Tempura Azabu Yokota Shinjuku Bettei

Restaurant Details

The name Yokota is practically synonymous with tempura in Japan’s gourmet circuit, and this accolade is not without justification. The restaurant has a track record that few others, if any, can possibly match: it has been the recipient of a Michelin Star for eight consecutive years.

This meteoric success has resulted in several branch outlets being established all over Japan. Since 2021, the reins have since been passed on to chef Shogo Yokota, the son of the original Yokota, but the legacy of excellence persists, with time-honored techniques.

Yokota is particularly strict about the quality of its batter and oil, as well as the timing of which each piece of tempura is fried. By measuring the exact temperature of the oil, as well as the precise timing of when the tempura is immersed and removed from the oil, the chefs at Yokota can achieve the perfect amount of crunch and moisture in each bite.

“Begin with shrimp and end with shrimp” is the Yokota philosophy, and so guests can expect their first bite at the restaurant to be that of deep-fried Japanese tiger prawn (kuruma-ebi), crisped to perfection on the outside, but still plump and juicy within its batter shell. Characteristic of Yokota is the use of curry salt — a family tradition — to bring out flavors in the restaurant’s fresh seasonal ingredients that regular salt or tentsuyu (tempura dipping sauce) might not sufficiently do.

But where the Shinjuku branch sets itself apart specifically is through its sushi offerings. While most of Yokota’s other branches in Tokyo focus specifically on tempura, the Shinjuku outlet offers nigiri crafted by a chef with years of experience training in a sushi restaurant, which provides an interesting contrast of flavor and texture to the tempura courses.