Steakhouses›Steakhouses in Tokyo›Sumibi Yakiniku Nakahara
Yakiniku · Ichigaya · Tokyo
Sumibi Yakiniku Nakahara
Charcoal. Whole animals. A ninth-floor yakiniku in Ichigaya that serves courses only, in two sittings a night.
OpenNot yet visited · facts from 10 sourcesNo paid rankings
By Silas Brand · Steakpedia editorial voice · Who writes
Why go01
Nakahara buys the whole animal and grills it over charcoal. That is the short version. The long one is in the awards: Tabelog Silver in 2017, Bronze in 2018 and again every year from 2019 to 2026. A place on the Tabelog 100 yakiniku list for Tokyo every year from 2018 to 2026. A Tabelog score of 3.88 from 772 reviews. The knife work is exact: the 50 Best Discovery guide reports that, for this house, 0.2 mm of thickness changes the texture of a cut.
What to order02
- Maboroshi no tan, the 'phantom tongue'
- Standard course, ¥26,000
- Special course, ¥29,000
02What to order
- Maboroshi no tan, the 'phantom tongue'Base, sinew and tip of Japanese Black tongue — tanmoto, tansuji, tansaki — as one set. Supply is small and it comes only with a course; 50 Best reports one portion per person per visit.
- Standard course, ¥26,000Starter, a raw dish, vegetables, soup, the shime and dessert around the grill, with the tongue and offal. Contents follow the day's buying.
- Special course, ¥29,000Adds the hire-katsu sandwich, a fillet cutlet sandwich the house says was born at Nakahara. A Special without offal costs the same. Tax and 10 % service are extra.
03The beef
Mostly Tamura beef, a Tajima line, bought as whole animals. Nakahara buys at the Shibaura market, where he says he found fresher meat than his suppliers sent; 50 Best adds that he buys Wagyu direct from producers. He does not follow brands. He looks for light fat, which he links to females raised longer, and Tabelog describes the sirloin as coming from long-raised heifers, cut thin.
04The fire
Charcoal under the grill: the name says it, sumibi. The tare is built on pork broth and selected soy sauce, with no artificial flavourings. Courses only, so the grill follows the day's buying.
05The story
Kentaro Nakahara was born in Tokyo in 1976. At 27 he took over Shichirin, a yakiniku in Minowa run by his wife's family, with no yakiniku experience; he taught himself buying and grilling. In 2014 the restaurant moved to Ichigaya and took his name. Tabelog dates the opening to 13 November 2014, and the website still lists the old name in brackets. In 2016 he also opened Henry's Burger, in Daikanyama. In a 2018 interview he counted about 15 years in yakiniku, said he wants the craft culture of sushi for it, and called his team apprentices.
06The practical
Ninth floor, GEMS Ichigaya, 4-3 Rokubancho, Chiyoda-ku. 38 seats, private rooms, no smoking. Two dinner sittings, at 17:00 and 19:30. Closed Wednesdays. No phone bookings: reserve on TableCheck and pick the course then. Arrive together — if the party is late, the table goes to those waiting, and there is no waiting inside for the rest. Tabelog puts the budget at ¥30,000–39,999 a head. Book the Special.
- Address
- GEMS Ichigaya 9F, 4-3 Rokubancho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- Phone
- +81 3-6261-2987
- Website
- sumibiyakinikunakahara.com
- Directions
- Google Maps ↗
Does Nakahara take phone reservations?
No. Bookings are made on TableCheck, choosing the course at the time of booking.
How much is a course at Nakahara?
The Standard course is ¥26,000 and the Special ¥29,000, plus tax and 10 % service.
What is maboroshi no tan?
The house's 'phantom tongue': base, sinew and tip of Japanese Black tongue served together, only with a course.
What was Nakahara called before?
Shichirin, in Minowa. It moved to Ichigaya in 2014 and became Sumibi Yakiniku Nakahara.
07In Tokyo’s selections
08Sources
award.tabelog.com · tabelog.com · sumibiyakinikunakahara.com · sumibiyakinikunakahara.com · precious.jp · sumibiyakinikunakahara.com · sumibiyakinikunakahara.com · fun-japan.jp · the50.com · macaro-ni.jp
Last verified 25 Oct 2026.