I was intrigued when I first heard about Nagatacho Ohka. This private restaurant in Tokyo has no website and no public phone number. At first, I expected little more than exclusivity. However, I was unprepared to be amazed.

After all, I have stayed in some of the best hotels in the world and dined at the finest restaurants. My standards are high. Even so, my interest was piqued.

On a recent stopover in Tokyo, I accepted an invitation to dinner from Christine Cunanan, the director of Nagatacho Ohka. She lives mainly in Tokyo, yet also owns La Esperanza Granada, a luxury hacienda-style hotel in Southern Spain that was recently awarded Best of the Best for 2025 by Trip Advisor, placing it in one of the top 1% of all lodgings worldwide.

READ MORE ABOUT LA ESPERANZA GRANADA, THE MOST BEAUTIFUL VILLA IN ANDALUCIA

A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE IN TOKYO

Nagatacho Ohka sits in a 100-year-old wooden building near the official residence of the Prime Minister of Japan. Previously, it was a famous soba and shabu shabu restaurant owned by the family of Akira Kurosawa, Japan’s most celebrated film director.

The restaurant closed during the pandemic. During that time, Christine Cunanan and her partners took over the space. They renovated the entire building to the highest standards, working with some of the finest craftsmen in Japan. “We didn’t really have a budget in mind when we renovated this,” said Christine. “We just wanted to be the best dining experience in Japan.”

THE BEST OF JAPANESE FOOD

And indeed, the result exceeded my already high expectations. Every design detail felt impeccable. From the start, the long, dark bar — inspired by a Kyoto machiya townhouse — made a statement. 

Meanwhile, the lively open-plan Chef’s Counter seated 15 guests in an atmosphere of energy and warmth.

Upstairs, four private rooms awaited. Each carried a different mood and theme, yet all were beautiful. If you asked mewhich one was best, I would have no answer. It truly depends on who you are with and what kind of mood you are in.

Q&A with Christine Cunanan, Director of Nagatacho Ohka

Q: Is it true that Nagatacho Ohka is the best restaurant in Tokyo?

A: I like to think so. There are very few restaurants in Tokyo — if not in the world — that are private and non-commercial. Without the pressures of a commercial establishment, we are free to offer the best dining experience possible. Many guests afterwards tell me that dinner at our restaurant was one of the best food experiences they’ve had.

Q: If you are the best restaurant in Tokyo, are you also the most expensive?

A: We are definitely not cheap. But price is relative. However I can 100% confirm that most foreign guests feel satisfied with their experience because they oftentimes return on their next visit to Japan, and sometimes even twice or thrice on the same visit. This would not happen so often if guests did not feel we offer value.

No restaurant will be able to please everyone, especially as the value of a dinner depends on the perceptions of each person and his or her personal circumstances. However, most of our guests are very happy with the Nagatacho Ohka experience.

Q: Some people are wondering why they see so few Japanese guests compared to foreigners.

A: First, we tend to put foreigners in our first floor Chef’s Counter because they like sitting around the counter and watching the chefs. Meanwhile, Japanese guests are usually regulars who have their favorite rooms for entertaining on the second floor. They rarely book the chef’s counter because they prefer to dine in privacy. For this reason, a diner eating at our Chef’s Counter will probably see mostly other foreigners dining in the restaurant. The Japanese members are all in the private rooms upstairs.

Second, we are a private restaurant and we have decided to accept only Japanese diners who are friends or associates of our restaurant partners. It is a very strict policy because the owners want to relax only with people they know. Currently, the restaurant caters to only 50 Japanese and their friends and associates.

Meanwhile, foreign guests can eat at Nagatacho Ohka on an introduction basis. For example, if you know me or someone I know, or if you are a guest of one of our luxury travel partners, then you are able to easily book at Nagatacho Ohka as long as we have availability. So the window is larger as many of Tokyo’s top hotels such as the Four Seasons, Bulgari Hotel, Aman Tokyo, Janu Tokyo and the Park Hyatt Tokyo send their guests to us.

THE WORLD’S ONLY JAPANESE LACQUER ROOM

For dinner, we began in the Urushi no Heya, said to be the world’s only Japanese lacquer room. Frankly, it was stunning. A long lacquer dining table dominated the space. The ceiling, also covered in lacquer, glowed with elegance. Most impressive, a golden peacock stretched across the room — etched in delicate detail and mirrored above. You have to see itto truly appreciate its beauty.

Dinner itself was unforgettable. At Nagatacho Ohka, there is no set menu. Instead, chefs — many trained in Michelin-starred restaurants — roll out wagons filled with seafood, vegetables, and the finest beef in Japan. Yes, the finest beef, and not just A5 wagyu.

This beef comes from a farm in Kagoshima, southern Japan, recognized by the Japanese beef industry as producing the nation’s #1 meat. From these ingredients, chefs and guests create a menu together. Diners share their wishes, and the chefs suggest dishes. For my part, I asked for the house specialties, steak, and garlic rice.

