see sushi, paddington - review

Walk into a restaurant in Japan and prepare to face the full force of an ‘IRASSHAIMASE!’ greeting, often yelled with enough terrifying enthusiasm to shorten life expectancy by at least a few hours, so I’m told. Meaning ‘welcome!’ or ‘come on in!’, it is the same greeting you’ll find emblazoned above the counter at the Japanese fusion restaurant SeeSushi situated at the waterside of Paddington Basin, the tranquil body of water behind the station leading to Regents Canal.

When it comes to eating out, along with themed bars and hygiene ratings of three or less, restaurants with the word ‘fusion’ on the homepage are something I actively avoid. My immediate assumption is a Frankenstein mash-up that neither fills a gap in the market nor appeals to diners – I specifically recall the uncomfortable viewing of misguided candidates from the most recent series of The Apprentice conjuring a nightmarish ready-meal combining Caribbean chicken and Thai noodles. Bleugh.

'Fusion' at SeeSushi is thankfully not about two parts of the world crashing on one plate. What it reveals is a kitchen able to produce select dishes from Japan’s neighbouring countries - think Thai and Malaysian inspired noodles and curries. But I was there for the Japanese food - it’s in my top three favourite cuisines and it’s what they do particularly well.

Fresh, crunchy and subtly sweet chuka wakame seaweed salad was delivered alongside a plate of spinach ohitashi - leaves blanched, steeped in dashi, shaped into balls and served with a sesame sauce. Salmon carpaccio and a ponzu dressing met on the plate in holy matrimony along with refreshing, crisp daikon and beetroot for texture - tart and earthy in several sublime mouthfuls.

A riot of colour and seafood on a 22-piece maki platter took up a large portion of both table surface area and stomach capacity - at least half made for a really rather good doggy bag and lunch the following day.

There were dragon rolls of tempura prawn, grilled eel and spring onions with avocado; spicy maguro of tuna, avocado, cucumber and spring onion (and with a kick); white tiger with tempura prawn, cucumber, spring onions topped with seabass and tobikko. Small piles of orange salmon roe skillfully perched atop nigiri rice looked like miniature glistening baubles, fat and rich with oil, popping in the mouth.

Tonkatsu donburi saw breaded pork in a bowl with rice, a runny egg and all manner of julienned crisp vegetables and leaves and whilst good, was slightly lacking against the flavours from the rest of the dishes. But the accompanying miso was as life-affirming as expected. Then there was the black miso cod - flesh breaking away in meaty chunks at the mere mention of cutlery, savoury and slightly sweet, succulent and really very enjoyable.

All manner of desserts were involved in the proceedings: banana fritters with crispy shells and gooey middles; chocolate and chilli (cold with heat is always a winner), green tea and black sesame ice cream; gummy mochi balls; and a very good pear and almond tart with a crisp base. Drinks came in the form of plum wine tasting like alcoholic Vimto (the perfect drink?), warm and strong sake, and quality flowering tea.

Frequenters of London’s Chinatown won’t have failed to notice the large SeeWoo supermarket on Lisle Street stocking all manner of exotic edibles from the far east. The observant may have also spotted that the supermarket and SeeSushi are part of the umbrella SeeWoo group. No doubt some of the same suppliers stock both, meaning the stuff you would cook with at home can also be found in the restaurant kitchen - a good thing.

SeeSushi is a very worthy venue to appease the need for Japanese in West London - a wonderful meal was had.

Liked lots: range of options, idyllic location, presentation, outdoor seating by the water for the summer, salmon carpaccio, black miso cod, seaweed salad, great lighting for photography.
Liked less: tonkatsu donburi
Good for: quality Japanese food made with skill, large groups, intimate meals

My rating: 4/5

Find the menu on Zomato

Afiyet olsun.

Note: I was invited as a guest to review this restaurant.

 

makiyaki, south wimbledon - review

sushi and sashimi

As I’ve harped on several times before (of which you are all duly sick of), I have a regular weekly column on the website of my local newspaper, Food Bites with yours truly for Your Local Guardian. The other week I submitted my entry as usual to a lady who works there. She takes my articles, portions them up into more digestible parts (long paragraphs are not aesthetically pleasing in narrow columns) and publishes them on the site. She of course also reads through the whole thing to, I assume, check I haven’t misspelt, cursed or offended any powerful figures. The submission that particular week was ‘the 10 most hated foods of the nation’ and her response to entry number six reflected my own, ‘How on earth did sushi get on this list? People are mad.’ Yes, yes they are. Another individual after my own heart - rejoice.

