Inamo, Covent Garden, London Restaurant Review

For our date night last Thursday, we headed over to Inamo in Covent Garden. It had been a while since we’d had sushi, and I partially blame that on all of London’s incredible Indian food. Okay, maybe I fully blame it on that. But when we heard about Inamo’s Asian fusion cuisine and technology innovations, we just had to check it out.

D E C O R  &  L O C A T I O N

This restaurant is right next to the Covent Garden tube stop off of a little side road. Inamo has three different locations in London, but this one is in the hub of central London’s theater scene. From the outside it looked rather simple, but as soon as we walked through the doors, I could tell that it was a hole-in-the-wall success for a reason. The decor matched the Japanese vibe, and the restaurant was buzzing with customers.

Thankfully we had a reservation, so we were seated right away. You can make a reservation here. After we were seated, we were given the full explanation about their technology and our interactive table.

C O N C E P T

Above every table is an Ordamo projector that uses the table as a screen. Everyone gets a little remote that you can use to change the appearance of the table, play games with the other people at the table, draw, etc. While waiting for your food, you have full entertainment through your table, and that was enjoyable. I loved watching the chefs at work on the “chef cam” that was beamed onto our table surface. I felt like a secret agent/spy and was secretly hoping something dramatic would happen. But nope, they were all professional and just making delicious-looking food. The way to order that delicious food is via tablet.

I’ll have to admit; I was nervous when I first saw the tablet, but its great setup and the fact that our orders were accepted very quickly made me a believer. I had a chance to speak with the restaurant manager, and she mentioned to me that some people still prefer to order in person, so they also accept that! Don’t worry, there are plenty of real people walking around ready and eager to help you if you have any questions. She also mentioned that the technology is a great icebreaker for first dates, and all I have to say to that is GENIUS. I think the only downside with the technology is that the light shines onto your food from the projector, so although the food tastes great, it looks a little bit odd with different colored lights shining down on it.

T A S T E

My hubby and I love sushi. On our second date, which was more than five years ago, we went to a sushi restaurant in Austin, Texas, and ever since then it’s been something we really enjoy. There’s something so fun about having little pieces to eat and being able to try one another’s food. As a vegetarian, ordering sushi for myself can be a little bit tricky because the few options restaurants have are often not very flavorful. I am happy to say that the vegetarian options here satisfied me, and I didn’t have a single complaint.

Hubs and I each ordered three dishes, one drink, and one dessert. You can check out the full menu here. We were absolutely stuffed after our sushi, but [of course] we had room for dessert. We had the most delicious caramelized banana split as well as three different freshly made sorbets. The sorbets were perfectly acidic against the sweet banana treat. I’m not a huge dessert person, but this was one of the highlights for me!

Besides the taste of the food, the taste in music was also really good! I ended up asking where the playlist was from because I couldn’t help but jam to each song they played haha.

P R I C E  &  S E R V I C E

I believe that the service here was friendly, helpful, and fast. This coupled with affordable pricing is reason enough to come back. They also have many incentives for coming in at off-peak times, such as discounts, drink specials, sushi specials, kids’ cooking classes, and other events. Inamo is so much more than just sushi; it is an experience!

If you are in central London looking for something different and delicious, check it out.

So tell me—have you had a chance to check out Inamo?
For more information on Inamo, check out their Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

 

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