Tokyo

Ode

Name: Ode
Address: 5-1-32, Hiroo, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Hiroo, Tokyo
Telephone: NA
Price range: ¥33,000

Renewed under a new concept in February 2025, Ode’s second chapter stands out for the rare pairing of two chefs: Kosuke Sato, whose seasonal kaiseki menu is intertwined with French technique, and soba artisan Dairin Arai, who prepares the noodles on site with the precision of a dedicated workshop. Together, the chefs create a unique omakase with dishes such as sweetfish with fennel, sesame tofu layered with Hokkaido sea urchin and soba sushi. Be sure to leave room for the whimsical “Dragon Ball” dessert.

Ode sits in Hiroo’s shopping district, an area lined with tasteful restaurants and cafes. A flight of stairs leads to a large grey door, marked with the restaurant’s name and a plaque for Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. With the sound of jazz in the background, the timeless interior creates a calming ambiance inside. A curved wooden counter wraps around the open kitchen, where all 13 seats are in clear view of the soba-making station. There is also a quieter private room for up to four guests.

The cocktail menu here is inventive, crafted by Jonathan Shishikura, who’s been with the restaurant since its first chapter. Using different teas as the base, he seeks interesting combinations such as Oriental Beauty with hibiscus and gyokuro with kombu, with enticing garnishes ranging from spices, vinegars and fermented fruit peels. Wines are selected by Nobuo Ichimura, former sommelier at Quintessence, featuring a wide variety including bottles from boutique Japanese winemakers.

While the concept has shifted from French to Japanese, Ode’s new chapter carries the original intentions of the founding owner-chef Yusuke Namai, who hoped that his cuisine would present the values of the producers and growers. Taking its name from the poetic style intended on conveying emotions, the new chefs too speak with enthusiasm about their work, offering guests a deeper connection to the dishes in front of them.

A rare pleasure of enjoying freshly-made soba

Rooted in the kaiseki tradition but influenced by French ideas, the 10-course omakase follows Japan’s 24 micro seasons, each dish drawing on fresh produce. The printed menu placed in front of each seat shows only the day’s ingredients, inviting guests to use their imagination about how they may be prepared.

During the taisho season, the height of summer, the meal begins with Kuwana clams and sweetfish as a light appetizer, followed by a bowl of tiger prawn soup. The dashi here is drawn from Fukui kombu, steeped at 60 degrees Celsius for two hours. The mucilage on the surface adds to the umami. Once the bonito is added, the broth is kept unstirred, to keep its clear yet rich flavor.

Sweetfish come from either Lake Biwa in Shiga or Wakayama Prefecture, each batch selected for freshness and flavor. The fish is split from the back, and the bones, head, tail and innards are salted and made into a confit, scented with fennel. It’s reconstructed as a whole fish and finished over a charcoal grill. Guests can enjoy it without worrying about encountering any bones, and savor the light and refreshing garnish of watercress, salted tomatoes, lime and sea salt.

Layered beautifully with seaweed soy sauce and sesame tofu, the sea urchin is a dish to remember. The creamy tofu is made in the traditional way, using only sesame seeds, Yoshino kuzu and water. Served in an elegant glass, the dish is paired with Condrieu from the Rhône, or a mocktail made of grilled eggplant, myoga ginger and cocoa. With the soba chef Arai on site, Ode offers a rare pleasure of enjoying freshly-made soba. Made entirely from buckwheat flour, the noodles are served in a broth that highlights the flavor and supple texture. The chef also offers soba sushi, bringing back a traditional dish that used to be more common in Japan.

Conger eel is prepared using the traditional technique of scalding, which softens the flesh so the bones are barely noticeable. Flavored lightly with sake and fennel, the dish brings together Japanese and Western elements. Edamame soup is made using organic beans from Tochigi, new potatoes and lotus root. A hint of green yuzu oil brightens the flavor.

Guests are delighted to conclude the meal with the signature “Dragon Ball” dessert, a sphere of seasonal fruit, encased in cocoa butter. A glass of liqueur is poured over the dish in front of them, filling the air with a rich, sweet aroma.

INGREDIENTS
Ode continues to procure the best seasonal ingredients from many of the producers they’ve worked with through the years. The fish arrives daily from Toyosu Market, while beef is raised on a locally sourced feed. Organic vegetables are harvested in Tochigi in the morning, and reach the kitchen by dinner time. Herbs come from a farm in Chiba Prefecture; rice from Nagano. The buckwheat flour is sourced from select producers in Saitama and Hokkaido.

A dish from the cuisine at Ode: A rare pleasure of enjoying freshly-made soba #2

CHEF

Kosuke Sato & Dairin Arai

Kosuke Sato was born in Fukushima Prefecture in 1984. From when he was very little, he remembers being interested in cooking, eager to learn to use a knife when he was still in kindergarten. After graduating from junior high school, he considered working in construction but ended up studying architecture. Yet, the ambition to become a chef never left him.

He began his culinary career at a ryokan in Izu, where he spent almost a decade absorbing the fundamentals of Japanese cuisine. This was followed by 13 years at Ookidoyabe Hanazonocho where he continued to refine his craft. In preparation for leading Ode’s second chapter, he worked alongside Namai, gaining first-hand experience with French techniques.

Dairin Arai was born in Aomori Prefecture in 1973. While he considered becoming a hairdresser, he was drawn to the culinary path and began training at Kaishin, a hand-made soba restaurant in Aomori City. He was 18 years old.

At age 30, he enrolled at Ecole Tsuji Tokyo to expand his foundation in Japanese cuisine. After graduating, he trained for a few years at Matsushita, a traditional Japanese restaurant, before joining Ginza Soba Sasuga. In 2013, he struck out on his own, naming the restaurant Ginza Sasuga Rin, which quickly earned a devoted following.

While Sato and Arai had met earlier in their careers, their path eventually crossed again through the introduction of Noboru Arai of the French restaurant, Hommage. Brought together to lead Ode’s second chapter, the two now complement each other’s strengths.

VISION
Sato’s approach is rooted in rethinking the very foundation of Japanese cuisine. With kombu and bonito growing scarce, he believes chefs must move beyond their dependence on these two key dashi ingredients. He sees an urgent need to develop alternative ideas, such as using vegetable stocks, which hold layers of sweetness, bitterness and acidity. He also believes that techniques like fermentation can open up avenues for innovative flavors in a sustainable way.

Arai’s focus looks towards the broader food industry. Seeing how difficult it’s becoming for chefs to open their own restaurants, he thinks the future lies in diversifying dining formats. Even stand-up soba stalls, he notes, could grow if they were run with better management and creativity. For him, the challenges also extend to agriculture, where the succession of existing producers is a pressing concern. At Ode, he aims to cook with a sense of Japan as a single terroir, while finding ways to bridge the gap between rural producers and city diners. Ultimately, his goal is to expand the potential of how people work and succeed in the restaurant industry.

SOBA

A highlight of Ode is the soba workshop in full view from the counter, where guests can follow Chef Arai’s movements as he rolls the buckwheat into thin noodles. During private events, guests are invited to watch the process up close. Sourced from trusted growers in Saitama and Hokkaido, the grains are inspected and milled daily. “It’s extremely difficult to achieve consistent quality in agricultural products, so we work with farmers we trust completely,” he explains. “Just as temperature control is essential for good meat, it is essential for soba.” The dough is cut and cooked on the spot, adapting to the pace of the day’s meal. Guests praise the noodles for their clarity and suppleness.