Tempura Kondo

Tempura restaurant · Chūō

Tempura Kondo

Tempura restaurant · Chūō

Japan, 〒104-0061 Tokyo, Chuo City, Ginza, 5 Chome−5−13 Sakaguchi Bld., ９F

Highlights

Step into Kondo for a modern tempura experience where master chef Fumio Kondo serves up expertly fried seafood and seasonal veggies in a cozy atmosphere.

Japan, 〒104-0061 Tokyo, Chuo City, Ginza, 5 Chome−5−13 Sakaguchi Bld., ９F Get directions

tempura-kondo.com

¥10,000+

Reserve

@michelinguide

"The MICHELIN Mentor Chef Award is given to Fumio Kondo of Two-MICHELIN-Starred restaurant Tempura Kondo. Opening the restaurant in 1991, Mr. Kondo established the modern form of tempura by introducing seasonal vegetables to Edo-mae tempura, which used to be mainly seafood." - MICHELIN Guide Japan

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@michelinguide

"Fumio Kondo sets a modern example for Edomae tempura. He was one of the first to put the focus on vegetables, elevating their status from that of a side dish. Two examples are the shredded carrots fried in a pot and arranged like fireworks, and the cylindrical sweet potatoes made to resemble those baked on hot pebbles. He has had great success going where none has gone before." - Michelin Inspector

Tempura Kondo

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@afar

"Walking into Kondo, the aroma of sesame oil fills the air. The master, Fumio Kondo, bends over behind the counter as he observes the tempura frying. Part of the pleasure of dining at a tempura shop is listening to the knives chopping the vegetables and the sound of the tempura frying in oil. The meal is based on seasonal vegetables and seafood. Tempura is traditionally served with a soy-based dipping sauce, to which diners add grated daikon. Aficionados will often season theirs only with salt, to preserve the delicate fried crust. Insider tip: Request the carrots and sweet potato, which do not come with the set meals. The sweet potato takes 30 minutes to cook and must be ordered at the beginning of the meal."

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@afar

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@cntraveler

"Kondo is hallowed ground for monja, a cook-it-yourself delicacy that isn't so much a meal as it is an interactive experience. The restaurant doesn't reinvent the style; rather, it merely provides the perfect environment in which to enjoy it. You'll find higher-quality ingredients here, unlike many of the competing monjayaki destinations in Tokyo's Tsukishima neighborhood. Think: thinly sliced beef and pork and fresh, plump shrimp, all paired with glasses of cold Japanese beer." - Brad Japhe

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Borderlessfoodie

Google

This place is hard to get a reservation and make sure you request Kondo Senior. I believe he is in his late 70’s already. Overall we were quite happy with the overall experience but can’t say it’s the best despite it’s famous. The seafood and veggies served were all good but nothing really stood out. The surprise of the night was the finely julienned carrot deep fried after coated with flour and diluted tempura batter. It came out crisp and didn’t really taste like carrots😅😋. It takes a highly skill s chef to execute it perfectly. The thick Australian asparagus was fiberous and would prefer maybe local ones. The pre-ordered sweet potato was a disappointment as it was dry inside. The chestnut also was dry inside. I once had the chestnut marinated or cured before deep frying it so it was tasty and moist inside.

PY Pui

Google

Pros -Only a thin layer of tempura batter -there are different seasonings for you to eat together with the tempura, and with chef’s recommendation on which food pairs with which sauce. - it is so juicy that I don’t feel like I am eating tempura, it’s like having steamed vegetables/ steamed seafood. Cons - the portion of the lunch set is small.

Andrew Goh

Google

I recently tried a Michelin-starred restaurant in Tokyo, known for its tempura and often considered the best in town. However, the tempura didn’t quite meet my expectations. It was too oily, lacking the light, crisp texture I typically associate with excellent tempura. Normally, I prefer tempura with a lighter, barely-there batter, and I noticed that the waitress changed the paper with each dish—perhaps due to the oiliness, which is unusual in my experience at tempura restaurants. We opted for the largest menu, featuring 13 pieces of tempura along with a few appetizers like sashimi and tuna. I was hoping for more variety, but we were served multiple pieces of the same tempura, and encouraged to try them with salt, lemon, or tempura sauce. The selection included ebi, sea eel, seasonal fish, and a unique uni tempura. The squid was impressive, as it was perfectly cooked—avoiding the usual risk of becoming chewy. The vegetable tempura was unique and enjoyable, including asparagus, Japanese ginger flower, eggplant, sweet potato, lotus root, chestnut, and onion. We finished with a fried prawn kakiage, served over rice, but by then we were almost too full to eat. As is traditional, we ended the meal with a Japanese fruit platter. Overall, while the food was good, I prefer tempura that’s less oily. I suspect the oil temperature or flour preparation might have been off, as I’ve seen at other top tempura restaurants in Kyoto. Despite these points, it was a lovely way to celebrate a special birthday and well worth the visit.

TYYC

Google

My friends and I had high hopes for this place, but we were ultimately disappointed with the overall dining experience. I had never tried Japanese tempura fine dining before, so I expected something exceptional, especially given how often it was recommended to me. Unfortunately, nothing really stood out, not even the fried uni tempura. The uni was bland and lacked sweetness, which was surprising considering the price and my expectations for high-quality seafood. The tempura itself wasn’t as crispy as I had heard, and I couldn’t understand why a ‘tempura’ restaurant served mostly fried vegetables that didn’t impress. In the end, the experience was just average at best, and the food and service didn’t justify the cost.

Daryl

Google

Service is really disappointing. Having dined at around 8 Michelin starred restaurants, I was quite disappointed by the staffs. The service staff was attentive but didn’t give us an introduction nor engaged with any conversation despite speaking ok English when asked questions. Since there were 8 of us, the 2 chefs shared the load to serve us. 1 chef was great, explaining the order we should eat to 4 of us - the other chef kept quiet the whole time. Coming to the food, everything was good but lacked excitement. The only dish I haven’t tried elsewhere is the tempura asparagus and ginger leaves. Others were boring but well executed - such as the prawn, uni, fish, etc. To be honest, none of the dishes wow’ed me. The quality was very assessable in normal tempura restaurants. It was my first tempura fine dining experience- my friends and I were quite sick of oily food around 60% into the meal. Quantity was abundant. I wish they were more experimental so the meal wouldn’t be so monotonous- like the service staff. Talking about price, it certainly feels like most of your money goes to their rent as this restaurant is at Ginza. Very poor value and experience. Food was reasonably enjoyable if you love tempura.

Adam Shoshani

Google

We had an absolutely great time at Kondo. Seeing Kondo-san's dedication to his craft, cooking and focusing on each dish was incredible. We enjoyed all tempura dishes with myself ordering all the available vegetables. The rice-cake was incredible, the lotus great and so was the thinly-cut carrot tempura. All in all, a top tempura experience. Highly recommended!

Jonathan H

Google

Reservations required. Tempura was very light and each dish was presented well. Mix of veggies and sea-based food. Note: if you want the sweet potato or kobocha it requires you to order at the beginning of the meal bc it takes at least 30-40 min to prepare and doesn’t come with the set menu.

J WV

Google

Food was good, service was good. Only thing was the food was too hot to eat immediately but the pace was super fast. I had to force myself a bit to eat faster since 4 people are getting served at the same time. My tongue was in pain for another day.