Matsukawa

Matsukawa (松川)

⭐⭐⭐⭐

🇯🇵 Kaiseki / 📍 Roppongi

📓 Visits: 3

Matsukawa has long been regarded as the pinnacle of kaiseki in Tokyo.  It's one of only four restaurants to have held a Tabelog Gold Award ever since the award was introduced, has topped the Tabelog rankings for kaiseki for the whole of Japan and has been in the top five restaurants for the whole of Japan.

My most recent visit was my third, of which spread over several years.  I have memories but no notes from prior visits so I won't give a blow-by-blow account of every dish of every meal but reflect on my impressions of those three visits, mainly the most recent one.  Pictures from a similar meal taken in the month I went are in this Tabelog review.

Kaiseki is all about showcasing seasonal ingredients and Matsukawa is about as minimalist as it gets: no more than three ingredients on a plate, usually just one, and very light on seasoning.

The signature yuzu-baked fugu shirako and uni is citrus-heavy and not really to my taste.  The owan is the best I can remember having in a long time.  It has that super-clean, ethereal taste that the best dashi has.  Dessert is always mizu yokan, which is second to none.  After the gentlest press on your tongue it disintegrates into a grain-free liquid in your mouth.  It's a dish I don't generally like but I can't help but f-bomb every time I eat it here.  The shokuji is always white rice with ikura, shirasu and nori.  I generally prefer takikomi gohan to white rice but Matsukawa's rice is some of the best you will find in any restaurant in Tokyo.  All the trophy ingredients were in this, massive, protein-packed meal: male and female snow crab, fugu, uni, bachiko, guji, suppon, kuma, wagyu and more.  The karasumi and suppon-yaki were exceptional.  I rated them both 10/10.  Unfortunately, my super foodie dining partner and I agreed the Taiza was a little dry.

Matsukawa-san is pretty shy so don't expect the most interactive experience if you visit.  So it's no less of an experience if you're at the counter or in the private room.  And wherever you sit, it's the most immaculate of all the kaiseki restaurants in Tokyo.

If you can't get into Matsukawa then the nearest equivalent is Seisoka, which previously held two Michelin Stars and is where Matsukawa-san previously worked.  The style is quite similar but there is a definite gap in the quality of ingredients and execution (and the price!).  If you can get in, I think it's worth going at least once to experience the owan, the rice and the mizu yokan.  But I've never loved the entire meal enough to want to go on a regular basis and pay out that kind of money.

Apart from that damn crab on this visit I don't disagree that this is one of the best kaiseki restaurants in Japan.  There aren't many places with execution of this standard or with ingredients of this quality.  Whether or not you fully enjoy it and think it's worth the money is entirely personal.

📌 https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1307/A130701/13124391/

❓ My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.8 (Taiza: 2.8)

📱 Booking: ⬛ Introduction only.

📍 Location: 

1-11-6 Akasaka.  8 mins uphill from Tameike-Sanno station Exit 13.
Map data ©2025 Google

📅 Visit January 2025

Kobako, gohan 
Taiza sumi-yaki
Fugu shirako, uni in yuzu
Otsukuri: tai, Ise ebi
Owan: hotate shinjo, kikurage, bachiko
Otsukuri: fugu
Karasumi, moichi
Honmoroko sumi-yaki
Guji, nanohana dashi
Suppon sumi-yaki
Soba, tempura shirauo, karasumi
Gyukatsu
Rice, miso soup, pickles, ikura, nori, shirasu
Kuromame mizu yokan
Matcha

💴 Damage: 103,100 incl two drinks (cash only)

⏱️ Time taken: 3h