Restaurant in Tokyo, Japan
Technique-first kaiseki for serious diners.
Tanimoto holds a 2024 Michelin star in Kagurazaka for a reason: its charcoal-grill technique and ryotei-influenced service deliver a meal with a clear identity at ¥¥¥¥. Book if you want technically precise Japanese cooking in an intimate, unhurried setting. Booking is hard — go through a hotel concierge.
Tanimoto, on the third floor of a building in Kagurazaka's Kagurako Place, earns its 2024 Michelin star through technical discipline rather than spectacle. The kitchen's defining strength is charcoal grilling — a skill the chef applies with a rigour that separates this from the broader category of Japanese kaiseki-adjacent restaurants in Tokyo. If you are a food enthusiast who wants to understand what obsessive attention to fire and ingredient quality actually produces, Tanimoto is worth the difficulty of securing a table. If you want sushi, or a more theatrical tasting experience, look elsewhere.
Charcoal grilling at this level is a slow-building craft. The chef's background as a ryotei doorman — responsible for guests' footwear, the first and last impression of a traditional Japanese dining house , tells you something about the philosophy here. Every element of the meal is considered as part of a complete service arc, not just the food on the plate. The smell of live charcoal is the first signal that this is a working kitchen with a clear technical identity, not a showpiece. Ingredients arrive at the grill at precise stages, and the control of heat and timing distinguishes the cooking from the wider pool of Tokyo restaurants working in the same tradition.
The meal structure reinforces this approach. Rather than closing with a single rice course, Tanimoto offers a lineup of rice preparations , white rice, takikomi-gohan (rice cooked with dashi and seasonal ingredients), and chazuke (rice with tea poured over) , served toward the end of the meal. The chef pours the tea himself. This is not a decorative flourish; it is a continuation of the service logic that runs through the entire experience. For diners familiar with high-end Japanese dining, this closing sequence will read as a studied expression of hospitality. For first-timers, it is a useful orientation: this is a restaurant that treats the end of a meal as seriously as the beginning.
Google reviewers score it 4.6 across 86 reviews, which is a high consensus score for a restaurant at this price point and booking difficulty. That alignment between critical recognition (Michelin) and diner satisfaction is not automatic at ¥¥¥¥ in Tokyo, and it matters when you are deciding whether to commit a reservation slot.
Kagurazaka is one of Tokyo's more considered dining neighbourhoods, with a concentration of serious Japanese restaurants and a quieter atmosphere than Ginza or Roppongi. It suits a meal at Tanimoto well. If you are building a Tokyo dining itinerary, the neighbourhood pairs naturally with other high-commitment restaurants. Kagurazaka Ishikawa, which holds multiple Michelin stars, is the neighbourhood's most prominent reference point, and comparing the two is useful: Ishikawa operates at a more formal kaiseki register, while Tanimoto's identity is more tightly anchored to the grill. Both are hard to book; Tanimoto's smaller profile may make it marginally more accessible, though neither is a walk-in proposition.
For broader context on what Tokyo's Japanese restaurant category offers at this tier, Myojaku, Azabu Kadowaki, Ginza Fukuju, and Jingumae Higuchi all operate in adjacent territory. Each has a distinct identity, and the right choice depends on what aspect of Japanese cooking you want to prioritise.
Tanimoto works leading for food-focused travellers who have some experience with high-end Japanese dining and want a meal centred on technique rather than novelty. The charcoal-grill focus gives the menu a coherent identity that rewards attention. The ryotei-influenced service style , attentive, precise, and oriented around the guest's physical comfort and ease , means it also functions well for special occasions where the atmosphere needs to carry as much weight as the food. It is not the right choice for groups who want a lively, sociable room, or for diners who prefer a la carte flexibility.
