Elisha Tanya
Engawa is a phenomenal Japanese restaurant with highly trained and skilled chefs. It is an open restaurant so you can book to sit on the normal dining tables or sit in front of the chefs and watch them prepare everything before your eyes. It is a memorable experience and worth the price of admission.
The food and service was great as expected, however, failed to exceed my expectations beyond what was delivered. This wouldn’t discourage me from coming back as I enjoyed the experience itself and atmosphere throughout. Every guest was treated with care and they made us feel extremely comfortable. I was amazed at the quality of their ingredients and the how efficient they were with each dish prepared. It felt like something was missing when it came to the food and it could be a fault of my own for not ordering more plates on the day.
I highly recommend you visit here and just for the experience and atmosphere alone. The price is on the higher side and you may limit yourself on what you’re willing to spend.
Greg Jeffrey
Having never tried a sushi restaurant or any
Kind of Japanese food before I was a bit apprehensive at first but I soon realized how great the food was. The service was effective and friendly. The restaurant was a bit smaller than I had thought but it didn't distract from the culinary experience. It was also my first time trying sake not something that I would try again but still glad I had a go.
MR H (Hotakv1)
Had the 5 course Wagyu Omakase
With a bottle of Riesling.
Food was ok, some hot items seemed little cold, such as the rice but the A4 Wagyu was nice and the sashimi course was enjoyable with the variety of items.
The place is small but it has a nice atmosphere and the servers were friendly.
Joyce Tang
Had a great birthday dinner here with a friend! We tried to Omakase 3 course meal, all dishes that involve colour and taste. The seating area inside is limited but still comfortable. Service was very friendly as well. I'd come here again to try more dishes, a great place to take family and good friends for a memorable meal.
Edward Tse
a very good quality Japanese food in UK
Mochi Mochi
The best sushi i’ve had outside of Japan, accommodating staff and cosy vibe. We didn’t have a booking but they managed to fit us in, I would recommend booking. The staff were great, nothing was too much of a problem, I didn’t want any tuna in my box, but was no problem for them to swap it out for other fish. We took the 3 course wagyu menu, which was plenty enough of food.
Dasanti De Silva
Booked via OpenTable for a friends birthday. Service was brilliant. Although slightly hurried towards the end as it’s a 90 minute omakase bento meal. Though appreciate they allowed us time and even accommodated to my friends birthday with the delicious matcha and strawberry crepe. The bento meal itself was okay for the price of the deal.
Wendy
Keep having lunch there for two weekends, the place is a little small but the food worth a five star review.
Tried the 14-tiered lunch box, nice taste, love the beetroot potato mash.
The foie gras is the best one I ever had, with shredded radish to remove the heavy oily taste.
Wagyu is also great, did not get chance to try the Matcha cake so will plan to come back again some time.
Alicia Fourie
Expensive but excellent food - really good quality. The people at the next table were obnoxious but let's assume they won't be there when anyone else goes.
Callum Armour
Not only the best Japanese restaurant I've eaten in but the best restaurant experience period. Made a really special birthday with complimentary drinks and special dessert. The 5 course omakase dinner was amazing. Can't recommend enough
Viet Le
Great food quality, preparation, and plating techniques! Dining experience was great! It would be even better if they also give a token cake/mochi for birthday celebration like other restaurants.
Dewi Nawasari
Since we arrived, the staff were really sweet and helpful, top notch service! The food and sake was equally top notch! We had the 3 course and we were so happily full at the end of the course. Officially one of my favourite Japanese restaurant in London
R A
Amazing food! Felt like we are back in Japan! Yuri San was an amazing host as well as all the other staff. HIGHLY recommend this place!!!!
Jatheish Karunakaran
Pretty solid experience! Staff were really nice and knowledgeable. They were able to make recommendations and share information about the menus.
We ended up going with the omakase-3 option. This meant that we had one appetizer, an 11 assorted sashimi selection of fish and veg, chefs special of the day, and a main.
For our main I opted for the Japanese Wagyu steak which was cooked medium rare.
