Food Porn Nation

As supper clubs go, Luiz Hara’s Japanese Supper Club is considered one of the most notorious within London’s underground food scene. The Brazilian born half Japanese ex-investment banker aka The London Foodie, introduces a culinary experience like no other and showcases that the possibilities of Japanese home-style cooking are truly infinite. Luiz turned his back on corporate banking by risking it all to pursue his real passion in food that led him straight to this wonderful endeavour.

Take his training in Tokyo in Japanese cuisine and throw in his Grand Diploma from Le Cordon Bleu Paris. Then consider his custom-built supper club basement kitchen, swanky Islington pad and you have yourself an unorthodox recipe for culinary success. Think of Luiz’s supper club as restaurant quality dishes that can go head to head with London’s best, all in the comfort of his gorgeous home. But be prepared for some serious verbal discourse because you’ll be seated intimately at a long dining communal table with some perfectly good strangers.

All this for the nominal price of £45. Well, what are you waiting for?

Things are off to a whopping good start with the tuna & avocado, shiso flavoured sushi rice & wasabi cream. It’s fresh, delectable and gloriously spectacular with the delicious wasabi cream elegantly drooling to one side. The shiso sushi rice shows us what good sushi rice is really made of. It is cooked to perfection, holds the right amount of stickiness, savouriness and a hint of sweetness. The combination of flavours are so spectacular, it is already the hot favourite of the night.

Japanese risotto with shiitake mushrooms arrives with the bonito flakes fluttering delicately along the surface, only to reveal a delicate sous vide egg that is ready to burst. To taste, the risotto is rich of earthy umami tones, its creamy and smooth with the added benefit of being even more luscious with the yolk spilling into each mouthful of risotto.

Sea bream tartare is another fine example of the quality of produce on offer. The bream was a superb piece of fish, dressed in a lovely combination of lemon, shiso, wasabi and herbs. The tartare together with the julienne apples made for a beautifully light dish that was savoury, sweet and sour. However, the lemon was slightly sour but this did not diminish from the overall excellence of this dish.

The gorgeous miso soup of pork belly, sake-kasu and chunky veggies takes your humble miso soup to delicious new heights. Each mouthful was filled with chunks of pork belly and vegetables showcasing the depth and boldness in flavour. The inclusion of sake-kasu (lees, a by product from sake production) adds another dimension to its flavour profile.

Click here to learn more about sake-kasu.

(Not pictured), a simple course of tempura prawns, mushroom and okra was served. I particularly loved the tempura oyster mushrooms. I could not get enough of the squishy mushroom against the lovely crunchy batter!

The slow cooked Iberian pork cheeks, daikon and foie gras was simply magnificent . These saucy cheeks were spectacularly tender and positively dripping with the most gorgeous sauce. It is lip smackingly unctuous, glossy, sweet and savoury. The daikon is soaked and enriched with all this saucy-ness then it is all topped off with a succulent piece of seared foie gras. It really could not be more magical. Every spoonful simply melts.

Green beans with chikuwa fishcakes & spicy mayonnaise are quite possibly the best beans I’ve had in my life! A bowl of chestnut rice was also served to accompany the main.

A delicious Asian inspired ensemble of banana and nutella gyoza with caramel black sesame ice cream was well executed. The contrast of temperatures of the piping hot gyoza and coolness of the ice cream provided delicious relief to my over active palette. Luiz was right to suggest I do not eat beforehand!

Luiz the ever gracious host, designs a restaurant quality menu that is adventurous, thoughtfully presented and elegantly executed. Consider what’s on offer, and you will be hard pressed to find anything this exceptional for the value, quality, calibre and the experience of this intimate dining setting. The menu is ever changing, so you are urged to come back for more. To recommend that you go would be an understatement. It is absolutely essential! So see you next time?

For more details of Luiz’s Japanese Supper Club click here.

Summary Information:

Food rating: 4.75/5
Value for money: 5/5

Prices: £45 includes canapés, a drink on arrival and 7-course menu. Excludes drinks and service. BYO optional or alcohol can be purchased  from Luiz’s preferred supplier. No corkage.

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