THE BEST NEWCOMER THAT’S HERE TO STAY!
KUSHI-YA CANNON COURT
IT would be easy to miss Kushi-ya. It’s not one of those restaurants that screams “look at us”.
Hidden down Nottingham city centre alleyway Cannon Court, off Long Row, it’s very central, yet out of sight.
Only an A-board directs visitors down the narrow passageway with festoon lighting overhead, leading to an unassuming white building.
Upstairs, behind the simple exterior, lies the Japanese-inspired restaurant – a modest space with minimalist decor.
Crowned best newcomer at the 2019 Nottinghamshire Food and Drink Awards, Kushi-ya is a firm favourite with food lovers.
It’s the first restaurant I was desperate to return to after lockdown was eased earlier this year – and it was where we booked to celebrate my daughter’s birthday in August.
However, as a victim of the track and trace app, Kushi-ya had to close that week so we had to put the plans on ice.
Last weekend was the first opportunity the three of us had a chance to get together for that delayed night out.
The main concept is skewers grilled over flames in a small open kitchen – but that’s not all.
The menu is broken down into snacks, small plates, skewers and desserts – there’s always something new to try among the old favourites.
Some of the descriptions – kombu, takaki, shiso, ikura and so on – are unfamiliar if you’re not used to Japanese cuisine but don’t be afraid to ask the waiting staff.
The drinks complement the Japanese theme. Yuzu Margarita cocktail is my favourite but on this occasion I plumped for Umeshu Fizz – a mix of prosecco and plum wine. The sourness of the liqueur tempers the sweetness of the bubbles, creating a refreshingly light drink full of flavour.
A restaurant that can make boring edamame beans so incredibly tasty is a champion in my eyes. Sucking the beans out of the sticky pods, the soy and chilli create a phenomenally good salty, spicy flavour bomb that makes me deliriously happy no matter how many times I order them.
Furikake prawn toast is a light crispy mini tube filled with whole prawns, sprinkled with sesame seeds. It’s the best prawn toast ever.
Next up is a plate of bitesize slices of raw salmon with ikura (tiny globes of salmon roe) and shiso dressing.
Skewers of big juicy tiger prawns are served with “strange flavour sauce” – it’s like satay with some kind of green garlic or herby oil. I don’t really care because it’s immensely pleasurable and what more can you ask of food?
Kimchi pork belly skewers off the specials board on the wall (don’t forget to check it out) are simply served with a big wedge of lemon.
Pork belly is such a hard one for chefs to get right – if it’s not cooked properly, allowing the fat to render, it’s not nice to chew. We can’t fault it here. Slightly charred and crispy around the edges, the meat melts in the mouth. The kimchi doesn’t hit me but perhaps my tastebuds are still reeling from the edamame beans.
The star of the show has to be the wagyu tataki – fine slithers of what’s widely acknowledged to be one of the best types of beef in the world.
The most expensive dish on the menu at £12, so it doesn’t need bells and whistles. It simply tastes divine with gentle searing around the edges, rare in the middle and delicate marbling. The light white soy sauce dressing and a garnish of finely cut crispy potato strips is just enough to set it off. There’s no need to chew – the meat simply melts on the palate.
There can’t be many restaurants that serve wagyu beef and Brussels sprouts on the same menu but, always out to make the most of seasonal vegetables, Kushi-ya’s chefs have given the much-maligned soggy sprout a makeover. They were grilled so they’re al dente with a fine crunch, and spiced up with kimchi butter, with enough on the plate to add to the portion of sticky rice.
More popular with the rest of the family is the sizeable portion of crispy Jerusalem artichoke – a much under-used vegetable in my humble opinion.
Crunchy on the outside, soft in the middle, the earthy bites are paired with an equally earthy shiitake mushroom ketchup.
Last but not least on the savoury front is the smoked Japanese sausage.
The mini sausages on skewers have a sweet but smoky flavour and, drizzled with curry ketchup, are moreish and unsurprisingly soon vanish.
Everything’s ideally sized to be picked up with chopsticks even for the most hapless, uncoordinated of handlers like me.
Chicken sando was missing from the specials board this time – but when it’s on it is a must with soft white bread and crispy fried chicken.
I’m disappointed to see matcha cheesecake with lime meringue crossed out on the board as I’d been hoping to try it for dessert.
Instead we share peanut castella cake, which is unexpectedly moist, with milk ice cream and sticky, salty koji (the ingredient used to make miso) caramel, washed down with a glass of sake.
A taste sensation is a bit of a cliche but it’s the only way to sum up the night.
The bill comes to £128 including a ten percent service.
A pretty good deal, for three, marking a special occasion packed with fun, flavour and fizz.
We’ve been eating and drinking like a king and queens and been served like royalty by observant staff – the kind who spot when your drink is running low and whisk empty plates away as they’re passing to create more room on the table.
It looks like Nottingham’s “best newcomer” deserves the award for “best here to stay”.