November
18
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LONDON EATERIES – YO Kitchen!
You may have heard of this restaurant before. Yo Kitchen is a new open kitchen from the famous Japanese food brand Yo Sushi who are known for their delicious, creative and out-of-this-world dishes, handing you the japensese culture single handedly on a plate. Once you visit Yo Kitchen in Westfield City, nothing that Yo Kitchen will deliver to you is short of amazing, breathtaking, spectacular and of course, delicious.
You will be met by a polite waiter who leds you to your seat. Once you walk to your seat, you recognize other people in the resturat enjoying themselves, catching up with one another and despite the fact that this is a Wednesday evening and only 7: 30 pm, the retsurant is already filling up, giving testament to the restaurants popularity. The restaurant is spread across 2,400 sq ft and seats 90 diners across long shared wooden tables and booths. There are also seats outside the restaurant, catering to quite a large number of guests daily. Once you arrive, you will immediately feel like you have entered a beautiful enchated forest. The interior deisgn is incredible. You will look up and see different kinds of house plants hanging down from the ceiling, making you feel comfortable and at home. The simple spotlights that hang from the ceiling adds to the simple yet sophisticated design of the restaurant.
Once you slide into your seated booth, there is a miniature tree stand with branches and colorful origami crane birds hang from those branches. The Japanese refer to the crane as ‘the bird of happiness’.
The Japanese refer to the crane as the “bird of happiness”. The wings of the crane are believed to carry souls up to paradise. This is a thoughtful and wonderful touch to know that the restaurant owners put deep thought into how the restaurant would look and how they would incorporate the Japanese culture, not just only in the food they serve but also things like origami.
No longer than 5 minutes, a waiter will come to you, proceed to hand you over the menu and give you a few extra minutes to pick what you fancy to eat and drink for the night. The menu is in the form of a nice booklet, very colourful and sticking to the colour themes of the restaurant. Every item is presented with a little bit of information of what the dish looks like and what it consists of. You are honestly spolit for choice as the menu offers 40 japanese-inspired sharing plats including curry, ramen and a sashimi ‘pizza’. Sushi is still on the menu but other dishes include robata sirloin steak with lotus root crisps, vegan king oyster mushroom ramen and hirata doughnuts.
We decided to go for the Empress Platter, which consists of Sticky chicken, Chilli beef, Beef tataki salad, Salmon caviar, Mushroom royale, Katsu curry arancini, Sashimi pizza, Spicy pepper squid, Kickin’ salmon roll, Blossom roll, Gem lettuce, Kimchi pickle, Spicy edamame and Shishito peppers. This platter serves 2–4, people, a perfect platter choice for a group of friends or family eating together.
Drinks
Yuzu & Pear: The Yuzu and Pear drink is so refreshing.The sweet flavours of the citrus Yuzu and fruity pear intertwine with each other to give you a smooth, cooling drink which is refreshing just as it is tasty.
Ginger, Lime & Mint soda– This is another perfect choice for a cooling drink .The spicy tanginess of the ginger is amplified by the mint yet cooled and smoothed down by the lime. You smell and taste all flavours at once as they come together to create a sweet yet distintice taste.
The Empress Platter:
Sticky chicken – The Chicken yakitori was cooked to perfection, the chicken thighs were tender and the soy sauce which glazed over the chicken thighs added a sweet taste , which complimented the tangy onion taste of the spring onion & the distinctive zest of the Yuzu koshu sauce.
Chilli beef – The sirloin beef was absolutely phenomenal. It was cooked just right and it was beautifully sprinkled with sesame seeds which shine so brightly, thanks to the lovely soy sauce. The salt enhanced the sweet seasoning of the beef whilst the pepper and dried chilli gave a smooth fiery kick to the meal overall.
Beef tataki salad – The Seared sirloin beef had hints of orange, adding a sweet yet sour berry taste to the beef, the watercress helps you to balance out thickness of the beef & the spicy yuzu dressing offers a twang to the meal.
Salmon caviar – For all salmon lovers, the salmon caviar will be a great choice for you. Salmon kushikatsu is a mesmerizing dish, soft and tender with mayo being the choice sauce to accompany the dish & the ikura is full of flavor.
Mushroom royale – The radiant, lucious king oyster mushroom kushikatsu tastes absolutely lush, especially with the sweet and savourt teriyaki sauce whilst the shichimi spicy mixtures adds a little bit of heat to the meal.
Katsu curry arancini – The Panko-coated, curry-stuffed rice balls are incredibly crispy on the outside and you are meet with a velvety rich, soft surprise on the inside as the balls are filled with curry stuffed rice. Served with curry mayo, these little balls are quite a fulfilling dish.
Sashimi pizza – The Tortilla base of this creative pizza is dressed with mayo & katsu sauce. Topped with seared tuna, tomato, onion, coriander cress & jalapeno.
Spicy pepper squid – The Spicy pepper squid consists of Spicy marinated squid which is fried until it turns crispy and is garnished with red chilli & spring onions. MOUTHWATERING!
Kickin’ salmon roll – This dish is full of flavour, smooth Salmon with goes well with the creamy avocado and cream cheese & cucumber rolled in Korean red pepper powder. Topped with crispy onions
Blossom roll – The blossom roll is Prawn katsu & avocado rolled in purple shiso & topped with spicy tuna & a splash of teriyaki sauce. Once you take a bite into this roll, the taste starts to blossom as first you taste the prawn katsu, the creamy avocado and then the spicy tuna makes an appearance which is then rounded off with the svaoury taste of the teriyaki sauce. Absolutely perfect.
Gem lettuce – The Crisp lettuce is quartered & drizzled with creamy rich sweetcorn sauce, a sauce which is designed to knock your socks off! Simply delicious.
Kimchi pickle – You can never go wrong with this dish as Kimchi Pickle is a traditional salted & fermented vegetables dish. Your five a day keeps the doctors away, especially in this cold christmasy weather.
Spicy edamame – The young soybeans are served warm in the pod with Truffle salt. Classic yet simple dish.
Shishito peppers – These peppers are quite sweet, perfect for people who don’t like spicy food. The taste of the lemon adds a citrus twang to the peppers.
Yo Kitchen will NOT disappoint. Visit Yo Kitchen and prepare to have your taste buds blown away!
Yo Kitchen
Unit 1089A, Westfield London Shopping Centre, Ariel Way, W12 7GB
Heart London Magazine 5 Star Rating:
Food 5
Drink 5
Service 5
Decor 5
Atmosphere 5
Heart London Magazine 