Maki Yaki

This is my third trip to Maki Yaki in South Wimbledon since moving to London. I would honestly go a lot more often if I found myself in the Wimbledon area more frequently.

Where: 149 Merton Road (Near South Wimbledon tube)

The Scene: Dinner with a girlfriend on Friday night

Delight: Baked sushi and reasonably priced beer

Disappointment: This time, having to sit next to the door (brrrr...)

Don't let the location fool you (across from a service station), Maki Yaki is truly one of the best sushi places I have been to in my life. I absolutely love their baked sushi. The heated fish and avocado just melt in your mouth for a truly unbelievable eating experience. The sushi is very reasonably priced at £7 - £9 per roll. Miso soup is included with your order so between miso soup, one sushi roll and a few beers (£2.70/bottle) you can feel full and easily spend under £15.

All the food is extremely fresh and the staff very pleasant. On previous visits I have had the sashimi which was excellent.

Tonight, my friend and I didn't have a reservation, but thankfully there was one table for two left! I ordered the baked California roll and my friend the 'crunch' roll which is your typical tempura roll. This visit was more about catching up with my girlfriend rather than experimenting with lots of food. But should you try Maki Yaki I would recommend these:

Ocean roll (baked)

Lion King roll (baked)

999 roll (hot & spicy)

Tuna & garlic salad

Any of the maki rolls

I've also heard that their tempura ice cream (is that authentic Japanese?) and green tea ice cream are very good, but I have yet to try those.

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Combing the Strand

I've been walking the Strand everyday for nearly 5 months now, so you would think I would know if there are any good places to grab a bite for lunch. I'll have to start taking notice of what I walk past everyday. I was a bit worried when I set off to find a place for lunch because the Strand can be so touristy (read: expensive) but I was able to find a little jem: Brunel Sandwich Shop.

Where: 211 Strand

The Scene: Freshly made sandwiches in a tiny little shop

Delight: Good sandwich and fast and friendly service

Disappointment: Not very unique sandwiches

Brunel was absolutely packed when I stopped in for lunch the other day. The place is tiny, so it's not that hard to fill but I took the massive line outside to mean it's probably worth a try. I ordered a tuna sandwich on wheat bread with all the toppings (which included only lettuce, tomato and cucumber). The sandwich strangely came with butter on it. I had the option to not have butter but everyone in line in front of me was doing it so I figured I should give it a try, just in case it was really amazing. Adding butter to a tuna sandwich, I discovered adds about billion grams of fat and not much else.

The sandwich I got tasted great and the service was so efficient, I was in and out in no time. I was a little disappointed that they didn't do more interesting sandwiches. They didn't offer a variety of sauces or veggies which sort of made me feel like I could have easily made the exact same sandwich at home for far less money. But I'm definitely going to go again. This time to try the coronation chicken sandwich.

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New Year. New Resolutions.

Yes, it's been a million years. I haven't gotten off to a very good start with this blog. But, one of my new year's resolutions is to visit as many new coffee shops, cafes and basically dine out as much as possible for lunch near my headquarters: Covent Garden. This will not be difficult. And while I didn't resolve to update my blog more often, I am going to try.

My first stop was Samurai Sushi a chain sushi & Japanese food place near Holborn station.

Where: 116 High Holborn (across from Holborn station)

The Scene: Quick dine in lunch

Delight: Individually wrapped sushi for buffet style eating

Disappointment: It's a chain that makes chain quality sushi

This place is your typical try and please everyone fast food restaurant. The hot food looked greasy and unappetizing. The refrigerated section was filled with the traditional bento boxes, sushi and sashimi sets and individual items.

From the individually wrapped section I got:
Thai Crab Roll
Duck Roll Maki

These were all average. I wasn't convinced they were fresh but they tasted alright. For takeout in a pinch I'd go back, but I doubt you'll ever hear me blog about this one again.

I walked into the Japan Center Food Ltd on Lower Regent Street about a week ago and decided I must try their sushi. It definitely looks fresh.

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