Yamato

There are only two tables at this robatayaki restaurant. But that doesn’t mean that the restaurant only seats two parties at a time — rather, guests should expect to be seated alongside complete strangers, and enjoy the experience of doing so. This is part of the charm of Yamato, a Michelin Bib Gourmand-awarded restaurant in Ningyocho, specializing in seasonal grilled vegetables and seafood. Above white-hot binchotan charcoal, Chiba clams bubble alongside blackening ayu sweetfish from the owner’s family store in Tochigi. Overnight-dried seafood like swordtip squid hang from racks on the restaurant walls. Interestingly, the restaurant does not allow pictures of the menu to be taken, but the food itself is fair game. Yamato enjoys popularity all year round, but sees its peak volume in winter, thanks to the comforting warmth emanating from the many shichirin grills clustered in the middle of each table. This also happens to be the time when the restaurant gets its stock of Shimonita green onions, a variety of green onion from Gunma Prefecture that is colloquially called the “king of green onions”. Grilled over charcoal until blackened on the outside, the Shimonita onion’s crunchy exterior yields sweet, hot juice when bitten into. Guests ordering the ever-popular claypot rice — especially high in demand in the fall, when it is topped with ayu sweetfish — are advised to order it first thing in the meal, because it often takes the entire duration of the meal to cook. But it’s the anticipation that makes for an especially satisfying ending to a dining experience at Yamato. Michelin Guide: 2015 - Bib Gourmand