Notting Hill hospitality icon Chris D’Sylva (Fish & Meat Shop, Supermarket of Dreams, Michelin-starred Dorian, and Eel Sushi) is back with Nakimushi.
Born out of his early culinary experiments at Supermarket of Dreams - specifically the Japanese bistro Urchin and neon-lit Robin's Ramen - the restaurant fuses both concepts into a multi-story townhouse experience. Helmed by Robin's Ramen head chef Robin Kosuge and ex-Urchin and Dorian chef Yuji Shimokawa Kelly, the spot spans three floors: a ramen bar on the ground level, and hot Japanese cooking anchored by ramen upstairs.
Nakimushi's warm hues from the onset (pictured left), and the duck ramen (right).
DesignMyNight's Review Of Nakimushi In Notting Hill
Need To Know:
- Address: 7 Kensington Mall, W8 4EB
- Area: Notting Hill
- Cuisine: Japanese
Ambience & We Think Perfect For
- Atmosphere: from a voyeuristic peak through crimson-framed window into a clockwork kitchen, to shuffle up a narrow, turret-style staircase, walking into Nakimushi was like entering a well-decorated sauna, if a sauna happened to smell of the freshest fish you’d ever laid nostrils on. And just like a sauna, we were packed in tight. We ate on the second floor, the more formal of the two spaces, which was adorned with framed Japanese illustrations, bottles of wine, and trinkets. Naturally, in a compact space your attention is drawn to storage solutions, a concept that Nakimushi executed efficiently by placing the larder on the top floor, opposite the toilets.
- Perfect for: a cool dinner with your friends or a hearty lunch.
Service & Price
- Service: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Value For Money: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Cost: £151 for two, excluding service charge.
The Green Light and Mai Pen Hai cocktails (pictured left), and the chicken nanban (right).
Menu Highlights
Food: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Hamachi (£9) - a minimal bouquet of thick cuts of fish with a brilliant bite to it. The temperature was perfect - I felt like the Goldilocks of raw fish as it melted in my mouth. There was a great zingy kick from the Yukari ponzu and a mild but welcome saltiness from a sprinkling of nori oil.
- Red prawn and courgette gyoza (£9) - I was thrilled with how generously filled these crispy-bottomed bites were with chunky prawns, and the umeboshi (a tsukemono - meaning something 'preserved' or 'fermented') lent a great contrast
- Chicken nanban (£14) - crispy without too much of a messy crumble, these were savoury flavour bombs topped with a creamy yet subtle lobster tartare and balsamico. They felt moreish and naughty, which is exactly what you want from deep-fried food.
- Chicken ramen (£12) - Hhve you ever slurped a broth so full of flavour that you were convinced you'd found the antidote to the common cold? That's exacty what happened here, and then some. Tender chicken breast chashu was nestled among ribbons of noodles and a pool of sun-kissed yolk, but the real highlight was the silky broth it all swam in. This (chicken paitan) was made by rapidly boiling chicken carcasses, wings, or feet over high heat for many hours, resulting in the most comforting, luxurious liquid that simply sang.
The Hamachi (pictured left), and Nakimushi's winding staircases - the descent into the dining room (right).
- Grilled Iberico pork loin (£29) - as the ramen portions were only half-size, we were advised to order one of the larger mains alongside it. We opted for the Iberico pork with red almond miso - a thick, maroon saucy puddle beside the flame-kissed meat. I wished the pork was drenched in it because it was so nutty and umami-packed. Did we need it? Not really. Did we enjoy it? Absolutely.
- Mugi-cha creme caramel (£6) - you have to be confident to only have one dessert on the menu, and Namikushi did so with good reason. Goodness me. The mugi-cha creme caramel with white peach was a malty pot of perfection that we had to dig deep into to get every layer on our miniature wooden spoons. It was a little oaky, marvellously velvety, and not too sweet.
Drink: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Green Light (£14) - a fun twist on a pisco sour that acted as an absolute wake-up call for the palate. The clever hit of samphire brought a brilliant coastal salinity, while the green Chartreuse and lime lend it an herbaceous, citrusy punch that felt crisp.
- Mai Pen Hai (£12) - clean, tall, and ridiculously refreshing, this highball leant into the dangerous 'could guzzle' zone. It was a cool, fizzy companion that cut right through rich bites, leaving me wanting another sip the second I put the glass down.
- Thrapsathiri Armi (£14) - this white wine from Crete was somewhat mysterious, deeply complex, and full of character - the pour packed a smooth punch with unique depth. I loved how dry it was, and quietly aromatic thanks to the oak-aged drying process combined with the use of 100% Thrapsathiri grapes.
The chicken ramen (pictured left), and the mugi-cha creme caramel (right).
My Overall Experience At Nakimushi
DesignMyNight Review Out Of 5: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I visited Nakimushi a couple of weeks after opening, where it seemed to have hit the ground running. It's not all that surprising, seeing as its a machine run by the Notting Hill Avengers of Japanese cooking. Pleasantly, the bill wasn't eye-watering, and there was a kind of accessibility to its price point, offering exceptional ingredients for good value.
I'm interested to see how it grows, how the downstairs ramen bar fares versus the menu upstairs, and how serving mains alongside the ramen goes. It's not the biggest problem, but it did feel a shame to leave such a gorgeous cut of meat sitting there while we slurped to our hearts' content. One thing's for certain, though: Nakimushi knew how to feed us and sent us home into an inevitable, broth-induced nap.
