Many of Tokyo’s high-end wagyu restaurants charge tens of thousands of yen at dinner, yet serve beef of the same quality at substantially lower prices at lunch. Plenty of them deliberately hold lunch prices down to draw diners in, which makes lunchtime an opportunity no wagyu enthusiast should overlook.
For a well-priced high-end wagyu lunch course in Tokyo, Ginza is the place to start. A good number of restaurants that are hard to book at dinner show a different face at lunch. Opening hours and conditions vary by restaurant, so always check official information before you go.
Two restaurants serve lunch on weekdays and work equally well for an ordinary afternoon or a special occasion: Ginza Chikamitsu 6-chome (銀座ちかみつ 6丁目) and Ginza Yamashina (銀座山科). Both sit in the heart of Ginza and make an easy weekday entry point into the world of high-end wagyu.
Some of the city’s leading dinner destinations open a lunch course at weekends only. The main examples are Yakiniku Jumbo Shirokane (焼肉ジャンボ 白金店), Innocent Carvery Nishi-Azabu (イノセントカーベリー 西麻布) with its all-you-can-eat wagyu course at 15,000 yen, several Ushigoro (うしごろ) branches including Ginza Namiki-dori, Ginza, Shinjuku and Omotesando, and Kobau Namiki-dori (コバウ 並木通り店). Secure a weekend lunch booking and you can experience high-end wagyu at a far more approachable price than at dinner.
When choosing a wagyu lunch, start with which designated brands are served, the range of cuts and cooking methods, and how the course is built. A restaurant that makes clear which region and brand it buys, and on what principle, will almost always deliver a better lunch than one leading with a grade such as A5. Where the descriptions are vague, it is safer to move on.
3,000 to 5,000 yen: casual yakiniku lunch. 5,000 to 10,000 yen: a lunch course at a well-regarded restaurant. 10,000 to 20,000 yen: lunch at a high-end restaurant, where dinner would cost two to three times as much. 20,000 yen and above: premium wagyu lunch. Choose according to budget and occasion.