Hoshi Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in London

I may have had my favourite Japanese meal ever here - sad they couldn’t offer me a bento box in the evening but fortunately I was dining in a group of 4 so we ordered a number of dishes I will review in detail to help others out 😊

Entrees/starters: • Spicy Edamame 🫛- this is coated in a wet chilli/spicy sauce & sesame seeds. Decent amount of kick & very tasty (better than the dry rub/chilli salt versions I’ve had in the past) • Miso glazed eggplant 🍆 aubergine with scallop - this was absolutely delicious - the eggplant came away from the skin easily and the miso paste flavour was well balanced. I loved the addition of scallop - texturally it was such a treat & the flavour really complimented. • Karaage Chicken - crispy, hot & came with a lovely mustardy/tangy sauce (well came with two sauces but the yellow one was more unique) • Salmon Sashimi - lovely, fatty pieces of sashimi (melt-in-mouth!) • Rainbow Roll - a very satisfying roll sushi pieces with 3 different types of fish • Spicy Salmon & Spring Onion uramaki (inside out sushi) - nice alternative

Mains: • Katsu Chicken with Rice - standard Japanese dish, I appreciated the katsu being raised on a silver cooling rack over the rice which helped retain the crispiness of the batter • Beef yaki udon (highly recommend) - the stir fried udon noodle had a brilliant smoky flavour to it. • Grilled Black Cod (star highlight of the show!) - I hesitated at first because cod is a very tough white fish. But I listened to my friend and did not regret - it took me back to a time in Sydney when I fell in love with white fish at the top of the ANA hotel (no longer exists) dining at their Japanese restaurant. I was never able to experience that again… until now. Perfectly seasoned, falls/flakes away delicately and so smooth it was melt-in-mouth.

Dessert: • Matcha Crepe - very creamy multi layered crepes layered into a cake-style dessert • Matcha Mochi Ice Cream (bites) - they were sold out of all ice creams so this was the consolation prize. I hate mochi but loved it in frozen form, wrapped around a bite-sized parcel of matcha green tea...

They seem to be more concerned with takeaway customers rather than those dining at the restaurant. It felt hectic and there was a constant stream of delivery drivers picking up orders, which also lead to the seats near the door being uncomfortably cold and drafty. We had to wait 1.5hrs for our mains. Unfortunately, the food wasn’t the best. The soft shell crab was too oily and the quite expensive black cod roll had barely any fish, it was mostly lettuce. The nigiri was nice and fresh, but overall it still felt pricey for what you’re getting. The waitress did apologise for the wait, but as it was Valentine’s evening, offering a complimentary drink or a small dessert to make up for the long wait / lack of service would have helped. Maybe it’s better on other days, but clearly the management took on too much and this was at the expense of dine in customers, so we won’t...

Absolutely wonderful food. The husband and I had to do takeaway because we went quite near closing time, but we were able to wait sitting at a table. The ambience is absolutely beautiful, with wonderful paintings, lanterns and decorations very tastefully placed everywhere. There are separate traditional dining areas for large groups. The staff are incredibly friendly and attentive, and service is as snappy as you would expect.

The food - just, wow. Hands down the best sushi my husband and I have had in London. Very delicate fish with perfectly cooked rice. We were thinking about how good the food was even weeks later, but it is rather pricey to go to very often (£70 for a filling sushi meal for two). Save up though, this is definitely one of those culinary experiences you'll never forget. Oh, and the soft-shell crab is definitely something you'll...