Saki

Went there for lunch, food was very good, reasonable price, very good service.

This is one of my favourite Japanese restaurants and truly a hidden gem. Their deli and shop is also really useful for picking up a few Japanese ingredients and sake in the middle of the city. The design of the layout is lovely and unusual and the food is exceptional, inventive but not losing any of the classical Japanese tastes.
They organise lots of interesting events aswell for their repeat customers and Japanese clients which while are expensive, are really good. Definitely worth a visit and do book in advance.

ATMOSPHERE
When you enter, you are entering the food emporium (grocery store) on the ground floor, where you can see imported Japanese junk food items such as rice crackers and those jelly-​mold candies. The emporium aspect is not really note worthy. When you descend the stairway, however, a rather different scene begins to unfold. This is one of those RARE sushi restaurants in London that actually have a sushi bar. Amazing! For hard-​core sushi lovers, such as myself, the sushi bar is the only sushi experience when I dine out. If the sushi bar is full and they want to seat me at a table, I amscray because sitting at the sushi bar, watching your sushi chef prepare delicate creations before your eyes, interacting with the sushi chef, asking for his recommendations, and striking up some friendly sushi chit chat with the fellow sushi bar diners, is the complete experience of eating sushi. So, the fact that this establishment actually has a sushi bar, sets it above many other Japanese restaurants I’ve dined at in London.
The lighting is kept dim and the interior is dark furniture. Most of the illumination comes from the candles at the tables and there is a striking wax center-​piece in the middle of dining area in a shockingly contrasted white. It really stands out against the overall darkness of the dining room. I have some fascination with burning wax and since the wax sculpture was meant to look melted at one time, I have the urge to touch and pick at it. Thankfully, management doesn’t allow anyone to get their grimy hands near it!
THE FOOD
Presentation here is superb. The soft shell crab roll is a stunner. The appetizer menu has some tasty selections (jalapeño hamachi with ponzu sauce) and they are all beautifully prepared. Their sushi rolls are all standard run of the mill ingredient combinations, which lack excitement and creativity. There is seldom more than 2 ingredients used in each roll, and the quality of ingredients is mediocre. The maguro was bland and dyed with red colouring to appear like a fresher, more expensive cut of tuna. The avocado they used in some rolls was neither Has nor ripe.
In terms of affordability, you pay a fair amount (£14 — £20) per roll and you are paying for the presentation, not quality of ingredients. If you are a fan of Japanese food and want a pretty atmosphere to show off your date, or your legal guardian, then I think you could have a more affordable evening if you stick to ordering the hot or noodle dishes which are much more reasonably priced compared to their sushi menu.
THE TOILETTES
What trip to Saki would be complete without a visit to the toilettes? Whether you need to use the loo or not, a trip to the toilettes is highly recommended. Perhaps, the highlight of the evening, is using their high-​tech Japanese toilettes, your backside has never felt such luxury.
OVERALL
The atmosphere and food presentation are visually satisfying, the food, less so. That’s why I can only give this place 3 stars. The sushi is too pricey for the quality of fish and all other ingredients used, and general lack of creative flavour combinations. I’m sure that this would not be a problem for many virgin sushi palettes but if you’ve been eating high-​quality sushi for many years or lived in Japan, you might be better to buy some green tea in the shop above and make an excuse to use the toilettes downstairs for a cheap thrill.

I swear to god this place robbed me — came in with money, and left feeling slightly abused and cashless. What gives? Should I call the cops?
So clearly, price is an issue here. And no, I’m not a cheapass… I do love paying for quality products. But what I ordered from Saki Bar was pretty run of the mill Japanese food that I could probably get for a tenner somewhere else like Ten Ten Tei (budget quality!).
A bowl of tempura udon was deliciously standard but piping hot, served in the traditional cast iron pot… BUT it was also about 10 pounds more than it should’ve been. The nigiri sushi that I ordered was also mediocre, but again, shockingly overpriced. One thing I can recommend though, are the cocktails (Saki Bar, a durrr). From what I can remember, there were some crazy concoctions filling a few pages of the menu… including a green-​tea cream liqueur that took me by surprise (an even bigger surprise awaited on the bill though… since I got a few of these bad boys as dessert)
A big bonus, at least for the ladies as I am not sure about the men’s facilities… IS — they have kooky Japanese toilets here zomg!!! That’s right, I’m talking about the heated-​seat, multiple button operated, private-​part drying, giggle-​fest toilets. I sat on one for what seemed like hours, and this time I think the staff probably wondered whether or not they should call the cops.
Bottom line: the profit margin for this place is probably illegal to obtain in at least 52 countries.
Go get sushi from Whole Foods on High St. Ken. No seriously, best sushi in London even though it is down $ 350 million or so. I think this will be my next review…

When my oldest friend left forever to go to live in China what did we decide to do… well go for a Japanese of course.
I have eaten omakase meals in Japan (amazing) and in Sake No Hana (underwhelming) and on the basis of the reviews thought Saki might be able to hit ‘average’ or ‘above average’.
So we went for the reverse entry level omakase meal (i.e. the most expense one) and sat back to eat. Unfortunately it was a shoddy experience. We should have got the hint when we saw (as the kitchen is an open one) a big rice cooker which a congealed wad of rice sitting there. Unfortunately we later go to try some. T
he dishes were generally unbalanced with one flavour dominating another or an absence of flavours. Where Japanese food is meant to be clean and precise this gave one a puddle of flavours.
Avoid.
Price — £100 a head for food and some alcohol to drown out the food.

This has an amazing little gem of a restaurant to be found in the middle of a meat marketliterally!
It has a little shop and deli as well as a restaurant. So is definitely a great place that is quite central for picking up all the essentials a Japanese food fan could wish for.
The restaurant though is in a class of its own. It’s a very smart, sleek dining room in which culinary creations that you would think are urban legend are cooked and presented before your very eyes.
You must try the grilled aubergine dengaku with red miso topping as a starter. It is heaven in everymouthfil and you will find yourself reluctant to share. The tempura too is amazing. It’s like eating a hot savoury icicle. All the vegetables we had still had a nice crispness to them and there wasn’t a sogginess from the batter.
The sushi and sashimi were also perfectly executed. I had that whilst my friend had some beef and we were almost licking out plates cean and wated to go over to the chef and ask for more like in ‘Oliver’. But the chefs here have cleavers and the waitresses that look like geisha’s are so attentive to your every need that it would be rude to disturb the delicate atmosphere.
Next door to the restaurant is a superb cocktail bar. The lychee collins is light, refreshing and you will quite promptly finding yourself ordering another one before the day is done.
The standard of the cooking is outstanding and you really do get what you pay for. If you want amazing Japanese but don’t want to pay the prices of Nubu and Zuma, pay this place a visit sooner rather than later.

This place does the best sushi in London, and there are many gorgeous dishes to choose from of the menu which is divided up into different types of cuisines; explanations are given. They even serve vegetarian sushi if you are a veggie. As you enter the restaurant there is a small shop where you can buy Japanese produce (not open too late though), you then head underground to the saki bar and restaurant areas. The bar is stylish, whilst relax. Check out the toilets; try adjusting the temperature of the toilet seat, or pressing a few other buttons they may help you on your way!