Taro is a small fast Japanese restaurant in Soho. It takes the resemblance of one of those noodle bars that are all over the place nowadays, however the great thing about this place is it's Japanese. I've eaten here twice, once prior to having a drunken night with the girls and the other time I was returning from a drunken night with my partner. I'm not certain, but I think it closes relatively late. Both times I've eaten here I've had a selection of Sushi and Terryaki Chicken. Dishes are priced on average at about six pounds per dish. The food is really tasty, I am a particular lover of Japanese food and the fact that I can go here after a night out instead of into China Town or Mc Donalds is great, as much as I am a sucker for Chinese food and McD's, Japanese is healthier. read more

Taro Restaurants - Japanese Near Me - London, XGL

The only place where the logo above the door actually turns out to be a real-life person! Honestly, the cute little illustration that serves as sign and logo is a really accurate portrayal of Mr Taro himself, who is just as cute in the flesh. He wanders around, smiling loads and stopping to say hello. Best sushi place in London. Great, great food whether you're after a mouth-watering array of spicy tuna rolls, wonder rolls, unagi, or a big, comforting bowl of ramen noodles. All kicked off with some spinach salad with sesame dressing or edamame and accompanied with some hot sake or kirin beer. A very casual atmosphere, simple decor and tables placed close together make for a friendly dining experience with good and efficient service. read more

I was here just recently with some of my mates. It was quite a surprise. The food is really good, it tastes really authentic, and best of all they serve it quite quickly. I say this 'cause my food arrived within a few minutes and the place was packed. True props for that, not many places can do that nowadays. Prices are good, as long as you only order one dish. But if you order more then one dish and a beer or drink be ready to spend around £20, but otherwise it will only be around £10. The service is good, and really friendly. The atmosphere is quite lively. A really good place to go with your mates or family. read more

A very good chioce for a quick japanese eat in central London. When we go there, I always eat tempura udon, which is fantastic, but I can recommend all sushi and chicken dish as well. The prices are ok, the service is very fast, all together thumbs up!!! read more

I went to Taro on a friend's recommendation. They said the Chicken Teriyaki was awesome - they were right! I went back twice within the same week just for the Teri don! Unfortunately that means my views are slightly skewed toward the one dish but then again it was particularly yum. I'll give the other dishes a go - heard some good things about the Sushi too! read more

Good place for having a good Japanese meal. The tables are quite close and it is quickly crowded, you may have to way to get your way in read more

Authentic Japanese food at a good price. The many choices on the menu will satisfy all your needs if you are craving Japanese.

Great place for a quick bite, service is quick and the turnover is even quicker so you won't have to wait too long if you're a couple. HOWEVER, this is definitely not an ideal spot for a romantic dinner ( I don't know what we were thinking) as you sit elbow to elbow with the next table and sometimes feel like you should contribute to their conversation and take bites off their food. We had the chicken gyozo and miso soup for starters, both of which were fine albeit unremarkable (although I've never met a remarkable miso soup), and I ordered the eel bento box while my boyfriend had a chicken noodle dish (I don't remember its name because I was too busy savaging my box of bento). For 14GBP, the bento box is quite filling, although it's more rice than anything else. I had several pieces of salmon sashimi, tuna sushi and a few rolls in one section, then nigiri (eel covered in teryaki) on top of sticky rice, and a small salad section of edamame and peppers). I'd definitely come back for the bento box and ditch the starters; it's great value for money and a perfect meal for when you're starved of sushi but need something more filling. Despite my spilling my soup and making a mess, the waiters were great, friendly and cordial while quite brisk at their service. It's a great alternative to other restaurants where you tend to feel like cattle being prodded to eat and get out asap. We also had cold sake and bypassed the dessert; frankly, the restaurant's central location means you have so many fantastic dessert options just around the corner in Soho, and you will definitely need a walk after a meal at Taro. read more

It's not clever, it's not flashy, it's not somewhere I'd go out of my way to eat in, but if you're in the area and looking for a cheap and cheerful japanese lunch or dinner you could do far worse! I alwasy have the chicken teriyaki don, with some gyoza and edamame beans, all of which are consistently good. in terms of value for money and polite good service I don't think you can go wrong and compares favourably to the toruisty places that over cahrage and under deliver that we have so many of in Soho. read more

Nice, friendly service to boot., but sadly their ramen is not up to par. The broth is lacking in all senses. That said, the gyoza is good and I love the decor. read more

Sashimi very fresh, Ramen really good. Great friendly service to boot. Located in a happening spot. Can't wait to go back to try more.

