a huge menu with an unusually wide selection of small dishes as well as the usual entrees. I ordered their ten piece nigiri (17 GBP), grilled miso black cod (12 GBP), and salmon belly age dashi (cooked lightly in a daikon soy based sauce) (7 GBP). All were excellent including with fresh not powdered wasabi root. Super affordable, high quality with great service -- what's not to like!

Quite good! Machiya takes a number of Japanese comfort classics and prepares them in slightly…read moreelevated form in a really cozy, pleasant space. I've been to Machiya a couple of times and it hasn't disappointed once. The space is small but cozy, comfortable, and well-considered. Both times I've been here 1980's Tokyo City Pop has been playing the whole time which is definitely a nice touch. All of the food here has been very good. I haven't had a bona fide knock out meal yet but nothing has disappointed either. I've tried the Chiken Kastu Curry, Agadashi Tofu, Gyūdon, and the Donburi (I think they call it "Mother and Son"?), and every dish has been a success. Paired with a pint of Kirin draft lager and you can't go wrong. Service is very pleasant and you can check out early with a QR code at the table. Recommended!

I hate it when restaurants hook you in with a lie, don't you? Not having had Japanese Omurice (a…read morefluffy omelet over fried rice) in many years, I found myself craving some and decided to Google it to see if any places made it in London. This was the first one that popped up, and fortunately, it's on my usual commute. I made the trip here and waited longer than necessary due to slow service, only to find out, omurice isn't on the menu... though it's the first item advertised on the sign outside. That was the first letdown. However, I'm not one to be deterred from enjoying a good meal. In order to avoid further disappointment, I asked if there was anything else on the menu that wasn't actually available. There were, at least, six items that were not; something about being out of spinach. Still, I was craving some meat, so my second choice would have been the Gyudon, anyway, which is a braised beef rice bowl with all the trimmings. That was the next disappointment. Runny egg, runnier rice, and a pretty bland flavor overall. From my own experience, I wasn't too confident the rest of the menu would have been any better. The place does have some redeeming qualities, though. The space itself looks like a traditional Japanese Izakaya. Maybe not the most authentic, but hey, it's London; and the touristy part, to boot. The drinks menu, while not impressive, offers enough variety that if you come in a group, you can forget the disappointing quality of the food and slow service. All I'm saying is, you can do better.

At £17.50 a pop the bento boxes are not an everyday lunchtime option, but excellent for a more…read morespecial occasion. The miso soup was the most delicious of its kind, the rest similarly delicious. The interior is just the right combination of classy dark panelling and kitsch decor. Like many places in Soho the basement smells musky and damp, so best try and stay upstairs.

Delicious hot meal on a cold, rainy day. We stumbled upon this place while walking around London…read more Everything was so delicious. I had the bibimbap with tofu. The tofu was crispy on the outside and softer in the middle, which is perfect. The veggies were fresh and I loved the sauce that went on top. The orange slices with the check was an appreciated detail.

I wanted to meet a friend in town, and I knew we had limited time. Scrolling my food list I…read morerealised I had never been Kulu Kulu. Ahhh...a conveyor belt sushi place. Now I know why. But I thought why not. I had been to some amazing places for sushi in Japan and amongst them was a conveyor belt place in Tokyo. Now in Tokyo we used ipads to order straight to our seating. So it wasn't necessarily conveyor belt but customised/automated whatever you want to call it, to order. Kulu Kula has roaming plates created in the center by sushi chefs. The one in Brewer St has non Japanese chefs. I'm always sceptical about this but in my old age have realised that it doesn't mean they can't cut, slice or on a wider scale do the food that is not instantly recognisable with them. Some of the food I had: PROS: - I saw an Unagi nigiri! I had to get it and it was marinaded beautifully. Good start. - The prawn Torpedo Roll was perfect. Hitting the spot with it's mayo, rice and prawn. - The aubergine miso. So soft and not too sharp. I've cooked this at home and this was balanced well. CONS: - The shrimp and the pork salad I spotted and just grabbed were OK. Nothing to shout about really. This place is a quick stop off for lunch, though I'd be tempted to come back for Dinner if in a hurry and also for the novelty factor. As it was fun spotting plates and asking the chefs in the middle. They price the food by the style of the plates which is clever. It can add up but on the whole it was very reasonable with dishes from £2-£4 approx. A nice alternative to the long stay, fancy places you might find for Japanese food in town for sure.

We were lucky the quality of the sushi was alright when we went. However, service sucked. The…read morewaiter dodged us a few times when we asked for the receipt. Also, this place up charges like crazy. Not worth €5 for 2 slices of rolls per plate. We spent €60 between two people. Not worth it.

We went here for old times sake. 20 years ago they were in a different nearby location and Pablo's…read moreexpense account new no limits. Tonight we had all vegetarian apps and some cold noodles. It was nice but nothing outstanding, price points were good for all items, drink prices were good. Service was A-OK, young formal Japanese chaps

The best way to get over jet lag is a deep tissue massage. Defune Restaurant is located right next…read moredoor to where our massage appointment was. How convenient. With no reservation made, getting a table for 5 people at 7pm was not a problem. We were led below street level, to a spacious and inviting table. All our usual fav dishes from miso soup, to gyoza, to tempura, soba, tonkatsu, and teri chicken were excellently prepared. The ingredients were fresh and tasty. It's worth the price we paid.