Bargain Bite! - Dotori

It's not normally the best idea to eat directly around Finsbury Park station (best to wander further along Stroud Green or towards Highbury). But there is a saving grace. Just at the end of Stroud Green Road, right by the bus station, is a modest Korean restaurant called Dotori.

I've tweeted about this place a fair bit - and it was 5th place in my Top Ten London Restaurants of 2010 - but it warrants a spot on the blog for three very simple reasons:

1) The flavours in the dishes are beautifully balanced.

2) The portions are very generous (if you have the chilli calamari you'll know what I mean).

3) It is great value for money.

At first the menu looks a bit ambitious because of the amount of options they offer. But each time I've been they have delivered gorgeous food without fail. Dotori do the traditional stone pot Bibimbap dishes, a huge selection of sushi plates, bento, soups, noodle dishes and stews.

The king prawn and vegetable tempura is comforting, sizeable and the batter on the king prawns is so light and crispy it makes the dish filling but not stodgy.

The restaurant is quite tiny. I think they take bookings but if there's two or three of you, you can usually get a table pretty swiftly. Or if you're going solo - even better. There's some stalls to perch at by the window. The staff are friendly, efficient and happy to help. There's also an added bonus of fresh orange segments to cleanse your palette when the bill comes. Nice touch!

Go and visit Dotori if you're stuck for somewhere to grab a bite near Finsbury Park, you'll be pleased when you do!

Sushi Centre

That subheading probably comes across like I'm referring to a large place where much activity occurs involving a mass of Sushi with (pro)portions to settle a hundred growling bellies, but as much as I'd like such a place to exist, I'm going to lead you down a path to a humbler restaurant at Centre Point.

Yes, odd as it may sound, the Centre Point Sushi Cafe is a must for anyone who loves Sushi. I'm not talking about pre-packaged or conveyor belt basics here, I'm on about the expertly rolled, cut, cooked and presented Sushi in an authentic league of it's own. I've visited this restaurant quite a few times after first being taken on a recommendation - that person deserves a whopping kiss on the head for suggesting this little gem - and on each occasion it's consisently impressed. It's another place tucked away, (you may find this a running theme with my posts as I find that generally, well, the best ones are), tucked away within Centre Point, on St Giles Street, above a Korean grocery store. The unlikely location is probably the reason for the minimal amount of customers, but this needn't bother you, you've got a vast menu to consider.

Prices are good value for the quality of food served, the only problem you might have is curbing your orders, the Sushi here is far too moreish for its own good! However, if you are sensible and only want to select a few dishes may I recommend the salmon Teriyaki, chicken katsu and Tamago Nigirizushi (omlette topped). 

But if you really want to treat yourself, they do plates of 6 piece Makizushi rolls with various fish options including an impressive softshell crab - just be cunning about the way you eat these little displays of art.