We do like our Japanese food - and our favourite restaurant in Soho is Ten Ten Tei. We find ourselves in this area a lot (get your minds out of the gutter!) as it’s close to Chinatown and Foyles and the Japan Centre in Piccadilly Circus, all our regular haunts. On Saturday, we went there for dinner to celebrate a little something a little early. I’ve never been there for dinner, always going for lunch and ordering off the lunch menu, and so this was my first time ordering a la carte. We had:
One sushi dinner…
…which came with miso soup, agedashi tofu, teriyaki chicken,…
…and tempura - both vegetable and prawn.
We also split an order of gyoza,…
…pork and potato croquettes, …
…and nasu dengaku (deep fried aubergine with miso paste).
The gyoza were alright - nice thin skins but not a great filling. We loved the nasu dengaku, which we’d never had before - this was half an deep fried aubergine absolutely covered with slightly sweetened miso paste. I was going to order more food but that aubergine really did us in; it was very rich with all that oil and saltiness and perhaps I should have ordered some extra rice to go with it. The sushi was all extremely fresh but they were a little heavy handed with the wasabi underneath the fish. The meal came to £30 altogther and we were both stuffed.
Overall, the food here is extremely good and I still have yet to try their ramen. Come at lunch time for the best prices.
Ten Ten Tei
56 Brewer Street
London W1F 9TJ
Tue, 3 Jul, 2007 at 16:24
I like Ten Ten Tei too for lunch. I really like this salmon dish they have - think it was a seasonal special… o-den…nasu dengaku…spinach goma-ae… But I think I like Japan Centre more now because their ingredients are good quality and they have lovely brown rice.
Tue, 3 Jul, 2007 at 19:17
I love Ten Ten Tei, but I’ve never been there for lunch- do they have special sets?
I love their nabemono… it was such a treat during the winter!
Wed, 4 Jul, 2007 at 10:34
Tommy: I’ve only been once to the Japan Centre for lunch but it was a while ago and I think the management has changed since then. I’ll have to make a point to eat there again - I do like the rice bowls and sushi from downstairs though!
supercharz: Yes, they have lunch sets on the first page of their menu. I happened to be in the area yesterday and had ramen off the a la carte - it’s huge! Luckily, I didn’t have the ramen set lunch as it also included rice and gyoza! I’ll have photos up soon!
Thu, 5 Jul, 2007 at 13:24
Hi fellow London food blogger! Haven’t been to Ten Ten Tei but it’s on my list. I really enjoy the Japan Centre though and go there quite often. Nice blog
Thu, 5 Jul, 2007 at 18:17
Hi eatlikeagirl! Thanks! So another vote for the Japan Centre!
Fri, 6 Jul, 2007 at 14:54
Absolutely! Couldn’t recommend it enough.