# Best Japanese Restaurants in Madrid

> Sixteen Madrid restaurants for Japanese cooking beyond sushi, from a fire omakase with two Michelin stars to a wagyu grill, a yakitori room and a market stall.

- **Canonical URL:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/best-japanese
- **City:** Madrid, Spain
- **Published:** 2026-09-27
- **Updated:** 2026-10-04
- **Author:** Justin Mota, Guidavera founder
- **Reading time:** 15 min

## Introduction

Smoked Room built its entire Michelin debut around fire and smoke rather than a raw bar: two stars at once, inside Dani García's Leña Madrid, from a kitchen that treats sushi as only one branch of what Japanese cooking can do. It's one of sixteen Madrid restaurants on this list, chosen because Japanese cooking, in some real and specific form beyond a stray menu line, is what the kitchen is built around. That form varies a lot: kaiseki tasting menus, sumibiyaki wagyu grilling, yakitori over charcoal, izakaya small plates, and counters built purely on sushi and omakase.

## Key picks at a glance

- **Best overall** — [Smoked Room](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/smoked-room): two Michelin stars on its debut, an entire tasting menu built around fire and smoke rather than a raw bar.
- **Best kaiseki** — [Sen Omakase](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sen-omakase): a Michelin-starred omakase built on kaiseki seasonality, with a formal tea ceremony inside the tasting.
- **Best wagyu grill** — [Pilar Akaneya](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/pilar-akaneya): sumibiyaki tasting menus grilled tableside, from Ito Ranch Matsusaka A5 to Kobe beef.
- **Best yakitori** — [Torikey](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/torikey): Michelin Selected charcoal yakitori built around using every part of the bird.
- **Best value** — [Washoku](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/washoku): made-to-order sushi from a Mercado de Vallehermoso stall, coeliac-friendly, around 10 to 20 euros a person.
- **Best small counter** — [Santoku](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/santoku): a guided six-course tasting menu eaten at a counter with an open kitchen, near Retiro.

## A guide to Japanese in Madrid

### What is kaiseki?

Kaiseki is a traditional multi-course Japanese tasting format built around the seasons, moving through small, precisely composed dishes rather than one large plate. Sen Omakase and Sushi Bar Hannah both run tasting menus that draw on kaiseki structure.

### What is omakase?

Omakase means leaving the choice of courses to the chef rather than ordering from a menu. It shows up across very different kitchens on this list, from Smoked Room's fire-based tasting menu to Toki and Otoro Jukusei's sushi counters.

### What is yakitori?

Yakitori is Japanese skewer cooking over charcoal, traditionally built around chicken, using as much of the bird as possible. Torikey runs a dedicated yakitori menu, and Yakitoro adapts the format with Spanish ingredients.

### What does sumibiyaki mean?

Sumibiyaki refers to Japanese charcoal grilling, often used for premium cuts of beef cooked at the table. Pilar Akaneya's tasting menus are built around sumibiyaki wagyu, grilled tableside on a shared counter.

### What does itamae mean?

Itamae is the Japanese term for a trained sushi chef, literally someone who stands in front of the cutting board. Several kitchens here name their itamae directly, including Miki's Hiroo Miki and Soy's Pedro Espina.

> "Smoked Room took two Michelin stars on its debut cooking an entirely fire-and-smoke omakase, one of six Michelin-recognised kitchens on this list that range from a sumibiyaki wagyu grill to a yakitori counter and a kaiseki tea ceremony."

## How we built this list

We built this list by reading Michelin Guide España's own roundup of Madrid's Japanese restaurants alongside two independent Spanish food and lifestyle sites, elblogdeceleste and Madrid Secreto, and cross-checking every restaurant they named against the Madrid restaurants we've profiled, keeping only those currently open. A restaurant made the list only if its own page (about, cuisine, menus) confirmed Japanese cooking as a real, current part of what it serves, and if it's currently open. Two sources we tried to fetch directly, Vogue España and Elle España, didn't load for us, so we didn't use them; where a claim from a source we could read didn't match our own data closely enough to confirm, we left it out rather than guess. A handful of restaurants named repeatedly across our sources, including Kappo, Hattori Hanzo, NOMO, Kabuki, Zuma, Waraku, Shina Tora Ya, Kirakira and YUKU Delivery, don't have a Guidavera page yet, so we've recorded them as gaps rather than invent pages for them.

