Fans of Japan and Japanese culture may know that Kobe’s food scene is not to be missed. A new restaurant, KANBE, is now open and tells the story of the city’s food culture. The grand opening was on November 30 in Sannomiya.  

The story begins with water, the source of Kobe’s food. The city’s famed fare like Kobe beef, Suma salmon, and seasonal vegetables  will take the stage through storytelling, projection mapping, and uniquely planed dishes. Ingredients are served to guests the same day that they are delivered to the restaurant, offering the freshest possible experience. The restaurant also offers a wide selection of drinks made in Kobe, including Nada Gogou sake and Kobe wine. These are made using Nunobiki water from the Rokko mountain range, meaning that everything guests enjoy was truly made in Kobe.

At KANBE, visitors will chat with a storyteller who weaves the story of Kobe’s food into the experience. A chef himself, he is well-versed in cooking methods, food history, and nutrition. 

The 18-meter-long counter adds to the experience by displaying seasonal scenery, the water of Nunobiki, and the night view from Mt. Rokko. Nature sounds, like the murmuring of Nunobiki Falls and the chirping of birds, also echo through the restaurant in time with the projection mapping, creating an atmosphere that feels alive.

Why not come enjoy a new kind of dining experience?

On July 18, the upscale teppanyaki and yakiniku restaurant Honten Yamashina opened a new location in Ginza! The hybrid restaurant has taken over the entire top floor of GINZA PLACE, which is directly connected to Ginza Station. Overlooking the Ginza 4-chome intersection, it’s a gorgeous place to enjoy some authentic Japanese cuisine. 

Honten Yamashina mainly uses fully-matured Omi beef, the highest grade available among Shiga Prefecture’s top-tier beef, from Okazaki Farm. The cows are allowed to fatten for a considerable amount of time and live stress-free lives for over 40 months. Less than 1% of all Wagyu cattle are shipped after 24 months of age, and this delectable meat is characterized by its sharp taste and fattiness. 

Luxurious Wagyu and Sea Urchin Sushi

Early Summer Plate to Enjoy with Seasonal Flowers

Selected Extra-thick Beef Tongue Steak Made with Refined Attention to Detail

Grilled Spiny Lobster Made on a Charcoal Grill

The Playful Yamashina Wagyu Slider

Melt-in-your-mouth Sweet Amala Tomato (Vegetable of the Day)

Hand-selected Omi Beef Steak

Truffle Omurice

Japanese-style Teppanyaki

Guests can enjoy authentic Japanese teppanyaki cuisine with a modern twist. While sitting at the contour, visitors will enjoy a live performance by Taku Osada, a teppanyaki chef with over 20 years of experience.  

The wide variety of meat can be enjoyed in a number of different ways, whether it be raw, grilled, stewed, or properly cooked. From tongue and rump to filet and sirloin, you won’t leave hungry. Visitors can also enjoy seafood and seasonal Japanese vegetables along with their meat, and the flowers and leaves that adorn each plate will change depending on the time of year.

In addition to rare teppanyaki dishes like skirt steak and 3cm-thick beef tongue, Honten Yamashina also offers some playful dishes such as sliders. As the temperature differs on different parts of the steel cooking plate, each item can be cooked to a temperature that maximizes its specific flavor. Honten Yamashina also has a massive cellar housin over 1,000 bottles of wine and hard-to-find spirits. 

Japanese-style Yakiniku

For those looking for a more private experience, guests can enjoy yakiniku in a completely separate room. Each private room has a grill that will cook meat to the perfect temperature, and only at Honten Yamashina can you enjoy fully-matured Omi beef. The signature cutlet sandwich is made with chateaubriand cooked at a low temperature and deep-fried in a thin batter, then served on crispy bread with a soft, fluffy interior.

Teppanyaki and yakiniku are typically thought of as meat-based dishes, but the restaurant can accommodate vegetarian guests if contacted in advance. 

