Blind date Japanese

We’ve been reading the “Blind Date” column in the Graun again, and although the couple decided not to meet again, one did want to go back to the restaurant!  Jidori, near Covent Garden – there’s one in Kingsland Road too.   Apart from the karaoke evenings (which I’m pleased to say we avoided), this Japanese place’s claim to fame is that it showcases the whole chicken.

For a moment it seems like they only do beer and sake, but we do find a wine list and get the house white at £21.  The menu also looks a little complicated so we opt for the set meal, “Omakase”, at £30 a head – 13 dishes with pickles and two desserts.

It’s not all chicken. The first three dishes are a tuna sashimi, grilled peas (interesting) and mushrooms. Then, with the pickles we have chicken thighs and onions and minced chicken with egg yolk.  Followed by spicy chicken wings and the remarkable heart and bacon. Plus chicken livers and four dishes I can’t recall (the translations from the Japanese include scissors, peach and leather!!!).   All really good, including the heart, which I guess we wouldn’t have chosen ourselves.  Dessert is coconut water sorbet, which seems a little dull after all that excitement. 

Just up from Lion King, the place is pretty small, more like a café, though there is an upstairs we didn’t see. Service is very good and friendly, explaining the dishes well. Total with a second bottle comes straightforwardly to £102 – plus 12.5%.  Interesting experience, well worth a try, but not somewhere I’d rush back to.