There are several different types of sushi restaurant to choose from in London. There are buzzy bento box-style eateries churning out tuna tiger rolls to feed the capital’s hungry workforce, and then there are underground izakayas playing with flavours and helmed by sushi masters, who, after decades of practice, are highly skilled in the Japanese culinary art. The capital is also home to a number of restaurants that have successfully fused flavours from different continents – take Japanese and Italian, for example. There really is something for everyone but the question is: where to start? Read on our guide to the best sushi in London. 

Taro, across London

Inspired by the Japanese concept of taishu shokudo, meaning an everyday dining room, Taro was founded in 1999 and now, nearly three decades on, there are 10 locations across London. Having recently opened in Crystal Palace – and with other restaurants spanning Balham to Brentwood – the menu ranges from steaming bowls of ramen and udon noodles to beautifully presented sushi, sashimi, and tempura. Menu highlights include ura maki (an inside out sushi roll) with prawn tempura or eel and avocado, and assorted sushi and chirashi platters featuring bluefin tuna, surf clam and squid. Pair with hot and cold sake, Japanese beers, or Taro’s signature cocktail, the lychee martini: vodka, lychee juice, coconut syrup and lime.

Visit tarorestaurants.uk

Clap, Knightsbridge

Following success in Dubai, Riyadh and Beirut, the London outpost of Clap transformed a refurbished tube station into a three-storey culinary destination in Knightsbridge when it threw open its doors in 2024. Here, guests can dine on the omakase offering or pick from an extensive sushi menu spanning platters (we love the sound of the 33-piece Saiko selection, featuring soft shell crab, shrimp and chutoro tempura, and salmon volcano rolls) as well as an array of premium nigiri priced at £13.50 a pop. Elsewhere, signature rolls include wagyu katsu, spicy tuna or the o-toro caviar with truffle shiso salad.

6th and 7th Floor, 12-14 Basil Street, SW3 1AJ, visit claprestaurant.com

Sushisamba, The City and Covent Garden

Famed for its unique blend of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisine, Sushisamba spans three continents and nine locations, but remains a hotspot for Japanese-fusion cuisine in London. Don’t want to take our word for it? A la carte highlights include a plethora of sashimi and nigiri – think yellowtail hamachi, snow crab, freshwater eel and butterfish – as well as tiger maki featuring crab, tiger prawn tempura, wasabi mayo and beetroot yogurt, and the signature negitoro: tuna belly, spring onion, pickled wasabi and shiso. 

Visit sushisamba.com

Kiyoto Sushi, across London

This low-key, pared-back sushi joint has a fiercely loyal local following, with a total of five outposts in West Hampstead, Mill Hill, Cockfosters, Borehamwood and Hatch End. Offering the finest quality sushi, along with some inventive house rolls (plus a number of cooked classics – the black cod is second-to-none), don’t miss the signature dragon roll of prawn tempura and cucumber, wrapped in avocado and topped with tobiko, tempura flakes and dressed with mayonnaise and teriyaki sauce. The rainbow roll, filled with fresh crab and avocado wrapped in salmon, tuna, squid, white fish, yellowtail, mackerel and dusted with tobiko, is also well worth trying. There are also more tempura rolls, gyozas and carpaccios than you can shake a chopstick at. If you’re hosting a party any time soon, Kiyoto also provides custom platters to order.

Visit kiyotosushi.co.uk

Bamboo Mat, Stratford

Images: Rusne Draz

Set on a charming piazza on the former Olympic Park, and boasting Parisian-style al fresco dining, nikkei, or Asian-Peruvian fusion is the specialty here, so expect a parade of delectable small plates, including sea bass ceviche and pork belly bao buns, as well as a selection of nigiri, sashimi and maki rolls. We love the latter, consisting of the Volcano – salmon, sea bass, cucumber and asparagus and avocado – and Mango, featuring romano pepper, mango puree and sriracha sauce. Fancy something with an American twist? Look no further than the crispy mozzarella maki with salmon, mozzarella, spicy egg sauce, crispy onion and tempura.

21-24 Victory Parade, E20 1FS, visit bamboo-mat.co.uk

Zuma, Knightsbridge

A smart and sophisticated twist on the traditional Japanese izakaya, this now-international beast was co-founded by Rainer Becker and Arjun Waney in 2002, and has 20 venues globally, with five seasonal locations. And for good reason. Dishes here are authentic, but not necessarily traditional with bold, intense flavours – think lashings of truffle, miso and yuzu – with an emphasis on impeccable presentation and 30 exclusive sake options curated by a sake sommelier. Must-try dishes include the ise ebi no tempura maki – lobster tempura with avocado and black truffle – and the Arjun's chu toro, featuring prime cuts of tuna, finely diced spring onions with oscietra caviar. If you can’t decide, leave it to the experts by ordering the chef’s selection of nigiri and sashimi. 

5 Raphael Street, SW7 1DL, visit zumarestaurant.com

Bar Des Prés, Mayfair

Bar Des Prés is the first international venture by acclaimed chef Cyril Lignac, a chic Franco-East Asian restaurant on Mayfair’s Albemarle Street. Interiors are gold and glitzy while flavours are clean and original, curated from seasonal produce and created via traditional Japanese and French techniques. Alongside classic offerings such as Scottish salmon sashimi and obsiblue prawn sushi, unique combinations highlight Bar des Prés’ combination of French know-how and Japanese individuality, such as native lobster, wasabi and furikake maki, and crispy prawns and Thai mayonnaise California rolls. Don’t miss the bright and fresh raw dishes too, with our personal favourite being the marinated seabass in yuzu, dry miso and rocoto. 

