Araki - London

We have never been treated so badly. We had a confirmed reservation for two people at counter made directly through the chef. When we reached the place they wanted to place us at the private room. Not only that they cancelled our counter booking but they insisted on charging the cancelled booking plus charge another two persons for the SAME booking for a total 1240 for TWO ppl. Then the manager insisted that since cancellation was not done 48 hours he won 't refund. We left the place and would never step foot in that restaurant. No Wonder they lost their 3 star rating. Worst attitude and handling of customers we have ever seen in our lives.

Just OK, considering the price and hype. The ingredients were great, something missing. Ah so! A proper sushi master was missing.

Having tried some great places in Japan, Korea and Sushi Tetsu in London I was expecting great things from The Araki. However the calmness of most places I've been too with the sushi master behind the counter was no where to be found. Instead it was several people all out of sync with each other. The sushi itself was ok, nothing great especially for that price. I suspect the amount of truffle used and o-toro jacks up the price, however I expected something a little more. Putting truffle all over so many things gets a little boring.

Frankly, they fact that The Akari was stripped of its three Michelin star rating proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Michelin is a cabal with no real interest in the quality of the food and experience provided. This is authentic, quality omakase. The chefs prepared the food with exquisite precision, the ingredients chosen were those only a true sushi master would choose. We were totally blown away. The Michelin guide needs to take a long hard look at itself, this place deserves at least 2 Michelin stars. Their inability to rate at this level shows that they are nothing more than a boys club. In summary, if you have the money, go here. You will not regret it

Fantastic experience with wonderful food and service. It’s more like a presentation than a meal with each course prepared and presented to each customer. Not sure it’s worth the huge price but as a one off experience it was faultless and wonderful. I thoroughly recommend!