When Japan opens up to tourism, will you be visiting this incredible restaurant in the heart of Tokyo?

Curious George is getting his first themed restaurant for a limited time! The Curious George Kitchen is scheduled to open at Tokyo Solamachi on March 17 and will feature an entirely original menu of George-themed dishes. Unique merchandise will also be available!

Food Menu (Selected Items)

‘Good Night?’ Curry Hamburger Steak & Omelette

‘Balance, Balance!’ Meat Sauce Pasta

‘Hundley!?’ Hot Dog

‘The Manager’s Recommendation!’ Burger & Pasta Plate

Dessert Menu (Selected Items)

‘The Wobbly Tower!’ 7 Plain & Chocolate Pancakes

‘Jiggle Wiggle!’ Caramel Almond Pudding Gnocchi

‘Let’s Paint!’ Sweet Crepe Plate

Take-out Menu

‘I love the Man in the Yellow Hat!’ Cannoli

‘Colorful!’ Fruit Panna Cotta

Drinks (Selected Items)

Art Collection Au Lait

Original Merchandise at a Glance

Visitor Bonus: Commemorative Coaster (Not for Sale)

The pancake tower is not only delicious but perfect for posting to social media! Those wanting to social distance can also order from the take-out menu to enjoy some tasty treats at home.

Curious George merchandise exclusive to the restaurant will be available, including kitchen goods. Some can actually be used while enjoying your meal at Tokyo Solamachi, so be sure to stop by!

Prepare for the ultimate comfy camping and dining experience! The Riviera Zushi Marina in Zushi City, Kanagawa, is opening a glamping-themed restaurant, Malibu Farm Kamakura Terrace, for a limited time only. Returning from a popular run last year, the comfy spot will be open from October 1 until February 28, 2022, with reservations now open. 

In addition to Malibu Farm’s commitment to fresh, organic, and local ingredients, this year’s menu will feature sustainable ingredients, with plenty of seafood and vegetables. Guests can relax in the luxurious comfort of their own private tent, enjoying a meal and the crisp sea air. 

Malibu Farm, incredibly popular with celebrities from L.A., opened its Japan location last March at the Riviera Zushi Marina Resort. Looking over the ocean, the locale offers breathtaking scenery with over 900 palm trees and a collection of luxury cruisers and yachts. 

Introduced last winter, the Kamakura Terrace is perfect for winter, with each private tent heated while not obstructing the view and giving guests a safe place to enjoy time with family and friends. This is the ideal location for birthdays and anniversaries, and watching the sunset will offer an unforgettable way to celebrate. 

Hailing originally from Brooklyn, the 130-year-old Peter Luger Steak House has announced the opening of its first-ever Japanese branch which will welcome customers at Ebisu Garden Place in Tokyo this September with its 3-storeys of red brick.

Peter Luger is credited with spreading the mouth-watering wonder of dry-aged beef steak to the world which has made the restaurant’s name globally famous. The restaurant of course wields a Michelin Star and has been featured high on the Zagat Survey for over 30 years.

The secret behind Peter Luger’s signature ingredient

The restaurant’s beef fillet and New York strip are signature items on the menu, both of which are made from porterhouse steak. Their steak is also made from USDA Prime beef which is dry-aged by hand to intensify the flavour and aroma.

The porterhouse is placed directly onto the broiler and seasoned solely with salt. The steak is flipped only once during the broiling process. A knob of melted butter is added to a serving platter and the steak is sliced atop it. It’s then placed back into the broiler for a few minutes depending on the doneness requested by the customer. It’s this process that gives Peter Luger’s steaks their deliciousness. 

Brooklyn red brick building and theatre decor

The Japanese branch takes inspiration from the Brooklyn restaurant with its red brick exterior.

The first floor is home to the bar where customers can enjoy food and cocktails. There’s also a takeout shop with gifts and other items.

The second floor is the spacious dining space which is home to Peter Ruger’s first-ever open kitchen. The third floor is another seating area with balcony-like seats so you can look out over the city.

