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new openings

Uni

18a Ebury Street, SW1W 0LU

020 3544 0805 Price £50

Nikkei cuisine - a mash-up of Japanese

and Peruvian - has been all the rage in

Lima for decades and now Uni is set

to capture that zeitgeist in London.

The split-level corner spot has a highend

feel, with a marble sushi bar on the

ground  oor, complete with a gra  tistyle

mural and low-hanging lanterns

fashioned from red soda bottles. The

basement is a mix of brown banquettes,

mirrors and private cubbyholes.

Kick oƒ with a coconut-water and

chilli mojito or a pisco with ginger ale,

before diving into Japanese-cum-Peruvian

dishes. The kitchen shows its sushi

credentials with a  awless rendition of

king crab tempura, while deep-… lled and

sliced soft-shell crab maki are utterly

moreish. For South American spice,

turbot tiraditos and a lobster ceviche

with lime and chilli aren't king-sized,

but the balance of  avours is spot-on.

Elsewhere, the eponymous uni (sea

urchins) oƒ er a treat for devotees of

exclusive maritime delicacies, Waygu

beef melts in the mouth and the black

cod in miso is umami indulgence.

Throw in chewy cheesecake and

chocolate mochi, carafes of saké and

attentive staƒ , and it's easy to see why

Uni is gaining fans among Belgravia's

moneyed set - and it merits attention

from deep-pocketed diners from

beyond, too. Lunchtime bento boxes

oƒ er a cheaper, quicker way to try Uni.

The House of Ho

55-59 Old Compton Street, W1D

6HR 020 7287 0770 Price £42

Bobby Chinn is a New

Zealand-born chef with

Chinese and Egyptian

parents who owns a pair

of successful restaurants

in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi; he

has also written well-respected tome

Vietnamese Food. With such a multicultural

background, it's perhaps not

to be expected that absolute authenticity

would be The House of Ho's calling

card, but to London ears the words

'Vietnamese food' mean one thing:

an alchemical blending of hot and

sweet, salty and sour, packed with

fresh crunch and arresting punch.

Alas, the House of Ho is not furnished

with these qualities, but it does deliver wellrendered,

generic South-East Asian cuisine

for those who like their meals on the sugary

side - bookended with cringe-inducing cocktails

('Ho'groni', 'Ho'rny devil') and European puds.

Crab and pomelo salad with vegetable

noodles, mint, lemon oil and crispy Vietnamese

crackers from the 'light and raw' section, and

smoky aubergine with warm scallion vinaigrette,

scallions and crispy shallots from 'hot

and grilled' were the best things we ate, full of

distinct and lively tastes. By contrast, shaking

beef had good-quality meat but a tame  avour,

while grilled chicken wings with spicy chilli glaze

and BBQ baby back ribs with light Asian slaw

were Ho-hum rather than humdinger.

On the upside, the buzz compensates for the

awkwardness of a dining room split by a wall.

We found the staƒ sweet natured, but poorly

trained when it came to the … ner points. You'll

have a good night here - we just wish Bobby

Chinn had brought something new to London.

THE LAST WORD Great buzz but nothing new food-wise

3 more…MODERN ASIANS

Aqua Kyoto

020 3589 3945

Asia de Cuba

020 3463 0296

Mango Tree

020 3544 7978

THE LAST WORD Lima via Belgravia - at SW1 prices

Paloma keeps the faith

at The House of Ho