I really enjoyed the wagyu, felt like it was cooked to perfection and the sashimi was fun, refreshing, and tasty. I wasn't super keen on the other plates but that probably just comes down to personal preference. For drinks I had the Ume-shu which was delicious :).
Mo' Ojelade
Lovely, quaint authentic Japanese restaurant. I enjoyed the Omakase 3 Course dinner. Well presented, with unique tastes in every dish. It was a wonderful culinary experience 😍. The sake was aromantic and smooth
Neel Davda
Phenomenal omikase! We had the 3 courses which had the sashimi starters, soup middle course and choice of sushi or wagyu for main. All were delicious, highlights being the fatty toro, mushroom porcini and miso soup. A low key, small restaurant but a real gem in the heart of Picadilly.
Angela C
Was one of my favorite restaurant all these years, but I do feel the standard of the meals dropped a lil (and the 14 courses set is 90% the same dishes as I had for the past few times). The Unagi (eel over rice) was really a highlight.
However, one of the staff keep removing the mask when serving us the meal and teas, which is quite inconsiderate as the dining area is small and the cases of the coronavirus is still quite high these few weeks. Hope they would improve that.
Ian Lo
This was a restaurant that my friend recommended... boy I was happy that she did ... I was alone so I was sitting on the counter in front of the open kitchen.... everything was so organized... so drama, very calm, and watching the Chef prepping your food is an experience itself .... the restaurant is small .... but intimate... everything serves a function .....the food presentation was amazing ... and the wagyu beef is out of this world ... I do recommend people to give it a try if you are in town ......
Evelyn Wong
My fiancé and I celebrated his birthday at Engawa. We throughly enjoyed the 5 course omakase menu. The presentation of the food was stunning. The quality of the assorted sashimi selection and the Japanese wagyu steak on hot stone was top-notch. They also prepared a special birthday dessert for my fiancé. I would recommend this restaurant especially to people who love Wagyu beef!
Tammy Tao
Excellent restaurant...worth every penny. Service was exceptional, food even better. Presentation is gorgeous. Sake delightful. Thanks for a fantastic dinner!!
Miki Bartley
Cozy and very fine Japanese restaurant. We had 14 lunch box, and each individual dish was a delight to discover. Their tables are very small, and not so much space. Their staffs are very friendly, and informative.
Grace Zhang
The food was delicious, but the potion it is too small , so I think it's a little bit over price.
Stephen Globus
Absolutely the very best lunch bento outside of Japan is served here- highly recommended is the 14 variety set lunch
Linda Herd
Loved my meal this evening and possibly the best Japanese Food I have had outside of Japan! I will be back next time I am in town. Thank you
Karen Tan
Th presentation was beautiful, the food was delicious and the service was excellent, so much so that we went back the next day for dinner(paired with wine and sake with great recommendations) right after the mouthwatering lunch!
Rita Vasconcelos
Love this little restaurant. Food is so beautifuly presented and so so tasty.
It takes me back to Tokyo every time.
Please give it a try
Scott Maguire
Superb high end Japanese food in great surroundings. Service top quality and value excellent. A must for any special occasion.
Beto Oros
Excelente
Regresaría mil veces
Sin duda fue un opción única ! �� atte un mexicano
Shu Wang
The wagyu steak was amazing. Also the 11 sashimi selection were really fresh and tasty.
Nik Devlin
A lovely meal last night, tasty and imaginative and professional, but please, why the music? I don't want to compete with house and techno when I'm paying £100+ per head for a lovely evening!
James Tengyu Guo
The moment you put the Kobe beef sushi into your mouth. OMG~
Alan Thomas
A very disappointing experience, confirming the feeling from a previous visit. There's a strange tension in the air here that seems to emanate from behind the counter, and it also affects the waiting staff. Our sashimi and sushi courses were OK, although I'd say more style than content, but how is it possible to make shimofuri Kobe beef chewy? Flavour was OK, but texture was way off and I've never experienced that in Japan. But biggest problem for Engawa is that it's just TOO SMALL. They haven't made the layout work and it affects the dining experience and overall ambience, with both staff and customers struggling to make their way through. That might work for a more casual izakaya style, but Engawa is obviously aiming higher than that. And when sitting at the counter I don't wish to see the head chef browsing the internet on his tablet, thanks. In fact he was so engrossed he didn't deign to look up as we paid and left. We won't be back...
