Kulu Kulu Sushi

Best sushi in a long time!
The staff was very nice and helpful. Affordable prices, easy to share the plates if, like us, you’re a company of two or more. Varied range of dishes, both meat and vegetarian and everything was done fresh in the middle of the conveyor belt.

Very fresh no frills sushi place in soho. Everything I tried there was delicious and prepared well. I would recommend trying all of the nigiri as kulu kulu has some of the freshest fish I have found in London. My top recommendations would be the soft-​shell crab hand roll, the scallop nigiri, the barbecued eel nigiri and the miso eggplant. The restaurant is conveyor belt style but the staff will gladly accommodate if there is anything else you fancy. I forced myself to try more exotic things, as I typically stick to tuna and salmon rolls. If you are going to be brave and try some different fish this is the place to do it.

Trying to grab plates of sushi off of a conveyor belt is definitely a fun dining experience. However, the food isn’t anywhere close to authentic Japanese cuisine. Most of the items are cooked foods (i.e. chicken teriyaki, fried tofu) rather than good quality sushi. However, if you are looking for a fun, quick dinner, this is a good place to go.

A little dissapointing. We got there 1 hour before closure and they were simply not putting new sushi on the belt, which we noticed after 10 minutes of sitting there and grabbing 1 – 2 plates from it. We ordered after that but not the best experience. They had run out of a lot of fish, basically only had tuna, eel and salmon left.
Inexpensive atmosphere but not so inexpensive sushi. Lingo around the corner is overall much better. Their sake is pretty good though. And some of the prepared rolls were good as well. Service was fine. May be better for busy lunch times.

Fresh sushi although not great variation and very basic preparation. Also the pieces of fish are chunky servings which defeats the delicate tasting of raw fish. Sushi and sashimi, in my opinion, should be several cuts of small sliced portions rather than a couple of big blocks of fish. The western looking guy needs more Asian schooling says a western from south America living in Australia.

I wanted to meet a friend in town, and I knew we had limited time. Scrolling my food list I realised I had never been Kulu Kulu. Ahhh… a conveyor belt sushi place. Now I know why. But I thought why not. I had been to some amazing places for sushi in Japan and amongst them was a conveyor belt place in Tokyo.
Now in Tokyo we used ipads to order straight to our seating. So it wasn’t necessarily conveyor belt but customised/​automated whatever you want to call it, to order.
Kulu Kula has roaming plates created in the center by sushi chefs. The one in Brewer St has non Japanese chefs. I’m always sceptical about this but in my old age have realised that it doesn’t mean they can’t cut, slice or on a wider scale do the food that is not instantly recognisable with them.
Some of the food I had:
PROS:
— I saw an Unagi nigiri! I had to get it and it was marinaded beautifully. Good start.
— The prawn Torpedo Roll was perfect. Hitting the spot with it’s mayo, rice and prawn.
— The aubergine miso. So soft and not too sharp. I’ve cooked this at home and this was balanced well.
CONS:
— The shrimp and the pork salad I spotted and just grabbed were OK. Nothing to shout about really.
This place is a quick stop off for lunch, though I’d be tempted to come back for Dinner if in a hurry and also for the novelty factor. As it was fun spotting plates and asking the chefs in the middle. They price the food by the style of the plates which is clever. It can add up but on the whole it was very reasonable with dishes from £2-£4 approx. A nice alternative to the long stay, fancy places you might find for Japanese food in town for sure.

Really disappointed and feeling unsatisfied. Kulu Kulu was once my go-​to sushi restaurant, if I wanted something quick and easy, no nonsense Japanese food, Kulu Kulu was it. I really like the whole conveyor belt idea, the quick served up ramen, and the noodle soup. The restaurant it self is small and I find it cosy, you watch the chef as he prepares the dishes. It reminded me a little bit of Tokyo. However tonight, I notice the menu had changed slightly and not for the better. Portions seems slight bigger and there were less seafood choices.
Smoked salmon was served on with some of the rolls, and what made me clinch my fist and bite my bottom lip was that, salmon still had its trimmings. There is NO EXCUSE. If you run a Japanese sushi restaurant, the chefs needs to know how to cut salmon for sushi. The rest of the dishes were just as botched up. Sushi rolls looked different shapes and sizes, no uniformity to sashimi slices, and where are all the lovely waitresses that use to work here? Presentation is loss. Taste wise very average, but my appetite had already gone after this point.
Its really a shame, I once use to eat here fortnightly, but tonight might be my last.

Unassuming place — you first enter and its a little run down, nothing fancy at all. Self service unlimited green tea… we sit by the conveyor belt and see all the different sushi /​sashimi /​tofu and other options come out and it’s fantastic. Cheap as well — would definitely go back. Great for a cheap, quick feed.

