London Life: a pub crawl and Jin Kichi in Hampstead

I’ve been meaning to write about this fantastic Japanese restaurant in Hampstead for a long time, but somehow just haven’t got round to it. It’s very popular and it’s almost impossible to get a table there these days, so I guess I didn’t think it needed any more pr either.

But then last Saturday, when emotionally drained from flat hunting, and after an Ocado grocery delivery failed to arrive (it was a difficult day), the Englishman and I left the empty cupboards of our little kitchen behind and headed off to our latest favourite local, The Duke of Hamilton. By six o’clock we were already starving (we’re complete light-weights these days) and decided to walk down to the High Street to see if we could find an eating place in Hampstead which served chips with burgers (explanation here). As we passed Jin Kichi, we thought we’d try our luck. ‘No chance,’ said the always cheerful Englishman. But luck did seem to be on our side and we got two seats at the bar.

Spurred on by our drink-fuelled hunger we ordered mixed Sashimi, mixed Nigiri, Udon noodles with fishcake and prawns, black cod, Yakotori chicken and deep-fried squid. We washed it all down with Sapporo beer and slowly happiness and a sense of well-being enveloped us.

We joked and laughed with the chef working the hot skewers in front of us and after paying the bill we decided to have just one more drink in the Holly Bush which just happens to be on our way home.    

The next morning I wondered how, since a few years ago visiting two pubs could hardly even be called a pub crawl, I now had a severe head ache and something that could only be called a hangover.

Light weight doesn’t begin to describe my drinking ability these days. I wonder if I even can call myself a Finn anymore…