There are seven private dining rooms of varying sizes for those looking a little more intimacy and privacy. The restaurant’s lighting was also designed by a New York designer.

Ome—a city located in western Tokyo that’s about an hour’s train ride from the populous Shinjuku. It’s a place enjoyed by many for its hiking and river swimming locales, as well as its architecture, in which one can still feel the influences of Japan’s Edo period, and kindness of the locals.

MATINOEKI OUME, an Ome-based company, recently launched its “Made in OME” project which aims to revitalise the city. The project will create a new kind of Ome through the eyes of the millennial generation. Its goal is to polish and refine the appealing aspects of Ome to offer up new tourism opportunities while bringing in new fans to the city.

Made in OME’s first step towards that is teaming up with DJ and YouTuber Yuna Yabe and illustrator and streamer MIOCHIN, two models signed to ASOBISYSTEM who will represent the millennial generation as the navigators of this journey as they participate in workshops with local producers and manufacturers, developing a variety of products such as sweets made with ingredients from Ome, like baumkuchen and chocolate rolls, and more.

You can catch their activity live over on MIOCHIN’s official Instagram page. Visit Made in OME’s official website below for more details.

Yuna Yabe

MIOCHIN

The two of them will host a free ‘monitor tour’ on February 21, 2021. These monitor tours aim to have people developing a strong relationship with new products from Ome. Participants will learn about the history and culture of Ome via local producers and manufacturers with products such as sake and indigo dyeing. Made in OME plants to expand their range of tourist monitor tours in the future.

Local Ome residents will also be invited to the tour in the evening of the same day. Learn all there is to know about Ome at Made in OME’s website which is available in English, Japanese, and Chinese.

FARO, an innovative Italian restaurant in Ginza, Tokyo, has earned itself a Michelin Star in Michelin Guide Tokyo 2021 which went on sale on December 10, 2020.

Located on the 10th floor of the Tokyo Ginza Shiseido Building, the restaurant offers a taste of contemporary Italy, fusing tradition and innovation with a menu that incorporates Japanese ingredients and culture for an original dining experience.

Chef’s Special: Potato spaghetti

The individual credited with the creation of a new food culture is FARO’s executive chef Kotaro Noda who is the only Japanese person to own two Michelin-starred restaurants in Italy. He has been at the forefront of the Italian cooking world for the past 20 years.

Vegan Menu: Daikon Mochi [Winter Season Item]

Flower Tart

FARO puts a lot of work into its array of colourful vegan courses. These courses aren’t only aimed at vegans either – they are available to anyone wanting to eat delicious and healthy food.

The restaurant is also a display of Japanese craftsmanship, with all cutlery, crockery, table accessories, and more made using traditional Japanese methods, like the lattice work on the doors from Niigata Prefecture, the Tajimi and Arita ware, fabrics from Imabari, Edo kiriko cut glasses, and more.

The decor of FARO is an elegant and stylish fusion of both Japanese and western tastes, with a colour gradation representing the earth, sea, and sky. This colouring offers a completely different dining in both the daytime or during evening hours.

Japanese creative company BAKERU has opened bookings for the new entertainment restaurant and bar SOAK which is set to open on November 13, 2020 on the top floor of MIYASHITA PARK’s new brand hotel “sequence MIYASHITA PARK” in Shibuya, Tokyo. The restaurant will served up a ‘Japanese innovative’ menu made by Takeshi Nagashima of Nishiazabu 81 and Hideaki Nagaya of L’Effervescence.

An otherworldly restaurant and bar serving Japanese innovative cuisine

“BUILD NEO TOKYO” is the theme of SOAK. SOAK welcomes by Takeshi Nagashima of Nishiazabu 81 which delivers performance style-entertainment to customes, and Hideaki Nagaya of L’Effervescence, who was chosen for “JAPANESE CUSINE TOP 5 CHEF IN HONG KONG.” Bartending will be Takashi Goto who has worked as the main bartender at Sake Bar DECIBEL in New York and Shampoo in Shinjuku Golden Gai.

