Restaurants

This charming little spot specialises in grilled things on sticks (‘kushi’ is Japanese for skewer). There’s yakitori, naturally, but the skewered offerings go much further than chicken, including various vegetables, fish and meat. Some are skewered and cooked over a charcoal grill, others coated with egg and crisp breadcrumbs and deep-fried. Kushiyaki-ya in Japanese cities cater for drinkers; Kushi-Tei is a more sedate affair, with subtle decor, a calm atmosphere and a modest drinks list, yet it still feels properly ‘Japanese’. Some dishes are more successful than others. Our maguro (tuna) skewer looked and tasted gorgeous, deeply savoury and zigzagged with wasabi mayonnaise. Niko-shiitake, mushroom caps filled with light, juicy spheres of minced chicken flavoured with black sesame seeds, was subtle and delicious, and tori-shoso (succulent pinwheels of chicken and shiso leaf) did credit to the free-range bird. Less successful was a bland ebi-koro (deep-fried shrimp croquette), and dry half-moons of aubergine with miso. Non-skewered food includes a deliciously gummy-textured starter of raw, sliced okra topped with paper-thin shavings of bonito, as well as maki and rice dishes. A great neighbourhood venue that deserves more custom.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009