Sanjugo Angel — Restaurant in London

Unfortunately I was very disappointed and felt seriously ripped off at the restaurant! It could just be my experience and hope no one has felt the same...

I had some expectations going in, as I often passed by the one in Shoreditch and was glad that they opened one closer to home. They were doing a 25% off at that time, so thought it would be good to try it out.

We were a group of 2 and spent around £70 (25% off applied) for a starter, an omakase selection, two dons, a dessert and a drink. Nothing against the service as we were warmly greeted and the team was very patient in taking our orders and serving us, so the two stars were all for them.

The issues came from the food...

Starter: We ordered the padron peppers.

It was definitely microwaved, the first couple of bites were piping hot (only on the inside) that it almost burnt my mouth. (Also heard the microwave sound just before it was served). They were served on some not-so-fresh-looking salad leaves and some salt flakes.

Omakase selection: We ordered the 5 Sashimi Omakase - it was satisfactory. We had salmon, tuna, yellowtail, butterfish and I think, seabream. A bit underwhelming as these fishes were marketed as 'Omakase'.

Dons: We ordered the Salmon Don and Unagi Don.

The salmon slices were very thin (probably in half in thickness compared to the sashimi. Nothing too exciting, so again acceptable, but you could a better value one elsewhere (no pics for this one)

The unagi don was almost horrific. Definitely not cooked from a kitchen and felt like it came from a pre-packaged one that you could get from groceries stores. It was all soggy, so they didn't even bother reheating properly using a pan (let alone a grill), so microwave again, I’m afraid. The eel was so bland on its own that they only squeezed some store-bought teriyaki sauce on top.

Dessert: We ordered 2 pieces of mochi.

You could still see the frost on the outside and the icecream in the middle was so hard that it was impossible to bite in. We waited for around 5 mins for it to melt a bit and become softer so definitely one where it wasn't (properly) defrosted.

Drink: We ordered a sparkling sake which was also satisfactory.

The servers gifted us two cans of beer which was a nice touch.

I was expecting fresh and delicious food but in here I did not feel any efforts or passion from the kitchen judging by the food that was served. To be fair, now looking at the menu retrospectively, it felt a bit basic and the pictures could tell you that they're almost reheating pre-packaged food.

This was definitely way overpriced for the food even with the 25% off and I would never recommend going there unless anything changes. There are definitely a couple of decent Japanese restaurants in the neighbourhood, but I do hope things...

On 11 February 2022, I visited the restaurant and, before ordering, specifically asked the server whether the dish I wanted contained any nuts or peanuts. The server replied that it contained only sesame. Because his response felt rushed, I asked again for confirmation, and he repeated that the dish contained no nuts or peanuts, only sesame.

There was no allergy advice or allergen chart available on the menu, so I had to rely entirely on the server’s assurances.

When the food arrived, I ate some sushi, which was fine, and then began to eat a tofu bao bun. Immediately, I felt irritation in my mouth and throat — consistent with the onset of an allergic reaction. I called the server back and asked once again whether the dish contained nuts or peanuts. He repeated that it contained only sesame, again in a hurried tone.

A couple of minutes later, he returned from the kitchen and told me the dish did in fact contain nuts, explaining that the recipe had recently changed. When I asked which nuts, he checked again and told me that the dish contained peanuts.

I told him this was a medical emergency and that I needed to go to hospital immediately. He said we did not need to pay the bill and allowed us to leave, but did not offer or arrange any medical assistance.

Outside the restaurant, I administered my EpiPen (adrenaline auto-injector) and took a taxi to UCLH, which was nearby. During the journey, my symptoms worsened, and I administered a second EpiPen when I arrived at A&E. At UCLH A&E, I was treated with intravenous antihistamines and monitored for 12 hours.

A week later, I called the restaurant to report the incident. The manager on duty had no knowledge of what had happened, which was alarming as it meant the incident had not been communicated internally.

I subsequently contacted Trading Standards, who visited the restaurant on 17 February 2022. When they spoke to the owner, he also had no knowledge of the incident. Trading Standards found that the restaurant’s food safety required improvement.

Over 3.5 years later, I continue to experience severe food-related anxiety and neophobia (fear of trying new foods). I have not eaten in a restaurant since the incident. The experience has caused huge amounts of persistent anxiety around day-to-day eating.

If you have severe food allergies, please consider my experience before eating at Sanjugo. Unfortunately in my case, Sanjugo couldn’t ensure my safety while eating in...

After so many glowing reviews I was honestly confused by the experience we had.. it seems that we may have just chosen the wrong items but then again, at a good place that shouldn't be a thing - every dish should shine independently.

I was also kind of offput that despite reserving as a special occasion (through their reservation portal) our service, table, and plating were nothing special. No dry ice, flowers, or anything to present the dish in a special way. Why wasn't a table even reserved and we were given the closest two person seat at the front of the shop? What was the point of asking us if it's special if nothing changes as a result of their answer?

Anyways, we started with yuzu juice which was definitely not real yuzu but some kind of artificial syrup (very chemically, no citrus taste, not tasty).

The miso nasu (aubergine) was drenched in a very salty miso glaze that appeared to be lathered on after grilling instead of before, and was just too much sauce (and salt). I was also disturbed by the oldness of the Negi (spring onion) which was clearly dry, limp, and not fresh.

We couldn't eat raw fish that evening but there were a few Maki roll options so we stuck with those - but all of them have the eel sauce so if you get multiple maki like we did, you just end up tasting basically the same thing with no uniqueness to each dish. I would recommend only eel sauce for the eel Maki..

The Wagyu nigiri was pretty good 👍

The teriyaki bao was also decent. Yet this item definitely should indicate that this is not an "authentic Japanese" restaurant. In fact, none of the staff are Japanese. The flavouring is definitely not authentic Japanese. To be clear, I embrace fusion restaurants, they can be amazing - but to tell customers this is authentic Japanese when these dishes and experience was certainly not, feels wrong and upsetting (as a Japanese person). Just say that it's a sushi restaurant, don't emphasize that it's "authentic Japanese" - it misleads people and invites unnecessary criticism, as I can't NOT call this out.

The floor staff were friendly though, no shade on their serving performance. They did their job.

Overall, this place gives "casual lunch w non-Japanese ppl" vibes. So it's not bad.. it's just not 4.8 star authentic...