Sake No Hana

It’s taken some time, but Japanese eatery, Sake No Hana (‘flower of saké) has finally blossomed. Chef Daisuke Hayashi (formerly of Tokyo’s globally renowned Kikunoi) has licked the menu into shape, & the whole experience has started to make sense. The once-criticised escalator to the first-floor restaurant is now deemed ‘swanky’ & ‘exciting’, while the wood-clad design (relieved of its unpopular tatami tables) strikes readers as ‘comfortable, intimate & not remotely pretentious’. The menu is split into sections – charcoal grill, soups & salads, kamameshi (iron-pot rice dishes) & so on, plus dazzling sushi, sashimi & a stellar saké list. Among the temptations on offer are mango & soft-shell crab maki, robata-grilled Alaskan crab with ponzu butter, roasted duck with miso paste, & Ibérico pork with ichimi pepper sauce. For yakitori & cocktails, try the street-level bar.