Suzie Blanche
The food was absolutely wonderful and the service first class.
Hanis Saiful
Exquisite dining! Fantastic service! Will definitely come again.
Nigel Yau
Fabulous!!! Top service. Top food. Top presentation.
Fred Pelard
What a TERRIBLE place .... it's a joke of a restaurant with nothing Japanese apart from the decor.<br/><br/>The fatty tuna sushi were tiny & washed out in wasabi, the tuna nigiri were nearly frozen, the miso soup was watery ... we left after 30 minutes and didn't even finish our tiny portions. And that's with prices of £8 per individual sushi (!) See the bill enclosed [£16 for 2 tiny fatty tuna sushi (S-Toro) and £14 for 3 half-inch cubes of tuna nigiri (N-Toro)]<br/><br/>We complained heavily, but the staff (most of whom where Eastern European or French couldn't give a shit about the customers - btw: I'm French). We had to fight for them to remove the £9.75 service charge (!).<br/><br/>I am flabbergasted at how this joke of a restaurant gets the positive reviews it gets, when there are so many genuinely good Japanese restaurants within 200 yards of Picadilly Circus.
Hrhouston22
Infuriatingly and shockingly bad. Portion sizes are absolutely tiny and the pricing is extortionate. My friend and I both left very hungry and having both spent £85 each we were livid. We had 2 alcoholic drinks and 4 dishes which wouldn’t have fed a sparrow. The steak which cost £45 that ‘came with vegetables’ was basically 2 tiny strips of beef each with 3 tasteless pieces of vegetable - which we had to share. Shocking.<br/>Atmosphere also terrible and drab decor. <br/>Even the outdooor heaters weren’t working. <br/>Avoid at all costs unless you want to be completely ripped off.<br/>
Gracia Cindy
The omakase lunch was delicious! Sushi and sashimis taste fresh and plating is unique. The server was very friendly and informative on the food served. We came in on a tuesday, and the place started filling quickly. I recommend reservations before walking in.
Foodexpectations
I love Japanese food and am in a constant search for more Japanese places to go in London. But sadly Engawa disappointed and won’t enter my Japanese hall of fame that includes UMU and Ikeda. I picked Engawa for a business lunch as I had heard their bento boxes were fantastic. Sadly, the fish...
Alexandra C
When you google "Engawa London", one of the first articles is "Why Engawa is an unusually well thought-out restaurant" by City A.M. My response to that is no. Engawa, self proclaimed as "one of London's most authentic and traditional Japanese restaurants, specialising in the delicacy of Kobe Beef, alongside a stunning selection of fresh sushi and sashimi" at first glance seems promising & exciting but in fact it's quite the opposite.
Quiet Eating
So, Kobe beef has now landed in London with a few restaurants serving this ‘caviar of cattle’. This is supposed to be the genuine article as opposed to wagyu beef, which doesn’t necessarily come from Japan, and may not even be purebred. There seems to be much confusion over Japanese beef. Kobe beef is just that, beef which comes from Kobe. Although the most recognisable of Japanese beef brands, if you stop by Japan, you will find it in the minority with other regions taking precedence. Although in London, we decided on Engawa which claims to import a whole Kobe cow – so, better to serve various cuts of meat – something which apparently competition struggles with.
Steph Chan
It’s been a while since I was fully satisfied with a meal from start to finish, I was so impressed that, I already had decided we will be back before we had even finished our meal! Each compartmentalised dish was made on point, and with precision, thanks to the eagle eyed executive chef Akira Shimizu watching over his peers. There was an overwhelming staff to customer ratio upon arrival this was expected given the size of the restaurant. Attentive, and observant to the point I didn’t even realise that my glass of water was being filled up. 12.5% service charge.
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