Tempura Kondo

Worthy of the two Michelin stars. The chefs preparing the food are absolutely devoted to the process; and it shows in the food they prepared. Every item was perfect. A very rare experience.

I had a wonderful experience at Tempura Kondo this spring. The experience felt steeped in tradition, carrying an aura of what legends are made of. The counter-style seating drew you into the heart of the action, letting you watch the preparation of each dish. It was personal and intimate, creating an almost ritualistic vibe—every movement precise, every action structured, like a culinary ceremony unfolding before us. The team was quite attentive, guiding us with thoughtful recommendations on how to savor each course for maximum flavor—whether to pair it with salt, wasabi, or the delicate dipping sauce, and in what order to enjoy them. The food itself was a testament to their mastery of tempura, each piece a perfect balance of crisp lightness and vibrant flavor. We also added the infamous sweet potato, though it was just a tad dry for my taste. Still, the art of the dishes—simple yet profound—left an indelible mark. This restaurant was my partner’s absolute favorite of our entire trip and beyond

From the moment I walked in, I felt genuinely welcomed. The staff here are incredibly kind, attentive, and make you feel right at home. You can tell they truly care about the details — from the way the food is presented to the thoughtful service throughout the meal. The food itself is outstanding. Everything tastes fresh, carefully prepared, and full of flavor. There’s a great variety of dishes, and each one feels crafted with care rather than just thrown together. What really impressed me is that the prices are reasonable for the quality you get. Delicious, well-made food that doesn’t feel overpriced — such a rare find these days. Overall, it’s the kind of place you want to come back to again and again. Welcoming atmosphere, fantastic food, and great value — highly recommend!

I don’t understand why this tempura shop gets a 2 stars michelin. For me, it’s just a normal tempura shop, nothing really wowed me. It was not crispy at all. They told us that the sweet potatoes need to order early as it needs 40 minutes to cook and the portion of the sweet potatoes was big. Fine, we ordered. In my opinion, the sweet potatoes was too big! And it was too dry, it cooked too long until the umami of sweet potatoes was gone! I don’t really know what I eat that night. For this price, I believe some other tempura shops can do lot better!

Amazing Tempura, So delicate and finely crafted in front of your eager eyes. Perfectly Made Superior Quality Fish & Sea Food - Delicious! There are two separate Rooms In my Opinion the Sweet Potato (Not Included) is Amat try: It takes 40 Minutes to prepare

I had the ¥27,500 set. The experience is not so good as it was quite rushed and the set was served under 80 minutes. Which I think it was too rushed if you would like to enjoy the delicate food. Waiter and waitress kept serving food or changing oil paper while I was having food which it quite disturbing when I tried to enjoy the food or have a conversation with my friend. Not an enjoyable dinning experience

Overall, I had a positive first tempura omakase experience. I thoroughly enjoyed each tempura piece and it’s interesting how certain pieces are to be enjoyed in different ways (with salt/ lemon/ sauce). The only thing that I didnt really enjoy was how the tempura was served piping hot, I think I may have burned my tongue a little. Also, the flow was pretty fast before the next piece was served, so you kinda have to endure the burning sensation when taking a bite of the fresh-from-the-oil tempura 🥹 Other than that, everything was good. The waiter and waitress were attentive in refilling your drink and changing the paper on the plate. We had the full course and we’re glad we chose it because we got to enjoy a delicious tendon rice course at the end 😊 Interaction-wise, though it’s a small counter table, there’s almost no interaction with the chefs.

This was an exquisite tasting experience - the tempura chefs know their craft impeccably well and describe how to eat each dish. The service was top notch.

Tokyo, Ginza. November 2022 Tempura Kondo is located on Namiki-Dori, in the 6-Chome of Ginza, just a few minutes walk from Ginza's best hotels. It is easy to find. There is an English menu which tells you they can do enough limited communication in English to make your meal enjoyable. Chef Fumio Kondo is known for using a bare minimal batter on his tempura. He believes that a tempura fry best steams in the flavor and umami of food. If you sit at the counter you will get to watch him work. He has an efficient team that provides him everything he needs, when he needs it, so he has to do is cook tempura. And Chef Kondo will cook every piece you are served himself. Everyone is soft spoken and you know by watching that everyone hears every word to each other and moves without wasted motion. Meals are set up in group seating times. The best seating is always the first, for lunch or dinner. Patrons in subsequent seatings must wait in a small crowded space outside the elevators until the previous seating leaves. Everything is prepped to order and given to Chef Kondo as needed. That means your shrimp is peeled, a filet of fish or eel is finished, root vegetables are sliced only when they are needed. Oil is changed frequently as deemed necessary by Chef Kondo. He carefully monitors the condition and temperature of each pan of oil. Three items are signature tempura. A very thick piece of a huge sweet potato is sliced and Chef Kondo slowly deep fries it, constantly moving it from a hotter pan to one with a lower temperature. The result is sweet potato which a thin crisp skin and nice moist flesh inside. It must be ordered separately from your course at the beginning of your meal because it will fry for 30-40 minutes. Fine julienned carrot is another signature. It barely has any batter, fries for less than a minute, and Chef Kondo mounds it into a stack that only needs some salt sprinkled on as seasoning. A fist of Shirako cooked as tempura and sliced in two is another signature item. If you like it, I recommend you order it. If you don't know what it is, don't bother. All this tempura can easily cause palate fatigue. You are given daikon oroshi with ginger, a delicate tempura tsuyu, a half piece of citrus, salt. There is also soy and shichimi on the counter. Eat your tempura as plainly as you are able, but season as necessary because otherwise everything will start to taste the same. There are a number of high end tempura restaurants all over Tokyo. They all have slightly different styles. Tempura Kondo is a good choice for an introduction to tempura at the top of its class.

Tempura Kondo is one of the very best tempura restaurants in the world. While its two Michelin stars is a reflection of that, the proof is in what is put on the plate in front of you. Chef Kondo is a true master and he is a culinary treasure.

Oof. Feels sacrilegious giving Tempura Kondo this rating given the legendary status of the place as well as my personal emotional attachment (Kondo was the first high-end tempura spot I'd ever been to). But the simple reality is that the pace at Kondo is way too hectic - and it negatively affects the quality of the final product. I've now been to Kondo twice and it was even worse on my recent visit. The hectic atmosphere is a direct result of Chef Kondo personally frying everything for the entire bar, which seats more than 20. His assistants do some of the prep and they also do the post-fry cutting and final plating. So this means that at least every single thing you get served was tempura'd up by Chef Kondo personally - but this just isn't a net positive. Just to put it in perspective: On multiple occasions, Chef Kondo or his assistants dropped the food while trying to hand stuff off. Then they'd just toss it back into the tempura fryer or serve it to the customers anyway. I posted some pictures of my food where the breading had already fallen off. Maybe it was one of the pieces they dropped. At the level this restaurant is supposed to be at, this is just not acceptable. Why do they think it's OK to serve a piece of tempura where half the breading has come off? It stinks like they're just living off their reputation and mailing it in while trying to serve as many customers as quickly as possible. If you must come here, the sweet potato was a real highlight. Order this early as it takes ~40mins. It's a huge portion but they let us split one order. The other highlights were the scallop and abalone. Service was good and our specific waitress spoke good English. But that said, really, you can do much better than here - and you should especially avoid if you'd prefer an atmosphere that doesn't feel totally frantic and harried.

Deep fry anything and it makes it better right? So what happens when you take the freshest, forged this morning greens, plumpest mushrooms, and shrimp dispatched before your eyes and deep fry them? You earn yourself TWO Michelin stars. This is next level tempura. The oil, a masterful blend including fragrant sesame, is changed, not filtered but thrown out a new oil used every 10 minutes. Two fryers, the first hotter than the second are used to lock in moisture and crisp the batter then to complete the cooking of the seafood or veg. Only the master coats and fries the tempura. His two apprentices continuously prep items. Fortunate enough to be seated in front of Kondo himself, let the meal begin! Tip: there are two counters. The first, closest to the entrance, is where Kondo himself cooks. The second is his apprentice/son. Ordering is simple, three preset menus at different price points. The more expensive uses more luxurious ingredients and does not equal more food. Lemon, salt, and an incredible dipping sauce are offered. Follow the chef suggestions on what to use. Don't, and he won't reprimand you, simply stop talking to you. Tip: the restaurants signature sweet potato tempura must be ordered ala carte at the beginning of the meal. It takes over an hour to cook. All menus begin with to house signature starters. The coldplate includes a sweet shell, marinated fish, and out of this world, almost sweet potato tasting, ankimo (monk fish liver). The warm starter, tofu and broad bean paste wrapped in yuba then poached and served in a konbu aspic with the essence of soy. Elegance. The tempura, rather than going through the entire list, suffice it to say ingredients are brought in that day from all over Japan. These are the freshest examples of each type of produce. Being spring, asparagus, bitter greens, bulbs, the seasons first sweet onions, all adorn the meal. Each and every tempura showcases the natural flavor of what is being fried. For example, the thick, meaty shiitake explodes with umami supercharged flavor. Hasu, tender and sweet, the perfect example of the root. Onions like the best onion ring you've ever had if it were sprinkled with sugar. Finally the sweet potato. Three inches thick, crispy on the outside without being burnt, perfectly "steamed" on the inside, it's sugary sweetness intensified. Just a bit of salt and this is heaven. Seafood items are equally good. Sweetness is teased from plump white fish, anago, and shrimp. All items simply put, the best examples of tempura I've ever had. Three kinds of beer, one hot, one cold sake for alcohol. Outstanding service. No fewer than three servers assist three chefs in each 14 seat dining space. Total check with warm sake and tax, 38,000¥. Two months advance reservations required. Phone reservations only. Reservations from outside Japan not accepted. English menu available but no English spoken. Consider carefully before trying this place out. It will forever alter your perception of tempura. You may never like it in your home town again.

