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Goodge Street (Northern)
Tottenham Court Road (Central, Northern)
Warren Street (Northern, Victoria)
Mon, Fri 12:00 - 15:30
Mon, Sat 17:30 - 23:30
Sat-Sun 12:30 - 15:30
Sun 18:00 - 22:30
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This is probably the best Japanese restaurant I've been to in London so far. We came here for a Thursday night dinner and it was packed. We called ahead earlier in the day for a reservation but could only get something around 10:00pm. We walked around Charlotte street for a bit and left our names for a seating by the grill and actually opted for that instead of waiting another 45 minutes. Roka is a robatayaki restaurant (Japanese grill) so it was pretty cool to be seated by the action (kinda like sitting by a sushi bar) . We also ended up sitting beside Jared Leto.
I loved the atmosphere of the place. It was busy, live and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Around the grill was an interesting carved wood table top. It was a little uneven but added to the feel of the meal.
The food was really good too. We had a couple orders of maki, some sashimi, meat from the robatayaki and a few small dishes here and there. It was well made and the fish was fresh. I like the black miso cod, but it wasn't quite as good as Nobu's.
Roka is a high end Japanese chain with two locations in London - one on the west end and another branch in Canary Wharf. Overall it is excellent sushi and Japanese cuisine; however, you'll pay for it. The Canary Wharf location is located on the third floor of an office building overlooking a nice park / square.
The decor is nice - they have a very unusual cut outs in their wood paneling around the restaurant. It has a very modern and hip feel, which is designed to appeal to the Bankers on expense account.
Service is efficient, especially by London standards. The waiters and waitresses come by often to replenish drinks and check in on the table. Food is delivered promptly and with a minimum of fuss.
The food is top notch; although, serving sizes are small. Their blackened cod is particularly good - it comes served marinated in miso and served on top of a banana leaf. The sashimi is good - the fish is definitely fresh. The rolls are not that great - but then I'm spoiled by LA sushi.
Prices are high - aimed at people who wear Rolexes and have expense accounts. Sushi Rolls are typically around GBP 12, the Blackened Cod was about GBP 30.
This is one of the better sushi places I've found in the London area and highly recommended if you're on expense account or have a special occasion.
This used to be my go-to sushi place in London but it's gone a little downhill.
The food is still good but the service was terrible. I came in and had my water bottle in my hand and was told I couldn't walk in with it and was actually stopped and asked to put it in my bag.
The server also never put my order in and when I asked about my hot dish towards the end of my meal I was told they didn't have it and it would take 20 minutes.
The nigiri selection was good and very fresh and I have had great meals here in the past but it is no longer my spot for sushi in London
Make no mistake, this is as good as it gets. While I'm usually in it for the 'best value', I will be upfront and say this is a special occasion, splurge fancy affair, but the quality of the food, service and ambiance seems worth the dough. Or quid, if you will.
We were invited out with some new and old friends here (and it happened to be Valentine's Day so we made this our celebration as well) and everything was incredible...not just for London standards but right up there with the best of SF and NYC too.
We shared a boatload of sushi rolls, sashimi, meat and drinks...more than I can possibly remember, but my favorites included (but are not limited to) the lamb chops dipped in a spicy sauce (tenderoni) the salmon sashimi (like butta), and this insane Wagyu beef roll with truffle shaving (worth a decadent dance). Oh, and my fav dessert--although stuffed, we did not pass up--was this caramel sponge cake thing that I can't describe other than heavenly.
Come here, drop lots of cash, eat lots of amazing sushi and Japanese meat and be happy (until you step back outside into the freezing rain.)
Came in here off the cuff on a cold Monday evening. They seated us on the bar around the kitchen, without having previously made an appointment. Then before we had barely sat down, they were asking for our order, a bit too efficient, I thought as I had barely had
time to read the drinks menu, let alone decide on which course.
The sushi when it arrived was amazing, arriving in a bucket of ice, and which mixed with the sauce just melted in your mouth. So I would definitely give them top marks for the freshness of the food, the presentation and the thought which had gone into creating the dishes. But I found the service a little too intrusive as they came by every 5 min to give the table a wipe, or clean away barely used dishes. Also at the end I found the price overly expensive.
So to sum up, fantastic food, as good as it gets really, but the steep prices and over efficient waiting bring the experience down somewhat. I would say it is not an every day eatery, more of a special occasion place that should definitely be tried once.
Roka - YUM YUM YUM. Definitely one of my favorite resto in London. The Robata grill is super super good. Baby back ribs - perfectly seasoned and cooked and super juicy. The duck breast is decadent and not forgetting the soft shell crab roll. This place is definitely value for money when you compare it to Nobu at the Berkley. Downside is probably the price but this is London.
I suggest skipping dessert and head over to the nearby Charlotte Street Hotel for a glass of Pims.
I had to eat at the London Roka as a promise to the staff at the Roka Akor in Scottsdale AZ, where I had my first Roka experience on vacation in September (reviews of places from my September vacation on its way!). They were curious to know how the 2 restaurants would compare on separate continents.
Both restaurants are dominated by a robata grill in the middle of the restaurant where you can see the chefs at work.
Drum roll..... well I preferred the Roka in Scottsdale though the London venue is also a good place to try Japanese food without breaking the wallet too badly. My gripes with the London venue are that the restaurant is crowded with tables close together and you do feel quite rushed with dishes flying in even though there's not always space on the table for them.
I had the premium tasting menu and again at the London restaurant, you do feel short-changed. In Scottsdale, the sashimi in the premium tasting menu includes top fish like toro whereas the London restaurant served salmon and tuna. Don't get me wrong, what did arrive from the London kitchen tasted great and I would wholly recommend a meal there but in comparison to the Scottsdale restaurant, it just came up a notch short.
