"After the Japanese school moved to Acton there is less of a north London focus for the Japanese community but some links to the 1980s heyday remain. One of these is the fact that in close proximity opposite Golders Green station can be found two branches of Eat Tokyo and Cafe Japan. Whilst I've nothing against the former, the latter is authentic and independent and deserves to be supported. The interior is functional (which is exactly what you might expect), with food prepared in a cramped space towards the rear. Service from the three interchangeable serving staff was functional and prompt without being particularly engaging (the restaurant was busy with large takeaway orders in addition to the mostly occupied tables). Aside from an extensive list of sakes and shochu the drinks menu is limited, but they have Asahi on tap. So why the 5 stars? Well primarily because the food was very good indeed, offering, in addition to the normal dishes you would expect to see, a range of cooked specials that featured both fish you don't associate so much with Japan (such as sardines and monkfish) and fish that's unknown here (the ladyfish tempura was exceptional). A nice selection of mochi ice-cream balls too. At £105 for 3 people our total bill was pretty reasonable for what we had."