The shopkeeper told me that some people have been coming to me for more than 20 years. I can sympathize with it. After eating, I'm very full, or my clothes are so thin that I almost eat the ingredients. So if you eat seasonal foods, you will not get tired. I want to come again when the season changes. 衣が薄く、野菜を美味しく食べることができる。 店主が私に、20年以上通ってきてくれる方もいらっしゃるんですよ、と話してくれた。 それに共感できる。食べおわってすごく満腹だか、衣がうすいのでほぼ素材を食べてだって感じ。だから季節ごとの旬のものを食べていれば飽きないのだろう。 季節変わったらまた来たい。

This was a great dinner, though I wouldn't say anything really amazed me about this place. The food was on point, but the service wasn't good for Japanese standards. The entrance is not trivial to find, but once you know you're at the right building it's easy enough to just hop in the elevator. I used google translate to confirm the name outside, since there wasn't any English. The food was really good. I enjoyed the tofu a lot, and it may have been the best dish for me. It was like I was eating cheesecake, rich and creamy, but tasted a little bit more like tofu ;). Delicious! Then came some more little appetizers on a plate, followed by copious rounds of tempura which were really good, light, not too crispy, but I wouldn't write home about them. The sweet potato tempura is what they're known for, and you have to order it early as it takes 40 minutes to prepare. I tried it and it was solid, but I would have preferred to share with someone (it was really big and filling!). Dessert was a light selection of very fresh and delicious fruit. Overall, a solid meal. It was the most expensive meal I had in Tokyo but by far not the best. You can find better value for your money, though I'm not sure about tempura since this was the only place I tried in Japan (I'm not a huge tempura person).

Totally not worth the price for this meal. Foreigners are ushered to the back room (Siberia) and seated with Japanese businessmen hiding out with their girlfriends. tempura is light and not greasy, service was not attentive as we had to ask for drink and water refills several times. They did accommodate my request for no shellfish and gave me vegetables and white fish. Chef was more attentive than wait staff. Nothing creative here at all and bathroom was not clean (1st time I have ever seen this in all my visits to Japan) Skip it!

ZOMG, this place was incredible. Reservations were highly recommended, which we didn't realize, but fortunately we were able to get in for lunch during the week. This was by far our favorite meal on our trip to Tokyo; the best tempura we've had by far. A great experience, and we were able to have a great view of the chef preparing each of the dishes. Definitely make a reservation, you will not regret it.

The atmosphere was simple and clean, despite the copious amounts of frying occurring. This is my first time at a tempura bar, where all the cooking happens right in front of you. The chef fries one piece at a time, ensuring optimal freshness. After the sous chef preps the ingredient, the head chef dunks it into the tempura batter and gently submerge it into a mixture of three types of sesame oil. I liked that they gave you options for toppings/sauces to experiment with. The tensuyu and grated daikon added savouriness which complements vegetables, while the simple sea salt and lemon cut through the richness of seafood. We ordered the "Kaede", which included two appetizers, eleven tempura pieces, kakiage plus rice set, and dessert. The first appetizer served was Okara with water shield. Okara has a strong soy taste, which the sweet soy glaze complimented nicely. The whelk and ankimo particularly stood out. The whelk was tender and briny. Ankimo, a Japanese delicacy is made from rinsing monkfish liver with sake and steaming it. It's rich and silky, yet fluffy. Although commonly compared to foie gras, I think the textures are quite different. The fried shrimp heads were served first. It may look intimidating, but if you manage to get past the psychological fear it's quite tasty. The chef removed the inedible and sharp bits so it's pleasant to eat. The actual prawn tempura was succulent. Kondo's tempura is unlike any tempura I've ever had. The batter is extremely light, unlike the typical heavy and thick tempura batter. The high temperature seals in moisture and steams the ingredient, while minimal oil penetrates. Ideally, tempura batter is mixed using cold water and lightly mixed. This is to avoid the creation of gluten, resulting in a crisp and light batter. Other pieces of items fried included: lotus root, shitake mushroom, fish, onion, fiddlehead, etc. I chose the kakiage tendon rice set as my choice of staple. A large chunk of battered shrimp and scallop was served on top of rice. I really enjoyed the red miso soup. It's a pleasant change to the typical white miso soup served. Kondo definitely exceeded my expectations! Not unlike premium sushi, the goal is to take top quality ingredients and prepare them simply, enhancing its natural aroma and flavours. The diversity of the ingredients was also impressive, ranging between the familiar and the exotic. Outstanding!

