Koto Japanese Restaurant in Oxford

This is my favorite Japanese in Oxford with authentic Japanese Dashi taste. The owner is Japanese with very popular with local residents. You have better book a table if you want to dine on Friday or Saturday. I went to Saturday night and a couple of people for walk-ins were unable to get tables.

This was our first time at Koto, a Japanese restaurant opposite the Phoenix Picturehouse cinema in Oxford. We ordered two dishes consisting of rice and "toppings". The dishes arrived so promptly on our table that we suspected they had already been prepared and were just warmed up. The rice was lukewarm and, in the case of one dish, entirely without any sauce, vegetables, just a splash of mayonnaise on the side. The dish consisted of lukewarm rice with some deep-fried chicken pieces which tasted just greasy on top. We will never go to Koto in Walton Street again. It was a thoroughly disappointing dinner.

Have been coming here for as long as I’ve lived in Oxford - first at the North Parade site, and now on Walton Street. Everything is brilliant and reasonably priced. The chicken karaage is our fave.

Worst meal I’ve ever had in my life. Sushi was part frozen. Hair in the food. Beef was 50% fat. Would never ever eat within 1km of this place again. I’m not looking forward to my stomach tomorrow morning.

These were so scrumptious I highly recommend them and the mochi icecream was lovely too I want to try more things

We ordered a takeaway for two people from this restaurant. Two dishes and two small sides, and a boiled rice. Overall cost ~ £35. The size of the servings was really small - like tiny.... The beef dish (for £10) was also seemingly low quality meat, and had quite a lot of fat streaks in it. Overall, the amount of food was probably enough for just 1 person. Very poor value for money. We called the restaurant to complain/ask if they could remedy things, and our concerns were dismissed (albeit politely). Appreciate that during the pandemic restaurants are under cost pressure, but to be honest, we we won't be going or ordering from here again.

This place has a great reputation - and for good reason! The standards are brilliantly consistent, and the menu is filled with quality dishes, some of which have been around for years and are well loved by many. Can't wait to go back.

We turned up without a booking and were lucky to get a table Service was fast and helpful We enjoyed the fresh food, we also had rib eye steak but we were too excited and forgot to get photos Kind of regret not trying the sushi maybe next time

From what I understand from previous reviews is that the ownership has changed recently, which is a shame as I had come here previously and absolutely loved this restaurant. We ordered a variety of items, Yakitori, soft shell crab maki roll, pork dumplings, chicken chan chan, rice, prawn/chicken Katsu and Takoyaki. The food was okay, but just okay. It was a shame that they do not offer ramen or katsu curry in the evening menu like they do at lunch time. What was really disappointing was the freshness of the food. We were sat at the table nearest the kitchen so could see everything going on in there, and unfortunately their dumplings were bought in frozen and fried to order. We didn't catch everything else in our order being made, but it does make me wonder how much of their menu is actually produced on site. So overall it was pretty disappointing when i compare it to my previous experience here. I hope the new owners step their game up, it's a shame to let this place go downhill.

This is one of my favourite places to eat in Oxford. The food is always good and the atmosphere is friendly and relaxed. It can be hard to get a table as it is small and always very busy, so I recommend booking.

What a disappointment! This used to be the best independent ramen restaurant in Oxford. Now the food is unrecognisable! The Paiten ramen was our favourite but the soup base is definitely not 10 hours of work! More out of a packet. The noodles was chewy n the pork tasteless. Egg and soup cold. We questioned the waiting staff whether recipe of the soup base was changed. The owner came out and of course the business has changed hands recently different chef and owner. They should not be using the same menu. Won’t be back. What a shame!

Ресторан на крыше, красивый вид на крыши Оксфорда с множеством куполов собора и церквей. Вкусно! Все очень свежее. Были несколько ращ и еще с удовольствием придем. Всем рекомендую.

