Rofuto, Birmingham - food review

My quest to find a good Japanese restaurant in the Midlands took me to the swankily-named Rofuto in Birmingham.

Located on the 16th floor of the luxurious new Park Regis, it's the main dining attraction of the 253-room hotel which opened in 2016.

Rofuto brands itself on being an 'izakaya-style' restaurant, which to you and me translates as a kind of Japanese gastropub serving good food in a 'relaxed, informal atmosphere'.

All sounds great yes? Absolutely! Just the place my wife and I have been looking for.

The first problem was finding it.

The hotel part was nice and easy, but once inside, it became a maze on the scale of David Bowie's Labyrinth.

The first lift offered the choice of 'rooms' or 'reception' – we opted for 'reception'.

Still no signs for the restaurant at this point, so we waited a few minutes until a member of staff was available to escort us across the hotel to a separate wing and another lift.

This took us to the top of the hotel and a choice between turning left and right but there was still no sign.

We turned left. Ooops, just a few people putting tables and chairs away. But back out and across the corridor and we'd finally arrived.

And boy, do you know you've arrived as you're greeted by a blinding and unnecessary purple strobe light that's unavoidable wherever you stand as you wait to be greeted by the maître d'. The light's a shame as when we were shown to our seats, the restaurant décor is impressive. There are nice, small tables around the perimeter of the room with plush group high-tops toward the centre.

Further into the restaurant is a well-placed open style bar that offers a variety of signature cocktails.

Rofuto cost a staggering £3 million to create, however clearly the cash wasn't splashed on staff training; we were seated on the next table to the only other couple in the restaurant. It doesn't take a genius to know this isn't a done thing.

My wife could already see I wasn't too enamoured by the experience so far . . . 'OK, Nathan, think positive,' I said to myself.

There are some really nice touches to Rofuto; the space is vast and the views across Birmingham are lovely.

It's a fantastically romantic setting, great for couples who fancy gazing into each others eyes all night.

And we had plenty of time to do just that as we weren't approached at our table for the best part of 20 minutes.

Our neighbours (who are already my arch enemies at this point) arrived just before us and with only one server on, we were able to read, re-read and re-re-read the menu.

To be fair to the young woman who did end up serving us, she was very pleasant and got a slightly irritating start to the meal back on track.

Her knowledge of saké (the rice wine-based drink) was pretty good if not flawless, however the bottle that she took five minutes to sell us was not available.

Still, nearly 45 minutes since arriving at the hotel, we had water on the table and our food order was in – things were looking up.

Always start a Japanese meal with edamame and miso soup, it gets the tastebuds going before the sushi arrives.

You'd be amazed how many restaurants can overcook edamame, (I can name at least two others in Birmingham) but these were pretty good with just the right amount of salt.

On to the sushi, I love sushi and have the appetite to eat copious amounts in one sitting until I too need to be rolled out the front door.

We ordered portions of the yellowfin tuna and Loch Duart salmon avocado.

I really wanted to like this, I truly did – but it was ultimately disappointing.

The fish on top was fine but the rice was the major problem – it quite obviously wasn't fresh and that was a huge shame.

Sushi rice should be as fresh as the slither of fish that sits on top of it. It has to be light, fluffy and almost fall away on to the plate as you pick each piece up with your chopsticks. There was no danger of any rice breaking away from their mould on this occasion. It was soggy and slightly congealed . . . it had sweated and that was frustrating as it took away from the taste of the tuna and salmon.

As I said, the fish was pretty good, especially seeing as Birmingham is about as far from the UK coast as you can get.

However, the mackerel sashimi was delicious. With no rice in sight, this beautiful fish spoke for itself and was well presented. This was a positive part of the meal.

Then it was time for a quick bathroom break before the next course.

I found it strange that there was not a bathroom on the same floor. Instead I had to leave the dark, lavish restaurant and descend a flight of stairs into a brightly-lit hotel convention floor to use the facilities – note to designers: slightly kills the mood.

Still once my eyes had readjusted back in the restaurant and the next course arrived, we thankfully encountered our highlight of the meal, the sesame chicken yakitori.

Perfectly cooked, fresh, juicy and plenty of meat, it was delicious and if I was to come back, I'd be ordering two portions. The sides were also pleasant. Japanese mushrooms and the seaweed salad were well executed.

Finally our main course arrived, Rofuto's speciality – the saffron miso black cod.

Many Japanese restaurants have their own take on Nobu's famous black cod and that's absolutely fine. It's nothing new and when cooked and seasoned well, it's delicious.

This was a disappointment though. The saffron completely overpowered the fish and while my other half thought it was OK, at £24 a dish, I want more than just OK.

The razor clams it was served with were inedible, tough and rubbery which is a real no-no.

As much as I wanted to finish the dish, I really couldn't – and at that price, it's pretty sole destroying. Boom, boom!

As I've been writing this review, I've asked myself many times whether I've been too harsh on the food, but I must stay true to my word.

Rofuto has the potential to be a stunning restaurant. It has charm, lovely décor, great space and stunning views, but it needs to make drastic changes if it's to succeed in the future.

Any restaurant can have an off night and I'm more than happy to give it another chance, but if head chef Des McDonald (formally of The Ivy) wasn't working on the night I dined, he will have been disappointed with the quality of food served.

I'm not expecting Nobu standard food, but the bill for the two of us was more than £150. That's getting into some serious money and qualifies this review – some Michelin starred restaurants in the area offer generous tasting menus starting at £65-a-head.

Rofutu is a pleasant, if overpriced, place for a group to graze and have some cocktails before a night in the city.

But as a restaurant competing among Birmingham's best – it has a long way to go.

By Nathan Judah