Fujimoto in Southend-on-Sea - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Amazing experience. Very cozy and comfortable vibe. Great value for money. Incredibly tasty food. Cannot recommend enough 😋.

This restaurant is just wonderful. The lychee martinis are to die for and the food was incredible. This is the first time we’ve been here and we’re both looking forward to our next visit. I can’t recommend this place enough. Please try for yourself, you won’t be disappointed.

Superb! My friends and I take it in turns to choose a restaurant. I chose this, as I’ve been looking for a local Japanese restaurant that wasn’t a sushi restaurant and only served traditional Japanese food. Last night was my choice and I chose Fujimoto. I was lucky to be invited to stay in Japan when I was 16. My favourite dish was Katsu-don. I knew what I wanted and it didn’t disappoint! As it was the first time for my friends, we started with some beers. The draft Asahi was wonderful! We then chose some starters of familiar dishes of tempura, gyoza and as one of us is a veggie, moving mountain tempura. We had some warm sake, which was of good quality to help digestion. At the start we wondered if we should order two starters each. We were glad we didn’t as the portions were perfect. My main was Katsu-don and was perfect! It transported me back to 1990 and the two months that I spent in Japan. It had all the flavours and textures from the crispy pork made soggy from the delicious broth, slightly sticky rice, egg…. It was a first for my friend who equally enjoyed it. My friends had noodles and the veggie had a tofu katsu, washed down with a cold sake this time. The staff were friendly and gave a vibe that they wanted to be there and cared about the place. All in all, a wonderful find. I will definitely return with my family and will definitely be ordering the odd takeaway katsu-don to transport me back to 1990 and my wonderful time in Japan. Thank you Fujimoto!

For the cost the it’s too pricey, too much fat and oil is used/left on the food, but overall experience is pretty good but there are other Japanese/restaurants I’d go to over this one. This was the main issue the portion size is simply tooo small for what I paid for, I ate 2-3 meals equivalent of size when I got home from my order at this place keep in mind it cost me £25-£30, I’m 5’8ft, 61kg so I’m not a big person so you can see why I’d complain that I’d have to eat a lot more food to no be hungry when I got home and that was only dinner and wanted to give a comparison wise if you do dine here that you will be hungry afterwards. I wish I took a photos as I don’t remember the name of what I ordered but I do know it was towards to back of the menu costly around £25 and it was in a bento style box called chicken something, came out with a tiny portion or rice, vegetables, small bowl or fruit and some miso soup, it looked nicely presented but left me feeling extremely hungry afterwards, I personally would not go back. Everyone is nice but food was lacking for its price.

Where do I begin, from the service to the food. Everything was wonderful! Both staff members were so friendly and helpful. And the food was absolutely unreal! Such a hidden gem, will be recommending to everyone. I have to add the kimchi was amazing and could tell it was definitely homemade.

Really enjoyable food and service Never eaten Japanese before and will definitely try again.

My first time with Japanese food thinking Sushi how wrong ,comfort food was excellent really enjoyed the experience and would definitely return,highly recommended. Went back again yesterday 22nd May 2024 for a full sit down experience, food was fabulous service was excellent music in background so you could speak and hear properly. Value for money,if you have never tried or put off trying japanese food TRY it you won't be disappointed. Co gratulations on the owner Nao and her team a restaurant worthy of being on the map.

Lovely place, staff are incredibly polite and helpful. The food is awesome. Highly recommended.

The second time we have been to fujimoto now, this time with our kids. The food was as good as last time. The service is great and its reasonably priced for the quality of the food. My kids loved it. We will definitely be back.

This is definietly the best restaurant in Leigh on Sea, very, very good comfy food with great service. A small gem around so many overhyped places serving the same food that lacks of passion. They really stand out and we love attention to the customer. Fujimoto sets the example how it should be done - thank you and you have gained loyal customers. Shame we did not discover this place sooner.

The food and the service are excellent, definitely a recommendation!

Amazing food that brought back memories from trip to Japan.

This was our first time at Fujimoto and we will definitely be back. The food was great, portions were bigger than what we thought they'd be, extensive drinks list so we tried some sake! The service was great and it did get very busy. Didn't feel like we were rushed as we had the hour and a half seated time but we didn't feel ignored or forgotten about either when it did get busy. I had the pork belly bento which was lovely. Can't wait to go back.