去年の夏休みに、ロンドンの友達と食べに行きました。予約しないで行きましたが、夜のオープン6時に行き、すぐに入れました。予 約は7時半が多いみたいなので、6時が狙い目だと思います！ メニューのオススメを聞いてオーダーしたのですが、チキンのちゃんちゃん焼きと揚げ出し豆腐が凄く美味しかったのを覚えています。その他も色々頼みましたが、全て日本の味そのままで美味しかったです！ 優しい日本人のお姉さんスタッフが色々良くしてくれましたが、他にも日本語が話せる現地の方や、もちろん他の日本人スタッフもいるので、言葉に自信がなくても全然大丈夫です！ 他の外国人のお客さんが、美味しい！と隣で唸ってるのを見て嬉しくなりました(^ ^)。 今年の夏休みにもまたオックスフォードを訪れる予定なので、また行こうと思ってます。 ランチのラーメンも評判が良かったので、ランチも行こうかなと思ってます。 オックスフォードへ行くのであれば、オススメです！

Ate here about 2 months ago and must say the food quality was below average and just not good enough. Sushi starter was tasteless, soulless, and presentation was not very good attempt. I can't even remember what my main was, It was so unforgettable. Will not be returning. Shame as North Parade is a quaint street with much charm and no chains to be found- only local.

I’ve been coming here for years, ever since one of my friends waited tables here when they first opened. It was easily the best Japanese food I’ve had in the UK, and I would have given it 10/5 stars on here. Yesterday was different. The Paitan Ramen was unrecognisable from what I’ve had there in the past. The noodles seemed like they were from a box, and over cooked to the point of mushiness. The broth lacked any depth of flavour, I think, though I don’t know for sure because the level of salt in it blew out my tastebuds. It’s took my tongue hours to recover. The egg was cold and the pork seemed like it had been cooked a long time ago and rewarmed in the microwave. Koto used to be my favourite lunch place in Oxford, and I hope it is again soon— but they’ve got to sort out what’s going wrong in the kitchen!

I had lunch here on a Saturday and the place was full but I managed to sit at the bar, the food was decent but slightly underwhelimg. The good: - I ordered a seaweed salad to start with and this was tasty and as good as I've had anywhere else. -The tea was nice and came in a heavy teapot which kept the tea warm for a long time. - The staff were friendly and attentive - The food all seemed fresh and was tasty The not so good - I ordered the spicy tuna roll, which had a very stingy amount of fish in it. The roll itself was very small in diameter and the 'spicy' sauce was laid under the roll and it was not at all spicy. - there was no small plate to put the soy sauce into which meant i had to either pour it carefully over every mouthful or put it on the main plate and have it dance all over. - The wasabi was spread over a small part of the plate in what I'm sure was an attempt at decorative flair - but it meant that I then had to scrape it off the plate if I wanted any on my sushi. Overall decent, tasted nice - but not really worth the price - there are better sushi places in Oxford.

It's a small local delicious japanese place with fresh fish, good service and good prices. The menu has all the traditional japanese stuff, and the ambience is good.

オックスフォードに2年ほど住んでおりますが、ここの日本食だけが、唯一私を満足させてくれてます。

お昼1時過ぎに行きましたが、丁度タイミング良く席が空き座ることが出来ました。

Amazing, having spent a year outside the uk, this was my first choice to eat out in Oxford, truly exceptional , great food , great venue, great service, great food, exceptional, many thanks wonderful once again.

This is a very small place so I would recommend booking if possible . Personally I'm not a huge fan of Japanese food generally but I must say I really like the food here. There is plenty of choice for vegetarian and vegan . I have always found the staff friendly and helpful. I think it deserves its reputation as the best most authentic Japanese restaurant in Oxford

Great tempura. Not enough sauce for the Katsu prawns. Great seaweed salad - had seconds. Tempura veg very good indeed. Good wine selection. Will come back as pretty good.

Went Koto with a Canadian director of our company for a business meeting. She was so impressed with the quality of food there, especially the black code and ebi mayo.

Koto is a small restaurant on North Parade serving authentic Japanese cuisine. The lunch menu and dinner menu are quite different : at lunch they serve Ramen noodles and Katsu curry, whereas in the evening there is a much larger choice of sushi, sashimi, tempura and fish.

