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Tokyo

Azabudai Teppanyaki Nakamura

麻布台 中むら

Indulge yourself with wagyu-focused Japanese cuisine in the glistening new complex of Azabudai Hills. Having already made its name for sumptuous beef dishes, Azabudai Nakamura is now next-level delicious with the addition of a brick oven and charcoal elements in a stunning new space. Azabudai Nakamura was born in January 2024 with the relocation of Kagurazaka Teppanyaki Nakamura to the metropolis’ newest commercial complex. And yet it has an intensely exclusive and private feel you would not expect. A small hotplate objet d’art at the front door brings a smile to your face and beckons you to touch it. As your hand nears it, the restaurant door opens to reveal a luxury space.

To the right is an eight-seat counter made from a 150-year-old hinoki cypress tree, complete with a pure copper teppan hotplate. Along the left is a corridor with a fully stocked wine cellar that leads to private rooms with soundproofing ensuring privacy for six or eight guests. Immediately to the side of the counter is a rogama - a type of hearth or kiln, in this case, made from French stone. The specialized cooking equipment is the first of its kind in a commercial complex like this, and it allows the chef to expand his cooking repertoire, as does the charcoal grilling space found just beyond the hearth.

Motifs feature timber from ancient cedar trees in Yakushima that are over 1,000 years old and the rosy tone of 500-year-old bubinga, accented by curtains made with the magnificent techniques of Nishijin brocade. Once seated at the counter, your eyes will spy tableware by the incredibly talented Rosanjin and the works of Kutani porcelain artist, Choza Yamamoto – some of the countless precious pieces Nakamura serves his cuisine on after developing a deep love for antiques during the pandemic.

Having been blessed with plentiful guests at the Kagurazaka location, Nakamura outgrew that space and sees this move as an opportunity to better serve those who delight in his cuisine. With its added charm and expanded cuisine, the wish is that this become the place of lasting memories.

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CUISINE

Teppanyaki without oil

Wagyu is the star at Azabudai Nakamura, and it finds itself in wonderful company among exquisite dishes typically found in traditional Japanese courses. Chef Nakamura feels strongly that wagyu is an indispensable part of Japanese culture and, thus, Japanese cuisine. Having focused on teppanyaki until now, the move to the new Azabudai Hills location presented Nakamura with the opportunity to add brick oven cooking and charcoal grilling to his repertoire to serve all cuts of premium Kobe Beef in the best possible way.

On any given day, your course at Azabudai Nakamura begins with a trio of sashimi, perhaps including akagai ark shell clam from Miyagi Prefecture, Fukuoka Prefecture aoriika bigfin reef squid, and Nagasaki grouper. Next, the owan lidded bowl dish found in traditional Japanese courses is always a chance to soak up delicious aromas and flavors; in this case, the scent of ripe yuzu citrus is the accent for an elegant dish featuring amadai tilefish and heirloom Shogoin turnips.

Seafood aromas start to fill the air as the chef prepares lobster and black abalone on the teppan hotplate. While the center is heated to between 250 and 280 degrees, the edges are just around 70 degrees, and the chef uses his intimate knowledge of the hotplate to carefully place and cook each ingredient to accentuate its innate flavors. Much to the surprise of seasoned teppanyaki guests, Nakamura uses very little oil in his cooking, describing it more as a steaming process.

He does not appear to remove his focus from the hotplate, yet all the while, Nakamura is lovingly grilling Kobe Beef sirloin steak in a rogama brick oven. Cooked to juicy and tender perfection, the chef personally slices the beef before guests’ eyes, even for those dining in the private room. The course of contrasting flavors, temperatures and textures continues with the creamy goodness of puffer fish milt followed by steamed savory custard. Then the chef’s beef cheek stew arrives – a deeply satisfying yet surprisingly light creation made from beef bones and tendons simmered lovingly in plenty of port wine and accompanied by heady black truffles.

Incredible beef flavors unfold as you sink your teeth into air-dried, cured Kobe Beef bresaola, beef fillet teppanyaki, and Chateaubriand, punctuated by the refreshing taste of honeydew melon. In a shabu-shabu dish, impossibly thin pieces of Kobe beef spend just seconds in a hot dashi stock extracted from kelp aged for six years. The rice course may contain ingredients steamed together or cooked in a clay pot. In spring, a warming steamed rice dish is filled with spring flavors, like bamboo shoots, hamaguri clams, canola blossoms, and tara no me sprouts of the Japanese angelica tree, affectionately known as the king of sansai, the collective name for wild mountain vegetables.

