I kind of didn’t really want to like this place because it’s not very authentic but the sushi is just so darn good, especially for its price point. The venue itself isn’t much to look at, and walking in near closing time all the takeaway boxes were already gone. The chef was happy to accommodate me though and my order was made fresh in front of me. I was also given a free bbq salmon sushi to whet my appetite while I waited thanks to Unilocal’s check in offer. One tube ride and half an hour later I was sat at home with my new style sushi box. Each sushi had its own mini dressing and the perfect fish to rice ratio. The side salad that came with the sushi was surprisingly varied too and also came with its own dressing. 8 pieces was definitely not enough though and it left me empty and wanting more. I’ll be back sushi surprise!
Nadia L.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
A surprise this was! Don’t be fooled by its simple exterior and fridge case of what you think are just ordinary sushi boxes like you get in any cheap grocer. Nay. While the prices match these unexciting bland places, Sushi Surprise is not so! Firstly, I was excited by my free sushi surprise for checking in and within a moment, my mouth was just as excited! Ze master sushi chef handpicked a beautiful piece of salmon, drizzled teriyaki bbq sauce on it and then emblazened with a hand torch. Voila. A masterpiece in my mouth! Then, the very friendly lady at the cashier asked if I wanted the lunch special and when she realised I didn’t know what that was and asked if this was my first time, I got the miso soup for free! First timers get free miso soup, folks! So I walked away with my takeout, already happy with this discovery and THEN! When I tasted the sushi is when the real magic happened. So much flavour! So much subtle addition! I got the salmon, california, and kim chee rolls for £4.50 and each one of these was incredible and better than anything I’ve ever gotten in a box. Like Pamela said, I almost felt guilty about adding soy sauce to the rolls as it may obscure some of these flavours and not do it justice!(and I looove soy sauce too!) Can’t wait to try all their other sushi and be treated to more surprises!
Nikhil S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
Hidden gem of a spot. I highly recommend eating in at the little table next to the sushi counter.
Jurgen D.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Oooh so again if you hadn’t figured this out yet I am new to working in the city. Having popped in here for the Unilocal festival offer a few weeks ago I have now become a regular visit to this little gem. From their delicious dumplings to their marvellous maki what really makes this place stand out is their daily sushi surprise. Always unique… always tasty. The surprise often pulls in flavours you wouldn’t associate with suishi but never disappoints. favourite so far involved some seared tuna and truffle… I mean truffle is always a good thing by in their capable hands it was a triumph. So if you’re in the city and looking for an alternative sushi surprise I highly recommend you pop on by
Pammie R.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Dartford, United Kingdom
This is hands down the best sushi in London. HANDSDOWN. Sushi Surprise is located about a five minute walk from Shoreditch High Street and as I’m in the area quite often, I’m so happy I’ve found this place. No longer will I trudge to Tesco Espress or Pret for lunch because I don’t want to pay £20 for a burger and there’s nothing else around! No longer will I struggle to find something filling and fresh for lunch! No longer will I be stuck looking for somewhere to take my fiancé out for lunch! They have a range of sushi boxes at a range of different prices. You can get the freshest pepper, avocado and cucumber sushi in a box of nine pieces for £4.50 or upgrade to a salmon nigiri box for £9.50 and everything in between. I had a salmon, crab and kimchi selection, the vegetable selection and then a sushi surprise of feta with truffle oil and every single bit of it was delicious. So delicious that you don’t even need soy sauce, and for me that’s a big thing. I LOVE soy sauce. The thing that makes Sushi Surprise special is the surprise. Every day, they create a new type of sushi and offer it to you for £1.50 or £1 with a box. And it’s ALWAYS delicious. I tried the feta and truffle and then also a barbeque one. I normally hate barbeque but that bit of sushi was beautiful. Beaaauuuttiful. The sushi master here blowtorches the top of his sushi to part cook it. It’s a new thing but it 100% improves the taste. I’ve never had warm sushi but it’s a truly pleasant thing. If you’re in the area, if you work in the area or hell, even if you’re not, it’s worth travelling to. Seriously. BEST. SUSHI. IN. LONDON. Try it. NOW.
