Safe bet Japanese establishment in the heart of St James's with spacious, basement dining

Ginza St James’s is one of the Capital’s reputable options for Japanese food with an extensive selection of Sushi, Kaizaki, Tepinyaki, Tempura and genuine, licensed Wagyu. It can be expensive if you don’t have any restraint, which is exactly what I lacked on this occasion. The free glass of champagne courtesy of membership with The Luxury Restaurant Guide, helps the proceedings, but when a special occasion deems Kobe beef at £140 just for that dish, you may as well go whole hog! In total the meal came to £463 for the two of us, so a little more than the planned £50 per head we had in our intentions, but when even the coal for the Robata grill is imported from Japan to make as authentic as possible, it seemed only appropriate to enjoy properly. I would recommend this venue for capable Japanese food, done by those that clearly care about the the Japanese experience.

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The opening rice cracker with black ink was feather light; the dried tempura sauce made from fried rice, vinegar hint of spice; the prawn tempura beautifully succulent (fried, rested for 10 seconds and then refried for optimum texture), all served with a garlic and ginger sauce as well as peppercorn sauce.

Wagyu tartare from Kagoshima black cows right in the very south of Japan was a sumptuous start. This was very good A5 genuine Wagyu made with anchovy mayonnaise and yuzu mayonnaise and fresh, genuine wasabi from Japan as well. Baby yuzu chicken was lightly marinated in yuzu black pepper, soy sauce and sake, served with grilled lime, pickled radish and yuzu mayonnaise.

But perhaps the abs0lute gold was the A4 genuine Kobe gyu served with garlic & ginger sauce and Himalayan salt; simple, brilliant produce such as this does not need anything else and took me right back to Kobe. This was followed by the less prestigious but very tender and beautiful Kagoshima beef. Both these were utterly delightful and you know you are in good food company when you are savouring every mouthful with as many chews as possible to prolong the experience for as long as possible. The accompanying sake was also a pleasure and the Bottle of Asahi ‘Dassai 23’ Junmai Daiginjo 300 ml at £90 was frankly worth pushing the boat out for.

I would recommend here for a reliable and friendly Japanese experience in the heart of London, but I would also put a reminder in your calendar to save up a little prior to visiting so you can enjoy properly.

Food Grade: 74%