Excellent addition to Leigh on Sea. Fantastic flavours and variety of food. The restaurant has a great atmosphere, with brilliant staff who really care about customers having a good experience. Recommend very highly!

A brilliant local restaurant. The food and service were both excellent. We went quite early on a Tuesday evening, so the restaurant was quieter and therefore could only give four stars for atmosphere. We will definitely be going back.

Absolutely amazing food, I’d recommend the aubergine, it was so good I ordered a second. Fantastic authentic food, wonderful atmosphere and lovely friendly staff. We will definitely be back!

After having a second baby a year ago, we finally managed to arrange a date night yesterday and heard from 2 separate people that the food was good at Fujimoto…. Good was an understatement, we thought it was amazing! We had the Prawn Tempura, Japanese fried chicken, pork Katsu curry & the Ten Don rice bowl. All of which were incredible.. The service was awesome and the atmosphere just as good. Really relaxed and welcoming… can’t wait to go back! We have ordered a takeaway from there tonight 😂

We really liked this place. It was recommended to us, and we went early on a weekday evening. It was relatively quiet, and we both found the atmosphere ‘peaceful’, for want of a better description, very welcoming. The young chap waiting was excellent, very polite, professional, and seemed genuinely interested in his customers. We had time for a quick chat about a couple of things not reated to the meal. This was such a refreshing change from the rather scripted, corporate pleasantries offered at large chain restaurants. We ordered several small dishes and salmon teriyaki to share, and all of the food was delicious. My partner had wanted an aubergine dish, which was unavailable on the night. The kimchi that the waiter suggested as an vegetable alternative was superb, maybe not Japanese but I thought it was tastier than the kimchi I had in several restaurants in Seoul. The review alternatives for recommendations only include one of the dishes we had, pork gyozo, but the octopus balls were very good, and we’d happily recommend anything we ate. The cost was very reasonable, certainly no more than I’d expected, and maybe a little less. We can certainly recommend Fujimoto, and hope to eat there again soon.

Great food. Will definitely be back.

Absolutely amazing - couldn’t recommend this place more highly!! Our first trip to Fujimoto but we'll definitely be back. Food was incredible (especially the takoyaki) and very reasonably priced for what you get. The two guys who served us were super helpful and chatty, amazing service and the best Japanese food we’ve had in the UK.

Microwave soggy pork schnitzel sold as a Katsu Don, terrible. Give it a swerve.

A lovely friendly restaurant with delicious food. Staff very helpful and informative. I don't live this end of the country, but next time I'm down I will definitely be back. As a previous post said, staff were attentive but not invasive. I managed to try dishes that I've not had the opportunity to try to make at home. This restaurant has set the quality bar very high, so I will have to work hard to cook anything anywhere near as good.

Really fantastic and authentic Japanese food. Wonderful staff and very attentive service. Karage and tempura are to die for. Highly recommended!

Some of the finest Japanese dishes you can taste. There is a labour of love here

Food was brilliant, service was quick and friendly, attentive but not invasive - best meal out we’ve had in ages! Definitely coming back and definitely recommend visiting if you haven’t already!

My husband and I had a wonderful meal here last night to celebrate my birthday. The atmosphere within the restaurant was fantastic, and we were fortunate that it wasn't very busy when we dined, as we usually see the place full. This was no surprise, given how polite and friendly the staff were - they did not rush us, took the time to engage in conversation, and made the experience enjoyable. The food exceeded our expectations, the portions were larger than anticipated, and the flavours were delicious. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and time here, making it our favourite Asian restaurant in Leigh by far. We look forward to coming back and can't wait to dine here again.

Went with the family for my sons birthday and we all had a brilliant evening there ,from the delicious food to the table service and also they went out of there way to make sure my 2 youngest grandchildren where happy with there food making them things to eat that weren't even on the menu.would give them more stars if I could .

