Comments on: Sushi Iwa – Is This One Michelin Star Sushi Restaurant In Tokyo Worth The Hype?

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 04 Dec 2018 18:21:08 +0000

I went to Ginza Iwa in April for lunch and had an easy time booking through my hotel concierge. I am surprised that people are having such a hard time booking given the variety of booking options. I was seated in the basement but served by Iwa-san. Like the other posters I wasn’t a huge fan of the space. But to be fair given the crown we were seated with I can understand this policy. Sitting next to us were four very loud 20 somethings from the Bay Area (are their any foreigners not from the Bay Area in Japan!) who were hung over and heading to a baseball game to keep the party going. The 13 course lunch set is indeed the best deal in Tokyo for a high end omakase experience. I wouldn’t hesitate to book again even though I probably would be stuck in the basement.

By: The Sushi Geek

The Sushi Geek — Fri, 10 Aug 2018 17:35:17 +0000

Foreigners are not automatically seated in he basement. I’ve visited Ginza Iwa 6 times and have sat at the main counter with Iwa-san five out of these six visits. It is also a relatively easy restaurant to book, either via a good hotel concierge, or via Tablecheck. The 13 course lunch set priced at ¥8,640 is still one of the best deals in Ginza, in my opinion.

By: Cindy

Cindy — Wed, 17 Jan 2018 12:36:31 +0000

Probably sushi Iwa set the foreigners customers in the basement simply because their manners differ from the Japanese manners. I know it sounds rude but as a foreigner that lived in Japan for 15years, many times I felt ashamed of being a foreigner because of some another foreigner’s behavior next to me…

By: Jean

Jean — Sun, 12 Nov 2017 15:28:02 +0000

hey there, first off thank you for the great blog. I -foreigner from Europe- used to be a regular twice a year guest for the first 1-2 years. I used to sit on the first flow with Iwa-san, then unfortunately I got reprimanded to the lower floor. After another year I got back the reply from my hotel concierge that they don’t accept my reservation anymore. Now, you’d think I dressed unappropriately, or that I did something else to annoy them, quite on the contrary, as I can even speak a little japanese. It seems that the “cheap” omakase attracted too much attention and coupled with the massive influx of foreign tourists, they decided to close down the reservations.

I am now happily customer of other places, way more special -unfortunately also more expensive- places that are not available to book without introduction. Shame on Iwa-san for making a general assumption about foreigners, I will not be a customer anymore.