Restaurant in Tokyo, Japan
Structured yakitori that earns its price.
Aramaki is a serious yakitori counter in Minato's Higashiazabu neighbourhood running a fixed seasonal menu that earns its 2025 Michelin Plate. Chef Keisuke Aramaki's salt-to-sauce progression through multiple chicken cuts, with intermediate courses and a rice closer, makes this a composed meal rather than a casual grill stop. At ¥¥¥ with easy booking, it is one of Tokyo's better-value tasting-format restaurants.
Aramaki is worth booking if you want a structured, seasonal yakitori experience in Tokyo at a price point that sits below the city's top-tier kaiseki rooms. Chef Keisuke Aramaki runs a prix fixe menu that moves deliberately from light to rich — salt-seasoned skewers first, sauce-seasoned later — with composed intermediate courses that push this well beyond a standard yakitori counter. At ¥¥¥, it costs less than comparable tasting-format restaurants in Minato, and with a 2025 Michelin Plate and an Opinionated About Dining ranking of #425 in Japan, the credentials are real. Book it for a solo dinner or a focused two-person meal; it is less suited to large groups or anyone who wants to order freely from a menu.
The format here is fixed and sequential. A meal at Aramaki begins with seasonal vegetables , arranged with attention to the time of year , before moving into yakitori proper. Chef Aramaki sources chicken from multiple regions and breeds across Japan, and the progression from salt to sauce through the skewer courses is a deliberate structural choice, not a default. What reads as a simple yakitori meal on paper is, in practice, a tasting menu with genuine compositional logic behind it.
Between the skewer courses, the kitchen sends out intermediate dishes: wanmono with chicken-shinjo is one example from the recorded format. The meal typically closes with takikomi-gohan , a rice dish incorporating seasonal vegetables and minced chicken. That closing course matters because it signals where this sits in Tokyo's dining hierarchy: this is not a casual post-work yakitori stop. It is a complete, considered meal with a clear beginning, middle, and end.
The restaurant is located in Higashiazabu, Minato City , a relatively quiet part of central Tokyo that sits away from the tourist corridors. Getting there from central Minato wards is direct; the Azabu-Juban area is well-served by the Namboku and Oedo lines. The address is Azabu Heights, 1-24-6 Higashiazabu. Hours and booking method are not confirmed in Pearl's current data, so verify both directly before planning your visit.
On the question of whether this format travels well , it does not, in the conventional sense. Yakitori is at its leading directly off the grill, and the sequential salt-to-sauce progression that defines Aramaki's menu depends entirely on the live pacing of the kitchen. This is not a venue to approach with takeout or delivery in mind. The meal only makes sense in the room. If you are exploring Tokyo's yakitori scene and want a comparison point, BIRD LAND offers a similarly serious approach to the format in Ginza, while Yakitori Omino and Asagaya BIRD LAND are worth considering depending on your neighbourhood base. Chataro and 124. KAGURAZAKA round out the serious yakitori options currently tracked by Pearl in Tokyo.
Google ratings for Aramaki currently sit at 5.0 from 9 reviews , a small sample, but uniformly positive. The Michelin Plate recognition in 2025 indicates consistent quality without claiming a star, which in practice means the kitchen is technically sound and the experience is reliable, but not in the same bracket as Tokyo's starred rooms. For a yakitori counter at ¥¥¥, that is the right calibration.
If you are planning a broader Japan trip, Pearl also tracks serious restaurants across the country. HAJIME in Osaka and Gion Sasaki in Kyoto sit at different price points and formats, while yakitori specifically is worth tracking in Kyoto via Torisaki and in Osaka via Torisho Ishii. For regional depth beyond those cities, akordu in Nara and Goh in Fukuoka are worth adding to the list, as are 1000 in Yokohama and 6 in Okinawa if your itinerary extends further.
For everything else in Tokyo, Pearl's city guides cover the full picture: see our full Tokyo restaurants guide, our full Tokyo hotels guide, our full Tokyo bars guide, our full Tokyo wineries guide, and our full Tokyo experiences guide.
Aramaki operates a prix fixe format , there is no à la carte option. Price range is ¥¥¥, which positions it as a mid-to-upper spend for yakitori but below Tokyo's most expensive tasting rooms. The restaurant is in Minato's Higashiazabu neighbourhood; the nearest metro access is via Azabu-Juban Station. Booking difficulty is rated Easy by Pearl, which suggests you are unlikely to face multi-month waits, though confirming reservation availability directly is always advisable given that specific hours and booking channels are not currently confirmed in our data. Dress code is not specified; smart casual is a safe default for a restaurant at this level.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aramaki | Yakitori | The chef expresses the seasons through yakitori and other Japanese cuisines. Prix fixe dining begins with seasonal vegetables, showcasing his experience in creating beautiful arrangements. Each cut of chicken is selected from various regions and brands. To create a gradual progression from light to rich flavours, yakitori is seasoned with salt in the first half of the meal, and with sauce in the latter half. Between the skewers, dishes such as wanmono with chicken-shinjo are served; a typical closer is takikomi-gohan of vegetables and minced chicken. Each prix fixe yakitori menu captures the ever-changing season.; Michelin Plate (2025); Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in Japan Ranked #425 (2025) | Easy | — |
| Harutaka | Sushi | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| RyuGin | Kaiseki, Japanese | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| L'Effervescence | French | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| HOMMAGE | Innovtive French, French | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Florilège | French | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
Key differences to consider before you reserve.
Yes. The prix fixe, counter-style format that defines most serious yakitori-ya in Tokyo suits solo diners well — you're eating through a fixed sequence regardless of group size. At ¥¥¥, it's a considered spend solo, but the structured progression from salt-seasoned skewers to sauce-seasoned cuts is designed to be experienced as a single arc, not a shared table event.
There is no à la carte option — Chef Keisuke Aramaki runs a fixed seasonal menu only. The meal moves deliberately from light to rich: salt-seasoned yakitori in the first half, sauce-seasoned in the second, with courses like chicken-shinjo wanmono in between and a takikomi-gohan to close. Come with an appetite and no agenda for customisation.
At ¥¥¥, Aramaki sits below Tokyo's top-tier kaiseki pricing and holds a Michelin Plate (2025) alongside an OAD Top Restaurants Japan ranking. For structured, seasonal yakitori with genuine course architecture — not just a plate of skewers — the price is defensible. If you want à la carte yakitori at a lower spend, look elsewhere; this format is worth it only if you're committed to the full progression.
Counter seating is the expected format for a venue of this type in Tokyo, but the specific seating configuration at Aramaki is not confirmed in available details. What is confirmed: the experience is prix fixe only, so regardless of where you sit, you're eating the same sequential menu. There is no drop-in bar snack option.
Yes, if the format suits you. The menu is built around seasonal produce and chicken sourced from multiple regional breeds, structured to move from delicate to rich across the meal. It holds a Michelin Plate (2025) and OAD recognition, which suggests the execution is consistent. If you dislike fixed menus or are not interested in yakitori as a serious format, this is not the place to test either.
Specific reservation lead times for Aramaki are not publicly documented, but venues at this tier in Tokyo — Michelin-recognised, prix fixe only, chef-driven — typically require at least two to four weeks' notice, more for weekend sittings. Book as early as your schedule allows; this is not a walk-in restaurant.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
