This counts as one of Tokyo’s genuinely hard-to-book restaurants — the wait for a reservation runs 14 months or more.

Unlike other high-end Tokyo restaurants, it doesn’t build its barrier to entry with luxury ingredients or a steep price tag — the weekday menu runs around ¥12,000, which converts to less than the average check at some small bistros in Beijing or Shanghai.

🍴The menu structure is clear too — the chef treats hams from different regions as “seasoning and structure,” pairing their individual character with other ingredients. Every combination isn’t just delicious, it lands with a clear sense of layering and purpose.

🤔Should say upfront — the weekday menu is fairly ordinary, but the holiday menu is genuinely surprising. It even delivers a few special, memorable moments you won’t find at other restaurants.

🧑‍🍳The chef’s understanding of ham is almost second nature at this point. He knows inside out how different cuts, salt levels, fat content and aging time each change things, and handles it all with ease — the way many Western chefs reach for spices, effortless, yet always precise.

Some dishes still feel worth turning over in your mind, even now.
🦑Short-aged prosciutto × Parmesan × fried squid. The squid itself is crisp and chewy, gaining a lightly crackling shell after frying — a texture with real presence. The ham sits on top, its meaty aroma pronounced, carrying a faint freshness. Parmesan cream lifts the saltiness and dairy fat, while the sauce brings a touch of “funk” that gets more addictive with every bite.
🐷60-month-aged Iberian pork loin × Piedmont white truffle. Both are “pure” enough in their freshness on their own, yet together they strike a genuinely beautiful balance. The truffle’s aroma doesn’t overpower the meat’s sweetness, and the meat’s fat doesn’t swallow up the truffle’s detail. A true case of 1+1>2.
😋There’s also Gunma Akagi pork turned into a sushi-style “pork-fat rice” for its fatty sweetness; seasonal strawberries used to brighten a ham plate’s cream; and a piece of half-cooked Hida beef sitting in a clear ham consommé — all the kind of delicious that lingers in memory.

🍴The dishes that have nothing to do with ham are equally striking.
🐟Ehime horse mackerel, heavily smoked, paired with Jerusalem artichoke and macadamia nuts. Fresh, crisp, high acidity — like it draws a sharp outline in the mouth, layered, decisive and impactful.
🐮The beef tongue plays tip against root: the former soft and delicate, the latter firm and chewy, the cooking time calibrated exactly right.
🍝There’s also a tagliolini made with shirako, yellow chives and Shimonita scallion. The yellow chives and Shimonita scallion carry a “rich” aroma, layered with the shirako’s cream-like density, yet somehow not the least bit heavy — instead soft, sticky, and deeply satisfying. Oddly enough, it brought to mind those steaming hot mackerel dumplings, the kind that puff steam the moment you bite in.

A few extra notes: the wine list here runs on the pricier side overall, and once the kitchen fires up, the smoke can get fairly noticeable. If you’ve got a booking, go in expecting a bistro atmosphere.

Other than that — hoping the chef keeps cooking this well on regular days too, or else it’s back to waiting for next Christmas season 🤷.

🐷nacol
💰¥12,000 / ¥24,000 (weekday / holiday menu)