JULIA

In a word: special. I don’t ever leave reviews, but after my experience at JULIA I felt compelled to. Around two years ago I had an incredible evening at a two star Michelin restaurant in Munich that got its third star about 9 months later. It was one of the best nights of my life - and I’ve been chasing that high ever since. Suffice it to say, I’ve kissed a lot of delicious and fancy toads, but nothing compared to that one perfect evening. Until JULIA. The evening started with sparkling wine and 4 hors d’oeuvres downstairs. It was such a special way to make the dinner more of a multi-phased experience vs. a static 10 course meal. They have both NA and alcoholic pairings throughout the meal - I chose the booze, but I’m certain the NA would be spectacular. After some delicious small bites, we went upstairs to the main dining room where you are able to see the kitchen from your table. Being able to see the kitchen ended up being one of my favorite things (besides the food). As I said, I “kissed a lot of toads” and this was the first time where I saw the kitchen staff actually laugh and enjoy themselves. Too often in fine dining, people take themselves too seriously - but you can have an upscale experience AND know that the employees like working there. Chef Nao has created an environment that perfectly straddles that line. Chef Nao is magic. She paired flavors I would never have conceived of combining to create some of the most fabulous bites I’ve ever experienced. My personal favorites were the mackerel with apple, unagi with strawberry and cheese, and the cheesecake ice cream with caviar. All pairings that I will remember forever. Speaking of pairings, Chef Nao’s spouse is the sommelier and, damn, does he deliver. Each paring was thoughtful, unique, and Japanese. I tried types of wine that were new to me which was very exciting. My favorites here were the limoncello (I’m a sucker for a good limoncello) and the cold sake from his hometown. My only complaint is that the dishes were too flat for me to be able to scoop up all the sauce and it’s uncouth to lick my plate. This is a night I will never forget and I can’t wait to come back. It’s a crime that they don’t have at least one Michelin star - but I suspect that will change soon enough.

Julia was a highlight of my trip. The experience easily stands on the same level as two star Michelin restaurants in Tokyo. The precision, creativity, and emotional arc of each course made the meal unforgettable. You can feel the chef’s vision in every dish and I am certain a Michelin star is coming soon. The non alcoholic pairing is a must. Thoughtful, layered, and beautifully balanced, it added a whole new dimension to the tasting menu. Each drink was crafted with the same care as the food and elevated the experience even more. From start to finish, Julia delivered one of the most memorable dining experiences we have had in Japan. Truly exceptional. Highly recommended.

So this is a really special place, in a really special City. It feels like having a banging dinner in your living room / kitchen, with a bunch of friends. The food is spectacular. Best is the fruit plate- perhaps the best plate of food I have ever eaten. The wine pairings are also great. It’s just the best way to spend 4 hours in Tokyo, and that is seriously saying something.

Some restaurants feed you. Others invite you into something that feels like a quiet revelation. JULIA, tucked into Tokyo and run by Chef Nao Motohashi and her sommelier husband Kenichiro, falls firmly into the second category. We arrived on recommendation and left with the kind of meal memory that told a story. There’s a single sitting each evening that starts at 7pm, with everyone arriving to begin together. It’s a beautiful way for Nao to stay focused on her creativity, ensuring every guest experiences each course at its intended moment. Watching her create at the open kitchen while Kenichiro curates the wine pairings felt less like observing a service and more like being invited into something beautifully personal. If ever you want a sense of homecoming in an unfamiliar city, this place has a special quality that’s hard to articulate but impossible to miss. The omakase set menu is pairing-focused, with most ingredients sourced from Ibaraki Prefecture where Kenichiro was born and where the restaurant originated. What makes Julia distinctive is their approach to Japanese terroir through uniquely crafted combinations of vegetables and fish with fruit. The cuisine is colourful, light, and unafraid to explore beyond traditional boundaries. The pace of the meal allowed us to truly absorb each course. There was space between dishes to appreciate what had just arrived and prepare for what was coming next. The creativity wasn’t complicated for the sake of it. It felt like genuine expression through food. Our only challenge was the language barrier. The pairing stories were clearly rich with meaning, but relying on Google Translate in such an intimate setting felt like it would break the spell. We missed some of the narrative, though the food and wine spoke eloquently on their own. If you’re looking for something beyond the typical Tokyo dining experience, somewhere that feels like a homecoming with strangers who genuinely love what they do, JULIA deserves your time and attention. Highly recommended by a duo from Chic Retreats NZ .

J U L I A Chef Nao (the restaurant is named after her mother) is truly the most delightful hostess and most wonderfully inventive and artistic chef. Chef Nao and her sommelier husband Kenichiro-san present the beauty and bounty of Japan in the most refined but approachable way. Starting with the welcoming in what might be considered an American “keeping room”, we were greeted warmly and serve a lovely Japanese sparkling wine with a trio of sculptural bites which were nearly too perfect to eat. But that is what camera phones are for. And they were delicious. A tuna tart in a radish flower, the hairy crab and egg cup, and uni marinated with sake lees shows Chef Nao’s love of Japan and the gifts of its land and sea. And the gifts keep coming. Each course is an exquisite offering of which you devour with your eyes and then your palate. Bonito with cherry dressed with nasturtium petals, a tower of onion rings, uni, and ebi, and unexpected combinations of unagi with fig with a blanket of cheese snow, and monkfish with pineapple that allow each to sing in unison. Japanese beef is always a highlight and Chef Nao deftly presents a lovely example of the rich and tender deliciousness. Kenichiro does his part to highlight the vines of Japan with beautifully paired native wine selections. From starting with a sparking bottle of “happiness”, a Niigata rose, Pinot Noir from Hiroshima, Koshu from Yamanashi grapes, a sweet sake from Ibaraki with cheesecake ice cream, and a Gewurztraminer to finish the meal. And the deserts. Each one more magnificent that the last. I confess my was swimming with so many innovative flavor pairings and the wine maybe. So I will let you feast on the photos. Thank you Chef Nao and Kenichiro-san! You made our anniversary so special and memorable.

We were on a whirlwind japanese vacation which included the Guntu boat which serves fish right there from the Seto Inland Sea. Even after all that, Julia was most impressive! A great selection of food enough to keep you satisfied and happy along with a great Japanese wine/saki pairings and an incredible nonalcoholic pairing! I highly recommend this place. The staff and chef were incredibly upbeat and fun!

My husband and I partook of a wonderful meal last night. Every course was a surprise. Food was presented beautifully. Nao and her staff were terrific. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.

I would consider this as fate that my husband and I got to dine here on our last night in Tokyo before moving to a different city. It was totally unplanned! We found this restaurant because my husband followed the trail of a fragrant grilled meat aroma which led us to JULIA’s entrance 😂 We decided to ring the bell and ask if they had a table for 2 for dinner and YES! It turned out to be an amazing dinner from start to end, with a super friendly and welcoming team of four ❤️ Highly recommended restaurant to visit in Tokyo!

The most adorable tasting menu run by a lovely couple. The wife is in charge of food and the husband, wine parings with each course. Everything was thoughtful, unique, and tasty. It's an open dining concept where you can see everything happening in front of you, and it was roughly an 8 seater, making it an intimate dining experience. The couple was at tentative, kind, and their passion for food was communicated through each dish. Highly recommend booking this!!!

10/10, such a great dinning experience! We got 3 hours of fine dining, all Japanese cruises we had never experienced before. Alcohol pairing included for each of our dishes. Highly Recommend if you get the chance to go to Tokyo, it was my favorite part of the trip so far.