My wife took me there for my birthday, I have never had better Japanese food outside of Japan. I am vegetarian and that can be a little limiting in some asian restaurants, but there was almost too much to choose from. The very friendly staff were helpful explaining the menu and helping us make our choices (making sure we didn't over order!) and just super nice the whole time. You can tell that many of the customers where regulars, which speaks to the quality of the food and the warm atmosphere and welcoming staff. Add me and my wife to the list of regulars! 10/10

One hundred percent, I would recommend this to friends and family

Having just come back from our first Japan trip, we sorely missed its food. We were in London the day before and were underwhelmed with Japanese food quality. Fujimoto has been on our list to try for a while and we are so glad we did! It is hands down one of the best Japanese restaurants we've been to in the whole UK. The food is superb and the service is excellent. Our pork gyōzas appear to be homemade and have more filling in it than any other gyōzas we've had, including a place we went to in Tokyo. The taste was also excellent. The nasu dengaku (miso aubergine) was cooked beautifully albeit a little oily but tasted so nice with just the right amount of miso and sugar. The chicken karaage was fried brilliantly. It had a very flavourful crunch and delicious chicken. The curry and rice was spot on and the small bits of pickles (possibly homemade) rounded off the dish. The miso ramen was also great albeit slightly more salty than we'd like. However this could possibly be solved with an extra portion of ramen 😂the charsu was sublime and so were the ramen noodles. And because everything was so good we had to have dessert. The ichigo daifuku (strawberry mochi) was delicious. The Mrs thought the mochi was a little firm but I like the gumminess and chewiness of it and the adzuki (red bean) paste was really nice. Mrs thought it a bit sweet. The matcha cake with ice cream was good. The cake was really nice although let down by the ice cream. Overall we've now found our staple place to get our Japanese food fix. I can highly recommend this place for anyone wanting to have authentic Japanese food. PS even the tea comes in some awesome cups that we're going to ask where to buy from.

Absolutely delicious food, all freshly cooked. We loved every dish we had. We went on a slower night, didn't have trouble getting a table and the service was excellent.

Had an amazing meal , the staff were great and the food was outstanding, hope this place stays for a long time , loved it can't wait to go back.

We recently celebrated a birthday here with family. Everyone loved the food and I was able to order the cauliflower curry which is no longer on the menu. The staff were very accommodating.

Went here recently with family and was incredibly impressed! Food was absolutely delicious, the atmosphere was calm and peaceful, the server was also lovely, couldn’t recommend it enough!! The real star of the night was the food though, each dish was cooked fresh tasted absolutely divine, especially the agedashi tofu and the salmon teriyaki, 10/10 will definitely come again!

Great service, great food, great atmosphere!

My fiancée and I visited the Fujimoto restaurant to celebrate our engagement in Kyoto on a Saturday night. The atmosphere was great within the restaurant, the serving staff where really polite and took the time to talk to us and where honestly interested when we said we had just come back from Japan. The food was really amazing and as they say in Osaka (I think) "めっちゃ美味しい" - Extremely delicious. The portion sizes where bigger than what we thought they where going to be and we ended up over ordering, but the food was so so good. I did ask for extra pickles to be added to the pork katsu curry and was told that wasn't a problem, the pork katsu and the curry was better than what I had previously in Tokyo. The prawn tempura/gyoza/yakitori and croquettes where all as delicious. Only thing that I would ask is if crab croquettes could be added on to the menu, but guess it isn't for simplicity. The serving staff did apologise to us about the wait for our food, which we was actually shocked about as the food came out quickly and at a decent rate, as in the food wasn't just thrown at us like some other restaurants do. Also there was Asahi Super Dry on tap, which went down a treat! We really enjoyed our meal/time and we have found a new favourite restaurant. We are looking forward to our next visit, and have been raving about the food with our friends and family. The only real issue we had was that we wasn't sure if we should be ordering in English or Japanese? lol Attached picture is my tonkatsu curry.

This place is great. A real gem in Leigh on Sea. We enjoyed some of the best food, of a standard you’d do well to find even in London. Thanks so much and we’ll be back!

I do miss my chicken chimichanga but the food here is amazing! Everything we ate was delicious. Looking forward to going back and trying some more.

We travelled from spain a dinner there. It was a nice place, with good service and tastu food . We will repeat on our next trip there.