An event and party space which can hold up to 100 people

Located just a 3-minute walk from Shibuya Station, SOAK can be used as a party and event space with a maximum capacity of 100 people whether it be a wedding reception or a gathering of friends, family, or business, as well as for events, catering to any and every need. The space was designed by Noiz, a leading interior designer in Japan. The monuments were designed by contemporary artist Akira Yoshida, while the audio design is by Acoustic Engineering and the music is selected by Hirokazu Yamasaki from the post-rock and instrumental band Toe.

OYU: The rooftop terrace offering a panoramic view of Shibuya

Take in a panoramic view of Shibuya atop the rooftop terrace, and enjoy the pool either in the sunlight or shrouded luxuriously in the night with gorgeous illuminations and a glass in hand.

The pre-opening is set for November 13, 2020, but this is subject to change depending on the state of the pandemic.

ART AQUARIUM MUSEUM officially opened permanently in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, on August 28, 2020. Before that, it was simply an exhibition that was held around Tokyo which brought together over 10 million visitors throughout its run, exhibiting goldfish in a variety of breathtaking ways.

We visited ART AQUARIUM MUSEUM together with Japanese model Yuna Yabe to take a deeper dive into what lies within those doors.

ART AQUARIUM MUSEUM can be found in Nihonbashi, an area of which served as one of many places where ART AQUARIUM previously held its exhibitions. Nihonbashi is steeped in tradition and is actually the place where Japan’s goldfish culture spawned from during the Edo Period.

ART AQUARIUM was conceived and is managed by Hidetomo Kimura, an author and general producer. It’s a collaboration between art, design, and entertainment, all fused into an aquarium to create a completely unique experience. The museum has taken what was once a pop-up exhibition and expanded it many-fold, housing close around 30,000 goldfish.

The aquarium is divided into different areas each with its own unique theme that plunges visitors into a multitude of fantastical worlds. One of the must-sees when visiting ART AQUARIUM MUSEUM is the masterful Oiran works—giant goldfish bowls as pictured above—which are inspired by the red light district of the Edo Period.

Perhaps the most striking and gorgeous part of the Edo Period was Hanamachi, the districts where geisha worked. The high-ranking courtesans, known as Oiran, engaged in what was known as the Oiran Dochu, or procession of the courtesans, and this too has been captured at the museum in the designs of the beautiful fish tanks in this area.

Another unmissable part when visiting the aquarium are the Goldfish Shrines, towering fish tanks lined up like a column of water trees which make for an incredible viewing experience.

The lighting and music is ever-changing, and so transports visitors into a completely different realm every time. It can be one way one moment, and in the next instant it changes entirely.

From the second floor you can overlook the fish shrines with dynamic 3D visuals in the background. These visuals change depending on the season, so you’ll be in for a treat however many times you visit.

There are countless works of goldfish art scattered throughout the aquarium—too many to count, so your eyes will never grow tired.

Suigian Lounge – Old Pine Tree Area

ART AQUARMIUM MUSEUM even has its own dining lounge where guests can enjoy a meal while gazing at a painting of old pine trees, a cultural property of the Edo Period said to have been painted by those of the Kano school of Japanese painting. Traditional performances are also carried out on the stage for diners.

These drinks are ¥1,200 each (before tax)

Every five days, a new line-up of cocktails is served at Suigian Lounge. Japan used to be divided into 24 sekki rather than the now-used four seasons of springs, summer, autumn, and winter. These were further divided into 72 Kō, which are five days apart each. That’s where the lounge gets its idea for changing its cocktails every five days. So you’re sure to find an interesting flavour on every visit.

Kagyo Ryoran – Joy Area 

Kagyo Ryoran is a separate cafe lounge at the aquarium where they serve authentic Japanese sweets in collaboration with famous confectionery shops.

