The 10-seater room that's Roji
What can you tell us about Roji?
The restaurant comes from one of London's best Japanese restaurants, Chisou. While Chisou itself is a more traditional Japanese restaurant, Roji is a pure omakase affair which, in case you didn't know, can be described as a Japanese tasting menu set by the chef on the night. It's a 10-seater restaurant, with everyone seated at the counter around the prep area, with that single omakase menu on offer.
We've had a few of these omakase restaurants open in London of late, ranging from the more affordable like Sushi On Jones in King's Cross to high-end affairs like Roketsu and the Michelin-starred Endo at the Rotunda. Roji definitely sits on the high-end side of things, but still manages a notably comfortable approach.
Who's in charge?
In a twist from the omakase chefs we've seen so far, this actually comes from a husband and wife team of Tamas Naszai and Tomoko Hasegawa who previously worked (and met) at Tokimeitē in Mayfair.
Where is it?
Literally next door to Chisou, down a small side street off South Molton Street. You'll see the small building to the left of Chisou with a bell hanging outside it. You can knock to enter, but yes, we think you should ring the bell first - much more satisfying.
Inside is the 10 seater restaurant, which you can see from the picture at the top of this piece. It's a tiny kitchen so you really get to see all the complex prep work going on in front of you and it's worth engaging with the chefs if you want more information. As mentioned above, it manages to be both a peaceful and relaxed environment. Also - they have particularly good climate control which was very welcoming on a hot London day.
So what about the food?
A single omakase menu is on offer, comprised of eight courses with a few extras too. It's £150, which you'll pay upfront, but they'll refund up to 72 hours before you visit if you can't make it (it's a small restaurant so this is inevitable to combat no-shows). There are two sessions each evening (6pm and 8.30pm) each lasting two hours.
Everything will be seasonal and sourced from small producers, so you can expect the menu to shift and adjust with the seasons.
Here's a taste of what was on offer when we visited:
Things kicked off with this sakezuke - a snack to have with your first drink. It's trout roe with tomato jelly and ginger.
Hokkyoki iwana usuzukuri - arctic char with gooseberry irizake
Unagi Iimushi - eel (with crunchy skin on the underside) on glutinous rice
Natsuyasai sunomono - lobster with summer vegetables (paired with some sake in the background)
Hotate Isobeage - hand-dived scallop and seaweed. Although everything was excellent - this was hands down the best dish of the night, a melt-in-the mouth marvel. Another diner said they could happily have gone through a bucket of these.
Kani shinjyo Owan - clear soup, Scottish crab cake, fig leaf
Masu Kasuoyuanyaki - Dorset trout with mushrooms and sake lees
After all the above, everything moves onto the omasake nigiri selection. Early in the evening, Tamas Naszai prepares the rice, pouring in the vinegar and leaving it to rest.
Later on, the seafood for the sushi is brought out...
... then everything is created in front of you (it becomes quite hypnotic to watch)...
...with each piece of nigiri handed over individually as they're created.
And finally, there's cherry blossom ice cream, with fermented cherry compote.
What about drinks?
We would highly recommend making full use of the sommelier's experience. Highlights for us from his pairing for us included a Usu Nigori - a partly cloudy sake from the Tsujihonten brewery and a vintage unpasteurised sake from Misty Mountain.
This sake cup is from the Takatori family, who have a 400-year history in ceramics. We were assured that this particular cup was a set of 12 in the world. Yes, we were extra, extra careful with this one.
Anything else of note?
In addition to the beautiful-looking room, the crockery is particularly gorgeous - we coveted everything. All the tableware at Roji is hand-made from small-scale craftsmen in both Japan and the UK and you can find out more about them here.
Overall thoughts
Roji is a beautiful restaurant, stocked with incredible-looking crockery, serving a truly wonderful omakase menu from a talented husband and wife team. London is becoming home to a collection of pretty great omakase restaurants, and this is definitely now high up on the list.
More about Roji
Where is it? 56b South Molton Street, London W1K 5SH
When? 23 July 2022
How to book: Book online
Find out more: Visit their website or follow them on Instagram @ro_ji_ldn
Hot Dinners dined as guests of Roji. Prices correct at time of publication.
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