Best tempura I've had, reservation only place, people who tried walking in we're turned away. The detail put into each piece was remarkable. 2 Michelin stars I believe. Very unique experience and I think it was well worth the price of dinner. The sweet potato takes awhile to make and wasn't worth the wait, other people have said it was their highlight but I would disagree.

Awesome tempura. Waiters are very friendly, they even tell us which condiments go together with the tempura. The tempura are very crispy and lightly battered. I went there during lunch hour and it was very packed. Be sure to reserve before going there.

I've been to Kondo Tempura 4 times over the last 5 years or so. It's the best tempura I've ever had. My recommendation: GO THERE FOR LUNCH. This is a much better price-point than dinner and you'll get your fill of tempura for the day then anyway ;-) In terms of specific items: all their fish items are really great. For veggies, I particularly love: (1) sweet potato (it's very different than what you'd think of as tempura) and (2) their carrot. If these are not on the chef's menu for your meal, add one of them at least. On this particular visit, a friend of mine ordered the uni tempura (I didn't try it). He's a foodie and really enjoyed it - so this may be worth a try too. Currently, there are two seating areas in the restaurant (front and back). As I understand it, Kondo Sr. - the namesake of the establishment - is at the front and Kondo Jr. - the future of the place - is at the back. I love Kondo Sr. and would - while I can - try to secure spots at the front. With that said, I was put in the back at my recent visit and Kondo Jr.'s stuff was just as good. So the future seems to be in good hands (or, should I say "long chopsticks" - which are the hand tools used by the chefs for frying tempura)!!! Side note: Stylistically, the place is clean and simple. You get to see the food being prepared since everyone is seated around a "kitchen bar". Warning: Foreigners may find Kondo Tempura difficult to find!!! It's on an elevated floor in a non-descript building and the restaurant's sign is only written in Japanese. Get the 411 on location before going there!!! In Japan, hotels can be quite helpful for stuff like this in general.

Tempura Kondo is one of the best tempura places to eat in Tokyo (i.e. one of the best in the world). I have had a lot of tempura in Japan and this place was special with an interesting selection of dishes some of which are not typical (piman- green pepper; uni- sea urchin). Though the portions are small by the end of the course you will be nice and full.

Magically light crispy batter around some of the most perfect vegetables and fish I've had in my life. The slight buttery nuttiness of that batter is unreal. Using two bubbling oil pots of two temperatures, the head chef carefully watches your individual piece of tempura. A very comfortable environment, with a beautifully typed English menu. Customers here seemed to be enjoying themselves, laughing and talking, far more than other top Japanese restaurants, which can feel sterile and serious at times. *** 2x shrimp legs (so crispy!) 2x shrimp meat *** asparagus (so juicy!) kisu (a whitefish) lotus root shiitake *** sea bream (so flaky!) myoga (japanese ginger) squash flower onion *** anago *** green bell pepper (unbelievably fragrant and crisp -- favourite) a bundle of small shrimp tempura on rice with miso soup 4 perfect grapes

This was the most delicate tempura I have ever had. Everyone sits around the counter as you watch the chefs make the tempura in front of you. The service was great and the chefs were kind - they would advise us on which ones to dip in salt or sauce. It was tempura perfection - perfectly light and crispy, retaining the full flavour of each ingredient that was fried. Left feeling very satisfied without the usual heaviness I would normally feel after a meal that is entirely fried.

My friend said "the best dish at this tempura restaurant was the soup" It's good but it's not that good. Don't be fooled by the expensive tempura.