Continuing my current theme of scrumptious better value alternatives to the foodie hell of Wagamama, I recently re-visited Hare & Tortoise, in the newly developed Brunswick centre. An old favourite haunt, after being introduced to it a couple of years ago by friends who used to live around the corner.

H&T’s close proximity to UCL ensures that it has a steady stream of customers in the form of students, international and local, eager for cheap, tasty meals. And its Bloomsbury location also makes it a magnet for the budget tourist.

Its newly refurbished premises means that H&T has polished up its previous slightly scruffy student hangout personna. The cramped, hidden exterior and long wall seat where you could share remarks and clash elbows with neighbouring diners are long gone. The restaurant now has brand new spanking tables, smart chairs, an open kitchen and sparkling wall to ceiling glass windows.

But thank goodness the food hadn’t changed!

H&T serves the type of food which seems to have conquered much of the Western world in recent times: Pan Asian (in the Australian and American sense. For the British translation, read: ‘oriental’). So, if you have a hankering for Malaysian curry, your mate wants some Japanese udon and his girlfriend just wants a glass of freshly squeezed juice, well this is the place for you. Other scrummy tidbits on offer include gyoza (although Ryo’s is quite a bit nicer) and spring rolls. However, the frankly mammoth-sized mains, which include char sui and rice, chinese duck and rice, various udons and the mother lode, Malaysian curry laksa, make it unlikely that you’ll be needing too many of those. Doggy bags are available, might I add, in the event that your eyes prove larger than your stomach.

Combined with the average price of £4.75 per main, it’s not hard to see why the restaurant does a brisk trade with the student and London tourist set.

What I enjoyed:

Malaysian yellow chicken curry and bowl of rice. (Everytime I eat this, I’m taken across the world and back through the years, to when I was a tiddly lass, scoffing down huge portions of my mum’s chicken curry. Not as good as mum’s, obviously, but comes pretty damn close.)

Freshly squeezed mixed juice.

Hellbent on a seat, much needed after 2 hours trudging through the hell that is the July Oxford Street sales, we halted midstep at the waitress’ bark, spun uncertainly to face the menu lying on the cash counter and began to um and aah our way through it.

A friend had recommended the little cafe, rapturising it as his favourite Japanese bar in London. High praise indeed. But I, and the bar’s continuous stream of Japanese diners, would have to agree. The gyoza was extremely good, perfectly fried and substantive, much tastier and authentic than their limp Wagamama equivalents. The kara-age was crisp, and was neither too oily, nor too dry. The edamame was firm and quite delicious.

A shabby interior, reasonable prices and tasty authentic Japanese make this a great Soho pit stop.

What we enjoyed:

gyoza

edamame

kara-age set (deep fried battered chicken pieces)

kimuchi set (fried pork and preserved cabbage ie. kimchi)

miso soup

big bowl of rice festooned with crimson pickles

Haruki Murakami

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, the latest short story offering from the master of the surreal is due shortly. Hip hip hoorah! And by the sounds of it, his scenarios are getting even more phantasmagorical, if that were possible. It also sounds like another novel is well on the way. I guess I’ll just have to be satisfied with Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman for now. Definitely heading to the top of the bedside pile!

Guardian review of Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman.