Kikuchi

Hidden old school Japanese

Kikuchi

Located in a rather hidden ally behind Tottenham Court Road, Kikuchi is a traditional Japanese restaurant serving both sushi and a selection of hot and cold plates. With a lack of any website and no backing of a PR company, I only managed to discovered this place by a recommendation from a friend, there aren't that many classical Japanese restaurants left in London, while there are plenty of westernised ones, with some becoming very successful such as Roka and Dinings, it is always nice to experience something more original to understand the root and tradition of the art of Japanese cuisine.

fatty belly sashimi

sashimi of tuna, yellowtail, salmon, tuna belly & scallop

steamed clams

chicken teriyaki skewers

The fatty tuna sashimi was rather a disappointment, at a cost of £28 for 4 pieces, I would expect top notch quality with that kind of price but sadly that wasn't the case, it was neither rich or oily enough which made it very forgettable. My personal favourite on the night was the grilled black cod in miso, the cod was so tender and smooth, almost like silk with a fine balance of natural sweetness and saltiness plus a lively aroma of mild smokiness. Grilled chicken in teriyaki was very tender and well seasoned, the sweetness was bang on without overwhelming the freshness of the meat. The aubergine in miso paste was also another masterfully crafted dish, really moist texture with a powerful savoury taste.

grilled salmon shoulder in salt

aubergine in miso plate

grilled chicken in teriyaki

 grilled black cod in miso

To sum it up, Kikuchi was an impressive find, while there are better traditional Japanese restaurants in London elsewhere, it did live up to my expectations, the sashimi was never going to be as good as Sushi Tetsu and its cooking was no way near as good as The Shiori, but at the same time it is about 40% less the cost so in theory you can challenge that the food at Kikuchi was value for money as generally the quality of all the non-sushi/sashimi items was of a high standard. Be aware there is minimum spending policy of £30 per person but to be honest it is difficult to spend less as at the end of the day, this restaurant is hardly cheap.

Food 3/5

What I paid:
£67 pp with wine and whisky

Average cost without drinks and services:
£40 pp

14 Hanway St, London W1T 1UD