Heard about this lovely restaurant through a chance meeting with the chef involving a stray cat and pretty quickly became a regular. All the ramen on their lunch menu is very very good— you can tell it’s good when you see it because the yolk of the egg is barely-set. The noodles are, I think, handmade, and the broth (they use chicken, but it’s just as flavorful as pork) is liquid comfort. My favorite is the paitan ramen, which has a lot of richness without being too heavy.

We love to eat at this tiny Japanese restaurant if there is a table available.

Superb. Get away from the obvious things like teriyaki. The salads, plum wine on the rocks, goma-ae, all great.

Eating out in Oxford can often be a decidedly underwhelming experience but Koto hits the spot every time. The restaurant is small and unassuming but cosy, service is polite and friendly and the kitchen turns out some fantastic Japanese food – fresh, healthy and delicious. Highly recommended. Best to book if you want to go for supper as it does fill up fast.

We ordered the soft crab sushi for our appetizer which was pretty good but small vis-a-vis its price point (£13). We also ordered the black cod and the ribeye steak for the mains, which with rice came up to be about £18 each. The taste was great for the cod, and pretty good for the ribeye, but still did not fill us up. In short, we spent about £50 for dinner for two, in which the dinner was not as filling as we would have liked it to be.

Its worth the trip, parking Traffic, and most of off waiting for the food, its all worth it, go enjoy, sit back and savour, I promise you will not be disappointed.

Wow. Very happy to have found this place. The lunch menu is affordable and great. The ramen noodles were especially excellent. Definitely worth walking15min from the city centre but check before going as you may struggle to find this place and it can get very busy.

We stepped in for some ramen on a cold November evening only to find out that ramen is just served at lunch. We stayed and had some salmon and katsu, sushi and rice as well as miso soup to start. The portions are somewhat small for the prices but the food was just delectable. The service was also very competent, polite and friendly. Recommended

Having found Koto by chance, I have now eaten there on a regular basis for well over a year and am consistently pleased by the quality of the food, service and general experience.

I love going to Koto, and eat there often. The service is terrific, minimal but warm interior, delicious food, extensive sake menu, and perfect location on North Parade. Highly recommended, limited seating so please book ahead!

They only serve main courses - no deserts - but the food was well-cooked, the atmospher was relaxed, and eating there was a fun experience. I had an unusual Japanese yoghurt drink, which I've never come across before.

On a short visit to Oxford we happened upon Koto and used it twice, both times for takeaway meals. The staff are super friendly, the atmosphere of the small restaurant space is warm, simple and stylish. The vibe is relaxed and the food is lovely. Thoroughly recommend.

This has to be the best Japanese in Oxford, it was that good on Saturday and with the advise of the young waiter i went back today Wednesday for his recommendation , So Saturday night I was expecting a rush so I booked a Table and good job I did, the Restaurant was busier than i expected, Pleasant staff very welcoming, The Food was stunning, amazing freshness , Flavours, textures, Great value.

Be prepared to book or, as we were, be the first through the door.

Good selection of sushi dishes made freshly while you wait. This modest restaurant has friendly staff, and I often go there for lunch, but it is probably good for dinner too.

The food was great value and well-executed. We enjoyed the pork gyoza dumplings, the vegetable tempura and other dishes. The restaurant is within walking distance of the town centre.

Unassuming cafe style with limited space and menu, but don't let that put you off. Great Black Cod, sashimi and 3 types of cold sake. Decent value, be sure to book a table.

1時過ぎに行ったら満席。帰り際は列が出来ていました。早めの来店をオススメします。

The food at Koto is delicious and the restaurant simple and unpretentious.

Lunch here transported us back to our trips to Japan: everything looks and tastes authentic. Ramen and katsu curry are delicious. And the service is affable and quick.

We visited koto as we walked past randomly. The restaurant was busy even on a Sunday evening. We only had the table for 1.5 hours as it was reserved for a later booking which was no problem. The food arrived promptly and the dumplings were actually amazing.

