Finding exemplary katsu curry in London was tough, but some spots hit the spot. Coco Ichibanya was an authentic global Japanese chain, but despite this, my best friend swore by it, so was it any good? Time to find out...
Ideal for:
Curry sauce aficionados – every dish can pretty much be doused in it.
When you want authentic Japanese hearty food without the frills.
When you are famished – as the portions can be quite large.
Ambience & Décor
The Bond Street branch was cramped. I get this was “authentic”, and the cheap food-quick turnaround model meant the premise was small in Central London, but I did not appreciate it. My mood was further exacerbated when I was blinded by the bright lights revibrating of all the bright white surfaces. It made taking pictures difficult. The place was packed though, so it was a good ambience.
Service
The service was horrendous. We wanted to move tables due to the cramped nature, and they effectively refused our request, despite one diner being heavily pregnant. Our server seemed totally clueless, and I was not surprised when she made a seemingly inevitable error. I have not had service like this for a while.
Food
Notwithstanding the debacle that was the venue and the service, I ordered the Chicken Katsu Curry with a side of Fried Chicken Dumplings (see left). I chose 200g of rice, as the standard 250g seemed too much (max is 550g). The chicken katsu pieces were tender, beautifully crispy, and not greasy. The batter was well-flavoured without going soggy because of the sauce, which was a surprise. The authentic curry sauce was a culinary delight that I could eat that all day long and made the dumplings come alive. The dumplings were nothing special but tasted as expected; lovely fried casing and simple, slightly bland, minced chicken filling that needed the katsu sauce to elevate it. I went to Coco Ichibanya for the Katsu Curry, and it was one of the best I have had. It was a cataclysmic shame that everything else was a bit of a car crash and hence I must give it a generous C rating.
Photos of Coco Ichibanya and more can be found on Instagram here.
Final grade: C
Final comment: The katsu was great, but the rest of the experience was shambolic.
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