Dai Chi

We weren’t sure about the idea of Dai Chi at first. While kushikatsu (skewered and deep-fried dishes) excels as street food, stretching it to a six-course tasting menu seemed ambitious. Sister restaurant Angelina, however, wowed the masses with Italo-Japanese fusion. Proving sceptics wrong, as we would soon find out, runs in the family.

The raw course hit the ground running. Wafer-thin kingfish tranches arrived laced with soy and a dash of truffle. Salmon roe, underpinned by a base of savoury custard and sausage, couldn’t have surprised us more. Among the equally impressive vegetable dishes was a humble cucumber, wrapped in shiso leaves, lightly panko-ed and spiked with umeboshi (fermented plum).

The famous squid donuts were served with katsuobushi and sweet mayo, okonomiyaki-style. They were so much lighter than expected, which would soon become a recurring theme. Ruby-red tuna sashimi, housed in tare and panko, came neatly cross-sectioned like a kind of sushi beef Wellington, perfectly finished with a blob of authentic wasabi.

The duck and beef skewers were wholly outshone by the chicken karaage, impossibly succulent and housed in a sweet Hokkaido milk bun. With the raw, vegetable, seafood and meat segments over, a dessert now would have left us a course short. This thought was dissolved by a glossily-glazed, still-sizzling kingfish jaw, carefully balanced with pickled Japanese beetroot.

Concerns that a dessert might be overkill were similarly dissolved, this time by a compact matcha panna cotta. This was playfully tinged with blood orange and finished with white chocolate, roasted until brown. Exciting wines and sakes were paired perfectly, delivered by confident, passionate staff who clearly knew what our reaction would be.

We expected six courses of sticks, but were given a fifteen-dish odyssey. And, when the bill arrived, Dai Chi had one final surprise. Each dish was - on average - £2.53.

The founders of Italo-Japanese restaurant Angelina’s in Dalston have opened Japanese-inspired kushikatsu restaurant Dai Chi in the heart of Soho. Bringing the cuisine of Osaka to London, it champions the dish kushikatsu via a six-course tasting menu, which loosely translates to ‘deep-fried skewers’. Guests can dine on expertly-cooked skewers featuring fresh fish, meat and vegetables, with the option to choose a simple or more complex tasting menu. There is a drinks pairing available at an extra cost, as well as the option to add extra skewers to your meal if liked.  

Kick off with a couple of crudo courses, which could be tuna tobiko tacos and hamachi (sushi) with truffle soy and furikake. The main event is of course the kushikatsu skewers which typically include the likes of ribeye with wasabi, duck with negi and ginger, Hokkaido milk bun with chicken karaage and cod kabayaki. Ok, so we’re not exactly sure what it all means but we can guarantee there will be a concoction of fusion flavours and, yes, they will mostly be served on a stick. Dishes are served with unlimited tsukemono pickles and chilled miso soup, while the final courses might include a Japanese risotto and dessert. If the idea of panko-breadcrumbed deep-fried skewers of meat, fish and vegetables sounds like your idea of heaven, then this restaurant has you covered. 

To drink, there is an international wine list and sake list, created by Haruka Hisata, its sake and wine sommelier. The 28-cover dining room boasts a six-seat counter and cosy low-level lighting – a promising date spot we imagine. Japanese-style lanterns hang from the ceiling while various bottles of sake and other Japanese spirits line the walls. The design blends Japanese minimalism with Italian marble accents, with the addition of a vinyl record player as a focal point to the restaurant.