The Nobu brand, in a word? Dependable. Nobu Matsuhisa’s Japan-via-USA restaurant empire both draws celebrities and is a celebrity itself, but it’s best regarded for its high-quality dining: nearly 30 years after it opened, Nobu’s Park Lane spot remains one of London’s best places for sushi.
These days Nobu isn’t just a restaurant chain but a hotel brand too, with two outposts in London. The Shoreditch one, which opened in 2017, was the first of these – not just London’s first Nobu hotel (since followed by Nobu Portman Square in Marylebone) but the first in all of Europe.
The greatest compliment one can pay to this place is that the dependability of the Nobu name transfers seamlessly from restaurant to hotel. This is a sleek and comfortable choice, a beacon of minimalist taste in the midst of Shoreditch’s gaudy pick-me bars and tech-bro co-working spaces.
Nobu as a chain is Nippon-by-’Murica, and its hotels are too – Japanese style meets American comfort and convenience. From the front Nobu Shoreditch resembles a Pacific battleship, from the side it’s a hillside Kyoto villa. And inside the hotel offers plenty of that same cultural middle ground: polished black wood, sleek furniture and a tea set in every room, but also huge plasma TVs, delightful staff and an in-house spa.
All aided, of course, by housing a Nobu restaurant, the chain’s third in London. You know exactly the deal here: a spoiled-rich clientele, sure, but also generous portions, attentive service (I did exceptionally well given my situation, with a fish allergy in a very, very fishy place) and powerfully rich, tasty food. Even if breakfast was oddly plain, a Nobu restaurant is quite the asset for any hotel.
Is staying at Nobu Shoreditch a faultless experience with wall-to-wall luxury? Not quite. Seven years since it opened parts of the hotel certainly show some wear and tear, and it’s all noticeably, well, a bit dark. There’s certainly character in draining the place of light, in shunning the sun for artsy purposes, but enough light to read my book at night would be nice.
Neighbourhood
Just behind Great Eastern Street, Nobu Shoreditch is on the way from Old Street to attractions like Shoreditch High Street, Brick Lane and Spitalfields market.
Nearby
- Village Underground. Once a Victorian warehouse, now one of London’s best music venues. Unmissable thanks to its Jubilee line carriages on the roof.
- Old King’s Head. ‘Shoreditch’s friendliest pub’ is an immensely pretty but entirely faff-free boozer.
- Photobook Café Coffee, exhibitions, book launches and honking great coffee table books filled with nice pictures.
Time Out Tip
Get down to the bar before dinner (from 5pm-7pm) for ‘Kanpai Happy Hour’, with cocktail, wine and fancy bites for a fraction of their usual price.