Tokyo Japanese Restaurant Nairobi

Occasionally I am filled with a desire to see what is beyond the cossetted confines of Karen and venture further afield. In this case filled with a desire for sushi and having read a number of positive reviews we headed to Tokyo Japanese Restaurant Nairobi.

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Tokyo Japanese Restaurant Nairobi

Formerly situated in Karen, Tokyo Japanese restaurant moved to a new location in Lavington. Now sandwiched between a couple of tall buildings it is a city garden that must be pretty uninspiring in the day, but at night time was wonderfully atmospheric. Fairy lights clamber up tall trees and over bushes, dark little tables lit with candles create an ambient slice of calm in the busy city. Inside looked pretty cool with authentic style rooms and seating, though we couldn’t see anyone in there. In fairness that’s all that I can say about décor because it was very, very dark outside.  This was fine and quite romantic, but I hope it also explains why there are no pictures of the food. It was so dark I simply couldn’t take any. The service was good, Chef Shin came to visit us and check we were ok which is a great touch.

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Mediocre and expensive food

We ordered a range of sushi and it was ‘fine’, yep Just Fine. I was expecting great things from Tokyo as they have received many positive reviews on their Facebook page and if you dig a little the chef and restaurant were the subject of a glowing newspaper article. However, when it came to the food, it was a little lacklustre. The sushi was beautifully presented but slightly warm, which was worrying but there were no unpleasant after effects, so I assume we are all good.

The menu is expansive with a wide sushi menu with little delights such as rice paper dynamite rolls, the delicious spicy crab roll and the gorgeous black dragon rolls.   Not tried but much anticipated was a mains menu with whole crab in ginger sauce – yum and lesser known dishes like Ishiaki Bipimbap – vegetables and beef on a hot stone pot.

Tokyo Japanese restaurant was, to my mind, a little expensive.  We shared  30 pieces of sushi only drank sparkling water, yet the bill was over 7000. For me 70 dollars is too much for unexceptional sushi and no alcohol.  However the chef’s credentials (see below) and a wider and more interesting selection of food than is usual possibly drives the price up.   I am willing to accept that perhaps we had a bad experience, and I need to go again to fully understand the food offering

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Chef Shin’s experience : Tokyo Restaurant was founded in 2001 by Chef Young Ho (Phillip) Shin. He began his chef journey during his mandatory service in the South Korean army. Once he had completed his service he began working at a 5-star Korean Hotel called Paradise Hotel in Busan. This was where he was trained as a professional chef specialising in Japanese cuisine. During his time working at Paradise Hotel, he was sent to Tokyo for training purposes. This was when he was able to hone his craft and increase his knowledge on the culture, language and food.

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Things you need to know about Tokyo Japanese Restaurant Nairobi

Opening hours: Monday – Sunday / 11:30am — 10pm
Location: Kolloh Road, Lavington
Contact details: tokyonbi@gmail.com
Tel: 0722 485 556
TEl: 0734 444 651

Keen on Japanese? Read my review on Haru Japanese restaurant located in Karen, Nairobi

If you are keen to try other restaurants in Nairobi – hit up the restaurant reviews page here.

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