Excellent Japanese food and service at an appropriate price. You can tell that the owner is Japanese. It's probably the best Gyoza (hand made) and shrimp tempura I've ever eaten. Exceptional.

We were here for an event and we had the whole place to ourselfs...A great place to enjoy some marvelous food, spectacular service in a cozy restaurant! We will definetly come back next time🍺

Had the pleasure of having a buffet Saturday night at the restaurant and Bentos boxes for lunch Sat and Sun. Has to be some of the best food I have ever experienced. Hygiene was perfect, the buffet dishes were not over filled and topped up regularly with Fresh. I was made to feel very wanted and welcome in a warming environment. Safe to say I will he returning and not by myself.

This is a gem of a restaurant. Authentically cooked and prepared food that’s utterly delicious. A family-run restaurant that has the most charming service and great ambience. Perfect for anyone craving Japanese food cooked with soul. The eel, pork Katsu and miso aubergine were all sublime.

Very pleasant. We will be returning to sample their new menu. I would definitely recommend a visit 👍🏻

Fantastic traditional japanese restaurant , every thing about it is first class . I would highly recommend trying this this place, you will deffinately become a regular there if you do ☺️🙏🏼

Wonderful food and amazing staff. We regularly go to Japan and it's so lovely to have a slice of Japan here in Southend.

Friendly service, pretty and cozy restaurant serving very yummy food. Would definitely recommend, this is me and my friends go to restaurant !!

my favourite restaurant ever! my fav dishes have got to be the takoyaki or buta no kakuni although every dish is amazing. have been here so many times and has never failed to be amazing. staff are lovely, chefs are authentic and owner came and talked to me personally. everyone here is lovely and the food is the best authentic japanese food i’ve had cant stop coming back 😂

I had such a lovely time eating at Fujimoto! The service and atmosphere of the restaurant was amazing :) The food 100% complemented that fact. I had a lovely time overall and would 100% return in the future!

I celebrated my birthday at Fujimoto last night. The service was top-notch from the moment we arrived. Everything we ordered was brilliant, but the miso glazed aubergine was a standout, as was the miso ramen, which had incredible depth of flavour you find from places dedicated solely to ramen. The restaurant's stylish Scandi-Japanese decor, City Pop soundtrack, and spacious layout make it perfect for a special occasion. The bill for two, with drinks, was very reasonable when you think about how much the big chains charge for sub par food. So glad we don’t have to trek into London to get great Japanese food anymore. Highly recommend!

Astonishingly good Japanese food. Lovely family run place and can’t wait to come back to try more of the menu.

I recently dined at a restaurant and wanted to share my experience. While the food itself was enjoyable, the service left much to be desired. It seemed like there may have been some issues in the kitchen, as the service was incredibly slow. We ordered five starters, including kimchi, gyoza, pork with ginger, chicken teriyaki, grilled aubergine and main course cauliflower curry. Surprisingly, it took a staggering 1 hour and 30 minutes for four starters to be served. Even more disappointing was the fact that we didn't receive the last starter or our main course. It became evident that there were some order queueing problems, as our main course hadn't even begun to be cooked. Despite the delays and incomplete orders, the food itself was decent and deserving of an 8/10 rating. However, the waitstaff seemed inattentive and failed to take care of our table. We had to prompt them to order more drinks and ask for the dirty dishes to be cleared. This lack of attentiveness was quite disappointing. On a positive note, one of the waiters did make a nice gesture by removing some of our alcoholic drinks from the bill as an apology. This was appreciated and showed that they recognised their mistakes. Overall, I believe that this restaurant has potential, but the owner and management need to seriously address the issues with service and order management. A slow service can greatly affect the overall dining experience, and it's important for the staff to be attentive and proactive in taking care of their customers. I hope this feedback helps the restaurant improve and provide a better experience for future customers.

An exquisite restaurant and the food is superb. A family run business where the son was a fantastic host. The hardest part was deciding what to actually order. Plenty of choice and some great vegetarian options also. Choice of sake was great but if thats not your thing, theres plenty else to choose from. Will definitely go again.