Robert W.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
Sushi Surprise is probably the best value sushi place in London. I came here a couple of weeks ago on a UYE(unofficial Unilocal event). I’d heard really good things about this place, so joined a small group of Unilocalers to try it out. The chefs here have been trained at high end London Sushi restaurants like Yashin and The Arts Club. I’s a very small place with a limited amount of high stool tables. I think most of the lunchtime trade is local workers, who take the boxes away and eat back at their workplace. They have a great lunchtime offer, where you order a main and get miso soup for an additional £1, or a surprise for £1. You can have both for an additiona £1.80. The great thing is, that if you check in with the Unilocal app, you get the surprise free. For the surprise included flame seared sushi, where the chef prepared in front of us. The spicy tuna rolls were really tastey. I loved them. They also offer a hot selection, which changes, so you need to ask them or check online to find out what the hot dish of the day is. It’s hard the believe that this is an independent establishment, as it has the feel of being part of a chain. In fact the place is so good, I’ve a feeling that is the first of many Sushi Surprises that will be sprining up over London. Highly recommend Sushi Suprise. It was even worth dragging my limbs from the other side of London to try it out. I will be back!
Daniel F.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Tucked away In the heart of Shoreditch is this little sushi joint @sushisurpriseuk a nice special array of nigiri here with some elements like bbq or avocado on top that was created specially for #yelptoberfest The fish was fresh and well put together with care. Will be back to visit and try more if in area.
Leza S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Unfortunately I managed to pop into Sushi Surprise when they were about to close but the manager was happy to sort me out. I think I had a 12 piece premium roll selection with king prawn, crab stick and asparagus. It tasted really good. The king prawn roll was my favourite, the crab was good too, but I’m not a huge fan of asparagus so didn’t like it that much. However I would be very happy to munch on the prawn and crab rolls all day every day. The best thing about the sushi is that they tasted good, were fresh and you could tell they were made with care as Sushi Surprise have they’re own individual style in presenting their food, which makes them stand out from the rest. The staff are friendly, it’s small venue but I like the look of it and there’s a couple of tables and stools if you want to eat in. I’ll definitely be back to try some more.
Alan M.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
All your favourites are here. There was also a fantastic sweet and smoky glazed tuna sashimi. I will be back for more of that.
Claire R.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
Having heard a lot about this place I was very excited to try the sushi, and I was not disappointed! The flavours and combinations on offer were sublime — fresh, tangy tuna; silky salmon; delightful butterfish. The vegetarian nigiri were also great — I loved the combination of crunchy fresh peppers and creamy avocado in the ones I selected.
Joy L.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
I brought two friends here and wow, what amazing sushi! I got the tuna set, miso soup, and the salmon set. My favourite is definitely the salmon. The guy behind the counter took his sweet time to grill the salmon with a flame gun, which was awesome to watch in a small takeaway place like this. Ideal place for lunch if you work around here :)
Ray C.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Indeed this place was a surprise! Finally, I’ve found good sushi in London! There are very few places that I would recommend for sushi in London and this is one of them. Usually it’s a mound of rice, badly rolled with soft fillings… however not here! They had a lovely fresh selection which was beautifully, artistically made, stuffed with fresh, crunchy and fillings and topped with yummy fresh fish. I absolutely love that they have the fridge stockers, but will make you hot food(including Gyoza) and other fresher items to order. I couldn’t help but drool at the cut fish and imagine what these offerings would taste like. Why is this place not closer to me for lunch? As it was close to closing time, we opted for the premium roll selection(around £12 eat in) from the fridge, and have to say that the veggie special roll was my favourite — so fresh and crispy! However the dragon roll and rainbow roll were also fantastic. Melting in the mouth and so flavourful. A good tip is that they offer these 2 for 1 at the end of the day(great if you’re happy to hedge your bets and have an early dinner)… Also being lucky enough to check in with the Unilocal #YelptoberFeast we received a free salmon nigiri selection, which was absolutely delicious. It came beautifully seared and presented. I could easily have finished off a stack of those! I hope they start offering them as standard(the’re not on the menu). The staff were also very friendly and informative, and I left bulging at the seams. A great place, with real fast food at its best… especially with take away an option. I really recommend you check these guys out, they are well worth going off the beaten track for.
Roy G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Fresh fish, friendly service and great 2for1 deal if coming late in the day. It very good for a take away joint, and you can ask for stuff to be made fresh for you.
Matt R.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Crayford, London, United Kingdom
I had two boxes… Because, well… SUSHI! I got the special roll selection(crab, salmon and herring rolls) along with some Miso and WOW was that amazing! The rice was a perfect measure of soft and sticky, holding together amazingly when held with the chopsticks. All of the fish was amazingly fresh and gorgeously glazed. I normally LOVE soy sauce on my sushi but this was so perfect it didn’t need anything else. It gets a little busy at lunch time, but thats just a testament to how amazing it is. If you’re in the area you HAVE to go in here! This place really is as good as it gets!
Calvin T.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Southwark, United Kingdom
Best Sushi take out I have tried so far in London. It is affordable and better than any other big chains. The cut of the meat for their Nigiri selections are generous and unlike many other big chains, the fish are fresh and it does not smell at all. Highly recommended!