## The 16 best Japanese food, compared

| # | Restaurant | Neighbourhood | Price | Distinction | Signature dish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [Smoked Room](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/smoked-room) | Ríos Rosas | €€€€ | Michelin 2-Star · Repsol 2 Soles | Tomate nitro with sturgeon foam, horseradish and caviar |
| 2 | [Toki](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/toki) | Trafalgar | €€€€ | Michelin 1-Star | Shunkan omakase menu |
| 3 | [Sen Omakase](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sen-omakase) | Nueva España | €€€€ | Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 1 Sol | Takoyaki |
| 4 | [EMI](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/emi) | Gaztambide | €€€€ | Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 1 Sol | Smoked kelp with tofu and eel |
| 5 | [Ugo Chan](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/ugo-chan) | Nueva España | €€€€ | Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 2 Soles | Mullet sashimi served on the bone |
| 6 | [Yugo the Bunker](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/yugo-the-bunker) | Barrio de las Letras | €€€€ | Michelin 1-Star · Repsol Recomendado | Toro nigiri with crispy plankton |
| 7 | [Pilar Akaneya](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/pilar-akaneya) | Ríos Rosas | €€€€ | Michelin Selected · Repsol 1 Sol | Akaneya sumibiyaki menu |
| 8 | [Otoro Jukusei](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/otoro-jukusei) | Almagro | €€€€ | Michelin Selected · Repsol 1 Sol | Umi omakase (15 courses) |
| 9 | [Torikey](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/torikey) | Ríos Rosas | €€ | Michelin Selected | — |
| 10 | [Sushi Bar Hannah](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sushi-bar-hannah) | Recoletos | €€€€ | Michelin Selected · Repsol Recomendado | — |
| 11 | [Miki](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/miki) | Avenida de América | €€€ | — | — |
| 12 | [Soy](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/soy) | Almagro | €€€ | — | — |
| 13 | [Santoku](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/santoku) | Goya | €€ | — | — |
| 14 | [Saku Izakaya](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/saku-izakaya) | Trafalgar | €€ | — | Katsu sando |
| 15 | [Yakitoro](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/yakitoro) | El Viso | €€ | Repsol Solete | — |
| 16 | [Washoku](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/washoku) | Arapiles | € | — | — |

## The 16 best Japanese food in Madrid

### 1. Smoked Room

*Two Michelin stars on debut, an omakase built on fire and smoke*

- **Neighbourhood:** Ríos Rosas
- **Address:** Hotel Hyatt Regency Hesperia, Paseo de la Castellana 57, 28046 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 2-Star · Repsol 2 Soles
- **Website:** https://smokedroomrestaurants.com/en/madrid/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/smoked-room

Smoked Room is hidden inside Dani García's Leña Madrid, in the Hotel Hyatt Regency Hesperia: a dim, fourteen-seat space with a Japanese-style bar for six plus two tables in a semi-hidden area. It made its Michelin Guide debut with two stars at once, something the restaurant says no establishment in Spain had done since 1936. Dani García backs the project, and Massimiliano Delle Vedove runs the kitchen on an omakase-style tasting menu that treats fire and smoke as the whole idea, not a technique among others. The menu moves through quisquillas in beurre noisette, a reinterpreted tomate nitro with sturgeon foam, horseradish and caviar, ginger chawanmushi with grilled squid, and a smoked risotto with white truffle, finishing on a sake lees granita with vanilla and soy caramel. Tasting menus run from 180 euros for Hachi up to 500 euros for Hoshi. There's no separate waitstaff: the sommelier and chefs serve every course themselves, with wine pairings built dish by dish. Smoked Room holds two Michelin stars and two Repsol Soles, and its sommelier, Luis Baselga, was named best sommelier at the 2025 Premios Metrópoli.

**Order:**
- Tomate nitro with sturgeon foam, horseradish and caviar
- Ginger chawanmushi with grilled squid
- Smoked risotto with white truffle

### 2. Toki

*A Michelin counter built around the history of sushi rice*

- **Neighbourhood:** Trafalgar
- **Address:** C/ Sagasta, 28, 28004 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 1-Star
- **Website:** https://www.restaurantetoki.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/toki

Toki is one of several Michelin-starred restaurants owned by Asturian businessman Marcos Granda, built around founding itamae Tadayoshi Motoa. Tino Singharaj, the 2024 Champion de France de Sushi, has led the six-seat sushi counter since December 2024. The single omakase menu, Shunkan, runs 249 euros a person and moves through three historical styles of sushi rice: a 21st-century style with white vinegar, salt and sugar, an 18th-century style with akasu red vinegar, cane sugar and salt, and a 16th-century style using only vinegar and salt. It's served Wednesday to Saturday, lunch and dinner, with no à la carte and no vegetarian or vegan options. Toki holds a Michelin star.

