Shoku - London

It was a terrible experience when Soku accepted our booking despite being closed for renovations. We had family visiting from Brazil for a birthday celebration and were looking forward to Asian cuisine at Soku. However, upon arrival, we found the restaurant closed and had to settle for a meal at a nearby Mediterranean restaurant. It was disappointing and unacceptable for Soku to not inform us of their closure and still accept our reservation.

I booked this restaurant on Earth and confirmed my reservation, but when we arrived, the place was closed for renovations. I believe OPEN TABLE is more to blame, even though they handled the reservation.

My friend enjoyed their seafood bowl meal and it looked delicious even though it was a large part and she could not manage it all. I had lamb spits because the meat was a bit hard and the part was too big again. I think the meal would have been better with improved food quality and smaller portion sizes. We were the only people eating there on a Friday night. The menu is very good, but something is not right for so few customers.

The service at this restaurant was excellent, with an amazing waitress. The food was also very good, but the downfall was how cold the restaurant was. Despite having portable heating, the broken door meant that every time it was opened, the restaurant returned to being freezing. However, this is likely a temporary issue and overall it is a great restaurant.

Upon arrival, we were seated at the front of the empty restaurant. The room was freezing, we did not take off our coats throughout the duration of the meal, the staff were quick to accommodate however, and provided us with portable heaters by the side of the table. The starters were average. We ordered the pumpkin and sweet potato starter which was meant to come with a Katsu sauce. The sauce wasn't given, and we had to request it. 5 minutes later we had a runny and half cold katsu sauce delivered to the table. Safe to say this wasn't eaten. Usually I wouldn't be so picky, but we were the only customers in there and it seemed more of a lazy decision than a mistake. The duck spring roll was okay. The mains were delicious, the Salmon teriyaki was delightful and was the only thing that has stopped me giving this restaurant a far poorer rating. The music was good, the wine was good and I think with a few tweaks it could be a great spot. Investing in some heating, better staff knowledge and providing what's described on the menu and they'd be on to a winner.