Jugemu

Jugemu is one of the most authentic Japanese restaurants that I have been to in London, it is a cozy and intimate restaurant where you sit close to the chef, watching his craft, and feels like an izakaya in Japan. We ordered a few small dishes and the Omakase sashimi which was definitely the stand-out item. There was a kind of fish that I did not recognize, but nevertheless, the quality and taste of the sashimi and the small dishes were excellent. However, the portion size is relatively small, the ox-tongue special we ordered only had a few small slices. Now to the service which really confused me. The waitresses were friendly and had good attitudes. However, we were informed that we had to leave by 8 pm, but we had a reservation only from 7 pm? 30 minutes into our meal, we were still hungry due to small portion sizes, so we decided to order a few handrolls. The waitresses told us that the chef will not have enough time to make the handrolls which confused me further, how is it that 30 minutes were not enough to make 2 handrolls and why would they not take our food orders after 30 minutes of sitting down. What a shame, this could be one of my favorite Japanese restaurants in London, but I cannot recommend it due to the strange/rude service. The chef really should re-evaluate how to treat his customers because the food is fantastic!

The food is authentic but it’s really not wow, especially vs. the price…The restaurant ambiance is cool but the chef is rather cold despite we are sitting next to him at the counter, didn’t bother to engage any conversation with us we speak Japanese. Finally on the nigiri sushi, the fish is fresh nothing spectacular but what surprise me is not even ginger or small rolls are supplied in the dish. So no I will not come back again.

Food is out of this world. The ambience is fantastic - I thought I was in Japan after having 2 Kirins. You are missing out if you haven’t been here. We got 5 pieces of omakase and some other small dishes and we absolutely love every single dish. Remember, this place is run by authentic Japanese people so it is as Japanese as you can get, including its service.

I feel like I found a real gem here in London!! This little place with a few tables and a few seats at the counter takes you back to Japan, when at night you were wandering in those little streets searching for a place to sit and eat. From the atmosphere to the staff, from the food to the utensils see picture, everything was perfect. The fish freshness was great we had Hamachi and Suzuki, as well as for Mentaiko. I also had Ginko or Ginnan for the first time and it was delicious. We drank Atsukan hot sake and the pot where this was served was very elegant even my japanese friends had never seen it before. I will never compliment this place enough and I can't wait to come back and become a regular customer! I just want to point out that it is indeed expensive, but bear in mind that you are pauing not only for the food but also for the service friendly stuff and high quality things and the ambient. Taking in consideration all this, I am more than willing to pay a high price such the one we paid 60 pounds each. Last thing I want to let you know is that I did not experience any bad vibe like someone in the previous comments mentioned it might be due to the fact that I speak Japanese, but who knows. So, if you are a person who is willing to spend good money for a great meal you should definetly try this place out!

I went to this gorgeous restaurant for 3 times. Every time I feel they are changing the way of serving the foods the omakase, that is very impressive. It has a great chief who is paying attention to everyone on the seat though we have 16+people here. I can always have my hand roll immediately after my meals. The foods are so good and traditional here! I really appreciate it.

It’s like walking into a Kill Bill scene in Kyoto with such a nice owner/chef delivering delicious Omakase experience with good sake and great a la carte dishes!

Be careful, they have MINIMUM FOOD ONLY SPENDING of 30 pounds. Tbh, you don’t want to try 30 pounds of mediocrity. Serving is soooooo slow and the Japanese omelette tastes exceptionally fishy. it’s a shame that this restaurant USED TO BE good.

Had a great night here on Wednesday the 28th of December. The staff were very pleasant and welcoming and the food was amazing. I’d never been to a traditional Japanese restaurant before and I’m so glad that I went here for my first experience. The food portions are small but delicious. You can just keep selecting different dishes until you’re full. The hot Sake went down well too. And at the end of the night the busy chef gave us a happy goodbye. 100% returning

Understated Japanese restaurant situated in a little Soho street in London, once you enter the discreet door you are in a nice and cozy space with a sushi bar to the right and a few little tables. The service was decent, the food was excellent, served in a variety of traditional rough Japanese crockery, it did feel you could be anywhere in Japan.

They ran out of food half way through dinner. We were told we couldn’t order any more sushi or rolls but they kept seating more customers. They were also very "precious" with their soy sauce - when we asked for more they literally gave us 10 drops. Needless to say - I do not recommend. The prices are pretty steep, the owner was pretty rude too. "Authentic" should not be an excuse for poor service.