Restaurant in Hamamatsu, Japan
10-seat yakitori omakase, seriously booked out
Yakitori Kohane is a 10-seat omakase counter in Hamamatsu that has earned Tabelog Bronze Awards in 2025 and 2026, plus three straight years on the Tabelog Yakitori EAST 100 Best list. Built around Amagi Shamo chicken and priced at JPY 15,000–19,999 per person, it delivers Tokyo-level counter seriousness without Tokyo booking difficulty — a strong case for a dedicated dinner if you are anywhere in Shizuoka.
Yes — and the answer is clearer than you might expect from a city not typically on Japan's dining circuit. Kohane is a 10-seat yakitori omakase that has earned Tabelog Bronze Awards in both 2025 and 2026, plus three consecutive years on the Tabelog Yakitori EAST "100 Best" list from 2023 through 2025. Its Tabelog score sits at 4.15 for 2026 (4.06 for 2025), with a Google rating of 4.8 from 31 reviews. For a restaurant that opened in December 2022, that recognition is both rapid and consistent. If you are already planning time in Shizuoka or passing through Hamamatsu, this is the dinner to book.
Kohane occupies a compact first-floor space in the Kotokubiru Building on Chitosecho, about 10 minutes on foot from JR Hamamatsu Station. With just 10 seats, the room runs as a single counter experience — close to the grill, close to the chef, no parallel conversations happening across a large dining room. This is a format where the physical intimacy of the space is the point. The setup is closer in spirit to a high-end Tokyo yakitori counter than anything you would find at a casual grilled-chicken izakaya.
The format is omakase only. The kitchen works with Amagi Shamo, a free-range chicken breed native to the Izu Peninsula in Shizuoka Prefecture, known among chefs for pronounced flavour and firm texture compared to standard broiler varieties. The course is designed around the full bird, part by part , which means the meal rewards diners who are genuinely curious about the range of what skilled yakitori can do, not just those who want grilled chicken as a light snack between drinks.
Budget dinner runs JPY 15,000 to JPY 19,999 per person, putting it firmly in the serious-dinner price band. That is lower than most comparable omakase counters in Tokyo, and for the level of recognition Kohane has accumulated, the price positioning represents real value. Prices vary with seasonal ingredients, so treat the stated range as a floor rather than a fixed figure.
Reservations: Online only via the OMAKASE website , no phone bookings. Plan ahead, though availability tends to be easier than comparable Tokyo counters. Hours: Dinner from 18:00 onwards; closed Sundays and irregular days. Budget: JPY 15,000–19,999 per person at dinner; no lunch service. Seats: 10 seats, counter only; no private rooms. Private hire of the full space is available. Age policy: Junior high school age and above; children must order the full adult course. Payment: Major credit cards accepted (Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Amex, Diners); PayPay QR accepted; no electronic money. Dress: No stated dress code, but avoid strong fragrances , the venue explicitly asks that no perfume or cologne be worn. Punctuality: Arrive on time. Reservations are cancelled after 15 minutes; late arrivals begin the course from the point of arrival, not from the start.
Kohane works particularly well for solo diners and pairs who want a focused, counter-led meal rather than a social table. The 10-seat counter is well-suited to solo travel , this is one of the more comfortable solo dining formats in the region. For food-focused travelers making their way through Shizuoka, it offers an accessible entry point into serious omakase dining without Tokyo pricing or Tokyo booking difficulty. Explorers who want depth , the sourcing behind Amagi Shamo, the technique behind each cut , will find the format gives that kind of engagement naturally. Groups of up to 10 can book the venue for private hire, which makes it workable for a dedicated group dinner, but that requires taking the entire space.
Those with significant dietary restrictions or broad ingredient dislikes should know that the kitchen may decline reservations if allergies are extensive , the omakase structure leaves limited room for substitution.
For more dining options across the region, see our full Hamamatsu restaurants guide. If you are planning accommodation, our Hamamatsu hotels guide covers the leading options nearby. For reference points at the leading of Japan's dining tier, Harutaka in Tokyo and Gion Sasaki in Kyoto show what multi-awarded Japanese counter dining looks like at its ceiling. Among other strong regional Japanese counters worth knowing: Goh in Fukuoka, Abon in Ashiya, affetto akita in Akita, and Aji Arai in Oita each represent the kind of regional-specialist counter model Kohane belongs to. For a broader view of what Japan's dining regions offer, akordu in Nara, 1000 in Yokohama, 6 in Okinawa, and HAJIME in Osaka round out the picture. If you want to see how Japan's counter culture compares internationally, Atomix in New York City and Le Bernardin in New York City offer useful benchmarks for what precision omakase-adjacent formats deliver at global level. And if Hamamatsu itself is the base, our Hamamatsu bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover what else the city offers around a dinner here. Finally, Ajidocoro in Yubari District is another example of serious cooking operating well outside Japan's main urban centres.