**Order:**
- Shunkan omakase menu

### 3. Sen Omakase

*Kaiseki-trained omakase with a formal tea ceremony built in*

- **Neighbourhood:** Nueva España
- **Address:** C. de Sta. María Magdalena, 14, 28016 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 1 Sol
- **Website:** https://senomakase.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sen-omakase

Sen Omakase is built as an immersion in Japan through art, culture and food, served across four rooms. It opened in May 2024 and won its Michelin star in the 2025 guide. Chef Steven Bosen Wu was born in Palma de Mallorca to a restaurant family and trained in Spain and Belgium before heading to the Tokyo Sushi Academy and then Kyoto, where he worked at the Michelin-starred, nine-generation kaiseki restaurant Uosaburo. The tasting menu follows kaiseki's approach to seasonality: Hashiri, the first arrival of a season's flavours, Shun, their peak, and Nagori, tasting a product for the last time. It opens with takoyaki, moves through a nigiri assortment spanning turbot, tuna and sea bream, an eel temaki and lobster in a wagyu butter sauce, and sommelier Hilda Olvera directs a formal tea ceremony built into the meal. Sen Omakase holds a Michelin star and a Repsol Sol.

**Order:**
- Takoyaki
- Nigiri assortment (turbot, tuna, sea bream)
- Lobster in wagyu butter sauce

> "que sigue la tradición Kaiseki y apuesta por productos de temporada" — Michelin Guide España

### 4. EMI

*New Nordic technique folded into a Japanese-Korean tasting menu*

- **Neighbourhood:** Gaztambide
- **Address:** C/ Gaztambide, 64, 28015 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 1 Sol
- **Website:** https://emimadrid.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/emi

EMI is chef Rubén Mosquero's most personal project, opened in August 2025 after more than ten years abroad: Noma and Geranium in Copenhagen, Azurmendi, Luca Fantin in Tokyo, José Andrés's Minibar, and Atomix in New York, where he ran R&D as the restaurant climbed from 118th to 6th in the world. The tasting menu runs about 14 courses at the bar, three snacks through to petit fours, applying New Nordic principles to Japanese and Korean technique: smoked kelp with tofu and eel, gim bugak, a salted Korean custard with foie gras, lobster and duck stock, and sea bream with white kimchi and squid. The single menu was listed at 195 euros as of August 2026, with three wine pairings from sommelier Miguel Ángel Millán. Bookings open on the 1st of each month, online only, for the following month. EMI won a Michelin star in the 2026 guide, and Mosquero took Cocinero Revelación at the 2025 Premios Metrópoli, the same edition where EMI won Restaurante Revelación.

**Order:**
- Smoked kelp with tofu and eel
- Gim bugak
- Sea bream with white kimchi and squid

### 5. Ugo Chan

*Michelin star, market-driven cooking chef Hugo Muñoz calls japo-castiza*

- **Neighbourhood:** Nueva España
- **Address:** Félix Boix, 6 28036 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 1-Star · Repsol 2 Soles
- **Website:** https://ugochan.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/ugo-chan

Ugo Chan opened in Nueva España in 2021 and won its Michelin star about a year later, at the November 2022 gala for the 2023 guide. The name comes from chef Hugo Muñoz's maternal grandfather, who had trading ties with Japan and nicknamed him 'Hugochan' as a boy. Muñoz trained under Abraham García at Viridiana and learned nigiri technique from Ricardo Sanz, ran KBK, and did a stint at Zuma in London before opening on his own; he won the Emerging Chef award in 2016. The kitchen describes its own approach as cocina japo-castiza, market cooking with a Japanese soul built on seasonal product, and the Omakase menu is put together at the moment around what the kitchen has in and what the diner likes. The carta runs from an onion soup in smoked bonito consommé with aged Comté through mullet sashimi served on the bone and a lamb kebab temaki with charred sweetbreads. Ugo Chan holds a Michelin star and two Repsol Soles.