I ate in the Fujimoto for my birthday meal on Saturday 16th September with my girlfriend and her brother. The whole experience all round was great. The food was excellent, the cocktails were amazing. I had a piña colada for my final cocktail and it was very well presented and tasted unreal. Definitely going back there for food a cocktails in the very near future. Next week anyone? 😂

This place is a gem! Definitely my favourite restaurant in all of Leigh. The Kara-age Chicken and Prawn Tempura are lovely! Also they have really friendly service, would highly recommend

I've just had the home made Gyoza and it is outstanding! Better than anywhere else I've eaten this.

All the food was great, really nice Karaage and the ramen was spot on. Will definitely be back. They even sell umeshu!

Food was great and excellent value. Will definitely be returning!

Such a lovely restaurant. Delicious food, friendly staff and warm atmosphere. I visited there twice today and definitely I will keep dining there as a regular customer. Thank you for the meal.

Really great food, delicious cocktails, friendly staff - will definitely be back!

The food was incredibly delicious. Great selection of food and drinks. The service and ambiance was amazing. Would definitely recommend!

If you want authentic Japanese food then this is the place to go! The atmosphere is cosy, the staff are lovely and all the food and drinks are delicious. The ramen is super authentic, tastes just as good as it did when I was in Japan. I highly recommend this place!

First time visiting Fujimoto and we were blown away! Celebrated my girlfriends birthday with authentic Japanese food which was absolutely cooked to perfection, the Buta-no-Shogoyaki was bursting with flavour and as a massive fan of gyoza I ended up taking an extra portion home! We were served by the owners son who provided exemplary service and was great to talk to, we will without doubt be coming back and spreading the word about Fujimoto!

Our first visit to the restaurant last night, the food was really very good and the service was excellent, very efficient. This will definitely be high on our list of favourite places to eat. I'm sure we will also be making use of the take out, such a refreshing change from the usual take out menus.

Fabulous meal, delicious food and awesome friendly service

Great first experience. Delicous pork and ramen.

Very nice and authentic Japanese dishes in a warm and cosy space~

Had a group meal there on Saturday 25th Feb. Excellent service and outstanding food. Setting was great after some previous bad experiences with Japanese food in London, Fujimoto was completely different and limiting myself to just two courses was really difficult but made up for it with the Lychee Cocktail, great way to finish the meal :)

This is a lovely and authentic Japanese restaurant, a real asset to the area.

This was our first visit was lovely, the staff were lovely and very helpful as I was on crutches with a broken leg. Food was amazing and drinks were good. The only thing I would say is to put on your website the toilets are upstairs with no access for disabled people. But overall will be coming back with the rest of my family. Thanks

Came with a party of 9 for a birthday meal. I had the miso ramen which was very tasty, authentic and surprisingly filling. Also loved the Japanese karaage and Ebi katsu. The waiter and waitress were also very nice and accommodating. Only improvement I would say is the service was a little lacking in terms of getting our drinks and a slight delay with one of our mains. But, overall would definitely come back again as you won't find any other good Japanese restaurants in Essex.

Came here on a Friday night to celebrate a birthday, the staff were really accommodating & also had a high chair for the baby. The food here was amazing, we loved the fujimoto ramen (soy based) which came with pork chashu, which was more authentic & tastier than any other ramen I’ve tried. We also loved the chicken karaage. Definitely would return to support this family run business if I’m back in the area.

Fujimoto really have created something very special. The food was phenomenal and every dish was exactly what you want from a Japanese restaurant. The decor is very tastefully done. Lots of space between tables for privacy dining. the service is probably the best I've ever experienced. It was such a wonderful family meal I will absolutely become a regular customer. I spoke to the owner about bookings as it was difficult to book but they have not long opened and this will be sorted out soon. I will be telling all of my friends to eat here without disappointment. This will undoubtedly be a place where its difficult to get a reservation in the near future. thank you fujimoto.

Food and service was fantastic i will be returning.

Amazing food! Very good service, never a disappointment to when the food arrives. The food is beautifully made, you just know they put a lot of effort into the food. Definitely my new favourite spot! Highly recommend if you fancy Japanese :)

I’d like to congratulate all those who have managed to sample Fujimoto’s food. I haven’t succeeded yet. You can’t book a table. It seems they sometimes may cook you a takeaway for collection, but you have to call on the day to see if they will. I have called several times and the answer is always no. They are listed on Deliveroo but it says you can’t currently make an order. It seems you have to walk in and hope for a free table. There are few tables so the odds are against you. A most mysterious establishment.

