Nobu

Address:	Metropolitan Hotel, 19 Old Park Lane W1K 1LB
Tel	020 7447 4747
Website:	Visit Nobu website
Price: £86.00	Wine: £26.00	Champagne: £49.00
Opening Hours:	Mon-Sun 12N-2.15pm Sat-Sun 12.30-3pm Mon-Sun 6-10.15pm (Fri-Sat -11pm Sun -9.30pm)

Square Meal review of Nobu:

Now comfortably into its second decade, Nobu continues to pull in the punters – a fair few celebs included – with its package of clean, minimalist interiors, buzzy mealtimes, stylish waiting staff & highly original food. True, there’s the odd grouch who considers it over-priced & over-hyped, but for the majority it remains London’s benchmark restaurant for modern Japanese cuisine. Black cod with miso, rock shrimp tempura with ponzu, sashimi salad, & the Peruvian-style tea-smoked lamb are among the favourites from the extensive menu, but if you’re confused over what to try & how much to order, just ask for recommendations from the well-drilled staff. A visit here may leave a large dent in your wallet, but you’re virtually guaranteed a good time &, despite our fondness for its two younger siblings, Ubon in Docklands & nearby Nobu Berkeley St (see separate reviews), the original is still the best.

Wine List: Much is written of Nobu’s prices, but all things considered the wines are not as expensive here as you might expect. The impressive Billecart-Salmon is the house Champagne & is under £50 a bottle. The list is designed stylistically & features a good collection of rose – a style that goes well with this type of food. There is also plenty of saké, available in various formats. Best Buy White 2006 Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio, Friuli, Italy, £44. Best Buy Red 2004 Domaine Belle ‘Les Pierrelles’ Crozes-Hermitage, Rhone Valley, France, £35.

Chef: Mark Edwards

Group executive chef Mark Edwards oversees all new restaurants in addition to leading the kitchen at Nobu at the Metropolitan Hotel. The 42-year-old chef got the food bug at age 13 when he got a part-time job at a seafood restaurant in Kent. Once he had trained formally, he went to work at the Café Royal in London & the legendary George V hotel in Paris. While working in Manhattan in 1987 he developed an interest in Asian cuisine, subsequently spending time at the Mandarin Orchard hotel in Singapore & the Peninsula in Hong Kong before returning to London where he took on the role of sous chef at the former Vong restaurant (at The Berkeley hotel). He then moved to Nobu, embracing the Nobu culture in California before opening the London outpost in 1997. He opened Ubon in 2000 & Nobu Berkeley St five years later.

Nobu Location: