Restaurants

Aussie restaurant whiz, Will Ricker, opened this Notting Hill celebrity magnet in 2001. Minimalist and mirror-edged, with atmospheric brown slatted walls, it’s a warm, dark and cosy space, full of likely lads with Hugh Grant hair and blondes with designer sunglasses perched on their heads. At night, Perrier Jouët ice buckets cling to table-tops covered with stylish plates and bowls of edamame, tempura and futomaki rolls. There is more than a passing nod to Nobu in a menu that includes both rock shrimp tempura and black cod in miso, both of which seem to pop up on every table. Fat prawn and chive dumplings were well-made but overly sticky, while a salad of duck, watermelon and cashew nut felt wet and lacked punch. Far better were the refreshing tuna tartare (dramatically presented on iced seaweed and topped with wasabi flying fish roe) and a platter of perfectly seared rare beef paired with delectable soy-cooked aubergine. Service can be a bit scatty, as evidenced by one waiter who described our sauvignon blanc as ‘crispy’.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2008