Arigato Japanese Supermarket, Soho, London

Very , very good Japanese supermarket . The range of products is terrific , not quite as good as the Japan Centre but far better than most places . The furikake is especially cheap and varied .

My first trip today and what a great little place! Most products are signed in English as well as Japanese, so if you know what you're looking for you should be ok. It seemed cheaper than the Japan Centre and, although it's smaller, it seems to have everything you might need. It's also much less busy than the Japan Centre, and has really helpful staff who have the time to help you. I'll be shopping here from now on.

I have been using this little gem in Soho for years, consistently fabulous bento and all the yummy stuff I miss from Japan

Never mind the supermarket element, it’s a fab cheap place for fresh sushi, and you can even sit at the sushi bar and watch the Soho world do its merry thing outside. The perfect place for sushi AND people watching!

Great little Japanese supermarket that has a wide variety of all things from the orient.

There is a little area with a sushi, which you are able to sit and eat or order a take-away.

Small Japanese supermarket with a small deli area that serves bento boxes and snacks for takeaway or to eat in on the small wooden counter in the window.

The shop has a wide range of Japanse sauces, ingredients and sweets for purchase at reasonable prices, including frozen good and fresh vegetables and fruits. The deli area sells a wide range of bento boxes and side dishes such as croquettes, yakitori chicken kebabs and the usual arrange of snacks.

The bento boxes are good value for money and usually feature tempura pieces or a main dish such as fried chicken, seaweed and potato salad and rice. They also sell simple ice bowls which are cooked with egg and different meats.

It can geta little cramped during busy periods as the food is popular with students and shoppers. Worth popping in if you are shopping or walking around Piccadilly/Soho; not really a date spot unless you want the date to be very short!

Brilliant shop if you’re keen on Japanese food. As far as I remember the opening hours are pretty consumer friendly (unfortunately I can’t find them right now) and the staff are very helpful, really lovely in fact.
You do get the impression that not every member of staff speaks English very well, but I can’t help myself: it so adds to the charm of the shop!
A lot of products just show their Japanese names or perhaps brand names?, and English labels are not on every single thing so it probably helps if you know what you are looking for. I wanted some dashi which a website explained can or should be used when making sushi, but when I asked for it the lovely young girl looked exceedingly doubtful at my mention of dashi and sushi in one sentence. But she led me straight to it and I was very happy with the resulting sushi!
I couldn’t find cod roe, if that’s what the very small red fish eggs are called, but perhaps that was down to me turning up rather late in the day.
If I didn’t have them already I would have been able to get all the other tools and ingredients (like sushi rice) that you need to make sushi.
I understand that you can get sushi grade fish from the counter, but as I said I was there rather late.

You can get lots of Japanese cooking ingredients and Japanese food in Arigato Japanese Supermarket. It has a huge range of stuff to choose from. It is slightly more expensive than Rice Wine Shop (see my other review) but has a better range of food supply. There is also a sushi and food bar where you can eat or take away. Located in Soho, it is fairly easy to reach after some shopping spree. Hence, this is always my last stop for shopping and I will then get some cooked food from the sushi bar to takeaway. Some times you get offer items that are quite a bargain! On the whole, it is a place worth visiting.