11/03/15 - updated with soft launch details.
We're always ready for another London izakaya (translation: boozy Japanese gaff) and the opening of The Woodstock Kushiyaki Bar is going to be a serious boon to West End shoppers. Opening its doors in March, this new Japanese restaurant will serve weary shoppers a Japanese led drinks menu alongside freshly grilled Kushiyaki skewers. And it's handily situated in a street opposite Debenhams for a bit of light after-shopping drinking and eating.
The ground floor will be given over to drinking with a large slate fronted bar, exposed wooden walls and limited seating, and an open kitchen bringing an element of theatre to the space. If you want more substantial fare, head downstairs where there'll be a larger seating area and an extra bar.
On the menu will be 20 varieties of skewers, starting at £2.50 for two, divided into: ‘Kushiyaki’ – grilled skewers served with salt or teriyaki sauce - think chicken thigh, pork belly and asparagus with bacon; and ‘Kushiyage’ – fried skewers served with miso and dashi sauce featuring pork tonkatsu; beef katsu; soft shell crab, quail eggs and mushrooms.
As you'd expect from a Japanese pub, as much attention's been given to the drinks as the food, so there'll be Japanese draft beer plus more local favourites such as Young’s London Stout and Meantime IPA, all manner of Japanese and international bottled beers and an impressive variety of sakes, Shochu, Umeshu and Japanese whiskeys from the Karuizawa, Chichibu, Hanyu, Nikka and Suntory Distilleries.
The Woodstock will open 12 March 2015 at 11 Woodstock Street, London, W1C 2AE. There's a 50% off soft launch offer until 19 March and you can sign up for that here.
Opening hours will be daily from 11am to midnight. It'll be walk-ins only. Keep up to date with their news on Twitter@thewoodstockldn
