Chotto Matte is right smack in the middle of Soho and has such a cool vibe about it.
“Nikkei” apparently means cuisine of Japanese and Peruvian flavours (very similar to sushisamba) which I found a bit strange at first but it’s growing on me. Chotto Matte does amazing food with fantastic flavour and texture.
- Chicha Morada – non-alcoholic mocktail made from purple corn, cinnamon, pineapple, apple, and lime. Tastes like Big Red bubblegum
- Padron peppers – deep fried green peppers with delicious den miso dressing
- Nikkei gyoza – pork, prawn and cassava dumplings served on aji amarillo and sweet potato puree. Yum.
- Vegetable tempura – light & crispy. Enoki mushroom is my favourite.
- Ebi tempura sushi roll – with tempura prawn and Peruvian chilli
- Stir-fried brown rice with vegetables and soy sauce. Delicious & a good filler.
- Pork belly, beautifully seasoned, with nashi pear and yellow tomato salsa. You can’t go wrong with pork belly!
- Aubergine miso with dried apricot and puffed soba, served with sesame seeds sprinkle. So so so good.
- Salmon yuzu terriyaki. Fresh piece of salmon, beautifully cooked, fantastic dressing.
- Grilled octopus tentacles with Octopus, with yuzu dressing & purple potato. Tender octopus, but I’m not sold about the potato flavour.
- Chicken den miso – perfectly grilled chicken (with crispy skin) served with thin shavings of carrot and daikon, drenched in delicious mayo-like dressing.
The bill: for 9 dishes, 4 bowls of rice, 4 drinks = £150 incl service between 5 of us. Not cheap, but not as expensive as sushisamba (but you don’t get the sushisamba view)
Menu, location, etc: http://www.chotto-matte.com/