She went on to elaborate, ‘Being long-term sushi fans, my husband and I visited Japan a few years ago in search of (supposedly) the best sushi fresh from Tsukiji Fish Market. But we actually discovered the best sushi we’ve ever had is from Makiyaki in South Wimbledon! I defy anyone to try the ‘Ocean’, ‘Lion King’ or ‘Crispy’ rolls and not become addicted’.

A quick fumble on the keyboard and it turns out Makiyaki is just a 20 minute stroll from my house. Hard to resist a meander culminating in sushi on a balmy evening after an acclaim like that, especially with a menu item named after the best Disney movie ever made.

gyoza dumplings

Makiyaki is situated on a busy Merton Road a mere five minute walk from South Wimbledon station on the Northern Line, positioned next to a set of billboards. Step inside and you’ll be greeted with pleasant interiors, smiling staff and a sushi chef dressed in traditional Japanese garments behind the counter; no doubt to delight the clientèle hoping to experience something close to an authentic Japanese experience, whatever that may be. I like to think in restaurants in Japan, belted samurai swords are whipped from holders at the call of an order and in a blur of metal and kimono silk, fresh fish is portioned up with exacting precision. That would be so cool..

We started with chicken yakitori skewers that are boiled and coated in a sweetened and thickened soy sauce ready for the grill. These were chewy and tasty and perfect to whet our appetites. Gyoza dumplings were served as six and crunchy from the deep fried treatment, containing a filling of minced pork and chives. The salmon and avocado salad was quite simple in its content - cubes of raw salmon, iceberg lettuce, avocado and topped with a creamy dressing with a hint of wasabi heat. It wasn’t particularly sensational and on my next visit I’ll likely skip this for an extra sushi roll instead.

chicken yakitori

salmon and avocado salad

And onto the maki (sushi rolls). There’s a long list available to choose from, with such creative names as ‘scallop volcano’, ‘spider’, ‘rock ‘n roll’ and ‘999’, the latter an incarnation with the word ‘spicy’ present twice in its short menu description and so its name perhaps an indication of the dialling action required after consumption. We of course selected Lion King, a ‘California roll with salmon, wrapped and baked’. What we were presented with on an unfurled piece of tin foil was hot cooked salmon, wrapped in soft rice that had absorbed the ambrosial slightly sweet and spicy sauce it was doused in, topped with roe and something else we couldn’t quite decipher (or at least bring ourselves to accept our initial analysis of).

‘It’s cheese’ said Matt. ‘It’s been topped with cheese that's melted during baking’. I was quite adamant there was no way this topping could be one of cheese. It did look a lot like cheese, I’ll grant him that. But cheese and fish is considered by some a culinary cardinal sin, surely and especially when it comes to Japanese cuisine (noted for their lack of dairy) and sushi? I had to enquire and guess what, it was cheese. And it was all the more excellent for it. Luscious and savoury and a joy to eat - the recommendation was spot on.

the exceptional 'Lion King'

We moved onto a sushi and sashimi platter, the colour from the bright and firm flesh rendering the plate a picture to look at. Spanking fresh fish is what it is, and the salmon, tuna and mackerel were all a pleasure to devour, particularly their textures; they were so firm they were heading towards crunchy. Accompanied by shredded daikon radish for additional texture and with the ubiquitous eye-watering hit of wasabi and seasoned with soy, it was a fantastic plate of food.

sashimi

Great service was fully exercised with a beautiful young Japanese girl tending to our needs, pouring and topping up our green tea. Is it the best sushi I’ve ever tasted? It’s certainly very good. Although I am yet to try sushi within Japan itself (I’m fortunate enough to have a trip booked in next year which will soon see to that). The huge variety of maki rolls on offer and the pleasure derived from the first and only one we have so far sampled is enough to entice us back repeatedly to work our way through the list, as I’m sure is the case with other customers. It also offers something unique to the restaurant, helping it to stand out from other quality sushi establishments. And considering it’s so close to my home, it’s now down as a solid entry on my ‘local favourites’. Without a doubt worth a jaunt down the Northern Line.

Liked lots - maki rolls, chef attire, service, value
Liked less - salad
Good for - casual dining, regulars, fresh fish, regular visits to work through the huge maki offering, venturing to Wimbledon for something other than tennis

This review can also be found on the Your Local Guardian website.

Afiyet olsun.