神戸牛 和牛の刀 西新宿1号店 — Restaurant in Tokyo

NOT FOR A TRAVELER ON A BUDGET - When I planned my trip to Japan I was told that food prices were very reasonable and that in Japan it is not a custom to tip. I was not expecting to pay more than $35/person for my meals. When my friend and I walked into this place the meal that we were encouraged to purchase was 66,000 yen which is the equivalent of $459.36 USD. This was WAY above our budget so we opted for the lowest price beef on the menu which was 13,360 yen which is the equivalent of $90 USD. This was for one piece 110g of Kobe beef. Cut up into 12 bite size pieces. This came with two small potatoes, Two pieces of carrot, two pieces of broccolli and four bites of Lotus root. Needless to say we left there hungry. When the check came the server told us they are implementing a tip policy and they requested that we add between 15, 18 and - 20% per server on top of what we had already been billed.

Luckily my friend only paid the 20% for the entire bill and suggested they split that between the staff.

The total bill came to $140.

The food tasted good and the servers were very attentive - I left with a bad taste in my mouth as I knew there were other places that we could have eaten for MUCH less! Everything we ate in Japan was good - but the price for this was so NOT worth it in my opinion.

If you are going on an expense account - it's fine - then you can enjoy all you like and it's good service and tasty. However if you are a traveler paying your own way - I'd pass...

We had a wonderful experience at this place. The staff was lively and helped us to take and be in photos that have become a part of our wonderful Japan journey. The food was also delicious.

However, I need to be completely honest. This is a tourist trap. They tried to point out cuts of beef that were very expensive. We settled on a cut of beef that we were interested in and was less pricey, and they still guided us to a more expensive cut. We stuck to our guns on that, though. Then, after the meal, they gave us the check along with an extra slip to give our server a 18, 20, or 22 percent tip. She stood over as we made our decision and calculated the tip so she knew what to charge us in total As this was our first meal in Tokyo, we tipped. Later on would we realize that NO OTHER RESTAURANT in Tokyo asks you to tip. Yes, they may add on a service charge, but they let you know beforehand.

Other than a Michelin star restaurant we booked beforehand, this was our most expensive meal in Tokyo.

Additionally, the server asked us to use a QR code to leave the restaurant a review. She then stood in front of us as we wrote the review. I pretended to write a review and then later on decided to write a review of the actual experience.

Once again, I had a wonderful experience, but it was not worth the pressure sales. I plan to come back to Tokyo and now know what signs to look for to avoid a place like this. Expensive...

I strongly advise against visiting this restaurant. The prices are extremely high, and the overall experience was disappointing. What stood out the most was the staff’s approach to collecting Google reviews — they interrupt your meal and ask you to leave a 5-star review on the spot, while they watch. It felt very uncomfortable and forced.

In addition, when paying online, the tip option is pre-selected at 18%, and staff pressure you to proceed with it. This kind of upselling and manipulation is unacceptable.

They also claim to have won a gold medal for their Kobe beef and display a certificate, but I could not find any credible information about the awarding association. It seems suspicious and potentially misleading.

For context, they charge around $100 for 100g of wagyu beef, which I found to be completely not worth the price. In the same area, there are several restaurants offering similar quality wagyu for as low as $25.

Please be cautious — the high ratings they’ve received may not reflect genuine customer experiences due to the way reviews...