If this is your first encounter with Tokyo's serious Japanese dining category, it is worth pairing your visit with research into the broader scene. Our full Tokyo restaurants guide covers the range from accessible to high-commitment. For accommodation near Kagurazaka, our Tokyo hotels guide will help you position yourself well. And if you are extending the trip, HAJIME in Osaka, Gion Sasaki in Kyoto, Isshisoden Nakamura in Kyoto, Kashiwaya Osaka Senriyama, akordu in Nara, Goh in Fukuoka, 1000 in Yokohama, and 6 in Okinawa all represent strong regional alternatives across Japan at a comparable level of seriousness. For Tokyo's bar and wine scene, our Tokyo bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide are worth consulting.
Booking difficulty is rated hard. The restaurant is on the third floor of Kagurako Place in Shinjuku City's Kagurazaka district (address: 3 Chome-1, Kagurazaka, Shinjuku City, Tokyo). No phone number or website is listed in current records , the most reliable route is through a hotel concierge with established relationships in Tokyo's fine dining circuit, or through a specialist reservation service. Plan well in advance, particularly for weekend slots or special occasion timing. Arrive knowing that no menu or pricing specifics are confirmed in publicly available records; budget at ¥¥¥¥ and expect a set meal format based on what is known about the kitchen's approach.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tanimoto | Japanese | ¥¥¥¥ | Hard |
| Harutaka | Sushi | ¥¥¥¥ | Unknown |
| RyuGin | Kaiseki, Japanese | ¥¥¥¥ | Unknown |
| L'Effervescence | French | ¥¥¥¥ | Unknown |
| HOMMAGE | Innovtive French, French | ¥¥¥¥ | Unknown |
| Florilège | French | ¥¥¥ | Unknown |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
At ¥¥¥¥ pricing, Tanimoto earns its place: the 2024 Michelin star is backed by a meal that builds carefully from charcoal-grilled courses to a closing sequence of rice dishes finished with tea poured by the chef. If you want precision technique and attentive service in a composed setting, the price holds up. If you are looking for creative or contemporary Japanese cooking, there are better fits in Tokyo.
Yes, for the format it offers. The meal is structured around charcoal grilling, with the kitchen applying strict attention to each ingredient, and closes with multiple rice preparations including takikomi-gohan and chazuke. That ending alone signals the chef's priorities: depth over spectacle. Diners who want a high-energy or visually theatrical progression will likely prefer somewhere like RyuGin instead.
For charcoal-focused Japanese cuisine at a comparable level, Harutaka is the closest peer. RyuGin operates at a higher price point with a more dramatic presentation style. If you want French-influenced kaiseki rather than traditional Japanese, Florilège or L'Effervescence are strong alternatives in Tokyo. HOMMAGE sits closer to classical French technique. Tanimoto is the better choice if the tea-arbour atmosphere and ryotei-derived service style matter to you.
The venue is described as having the refinement of a dignified tea arbour, which signals a formal or near-formal dress code. Conservative, well-considered clothing is appropriate: business attire or an equivalent standard. Casual clothing is likely out of place given the setting and price tier.
Booking is rated hard, so plan well in advance and use a concierge or specialist booking service if you cannot read Japanese. The restaurant is on the third floor of Kagurako Place in Kagurazaka, Shinjuku City, so allow extra time to locate it. The meal follows a set progression ending with rice dishes and tea served by the chef himself — this is a deliberate structure, not a shortcoming, and is central to what makes the experience distinctive.
Tanimoto runs a set menu, so ordering is not a choice in the conventional sense. The kitchen's focus is charcoal grilling, and the meal concludes with a lineup of rice dishes including white rice, takikomi-gohan, and chazuke. The rice course is one of the meal's defining moments and worth paying attention to rather than treating as an afterthought.
Yes, particularly for two people who appreciate technique-led Japanese dining. The tea-arbour setting is composed and intimate, and the chef's personal involvement in serving tea at the close of the meal gives the experience a sense of occasion that works well for anniversaries or milestone dinners. It is less suited to large groups or celebratory meals where atmosphere and noise are part of the appeal.
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