Went for dinner with a friend here and everything was absolutely delicious. The service is great, really friendly and accommodating staff. Gyoza and sushi were very good, as were the miso cod and steak. Definitely try this little place out - book in advance to make sure you're not disappointed!

Arrived just after midday to a crowded but small restaurant in North Parade. Quickly seated and given menus. Menu offers small selection of sushi, ramen, teriyaki and katsu dishes. All efficiently priced at under £10. Meals arrived promptly and were generous portions. Food was very delicious and fresh. Will want to return here with the kids. Makes for a very pleasant alternative to Itsu and the other chains in town. Japanese family owned and run.

This place is a breath of fresh air for Oxford - known for its complacency in the restaurant department. The dinner is incredible - when I go we usually try to order as much as we can and share as it is all so lovingly made. The agadashi tofu is a MUST as is the black cod with miso. I can't say enough about this place - love it

This is one of my sister's favourite haunts in Oxford so we were excited to visit!

The food was good and I enjoyed interacting with the staff/proprietors who were - from what I could tell - authentically Japanese! It was fun using my limited vocabulary of Japanese words to converse with them here in Oxford, England! My children had two different Japanese curry dishes and I had the ramen. I must say, the flavour of the "chashu" was real - no different from any I would find in Asia. It was a nice counterpoint to all of the sandwiches I had been eating in the previous few days!

2週間ぶりの日本食でホッと美味しいひと時でした。美味しそうに周りのイギリス人？の方々も召し上がられていました。カウンターの方は日本人の料理人でしたが、バックは外国の方だったようです。お刺身盛り合わせ、エビマヨ、焼き鳥、ちゃんちゃん焼き、揚げ出し豆腐、餃子を頼みました。揚げ出し豆腐とお刺身が美味しかった。ワイン一本頼み、合計90ポンドぐらいでした。お昼がお徳そうなのでまた行ってみたいです。

Didn't realise this restaurant existed until found reviews on trip advisor.

Great food with lovely attentive service.

I'm a weekly regular at this cosy, fantastic Japanese restaurant and for good reason; it serves the best tasting, authentic Japanese food in Oxford! I adore sushi and Koto's is absolutely the best I've eaten in England!! Their Ramen and Katsu Curries are a must-have for any lover of Japanese cuisine. Regarding the service, I'm really surprised by the review below as the service always equally matches the high standard of their food. The staff, without exception, are always friendly and willing to help out any way they can! I cannot recommend this place enough.

The staff are horrible, they don't care about the customer or customer service, all they want is your money! The food isn't great either and expensive for what it is. There are other places you could go to instead where you will get better value for money and certainly better customer service.

Piccola gemma che vale una visita. Il menù è sintetico ma la qualità del cibo è alta. L'unica pecca è l'orario di apertura. Conviene prenotare perché ci sono pochi tavoli.

This small place has excellent sushi and very good service but you can smell,it before you arrive - in addition they do noodle soups and some deep frying and on this small street and in this tiny kitchen, it doesn't work. Would be nicer if they just stuck to sushi.

The restaurant is a really quaint and cosy place hidden down a lane and parking can be difficult to find, but if you get the chance while in Oxford, you should definitely give the restaurant a visit. Make a booking beforehand though as there is usually a long wait.

Love this little gem, the service, the food , the wine, the ambience. All fantastic and so worth it. The sushi is so delicious and nothing is too much trouble for the staff

I can thoroughly recommend the sea vegetable salad, vegetable tempura, tofu age-dashi and vegetable gyozas with a sake of your choice - served hot. Staff are a true asset. Very kind, informative and attentive. Gorgeous experience!

Very nice little sushi place. Food very good at a reasonable price. Courtesy assured by a kind staff.

This was my first experience of Japanese food and after a recommendation we headed along. The food was outstanding in flavor, fresh, quick service and well priced. Would definitely go back but I highly recommend that you book as this was our second attempt at getting in. It is situated in a gorgeous lane of boutique artisan shops and the area of Park Town is well worth the visit.

