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**** (Four stars)
Nottingham, 1989: Cloughie’s Forest triumphing at Wembley, local house legend Graeme Park DJing at the Garage during the second ‘summer of love’… and authentic Japanese food arriving in the city thanks to Higoi. Yes, those were the days (nostalgia isn’t what it used to be) – and, fortunately, Higoi is still around to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
Established by head chef Mr Kato, this small, unassuming restaurant in the midst of studentville on Lenton Boulevard was a pioneering venture in the late Eighties. After all, where else in the East Midlands would you have found proper sashimi and sake? No wonder it garnered enthusiastic reviews from the national press at the time.
Nowadays, of course, you can buy sushi down your local supermarket. So how would this veteran of the Nottingham restaurant circuit compare to the likes of Yo! Sushi, Chino Latino and Wagamamas? We were ready to party like it was 1989…
First impressions, after ducked through the traditional cream curtains, into a small, uninspiring dining room, were that this place probably hasn’t changed much since Brother Beyond were bothering the charts. The homely mix of basic furniture, pinkish walls and eclectic collection of Japanese geisha prints and kabuki masks may lack the technological whiz of YO! and the glamour of Chino Latino’s – but Mr Kato’s lived-in lounge makes you hope that the food is the top priority. And the proportion of Japanese diners among the modest mid-week turn-out raised our expectations even higher.
There’s one table here where you sit on the floor Japanese-style, perched on leather cushions – it had to be done. The extensive – and, frankly, exciting – menu took a little working out, but the arrival of a sake lemon cocktail (£3.50) helped. Where to start? There are ‘dinner courses’ which is a set-meal deal: for instance, beef fillet steak and kara-age chicken (£25). Then there’s a good range of sushi and sashimi dishes, plus the ippinryoori (a la carte) selection, and the zensai (small plates such as gyoza dumplings at £5.50). Not to mention numerous accompaniments like soba noodles (£6.50).
Finally, serious Japanese foodies should book at least two days ahead for the kaiseki special tasting menu (£38 per person). Or, for a group, nabemono dishes (the do-it-yourself option around the table) such as sukiyaki with thin-sliced beef (£22 per person).
Chopsticks at the ready, my friend was thrilled by her choice of the chef’s special vegetarian dinner (£23). Plate after plate of interesting, innovative and occasionally baffling dishes – a blur of veggie delights: highlights included the ginger-infused tofu, fresh nigiri rolls, vinegar seaweed, and Japanese mushroom tempura. Only the avocado sashimi was slightly bland.
Meanwhile, powered by more sake (£9 per flask), I worked my way through other sections of the menu. From the Higoi special sushi selection, I was impressed by my nagoyan roll (£6.50): numerous slices of sushi containing scrumptious crispy breaded chicken and creamy salad with spicy miso sauce, artfully presented on a long plate – not the healthiest of sushi, but totally rewarding.
For my main, I went with moriawase (assorted) tempura of salmon, prawn, aubergine and courgette – all delicately battered, as you’d expect. However, the tentsuyu sauce (freshly grated ginger, radish, soy and seaweed) didn’t pack quite enough punch for my taste. Accompanying this, the moist, sticky gohan rice (£2) and inevitable miso soup (£2) were both the real deal. Even our ice cream dessert (£3.90) offered something different – a subtle green tea-infused tang.
Higoi is one of those rare restaurants that’ll keep you coming back for its myriad of possibilities (lucky Lentonites can even get takeaways here – 20% discount). It may take another couple of decades to get through that menu, but you’ll have fun trying. Here’s to another 20 years: kampai! David Sandhu
Higoi, 57 Lenton Boulevard, Nottingham. Tel: 0115 942 3379. Open Mon-Sat, 6.30-9.30pm.
Meal for two (with wine): £60