Part restaurant, part bar and part grocery store, Saki provides an unforgettable culinary and cultural experience.

The Venue
Located underneath the grocery store, which offers amongst other things, bizarre contraptions for turning flour and water into cooked noodle dishes, the subterranean restaurant centres around a large square table, with a strange, built-in stalagmite garden.

Lurking in the bathroom however, is a far stranger sight, the Japanese paperless toilet. With a heated seat and various settings for washing and drying your derriere, it is worth warning your dining companions that you may be some time before excusing yourself.

The Atmosphere
Saki means happiness in Japanese and the waiting staff seem to have embraced this concept readily. As a result, it’s all smiles from start to finish, which makes for a very pleasant dining experience and is probably part of the reason that Saki has a very loyal band of regulars.

Fellow patrons are predominantly Asian (always a good sign) with several big players from the local Japanese investment banks entertaining clients here but everyone is welcomed and Saki is as excellent a choice for birthday parties as it is for business meetings.

The Food
The menu is divided into sections - Kobachi, which are small tapas style portions, Carbo consisting of rice or noodles with various toppings, and Mains. Classically trained chefs prepare the dishes, artfully arranging slivers of fish, meat and vegetables into miniature masterpieces, which look almost too good to eat. Highlights include a tangy octopus carpaccio starter and the heavenly Saikyo miso marinated black cod, which easily rivals that of Nobu.

Overall Saki is fantastic value for money, especially considering the standard of the food exceeds that of most of London’s top Japanese restaurants, where often just the prospect of the bill can leave diners twitching and perspiring throughout the meal.

The Drink
Great care has been taken here to create a wine and saki list capable of matching each dish on the menu and it is definitely worth taking the recommendations of the waiters on this subject. Sushi, when paired with a glass of Austrian wine, is meltingly delicious, chicken teriyaki with the recommended warm saki is sublime and the final triumph of green tea tiramisu teamed with a light plum wine really illustrates the importance of the sommelier’s art in teasing out the intricacies of flavour through wine.

The Last Word
Exceptional food and great value for money, with a free wash and blow-dry for every customer. Recommended.

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