**Order:**
- Mullet sashimi served on the bone
- Lamb kebab temaki with charred sweetbreads

> "su menú Omakase se prepara en el momento teniendo en cuenta los gustos del cliente" — Madrid Secreto

### 6. Yugo the Bunker

*A public izakaya upstairs, a private-club bunker below*

- **Neighbourhood:** Barrio de las Letras
- **Address:** Calle San Blas, 4, 28014 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin 1-Star · Repsol Recomendado
- **Website:** https://www.yugothebunker.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/yugo-the-bunker

Yugo the Bunker splits into two distinct rooms: an upstairs izakaya open to the public, and a hidden downstairs bunker run as a private club for members. It began in 2013 on Calle Alcalá as Yugo Sushi&Kobe, a takeaway. Chef Julián Mármol chases exclusive product from Alaska and Japan to Portugal and the Delta del Ebro, cooking traditional Japanese food with what he calls a certain avant-garde edge. Two tasting menus split the offering: Clásicos del Bunker at 145 euros, running negitoro with crispy wonton, toro nigiri with crispy plankton and black cod misoyaki gyoza, and Evolution at 175 euros, adding smoked caviar otoro nigiri and aged beef with kimchi and bone marrow. House rules keep the focus tight: everyone at a table orders the same menu, only guests aged eight and up are seated, and there's no vegetarian or vegan option. Yugo the Bunker holds a Michelin star and a Repsol Recomendado.

**Order:**
- Toro nigiri with crispy plankton
- Black cod misoyaki gyoza
- Smoked caviar otoro nigiri

> "cocina tradicional japonesa con cierta vanguardia" — elblogdeceleste

### 7. Pilar Akaneya

*Tableside sumibiyaki wagyu grill in a Kyoto-styled room*

- **Neighbourhood:** Ríos Rosas
- **Address:** Calle Espronceda, 33, 28003 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin Selected · Repsol 1 Sol
- **Website:** https://akaneyajapan.com/pilar-akaneya-madrid/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/pilar-akaneya

Chiho Murata and Ignasi Elías opened the first Akaneya in Barcelona in 2011, and nine years later brought the sumibiyaki grilling concept to Madrid's Chamberí as Pilar Akaneya. The classic Kyoto aesthetic carries into the room on Calle Espronceda: rice-paper lamps and seven house-made barbecue tables across two adjoining rooms, cooking done at a shared communal table fitted with a silent ventilation system. Chef Pepe Fernández runs the kitchen, which the venue says was the third in Spain to serve Kobe beef and the first outside Japan to serve the Crown Melon, grown in Fukuroi, Murata's hometown. Three sumibiyaki tasting menus run through premium wagyu cuts, from the 89-euro Akaneya menu through the 129-euro Matsusaka menu to the 195-euro Matsusaka-Ito Ranch menu (minimum two people), grilled at the table and closing with a slice of that melon. Pilar Akaneya is Michelin Selected and carries a Repsol Sol.

**Order:**
- Akaneya sumibiyaki menu
- Matsusaka-Ito Ranch A5 wagyu menu
- Crown Melon

### 8. Otoro Jukusei

*Toro matured up to 80 days on display at the bar*

- **Neighbourhood:** Almagro
- **Address:** Calle de Fernández de la Hoz, 35, Chamberí, 28010 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin Selected · Repsol 1 Sol
- **Website:** https://www.otoromadrid.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/otoro-jukusei

Otoro Jukusei is built around jukusei, the Japanese technique of maturing fish to intensify its flavour and soften its texture, with the aged fish on display in cases at the bar. Itamae Diego Endika López controls the temperature and timing of each piece and takes the toro to maturations of as long as 80 days. It runs as an omakase bar in three lengths: Umi at 80 euros for fifteen courses, Tochi at 140 euros for sixteen with an extra of caviar and A5 wagyu tataki over binchotan charcoal, and Hoshi at 190 euros for seventeen courses. Each menu folds in caviar, wagyu and black truffle alongside the aged-fish sushi, with dessert included and the pairing charged separately. Otoro Jukusei is Michelin Selected and carries a Repsol Sol.

