Roka Aldwych - Covent Garden, London

Roka has historically been one of London's most popular Japanese dining destinations, so when London's foodie population heard that there were plans afoot to launch two restaurants in 2014 to celebrate the original's tenth anniversary, there was a collective murmur of anticipation. Roka Aldwych is the group's most expansive project yet - accommodating over 150 guests in its restaurant and bar. It also differs from its London brethren in that it's the first to be designed by Claudio Silvestrin, the designer of Oblix in The Shard.

On one of the first truly miserable nights of the year, the dining room was an enclave from the elements, exuding a vibrant warmth, quite an accomplishment in light of the fact that its design accents are more stone than wood; porphyry stone, slate, stained grey timber and dried green oak are all central to the design, however the restaurant is imbued with warm energy by the robata grill, a focal hub of activity.

The menu, devised by group chef Hamish Brown, cleaves to the dishes that have made the other restaurants so popular, with a few notable exceptions. Our favourite options was the pure Japanese wagyu beef tartar with smoked soya sauce, wasabi and nori crackers, which was deliciously saline with a punch of umami.

Otherwise, we had a soft spot for the Roka classics. The sashimi platter featured outcroppings of raw fish lining a glacier of chiselled ice, the seared beef with black truffle dressing evinced an oceanic depth of flavour, while the black cod marinated in a yuzu miso was some of the most creamy, luxuriant seafood we've ever tried. It would be criminal to visit any of the Rokas without indulging in the dessert platter - a variety of victuals crowding around a giant block of ice. These include a dark chocolate and green tea fondant with pear ice cream and a Hokkaido style whipped cheesecake with a crispy apple wafer - another Aldwych signature. In the end, this newest Roka was exactly what you'd expect from the group, which is to say, paragon Japanese cuisine.