Sushi Kamon

A brief rejoinder on London sushi prices:

Two Kobe beef hand rolls at Sushisamba: £56.

A full, ten-course omakase menu at Sushi Kamon: £45.

Yes, this might just be the best value omakase experience in London (only Sushi on Jones can go toe-to-toe with it). You’ll find it tucked in the back of the Arcade Food Hall, where it occupies a tiny 8-seater counter at the back of the vast space.

On the off chance that you’re not familiar with an omakase, it’s a Japanese phrase literally meaning “I’ll leave it to you”. Basically, you put your faith in the hands of the chef to decide what’s best that particular day, and they in turn provide you with course after course of food. It’s a bit like a set menu, only it typically costs north of £100pp, and that’s at the more reasonable places.

Which is what makes Sushi Kamon sooo refreshing.

It’s a collaborative effort from both Yashin sushi (they supply most of the top sushi restaurants in town) and JKS restaurants (who are probably the best restaurant group in the city right now). As parents go, they’re not too shabby. And it shows – from the moment you sit down in front of the counter, you feel like you’re in good hands. Chef Michael Nonato will greet you with a charming smile, offer you a drink, and busily prepare delicious-looking plates of fish taken from a rainbow of perfectly-sliced fillets.

The lineup of dishes changes quite regularly, and although you can see what’s in store for you by peeking at the day’s menu, part of the charm is not knowing quite what to expect. It’s not exactly spoiling things to tell you that there’s going to be a lot of fish: aged tuna rolls with truffle, seabass with ponzu jelly, Nordic salmon with shisho, French seabream with smoked salt & lime, tempura-fried hand rolls loaded with unagi & avocado, and a showstopping cherrywood smoked ‘otoro’ tuna belly roll that almost melts in your mouth. That kind of thing.

Some of the best parts of the whole experience, however, are the little details: the palate cleansing pickled ginger isn’t sliced into thin, paper-like slivers as you’d normally find a sushi place, instead you’ll get thick satisfying wedges to crunch between courses. The sake is served in glasses sitting in little glass boxes, meaning that when it’s poured, it’s literally allowed to overflow. And as you go, Michael will talk you through everything you’re eating, and make sure that things move along at a steady clip. Ten courses is a lot.

In fact, by the end of it, Michael will offer you additional rolls of anything you particularly enjoyed, but you’re more than likely going to be stuffed. Especially if you spring for the new, bumper £75 menu, with high-end ingredients (think lobster, caviar, etc) and more courses.

Or, you could go to Sushisamba.

NOTE: Sushi Kamon is open now. You can book into their omakase experience (7.30pm & 8.30pm, Tue-Sat) and find out more at their website right here. 

Arcade Food Theatre | 101-103 New Oxford Street, WC1A 1DD

Want more like this? Here’s where to get omakase in London…