The best restaurants serving Japanese food in Bunhill Islington London

This is going to be an unusual review in that I can't think of another restaurant where I've enjoyed the food very much whilst taking an active dislike to the restaurant interior. The quality of food is all that really matters, right? If so, please read the next paragraph and ignore what follows it! My wife had already visited Tanakatsu several times with her friends. We both had a lunchtime bento box, which was expertly prepared with wonderfully crisp pork katsu, tasty salmon teriyaki on good quality rice, an excellent pumpkin croquette, a small selection of high-class sushi and a fine side salad on which you could drizzle the owner's "mighty dressing", served with miso soup. I really couldn't fault it. Another big tick from me for the modest 7.5% service charge. So what about the internal layout? It's actually quite spacious with plenty of natural light but the internal concrete walls were for me unappealing and the overall decor off-putting. Along two walls are some tightly spaced and rather small tables. The one we were shown to was unpleasantly sticky and our conversation drowned by an exceptionally loud man next to us conducting a job interview in a domineering manner. On the other sides were two long 'shelves' which I suppose was the inspiration for the unusual restaurant name ('tana' = 'shelf'). I can understand the logic - it makes it easier to accommodate solo diners - but surely the point of sitting diners side by side is that there should be something more interesting to look at than a very uninspiring street or concrete wall. Also it leaves so much wasted floorspace in the middle! Anyway if you think these observations petty and unnecessary - just go there and you'll have a really good meal.

Amazing sushi, really friendly staff and reasonably priced. Amazing sushi! Tucked away down a side street. Highly recommended.

The nigiri sushi is fresh and delicious, the wasabi is ground by hand, and the chef's workmanship is top-notch. Watching the chef make it is an artistic enjoyment.

I had the vegan ramen for 18 £ and was quite disappointed - it contained too much peanut butter and sesame and I just felt quite ill and stuffed afterwards, it was also too spicy/ hot for my taste. Overall the atmosphere was very hectic and busy and I felt very rushed to finish my food as soon as possible. You got tap water for free which I thought was nice but I found the ramen not that delicious and the vibes quite off so I wouldn‘t recommend…

Me encontré con la vida hace unos pocos años, simplemente por casualidad (como siempre parece ser el camino con estupendos restaurantes japoneses). Vi que llega y esperamos que con impresionantes cebo. Yo no me di cuenta de que en realidad era abierto hasta un año había pasado! Un amigo me decía acerca de este estupendo lugar japonés y me di cuenta de que había sido desanime por las grandes puertas y ventanas altas vacíos sólidas!

This hidden gem is ideal for casual, nicely priced sushi and other classic Japanese staples. No frills, no extras, just high quality Japanese in a very casual setting. The pieces of nigiri were large and fresh. The teriyaki chicken was well made and tasty. Check out Aburi for a quick, delicious bite!

Great spot for quick lunch! Lovely and fresh food, amazingly nice staff, super efficient! Their loyalty program is great!

We were in the area and saw the restaurant, so went for dinner but were unfortunately disappointed. Ramen - very bad Wings - Tasty (but small portion - only 3 wings) Bao Bun - Very Good Asahi lager - not tasty at all