SAYURI, a dining restaurant serving all kinds of Nagoya-meshi (local food from Nagoya), provides not only the best foods, but everything that goes to make up a bewitching night in Nagoya.

The main attractions of the restaurant are the delicious food, the atmosphere, and the high-quality service. Make sure not to miss out on the waitresses dressed in modern-style kimono (traditional Japanese clothes) as well!

From JR Nagoya Station, walk towards Takashimaya. Take the Taiko-dori exit, and walk for 10-minutes. You can also walk through UNIMALL (an underground shopping street). Take exit 10, walk one block towards your right, and turn right again. Go straight until you find SAYURI on your left side.
The poster on the door is a little intimidating, though I was sure I would regret it if I went back; in the end, I was right!

The modern-Japanese style interior is very atmospheric. The tasty scent in the air and the sizzling sounds coming from the kitchen made me hungry!

There are many dishes that go well with alcohol, including all kinds of Nagoya-meshi (local food from Nagoya) which you will not want to miss.
The “Girl’s Cocktail” (a cocktail based on the image of each waitress) was a unique touch which attracted my attention the most!

There is a wide variety of sake (Japanese alcohol) you can try out.

The waitress neatly dressed in modern-style kimono (traditional Japanese clothes) represents the feminine beauty of Japanese women from back in the “good old days” of Japan. The moment she showed up, the atmosphere was accented with luxury and gorgeousness.

The tebasaki (Japanese style fried chicken) comes in two varieties: the standard tebasaki, and the black tebasaki. The black tebasaki is like nothing I’ve never seen before.
The standard tebasaki is very tender and juicy, and has a sweet and sour flavor to it. The black tebasaki, only available at SAYURI, is seasoned with squid ink and pepper (which gives a unique crisp to the batter), with jalapeño sauce on the side.

The miso-katsu (fried pork with miso sauce) has a genuine and authentic flavor. The crispy cabbage at the side is a perfect complement to the slightly sweetened miso sauce.

The beef sinew dote-ni (beef sinew and other ingredients stewed with miso sauce) has a profound taste of the melting beef sinew simmered for one whole day with some of the best Haccho-miso in Japan. Dote-ni is the right choice, if you are eager for a dish that goes well with beer!

The Japanese-style omelet (made from the eggs of Nagoya Cochin), is grilled on stone right in front of you by one of the women staff; the performance is a great story to tell back at home. The egg is creamy and soft, with an aromatic scent of sesame oil. This meal was my favorite, not only because of the performance but the taste which I can guarantee is good.

The hitsumabushi (grilled eel on rice) is definitely one of the best Nagoya-meshi; you will regret not trying it. The soft eel dipped in secret sauce is tasty enough by itself, though there are additional condiments (green onions, wasabi, and seaweed) for you to add according to preference. At the end, you can add thin soup, and have it in o-chazuke (boiled rice in soup) style.

The roasted loin of Japanese Hida-gyu (beef) comes on a heated stone plate, which you use to roast the meat on. The mellow taste of the melting beef is superb. You can also use ponzu (soy sauce with citrus juice), wasabi, lemon, and green onion to add flavor.

Though entering SAYURI required a little bit of courage, the food, service, and experience in SAYURI were perfectly professional.
SAYURI is a great dining experience which you will need to put on your list if you are ready to eat some of the best Nagoya-meshi, experience the bewitching atmosphere of the “good old Japan”, and take home some unique travel stories of your very own!

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