Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu

Despite reading reviews that this restaurant was a tourist trap, as Tarantino fans we were still interested in seeing the restaurant that inspired the legendary Crazy 88 fight scene in Kill Bill vol. 1.

The service at the restaurant was very efficient and friendly. It was clear that they were used to receiving big crowds of people and that they had found a way to deal with this demand in the most efficient and organized way. We arrived at the restaurant at 7PM on a Friday evening with no reservation, and thankfully only had to wait about 5 minutes before being seated. After 7PM, the lineup of people to get in seemed to be getting longer, so I'd recommend making a reservation if you plan on dining later on in the evening. While we waited, the hostess gave us a refreshing cocktail shot (non-alcoholic). We were then taken to our seat, at the bar facing the open-concept kitchen.

The food that we ordered was pretty decent. We both got the set dinner menu at 4500 yen, which included 10 courses. The appetizer (a beef dish of some sort), salmon carpaccio, and fried shrimp dumpling (first 3 courses) were exceptional, as was the dessert. The rest were good (no complaints, however we have eaten better skewers in Tokyo). Overall, we found that the price was worth the food that we received. Of the cocktails that we tried, the yuzu honey sour was the best- I would highly recommend this one if you enjoy yuzu (citrus fruit).

What was most enjoyable about the restaurant was the building interior itself (beautiful wooden detail and old school beauty that was definitely reminiscent of the Kill Bill scene) and the lively atmosphere in the restaurant. The guests were mostly foreigners and a smaller proportion of local business men. The restaurant has adapted well to its clientele, with all of its staff speaking very fluently in English (in fact we noticed that quite a few of the staff seemed to be not native Japanese). The restaurant was playing awesome music (mostly classic rock) and the wait staff and kitchen staff all seemed to be having a great time interacting with one another and with the guests. Overall, it was a very fun place to hang out, the food was pretty good, and this is definitely a tourist trap that you don't mind getting caught in.