Heddon Yokocho

Those looking to escape bustling Regent Street and retreat to a characterful and unpretentious corner of the West End, will be at ease in Heddon Yokocho.

We dined on the outdoor terrace on a mild August evening and enjoyed soaking up the buzz of busy bodies passing by. Inside there’s an open kitchen with stalls at the bar and lots of booths if you prefer a more intimate experience. There’s also privacy curtains, so you can slurp without fear of appearing in a stranger's photo. Further draws include neon signs aplenty and a bright lantern-lit bar.

From a choice of 10 different region-specific ramens, we tried the Kumamoto Tonkotsu. It was generously portioned, but at £13.90 ramen-enthusiasts might feel disappointed. The crispy garlic slightly overwhelmed the other ingredients and the pork broth which was a touch under seasoned. The pork in our BBQ bun was tender, packed full of meat with a sweet, sticky sauce. As fried chicken goes, the karaage batter was crisp, the meat was succulent and the overall dish was elevated with a squeeze of fresh lemon. 

Heddon Yokocho has a strong drinks offering and would make a good destination for cocktails. Reasonably priced at under £10 a drink, we tried the Tiki Passion which combines japanese rum, coconut rum, passionfruit and almond syrup. If you like a pornstar martini you’ll love this.

We also shared a carafe of Kome To Mizu sake, served chilled, which we’d highly recommend. It had a dry finish with refreshing notes of peach and lemon grass.

In summary, if you’re looking for a casual, aesthetically pleasing spot to grab a drink and a snack in the West End, Heddon Yokocho is a convenient option. It’s quirky, unpretentious and has plenty of seating available.

This colourful and lively ramen restaurant is the brainchild of Japan Centre, the long established London food hall which specialises in Japanese goods. Heddon Yokocho is found on Mayfair’s Heddon Street and has taken over the site that used to house Sakagura (another of Japan Centre’s spin-offs).

The dining room at Heddon Yokocho boasts a colourful aesthetic that is inspired by the 1970s, boasting colour splashes via neon signage, hanging paper lanterns and red table tops flanked by backless red stools. The menu at Heddon Yokocho boasts a range of ramen from across various areas of Japan, featuring familiar dishes such as Tonkotsu ramen.

Other broths that might take your fancy include Sapporo Miso, a miso-based chicken and pork broth ramen, and Hakodate Shio - a salt and miso-based broth ramen. Plant-based diners will be glad to hear that the restaurant also offers a vegan dish, called Vegan Napoli (a tomato-based ramen featuring grilled tomato and mushroom topped with basil and vegan cheese). There is even a signature house dish known as The Yokocho, which comprises soy-based chicken and pork broth ramen with slices of barbecue pork, topped with menma bamboo shoots, naruto fish cake, whole nitamago egg and nori seaweed.

To bookend your ramen, there are starting snacks and sides including chicken karaage, steamed buns, meat and vegetable gyozas and maki sushi rolls. If you have any room left after all of that, you can tuck into a tempting selection of desserts which includes a matcha cheesecake, a yuzu sorbet and a range of ice creams with flavours such as black sesame and vegan salted caramel.

If you are in the mood for an alcoholic beverage, you will be able to sip on Highballs and Chu-Hi, made with shochu and flavoured with lemon, while there is also a selection of sake and Japanese beer on draught.