Introducing Pen Yen at Shoreditch House

Birdseye shot of a table full of food at Pen Yen Shoreditch. In the foreground are two hands holding chopsticks

The Soho Farmhouse restaurant takes up permanent residency at our east London House. Here, we take a look at some of the standout dishes

Photography by Ed Schofield

Our newly opened izakaya-style restaurant at Shoreditch House is a shrine to the best of Japanese cuisine. Browse through the menu and you’ll find mix and match otsumami small plates, gyoza, crispy fried tempura, charcoal-grilled meats, and the classic repertoire of sushi. ‘Pen Yen is an eatery where you can find lots of small plates of really good food,’ says head chef Kerry Chan. ‘We’ve brought lots of different flavours to these dishes so that members can expand their palates and enjoy the many styles of cooking.’

Shot of a dish at Pen Yen Shoreditch featuring a slice of fish on on a banana leaf with half a lemon resting against it on a speckled plate

A row of four quarter corn on the cobs with seasoning and purple leaves on top, laid out on a banana leaf with half a lime resting against them on a square plate

A meat dish at Pen Yen Shoreditch with spring onion and crispy onions on top, laid over the top of a banana leaf with half a lime on the side on a speckled plate, with soy sauce in a little dish in the background

Standout items include the robata wood-fired mains: tender black cod served with a sharp saikyo miso dip, melt-in-your mouth sticky pork ribs with ginger and garlic, tofu steak with a sweet soy glaze, and baby chicken drizzled in a spicy den miso sauce.

Five gyozas sat in a light brown sauce laid out in a row on a plate at Pen Yen Shoreditch

A chef at Pen Yen making food behind the counter with a stone bake oven in the background

‘In Japanese cooking, we use binchotan charcoal as it’s able to hold the heat for longer, so that the cooking of the food is also almost slow cooked and lightly charred in flavour,’ says Chan. Elsewhere, there is the signature ebi ten maki rolls with avocado and prawns, seared aubergine with a spicy kick of ponzu sauce, vegetable and prawn tempura, and gyozas that pack both flavour and punch.

Stick to the classics or be adventurous, the choice is yours.

To view the full menu, click here.