Opening of the Week: Cubé
What: A new Japanese restaurant and bar in London’s Mayfair has opened on the former site of sushi restaurant Nagomi.
Who: The restaurant is to be run by manager Mayumi Nunn, formerly of Kanada-Ya and Eat Tokyo while bar manager Reo Nomura has worked for Kouzu and Tokimeite. Head chef Osamu Mizuno's CV includes stints at Nobu and Sake no Hana.
The Vibe: The small intimate venue is only 1,000 sq ft and has 18 covers in the ground floor dining restaurant, six covers at the omakase counter and 12 in the lower ground floor bar. Both the bar and restaurant have a simplistic and clean design featuring bespoke wood fittings, in reference to the fact that 60% of Japan is covered by forest.
The Menu: The ground floor dining room offers customers both a traditional menu and a selection of unique Japanese dishes influenced by European ingredients. These include hitsumabushi (grilled eel on rice); taco rice (an Okinawa Island dish inspired by the US military); udon with black olive and truffle pesto; and soft tofu with watercress and truffle. Sushi and omakase menus are also available.
And another thing: For those craving Japanese cocktails the lower-ground Kakurega bar (meaning hideaway) serves seven drinks garnished with home-dried fruits. The bar also has rare examples of sake, Japanese whisky and an Owners Cellar offering low mark ups on extremely rare wines.
4 Blenheim St, Mayfair London, W1S 1LB
