Conveyor belt Sushi is Japan’s answer to healthy fast food and has been popularised with the help of chain restaurant YO! Sushi to the point that there are now thousands of sushi bars all over the UK.
These days you don’t have to travel to Tokyo to taste world-class sushi and enjoy the full Japanese cuisine experience.
Check out these London sushi bars for some of the best sushi and sashimi to enjoy over a glass of sake.
1. Sushi Tetsu
Sushi Tetsu is a tiny venue with only seven seats for diners. Run by husband and wife team Harumi and Toru Takahashi, Tetsu has certainly achieved an exclusive reputation, taking bookings only on Mondays and booked up six weeks in advance. If you can grab one of the coveted slots, it’s worth it to experience cuisine meets fine art, but you’ll pay for the privilege – sushi starts at £4.50 per piece and an omakase set meal is £96.
12 Jerusalem Passage, London EC1V 4JP
Open 5.30 – 10pm Tuesday to Friday, and 5 – 9pm Saturday. Closed Sunday and Monday.
2. Rock Star Sushi Bar
Rock Star Sushi Bar in Wimbledon is somewhat of a hidden gem but it’s worth the trip. There are some interesting contemporary alternatives to traditional sushi such as a sweet potato truffle roll, and plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. The restaurant seats only 12 and there’s a waiting list of around two weeks to get a booking. Sushi starts at £2.40 per piece and you can buy a set of eight avocado rolls for £13.
Unit 5 – The Long Shop, Merton Abbey Mills, Watermill Way, London SW19 2RD
Open 6pm – 11pm Friday, and 12pm – 11pm Saturday and Sunday. Closed Monday to Thursday.
www.rockstarsushibar.co.uk
3. Atari-Ya
Atari-Ya supplies fresh fish to various London restaurants so you know you’ll be getting some of the best quality in the capital. It’s a chain with restaurants at Ealing Common, Swiss Cottage, Golders Green, and a takeaway on James Street. The menu includes a wide selection of rolls and nigiri as well as donburi bowls, salads, tempura, and gyoza. Prices are very reasonable with sushi starting at £1.50 per piece and sets starting from £12
Ealing Common – 1 Station Parade, Uxbridge Road, Ealing, London, W5 3LD
Swiss Cottage – 75 Fairfax Road, London, NW6 4EE
James Street Take Away – 20 James Street, London, W1U 1EH
Cafe Japan – 626 Finchley Rd, London, NW11 7RR
Opening times vary. Check website for details.
4. Zaibatsu
Zaibatsu Japanese fusion restaurant in Greenwich is cheap and cheerful but the food is great quality and it’s always busy. Sushi starts at £2.30 for two pieces and sets are priced from £11.95. There’s also a wide selection of other dishes including salads, tempura, rice dishes, and noodles.
Open Tuesday to Sunday, 12pm – 11pm
96 Trafalgar Rd, London SE10 9UW
5. Sticks ‘n’ Sushi
Danish chain Sticks ‘n’ Sushi offers a fusion-style menu that includes ingredients such as smoked cheese, truffle oil, and miso aioli. It has branches in Wimbledon, Covent Garden, Greenwich, Canary Wharf, Victoria, and a new branch in Chelsea opens this summer. Sushi starts from £2.20 per piece and set meals range from £18.50 to the imaginatively named “Pay Day” at £105.
Wimbledon – 58 Wimbledon Hill Rd, London SW19 7PA
Covent Garden – 11 Henrietta Street, London WC2E 8PY
Greenwich – 1 Nelson Road, London SE10 9JB
Canary Wharf – 1 Crossrail Place, London E14 5AR
Victoria – Unit 3-5, 3 Sir Simon Milton Square, London SW1E 5EB
Chelsea – 113-115 King’s Road, London, SW3 4NT
Opening times vary, check website for details.
www.sticksnsushi.co.uk
6. Sushi Waka
This small family-run restaurant offers Japanese home-style cooking in the heart of Camden town. There’s an affordable lunch menu offering sushi and sashimi bento boxes for £7 and dinner sushi sets start at £17.50.
75 Park Way, Camden Town, NW1 7PP
Open for lunch Monday to Friday 12.30 – 1.45pm and for dinner Monday to Saturday 6pm – 9.15pm
www.sushiwaka.co.uk
7. Sushi Masa
Sushi Masa has a great reputation both with locals and further afield of serving high-quality authentic Japanese cuisine from the kitchen of a native husband-and-wife team. Sushi starts from £2 per piece and sushi platters are available from £19.
33B Walm Lane, London NW2 5SH
Open 12 – 2.30pm and 6 – 10pm
8. Oka
This casual Japanese restaurant chain offers a great combination of tasty sushi and other Japanese dishes with imaginative cocktails. There are branches in Kingly Court, Primrose Hill, and Chelsea. Sushi starts at £3.95 for two pieces and sets are priced from £4.95 – £12.95. There are also some interesting deserts available such as matcha and white chocolate cookie dough topped with coconut ice cream for £5.95
Primrose Hill – 71 Regents Park Road, Primrose Hill, London, NW1 8UY
Kingly Court – 1st floor Kingly Court, Carnaby Street, London, W1B 5PW
Chelsea – 251 Kings Road, Chelsea, London, SW3 5EL
Opening times vary – check website for details
9. Zuma
Swanky and fashionable Zuma offers a modern twist on the traditional izakaya dining concept and has an excellent reputation with ambiance and service to match. The menu includes fresh crab and tuna sushi and sashimi as well as unique fusion dishes such as rib eye steak with wafu sauce and garlic crisps and roasted lobster with green chili and garlic hojiso butter. Prices are at the high end with an average dinner for two with drinks costing around £150.
5 Raphael St, Knightsbridge, London SW7 1DL, UK
Open 12 – 3pm Monday to Friday and 12.30 – 3.30pm Saturday and Sunday for lunch and 6 – 11pm Monday to Saturday and 6 – 10.30pm Sunday for dinner.
www.zumarestaurant.co.uk
10. Pop Art Sushi
If you appreciate pop art and modern Japanese cuisine, you’ll love Pop Art Sushi with its vibrant and quirky décor and sushi-lovers’ menu. Sushi sharing platters are laid out on stands like afternoon tea and start from £27. There’s also a good selection of handmade temaki cone sushi – unusual in London – starting at £4 a piece.
Unit 7 St. George Wharf 8 Wandsworth Road, London SW8 2JW
Open 5 – 10pm Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday, 5 – 10.30pm Friday and Saturday, and closed on Tuesday.