WONDERFUL BEGINNINGS AT NAGATACHO OHKA

But first came the appetizers, paired with flutes of sparkling sake. “We also have champagne,” Christine explained, “but really good sparkling sake is rare outside Japan. I always recommend it to foreign guests.”

We began with caviar tucked inside a cheese-flavored brioche bun. (Who would have guessed this pairing would work so perfectly?) Next, a delicate sandwich of chateaubriand from the Kagoshima farm appeared. After that, I enjoyed slices of tender abalone with thick seaweed sauce and sushi rice.

By then, I was already happy. Every bite felt like a promise of what was still to come.

THE FIRST DREAM MENU

But this was not dinner yet. It was only the beginning. The rest of the meal unfolded like a dream.

We began with two kinds of sashimi, lightly seared over charcoal and seasoned only with salt. There was no need for soy sauce. The fish included black throat (nodoguro) and golden eye (kinmeidai), both delicate and flavorful.

Next came a traditional Japanese clear soup. It featured a perfectly filleted slice of spring fish (amadai) and a crisp tempura of vegetables and swordfish. The swordfish tempura was unforgettable — light, crunchy, and full of flavor.

THE MAIN EVENTS

After that, we tasted buttery Hokkaido scallops, sautéed and topped with rosemary purée. Then came something unexpected: an original pasta made from live French lobster, with noodles shaped like a cone. At first glance, I would never have guessed it was pasta.

Finally, a beautiful steak arrived, paired with fresh wasabi and sea salt from Himeji in Western Japan. A bowl of garlic rice sat on the side. I said “finally” because I thought the meal was over.

To my surprise, Christine handed me another menu. “This is our comfort food menu,” she said. “Japanese love to end a fancy meal with comfort food, so we offer soba and even spaghetti Napolitan. You cannot leave without trying them.”

HOW TO CREATE A DREAM DINNER

We ended up ordering about seven dishes from the comfort food menu, and every single one was delicious. The soba, for example, is prepared by a famous soba master who works full-time onsite. He has been making soba for more than thirty years. His handmade noodles, mixed with 80% buckwheat flour, are so delicate it is hard to believe they are cut by hand.

Other standouts included omelette rice made with egg yolks the color of golden sunshine, a crisp minced meat cutlet, and the signature spaghetti Napolitan. As food lovers know, this dish does not exist in Italy. It was invented in Japan long ago, based on what people imagined Italians ate. In truth, there is no spaghetti Napolitan in Italy, so Japan is the only place you can enjoy it.

At Nagatacho Ohka, the version is addictive. The pasta has just the right touch of spiciness, with thin slices of sausage folded into the sauce. And for those who prefer extra heat, a bottle of Tabasco comes on the side — exactly the way it was served in Japanese coffee shops decades ago, before Tokyo became the cosmopolitan city it is today.

WHERE TO EAT SPAGHETTI NAPOLITAN IN TOKYO

As food lovers know, there is no such thing as spaghetti Napolitan in Italy. This pasta was created in Japan decades ago, inspired by what people imagined Italians ate. In truth, the dish does not exist in Italy, so Japan is the only place where you can enjoy it.

At Nagatacho Ohka, their version is irresistible. The pasta has just the right level of spiciness, with thin slices of sausage mixed into the sauce. For those who like extra heat, a bottle of Tabasco comes on the side. This detail reflects tradition, since spaghetti Napolitan was once served the same way in Japanese coffee shops before Tokyo grew into the cosmopolitan city it is today.

SWEET ENDINGS AT NAGATACHO OHKA

Nagatacho Ohka also offers a long dessert menu. After such a feast, I chose a simple medley of homemade ice cream in original flavors.

First, a refreshing plum and perilla leaf sorbet acted as a palate cleanser. Next, came a creamy kinako ice cream, flavored with roasted soybean flour. After that, a Japanese cinnamon ice cream arrived, with crunchy bits of bark folded in. Finally, the matcha ice cream closed the meal. Matcha is common in Japan and abroad, but this version used the highest grade of green tea. The taste balanced perfectly between subtle sweetness and refined bitterness.

Just like everything else at Nagatacho Ohka, the desserts were better than expected.

(Guests staying at top Tokyo hotels like Aman, Bulgari, Janu, the Grand Hyatt, the New Otani and the Ritz Carlton, among others, can book Nagatacho Ohka through their concierge. Or you can message Christine Cunanan on LinkedIn and tell her you read about the restaurant in my LinkedIn post.)

READ MORE ABOUT THE BEST RESTAURANTS IN TOKYO IN TRAVELIFE MAGAZINE

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At its peak, the New York Grill of the Park Hyatt Tokyo was easily one of the best restaurants in the world. This was in the late 1990s and the hotel had just opened to great acclaim. It literally changed the landscape of the hotel industry. Until then, there was no hotel on the planet that made ultra-stylish modern interiors with extreme attention to details for the luxury market.

