14. December 2014: Restaurant Nobu Old Park Lane
Nobu is a place I wanted to go to for quite a while already but somehow never managed to do so – finally it worked out! In the end I was a bit disappointed to be honest but let’s start at the beginning. I was a bit early (or rather my company was a bit late) so I decided to have a drink at the bar and went for a “Pear & Cinnamon Mojito (Havana Club 3 years rum, fresh lime juice, fresh mint, cinnamon syrup and fresh Pear juice)” (GBP 14.00) which was incredibly sweet but also astonishingly dainty.
Once the party was complete, we were seated and immediately asked by Jason, our waiter, if we wanted some “Edamame” (GBP 5.00) to which we agreed and they were regularly good.
You have the chance to pick a combination of dishes of the menu or to go for the “Omakase” menu, where you can find two versions. One for the Nobu newbie and one for the person who is a bit more experienced with Nobu. As I have dined with Nobu twice before, I decided to go for the latter, the “Omakase – Chef’s Choice” (GBP 100.00).
The first course was a blast – the “sea urchin in Dashi (Japanese cooking stock) sauce with salmon eggs & truffle, sea urchin in olive & rapeseed oil with shiso leaf, red seaweed & radish” was mainly great because I just have never had a sea urchin before. It was a first timer for me and a surprisingly pleasant one as I expected a sea urchin to taste quite gross but it was actually okay.
The second course of the tasting menu was “cured salmon, chili salsa with yam potato, lotus root & pickled cauliflower”. At first the dish looked incredibly simple but the yam potato and the lotus root with the salmon was delicious.
The third course mirrored for me the most typical elements of Nobu – “fresh water eel spring roll, foie gras foam with eel sauce; ceviche with kumquat with apple; 3 pieces of sushi”. The sushi was scrumptious, the spring roll was good – but what was incredibly tasty was the foie grad foam – I think I have never had such a smooth foie gras foam.
The “pan fried sea bass, soy vinegar butter sauce, wasabi mash, crispy soy milk skin & pea shoot” did not exactly match the quality of the previous dishes but was still of a good tastiness.
What followed then was for me the start of the disappointment – the “grilled duck breast, cranberry sauce, sorrel leaf, spicy aubergine with seaweed salad” was just lacking taste. It might be that for duck the same applies as for kobe beef and the layers of fat are the taste carriers but frankly speaking the meat was just not to my gusto.
The “somen noodle soup with Japanese 7 spieces” which followed as the 6th course was surprisingly tasty – or to be more precise: quite pleasantly spicy! However, a noodle soup right before dessert seemed a bit odd to me (but I have never been to Japan, so I actually do not know how it has to be).
The last course, dessert, a “Nobu Mince Pie (nuts, candied orange & lemon peel, Suntory whisky, black sesame, bamboo ash), cranberry sauce with Suntory whisky ice cream” was a surprise in two aspects. The mince pie was really nothing I liked – I actually disliked it. The Suntory Whisky Ice Cream on the other hand was like an accident. When you tried it, it was not really that good but when a few seconds had passed it triggered your taste buds and was really pleasant, so you had to dig in again, knowing that at first you won’t like it.
To sum up the eating experience at Nobu Old Park Lane, the dishes are very good, no question, but I really had expected more from the oh so famous Nobu. I obviously gladly shared this insight with our waiter. However, if you are there to try a couple of dishes and maybe do not go for the Chef’s Choice Omakase menu you might be better off.
A few words to the decoration and the service. The place is quite appealing and welcoming you – probably the perfect place for a first expensive date. The service on the other hand is outstanding. Jason took all the time we needed to finally come to a conclusion what we wanted to eat and explained and explained and explained without ever giving us the feeling that it was annoying him (I would definitely have been annoyed). And whenever we asked what a specific ingredient in the dish was, he found out for us. Anyhow, unfortunately not all waiters do as good a job as Jason does – some just placed the plate in front of you without looking at you or explaining what was served.
The prices are fine for the beverages (sparkling water Belu, GBP 5.00) but honestly GBP 100.00 for the chef’s menu is a bit a stretch. I get that GBP 14.50 per dish are not really that much but for what you get I was kind of not really fine with the price. At least, Nobu also participates in Street Smart (http://www.streetsmart.org.uk; GBP 1.00 per bill goes to the homeless).
Overall, Nobu is a place you have to go to once. I am pretty sure though I will go to another place the next time I’m in London.
Rating:
| Atmosphere: |   |
| Service: | |
| Dishes: | |
| Price-Performance Ratio: |  |
| Overall Rating: | |
Contact Details:
Restaurant Nobu Old Park Lane
Old Park Lane 19a
W1K 1QZ London (UK)
Tel.: +44 20 74 47 47 47
Fax: +44 20 74 47 47 49
E-Mail: london@noburestaurants.com
Homepage: http://www.noburestaurants.com
About the Author: Sven
I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org.
Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City. 
