"Authentic Japanese food at this cheap Camden eatery"

Added Wed 28 Oct 2009 by Leila

Friends of mine who have lived in Japan have long been recommending Asakusa, saying it is the most authentic Japanese restaurant in London. It’s clearly very popular, as on two occasions I was unable to get a table on a weeknight, meaning it’s essential to book.

Asakusa is close to Mornington Crescent station, in the slightly less desirable end of Camden High Street. The restaurant itself is dingy yet charming, walls are filled with posters of Japanese celebrities, there are ornaments and lanterns peppering the dining area, and one feels as if they’ve stepped out of London into a far more exotic land.

Another quirk is that this appears to be one of those restaurants that plays host to illicit affairs and bizarre relationships; I wasn’t able to stop myself from eavesdropping the conversation of an aging record producer and a much younger Polish girl, a young Lady Gaga lookalike with another elderly gentleman, and two very drunk females discussing their sex life, or lack of.

But aside from the peoplewatching the main draw is of course the delicious food. The menu is extensive, with everything from maki rolls, to nigiri sets, tempura, and meat dishes. Despite Japanese food generally being quite healthy we somehow managed to order the stodgiest dishes on the menu: deep fried tempura, breaded oysters with mustard sauce, and eel wrapped in egg, the latter containing very little eel and being mostly an omelette-like texture.

The sushi sets are also very good and very cheap; it’s easy to eat a plentiful meal here without breaking the bank. The usual variety of beers (Asahi, Tiger), sake, and teas are available, as well as Shochu, the Japanese spirit similar to vodka, though less strong. The waitress was clearly horrified when I ordered a glass, “Do you know what it is?” she quizzed me after asking me several times whether I was sure I wanted it. I gather it is more of a man’s drink in Japan then.

To end our meal we ordered the only dessert available, ice cream, which comes in black sesame, chestnut or red bean flavours. All were tasty and the perfect ending to a good value meal (a meal for two comes to around £35). Just don’t drink too much Shochu.