Japan Deli/Little Samsi

I have only had the chance to get their delivery takeout service but the food is always beautiful and tasty, big portions but if you’re feeling extra hungry they also offer a super size which is amazing too.
The sushi is lovely, I always tend to go for the chefs 8 piece and there is always a really good variety with it. The pricing just makes the experience 10x better, it makes it so that if I get a craving for it I can always get some of their amazing food.

LIttle Samsi, now renamed ‘Japan’ as of a few weeks ago, is a lovely little hidden treasure just outside Withington village, across the road from the Red Lion. It only has seating for around 20 — 25 people at any one time, and thus fills quite quickly but if you pick your timings carefully then it’s not too difficult to get a seat. Prime time for me has normally been at around 9pm, but at any time outside usual munching hours (such as 12 – 13.30 ish, and 6 – 7.30ish) it seems to be easy enough to get a seat and eat some of their totally scrumptious food.
Considering the pint-​sized nature of this establishment, their selection is quite extensive, including their wicked-​cool O-​Bento boxes, each element of which can be chosen by you so it comes exactly as you want it — massive gold star for that from this fussy eater! You can choose the meat/​veggie option (of which there are two! Hoorah!!), the sauce and there are two type of rice as well as two types of noodle to choose from. Brilliant eh?! They also have five types of ramen which I simply adore (I opted for the ramen with vegetable gyoza — a very reasonable £5.50), sushi coming out of their ears (you can buy a Chef’s 32 piece special if you’re SUPER hungry!), curry rice and curry noodle dishes, as well as fusion sandwiches such as the Yakisoba Sandwich which is a chicken noodle sandwich. A little bit of something for anyone and everyone methinks!
They have a little shop section where I was kindly gifted the sweet treats «Hello Panda» — a delightfully adorable panda shaped biscuity tastefest. I love them. Lots. But they also have noodles, sauces, spices and other essential make-​it-​at-​home ingredients at a reasonable price. Though, of course, there aren’t the same bargains which can be found at the Chinese supermarkets such as Wing Yip, but it is less than ten minutes walk from my house and I am lazy enough to be willing to pay for the convenience!
The service there has always been provided with a smile and a chat without being intrusive in such an intimate setting, and the smells drifting through the seating area from the very nearby kitchen gets those tastebuds going before you even receive your food. Yum yum! It is worth noting that they don’t have any alcohol for sale in the restaurant, but they kindly informed us that we were welcome to just pop across to the off license across the road and bring in any booze we may want. And I didn’t see a corkage charge on the bill, which was great! If you’re not bothered about having a wee tipple with your scran though, they have a selection of soft drinks for you to buy including a very tasty aloe vera type effort which is initially strange, but very refreshing as an accompaniment to a meal.
All in all, this is a lovely change from the usual places I go to for food in Withington, and I would definitely be more than happy to entertain friends or family in this quaint little eastern treasure.

This Samsi might be Little, but great things come in small packages. Hey, you may hear that a lot in life, I know… but in this case it’s absolutely true! The baby of the Samsi family in Manchester, I wholeheartedly agree with other Unilocalers that it certainly holds its own and maintains the quality of its big siblings. From the moment I walked in I was treated exceptionally well, to the extent that when I offered for them to keep the change, they told me to take it as it was my first time there and I should see what I thought of the food first.
Where else do you get that?!?
And the food was all kinds of awesome. I grabbed some take-​out for the evening — a bit of yaki roba and ramen soup, gyoza dumplings and a little selection of sushi. It was freshly made and fragrant, and ready within mere minutes. All for less than 20 squid. Delicious! I’ll certainly be back for the lunchtime Bento deals, and it’s right round the corner from my apartment too. South Suburbs, how many delights can you possibly have for me?

Little Samsi, is (please excuse the cliché) such a gem. Located on Wilmslow road at the back of Withington and opposite the Red Lion pub, it is tucked away and at a glance looks like any other one of the other takeaways that line the streets of South Manchester.
When you walk in, it feels kind of like you are in someone’s kitchen, it feel really undiscovered but not that promising, but when you order, and your food arrives, all thoughts of negativity fly out of your head. The sushi is phenomenal. It’s so fresh and made right in front of you. There is a surprisingly large range of fish to choose from for such a small little café; from sea bass to octopus they’ve got it all.
To completely contradict myself, one thing they don’t sell is alcohol. I really don’t mind this though as I think that sushi feels so healthy that having a pint with it seems like a bit of an oxymoron.
Little Samsi is not at all expensive either; it is around £2.50 for 2 pieces of Nigiri sushi. Not only does it sell Sushi but also acts as a kind of Japanese corner shop selling things like Aloe Vera water, Wasabi and sushi making kits.
If you are looking for something a little bit different in the Withington area then Little Samsi is your place.

