In a city where restaurants abound, it helps to have an expert’s advice on which ones are worth your time, money and appetite. Here, Justin Tsang gives us his top picks.
It’s not for lack of trying, but eating your way through every restaurant in London is, sadly, a fool’s errand. What you need, then, is some gentle direction, preferably from someone who knows their way around a kitchen as well as a menu.
If East Asian food is what you’re after, there’s no better guide than Justin Tsang (@justin_the_dustbin), the self-taught chef and author of the Sunday Times bestseller Long Day? Cook This.
Born in London to Chinese restaurateurs, Justin grew up surrounded by the clatter of kitchens. “I’d go straight there after school and spend the evening doing my homework,” he says. “But I wasn’t interested in cooking then, or even the food.”
He laughs now, remembering how he felt about his packed lunches. “I had a bit of an identity crisis as a kid. I remember bringing in a five-layer tiffin of something stir-fried, rice, soup, vegetables. Everyone else was eating curly fries and pizza, I was so jealous.”
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But by the time Justin was 15, that had changed. “I started missing my mum’s cooking. My friends were all discovering other cuisines and I realised how much of my own culture and heritage I’d overlooked,” he says.
“So, I started working in my parents’ restaurants and learning all their recipes. I realised I had the world to explore, and that’s where my love of food really began.”
That grounding in traditional technique and flavours – coupled with a restless curiosity and a knack for online storytelling – has turned Justin into one of London’s rising culinary voices. His East Asian recipes, often with a playful twist (sometimes British, sometimes entirely unexpected) regularly rack up thousands of views on Instagram and have made his debut book a go-to for home cooks seeking flavour, ease and a little expertise.
With that in mind, we asked Justin to share his favourite East and Southeast Asian restaurants in London – the ones he goes back to, time and again.
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Justin Tsang’s favourite East and Southeast Asian restaurants in London
1. Song Que Café, Hoxton
An East London institution, Song Que Café sits on a corner of Kingsland Road, a stretch of Hoxton famed for its run of Vietnamese restaurants. For Justin, it’s the best of the lot.
Inside, the interiors haven’t changed much in over two decades. The walls are painted a nostalgic pastel lime green, adorned with near-holographic paintings: galloping horses, traditional scenes and a few that feel plucked out of a 70s diner. The atmosphere is always loud and lively, amplified by the wide, open space and floor-to-ceiling windows. In a way, it feels more like a canteen than a restaurant, which fits Justin’s description of the place: “real, no-frills Vietnamese food.” Not that it’s a secret – the place is always packed.
The menu is broad and unfussy, heavy on pho, broths, spring rolls and vermicelli noodles. Turn it over to find images of a select few dishes that will make it even harder to choose because, simply, everything just looks so good. But if you stray too far into fusion territory, don’t be surprised if the server gently steers you back to something more traditionally Vietnamese.
2. Lanzhou Lamian, Covent Garden
Near Leicester Square, Lanzhou Lamian may not look like much from the outside – the kind of place you might mistake for a run-of-the-mill buffet – but behind its modest front lies what many consider to be the city’s best spot for freshly hand-pulled noodles.
Named after the traditional beef noodle soup from China’s Lanzhou province, these hand-pulled noodles are the restaurant’s speciality. Choose between la mian – hand-stretched and folded into thick strands – or dao xiao mian, where dough is shaved directly into boiling water for broad, uneven ribbons.
“It’s where the London chefs go for late-night munchies after a shift,” says Justin. Open into the early hours, it serves up generous portions at pocket-friendly prices – and even if you show up at 4am on a Friday, your noodles will still be made fresh to order.
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3. Kiku, Mayfair
Since 1978, Kiku has been serving traditional Japanese food to Londoners. It was founded by Hisashi Taoka, whose family has been in the hospitality trade since 1864 running a traditional ryokan (inn) in Japan.
The restaurant first opened in Shepherd Market in Mayfair, where it quickly became a favourite within the Japanese community in London. As interest in the cuisine grew, so did Kiku’s reputation – and in 1999, it moved to its current location nearby on Half Moon Street.
Now London’s oldest family-run Japanese restaurant, Kiku is widely considered one of the best places in the city for traditional sushi. “It’s like walking into a traditional Tokyo eatery,” Justin says.
Whether seated at the sushi counter or in one of the private back rooms, diners can expect beautifully presented dishes, prepared with impeccable precision and the freshest quality produce.
4. Ye Ye Noodle & Dumpling, Spitalfields
Tucked down a narrow passage near Liverpool Street, stepping into Ye Ye Noodle & Dumpling feels a bit like wandering into someone’s kitchen to escape the rain – all rustic decor, wood-panelled walls and soft, warm lighting.
That hidden-away feeling adds to its charm. Generous portions, traditional cooking techniques and sensible prices have earned Ye Ye a loyal following, and a spot on Time Out’s list of the best Chinese restaurants in London.
Hand-pulled wheat noodles served in rich broths, tender braised beef and sticky pork ribs are among the menu’s favourites. Justin’s go-to order? Soup dumplings, crispy-bottom bao buns, a side of saucy noodles and tender beef.
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5. Kiln, Soho
While most might expect, and even accept, astronomical prices in Soho, Kiln remains surprisingly affordable. Despite its prime location and modern Thai-fusion approach, the vibe at Kiln is far from pretentious, though the polished concrete and low lighting do lend it an understated central London buzz.
Watch the open kitchen as Thai-inspired dishes are cooked over a wood fire – smoked, grilled or flash-fried at high heat – to deepen flavours, intensify spice and create the kind of crisp textures that let herbs and aromatics take the fore.
The menu shifts, but expect dishes like barbecue beef with radish, beetroot and daikon salad, smoked kipper curry or Tamworth loin chop with galangal relish. The grilled chicken and skewers are consistently popular, but if you ask Justin (and you should), the claypot crab glass noodles are the standout.
Feature image: Pexels
