Five dishes to try at ROKA according to chef Luca Spiga

Sardinian-born chef Luca Spiga joined ROKA, the popular Japanese restaurant group, in 2011. As the group executive chef and the man behind some of ROKA’s greatest hits, it wasn’t easy for him to select just five must-try dishes, but here they are, his final five.

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Kampachi Sashimi No Salada – Yellowtail Sashimi, Yuzu Truffle Dressing

“My favourite dish; it’s been on the menu since day one and is still the best-selling dish at Roka. Yellowtail sashimi is cut very, very thin and served with a truffle, garlic, ponzu vinaigrette, a bit of mizuna and a very thin julienne of sweet potato. This is a must for a first visit to Roka. Once you’ve tried it, you will keep ordering it every time.”

Kankoku Fu Kohitsuji – Lamb Cutlets with Korean Spices

“I could eat this every day or every second day. Again, a very very simple dish. We marinade New Zealand lamb cutlets for 48 hours with a secret recipe gochujang sauce, and grill them on the robata grill. So it’s inspiration from Korean cuisine matched with Japanese technique. The flavour the charcoal gives to the lamb once it’s cooked to perfection, all the fat melts and it crisps up, is unique. We won the best dish at Taste of London many, many years ago with this dish and, again, it has been on the menu since day one.”

Ebi Furai To Avocado Maki – Crispy Prawn, Avocado and Dark Sweet Soy

“If you’re talking about our classics, I would say our prawn and avocado maki with wasabi mayonnaise is one of our best-sellers. We deep-fry panko prawns à la minute; roll the maki à la minute, fill the maki slightly warm with a bit of avocado then sweet soy. It’s a very simple dish, just a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients makes all the difference. It’s a cooked item so is a very approachable dish from the sushi kitchen.”

Sake To Avocado Temaki – Spicy Salmon Temaki, Avocado and Yuzu

“Temaki hand rolls are trending lately in Japan and the UK. There are restaurants now that only do temaki. Ours are rectangular, U-shaped temaki. We’ve put a lot of effort into the nori; if you eat a temaki and the nori is not crunchy, it’s not a good temaki. We use a very high grade nori, roast it in the oven with a touch of olive oil and sea salt and roast it so the nori gets even crispier. That’s quite a new entry on the menu. It’s affordable, it’s trendy, and it’s doing very very well.”

Kuruma Ebi To Miso Bata – Tiger Prawns with Spicy Miso Butter 

“I developed this robata dish 15 years ago and it was very successful. Then, for various reasons, it just disappeared. I reintroduced it a few months ago and it’s going very well. You have the whole prawns, brushed with yuzu kosho hollandaise and grilled on the robata charcoal grill –so it’s French cuisine mixed with Japanese ingredients. It’s a very beautiful flavour with the salty, fragrant, lemon yuzu kosho and the prawns, a little bit crunchy and charred from the grill.”