The best Asian restaurants in London to book right now

An English pub and a Chinese kitchen under one roof might sound like an unlikely pairing, but at The Duck and Rice in Soho it makes complete and obvious sense. Sitting on Berwick Street since 2014, this neighbourhood institution pairs tank-fresh Pilsner Urquell and bespoke stained glass with dim sum made to order and a roast duck that has been on the menu from day one. The ground floor operates with the warm, unhurried energy of a proper boozer, while the upstairs dining room offers something altogether more considered. A second outpost opened at Battersea Power Station in 2025, but the Soho original still feels like the beating heart of the concept. Book a table and stay for one more round.

The theatre starts the moment the kitchen fires up. At Noodle Inn in Covent Garden, chefs stretch and pull dough into wide, flat ribbons before your eyes — a live demonstration of the Xi’an craft behind these bold, satisfying noodle bowls. Founded by Alex Xu, the restaurateur behind Kung-Fu Noodle in Chinatown, this fast-paced Chinese kitchen opened its Covent Garden location in May 2026 and carries the same high-energy format that made the Soho original a phenomenon. Signature oil-spill biang biang noodles arrive coated in chilli oil and piled with slow-braised beef rib, with handmade chicken wontons and Shaanxi-style roujamo flatbreads rounding out the menu. Located a short walk from Leicester Square and the West End theatres, it suits the pre-show crowd as comfortably as anyone else.

Elevated on the ninth floor above Broadgate Circle in the City, Los Mochis London City arrives with skyline views and an ambitious fusion of Mexican and Japanese cooking. Fresh sashimi and maki rolls share the menu with ceviches, tiraditos and signature tacos — a pairing the restaurant sums up simply as “where Tokyo meets Tulum.” For a more exclusive experience, LUNA omakase offers a 12-seat private dining room where Japanese culinary tradition meets innovation, while TENREI — a live tuna-cutting ceremony — adds genuine ceremony to the occasion. The rooftop terrace hosts Tulum nights every Friday, turning the Broadgate space into one of the City’s most sociable destinations. A vibrant sushi bar and agaveria lounge complete the sprawling offering. Book a table for the full panoramic experience above Liverpool Street.

Sixty floors above the City at 22 Bishopsgate, Lucky Cat by Gordon Ramsay offers Asian-inspired dining with an unrivalled backdrop. Floor-to-ceiling windows deliver 360-degree views of London while the kitchen produces flavour-forward small plates built around a raw bar and a menu designed for free-flowing, shareable ordering. Expertly crafted cocktails keep pace with the food, and a late-night bar — running until 3am on Thursdays through Saturdays — extends the evening well past dinner for those who want to make the most of the skyline after dark. A terrace opens from Wednesday, adding an outdoor dimension to the elevated experience. Whether arriving for a leisurely City lunch or a full evening above the London lights, this is one of the capital’s most distinctive tables.

On the corner of Berkeley Square in Mayfair, Sexy Fish operates at the precise intersection of restaurant and art installation. Designed by Martin Brudnizki and hung with works by Damien Hirst, Frank Gehry and Michael Roberts, the room channels mid-century glamour at full volume. The food holds its own entirely: Japanese-inspired sushi, sashimi and seafood alongside meat and fish cooked over a Robata grill, with curated tasting menus available for those who want the full kitchen experience. Downstairs, The Coral room private dining space houses two of the largest live coral reef tanks in the world. The bar holds the world’s biggest collection of Japanese whisky, and a set lunch menu offers a more accessible entry point into the kitchen’s range. Reserve a table and dress accordingly.

There is nothing quite like Sticks’n’Sushi anywhere else in London. Born in Copenhagen and now embedded in the fabric of the capital’s dining scene, this Soho restaurant describes the concept with admirable honesty: Japanese spirit, Danish style. The menu runs from creative and classic sushi to charcoal-grilled sticks and shareable plates that draw equally from Japanese tradition and Nordic sensibility. The shake tataki and beef tataki are fixtures on most tables, and the drinks list — spanning sake flights to inventive cocktails — rewards those who explore it. Weekend brunch at the London locations adds another layer to the offer, and regular adult sushi masterclasses are available for those who want to take the craft home. Find a table at the Soho branch and plan to order generously.

At Level 52 of The Shard, GŎNG Bar holds the distinction of being the highest hotel bar in Western Europe, and the views northward across London’s skyline make full use of that elevation. The name derives from “dougong,” a traditional Chinese architectural element of interlocking wooden brackets that informs the bar’s elegant interior design. Two distinct areas divide the experience: the cocktail bar and a focused sushi bar for those who want something to eat alongside their drinks. The seasonal “Icons of Asia” cocktail menu builds each serve around a single ingredient rooted in Asian heritage — from tea gardens to forest herbs and spice markets — resulting in a thoughtful and deeply considered drinks list. Reservations are strongly recommended. Come for sunset, stay for the spectacle.

