Ubon

[cet2055]

I am traveling from NYC to London this weekend. I am considering going to Ubon. Does it have generally the same menu as Nobu? How does it compare to Nobu?

Thanks.

[Fat Guy]

Has something changed in London recently? Last time I was there, the restaurant was called Nobu (in the Metropolitan Hotel) and it had the standard Nobu menu. I know there was an Ubon opened in Los Angeles but I was not aware of such in London.

[cabrales]

cet2055 -- This is my third post today. However, given that you are traveling over the weekend: Ubon has largely the same menu as Nobu London. And Nobu London has a similar menu to Nobu NY, Vegas, etc. (leaving aside the question of whether there is time lag with menu changes, a point on which I do not have sufficient data.) There is an Ubon near Canary Wharf -- it is literally within 3 minutes of the Four Seasons there. One can order omakase (chefs' choice) like at any other Nobu, and that will include some of the usual suspects. One enters through an iron gate that leads to a path, so don't miss that if you decide to go. One can order black cod with miso, tiradito, some of the sushi/sashimi items. The dessert in the omakase as of 2Q 2002 was the same bento box with the chocolate cake with runny interior and green tea ice cream. I heard third hand that there might be more udon (thick noodle) and other noodle dishes, but did not focus on that aspect of the menu when I visited.

If you are from a city in the US with a Nobu restaurant, I would not necessarily find Ubon appealing as it is not that differentiated from affiliated establishments. How about La Tante Claire (unclear whether open for lunch on weekends) or Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road (RHR is closed on weekends) for lunch? They have decent deals, assuming you do not order excessively on wine. The Capital comes heavily recommended by other board members, and is definitely open Sunday lunch. If it were up to me, I would visit a restaurant unaffiliated with Nobu. If you are interested in recommendations, consider providing some indication of what you like (apart from Nobu).

[Fat Guy]

Cabrales, thanks for recognizing a "necessity" exception to your rule, as I'm sure the information is appreciated by cet2055.

Someone e-mail Starchefs and tell them their listings are incomplete:

http://starchefs.com/NMatsuhisa/html/restaurants.shtml

[cet2055]

Thanks. I am putting my restaurant fate in the hands of a local I am going to visit once the weekend starts, so I probably don't need recommendations. I have to go from the airport straight out to Canary Wharf for a meeting on Friday and was planning on getting something at Ubon beforehand unless I heard something drastically negative on here.

[Fat Guy]

Finally found Nobu Matsuhisa's own Web site at

http://www.nobumatsuhisa.com/flash/home.html

and unfortunately the navigation is too screwy to determine which restaurant's menu is which. Also noticed that the official name of the Canary Wharf restaurant is "Ubon by Nobu."

[Gavin Convery]

As it happens this weekend is the Waitrose Food Festival at Canary Wharf, starting Friday 23rd...so maybe you'd be better off wandering round there and grabbing some stuff off the food stalls, unless you need a sit down meal.