For meat lovers coming to Japan, a visit to a yakiniku restaurant is a must. This beloved Japanese style of barbecue involves grilling bite-sized pieces of raw meat and vegetables at the table, creating a fun, hands-on experience that’s often lively, smoky and a little noisy. Sometimes, though, after a long day of sightseeing, you want something a bit quieter and more sophisticated. That is what diners at Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo can expect. 

Located on the basement floor of a small shopping street in the upscale district of Hiroo in Tokyo, Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo is an intimate fine dining restaurant — featuring several semi-private rooms and one private room — which serves impossibly juicy and tender cuts of meat that feel like they melt in your mouth. It sources top-grade beef from trusted meat distributors across Japan in renowned regions like Kobe, Yonezawa and Matsuzaka. 

However, the primary beef at this fine-dining yakiniku eatery is Takamori wagyu from Yamaguchi Prefecture. “It is selected with care down to the cattle, the farm and even the feed,” restaurant owner Keisuke Inoue tells TW. “When I first heard about this exceptional beef, I visited the producers in person. After tasting it on-site, I was deeply moved and immediately started negotiations to bring it to Tokyo. We work with a farm that inherits traditions dating back to the Meiji era. They use a proprietary feed blend that includes sake lees and rice flour from the famous local sake, Dassai.” 

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Takamori Wagyu

The beef is nicknamed “drunken wagyu” due to the diet of the cattle, which gives the meat a mild and silky texture. Known for its distinctive sweet flavor and high-quality marbling, it is highly sought-after, yet extremely difficult to get hold of as the Iwakuni Farm produces less than 200 cattle annually. Inoue first visited the farm in 2016, when he sampled a large chunk of beef, more like the style you would get at steak restaurants in the US. 

Yakiniku eateries in Japan tend to serve meat in thin slices. But Inoue, who lived in the States, was more interested in the thicker, American-style cuts he enjoyed at Iwakuni Farm. Simply procuring first-rate meat, though, wasn’t enough for the entrepreneur. He also purchased special smokeless roasters to enhance the quality of the beef. Placed in every room, these roasters all feature far-infrared technology that cooks the meat slowly and evenly, allowing for perfect medium-rare steak. 

Of course, even with the best roaster, it is still possible to undercook or overcook meat; at typical yakiniku restaurants, customers choose from a variety of beef cuts and are then usually left to their own devices. Things are done differently at Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo. There’s no a la carte menu, and the attentive servers roast the meat in front of you to ensure everything is cooked to perfection. 

The Meal at Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo

Our meal began with two rich and extremely tender dishes: melted meat yukke — dual-layered raw wagyu marinated in seasonings — followed by four slices of the fattiest part of the tongue served with ponzu sauce, which has a salty umami base. Both tasted divine, but what came next was even better. The slider burger, featuring a wagyu fillet cutlet fried with the rice flours of Dassai, was arguably the highlight of the meal. The only problem was that it was consumed too quickly. 

It was then time to cleanse the palate with some granita before devouring a sumptuous meat sushi dish of sea urchin on top of wagyu tartar. That was a lovely prelude to the heavyweight dishes that came next: Chateaubriand served with Kawamura soy sauce, followed by Takamori wagyu with raw egg and truffles. Inoue waxed lyrical about the quality of the meat from Iwakuni Farm prior to our meal, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. 

Afterwards, there was still just enough room for another beef and rice dish, followed by homemade cheesecake and gelato for dessert. As Inoue’s mother made him the same cake when he was a child, it holds sentimental value for the owner. Combining delightfully with the ice cream, it was a wonderful way to end what had been a heavenly culinary experience. We were even presented with some onigiri to take home.

About Keisuke Inoue 

After starting his career in the real estate industry, Inoue moved to the United States, where he earned an MBA from the University of California, Irvine. Returning to Japan, he worked as a producer at a venture company that invested in anime production. Realizing he wanted to spread happiness through food, he founded Smile Cube, Inc. in 2008. 

Since then, he has operated various types of establishments, including cafes, beach houses, bars, ramen shops and pizza restaurants. He currently manages six different restaurant locations, though Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo is arguably the jewel in his crown. Inoue opened the restaurant in 2016 after the headquarters of a franchised pizza business he was running went out of business. It proved a wise move. Onikuya Keisuke Sannanbo has garnered quite the reputation and has been listed in Tabelog’s 100 best restaurants for three consecutive years from 2022 to 2024.

“I wanted something that could succeed internationally and appeal to both Japanese and foreign guests,” says Inoue. “Rather than just offering traditional yakiniku, we serve meat-based cuisine inspired by both Japanese and French culinary styles. What sets us apart is our dedication to providing guests with the very best meat possible. The thing I enjoy most is hearing customers say, ‘That was delicious. Thank you.’ There aren’t many industries where you receive gratitude even after receiving payment.”

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Updated On August 5, 2025