The beautiful Nepalese staff at Katsuma Premium Japanese is the epitome of professionalism and hospitality. From the 1st moment I walked through the door, I was greeted with warm smiles and genuine enthusiasm :) Katsuma's menu offers an exquisite selection of traditional Japanese dishes, prepared with the utmost precision and using only the freshest ingredients. Each bite was a revelation of flavors and textures, showcasing the culinary expertise of the talented chefs. I wholeheartedly recommend Katsuma to anyone who appreciates the art of Japanese cuisine and desires a culinary adventure.

[SHORT VERSION] One of the best Japanese food we’ve had in London. Prices were MORE than reasonable and the portions are big. You should eat here. [LONG VERSION] The Food: We first had the Yuzu Yellowtail Tiradito. The first mouthful me and my partner had, we looked at each other and said, this sort of flavours could be easily served in fine dining restaurants. Very complex sweet, sour, and a small beautiful hint of spiciness to it and then the yellowtail tasted so fresh. Not one bit of slimy/fishy smell or flavour to it. We then had the mixed tempura. There was no usual dipping sauce and we thought it was a bit sad, but when we had our first bite, it was so crunchy and tasty that too much sauce would ruin it. You could really taste the freshness of the prawn. My partner and I think that proper japanese chefs pay attention to detail, so we check how they prepare their food, and they delivered. The tails of the prawns were completely clean with no black marks at all and the vegetables were so fresh too. We also had the pork katsu curry, which had the entire bowl covered with the pork cutlet and a really powerful japanese curry sauce(very flavourful)[no photo as someone took a better one that does justice to it]. The Chef and the Place: To be honest, I found out about this restaurant passing by it early morning(it was closed) on our to the bus stop, and I checked the reviews(high). I thought we would drop by later that night. They said that they don’t do reservations as it is really a small place(mainly takeaways), with bar like setting(stools lined up along the window and along where the chef prepares sushi) and 1 small table on the side. We went in later for dinner and were surprised that there wasn’t a single Japanese staff in the place, I even looked outside to check if we were in the right place. So we’re like, ok let’s just order, we’re here already and as soon as we tasted the food, we loved it. We talked to this Sri Lankan chef and asked how the hell his food tasted this good and we all had a good laugh. He’s been in the Japanese Fine dining field for 25 years and he wanted to start his own little restaurant serving cheap but high quality food. We spent 2 hours talking about Japanese food, and how they store, prepare, and present their food. They even showed us that they use only the highest quality ingredients all the way down to the salt they use for the sushi. These guys are lovely human beings and they are also highly skilled in what they do and they need the recognition. Thank you for the lovely meal. It was a pleasure meeting you guys. P.S. Thanks for the special off-menu aburi salmon!