Served raw chicken and still charged us. My partner and I went for food on our last night of our holiday in London expecting the food in the restaurant to be nice but it wasn't. We ordered an eel bento box, a taro (special) bento box and a side of steamed prawn dumplings and some beer. My eel bento box came out within minutes and I say patiently waiting for my partners to arrive so we could both eat. Half hour later we need to ask where it is then promptly after that our starter came out the steamed dumplings. We ask again where my partners bento box is and constantly get told "it'll be a minute. It's just coming." Comes 10 minutes later finally we can start eating. My partner bites into her chicken kara age it's completely raw like it just got dipped in a fryer and brought back up. Complained about it the staff that were unhelpful and just kept using lame excuses for there mistakes. Never going back it ruined our last night arguing with the waiters. read more

The go to sushi place when you are in Soho! I also happen to be friends with the owner so that may make this review slightly biased. Mr Taro is a lovely modest man just trying to satiate people's craving for Japanese food. Like him, the restaurant is very casual. In fact it is not the place you probably want to bring your girl on a first date as the decor lacks to impress. However, the sushi is downright succulent and yummy! If you've tried Nobu's Sushi and were amazed, then Taro should not let you down in taste since they use the same supplier! Only difference between the two is price and presentation! Taro's prices are probably half of Nobu's. I have never ordered anything here other than the sushi. I wouldn't recommend this place for anything else. read more

Very nice ramen and bento box dishes. They made the Teriyaki Chicken skin slightly crispy which was so delicious I think it was the best one I've ever tasted. The place is usually crowded so the service might not be as attentive, but do check it out if you are nearby. You won't regret it. read more

The marinated fried chicken Karaage and the gyoza were really good! First time I had karaage but it was so good! Juicy meat and well spiced.

This place was pretty good for the prices. I had two pieces of Inari sushi and the salmon on rice. it was ALOT of rice with a generous amount of salmon for a very good pirce (i think it was 7-8). The salmon was not dry and the sauce just perfected it. My friend had the salmon bento. GREAT deal!! You get the best of all worlds! Amazing deals! Amazing prices. Amazing place :) read more

Decent little sushi spot in soho I picked for lunch after looking at two others in the same street. A bit expensive for the amount of food and the ambience which isn't very snazzy for it being in soho. Service was okay, sort of place you are always working to get someone's attention. I will go back to try more as I got a sushi combo, but their veggie Gyoza was the best dish although on the oily side. read more

Taro is really very much a Japanese canteen-type cafe serving a variety of Japanese dishes including sushi, sashimi, soba, noodles and other simple dishes. It is open from lunchtime all the way through until late in the evening and is pleasantly busy all day. However you shouldn't find it too hard to get a table and reservations are not necessary. There were several Japanese restaurants in this area so why did Ichoose Taro? Well the only reason was value, but this is not to criticize any other aspects of the Taro experience. The service is acceptable - nothing special but friendly and polite which is as much as one can hope for when it's such a busy place and they work with a minimum of staff, the surroundings are pleasant enough but not especially different or comfortable so the attraction it held for me wasthe good food at reasonable prices. Being sushi lovers my fellow diners and I went for a sushi selection - mine came in a wooden dish - fairly deep - which had a good layer of sushi rice on the bottom and then the fish and prawns beautifully arranged on the top. This came in the form of prawns, squid, salmon, tuna, salmon roe and octopus - all of it was fantastic and tasted very fresh. One of my fellow diners chose a more conventional selection, which came on the typical wooden board though it contained similar ingredients to mine and was individual sushi items. His too was excellent. Taro really do provide a visual treat and the bright colours of the fish and roe would tempt me every time. Our table was close to the counter so we were able to watch the sushi chefs at work, which was very entertaining - it's also good to know that your food is freshly made to order and the chef knows who he is cooking for. We had bottles of Asahi (Japanese) with our food, but a full range of drinks is available. Other fellow diners were eating the noodles, which came in huge portions and looked delicious. The interior of Taro is clean even if slightly basic, but I think it is in keeping for an establishment of this kind. Wooden chairs and tables and not much else - a few pictures on the walls and the obligatory Asahi cats used for advertising. If you get a window seat you can watch the world go by as you eat and, you never know in this part of the capital, you may even spot a celebrity or two. At around £9.00 each for a good selection of sushi we thought this was very good value - much more so than chain restaurants such as Yo Sushi where individual sushi items cost between 32.50 and 4.50. read more