**Order:**
- Umi omakase (15 courses)
- Tochi omakase (16 courses)
- Hoshi omakase (17 courses)

### 9. Torikey

*Michelin Selected yakitori, chicken cooked nose to tail*

- **Neighbourhood:** Ríos Rosas
- **Address:** Plaza del Descubridor Diego de Ordás, 2, 28003, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€
- **Distinction:** Michelin Selected
- **Website:** http://www.torikey.com
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/torikey

Torikey is a modern izakaya-style yakitori restaurant on Plaza del Descubridor Diego de Ordás in Ríos Rosas, in the north of Chamberí, spacious and casual, with omakase running alongside the carta. It was created by Hiroshi Kobayashi and Masahito Okazoe. It's listed in the Michelin Guide, which spells it Tori-Key. About 80% of the ingredients are imported from Japan, and chicken is the star: everything cooked over charcoal with classic Eastern seasonings, using every part of the bird. Seasonal vegetables come from the neighbouring Mercado de Chamberí. Lunch runs 13:30 to 15:45, dinner to 23:30 Tuesday to Thursday and to midnight Friday and Saturday, and it closes Mondays. Torikey is listed in the Michelin Guide as Selected.

### 10. Sushi Bar Hannah

*Three tasting menus, including a Kaiseki with its own tea ceremony*

- **Neighbourhood:** Recoletos
- **Address:** C. del Marqués de Villamagna, 1, Salamanca, 28001 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€€
- **Distinction:** Michelin Selected · Repsol Recomendado
- **Website:** https://www.sushibarhannah.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sushi-bar-hannah

Sushi Bar Hannah sits on Calle del Marqués de Villamagna, on a side of the Hotel Villamagna, and runs a bar and a dining room alongside a private screening room used for events. It opened in 2017. Chef Janek Flemyng, who came up through UMU, leads the kitchen, working the traditional end of the sushi spectrum on seasonal fish matured in imported Japanese paper. Diners can order from the carta or choose between three tasting menus: Sushi Omakase, Nigiri Sushi, and a Kaiseki menu built around a tea ceremony. Tempura is fried in a copper nabe that keeps oil to a minimum, alongside a charcoal grill worked to traditional Japanese technique. Sushi Bar Hannah is Michelin Selected, recommended in the Guía Repsol, and ranked #657 on OAD's Europe Top Restaurants 2025.

> "Gracias a su paso por UMU perfeccionó lo aprendido en técnica y cultura japonesa" — elblogdeceleste

### 11. Miki

*Classic Japanese cooking from a chef formerly of Miyama*

- **Neighbourhood:** Avenida de América
- **Address:** C/ Duque de Sevilla, 4, 28002, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€
- **Website:** https://restaurantemiki.com/en/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/miki

Miki is the restaurant of itamae Hiroo Miki, an Osaka native who spent years cooking at Miyama, one of Madrid's well-known Japanese kitchens, before opening his own place on Calle Duque de Sevilla in Chamartín. It opened in 2014. The kitchen pairs traditional Japanese technique with local ingredients, by the venue's own account bringing together tradition, technique and product. It's open Tuesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, closed Sunday and Monday, and runs roughly 51 to 100 euros per person.

> "cuya propuesta es la cocina clásica japonesa de la mano de Hiro Miki San, el antiguo chef del restaurante Miyama" — elblogdeceleste

### 12. Soy

*A high-end room from an itamae with three decades in Japanese cooking*

- **Neighbourhood:** Almagro
- **Address:** Calle de Viriato, 58, 28010 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€€
- **Website:** http://www.soypedroespina.com
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/soy

Soy is chef Pedro Espina's own restaurant, a high-end Japanese room in the Almagro area of Chamberí. The venue's own account describes Espina as an itamae, the highest rank a Japanese cook can reach, a title that by its nature takes many years to earn. He and his Japanese-born wife run a traditional tasting menu built on product and technique alongside sushi. The room is small and quiet, booking is by phone only, and tables are hard to come by. Soy runs roughly 51 to 100 euros per person.

> "un auténtico itamae, es decir el rango más alto de los cocineros de Japón" — elblogdeceleste

### 13. Santoku

*A guided six-course counter menu near Retiro*

- **Neighbourhood:** Goya
- **Address:** Calle de Lope de Rueda, 19, 28009, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€
- **Website:** https://san-toku.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/santoku

Santoku sits on Calle Lope de Rueda in the Goya barrio of Salamanca, close to Parque del Retiro, and describes itself as a contemporary Japanese experience built around bringing diners close to the kitchen. It runs as a guided tasting menu of six courses eaten at a counter, with an open kitchen and the team serving directly, drinks not included. The room is small and hard to book, so reserving ahead matters. It's open daily for lunch and dinner, priced roughly 26 to 50 euros per person.

