Sharikimon Onozawa

Makoto Onozawa finds inventive ways to break the mould while respecting tradition. Soup dishes and sashimi uphold the basics, reassuring the diner. Broiled unagi seasoned in soy-based sweet sauce is served together with broiled unseasoned unagi for a special treat. Rolled sushi of tuna and pickled daikon radish are served in the intervals, bringing satisfaction. The meal concludes on two comfort-food notes: soba and curry. Breaking tradition, after all, is about seeing the job to completion.

• A kaiseki meal that bends the rules: Soup and sashimi anchor the opening, then the menu pivots through comfort-food staples, ending with soba and curry.
• Two ways with eel: Unagi arrives both with sweet soy sauce and without seasoning, a deliberate side-by-side.
• Arakicho setting: A small counter room in Shinjuku’s old entertainment quarter, built for close-range cooking and conversation.

Signature ingredients

• Unagi: Served both sauced and unsauced, grilled to a crisp skin with a soft interior.
• Soba: Fresh noodles, with toppings that shift with the season.
• Sanma (Pacific saury), in season: Boned out, reconstructed, then grilled for clean bites.
• Toro and pickled daikon: The torotaku roll, rich tuna, bright crunch.
• Kombu and freshly shaved katsuobushi: A clear, aromatic base for soups.

Omakase

• Seasonal kaiseki-style omakase, with a late-course choice that often includes soba and curry.