16 Albemarle Street, W1S 4HW, visit bardespres.com

The Fuji Grill at Beaverbrook Town House, Chelsea

Anyone who has been to Lord Beaverbrook's eponymous sprawling Surrey estate will instantly recognise its signature hues and whimsical interiors at its sister Chelsea townhouse. It's not just the playful palette that has been transferred to SW1, but also its celebrated Japanese restaurant: The Fuji Grill. Dressed in soft shades of green and with an impressive collection of 19th-century woodblock prints depicting the celebrated Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji adorning the walls, the menu is a myriad of Asian-inspired dishes including salted edamame, chicken dumplings, southern fried lobster and Alaskan black cod – as well as an array of delectable sushi.

Having overhauled the menu earlier last year, the restaurant now offers a selection of tapasu dishes – paying homage to the small-plate sharing concept popular in Japan – including bite-sized hand rolls such as red bream and hamachi sashimi and nigiri, as well as temaki of salmon and avocado, unagi with chopped cucumber and spicy tuna with jalapeno and chives.

115-116 Sloane Street, SW1X 9PJ, visit beaverbrooktownhouse.co.uk

The Aubrey, Knightsbridge

One of the three award-winning restaurants in the five-star Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, The Aubrey is the hotel’s fresh take on a classic Japanese izakaya. The restaurant is inspired by Oscar Wilde’s favourite British artist, Aubrey Beardsley, with original artworks adorning the walls and providing inspiration for the cocktail menu. Accessed behind Japanese cloth curtains, The Aubrey has been decorated in a low-lit, ruby hue accented by fringed lampshades, oriental furnishings and wood-panelled booths. 

While sushi isn’t the only culinary fare on the menu, we certainly think it’s one of the best places in London to get your fix. Helmed by Miho Sato – one of the only female sushi masters in the UK – the offering here is playful while remaining respectful to the Japanese art. Expect rolls of aburi scallop tartare with yuzu and cucumber, lobster caviar maki and one of Sato’s personal favourites: snow crab and passionfruit maki. Spoilt for choice? Order the signature platter to discover a personalised pick of the best sushi The Aubrey has to offer.  

 66 Knightsbridge, SW1X 7LA, visit mandarinoriental.com

Sushi Kanesaka, Mayfair

Another relative newcomer on the capital’s dining scene is Sushi Kanesaka, which opened in July 2023 in the opulent surroundings of 45 Park Lane. The first restaurant outside Asia from lauded omakase chef Shinji Kanesaka – the sushi artisan behind Tokyo’s Sushi Kanesaka, which has retained two Michelin stars since 2018 – the Mayfair outpost is an intimate and traditional 13-seater omakase counter housed behind a discreet doorway, perfect for those looking to get away from the hustle and bustle. 

Sushi Kanesaka brings the mastery of edomae sushi in its most traditional style, prepared by eight chefs and then paired by sake sommeliers. The tasting menu here features an array of sushi, such as unagi kabayaki hand rolls, negi toro maki and marinated akami alongside dishes of binchotan grilled Kobe beef, ebifurai of Scottish lobster and Japanese tartar sauce, and Cornish king crab with beluga caviar. 

45 Park Lane, W1K 1PN, visit dorchestercollection.com

Sumi, Notting Hill

Looking for an authentic taste of Japan that won’t break the bank? We recommend you head to Sumi on Westbourne Grove. The relaxed younger sibling of the Michelin-starred Endo at the Rotunda (another great sushi choice for those who have cash to splash), Sumi is named after chef Endo Kazutoshi’s mother and offers a refined, polished menu of Japanese classics served in a casual setting. 

Made using the freshest and finest quality seasonal ingredients, the sushi menu features a selection of nigiri, including lean red tuna, seabass, scallop and salmon roe, alongside a delectable temaki menu. Temaki is a hand-rolled sushi variety and Sumi uses a technique developed by the Kazutoshi family to create a dish consisting of rice, raw fish and vegetables wrapped in a piece of nori seaweed. Pick from diced scallops with shiso flowers and soy, minced fatty tuna with fermented radish and chives, and pickled carrot and mooli radish with avocado and sesame yuzu sauce. Don’t forget to sample from the sake and Japanese whisky list too. 

157 Westbourne Grove, W11 2RS, visit sushisumi.com

Chotto Matte, Soho

Combining Japanese flavours with Peruvian recipes, Chotto Matte is a prime example of fusion restaurants that successfully honour both cuisines well. The Soho sushi-bar-come-steak-restaurant reopened last year following a refurbishment after 10 years of service in the capital and offers an array of nikkei dishes – that’s South American flavours, such as avocado, pomegranate and aji peppers, prepared with Japanese techniques. We love the sato maki – sea bass, salmon tartare, romano pepper all flamed tableside – and the acevichado roll with tuna, prawn tempura, pickled cucumber and ceviche crema.

11-13 Frith Street, W1D 4RB, visit chotto-matte.com

Nobu, across London

For many sushi lovers in the capital, Nobu is their first choice. And luckily, the hotel-restaurant brand boasts two locations in the capital: Portman Square in Marylebone and Mayfair. The latter is the elder sister and most iconic, having established itself as a restaurant on London’s Old Park Lane in 1997 serving authentic Japanese cuisine such as bento boxes, donburi and traditional cold dishes including tuna tataki with tosazu, salmon skin salad and crispy rice with spicy toro. 

The delectable sushi offering is similar across both restaurants, serving signature plates of yellowtail sashimi with thinly sliced jalapeño peppers, tuna tempura roll and matsuhisa shrimp. We’d also recommend sampling the Nobu omakase menu, exclusively available at Old Park Lane, where you can enjoy caviar and avocado nori tacos, sashimi three ways, the Nobu sushi selection, Dover sole red chilli shiso salsa, wagyu hobayaki and finally, the mango and milk chocolate mousse. 

Visit noburestaurants.com

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