Dorian’s Chris D’Sylva to open Japanese restaurant Nakimushi

Dorian founder Chris D’Sylva is to open a new Japanese restaurant in London’s Notting Hill in September following the success of two chef residencies.

 

Nakimushi will span three floors of a Notting Hill townhouse, offering a mix of Robin Kosuge’s Robin’s Ramen and an extension of chef Yuji Shimokawa Kelly’s Urchin.

 

London-raised, Polish-Japanese chef Kosuge joined the opening team at the Michelin-starred Dorian in 2022. He launched a one-day pop-up of Robin’s Ramen at sister venue Eel Sushi in the summer of 2025 before growing the concept into an eight-month residency at Supermarket of Dreams, which ended in May.

 

Shimokawa Kelly is a Japanese-British chef who was part of the opening team at Dinings SW3 in London’s Chelsea prior to joining D’Sylva and Kosuge at the Notting Hill Fish + Meat Shop. He launched Urchin, a 10-seat counter in Sifnos, Greece, while working as a chef at Dorian. It later became a year-long residency at Supermarket of Dreams.

 

The pair have since been appointed joint head chefs of Nakimushi.

 

The ground-floor ramen bar will have an open kitchen and serve dishes such as hogget skewers with yuzu kosho labneh and oregano, lobster ramen and charshu pork belly ramen with Basque chicken broth and ajitama.

 

Meanwhile, the upper floor restaurant and bar will offer Japanese dishes, such as grilled lobster chazuke and aged Japanese Black Holstein beef with artichoke sauce, beef jus, kimizu and angel hair fries.

 

Kelly said: “With Nakimushi, we wanted to create a space where people can enjoy our approach to Japanese cooking in two different ways under one roof.”

 

Kosuge added: “It’s also an opportunity for our team to explore their own heritage, taking what we do further while continuing to work with the producers we trust.”

 

Their respective appointments follow the departures of Dorian co-owner Max Coen and head chef Mike Shier, which were announced last month.

 

Nakimushi joins D’Sylva’s growing portfolio of restaurants and hospitality projects, which include Dorian, Eel Sushi, Supermarket of Dreams and Notting Hill Fish + Meat Shop.