Mark T.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
Why has it taken me so long to find out about this place!!! Located about 5 minutes from Liverpool Street I’m seriously tempted to have lunch here every day. I’ve tried a couple of different things now and I can’t fault a single one. From the free Miso soup on my first visit, 2 different chef’s surprises(check in on the Unilocal app or pay £1) to the salmon and avocado rolls everything has been absolutely delicious. The highlight for me though was the tuna selection. 8 spicy tuna rolls and 3 tuna nigri for less than £9. An absolute steal. They have all of the fresh fish in the counter for the sashimi and this is what I’ll be trying next as I doubt I will get better for an affordable price. I can’t recommend Sushi Surprise enough and I’ll even go as far as to say that this is the best I’ve had in London. See you there!
Grant T.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Enfield, United Kingdom
I went here clearly expecting a slightly-better-than-Wasabi experience. Because I knew it was small, and they did stuff pre-packaged. But slightly better than Wasabi is still good right? So when we arrived, I saw it was tiny and that they told us there that we could select something out of the fridge. Or there was hot food. Or they had a few other things on the menu. For lunch, you can add Miso or a sushi surprise for £1(£2 for both), but if you check in on your lovely Unilocal app, the surprise is free. Ours turned out to be some blowtorched salmon and sun dried tomato nigiri sushi. And it was delicious. Because I’m insane and willing to spend a ridiculous amount of money on lunch, I opted for the sashimi platter. And some kimchi. Which isn’t Japanese, but I love the stuff(plus vegetables, right?). The cashier warned me the kimchi was hot, but I didn’t believe him. Because I like my hot food to blow my face off, and I knew it wasn’t going to be that hot.(And it wasn’t, but it was still spicy and delicious). My sashimi came out. It was FLIPPINGGORGEOUS! Looked great on the plate and each piece came with something unusual. The tuna had some pickled wasabi on top. Yum. There were some crunchy bits and mayonnaise-y bits and other bits, and it was all delicious.(I even tried someone’s gyoza. Also delicious.) Also some nice miso soup. It’s a small venue(maybe 8 or 9 chairs in total), and even if you«eat in» and order from the menu, everything is served on throwaway plastic or paper crockery. So doesn’t expect anything extravagant. What you can expect is some delicious sushi. Also don’t expect a huge amount of variety. There isn’t. But what there is is really good.
Alex S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
Surprise! Amazing take away sushi in London. And I am surprised, for sure. I was not sure what to expect when we came to try this place, and when I walked in and saw a one room take-away spot reminiscent of an Itsu, I wondered if I was in the right place from all the amazing reviews. But I am indeed, because the food here speaks for itself. Grab a thing of sushi to go or, if you have some time, stick around and sit at one of the very small three tables in the space and ask them to make you something fresh, because the fresh sushi is delicious. We did Dragon Rolls, Ebi Tempura, and a nice mix of salmon and California and all of them were great. Just great. And they even do a «surprise» for a pound(or a Unilocal check in), which for us included flame seared sushi made in front of us, which was awesome and delicious. I can’t stress what everyone else has said here — it’s excellent take away sushi, maybe the best in London. Enjoy!
Ellie K.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
I am completely in love with Sushi Surprise, more than that, infatuated. I have been three times this week already. I officially have a sushi problem… This cute little sushi venue is about a 1 minute walk behind Itsu on Great Eastern Street. Why are you going to Itsu? Stop right now! Sushi Surprise has the fattest, freshest fish, lovingly prepared, and the rice is cooked to perfection, like little jewels of joy. Once you’ve tasted the quality and freshness on offer here you’ll never want to go back to any of the chain sushi restaurants. The prices seem a little sporadic, but look closer and you’ll see it’s priced directly by the cost of the fish on offer. I regularly pick up the salmon/avocado rolls & nigiri lunch set for a VERY reasonable £4.90. Cheaper and bigger than Itsu, and SO much tastier. The tuna boxes are a little more, and then there are a bunch of specials to choose from which range from around £6 to £9.50. They look simply incredible. The chef clearly loves his job, and chats to me like a regular. I sometimes partake in one of his little cheeky ‘surprises’ and it always delights. Give it a try, it will change your mind about sushi forever.
Mital P.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
What a lovely little place! I found this place via Unilocal,but can’t believe I haven’t spotted it before as it’s quite distinctive. All this time I’ve been nipping out to Abokado to get lunch when I could have been going here! The sushi is excellent. The staff are really nice, and it’s really quiet, so handy for a quiet lunch with a friend or two. There’s only very limited seating but they’ll happily make you a fresh dish if you go in to sit down. Even the ready-made packs are freshly made that morning though. I will definitely be going here again, and taking colleagues too!