Akatuki Covent Garden

If you love authentic Japanese cuisine with a modern fine-dining touch — Akatuki is definitely worth visiting! The presentation of every dish is so elegant that you actually feel bad to ruin the plating. We tried a variety of dishes — sushi, tempura, black cod, miso soup, and a few chef’s special plates. Everything tasted fresh, clean and beautifully balanced. The crispy tempura with dipping sauce was delicious, and the sushi selection was impressive with premium cuts. The black cod was perfectly cooked, soft and flavourful with a lovely glaze. The ambiance is stylish, warm and perfect for lunch or dinner with friends. The staff is polite and attentive — they explain dishes with care and make sure you enjoy the experience. Overall, Akatuki delivers luxury Japanese dining with great taste and stunning plating… definitely adding to my favourite spots for Japanese food in London. Highly recommended! 🍣✨

A feast for the eyes and the palate! The location in Covent Garden is super convenient. And the restaurant has a really lovely vibe, both good for photos and dating. We dined during their Tsukimi event, when we ordered warm sake, they gave us complimentary Tsukimi Dango, that was so cute 🥺🥺 We ordered Lychee Shrimp Blossom, Seafood Tartare, Wasabi-Infused Lobster, Exclusive Wagyu Hot Pot, and Akatuki Roll. They were all tasty. Everything tasted amazing and the whole experience was great. I’d definitely come back again :)

I had a great experience at this Japanese buffet. The sashimi was incredibly fresh, especially the bluefin tuna, which was rich and buttery. I also loved the foie gras rice — perfectly cooked and full of flavor. The mung bean mochi was soft, chewy, and delicious. Everything was amazing, will come back with my friends

First impression upon walking in—the indoor atmosphere feels really classy but also whimsical with the sakura decor. 🌸 I went to try the 6 course Christmas menus (both meat and vegetarian options) and I cannot fault it. Everything from the starters right up to the dessert was perfectly curated. The portion sizing was very generous so I couldn’t finish my main, but I took it away to enjoy the taste of Akatuki at home! Vegetarian: • The tempura was perfectly crispy and light • the sushi was fresh and subtly sweet • the pan-seared mushrooms were full of flavour and moreish • the fig and asparagus salad was the definition of healthy (also I never even liked asparagus until this dish. They cooked it so perfectly!) • the grilled aubergine on rice “unagi don” was similar to texture and taste to real unagi don, which is one of my favourite Japanese dishes. • the dessert was light and the right amount of sweetness, and a good size after a heavy meal! Meat: • Starters the same as vegetarian • the sushi and sashimi were fresh • the lobster morsel was drizzled in wasabi butter that enhanced the flavours of the lobster • the black cod was my absolute favourite, and felt so buttery and silky in my mouth. • the main beef steak don was tender but the sauce was quite sweet! I think it could’ve done with a little less sauce. • the dessert was the same as vegetarian Overall I really enjoyed the food. Oh and the mocktails were great. I had the matcha coconut and really enjoyed it! I’ll definitely go again to try the regular menu~

Tried the Christmas menu. The first thing we had was miso soup, if you’ve had miso soup you know what to expect. We then got our 3 pieces of sushi, all good quality and tasty. We moved onto the fried vegetables, I liked them but I didn’t really know what the dipping sauce was as it had no impact and the pumpkin was not fully cooked but the other two vegetables were. The lobster was good with a pretty strong mustard sauce with it. The cod was the highlight for me, it has such a delicious savoury miso glaze with it. The beef donburi was good, it had sticky rice which isn’t usually how I’ve had it but I felt it went well with it. The dessert the Kuzu Manju was citrusy and fresh, a nice way to end the meal. It reminded me of mochi in its texture. The price was good for what you get I thought.

The sushi box for 2 has very fresh sashimi and nigiri, however the rice was a bit disappointing- it could be more firmly stuck together, and they should serve a bit more. It was nicely presented and perfect for photos. To my surprise, the eel tempura was the highlight of the whole meal. It was very warm and crispy, and the eel tasted very fatty and juicy, it melts into your mouth. I would definitely come back for the eel tempura. Overall, the food is great but it’s quite expensive.

We tried Akatuki in Covent Garden and ordered à la carte to get the beef and Kaminari skewers. The starters were solid, especially the yakisoba, which was surprisingly tasty and well-seasoned. The beef tataki looked great, though the flavour was lighter than expected. The Yellowtail Carpaccio was the best dish of the night and truly a must-order. For mains, the unagi roll was nicely grilled and sweet, even for someone who isn’t a big eel fan. The sauce with wasabi on the plate worked really well. The Scallops Shizuku was small but very good. Overall, it’s a cosy spot suitable for Christmas dinners, dates, or casual meals. Recommended.

Ate here today for the first time because it was showing up on the TikTok recommendations and it was incredible! The interior design is beautiful and modern, and the dishes we had were so delicious - it almost felt like I was back in Japan. Service was friendly and excellent; they also fulfilled the small birthday request I asked for in the booking form. Will definitely come back again, because the choice and food from other diners looked stunning as well!

My friend surprised me for a dinner here and we tried the Christmas menu. There was an array of dishes and they all tasted so delicious. I was very full before it even got to the main dish. I wish I could remember all of their names but nevertheless the pictures do the food justice. The atmosphere was very calm, quiet and the decor was stunning. Every flavour was met with exquisite balance of textures. I will definitely be back!

An authentic Japanese restaurant, the food presentation is great as well as their service. They got some inventive cocktails and mocktails. I did enjoy their scallops shizuki, however the shells come on a bed of salt which I couldn’t recognise due to dim light, thought it was a sauce and ended up putting a spoon of salt in the mouth..