JIDORI: The many culinary delights available at Jidori in London’s Covent Garden. Photo: Courtesy of Jidori

JIDORI
15 Catherine St.
Covent Garden
London WC2B 5JZ, UK
https://www.jidori.co.uk/

By Scott Harrah

LONDON–Looking for something unique to eat between West End shows while visiting London? Jidori in Covent Garden offers a unique twist on Japanese food with which most Americans might be unfamiliar. Yakatori is, as the restaurant menu says, “Japanese drinking food designed to share.”

We stopped by Jidori Covent Garden before a show for a quick bite and were immediately greeted by the cheerful, lovely Amelia. Jidori has another location in Dalston (Northeast London) and the Covent Garden restaurant is located on three floors of a building near all the theatres. It is a sleek spot with tasteful minimalist décor. At 5:30pm, the place seemed a bit empty for the pre-theatre crowd, but our charming hostess Amelia assured us that the place would soon be packed. She said the clientele is rather eclectic and, despite its proximity to Theatreland, Jidori is more of a hip spot for millennials than theatregoers. She was absolutely right about the crowd because, by 6pm, the place was already getting packed with young folks, sipping sake or beer and ordering various plates of exotic Japanese treats. Jidori also has a private karaoke room available for £30 an hour.

We started out with the lovely, crunchy house pickles of various vegetables (£ 5) and “Otsumami” (small plates designed for drinking and sharing). Our first plate was sashimi (featuring salmon, yellowtail and tuna) for £14. The salmon and tuna were particularly fresh and the tuna was the most flavorful, tasting a bit like filet mignon. All three went great with the shino, wasabi and pickled ginger that was served with all the fish.

We also enjoyed the Katsu scotch egg, a deep-fried concoction made of minced chicken and served with a slightly spicy Japanese curry sauce (£6). It’s a new spin on comfort food, Japanese-style. Next, we ate “Gyoza,” (£9), which are light prawn dumplings served with black vinegar.

JIDORI: Tsukune (minced chicken, egg yolk & tare). Photo: Courtesy of Jidori

Next we tried “Kushiyaki” (vegetable and meat skewers grilled over charcoal) and “Yakitori” (corn-fed chicken skewers grilled over charcoal). All the chicken is free range and corn-fed, skewered and cooked on Jidori’s custom-made Japanese grill. Our favorites included “Kamo” (£6.5) which is a duck breast lightly seasoned with onion and orange, as well as “Tsukune” (£5.5), an interesting concoction of rather salty minced chicken, egg yolk and tare (a thick, sweet soy sauce).

The “Tabasaki,” (£4.8) consisted of chicken wings, lemon and togarashi (a Japanese chili pepper). This was a different taste for us, since chicken wings are such a staple of the American diet and we’re more used to spicy buffalo wings served with hot sauce, blue cheese dressing and celery. “Tabasaki” is much lighter than American versions of chicken wings but equally spicy.

To cleanse our palates after nibbling on all these spicy delights, we split a dish of ginger ice cream (£6) with miso caramel and sweet potato crisps, and it was light and fresh, with just the right amount of sweetness.

Jidori is certainly a place for adventurous eaters looking for something out of the ordinary in London. If you’re simply looking for sushi or tempura shrimp, you might be disappointed but keep in mind that real Japanese cuisine is more than raw fish, teriyaki chicken and bowls of noodles. Jidori offers a very light yet delightful meal for anyone wishing to share drinks and Japanese culinary treats with friends or family while visiting London.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published July 3, 2019
Reviewed on June 13, 2019 in London

JIDORI: Ginger ice cream with miso caramel & sweet potato crisps. Photo: Scott Harrah

JIDORI: Full plates available at the Covent Garden hotspot. Photo: Courtesy of Jidori.

JIDORI: Interior shot of the Covent Garden location. The restaurant draws a young crowd anxious to enjoy drinks & otsumami ‘designed for drinking & sharing.’ Photo: Courtesy of Jidori

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