I’m a big fan of original little places that strike out and claim their own territory amidst their competitors. Little Samsi is a sushi place that is related to the bigger Samsi places in the city, but instead chooses to be a small café that serves good food at good prices. Already we’re off to a good start then. Throw in friendly service and a wide selection and you end up with an original place that succeeds through its bravery. Definitely worth visiting if you’re a fan of Japanese or ethnic foods and live nearby.

As Alfie says, don’t expect a smart restaurant. Do expect decent Japanese food at reasonable prices. Until I just discovered their website, I didn’t know that Little Samsi was a relation to the Samsis in the city centre. I just assumed that ‘samsi’ was the Japanese equivalent of the Chinese ‘wing’ and appeared in all restaurant names.
The menu is varied but concentrates mainly on sushi (I am not brave enough to order the octopus sushi), noodles and bento boxes. The bento boxes are really good value for money — for £4 you get a box filled with your choice of main, sauce, rice /​noodles and a potato salad. Everything is prepared fresh and there are plenty of options for vegetarians including miso soup, vegetable dumplings, veggie curry and vegetable yaki soba.
You can order online (though the service is down at the time of writing) or on the phone as long as you give them 20 – 30 minutes notice.

Little Samsi is one of 4 Samsi restaurants in the Manchester area and the others are all in town. Whilst the others are quite upmarket restaurants, this miniature version is just a small café. It doesn’t serve alcohol, only has a few tables and has a smaller menu, practically only serving sushi. These are by no means criticisms though, as it shouldn’t be compared to its parent restaurants. It’s a completely different experience.
Continuing the comparison for a moment, the sushi is the same quality as the posher versions of the place and considerably cheaper, from less than £2 per item. There is an extremely wide selection to choose from. It comes on an authentic Japanese platter with the usual ginger, wasabi and soy, but also with a variety of unusually flavoured pots of sesame seeds to sprinkle on your rice. The plum flavoured one certainly compliments soy nicely.
The lack of alcohol is made up for by a supply of unusual drinks including not just hot Japanese tea but a refreshing cold version as well. The décor is authentic and it’s a lovely place to enjoy a nice long session of sushi consumption. If you’re feeling really adventurous try the salmon roe, which are extremely strong fish eggs. In my experience it’s a good idea to order the chef’s specials, which means you don’t get to choose what you’re having but are guaranteed a variety of weird and wonderful sushi and sashimi. As its all nice, you cant go too far wrong (reserving judgement of the salmon roe).
If you love it as much as I did you can visit their supermarket in town and try producing some of their delicacies for yourself!

Lovely little place with very helpful staff. Open till VV late too.

Fantastic addition to the food & drink amenities in Withington, and yet again one up on posher neighbour Didsbury.
This is owned by the Samsi team who’s main store (and restaurant) is situated on Whitworth street in Manchester (they also have a place in Wilmslow).
It’s tag line is ‘the first Japanese Eat and Go in the North West’ — not entirely sure what that means but I’ll go along with it for the time being. The majority of stocked items (if not all) are imported directly from Japan and it’s a visual feast if anything. With this in mind, you’re best off asking for the items rather than attempting to work out what they actually are. In fact on a recent trip there as soon as I got back I’d almost forgotten which bottle was Miso and which was oil (they look almost identical!); a marker pen on the label with in English should sort this.
A Japanese ‘takeaway’ is far removed from most of the late night/​post sesh fare: the menu here is just about as healthy as you could ever wish for especially if taste is paramount (seeds and dried fruit stores may not apply).
Soups, sushi, wraps, noodle dishes, curry dishes followed by Japanese cakes and teas make this is a one stop haven for your Nippon scran needs. Alongside the food menu sits a whole ‘Japanocopia’ of oils, sauces, pastes, rice, soy and other generally handsome, yet eccentric products.
A slight disappointment for me was down to them not stocking any Sake on the day I went in for ingredients for a Japanese recipe I was to cook later in the evening. Under ‘Japanese Food and Drink’ on Family Fortunes this would definitely be listed by one hundred people and find it’s way in the top five surely? I know Monkhouse San, Bygraves San and Dennis San would both agree with me on this one, whilst Kay San would probably throw out some pie of a joke from his mouth area.
Luckily a nearby supermarket helped me out here and hopefully this was an out of stock issue rather than oversight (or even a licensing issue? — will check up on that front).
Little Samsi is open till ten each evening which is a bonus for sushimi folk unable to get here during normal working hours.