Don’t let the conveyor belt fool you, this is no Yo!
If, like some older reviews suggest, the quality of the food ever did take a dip, those days am to be long gone.
You will find a lot of less common and interesting dishes on the best many more mainstream places won’t bother with.
The fish is of superb quality and every plays only leaves you wanting for more.
Highly recommended.

REVIEWING FOR TAKEAWAY.
I’ve not yet sat in Kulu Kulu for lunch, but I have grabbed takeaway a couple of times on the way back to the office. For that, it’s a really great little find. The sushi is fresh and generous, with much larger portions than you’ll find in your average Itsu, Wasabi, etc. Much tastier than the usual takeaway places too! You can definitely taste how freshly prepared the food is.
The other advantage is the speed of service, I’ve been in a couple of times and usually my order is ready in under 5 mins.
As for price, today I bought 8 nigiri pieces (4 salmon, 4 tuna). and 4 pieces of salmon sashimi for just over £10. Rolls (8 pieces) are priced at around £7−8. Smaller individual portions are available around the £2−3 mark.

It’s a small place indeed, but the quality of food is exceptional IMHO. The fish is always fresh and the variety of the dishes is good.
Price-​wise is okay, I can’t eat as much as I do in Kulu Kulu in different places like Yo Sushi. Beverages may be expensive though.
Re the staff, don’t expect to see Japanese guy as the tradition would require.

Heureusement qu’on avait faim. Il n’y que le nom qui est japonais. Quand des sushis sont préparés par des indiens…

I’m surprised at the overall low rating for Kulu Kulu. I really like it here. Knowing it gets busy here, I usually come for late lunch or early dinner. It’s a no frills conveyor belt establishment, you help yourself to green tea and ask the chefs behind the counter if you want anything not on the conveyor belt ie. hand rolls. I could live on these hand rolls especially the soft shell crab ones. They are definitely worth the wait as they are made fresh. My word of caution is you really don’t have to greedy grab here as the portions are quite generous say compared to Yo Sushi, so sit back, relax a watch beautiful sushi move before your eyes.

According to me the sushi sets are tasty and mouth-​watering. Just before several minutes I saw in one article some interesting photos of one of the biggest seafood markets in the world Tsukiji, placed in Tokyo. I had no idea that the tuna is so expensive. Also it was a new thing for me that the average bluefin tuna yields 10 000 pieces of sushi.

Sadly I never had the opportunity to visit Kulu Kulu back when it used to be awesome at least according to the reviews taped on the inside of the shop window, but I am sure those days are gone!
I love sushi bars with conveyor belts but this one is a little too small and claustrophobic for my taste when packed by a few costumer so ordering take away is the only valid choice at this kulu kulu if you ask me. Also when the weather Gods allow it why not when the Golden Squares is just a few steps away!
The take away menu is quite adequate but it is always a plus when you can mix and match according to your own preference; my sister cannot live without Edamame! The Sushi sizes are generous and the fish is fairly fresh. The fish fillet on the Nigiris I ordered were nicely cut but the rice could have been boiled a little longer, packed a little lighter and with a more noticeable vinegar taste. The Unagi (eel) and Tako (squid) were the ones I enjoyed the most but this is not a memorable place or sushi to be honest! It is not bad but no way near what those decade old reviews promises! Honestly I feel Kulu Kulu becomes first and only a good bang for the buck when ordered to go! Eating inside will add nothing to the experience other than a much and to me unjustified larger hole in your wallet!

This sushi bar with is conveyor belt used to be one of the best in London. But sadly on a return visit I found that the quality has changed for the worse. The deep fried soft shell crab was extremly greasy.
The general quality of sushi has decreased and its well on its way to turning into another run of the mill sushi bar. Sad considering it has been around for over a decade.
I won’t be heading back until they raise their standards.

I had to find fresh sushi … at 6pm at night. My night would have been a disaster otherwise. Ok this may be a bit exaggerated, but I was on a mission. There are loads of sushi places on Brewer Street and around lunch time you can find amazing take away sushi in all sizes and flavours. Not so much around 6pm.
So I made the decision to go into Kulu Kulu Sushi and order my sushi directly, instead of taking it off the shelves. They were still open, they had customers and I could see that they had a kitchen. Like Sherlock I deducted that the sushi should be reasonable fresh.
The menu for takeaway is extensive and you can either go for a set menu or put your favourites together yourself. I decided on California rolls, a couple of maki rolls and also experimented with the spinach in peanut sauce. All of it came out of the kitchen reasonable fast and fresh. I have to say that it was good sushi. Not great, but not bad either!