Had the dumplings and a spicy tuna roll to start, both were good. Spicy Chicken Teri Don was excellent. Nice and crispy chicken on the outside, juicy on the inside. Bento boxes were popular at the tables around us. read more

Rude staff, half empty and turned me away as I wanted a table for one and didn't want to wedge in against the wall at the bar. Pretty basic looking, cheaplunch joint read more

Great value for money - really nice place for a good dinner in Soho. We had gyoza, teryaki chicken ramen, and tempura udon, all really good.

Amazing sushi! Got the prawn bento box which was fresh and delicious; nice cool sake and the prawn dumplings were superb. Small place, but tons of locals - place to go! read more

Best miso ramen I've ever had. Good food, good beer and veg reasonable. Super cozy, low key and out of the madness of soho.

It's nice to be pleasantly surprised. When my friend had suggested going for sushi in Soho I really dreaded the overpriced, over-rated place we would end up. So a nice little place below street level with relatively cheap food made quite an impression on me. Sometimes you just want chicken terriyaki and some rice and nothing else, so I was thrilled to be able to get just that for £5. The massive soup bowls and sushi servings my friends ordered, however, did look really good; I'd be inclined to go back to try them. But the next time I find myself in Soho needing a bite to eat I know where I'll head first. read more

Went here tonight. Sushi was ok but we were shocked when the bill came to £81. We hadn't ordered very much (2 edamame, 2 miso, a few rolls & 2 drinks) & had been paying attention to prices. When we got back to the flat we pulled up their website & menu & realized the waitress doubled our bill. Don't know if this was done intentionally. Should've called her on it when we knew something was wrong. read more

A decent Japanese place in Soho. Visited here while in London for a few days last week and had a craving for some Japanese food. Had veggie gyoza and spicy veggie ramen- both were good but didnt blow me away. The sushi looked also decent if a little bit on the fatty side but didnt have any so cant speak for it. The teriyaki and bentos looked decent as well, if a tad on the small side. Though it wasnt packed, the staff were really in a hurry to turn people over as quickly as possible- several times they took the soy sauce from my table to refill it, though I had not touched it. Overall a good bet but Im sure there are better Japanese places in the neighbourhood. read more

Had a great meal here recently, I really enjoyed the chicken teri-yaki and the gyoza tasted so fresh, so much better than the ones you get in Wagamamas. Good service and good range of booze including hot sake and Asahi. read more

Sounded really good based on the reviews however my two daughters and I were disappointed. Chicken fried rice was very oily and the meat was chewy and chunky. Beef bento box was just ok. We only liked the beef. Sushi rolls were very blend and expensive. Overall a big disappointment. read more

Not a bad place - good value for money and very nice food. Not the easiest of places to find, but sometimes the best places are hidden away from the main street, this is one of them. Their menu may not be the most extensive but there is a good mix of sushi, noodles and rice bento options. I generally only go to Taro for dinner and the place does fill up pretty quickly, would suggest getting there early or after the rush. The turnover of tables is however, pretty quick given the speed at which food is served so any wait will not be long. Two ways of looking at the shop itself, either cosy or cramped. I'm not a big person so cosy would be my opinion. They have a new one open around Knightbridge, but never been to that branch. read more

If I could give this place no stars I would. The starter gyoza was competent but unexciting. The main I chose chicken yaki Soba was disgusting and tasted like it had been fried in something rotten. I had one forkful and felt sick. I immediately brought the matter to the attention of our waiter who disappeared and didn't seem particularly interested. I alerted a second waiter who insisted the dish was fine and proceeded to be rude and raise his voice insisting that it wasn't their fault if the dish wasn't right and that he would charge me the full price of the meal for wastage. Despite the fact that I returned a full plate. I am appalled by the poor customer service, the rude attitude and will never eat at this establishment or any in the chain again. read more

