Sushi Waka

taste was absolutely awful and prices were too much high. fish doesn't look and taste fresh. rice was like plastic. meat were just too much oily and doesn't have taste. what's more the chef and his wife were awful. very bossy and kept abusing in japanese.
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mk
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, August 14, 2011

Despite their name, they are a TEMPURA specialist. I was able to hear a constant noise of shimmering oil behind the counter, and that's not what you'd expect in a genuine sushi restaurant.

They told me that they are indeed sushi restaurant BUT as I was grow up in Tokyo (the capital of traditional sushi), I could tell - with some authority - that they are definitely not a sushi restaurant but a tempura specialist, so, I'll start with their tempura.

Burdock tempura was (as the one below also stated) a bit salty but still a great choice (I shall ask them to reduce the seasoning when I order next time), and Kisu (Sillaginidae) tempura was totally delightful. The delicate-looking batter had light and crunchy texture just like any professionally-done tempura should be, and the fish was cooked to perfection. I recommend Kisu tempura with confidence and I shall soon return to try out some more of their tempuras.

OK, now, their sushi. I tried a couple of sushi but (I wouldn't bother to tell you which one) it was completely t-r-a-g-i-c. OMG, I - as a Japanese - was even embarrassed to find a Japanese restaurant serving such poor quality sushi. The worst crime was the consistency of the rice. It was soggy and pressed so hard, it was mashed into pate (ideally each grain should retain its shape and loosely attached to each other with plenty of gap in between). When my sushi arrived, I could tell I've made a mistake, even just by looking at it. Pop it into my mouth, I could tell the rice isn't as fragrant as it should be - I guess they use low-grade rice. The fish was tiny and didn't have much taste. They also slotted in a piece of over-grown cucumber into their sushi roll which didn't add anything but bland, sponge-y & fibre-y texture. As far as sushi concerned, Itsu or YO! serves better stuff.

Sushi and tempura are totally different disciplines and each demands life-long devotion to perfect. What this restaurant is doing is just like a skilled thatcher trying to cut it as a carpenter - and failed spectacularly. I wish they called themselves Tempura Waka instead of sushi.

So, my advice is to go totally pants for tempura and any grilled/cooked stuff but don't bother with their sushi.
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7 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 7
Saturday, February 12, 2011

Sitting in the upstairs dining room is an authentic Japanese experience - maybe not the most comfortable but great fun. We had salmon sashimi (melt in the mouth); burdock tempura (good, if a little salty); rice; miso; black cod (excellent; smaller portion and smaller price than many other places); prawn tempura (quite large).

We only found Sushi Waka because of a bad experience at another nearby Japanese but will definitely go again.
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Lisa - View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Saturday, January 16, 2010

Living only across the road from Sushi Waka, I go there nearly on a weekly basis. It's by far my favourite restaurant in London.

The japanese girls are lovely and I love the elderly japanese sushi chef behind the bar. But the service was crap for once when one of the new waitresses served the noodles 10 minutes before starter and sushi and served the wrong dish later. But that was only once out of maybe thirty times I went there. Overall it was very warm and attentive service, and their distinctive japanese accents made it even more interesting.

The food's always great. The nigiris they do have got the biggest portion of raw fish than anywhere else. Especially the yellow tail and the sea eel ones are massive. The chicken teriyaki's the best I've ever had. Very very tender and the teriyaki sauce is just perfect. Of course there're some dishes they do better and some they do less well but overall I definitely would prefer Sushi Waka to some of others such as Tokyo Diner which is massively overrated.

Well I just love this place. I go there so often all the waitresses know me:) I think Sushi Waka is definitely one of the reasons to live in Camden.
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Jing Tang
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, March 04, 2009