Daigo — Restaurant in Tokyo

From the moment you enter Daigo, you receive attentive care and hospitality. The staff are friendly and accommodating.

You remove your dirty shoes and are escotred into a private room to sit atop tatami mats while you await your courses. The server brings in each dish, delicately arranges it before you, and explains what it is—in English if required.

Overall, the presentation is utsukushi (beautiful) and the tastes are oishi (delicious). You'll encounter many staples of Shojin cuisine throughout the course: Japanese pickles, miso soup, and tofu. They were all wonderful. The texture and depth of the small slices of tofu were incredible! Some new and surprising dishes were some lightly deep-fried sushi and a type of dumpling in a bamboo shoot (I think?) broth. The sushi was wonderful.

My "criticisms": I found the soup a little lacking in flavour as compared to a typical Shojin ryori meal I had in Koyasan, but it was still good. though the dumpling dish was a little tough to enjoy. The flavour is a unique one!

Overall, I love that this place pays homage to Shojin cuisine, but honestly, for me, I preferred the full Shojin cuisine at a temple than what Daigo provided. Sure, the level of service (and possibly atmosphere) are different, but I just don't quite think Daigo's offering justifies the price point. The flavours were indeed tasty, though. It's definitely a nicer experience away from your typical edgy vegan and vegetarian establishments or your run-of-the-mill tourist spots, which could make this worthwhile on its own.

Note: Daigo was a bit difficult to find once at the nearby temple. Turns out it's inside the large building next to the temple. Enter the building and ask the staff...

This place is very traditional, and the food was very filling. However, we were left feeling quite confused during many parts of this experience (which is most likely our own fault, but Ill mention here to help future visitors). First with being when we entered-- we arrived early for our reservation and were greeted by a doorman downstairs who sent us up via the elevator. When we got out of the elevator, we were in a room with no hostess/reception area, and could hear people busy in the kitchen. Knowing it is a shoes-off zone, we didn't feel like we could wander in and assumed others (or staff) would come closer to our reservation time. Nobody else ever came... I believe we were the only reservation for the whole evening, and finally, some time after our reservation time, a woman greeted us to our relief. Our meal was served in a private dining room, with the doors closed. Everything during the meal was orchestrated (plates arriving and leaving, tea courses, etc)... so when we were finished, we were again left alone for a very long time, and didn't know if we could or should get up and open the door. Eventually we did and this was fine, but for us this was strange to have the physical barrier of a closes door when dining. Personally we would not have spent the amount of $$$ on this place, had we realized the full extent of the experience and the quality of the food. Since Daigo, we've had better meals and experiences at fractions of the cost. We also booked through Klook, which might have also made us pay way more...

Absolutely high-quality culinary and cultural experience. Not for those who aren't into zen and wabi-sabi. This is a buddist style Japanese kaiseki restaurant. The restaurant is located on the second floor of a luxury building in the prestigious area of Akasaka. You can access the restaurant by an elevator directly from the parking. Restaurant staff will be there to escort you to the restaurant. A dedicated fragrance will welcome you just after the elevator door opens over a Japanese traditional environment. All restaurant seats are located in Japanese-style fully private rooms with a garden view. Food is served by kimono wearing high-skilled but friendly waitresses, Food is served in a course. Every single dish expresses the experience and skill of the chef. Every dish is served in a different and selected plate and is made with the highest quality ingredients and is delicately cooked, giving you the best possible tasting and visual experience. Some of the dishes are served with Japanese tea, so you can taste the next dishe with a cleaned mouth. There is no bgm, no sounds, only silence while you experience every bite. The silence is only broken by your conversation or by the delicate noise of your waitress coming in to serve the next dish. If you want to treat yourself with the highest quality Japanese food and give yourself a cultural culinary experience, this is a...