Kutan

Wine: Leroy Volnay 2009 Price: ¥250000 included wine and surcharge for 2 people Food: small portion, but may not suit for others. However, we do love this size. They use some Chinese elements such as fish fillet and 千张包. Overall is good, but nothing very amazing. I think ideally is good for wine lovers to enjoy the wines and the food to match it. However, some of the seafood may take advantage on the wines, they does help to change the glass if the seafood taste stay on the glass.

The whole journey is quite light, nothing special. The starter is OK, soba noodle is the best dish. I am not happy with the sashimi sea bream, hard to chew, but the fish skin is nice. Main course is Salmon Teriyaki with plain rice and some veg, I have to say as Michelin 2 stars, the menu is a bit lack of creativity or maybe I didn’t get it. The dissent ice cream is not in good temperature, already melted when serve to us. Taste is ok. Chef is welcome. We spent ¥100,000 for 2 people total in the end. Think about the price and what we get…

Completely bizarre evening. Everything felt rushed from the very first moment with people walking in and out of the main room shouting the whole time. In front of me (photo attached) was the sink where all of the pots were washed; what kind of 2-star Michelin restaurant does their washing up 50cm from your face? Beyond the sink were the cupboards where all the plates and bowls were stored, and people were walking out of the kitchen to grab things (obviously shouting as they did so). These three things gave rise to a disagreeable atmosphere. On top of this, the head chef spent most of his time talking to a couple who were extremely loud, paying little attention to the other people. The food itself is not that great. This is the 3rd kaiseki that we have done, and it falls short by a non-negligible margin. Sure, the food was not bad, per se, but no dish left us with a particularly strong impression. Combining all of this, the 110k price tag for two people does not seem worth it one bit.

I expected more from a 2 Michelin star restaurant (as of 2024) although it is true that the guide tends to be more generous with Tokyo restaurants evaluations. On the plus side, the food was truly excellent, with creative combinations that worked very well, and the chef was clearly working with top notch seasonal ingredients and produce. The crab meat in any of its forms was especially tasty. And the portions were very generous. Things to improve: the service is still very dry despite the more international customer visiting the place and the fact that is a small counter space. The food decoration and presentation is at least a notch below top Kaiseki restaurants elsewhere in the country; and some of the cutlery and tableware is tired and worn out (not confusing it with antique pieces). All in all a very good food experience.

DO NOT GO TO THIS PLACE. Our experience at Kutan was deeply disappointing. While the wine selection was excellent and the ambiance pleasant, with a striking wooden counter, the positives ended there. Sadly, the food fell dramatically short of expectations. The dishes lacked inspiration, with several featuring simply boiled fish that lacked both texture and flavor. The abalone was incredibly tough, bordering on inedible, and even the handroll, a seemingly straightforward dish, was disappointing due to its soggy seaweed. We struggled to find a single dish that justified the restaurant's two Michelin stars. To compound the issue, both my husband and I experienced severe stomach upset and got severely ill. As we had not eaten anything else that day, we believe this was directly related to our dinner at Kutan. This was not only the most disappointing Michelin experience we've encountered but also the worst meal of our 17-day trip to Japan. We strongly advise against dining here – it simply isn’t worth the risk or the expense.

As a frequent patron of Tokyo’s Michelin-starred restaurants, I’m stunned by the inconsistency between this experience and its accolades. While no dish was technically flawed, every course felt forgettable—lacking innovation, depth, or any moment of delight. For ¥49,000 per person, this wasn’t merely disappointing; it was an outright disregard for value. I strongly caution diners against visiting and urge Michelin to reassess this establishment’s stars.

The two Michelin stars are well deserved. The chef is very professional and prepares many delicious dishes. Whether it is puffer fish, various fish and seafood dishes, or Wagyu shabu-shabu with sansho pepper, they are all extremely delicious. The most interesting thing is that the sous chef looks very much like one of my best friends, the similarity is 90%, what a coincidence. The restaurant is very good, I will visit again.

The staff and chef are friendly, helpful, and even though I don't speak Japanese they were very accommodating and patient with me explaining what I was being served. The problem I have with the experience is mostly the food, I have had many of the dishes or the main ingredients in many of the dishes prepared for me at other restaurants and in almost every case they have been better elsewhere. As a 2 star restaurant I expected so much more and I hope it was they were having an off night but it would have had to have been a really off night because it didn't even come close to what I've had from restaurants that are just Michelin noted, don't even have a star, and at the price I wouldn't risk giving them a 2nd try to find out