After reading so many positive reviews I ordered a Deliveroo last night from this restaurant, which I still did not know after years in Oxford. I am sorry to say that my experience was not up to the expectations. California roll was good, slightly better than what one generally gets from international chains. Deep fried tofu and its sauce were ok. The total nonsense was the Yakisoba (with mayo?!?!?): perhaps not the best dish to order for delivery, since the noodles were already mushy and glue-like (understandably, but to a certain extent). I persuaded myself to try but after two bites I gave up, and so did my guest-friend: apart from the consistency, they were totally tasteless, to say the least. 25 pounds for such a delivery is rather overpriced, I'm afraid.

Nice and really friendly. Great food and went with recommendations by staff. Small place so book. Cod was amazing.

This is one of our local places. Such a far cry from standardised chain restaurants. We went for lunch, speedy, fresh, tasty and good value. Service very helpful and friendly.

Love this local Japanese restaurant. The Katsu curry is great. Noodles always good too. Sushi not quite as refund as it was when it opened. So convenient and tasty hard not to keep returning!

Delicious Japanese food, a friend and I came here and tried the ramen with secret sauce. It was life-affirmingly good, and we drained the broth. The adjacent table had chicken katsu curry and it looked/smelled fantastic! Will definitely be returning to give that a go. Hot tip: the lunch is MUCH better value than dinner!

I ordered dinner from Koto tonight using Deliveroo. When my order arrived, my chicken katsu didn't come with the sauce. It's a shame because I like their chicken katsu but it's really not the same without the sauce. That wasn't a very good dinner. It wasn't very cheap either.

I had the Kyoto pantai ramen with the secret sauce (charred garlic?). Absolutely wonderful. Excellent broth, good pork, good noodles. And my ramen had a secret sauce added it, so no contest for me. Service also good (and quick). Not sure whether almost ten pounds is reasonable for a bowl of noodles, but then again everything is expensive in Oxford. Worth a visit. Or two.

I have been to Koto several times and would highly recommend it. I have eaten everything on the menu and everything is brilliant. A must stop in Oxford

Met up with friends for lunch. The server was helpful and suggested cucumber rolls for our two year old. The sushi was good and the prices were reasonable. It's a small, casual place.

Visited with friends for dinner who had eaten here before a few times. The place has a nice casual vibe. The staff were friendly and helpful when we had questions about the menu.

We came here for my sisters birthday and hadn't booked. Despite being super busy and about 9 o'clock. They organised a table for us and gave us a wonderful yuzu bellini to celebrate. The food was delicious - we particularly loved the black cod and agadeshi tofu. Outstanding service and food. I will be back!

The service has and always is incredible. We are now regular customers we come so often! It is by far our favourite restaurant in Oxford. The food is amazing and the specials are a nice difference to the menu. At Dinner, I highly recommend the pork gyozas and at lunch the Tokyo Shoyu Ramen with rice noodles.

Found this place on here as was dropping by and we where feeling peckish. We threaded our down a very narrow street which we weren't even sure if we could drive into! At the end of the street we found the restaurant. I would go to the end of street and park on the other road as it's much bigger and more space in the future. You can only park for 30 mins.

My AirBNB was in the area so I happened to come across Koto - very happy I did!! The tan-tan noodles were excellent. The sushi is very high quality and freshly made. Sincerely friendly service and nice atmosphere. Highly recommend!

We stumbled in one night without a reservation and asked for a table for two. They kindly arranged one for us at the bar. The food was delicious and the service was good. We shared some tempura, gyozas and salmon, all of which we loved. We trusted our waiter with the wines and they were paired well with the food.

Visited on May day.4 in party.Sashimi superb.Service poor.Staff mopping floor before We finished eating. Checked bill and horrified to discover we were being charged for two bottles of wine instead of one and four beers instead of two. Beware.

