If you’re looking for the brightest cluster of Michelin starred-restaurants, you cannot go past Tokyo. Boasting more Michelin starred-dining experiences than anywhere else in the world, the perfect balance of formidable skill and intimate service sets Tokyo’s award-winning cuisine apart.
Many of the Michelin-starred restaurants serve the traditional kaiseki cuisine, in which the preparation methods and presentation have been refined to perfection. Though each individual course is served as a small portion, the colour and combination of ingredients, the way the ingredients have been sliced and arranged, and the tableware all express the aesthetics of Japanese culture.
Most kaiseki restaurants will have straw tatami mat lined private rooms, and everything is planned out with care down to every aspect, including the furnishings and decorative flowers. This kind of atmosphere is based in the spirit of traditional Japanese sado (the way of tea), and all dishes are imbued with a seasonal feel to bring out the natural flavours of the ingredients.
Some of Tokyo’s more indulgent dining experiences include the home-like interiors of Ginza Kojyu whose waiters can explain the specifics of your dish in great detail, as well as the creative genius on display at Takazawa – which has just four tables for guests to enjoy impressive dishes made to look like flower pots (including edible soil!).
For some of the best sushi in Tokyo, head to Roppongi’s Sushi Saito for some masterful examples of the famous delicacy that are more like a Sushi Concorde than a Sushi Train! If you’re seeking a more global take on Japanese cuisine, beg, borrow, or steal a booking at L’Effervescence in Minato. The playful menu mixes Japanese and European styles and is renowned for its innovative and delicious desserts.
Meanwhile, nowhere does indulgent bars and nightspots like Tokyo. The New York Bar in the Park Hyatt Tokyo is now world-famous thanks to the film Lost in Translation, and for good reason. Once you tick that icon off your list, many other glamorous nightspots can be found across Tokyo.
The Bar & Lounge Majestic, part of the Fish Bank Tokyo restaurant, sits 215 metres above ground and is the perfect place to gaze upon neon Tokyo and its iconic tower, mainly thanks to the bar’s solid glass floor-to-ceiling windows. For a different kind of view, head to Y & M Kisling where you’ll find bartenders in cream jackets serving classic cocktails in a sumptuous 1930’s style-bar.
Serving up cocktails, sake, and whiskey as refined and spectacular as the city views, there’s no better way to enjoy a Nihon nightcap than one of these indulgent bars.