Restaurant in Tokyo, Japan
Reliable sukiyaki, easy to book, worth it.
Imahan in Nihonbashi is Tokyo's most accessible entry point for serious sukiyaki, with OAD recognition three years running and easy booking relative to the city's competitive dining market. The sukiyaki format delivers a genuine flavour progression at the table, and the Takashimaya S.C. location keeps logistics simple. A strong choice for a first-timer who wants credibility without the booking difficulty of Tokyo's harder reservations.
If you want a grounding introduction to sukiyaki in Tokyo, Imahan at Nihonbashi Takashimaya S.C. is the right call. It has earned consecutive recognition from Opinionated About Dining — Highly Recommended in 2023, ranked #205 in 2024, and #254 in 2025 across all Japan — which puts it in a credible tier without the booking anxiety of Tokyo's most difficult reservations. For a first-timer coming to sukiyaki specifically, the department store setting, accessible booking, and established format make this a lower-friction entry point than many comparable Tokyo dining rooms. Book it.
Imahan's dining room sits on the sixth floor of the Nihonbashi Takashimaya S.C. new wing in Chuo City, one of central Tokyo's more composed commercial neighbourhoods. The setting matters: department store dining in Japan operates to a different standard than it does elsewhere. In Nihonbashi, you are walking into a building where food has been taken seriously for generations, and Imahan fits that register.
Sukiyaki as a format has a clear arc. The meal proceeds in stages: thin-sliced beef is seared in a cast-iron pan at the table, seasoned with a sweet soy-based warishita sauce, then finished in broth alongside tofu, chrysanthemum greens, shirataki noodles, and other ingredients that absorb the cooking liquid as the meal progresses. Each piece is dipped in raw beaten egg before eating. The sequence builds , early in the meal the flavours are clean and direct; by the midpoint, the broth has deepened, the vegetables have absorbed the beef's character, and the dish becomes something richer and more layered. This is not a tasting menu in the kaiseki sense, but there is a genuine progression to sukiyaki that rewards patience. A first-timer should resist the urge to rush the pace. Let the pan do its work.
The aroma is part of that progression. As the warishita sauce hits the hot pan, the smell of caramelising soy, mirin, and beef fat is immediate and specific to the format. It is one of the more distinctive sensory signatures in Tokyo dining, and at Imahan you encounter it in a room designed for exactly this purpose.
Imahan is open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11am to 10pm, and on Monday from 11am to 10pm. It is closed on Wednesdays. The lunch window is worth noting: sukiyaki at lunch tends to be quieter and marginally easier to book than weekend evenings, and the format translates well to a midday meal.
Booking here is classified as easy relative to Tokyo's competitive dining market. You are not facing the multi-month waits of counter-only omakase restaurants. That said, weekend evenings at a recognised OAD-ranked restaurant fill up, so booking one to two weeks ahead for a Friday or Saturday dinner is sensible. For lunch on a weekday, you likely have more flexibility, but confirming ahead is still advisable. The department store location means you can arrive, dine, and continue into Nihonbashi without logistical friction.
| Detail | Imahan (Nihonbashi) | Typical peer benchmark |
|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Sukiyaki | Sukiyaki / Shabu-shabu |
| Location | 6F, Takashimaya S.C. New Wing, Nihonbashi | Standalone or hotel dining |
| Hours | Mon, Thu–Sun 11am–10pm; closed Wed | Typically dinner-only at peers |
| Booking difficulty | Easy | Moderate to hard at comparable OAD-ranked venues |
| Price range | Not confirmed | Mid-to-high for sukiyaki specialists |
| Awards | OAD Top 254 Japan (2025) | Varies |
See the full comparison section below.
If Imahan is unavailable or you want to compare before committing, Hiyama and Imafuku are the two names most worth considering in the same sukiyaki category in Tokyo. For a dedicated sukiyaki counter with a sharper focus, SUKIYAKI ASAI is a newer reference point. Outside Tokyo, Wadakin in Mie is the benchmark for sukiyaki built around a single regional beef source.
Imahan's position inside Nihonbashi Takashimaya S.C. suggests table configurations suited to groups rather than an intimate counter-only format. Bookings for parties of four or more are manageable here relative to Tokyo's tighter counter-format restaurants. check the venue's official channels to confirm private or semi-private room availability for larger gatherings.
A department store sukiyaki specialist at this recognition level — ranked #254 on OAD's Top Restaurants in Japan 2025 — calls for neat, presentable clothing rather than formal attire. Business casual is a safe call. There is no evidence of a strict dress code, but arriving in beachwear or very casual sportswear would be out of step with the setting.
Hiyama and Imafuku are the two closest comparisons in the Tokyo sukiyaki category and worth checking if Imahan is unavailable. For a different format entirely, RyuGin and Florilège operate at a higher difficulty and price tier but answer a different question about Japanese fine dining.
Booking difficulty here is low relative to Tokyo's competitive dining market — you are not up against multi-month omakase queues. A week's notice is typically sufficient, though weekend lunch slots at a Takashimaya location can fill faster. Closed Wednesdays, so factor that into your planning.
Yes, with the right expectations. Imahan has earned consecutive OAD recognition — Highly Recommended in 2023, #205 in 2024, #254 in 2025 — which gives it credibility as a special occasion choice without the stress of a hard-to-book counter reservation. It works well for birthdays or business dinners where you want a distinctive Tokyo dining format without logistical difficulty.
Both services run 11am–10pm on open days, so the kitchen is the same. Lunch tends to offer a quieter atmosphere and sometimes lower price entry points at Japanese sukiyaki specialists of this type. If a relaxed pace matters to you, a weekday lunch slot is the practical choice.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