We chose this restaurant based on the menu and business during dinner, usually a good sign! Which, for a majority of patrons, probably is the case. We had a negative experience, so take it with a grain of salt along with the other reviews. We are big sushi eaters, so we started with an agedofu/agedashe tofu, which was bland, before getting our maki rolls: tuna, salmon, and shrimp tempura. The quality of the sushi was excellent, we're just not used to paying .30p more for a slice of cucumber and avocado, but taste was good so, no problem. The pot of tea we ordered? They gave it to the table next to us and poured their cups... And didn't realize their mistake until I asked (£3!). What really made me come to this review, was the end of the meal. Sipping on our tea, there was a group of 4 who were refusing their table near the door, and requested to be moved more inwards. The owner sat them in waiting chairs right next to our table saying, "they will be leaving, so this table is yours." Then, every 15 seconds, asked if we were finished until we "asked" for the bill! Disappointing to be forced out to make room for grumpy customers. Wouldn't come back with so many other options nearby. read more

Very good price/quality value. Spicy beef ramen forever!

Better than the Old Compton Street branch as this features Mr Taro watching over the restaurant. It's very good for the basics, happy, welcoming staff with chefs that can make the best Sushi. read more

Ate at the bar and unfortunately saw how the food was made. They use frozen scallops and precooked tonkatsu pieces, which don't taste bad but it's definitely not fresh. We ordered chicken tonkatsu and tempura sushi. The tonkatsu was dry and the sushi was quite horrible, undercooked (soggy tempura) and mostly rice. The sushi chef also moves around the kitchen without washing his hands before making the next sushi piece, which also put us off from coming back. Overall, given the choice of other Japanese restaurants in the area, would not recommend going here. read more

I had a really unpleasant experience at Taro last week. First the service was quite rude, when the waitress was taking my order she didn't try to really understand what i wanted : a curry udon soup. Then our meal arrived and it was such a disappointment! Noodle felt worst then instant udon noodle you buy in shop they were served on a plate(not a soup!) and the curry soup tasted like water with a slight taste of curry. Also vegetables were pretty rare on the plate. I lived for years in Japan and enjoyed excelent quality of food and incredible service all the times but i couldn't find none of that in Taro. My husband who is japanese was even shame they called themselves a "japanese restaurant". I wanted to try Taro for a while but really i won't recommend it to anyone. Gambare Mr Taro. read more

Best sushi restaurant in town! friendly staff, great atmosphere and reasonably priced with great quality food!

Got food poisoning. Real bad. If you want to ruin your stay in London, eat here.

i love taro. so much i visited the brewer st and the soho branch,all equally good!!!back then and still am into my sushi and japanese food i would highly suggest this place as one of the top jap restaurants to go to!i always try the katsu curry and cali roll oh and the sashimi and think its delicious.ive actually had to opportunity to meet mr taro himself and he makes a star appearance if ur lucky. the staff are not that good in english but they are nice and smile alot to make it up!everytime i go its always busy,but not as busy as misato...but i like that,u dont get shouty louts around but more casual conversation whilst enjoying the culinary experience. u always get greeted by the staff with moshimoshi!i swear thats chinese?the tables are not too close together so u do have a little space around as your own.oh and to add,its not that much expensive....:) read more

Wow Tokyo in Soho. I love this place. Gyoza and ramen just like in Japan. Taro San is on hand to make sure everything is perfect. 5 stars all the way. I only wish it was closer to home. read more

http://hungryinlondon.com/2011/07/taro-soho-2/ When we are talking very decent and cheap food options in Soho,Taro is very high up on my list. I have been going there for years when fancying some quick Japanese fix. Not exactly the place you would go for a romantic dinner,but great for shopping break or pre-theatre food. If I would work somewhere close to Taro,you would find me there all the time in my lunch breaks. Taro is not an expensive place to start with but incredible value for money are the lunch deals. One wouldn't think that you can get a drink,a miso soup AND a bento box for below 7 pounds anywhere in London,let alone in the middle of tourist-ridden Soho. On my last visit I tried the chicken teryaki box (6.90) and I thoroughly enjoyed both the miso soup and the chicken. Splashing out on the non lunch deal side of things,the Vegetable Gyoza (5?)) were crispy and delicious. I have a terrible weakness for Japanese noodle soups,nothing better to warm your belly and your soul,and even though the Taro version of Udon Noodle Soup (6.50) did not stand out,it was very decent indeed. I rather like the atmosphere at Taro actually,it's one of the few places in London with high ceilings,which makes the place feel spacious,and loads of light is streaming in through the large window. As a consequence it doesn't feel as crowded as some of the other cheap Japanese options in the surroundings. read more