Roketsu

Roketsu brings Kyoto kappo cooking to a quiet stretch of New Quebec Street in Marylebone, behind a dark frontage marked only by a paper lantern and the restaurant's calligraphed name. Kappo is the counter-side tradition in which the chef prepares each course in front of the guest, and Roketsu was built for it: the dining counter is a single slab of 300-year-old hinoki cypress, and the room around it was made in the sukiya style by carpenters from the Kyoto workshop Nakamura Sotoji Komuten, with materials shaped in Japan and assembled here.

The kitchen follows the seasons across a progression of appetisers, sashimi, sushi, grilled and fried dishes, soups and desserts, led by head chef Toshimasa Tanahashi with consulting chef Hideki Hiwatashi. The cellar runs to more than 500 wines alongside a serious sake list, overseen by sommelier Ryosuke Mashio, a senior judge in the sake division of the International Wine Challenge.

Private events are held downstairs. The lower-ground Dining Room seats up to twelve beside a glass-fronted wine cellar and can be taken for exclusive use, while a fully enclosed Private Room suits smaller groups of two to six. Both are made for a considered dinner rather than a loud party, and the whole floor can be arranged around a single table.