Ginza Yoshizawa (Kaiseki)

First kaiseki experience and the best dining experience I had in Tokyo!

Sitting at the bar was the experience as I got to watch the chefs make all the dishes from the seasonal menu and also they were so kind and shared information throughout the meal. I also felt like the chefs were very dedicated while being so welcoming to each guest.

You can tell they put so much thought and care to each meal. Also I sat next to both locals and foreigners which was an experience of its own.

The food was incredible. Everything was carefully crafted- all the fish dishes were the best fish dishes I’ve had. Also, I loved the autumnal theme and what ingredients are used in Japan.

I would definitely go back and I’ll never forget this place!

My husband and I went here for lunch and we loved all the dishes served. The dishes were pretty creative and everything was blended in a great way. The warm sake was a good start. I couldn’t name the rest of the dishes but they were all pretty impressive. I was super full at the end.

Made a reservation online prior to my trip to Tokyo for Wednesday lunch at 11.30am. The duration of the kaiseki is fixed at 2 hours. The place is located at the basement, so you will need to take note to walk down a flight of stairs. And can easily passed by without noticing. The chefs also have a translation device so we can somewhat understand what they were trying to say. The chefs would explain each dish and teach you how to eat the dish. The lunch started with an appetizer, sakura blossoms sake. It was well balance and smooth. We were pleasantly surprised as most places do not serve sake in the set meals. It was followed by the three side dishes serve on bamboo tray. Followed by clear simple fish soup, smoked mackerel, trout dish, lily bun with cooked fish roes in it. The chef let us taste the rice cooked in 4 stages! The rice was cooked in perfect proportion, then the chef also serve some more side dishes with the rice. To be honest, we were getting quite full by the time the rice was served. At the end, we were served the rice crispy with sauce. We thought that it was the end of the course meal. The two chefs then surprised us with two more desserts, sakura pudding and mugwort cake with red bean paste. My favourite dish among all the dishes was the smoked mackerel. The chef provided salt and freshly grated wasabi for the mackerel and japanese vinegar for the companion leeks on the side. The fish was smoked till tender yet firm. It was the best of the menu. Hope they keep it permanently on the menu. The only thing i wish can have some improvement was the trout dish. The trout was grilled slightly too dry for my taste. Either the fish was on the grill for too long or exposed to too high heat. More can be done to preserve the moisture within the fish. Overall, I would still recommend to try out this place for kaiseki lunch! Expect damage of ~12000 yen average per pax. It will depend on which set meal you pick. Dinner will definitely be more expensive, up to 20000 yen or more.

Best kaiseki restaurant I’ve had this time in Tokyo. Located in a rather quiet area in Ginza. It’s not wheelchair accessible, so I had to carry my partner down the stairs, but they were helpful by helping me bringing the wheelchair downstairs.

My wife enjoyed the plum wine, we also recommend it on the rock. The half grilled raw fish was my favorite dish. The grilled surface makes it more chewable on the outside, yet the raw meat is super tender which creates a fantastic gastronomic experience.

Please keep this in mind: the course lasted 3 hours for us during lunch. So if you’re in a hurry, this isn’t the place, Yoshizawa is where you sit down and talk to your friends while having a food journey.

Amazing holiday-themed lunch course, will come back when I can budget 2 hours for lunch! Make sure you have enough time to enjoy the excellent course