★★☆☆☆ / Eclectic / Pan-Asian

Tapasia review – is the food any better than the pun-fully bad name?

Small bites at high prices Update July 2013 – this restaurant has now closed More restaurants than ever are opening in Soho despite the relative scarcity of real estate and Tapasia is one of the newest. This small bar and restaurant, located on bustling Old Compton Street, serves up Asian-inspired tapas which isn’t as strange … Continue reading

★★★☆☆ / Chinese / Chinese Dumplings / Chinese Noodles / Taiwanese

Leong’s Legends Continue review – second time lucky?

Soho’s Taiwanese stand-by – dependably reliable or depressingly staid? It’s quite interesting dining out in a group, if only to see what my dining companions will order when left to their own devices. During my recent revisitation of Leong’s Legends Continue, The Lensman, Templeton Peck and Happy Buddha displayed an alarming degree of groupthink – … Continue reading

★★★☆☆ / Japanese / Japanese Noodles / Sushi/Sashimi

Ittenbari review – ramen revelation or revulsion?

Ra-ra-ramen-ra In London’s increasingly crowded restaurant scene, new eateries often need a hook or some unique selling point to pull in the punters. For restaurants drawing on the rich culinary heritage of a foreign country, one easy hook is a dish or regional cuisine underrepresented in the UK. Ittenbari is a new Japanese restaurant specialising … Continue reading

★★★☆☆ / Modern European / Modernist

Patterson’s review – middling Mayfair mediocrity?

Cooking by numbers Update: this restaurant has now closed. Bo London now occupies the same premises. It’s tempting to think that because a restaurant has been well-established and operating for several years, then it must be doing something right and has struck upon a winning formula. The pessimistic view is that they’re merely cruising along … Continue reading

★★☆☆☆ / Chinese / Japanese / Korean / Pan-Asian / Thai and Lao / Vietnamese

East Street review – full of Eastern promise or just full of it?

Oxford Street’s East Asian street food smorgasbord With some restaurants, the reasons behind the choice of décor can be inscrutable but that isn’t the case with East Street. East Street is a casual eatery located just off the north edge of Oxford Street and serves up a broad menu of street food from a large … Continue reading