From Left Clockwise: Goldfish Sarasa ¥750 / Palet D’or Cacao Soda ¥900 / Echire Butter & Cream Castella ¥800 / lohasbeans coffee Matcha Tiramisu ¥850 / Goldfish Jelly ¥750 (All Before Tax)

The cafe serves up range of tasty Japanese desserts, from traditional ones to others inspired by goldfish and some made in collaboration with other shops.

Large Plush Toys: ¥3,200 Each (Before Tax)

The aquarium event sells its own souvenirs, such as goldfish plushies in various sizes, original confections, collaborative products, and more.

“Everything was magical—the goldfish, the sounds, the lights, the atmosphere!” explains Yuna. “They have a lot of different varieties of goldfish, and the fish tanks come in all shapes and sizes, which makes for plenty of Instagram-worthy moments. And since it’s inspired by Edo culture, it has a Japanese vibe to it too. The fish are always swimming around, so no two moments are ever the same, meaning you’re offered something fresh every time you visit.”

If you’re visiting Tokyo, be sure to pay a visit to ART AQUARIUM MUSEUM.

The Tokyo branch of New York-based restaurant chain Sarabeth’s has announced a special autumn event that goes by the name ‘HIGH TEA TERRACE NIGHT.’ Set to run from September 23 to October 31, customers will be able to sit on a rooftop terrace in the evening with Tokyo’s towering cityscape surrounding them while drinking sparkling wine and other all-you-can-drink free-flow alcoholic beverages—high tea style.

High tea refers to post-dinner evening tea time. At Sarabeth’s, customers can look forward to dining on a special set menu for grown-ups with alcohol and other treats.

High Tea Style Set Menu With Free Drink | ¥5,000 (Before Tax)

Served on an afternoon tea stand, tuck into six different appetisers, meatball sliders, and truffle flavoured French fries. For the main dish, there’s steak made in a red wine sauce and boletus mushrooms. Free drinks include sparkling wine, red and white wine, beer, high balls, cocktails, soft drinks, and more.

Feel the evening breeze of autumn while indulging in a special high tea experience in Tokyo.

A new spaghetti carbonara restaurant by the name of Nama Carbonara opened in Harajuku, Tokyo on September 17, 2020.

The restaurant opened in the same building as Harajuku’s popular fresh cream shop MILK and bubble tea shop Mot Tram. The restaurant makes its own fresh flat pasta everyday and uses fresh, rich cream sourced from Hokkaido.

The current menu lineup consists of six dishes, from classic carbonara to Japanese twists. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Classic Carbonara | ¥790

Walleye Pollack Roe Japanese Carbonara | ¥1,090

Freshly Grated Cheese & Bacon Carbonara | ¥1,090

Seafood, Avocado & Basil Carbonara | ¥1,190

Discover a brand new world of carbonara like never before at Nama Carbonara in Harajuku.

Tokyo Tarako Spaghetti opened its all-new, second branch in Harajuku Omotesando on July 31, 2020. The restaurant opened its first branch back in January this year.

To commemorate the opening of the new restaurant, it is serving up two brand new tarako (cod roe) spaghetti dishes made with Japanese dashi.

Tarako & Kombu Umami With Dashi Spaghetti | ¥990 (Before Tax)

The first new dish is a combination of tarako, kombu, and dashi spaghetti. This dish adds a Japanese flair to it by combining tarako spaghetti with tarako boiled in soy. The full flavour of the kombu is extracted when the dashi is poured over, creating an irresistible flavour.

Three Fish Egg Tarako Spaghetti | ¥1,390 (Before Tax)

The second new dish on the menu is the “Three Fish Egg Tarako Spaghetti” which combines lots of tarako with toppings of salted salmon roe and flying fish roe. There’s a whopping 100g of fish eggs on there, so you won’t be going hungry with this filling, colourful serving of spaghetti.

Discover new kinds of tarako spaghetti dishes at Tokyo Tarako Spaghetti Harajuku Omotesando.