Feng Sushi (Restaurant)

Best for: Fishy flavours especially Sashimi.

Great: For getting cosy on a date.

Size matters. They say it doesn’t but we all know it does. No-one I know likes it smaller than bigger. All that anticipation, the longing and the hunger, only to be let down.

Up a quaint, quaint staircase there was a quaint, quaint room
In the quaint, quaint room there were some quaint, quaint tables
And on the quaint, quaint tables there were some quaint, quaint plates
And on the quaint, quaint plates there were some flavours, BIG flavours.

I hate eating out and walking away hungry afterwards. So to me, a good sized meal is important. And at Feng Sushi restaurant in Notting Hill, size certainly is not a problem. But, initially, one would think it is.

Feng Sushi is quintessentially quaint and as I was walking up the staircase to the dining room, I felt like I was in a doll’s house. The dining room has a maximum of about 10 tables and a teensy little bar. It’s amazing what you can actually fit into a little bar like this; obviously all the essentials. Proof of this was in my lychee martini which was full to the brim with tropical tastes.

Diners are sat very close to one another (good for couples), and there is a little cove for coats and bags to hang while you eat, simply due to a lack of floor space. We were sat so close, I even had to use my little inside voice to chat to my partner for worry that everyone could hear what I was saying. There was no background music either to blend into my chatter. And to my annoyance, service wasn’t exactly fast. This is where I discovered once again: Waiting + Silence = Awkward. But the big sized menu came to the rescue as I hid my head behind it like a newspaper. So by the time my slimy seaweed salad and detox broth arrived, I had already decided what I wanted to order next.

The seaweed salad was only slimy because it was fresh and I really did love it. What I loved more though was the size and flavours of the detox broth. It came in a gigantic bowl, and I knew I wasn’t going to go hungry. And even more satisfying were the ingredients including miso, tofu, beansprouts, the list goes on. Such veggie goodness ought to make you grow big and strong.

I might be small (mostly), but it doesn’t mean I eat petite. My mouth is big and it likes meat. And sharing is caring, so I ordered the deluxe sashimi. A plate packed with chunky slices of raw tuna, yellowfish, scallops, salmon and mackerel. The tastiest of these were the mackerel and tuna: somewhat juicy and the virgin flavours of the fish were immensely gratifying.

Now I don’t like to bite, but what sushi restaurant does not have Mochi on their dessert menu? Well, I wasn’t able to bite anyway, as without Mochi in stock that day, I had to settle for wrapping my tongue around their Japanese ice cream instead. But in all honesty, it was truly worth it, especially for the black sesame flavoured ice cream which was big in flavour and sized well enough that it didn’t disappear after two mouthfuls.

Now let’s be real. Sushi restaurants are known as a healthy option and for quality ingredients sourced sustainably, like here at Feng Sushi, there might be a cost. So dig a little into your pot of gold, and where food is of high quality, generously portioned, and with BIG on flavours.

Yes, size does matter, both in portion and in flavour, and for little Feng Sushi in Notting Hill I can only leave you with one question: has it not been said that dynamite comes in small packages? ...read more