Tabelog ratingHijikata (土方) is an eight-seat counter in Nagoya where chef Shōji Hijikata cooks in a restrained, subtractive style and lets top-grade seasonal produce carry each course. It holds three Michelin stars, won the Tabelog Award Bronze in 2025 and 2026, and was named to the Tabelog 100 for Japanese cuisine in 2025. The signature winter sequence serves Matsuba crab boiled for different lengths of time, from 50 seconds to seven minutes, so you taste how its sweetness shifts. The leftover crab then becomes a crab-miso zōsui. In summer, sōmen arrive in ice bowls the chef carves himself.
Almost every review praises the two donabe (clay-pot) rice dishes that close the meal, which come with generous refills. Nodoguro (blackthroat seaperch) rice and matsutake rice draw the most raves. Reviewers also single out the fruit course of rare produce such as Tsukamoto strawberries and Ruby Roman grapes. Regulars mention the miso yūan-yaki grilled fish, the sake pairings chosen by the okami (the chef's wife) and the easy banter between the couple.
Criticism centres on price. Some guests find it hard to justify, and one suggested around ¥30,000 would be fair. One first-time visitor felt the staff were warmer to regulars than to newcomers, and found the highballs inconsistent and very strong. A few diners mention the occasional unbalanced dish.
There is no lunch. Dinner is a single omakase course, and the listed band of ¥30,000–39,999 understates the real cost. In 2025–2026, reviewers saw the course priced at ¥48,000–57,000. Their totals with drinks included the following:
- ¥49,020 with a beer and three shōchū
- ¥55,480 with a beer and five sake
- ¥58,560 with two sake
Budget roughly ¥50,000–60,000 per person. The crab, matsutake and fugu seasons cost more.
Regulars consider it fair value for the ingredients, the cooking and the fruit, and Tabelog cost-performance scores of 4.4–4.5 agree. Diners who are not committed to high-end kaiseki may find ¥50,000 and up steep.
- Booking: Reservation only, no walk-ins. Officially, the following month opens by phone (052-971-1110) on the 15th from 11:30. Reviewers report that new bookings are effectively impossible, and a first visit usually means being invited by a regular.
- Getting there: The restaurant is a free-standing house. It is about 566 m, roughly 10 minutes on foot, from Hisaya-odori Station, and a similar distance from Marunouchi Station.
- Timing: Dinner only, with one seating at 18:00. The meal lasts about three hours, and closing days vary.
- Payment: VISA, Mastercard, JCB and AMEX are accepted. Electronic money and QR code payments are not.
- Dress code: No casual attire such as shorts or sandals.
- Seats: 8 counter seats and a private room for six. Private hire is possible.
- Smoking: Non-smoking throughout.
- Parking: None on site, but coin parking is nearby.