> "es el restaurante japonés más pequeño de Madrid, con una única mesa" — Madrid Secreto

### 14. Saku Izakaya

*Izakaya small plates, from fried tofu to a katsu sando*

- **Neighbourhood:** Trafalgar
- **Address:** Calle de Olid, 15, 28010 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€
- **Website:** https://www.sakuizakaya.com
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/saku-izakaya

Saku Izakaya trades on Calle Olid in the Trafalgar barrio of Chamberí, in a small, intimate and quiet room. It runs the izakaya format: traditional-style small plates built to go with drinks, alongside sushi and ramen in various forms. Starters run to fried tofu and a katsu sando, a breaded pork sandwich, with a sesame panna cotta to finish. It opens Tuesday to Friday, 13:30 to 16:00 and from 20:30, plus Saturday evening, closed Sunday and Monday, and is hard to book. Saku Izakaya runs roughly 26 to 50 euros per person.

**Order:**
- Katsu sando

> "el tofu frito y el katsu sando" — Madrid Secreto

### 15. Yakitoro

*Spanish tapas cooked on the yakitori grill*

- **Neighbourhood:** El Viso
- **Address:** P.º de la Castellana, 130, Chamartín, 28046 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €€
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.yakitoro.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/yakitoro

Yakitoro came out of a trip to Japan and the idea of doing the traditional yakitori taberna in Spanish: the name blends 'yakitori', the grilled skewer, with 'toro', the Spanish bull. On Paseo de la Castellana in the El Viso area of Chamartín, the kitchen puts Spanish recipes through a yakitori lens, skewering everything and grilling it live over charcoal, with tables set around the grills and ice pools for drinks. Yakitoro holds a Repsol Solete and runs roughly 26 to 50 euros per person.

### 16. Washoku

*Made-to-order sushi from a market stall, coeliac-friendly*

- **Neighbourhood:** Arapiles
- **Address:** Calle Vallehermoso, 36, 28015, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Website:** https://washoku.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/washoku

Washoku is run and staffed by its owner, Osamu Nakanishi, from a stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso in the Arapiles part of Chamberí. The focus is traditional Japanese cooking built on seasonality, quality and presentation, with sushi made to order. Fish is frozen to -28°C in line with Spain's anisakis regulations, and the sushi is coeliac-friendly, made with 100% rice vinegar and gluten-free tamari available on request. Alongside the counter and takeaway, it keeps a small shop of Japanese pantry goods, from sushi rice and nori to miso, mirin, ramen and Japanese curry. Washoku runs roughly 10 to 20 euros per person.

## Honourable mentions

- **[Kippu](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/kippu)** (Lista) — Author-style Japanese from chef-owner Qifeng Lin on Calle General Pardiñas, built around special nigiris and gunkans with a long sake list.
- **[Masa Naomi](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/masa-naomi)** (Cuatro Caminos) — Izakaya-style Japanese in Cuatro Caminos with yakitori, sashimi and sushi alongside rice bowls like unagidon and katsudon.
- **[Mateo Honten](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/mateo-honten)** (Justicia) — A small Japanese kitchen on Calle San Mateo in Justicia with sushi at its centre alongside other Japanese plates.
- **[Izakaya Han](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/izakaya-han)** (Justicia) — A Korean and Japanese restaurant in Chueca run by Emilia and Han, with anime murals including one based on Spirited Away.

## The Japanese scene in Madrid

Madrid's Japanese dining runs well past sushi counters into fire, charcoal and grill formats. Smoked Room, inside the Hotel Hyatt Regency Hesperia, treats fire and smoke as the whole menu rather than a garnish, while a few streets over in Chamberí, Pilar Akaneya grills wagyu tableside in a room styled after Kyoto teahouses. EMI, in Chamberí's Gaztambide area, folds New Nordic technique into a Japanese-Korean tasting menu from a chef who spent time at Noma and Atomix. Yakitori and izakaya formats sit at a different register: Torikey's charcoal chicken skewers in Ríos Rosas, Saku Izakaya's small plates in Trafalgar, and Yakitoro's Spanish-accented skewer taberna on the Castellana. A few kitchens work at smaller scale entirely, among them Santoku's guided tasting counter near Retiro, Soy's phone-booking-only room in Almagro, and Washoku's made-to-order sushi stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso.

