lobsterdog

Sure, I know what it means in Japanese. What always confuses me is when foreigners who don't speak Japanese talk about finding the best omakase or something like that. And I don't understand the concept of saying "omakase" to a chef who doesn't even know you and your taste. That's why I assume it has a slightly different meaning when used in English.

EYrevanchist

Pickles

I'm glad to see you've done your homework.

od_sf

There are two reasons why a place like Yoshitake charges more than a place like Keita. First, they probably do source slightly more expensive produce. Second, when a young sushi chef first establishes their own shop, they need to establish a customer base. They do this by keeping prices low and offering great C/P. Keita is still a relatively new shop and they are still building their base of regulars, hence the lower pricing. Yoshitake is very established.

Personally, I prefer finding the newer, great C/P places. Others prefer spending more and going to the well-established shops that source the top produce. Again, whether or not it is worth it to spend more at the established place depends on you, your wallet, and your palate. If you have a very developed palate, you might be able to tell the difference between the very highest grade of hon-maguro, uni or awabi vs. a slightly lower grade, and might prefer to spend the extra money.

ksandness

I have been going to Japan for 40 years, and I have never used restaurant guides. The reason is that every commercial district is jam-packed with restaurants--in office buildings, occupying a floor or two of each department store, in the arcades attached to train stations, and on every major street. Since most \restaurants that do not break the bank have either picture menus or plastic models of food in their windows or sidewalk signs that list the day's specials, and since there is no tipping and consumption tax is folded into the price, what you see is what you pay.
If a restaurant does not indicate its prices somehow on the outside, especially if you can't see inside from the street, you have reason to suspect that it is expensive.

AlwaysAisle

I also wonder if OP does know what Omakasa means, not literal sense. Under literal translation Omakasa can mean "Chef's Choice" as we frequently see at restaurants around the U.S. However, Omakase in Japan is not "Daily Special" or "Chef's Choice" seen at restaurants in the U.S. Omakase is typically asking a chef to do whatever off the menu. Obviously you will be asking for off the menu items a chef can create from what ever they have, typically price of Omakase is more expensive than the most expensive item on a menu. Also, not all restaurants and not all chefs will do Omakasa, it could be restaurants or chefs own policy or just does not have any ingredients to do Omakase at that particular day. When a restaurant happen to be very busy then a chef can politely decline Omakasa because it is too busy to deal with off the menu items.

All restaurants recommended here, do we really know that those restaurant's do Omakase on regular basis? We are talking about requesting off the menu items. Also, OP asked for Kaiseki, tempura restaurants usually do not do kaiseki because their specialty is tempura only. Then OP asked for Nigiri at One Star restaurant vs. Three Stars restaurants. Sushi is not Kaiseki. I kind of wondering if OP himself/herself knows what he/she is looking for.

jib71

When Michelin was fairly new to Tokyo, a critic wrote a guide to the "Famous restaurants that you should avoid at all costs, and unknown restaurants that you must go to." The premise of the book was that it's better to seek out hidden gems, which Tokyo has in abundance, than to pay top dollar at celebrated restaurants that are resting on their laurels. Unfortunately, it hasn't been updated since 2009, but I think the premise stands - Although some famous restaurants offer better value than others, "best value" and "most famous" are somewhat contradictory.

EYrevanchist

EYrevanchist

I’m very sorry guys, I probably should be looking for places on my own...
I was just looking for community favourites

MSPeconomist

Gradfly

Have you checked out the burger thread?

AlwaysAisle

There are so many to choose from and everybody has more than one favorite. You may start by listing...

• Where in the city are you staying (name of the hotel) so that we know where you are looking to dine, how far you are willing to travel for a meal?.
• Budget, how much you are planning to spend.
• Number of people. Are you alone, with family, small kids?
• What you favorite? Sushi, Tempura, French, Italian, Chinese, etc.
• Amount of time you have for a meal. Do you have entire evening, or are you looking to finish up in less than an hour?

If you do not give us any detail then it will be so difficult for anybody to provide you with a suggestion. Japan is a far larger place than many think and so many different choices.

EYrevanchist

EYrevanchist

EYrevanchist