THE PLACE TO SEE AND BE SEEN IN TOKYO

Meanwhile, the New York Grill set the standard for contemporary fine dining. I do not exaggerate when I say that everyone who was anyone in the world wanted to eat here. The waiting list for a table at the New York Grill was as long as several months. There were lots of people hoping for confirmed dinner reservations and also for a table for Sunday brunch. Sunday brunch at the New York Grill was the best in Tokyo. Of course, the wait was worth it.

In the late 1990s, this was the destination restaurant for people who had already been everywhere and done everything. First, there was the location. There were few restaurants that occupied the entire floor of the top of a building in Tokyo in those days, so this fact alone made everyone’s jaw drop. I think the massive open kitchen also made it to restaurant design history. Three sides are either open or walled in glass so there is no place to hide messy preparations. This ushered in the era of performance cooking, where your food is on show from preparation stage to plating and serving.

IF VIEWS COULD KILL

The views from this restaurant were — and still are — a crowd drawer. You see, when you get out of the elevator on the restaurant floor, immediately you are eyeball to eyeball with incredible views of Tokyo. These are not just any views either. The New York Grill is housed in a dome that is three or four storeys high. So you have this incredible feeling of being in the sky from the height relative to outside, and then also from the height inside.

Then there was the wonderful food. I’ve known many of the New York Grill chefs and each one had a way of combining the best of Japanese ingredients into great Western-style comfort food. This has always been the go-to place for steak-and-sides for dinner.

Then for lunch, including on Sundays, the chefs always created a truly fancy appetizer and dessert buffet. Diners could have their fill of both and they chose a main dish in between. This was so enjoyable and a long Sunday brunch at the New York Grill was my favorite weekend activity for a very long time.

LIVING IN ELECTRIC DREAMS

Finally, the electric atmosphere of the New York Grill was a great crowd drawer. It was always full of Japanese celebrities, New York billionaires, Hollywood movie stars and European supermodels. All the American movie stars visiting Tokyo stayed at here, so it was not unusual to see one of them in the next table. In fact, this is how Sofia Coppola ended up choosing to shoot her movie “Lost in Translation” at the Park Hyatt Tokyo. She’d stayed here several times.

This made for a real adrenalin rush, to enter a restaurant full of movers and shakers and beautiful people. If you were not part of this crowd, you suddenly felt you had joined anyway.

For a time, I ate here several times a week. In fact I was always looking for an excuse to eat here because life seemed more perfect after a meal at the New York Grill. I kid you not. I always left the restaurant with a much better feeling about the world than when I entered it. And this is probably the best reason to eat in any restaurant.

Because I ate there all the time, I had a hotline for booking tables. In those days, as I have already written, the restaurant was completely full for months. However, when possible, they always left one table or two empty for sudden VIP arrivals. So if I was lucky and no VIPs had claimed this table, it was usually mine. This is how the New York Grill became my “kitchen.”

FINE DINING AMIDST THE PANDEMIC

Fast forward to September 2020 and we are in the middle of the worst pandemic mankind has seen in about 100 years. The world has become a place of lockdowns and misery in a matter of months. So if there was any perfect time for me to revisit the New York Grill, it was probably in these COVID-19 months. I have already mentioned how my perception of the world always changed after eating here. Well, last September was a good time to get my current worldview altered even slightly.

Fortunately, the New York Grill did not disappoint. The best thing about it was that it was exactly the same as I have always remembered it. Absolutely nothing had changed. So if someone had tied a blindfold around my eyes, I would still be able to find my way to my favorite table.

READ ABOUT THE LOST IN TRANSLATION SUITE OF THE PARK HYATT TOKYO

PARADISE FOUND IN TOKYO

In this current world where everyone’s lives have been turned upside down, the New York Grill was still the paradise it has always been. Even the menu did not seem to change much, Why change a good thing that works, after all? So the steaks and the sides were as good as always. I ordered a rib-eye grilled medium, and as always I asked the kitchen for rice instead of potatoes.

I was so thankful that night that some things indeed never change. The New York Grill was an oasis of normalcy and a vestige of the old world we had before the pandemic. This was a most precious thing, and it gave me a real break away from all these months of thinking about COVID-19.

JUST LIKE THE GOOD OLD DAYS

In fact, the restaurant was full that evening and as lovely and lively as ever. And the waitstaff who came to take our order also said: “We served over 100 covers at lunch today. And we’ve managed to keep the appetizer and dessert buffet too.” Wow. That sure sounded like a pandemic had never happened..

Nevertheless, these days are also all about safety. Masks, temperature checks and sanitizers were all in place. So perhaps “the best of the old world and the new world” is a more accurate description for this restaurant. And for now, this is probably the most perfect combination of all.

Read more about the best hotels and restaurants in Japan in Travelife Magazine.

A HACIENDA HOTEL OPENS IN SPAIN AMIDST THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

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