## Know before you go

### 1. The Michelin-starred tasting menus need booking well ahead

Smoked Room seats only fourteen, and EMI opens its books on the first of each month, online only, for the following month. Both fill fast.

### 2. Formats vary more than the words 'Japanese restaurant' suggest

A single label covers a fire omakase, a tableside wagyu grill, a charcoal yakitori room and a market sushi stall on this list. Check which format a restaurant actually runs before booking.

### 3. A few rooms are genuinely small

Soy books by phone only, Saku Izakaya is 'hard to book' by its own account, and Santoku is a small counter room. Reserve ahead rather than walking in.

### 4. Michelin and Repsol recognition is a useful filter, not the whole picture

Several entries here, like Saku Izakaya, Soy and Washoku, aren't in the Michelin Guide but show up repeatedly in Madrid's Japanese food coverage and carry strong reputations of their own.

## Glossary

- **Kaiseki** — A traditional multi-course Japanese tasting format built around the seasons.
- **Omakase** — A tasting format where the chef chooses the courses rather than the diner ordering from a menu.
- **Yakitori** — Japanese skewer cooking over charcoal, traditionally built around chicken.
- **Sumibiyaki** — Japanese charcoal grilling, often used for premium cuts of beef cooked at the table.
- **Izakaya** — A casual Japanese tavern format built around small plates meant to go with drinks.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the best Japanese restaurant in Madrid?

It depends on the format. Smoked Room holds two Michelin stars for a fire-and-smoke omakase, Sen Omakase and Toki run Michelin-starred kaiseki and sushi tasting menus, and Pilar Akaneya is the pick for anyone chasing a tableside wagyu grill instead of a raw bar.

### Which Madrid Japanese restaurants hold a Michelin star?

Smoked Room holds two Michelin stars. Toki, Sen Omakase, EMI, Ugo Chan and Yugo the Bunker each hold one. Several more, including Pilar Akaneya, Otoro Jukusei, Torikey and Sushi Bar Hannah, carry Michelin's Selected badge without a star.

### Where can I find yakitori in Madrid?

Torikey, in Ríos Rosas, is Michelin Selected and runs a dedicated charcoal yakitori menu using most of the bird. Yakitoro, on the Castellana, adapts the yakitori grill format with Spanish recipes and holds a Repsol Solete.

### Is there good-value Japanese food in Madrid?

Washoku, a sushi stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso, runs roughly 10 to 20 euros a person. Santoku's guided tasting counter near Retiro runs 26 to 50 euros.

### What is omakase and where can I try it in Madrid?

Omakase means leaving the choice of courses to the chef instead of ordering from a menu. Smoked Room, Toki, Sen Omakase and Otoro Jukusei all run entirely on a single omakase-style tasting sequence.

### Where can I try a Japanese wagyu grill in Madrid?

Pilar Akaneya, in Chamberí, runs sumibiyaki tasting menus grilled tableside on a shared counter, moving through cuts from Ito Ranch Matsusaka A5 to Kobe beef.

### Are there small, counter-style Japanese restaurants in Madrid?

Yes. Santoku runs a guided six-course tasting menu at a counter near Retiro, Soy is a small, phone-booking-only room in Almagro, and Miki is a compact restaurant in Chamartín from an itamae formerly of Miyama.

### Is Japanese food in Madrid only sushi?

No. This list includes a fire-and-smoke tasting menu at Smoked Room, a wagyu grill at Pilar Akaneya, charcoal yakitori at Torikey, and izakaya small plates at Saku Izakaya, alongside several dedicated sushi counters.

## About the author

**Justin Mota** — Guidavera founder

Justin Mota is the founder of Guidavera. He has lived in Spain for over 10 years and runs a native AI agency alongside building this platform. Food has always been the way Justin connects with friends, and Guidavera started as the list he kept sending to everyone visiting Barcelona. He built it for himself and his friends first, and now hopes it can transform the way people discover great food experiences everywhere.

More: https://guidavera.com/about

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This guide is the canonical machine-readable version of https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/best-japanese. Every claim is verifiable against the linked restaurant profiles. Source: Guidavera (https://guidavera.com).