Review: Sticks ‘n’ Sushi

Sticks ‘n’ Sushi first opened their doors to customers in the city of Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. After successfully running 10 restaurants there, they decided to cross the pond and open their first London restaurant in Wimbledon. Conquering south-west London they opened their second London branch in Covent Garden. Having heard good things about the Asian eaterie with Scandinavian origins, I decided to book a table for two and catch up with an old flatmate.

Sticks ‘n’ Sushi’s specialities come in the form of grilled yakitori sticks of tender meat and sushi made from very fresh raw fish. If you’re like me and reasonably new to world of sushi then Sticks ‘n’ Sushi is the place for you. With a picture book menu, you can’t go wrong when it comes to ordering something with a name you’ve never heard of before because your shown a photo of what it looks like before! 

Alas, we still needed help from our waiter – just to clarify which dishes we couldn’t afford to miss out on! To kick things off, we ordered a cocktail each to support browsing the menu. Two Hotaru‘s please! A rum based drink made with passion fruit and apple. Need I say no more?

The first thing we decided to order was the Ebi Bites (£.6.80) which came recommended by our waiter from the A La Carte menu. A seafood dish made from Tempura shrimp, chilli, coriander and pepper served with a miso aioli and fresh lime. The waiter wasn’t wrong, they were delicious! Juicy and tender fish on the inside, covered in a crispy outer shell. The chilli, herbs and spices gave them a slight kick which was gently cooled down by the aioli. Served on a gorgeous dish, which reminded me of the Finnish tableware brand Iittala, it was beautifully presented.

For our main we decided to order the Table for 2 Sticks ‘n’ Sushi (£46) dish from the Set Menu options. This was made up of Nigiri, Uramaki (inside out sushi rolls), Futomaki (big rolls) and Yakitori (sticks!). Despite it being pictured in the menu all on one plate, the Table for 2 arrived in stages.

First we were presented with the sushi which included two of the following Nigiri – shimp, New York salmon, salmon (basically the same as the New York) and tuna. As well as 6 Uramaki rolls, black Alaska, sparkling tuna, mamma mia’s and two dreamy California’s. As you can tell Sticks ‘n’ Sushi don’t stick to the usual sushi names! But it’s pretty simple to work out whats what especially as the waiter gives you a hand. The sushi dish also included 4 gypsy big rolls.

A dish of edameme beans is also included in the set menu as well as soy sauce, wasabi and ginger. Did you know, the your only supposed to dip the fish into the soy not the rice and the ginger is to be eaten between each sushi as a way of cleansing the palette! Well there you go, learn something new everyday… The wasabi is just there to give everything an extra kick. I’m a wuss when it comes to spice so I usually avoid it.

Next up came the sticks. Glorious yakitori – which I have only become a fan of since I experienced Flesh & Buns‘ grilled chicken yakitori. The term Yakitori is Japanese and stands for any food that’s skewed. We were served 2 grilled chicken breast sticks with a chilli dip, 2 pork meatball sticks and 2 asparagus’ wrapped in prosciutto and dusted with parmesan.

Out of all the sticks and sushi my favourites had to be the mamma mia’s and dreamy California’s rolls. Coated in Tobiko (Japanese fo flying fish roe) which pops in your mouth, the sticky rice and fresh fish was just delicious. Personally I find nigirizushi just a bit boring so I didn’t enjoy those tasters as much. All the sticks were gorgeous, warm, succulent and the flavour of the grill made them taste charcoal-y. Couldn’t recommend them more.

To top things off, the Table for 2 set menu finished with a dish of spicy chicken wings. Dipping in chilli sauce and scattered with chopped spring onions the chicken was tender and spicy.

My dining partner and I really enjoyed our meal at Sticks ‘n’ Sushi, the food was delicious and a real eye opener for us as we were both self-confessed inexperienced sushi eaters. The staff were helpful and service in serving us food was great. The only problem was, by the time we wanted to pay and leave they were super busy which was unfortunate because we had to get the attention of about 3 members of staff before we actually got the bill and then another 3 for a card machine. Nonetheless, if it wasn’t a week night perhaps we’d be less fussed.

Overall it was an enjoyable evening with great company (so sad you’re leaving @cebroms!!)

Details

ADDRESS: 11 Henrietta St, London WC2E 8PY

CONTACT: 020 3141 8810

OPENING TIMES: 12pm-11pm Monday to Saturday and 12pm-10pm on Sunday

WEBSITE: www.sticksnsushi.com

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/sticksnsushiuk

TWITTER: @sticksnsushi_UK