Wagamama is a chain of Chinese inspired restaurants. There is one very convenient to the British Museum, so I stopped there for lunch. The restaurant is very open and modern in design. The seating is cafeteria-style tables and benches, which can mean sitting right next to people in a different party.

Paper placemats serve their usual function and as a place for the waiter to write down the numbers from the menu as you place your order. They use this to calculate the check at the end.

You can check out the menu at their website. The most popular choices for entrees are noodle bowls. You can choose from different meat, seafood, or vegetarian selections. I ate the spicy chicken, which was disappointingly bland. I added lots of chili oil to try to revive it, but that meant adding lots of fat as well. Even though it lacked spice and flavor, the food was quite fresh and the chicken was tender. So, if you have lower need for full flavor, you might be quite satisfied with a meal here.

You'll probably wait on line, but it's worth it. You'll be seated at a cafeteria-style table with other patrons, but it's worth it. Wagamama's, like its name, is just plain fun. The menu consists of big bowls of Asian noodles and soups, the perfect way to warm up on a gray London day.

You may have to wait for a seat at one of the long communal tables, but that just means it's good. These trendy, funky restaurants popping up all over London serve good pan-Asian dishes at reasonable (for London) prices. Once you've selected a dish from the extensive menu, the waiter will punch your choices into his/her hand-held keyboard, magically sending your order into the kitchen. The food is served to you when it's ready, not necessarily at the same as others in your party. But don't sweat it, man, everything's cool - you're at Wagamama, baby! Eat up!

Yes, this place is so hip, it even has a cool website... Check it out.

Great place to eat late if you forgot to dine before heading out for a few pints, and the pub has just closed. I had the Yaki Soba, which was pretty tasty... cooked Japanese noodles with vegetables and various forms of seafood thrown in.

Wagamama is a London institution. In fact, I should say it's a European institution since I've also seen locations in Amsterdam and Dublin.

For a quick meal at a good price, Wagamama can't be beat. But this also means there are often lines out the door. Fortunately, with the cafeteria-style tables and quick service, the lines move fairly quickly.

When you come in, you'll be directed to a place at one of the long tables, usually sitting next to people you don't know. But there's still plenty of space, and room underneath the table for your bags.

Waiters use a little machine to type in your order and write the number of what you ordered right on your placemat.

A lot of the menu consists of soups, but there's also the cha han (rice with vegetables) and my favorite, the soba (7 or 8 pounds), which comes with those Japanese noodles. My husband always opts for the soup with pieces of steak since it seems like one of the few places in London where you can get a decent piece of meat! Wagamama also offers smoothies which look really interesting.

Wagamama is a great place to go with friends if you want something quick—or a great place to go before the theater given locations in Covent Garden and Leicester Square. Just be prepared to feel like you're back in your high school cafeteria!