Kohane is counter-only , there is no separate bar area. The 10-seat counter is the entire dining room, so every guest eats at the counter. This is a feature, not a limitation: sitting at the counter puts you directly in front of the grill for the full course.
Dinner is your only option. Kohane does not offer lunch service. The kitchen opens from 18:00 onwards, so plan your day in Hamamatsu accordingly. At JPY 15,000–19,999 per person, this is a dedicated evening commitment, not a midday stop.
Very well-suited for solo diners. The counter format , 10 seats, omakase pacing, close engagement with the grill , is one of the more natural solo dining environments you will find in the region. Solo travelers eating serious Japanese food in a city like Hamamatsu will find Kohane more accessible to book than comparable Tokyo counters, and the format does not disadvantage single diners the way a table-only restaurant might.
The venue seats 10 in total, and private hire of the full space is available , so a group of up to 10 can book exclusively. There are no private rooms within the space. For groups larger than 10, this is not the right venue. For a group dinner of 6–10 looking for a focused, high-quality experience in Hamamatsu, private hire is the cleanest option.
Kohane occupies a specific niche , yakitori omakase at a Tabelog award-winning level , that has few direct equivalents in Hamamatsu. If you are open to other cuisines at comparable price points, the broader Shizuoka dining scene offers options, but for the specific format Kohane delivers, there is no obvious local substitute. See our full Hamamatsu restaurants guide for the wider picture. If you are willing to travel within Japan for a comparable counter experience, venues like Goh in Fukuoka or Abon in Ashiya offer similar regional-specialist depth.
Yes, with a few conditions. The counter setting is intimate rather than celebratory in the conventional sense , no private room, no large group seating. For a couple or small group marking something meaningful over a focused, high-quality meal, it works well. The Tabelog Bronze Award recognition and 4.15 score give it credibility as a deliberate choice. Budget for JPY 15,000–19,999 per person. Avoid it if your occasion requires a large group, extensive toasting around a table, or the kind of private-room formality that Japanese kaiseki venues typically provide.
Yes — the entire restaurant is a 10-seat counter, so every seat is effectively a bar seat. There are no tables or private rooms. All bookings are made online via the OMAKASE website, and walk-ins are not accepted, so you will always have a reserved spot at the counter.
Dinner is your only option. Kohane operates from 18:00 onwards and does not offer a lunch service. Budget JPY 15,000–19,999 per person for the evening omakase course.
Yes — a 10-seat counter format is one of the better settings for solo diners in Japan, giving you a direct view of the kitchen and no awkwardness about an empty second seat. Reserve via the OMAKASE website; solo seats at a counter this size do come up, but the restaurant's Tabelog Bronze status (4.15 score in 2026) means availability moves quickly.
Only up to the 10-seat total capacity, and private rooms are not available. The venue can be hired for exclusive private use, which makes it viable for a group of up to 10. For larger parties, Kohane is not the right fit. Children under junior high school age are not permitted; everyone must eat the same omakase course.
Kohane holds a niche that is hard to directly replace in Hamamatsu — a Tabelog Bronze-awarded, reservation-only yakitori counter with a specific focus on Amagi Shamo chicken. If you cannot secure a booking, the broader Hamamatsu dining scene skews toward eel (unagi), which the city is nationally known for, and represents a meaningfully different but regionally grounded alternative.
It works well for a low-key, food-focused occasion — a birthday dinner for two or a solo treat rather than a celebratory group meal. The counter seats 10, private rooms are unavailable, and the restaurant asks guests to avoid strong perfume or cologne. The omakase format at JPY 15,000–19,999 per head and consecutive Tabelog Bronze wins (2025, 2026) give it enough weight to justify a special trip, especially if the occasion calls for precision over spectacle.
■Business hoursFrom 18:00 onwards■Closed onSundays (and other irregular days)
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