Excellent restaurant où les sushis, makis et autres préparations sont délicieuses !! Elles passent sous votre nez sur un tapis roulant, et on est sans cesse tenté ! La note n’a pas été trop salée au final, mais nous n’avons pas beaucoup mangé.
J’ai également apprécié qu’on voit les chefs faire la cuisine !!

Being in London for a year now, you learn that the Picadilly Circus/​Soho/​Chinatown area is where you go for a good hole in the wall Ramen/​Sushi/​Don fix. After doing a little suit shopping for a new job on Regent Street, my heart set itself on a small snack of ramen.
I’ve walked past this place a couple of times and saw that it was relatively busy. I’ve even gone in once where I thought that it’s just a conveyor belt sushi place. This time round, I was determined to give this place a go.
You walk in, and you’re greeted by non-​Japanese people. While I’m totally for diversity in a business, it gets increasingly scary when you notice the sushi chefs, the wait staff and all but the manager of this place are not Japanese. A Japanese place not run by Japanese people?! Hmm… Ok… Maybe it’s still worth a shot. BUT proceed with caution is what Lumach (my new nickname for my stomach) said.
Ordered a tempura soba soup bowl, and an agadeshi tofu. The agadeshi tofu was freshly fried but the batter was not crispy brown. The tempura soba bowl was just lukewarm and the tempura, while also freshly fried was also done too quickly to produce any color or good taste.
The only saving grace of this place was that the tempura soba bowl was £3.10, and the agadeshi tofu £1.50. CHEAP. But you get what you pay for… The soba bowl was a medium size in japan, at best. I’d honestly rather walk down the street to Taro and get me a proper meal… but if you’re looking for a snack sized portion, I guess this would suffice.
As with all my reviews: Will I go back? Probably not, not when there are tons other places in the area that I like better.

My sister and her friend love this place as they came here often when they were living in the UK. I visited the place twice based on their recommendation. Second time it wasn’t as good as the first time. That was on december 30^th late in the day so I assume they were getting ready to close for the holidays.
It’s a cozy and small place. When you sit by the belt, you will easily touch elbows with the person sitting next to you. Not an ideal place for a group of more than 4. Even 4 might be pushing it depending on the time of the day!
If you go during early dinner hours, you may need to wait for a seat because of the business crowd they attract.
Overall, they seem to have a good selection of sushi and if you don’t see something on the conveyor belt but is on the menu, you can always tell the staff and they will ask the chefs to prepare a few servings and put them on the belt.
Probably the best experience I had was when I was sitting next to a pregnant Japanese lady. She talked to the staff about something and next thing I know, they had 3 plates of one of my favorite handrolls on the belt. As I tried to reach over and grab one of the plates, I bumped elbows with her and realized that this was her special order!!! So I let her took the first plate since she seemed to be craving this roll! I managed to grab the second one.
Best part of the place is that you can eat according to your budget. On the wall, they have all their serving plates with different designs and their respective prices. So you can pick things based on how much money you want to spend. Cheapest are the simplest maki rolls and the hand rolls are more on the higher price end. They also have 4 – 5 tables where you can sit and order from the menu. I think they have noodles and a few other things on their menu as well

I have to admit I didn’t get a chance to eat the sushi… I just drank tea actually. I was on a business trip and was so hungry on my train ride that I ate before meeting up with a friend for dinner. So this review is for the space.
HOW IT WORKS: you are seated along a convertible belt that the sushi travels along. Pick up any place you want. You can also special order items.
HOW YOU PAY: each sushi plate is on a different color coded plate. They add up the total at the end.
The fun part of watching the convertible belt was pretty neat. I’ve only seen it a few times before. We arrived before the mass crowd, there was easily a 30 min wait when we left. Not ideal for large groups because you can’t talk to each other as you are seated side by side.

J’adore les sushis! Et ceux-​là étaient vraiment bons. Dans ma quête pour trouver le meilleur sushi de Londres, je place Kulu Kulu en première place. Si je né me trompe pas, l’intérieur était sympathique, vraiment, on se croirait immergés au Japon du sushi.
Pour les amateurs des plats au poisson, crudités, saumons, vous serez servis! C’est un bon endroit aussi pour les végétariens, vous trouverez quelques salades exquises.
Le service est amusant, attention, la fois où j’y suis allée il y avait du monde, et en transportant la nourriture vers les places assises le long du mur, gare à la collision avec d’autres consommateurs :)
Les prix sont bien vu la qualité.
No sushi
PS: attention les sauces sont très «hot»

Te gusta el SUSHI???
Te gusta el pescado crudo o popularmente conocido como SUSHI, esta comida tipica japonesa es la especialidad de este pequeño restaurante londinense. Personalmente no me gusta esta comida, pero reconozco que es un lugar con mucha fama entre los amantes de este plato a base de pescado crudo y diversas salsas con especias. El precio por persona es un poco elevado