Came here on a recommendation and so glad I came here. The atmosphere was relaxed and chilled. Lots of great dishes which Ayako our server narrowed down. We had a ramen that full of flavour and filling, pork gyoza that had plenty of filling inside and chicken karaage (Japanese fried chicken) went which down well with the spicy mayo which I never tried before and loved. Highlight definitely was the Matcha sundae which had matcha cake, matcha ice cream, matcha macaroon and decorated with cookies and cream picky. Absolute dream. Chef Nao was so bubbly and friendly. Lovely people, great dishes and an overall wonderful experience. Will be visiting again for sure

Can't fault the food or service but 1 star due to no heating. Whole restaurant was freezing cold so we kept our coats on. Only a small gas bar heater provided which provided nothing but a hazard. Would have left if I wasn't so hungry.

The food was absolutely beautiful. I had teriyaki chicken donburi and it was the best donburi i’ve ever had!! And the prices are so good here. The ‘fujimoto’ cocktail was also delicious. The staff were very friendly and quick. I will definitely be coming back!

Excellent service and amazing food! Will be a frequent customer 🥰

This was by far one of the greatest find in Leigh on Sea. Honestly if I could have given six stars I would. The food was divine, fresh and authentic. The staff were polite and efficient. We even ordered more whilst eating as the menu was so appealing. The Pork spicy Ramen was packed with noodles, delicious pork and fresh vegetables. The Tempura Prawns and dumplings were clean, tasty and we ordered more. The Ka aragi chicken was ideal for our small children recommended by the waitress. Not too spicy but ever so tasty that we ended munching it with them. The children scoffed it down with fluffy rice. I had the pork katsu curry and i had to eat the whole lot even though I was full from the amazing starters. Thank you for an unexpectedly delightful evening and delicious, fresh food. Thank you.

Lovely restaurants, very friendly people and incredible food, can’t wait to go back Thanks

Great food, excellent and friendly service. Loved the tofu gyoza, curries and Japanese style potato salad.

Booked a table on a whim and so happy we did. Food was absolutely incredible and the staff were so friendly. My whole family said its one of the best restaurants in Leigh and we can't wait to visit again. Thank you!

Lovely family run Japanese restaurant! The Chicken Karaage and Matcha Cake (homemade) is a must!

We went for dinner at Fujimoto (2 adults, 2 children) and we were so impressed with the service, the food, and overall experience. Having lived in Japan, I can vouch for the food tasting completely authentic, it was so delicious too. I drank plum wine with ice, and my husband had a lovely cold Asahi. The children (6 & 5) loved the food as well, and loved the Japanese character plates and cutlery. They announced it was their new favourite restaurant when we were leaving! We’ll definitely be back.

Visited a couple of days after the reopening (8th Dec). Lovely welcoming place to have authentic Japanese food. We had the katsu chicken and dumplings for starter which were very tasty, good portions. For main we tried the one dish chicken teriyaki (which includes both salad and rice) and the original ramen. For dessert we had the warm brownie and lime + ginger cheesecake. Waiter and waitress were really friendly and helpful when asking about dishes. Saw they had a good selection of cocktails. Will definitely be back.

Being Japanese myself it was hard to find a takeway that felt like home. I looked everwhere. But look no more! This is it! Authentic Japanese food. Beautiful & Delicious.☺ Karaage, Hamburg, Gyoza and more! Can't wait to order again and try yakiniku, nanban, katsu.....

Passed this place and see a sign out the front, so thought I'd give it a go. Wow, so glad I did! Had the takeaway for collection as the restaurant is being done up. Couldn't fault any dish we had, the flavours were wonderful. Very reasonable prices for the quality and flavours of the dishes. Was cooked to the exact time I asked to collect it, spot on. Am now looking forward to sampling the other items on the takeaway menu while i wait for the restaurant to open and dine in.... hoping its as good as I think it will be.

Not just another average restaurant opening in Leigh on Sea! I had an amazing takeaway from this new Japanese! Would def get takeaway from here again! Delicious!