The tasting menu allows a variety of dishes to be tried and is probably a good introduction for those new to Japanese food. Presentation is beautiful with the signature Roka trick of presenting the fresh food on huge chunks of ice carved from a block at the bar.
My personal favourite dishes were the scallop skewers - the scallops were huge and sweet and given a kick from the spices. The lamb cutlets with Korean spices were also tender and yummy. An unusual dish I've had at Roka was the kamameshi rice pot, a sort of Japanese risotto with king crab and a kick from wasabi pearls.
So a nice restaurant but Scottsdale wins.
Listed in: London Oriental Oral Delights
I agree with Phil H... the place is trendy...
Roka is one of those fusion sushi places that serves beautifully presented food to beautiful people. If that's what you're looking for, then it's perfect and sometimes that is what I'm looking for. However, I generally go for the hole-in-the-wall sushi place that serves me amazing fish; no deep fried rolls, no cream cheese with my sushi, no silly salads: simple fish, done simply and simply delicious. I know those places in LA and I'm hunting for them in London. I'm determined to find them. In the meantime, Roka gets 4 stars for great quality fish and a beautiful atmosphere - even if it is a scene I wouldn't generally choose for myself.
Absolutely amazing service and superb food! The basement bar staff are wonderful and mix a mighty Mojito!!
In my memories Roka has the place as one of the best Japanese food experiences I have had, during my most romantic dates ever. But don't worry this praise is not going to be too sweetly flavored..the relation ship is over, now go there just for the divine food.
On my unforgettable dates we had this seafood tasting menu for two, that pretty much covered Japanese cuisine from raw fish to a divine deserts. They just kept bringing us different plates of food like art pieces, that was fun and cute to share. I have no idea what the bill was, but I am sure it was a lot.
The place is cosy with contemporary interior and with a big open grill on the first floor. The food is amazing, not just sushi and sashimi but also roka and rokata, and other Japanese modern dishes with names I have never heard of.
Because the word has spread around you need a table reservation during the weekends.
Great place!! They use such lovely fresh ingredients, no sushi dish will disappoint you, in fact the tasting menu is so good that the first couple of times I was there I had that rather than choosing from the complete menu .The atmosphere is buzzing, the place is airy and vibrant. Service is excellent, which is to be expected. Keep in mind that it could be a bit on the pricey side. If you want to eat at the counter rather than at a table you wont have to book in advance on weekdays, but on w/e this place is crazy and gets packed even in the early hours for dinner. There's a bar downstairs where you can also eat and is a bit less noisy, and in my opinion it gives you a bit more privacy. I prefer the top floor. Definitely worth a visit!
I don't know. Maybe I'm spoiled by the amazing Japanese food in San Francisco but I thought Roka was a bit too trendy for it's own good. Our food was good but overpriced for what we received while service was friendly but amateurish.
If you've got a wad of cash burning a hole in your pocket and want to hang out with the pretty people, Roka is your place. If you want great food and reasonable prices I'd suggest you look elsewhere.
Listed in: London Calling!
Roka does real special food. It's a fantastic restaurant doing modern, exciting and brilliantly tasty Japanese food. The main bit of the gaff on street level is open, casual with a little dash of Swedish minimalism and centred around the big robata grill where most of the fish and meat gets a roasting, if you're not eating it raw obviously. The menu is varied and as with all these sorts of restaurants best eaten shared with a group of people - the whole place has got a social vibe. For a little bit more romance ask to sit downstairs in the shochu lounge where the feel is totally different, red and black, soft sofas, big cocktail bar and pretty much the same awesome food as upstairs.
Roka has won loads of awards which is cool but in sometimes the place itself can seem overrated or hyped by the media. Not so here, this is a quality dining experience, great for mates packing a good wallet, your parents, your work do and maybe a date you want to impress with a bit of class food and pre 'who knows what' atmosphere.
I do love coming here when I am in London, especially if I am staying close by. What I love most is the robata grill and the grilled garlic asparagus, Japanese eggplant and shitake mushrooms. Gotta love them. The sushi I've had has been decent.
I once sat next to a renowned chef who was being wined and dined by the management and he seemed to be having food I had never seen there. It was both impressive and humorous.
I love the exotic fruit plate; it is absolutely amazing!
Came here on a Friday night for dinner with a friend visiting from NY. We didn't have reservations but it was only a 5 minute wait until we got seated at the wooden counter with full view of the robata grill and the chefs doing their thing.
The decor is an eclectic mix of modern and trendy with a little dash of old fashioned thrown in for fun. First, let's just make sure you know what you are coming here for. This place does not serve your standard genuine Japanese cuisine. The food is fusion but done very well and simple. You won't find any sushi rolls or the like but what they do offer its very good. I remember the baby back ribs distinctly and it was very good. The total came out around £100 for the tree of us and we were satisfied walking away. It's not a place I'll find myself in often but I do recommend it if you are looking for something different done with Japanese food and leaving with a smile on your face.
Restaurant is in a great location among the many great restaurants on Charlotte street.
Wow, this place is painfully expensive. I had a great meal here and the place has a very trendy vibe but I was just so turned off by the exorbitant prices that I don't think I'll go back again. But, to be fair, this was one of the first restaurants I tried after moving here from NYC last year and things in London are just much more expensive. Now that I've (almost) stopped mentally converting all prices to dollars I enjoy eating out much more so maybe it's time to give this place another shot.
Fantastic! Go for the Black Cod and the evening will be a success!
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