Chinatown welcomes two landmark restaurants

Shaftesbury has announced that the Malaysian-Singaporean restaurant, Rasa Sayang, has relaunched at Chinatown in London, and Japanese robatayaki grill restaurant and bar, Yatay, has opened its debut London restaurant at 22 Wardour Street.

Rasa Sayang has launched a newly refurbished 1,790 square feet site at 5 Macclesfield Street, and the revamped 90-seater restaurant is designed by Sherliker Design.

The restaurant reportedly “champions” its founder’s Singaporean and Malaysian culinary heritage, with Rasa Sayang’s menu continuing to feature traditional dishes such as Hainanese Chicken Rice, Nasi Lemak, and Singaporean Chilli Crab.

Meanwhile, Yatay has opened its first-ever London restaurant. Spanning 3,900 square feet across three floors, the flagship London site is centered around Yatay’s charcoal-powered robatayaki. 

The ground floor and first floors combine for 85 covers, serving a mixture of robatayaki skewers, raw dishes, salads, and sharing plates. On the lower ground floor is also a late night underground Zoku bar.

Ellen Chew, founder of Rasa Sayang, said: “We are elated to be able to move back to our original home in Chinatown London and to do so in a spectacular fashion with our total makeover of the unit.

“It feels so good to have been able to watch first-hand the energy and life coming back into Chinatown. It is a community I hold close to my heart, and I am so pleased to bring Rasa Sayang back to where it was created.”

Julia Wilkinson, restaurant director at Shaftesbury, added: “When Rasa Sayang first launched here in 2008, Malaysian and Singaporean food was relatively hard to come by in Central London. Now these cuisines are well-represented and much-loved, and that’s down to amazing restaurateurs like Ellen.

“Yatay is now the latest new concept to join the Chinatown London community, bringing its unique Japanese flavours to the West End for the first time. We are delighted that Rasa Sayang has reinvented itself in its longstanding home, and that Yatay has chosen this location, and no doubt our visitors will feel the same.”