Izakaya Japan - London

I have always been a huge fan of Cafe Japan sushi because of the high quality of food and excellent service. However, during my visit for dinner last night, I was disappointed to find that the rice was subpar. As a Japanese person, I know how crucial the rice is when it comes to sushi, and Cafe Japan has never let me down before. The rice I had yesterday was either poorly cooked or of poor quality; it was sticky and clumped together, ruining the flavors of the fish. This was very disappointing, especially considering my past positive experiences at the restaurant.

It is always a pleasure to dine at this restaurant. The sashimi and sushi are consistently fresh and of excellent quality. The service is attentive and the decor, while simple, is quite functional. The prices are reasonable and I would definitely return for another meal. Although we ordered a lot of food, we have only shared photos of a few dishes, including two rolls that are missing in the review.

Three of us went to this restaurant on a Saturday night and enjoyed delicious fresh sushi, as well as excellent dishes of octopus and sardines. The young waitress was attentive and helpful. The bill came to just over £100, which we felt was a bargain considering the high quality of the food.

As the name suggests this is a cafe rather than a restaurant and if that is your level of expectation then you will be fine. The food is okay however you can get better quality and much better choice in so many other Japanese restaurants in London. The drinks menu is very limited as well. The service is okay but not exceptional and the cafe style tables are tiny. Not enough room to fit everything on. If I was in Golders Green and fancied Japanese I might go again but I would never make a special journey as there are many better alternatives.

After the Japanese school moved to Acton there is less of a north London focus for the Japanese community but some links to the 1980s heyday remain. One of these is the fact that in close proximity opposite Golders Green station can be found two branches of Eat Tokyo and Cafe Japan. Whilst I've nothing against the former, the latter is authentic and independent and deserves to be supported. The interior is functional (which is exactly what you might expect), with food prepared in a cramped space towards the rear. Service from the three interchangeable serving staff was functional and prompt without being particularly engaging (the restaurant was busy with large takeaway orders in addition to the mostly occupied tables). Aside from an extensive list of sakes and shochu the drinks menu is limited, but they have Asahi on tap. So why the 5 stars? Well primarily because the food was very good indeed, offering, in addition to the normal dishes you would expect to see, a range of cooked specials that featured both fish you don't associate so much with Japan (such as sardines and monkfish) and fish that's unknown here (the ladyfish tempura was exceptional). A nice selection of mochi ice-cream balls too. At £105 for 3 people our total bill was pretty reasonable for what we had.