Nekoyanagi Steak House — Restaurant in Kanazawa

This is my first review ever, but I felt I had to write something about this place. My girlfriend and I came here on a Monday night for a private dining experience, and holy moly — what an experience we had!

The chef and owner of the restaurant met us at the door and escorted us to our seats (one of only three dining areas) and immediately brought us our drinks. The starters (abalone) were so fresh they were still wet from the ocean, and for me — since I don’t eat fish — a Wagyu starter was served as a substitute.

This was followed by a brief introduction to the region our steak came from, while we were served more starters and a salad. You could tell the chef was born for this — he handled the utensils and knives like a samurai while preparing our steaks (medium for me and medium rare for my girlfriend).

The steaks were cooked to perfection and served with various vegetables, along with a selection of salt, horseradish, and soy sauce. But to be honest, you could just eat it straight off the grill as it was. The portions were very generous, and even though I was full halfway through, I still finished mine and half of my girlfriend’s because the taste was simply marvellous.

You could tell this chef took real pride in his craft, standing there with a big smile as he watched us enjoy the meal. So full I had to loosen my belt, the chef kindly told us we didn’t need to finish if we were full. He then offered us some local Japanese tea (uniquely made from stems instead of leaves) and a local unsweetened sorbet.

This was by far the best steak and dining experience I’ve ever had — truly a unique and authentic event. The chef even turned away two businessmen who walked in hoping for a seat, as his sole focus was on us. I would go so far as to say that Nekoyanagi Steak House is worth a...

The best Wagyu steak we have ever had!!! This was an amazing, artistic experience with amazing food and impeccable service. We did not have a reservation, but we HIGHLY recommend making a reservation in advance, as the restaurant only has three tables in total to sit. We got incredibly lucky on a Tuesday night to have been able to dine here. We got the Wagyu Tenderloin steak dinner set meal for the two of us and added asparagus and garlic fried rice! We were presented with a map and shown where the ingredients were from in Japan, as well as the steak and veggies before being cooked! The Wagyu is from Kagoshima (There is a competition every 5 years for best wagyu steak in the country, and Kagoshima has won the past two years)!!! Every course was perfection, the presentation was outstanding, the service was impeccable, and the head chef was one of the kindest...

Worst food I’ve ever had in 6 months in Japan. I honestly think (and hope) is because I chose a-la-carte and not the 16k yen menu; otherwise I couldn’t explain all the other good reviews.

For me the food was disgusting and expensive (I paid 10.500 Japanese yen). I had: half raw potatoes, 2 asparagus, one piece of hard fish, garlic rice.

This is the most expensive dinner I had in Japan but also the worst in quality and taste. If you go there, I recommend at least to try the menu, hoping for the better, but be prepared to Michelin Star prices for very cheap food.

See my photos to...