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Zuma (∗∗∗)

Address:5 Raphael Street, London SW7 1DL
Tel:020 7584 1010
Email:
Website: Visit Zuma website
Price: £64.00Wine: £22.00 Champagne: £49.00
Opening Hours:Mon-Fri 12N-2.30pm Sat-Sun 12.30-3.30pm Mon-Sun 6-11pm

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Some restaurants attract the celeb crowd, others attract foodies, but it’s rare for a place to consistently draw both. Zuma has been doing just that since 2002, & comments from our annual survey prove the point. The reader who claimed it was ‘the best restaurant in the world’ may have been exaggerating, but not by much. There are gripes, of course – mainly focusing on ‘small portions’ & ‘steep prices’ – but the general consensus is that Zuma is ‘very expensive, but worth every penny’. So what to expect? Slick, professional service, decor that still looks hip & cool, & ‘sublime, wonderful’ food that might include thinly shredded tartare of beef with nori vinaigrette & dry miso dressing, meltingly tender sushi, & a monstrous Madagascan prawn cooked over the robata grill & slathered in yuzu pepper sauce. A suitably stellar wine & saké list adds to the allure. In short, Zuma comes close to being a trend-spotting foodie’s paradise.

Wine List: The experience of Zuma’s longstanding sommelier, Alessandro Marchesan, is obvious in this confident & effortlessly great selection. Instead of pages of classic French wine there is a compact range from around the globe, chosen purely to suit the menu, including a wonderful array of saké. The wine team are impeccable, so the best option is to select your food then seek their advice. Best Buy White 2007 Grosset Semillon/Sauvignon, Clare Valley, South Australia, £37. Best Buy Red 2004 Shadowfax Pinot Noir, Victoria, Australia, £39.

Chef: Rainer Becker

Zuma’s Chef - Zuma chef Rainer Becker

After opening a second site in Hong Kong in 2007, the global expansion of Rainer Becker’s Zuma restaurant has continued into 2008, with new restaurants in Dubai and Istanbul. The hyper-trendy Zuma was a truly cosmopolitan affair when it opened in 2002: a German chef with an Indian business partner selling Japanese food to London diners. Becker began his career working in Germany’s finest restaurants, before touring the world with Hyatt hotels. He arrived in London via Sydney and Tokyo, where he spent six years immersed in local cuisine and culture. After launching the Rib Room at London’s Hyatt Carlton Tower (now the Jumeirah Carlton Tower), he branched out on his own in 2002 with Zuma, following it up two years later with Roka.

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Reader reviews of Zuma:

Antonella C.

Antonella C. ( 30s )

Zuma is a continuos surprise and in all these years I was never disappointed after a meal at Zuma…Excellent and unique!

12 January 2010
Overall:9
Food and Drink:9
Service:9
Atmosphere:9
Value for Money:9
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Garlic Confit
Silver Reviewer

Garlic Confit ( 30s, Male, United Kingdom )

There is no doubting that Zuma is a good restaurant. The food (which is the primary concern of a restaurant) is always perfect. The rest of the elements that go to make up a restaurant are in the ‘take it or leave it’ category.

It is a celeb style hangout. It is loud not buzzy. It overshadows the real reason you are there.

For those who have not experienced Zuma, you must. If you fancy yourself, you may return. If you like good food and want to have a conversation with your friends you probably won't.

The price reflects the attitude of the place. You pay for great ingredients, fancy sounding cocktails a restaurant designed by a man called ‘super potato’. You may also be still paying for the fact that Russell Crowe had a fight in the loos many years ago.

I do like it, in small doses. Maybe I am getting old.

In all honesty I prefer it sibling, Roka. Smaller, Subtler and Sophisticated.

14 November 2009
Overall:8
Food and Drink:9
Service:7
Atmosphere:7
Value for Money:7
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Jonesy
Silver Reviewer

Jonesy ( 30s, Male, London )

Editor's pick

Mixing urban industrial chic with natural elements of stone and wood, the interior of Zuma immediately reeks of cool. No wonder this is a hotbed of celebrities and the Knightsbridge elite.

In the bar area, I'm surrounded by people wearing Prada and oversized sunglasses. It's like stepping into a Bret Easton Ellis novel.

At the table, it’s a more relaxed affair. Urban music plays from somewhere amidst the metal piping overhead, but the stone floor and the size of the room gives it the noisy acoustic that one finds in a large canteen.

We plumped for the tasting menu, a wallet-busting price but well worth it for the exceptional food on offer. The selection of nigiri sushi and sashimi arrives on a bed of crushed ice; the fish is of the highest quality and virtually melts in the mouth. The robata grilled wagyu beef is superlative, the marinated black cod a delight.

The most notable dish of the evening was a seared and miso-marinated foie gras with umeboshi compote. The umeboshi, a type of dried, pickled fruit, was unbelievably sharp, sour and salty, providing an incredible contrast to the deep, rich and overbearing foie gras. You couldn’t eat one without the other. It was a black and white flavour combination that made one wince and laugh at the same time, utterly fabulous.

To drink, we tried one of their sakes from the extensive list. Service was polite and attentive, and we weren’t table-turned… More

18 March 2009
Overall:8
Food and Drink:9
Service:7
Atmosphere:7
Value for Money:8
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Karen S.

Karen S. ( 40s, Female, London )

Zuma clearly want to turn the tables so quickly that scant attention is paid to the pace at which the diners wish to eat. The ability to enjoy the ambience of the restaurant is marred by the converyor type service. When you weigh the outlay vs the overall experience, we were left disappointed in the extreme.

December 2008
Overall:5
Food and Drink:7
Service:6
Atmosphere:6
Value for Money:4
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MissSushi
Gold Reviewer

MissSushi ( 30s, Female, London&Paris )

Zuma has been one of my favourite London restaurants for years now. The girls at the entrance can be uneccessarily rude and arrogant at times and the crowd at the bar a little tacky but the food is always great, so who cares.
Some of the best dishes that Zuma has to offer include Chillie Salt Squid, Giant King Prawn on robata grill, Hotate (scallop) sashimi with yuzu, sashimi salad, waguy beef and the unusual bean creme brulee' with green tea ice cream which I only tasted recently for the first time and immediately got addicted to. Incidentally Zuma (in my humble opinion) has the best green tea ice cream in London – not too sweet or creamy. Yummie.

November 2008
Overall:9
Food and Drink:10
Service:6
Atmosphere:8
Value for Money:8
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Felix's Guide
Silver Reviewer

Felix's Guide ( 40s, Male, United Kingdom )

Editor's pick

My favourite restaurant in London which ticks all the boxes – great, innovative modern Japanese food, good service, beautiful people and an atmosphere that reminds you that 'life is worth living'.

It is both male/female friendly and business/pleasure friendly. Due to the 'Norman Foster' style interior the room can be a bit noisy for the older generation.

Start with a cocktail at the bar, a bit pricy at £9.50 each, but worth the money to soak up the atmosphere of the top end of the London mating game, then retire to your table. Never miss the fillet beef and try as much as possible. Excellent female sommelier.

September 2008
Overall:9
Food and Drink:7
Service:7
Atmosphere:10
Value for Money:8
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