I visited Koto for lunch with my partner, as we had heard that they serve a slow-cooked chicken broth ramen, which we both ordered. The restaurant itself is small but quite cosy on the lovely North Parade Avenue which I find has a great deal of character. The service was friendly and the menu was a decent size. Note that the lunch and dinner menus are different, so things like sushi and sashimi are only available at dinner and ramen only available at lunch - plan ahead if there's something in particular you really want to eat!

The place was busy and bustling. We had booked and lots of people were turned away as they hadn't. The young American waiter showed us to our table and told us about the specials. We ordered a couple of starters - the pork gyoza were really good, very light and ethereal but flavousome with a lovely vinegar dip. The mains were on the small side especially the black cod in miso and I ordered another main for my hungry son. The food was uniformly delicious though and the service exemplary. it is a shame that ramen isn't available in the evening. would definitely go again, perhaps at lunchtime. it isore a lunchtime vibe as it is a small space and quite utilitarian in style.

We have already become regulars at this place. The ramen is our favourite - broth full of flavour and the katsu curry is pretty good. Love the cosy but uncluttered interior - very calm atmosphere, very friendly staff. Definitely worth the money.

At last an authentic Japanese restaurant in North Oxford! We have eaten lunch here several times and supper once. Have to say prefer the lunch menu as the rameem esp the slow cooked pork one is amazing. The sushi is freshly made to order and all very nice. I think if you are used to London standard then it may seem a bit expensive but for the location and the standard of the food (fresh fresh sashimi and home cooked broth for the noodles) you can't get better than this in Oxford. The supper was a bit disappointing as they don't do rameen in the evening and the mains were quite expensive and small in portion. We thought we would need a kebab afterwards!

excellent service, delightful ambience and delicious food. The price was quite typical for high quality Japanese cuisine.

There is a significant difference between the lunch and the dinner menu. The latter is more sophisticated (wonderful steak) but expensive (frankly, almost too expensive given that we're not in Mayfair), whilst lunch is less diverse but better value.

Clean, and simple, Japanese food. Delicious ramen, and the set lunch fried chicken was very tasty. The 10 hour ramen is delicious. Small, and cosy, this place is a welcome addition to North Oxford, and should help to bring some more life to North Parade. The tables are a little close together, but this makes the place buzz rather than cramped. Staff were friendly, and food arrived hot and quickly. Fresh, and well priced rather than cheap, for food of a high standard.

The best way to describe this would be as a 'hole in the wall ramen bar' which would actually be a fantastic thing if it weren't for the pricing that went along with it. Anyone who's spent any kind of time budgeting knows that ramen epitomises thrifty eating, so having to pay essentially £10 for a bowl of the stuff with only a few pieces of meat seems somewhat overpriced for me.

A charming small new restaurant in North Parade, with an excellent menu and attentive staff. Hope it thrives.

Finally, a place in Oxford that makes ramen, and for a reasonable price too! Here, their ramen is made in-house. I have tried the Paitan ramen and their Okinawa ramen. I must highly recommend the Paitan ramen which is a cloudy chicken broth ramen packed full of flavour. The noodles are also the right amount of "al dente", which is very important in ramen noodles! The food arrives quickly - an excellent place for a warming lunch! Although the place is fairly new, it seems there are already many regulars, and their weekend lunch times and dinner times seem very popular!

I went there for lunch with a friend - we shared makis and each had a bowl of ramen. The makis were good - if you like them Western-style (spicy tuna, etc), but not great. The ramen broth is delicious, but the meat is average. I'm not sure whether the noodles are hand-made. In the end, 10 pounds for a good, though average, bowl of ramen seems a bit much.

At last, a Japanese restaurant in North Oxford, hurrah! This place in the accessible North Parade is only about a ten minutes walk from the town centre, but it's much easier to access for parking. The menu is simple but very sound, offering a sensible range of dishes covering most tastes, including vegetarian.

Recently opened. 4 of us had dinner and lunch on 29/11 and 1/12/15. Excellent authentic Japanese food with a menu which totally satisfied us. Some raw fish, cooked meat dishes, delicious ramen and more. Cosy, clean and fresh looking and excellent service staff.