INGREDIENTS
The incredible dining experience at Azabudai Nakamura is woven together with exquisite ingredients from across Japan. The star is Kobe beef from Kawagishi Farm, but the seafood is also unforgettable. All are delivered live to the restaurant by trusted suppliers at Toyosu Market in Tokyo. This includes live Ise-ebi lobsters from Katsuura and Boshu in Chiba Prefecture, live Ezo abalone from Chikura, also in Chiba, and live kuruma-ebi shrimp from Kumamoto Prefecture.

Wasabi arrives fresh from the lush, green land of Marusei in Azumino, Shizuoka Prefecture. It is an enduring relationship from when Nakamura met the producer during his work at the Kamikochi Imperial Hotel. The rice is an organic crop of the Hitomebore varietal grown in the Kurikoma Kogen highlands of Miyagi Prefecture. It contains plentiful umami cultivated in soil prepared over three years before planting to create a rich stock of nutrients.

For katsuobushi bonito flakes, Nakamura uses the increasingly rare honkarebushi type, prepared by steaming, sun-drying, and inoculating with mold in a long, repeated fermenting and drying process. The chef shaves the hardened fish fillets freshly as needed to a thickness of just 0.01 mm. The premium makombu kelp featured in his cooking is aged for six years before being steeped to extract flavor.

Azabudai Teppanyaki Nakamura cuisine #0
Azabudai Teppanyaki Nakamura cuisine #1

CHEF

Masatoshi Nakamura

Masatoshi Nakamura was born in 1970 and raised in Tokyo’s old-town district. He recalls wanting to become a craftsman from a young age, creating something with his own hands, and being fiercely independent. Nakamura laughs as he tells anecdotes from his childhood, thinking of the boisterous child he once was.

He joined the Imperial Hotel after graduating from high school. He worked in many divisions there for over 25 years, starting as a dishwasher before moving on to banquet hors d’oeuvres and appetizers. He spent seven years cooking at Restaurant Eureka, four at French restaurant Les Saisons, and experienced work in the buffet restaurant, the Imperial Lounge Aqua. What followed was a move to the renowned teppanyaki restaurant, Kamon. At 38, he became the Executive Chef at the teppanyaki restaurant at the Kamikochi Imperial Hotel in Nagano.

The connection with teppanyaki began when Nakamura was just 18 and tried the cuisine for the first time. He could not believe such amazing food existed, and it set him on the path in pursuit of exquisitely prepared beef. To make his dreams come true, Nakamura chose a space in the charming town of Kagurazaka in central Tokyo. He set about serving beef the best way he knew how, and standing by his side always is his trusted life and work partner, Kaori. The two embarked on the next stage with the grand reopening in Azabudai Hills in 2024 and are excited about what the future brings.

VISION
Nakamura hopes his cuisine will be recognized alongside sushi and traditional course cuisine called Nihonryori as representative of the amazing foods Japan has to offer. He also hopes to shine a light on the work of the dedicated producers around Japan who provide the delectable ingredients, beautiful tableware, and all the other elements that complete the picture and experience of his cuisine. The wish is that the restaurant may serve as the link between guests and artisans.

BEEF AND SEAFOOD

The sumptuous sirloin served at Azabudai Nakamura is Kobe-gyu from Kawagishi Farm in Hyogo Prefecture. The ranch is located in a small town called Kurodasho, Nishiwaki City, in central Hyogo Prefecture, about an hour into the countryside from the city of Kobe. It is an institution in the industry with which Nakamura has forged ties over three years. Each time he makes an order, it is for a dressed half carcass that he then butchers himself. He loves the robust yet clean flavors.

Nakamura also secures the supply of premium live lobsters, kuruma-ebi shrimp and Ezo abalone. The chef is also incredibly particular about the bonito flakes and kombu kelp he uses – all fundamental components of traditional Japanese cuisine.

Course

Dinner
Nakamura omakase course from Feb 2024
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
¥77,000
¥77,000
Reservation Request
Dinner
Nakamura luxurious omakase course (abalone, lobster, Chateaubriand) from Feb 2024
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
¥102,500
¥102,500
Reservation Request
Dinner
Nakamura omakase course from Feb 2024 (Private room)
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
¥80,500
¥80,500
Reservation Request
Dinner
Nakamura luxurious omakase course (abalone, lobster, Chateaubriand) from Feb 2024 (Private room)
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
  • The price includes our booking fee of ¥8,000
¥106,500
¥106,500
Reservation Request

Tokyo

Azabudai Teppanyaki Nakamura

麻布台 中むら

PRICE
¥77,000
~
CHILD
15
& UP
MIN GUESTS
1
PERSON
~
GENRE
Teppanyaki, Azabudai
ADDRESS
Azabudai Hills, Garden Plaza A, 〒105-0001 5-8-1 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
OPEN
5:30PM-9:30PM (last entry)
CLOSED
Sunday
URL
NA
PHONE
+81 3-6435-7858

RESERVATION

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