Chef Nobu on the secret menu at Nobu (and the 6 kitchen secrets you weren’t supposed to know)

On any given night in Nobu Portman Square in London, there’s a good chance the table next to you belongs to someone very famous.

Nobu London has long been one of the capital’s most start-powered dining spots. Founded by chef Nobu Matsuhisa with Robert De Niro, the Japanese-Peruvian fine dining phenomenon has gone from a single restaurant to a global institution, with outposts everywhere from Malibu to Tokyo. But behind the impeccable dining room and beautifully presented plates is a kitchen that has been established as one of the best in the world, around the world, for three decades.

From off-menu orders reserved for regulars to the dish every insider knows to ask for, here, Nobu sits down with Shortlist at his London Portman Square outpost to exclusively reveal the secrets behind one of the world’s most influential restaurants - starting right here in the UK. Ready to order like a seasoned A-lister? Here are the behind the scenes secrets you weren’t supposed to know…

1. Regular customers don’t order off the menu - here’s how Nobu creates a bespoke dish just for them

While most guests order from the menu, Nobu says long time regulars sometimes ask for something different - then a special conversation happens. “I like to talk,” he explains. “How do you feel today? What do you like? Raw fish, cooked fish, vegetables, meat?”

From there, Nobu builds a unique dish around their mood, texture and flavour preferences. “How spicy? How salty?” he asks. “This moment is exciting - to make the customer happy.”

He talks us through creating the perfect off-menu dish just for us - asking us what mood we’re in, favourite meats and spice preferences. And in this case, Nobu’s solution? “I choose red meat tuna, sliced very thin, and then put some caviar on top.” The result is deliberately minimal: “Very simple, clean, off menu.”

2. Want to eat like an A-lister? Ask for the Cindy Rice

One off-menu dish has even gone global - thanks to legendary supermodel Cindy Crawford. “One day Cindy came,” Nobu recalls, “We were talking - how do you feel? What do you like?” She mentioned tempura, so Nobu improvised: seafood tempura made in larger pieces, served over rice, Japanese donburi-style.

“She ate it all,” he remembers. When Crawford asked what to call it so she could order it again, Nobu gave it a name on the spot. “Okay, Cindy - let’s call it the ‘Cindy Rice.’” A week later, she requested it at Nobu New York, prompting a call from confused chefs to the Los Angeles restaurant that had created it. Today, he says, “Cindy Rice is all over the world. In our restaurants in Africa, Australia, Tokyo, New York, everyone knows what Cindy Rice means!”

3. The most important role in the kitchen might surprise you

Behind every immaculate plate is a role most diners never think about. “The customer never thinks about this,” Nobu reveals, “but dishwashers are very important.”

No matter how skilled the chef, the dish cannot exist without them. “When the chef makes the dish, they need a clean plate - but without the dishwashers, the chef cannot put it on the plate.” It’s a point he speaks about from experience - in fact, Nobu started his career working as a dishwasher in Japan, “For me, in the behind-the-scenes kitchen, dishwashers are the key.”

4. Nobu has an unusually simple measure of quality

For Nobu, quality isn’t just ingredients or technique, he reveals: “Of course, product quality is important, but for me, quality means I stay in the restaurant and watch customers eating.”

He’s looking for one exact moment: “The customer starts one bite, closes their eyes, then starts smiling.” That reaction, he says plainly, “is my quality.” So, if you’re dining at Nobu any time soon - a celebrity chef might just be watching your facial expressions. Thankfully, there’s a good reason.

5. Different Nobu restaurants have unique dishes - and this is Nobu’s favourite you have to try

Despite Nobu’s restaurants going global - found everywhere from Malibu, to Manila via Marrakech - Nobu insists on using local ingredients wherever possible. One standout example is in the Bahamas. “Nobu Bahamas is in a place called Paradise Island,” he shares, “and they are famous for conch.”

At Nobu Bahamas, that becomes a fresh conch salad, ceviche-style. “Catch from the ocean, open, clean, cut,” he explains, before adding citrus, salt, paprika, onions and cucumber. “I love this conch salad in Bahamas,” he says, “We have a beautiful restaurant there.”

6. The surprising secret ingredient behind the global celeb hotspot

For all the talk of luxury, Nobu says the true foundation of his restaurants is much simpler - and even emotional. “The restaurant business is hospitality,” he explains, “But the most important thing is cooking with the heart.”

He traces that instinct all the way back to home. “Kids grow up with their mother or grandmother’s food,” he opens up to Shortlist, “My mother passed away, but I still miss my mother’s food - not the taste; I miss the heart.” So, that philosophy translates to his restaurants: “Nobu’s way is always cooking with the heart.”

It’s also why families keep coming back. “We have been open almost 31 years,” he says, “and customers come with three generations.” Grandparents, parents, children - they all return to the same tables, he’s noticed. “Most important,” Nobu adds on a final note, “the restaurant has to feel like home.”

Chef Nobu speaks to us at Nobu Portman Square in London. Get more info or reserve your table here.

• Nijū: 5 must-try dishes at London’s top Japanese restaurant

Skip the search — follow Shortlist on Google News to get our best lists, news, features and reviews at the top of your feeds!