Set inside The Ned’s magnificent former Midland Bank headquarters near Bank station, Kaia brings an Asian-Pacific perspective to one of the most architecturally striking dining venues in the City. The format is relaxed and counter-style: a kitchen focused on poke bowls and dishes fresh from the grill, served with the clean, produce-led flavours of Pacific-Rim cooking. It suits a working lunch as naturally as a Friday dinner, and the grandeur of The Ned’s banking hall provides an atmosphere that more casual restaurants simply cannot replicate. For those discovering The Ned for the first time, Kaia makes an excellent entry point before venturing into the building’s wider collection of restaurants and bars.

The name means “mother” in Osaka dialect, and chef-founder Moto Priestman — who arrived in London from Osaka in 1998 — has built Okan South Bank entirely around that idea of comfort and home cooking. Tucked inside the grand County Hall building with the London Eye just steps away, this intimate okonomiyaki canteen seats fewer than 20 diners, most of them at counter seats overlooking the open teppan grill. The tofu and kimchi okonomiyaki — with its pleasingly crispy crust, tangy kimchi and a generous squiggle of Kewpie mayo — is the dish to order, though the wagyu version gives it serious competition. A well-chosen sake selection and izakaya-style small plates complete the picture. Japanese rock plays in the background, and the South Bank has rarely felt so much like Osaka.

Burmese food remains one of London’s most distinctive and under-explored culinary corners, and Lahpet West End is the restaurant doing the most to change that. Founded by Dan Anton and Burmese-born head chef Zaw Mahesh — both of Burmese heritage — the concept began as a food stall at Maltby Street Market and earned critical acclaim at a Hackney warehouse before landing its most ambitious site in The Yards, near Covent Garden. Braised mutton curry with daikon pickle, hake masala alongside lemongrass and cassava rosti, and hearty fish noodle soup speak to Myanmar’s remarkable regional depth; a set feasting menu provides a structured route through the full kitchen for those who want the whole picture. For every bill, Lahpet donates £1 to Medical Action Myanmar, supporting healthcare access across the country. Book a table and experience a side of London dining the capital rarely does better.

The Poon family has one of the most storied names in London’s Chinese restaurant history — descended from a MICHELIN-starred legacy, the family’s restaurants helped define the capital’s Cantonese dining scene across several generations. Today, Poon’s at Somerset House carries that heritage into one of London’s most beautiful settings: the New Wing of the iconic riverside arts complex on Lancaster Place. The cooking is warmly personal, rooted in the flavours of home-cooked Cantonese cuisine — the kind of food that feels like a genuine invitation to the table rather than a performance. A summer terrace overlooking the Somerset House courtyard adds a particularly lovely dimension to the experience, and a late-night Siu Yeh menu caters to post-theatre arrivals. Book a table and enjoy the surroundings as much as the cooking.

The views from the terrace at Radio Rooftop — perched atop ME London on the Strand — are among the most dramatic in central London, taking in a panoramic sweep of the city from heated outdoor patios and a glass-fronted dining room. The kitchen matches the setting with a menu of modern Asian sharing plates: vibrant, well-constructed dishes designed for the table to work through together. The cocktail programme is the real talking point, with bartenders employing sous vide techniques to intensify flavour — the Mango Sticky Rice, built from Hennessy VS, pureed fresh mango and jasmine rice-infused coconut milk, is the signature serve. Resident DJs play Thursday through Saturday, curating progressive sets that keep the atmosphere charged deep into the night. Walking distance from the Novello Theatre, this is one of the Strand’s most compelling reasons to linger. Book a table with a view.

Singapore’s legendary hawker culture — street-side stalls added to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2020 — finds a vivid London home at Singapulah on Shaftesbury Avenue. The menu reads as a love letter to the Little Red Dot’s most iconic dishes: fragrant nasi lemak ayam goreng with coconut rice and a rempah-marinated fried chicken, handmade pork and prawn wonton mee with char siu and leafy greens, bak chor mee tossed in sambal and topped with fishballs and braised mushrooms, and a richly complex Singapore laksa built on coconut curry broth with king prawns and tau pok. Desserts push into equally bold territory — ice kacang layered with coloured syrups and red beans, and Mao Shan Wang durian ice cream for the adventurous. Shaftesbury Avenue is Theatreland, but Singapulah is a destination in its own right. Book a table for the full hawker experience.

Family is at the heart of Sasa Sushi, the neighbourhood sushi bar in Angel that has been serving the area since 2007. Founded by Mr Pham after 18 years training in top Japanese kitchens, the restaurant was kept afloat during the pandemic by his son Mark, who stepped in when his father became ill, put the business through a full refurb and a move to a new address, and today runs it alongside his sister. The current menu is concise and ingredient-led: classic nigiri, scallop and king crab sashimi, a spicy wagyu roll with a crispy exterior and tender, buttery centre, blackened cod marinated for 48 hours in miso, sake and mirin, and deep-fried soft shell crab in the Spider roll. Counter seats overlook the kitchen and bring a quiet theatre to every visit. The binchotan grill specials are worth exploring.