Fishing Restaurant Zauo Shinjuku

Make a reservation in advance, they seemed to be booked pretty fully when I went in. This is an interesting restaurant where you have an option to "catch" your own seafood. Catching your own fish is cheaper than just ordering (and honestly the main point of coming here). The only caveat is that you eat what you caught, you cannot release the fish back. The whole gimmick is pretty fun and is a good one off kind of thing to do.

This would be an unpopular opinion, but our entire experience was disappointing. We came here under influence from the instagram hype. The restaurant was not as clean as typical Japanese standard and felt less hygienic. The process was confusing for foreigners. Catching the fishes were challenging. When we finally did, the fish portions were small despite its high prices. Additionally, cooked dishes were huge let down, with tiny portions and poorly prepared. Only pro was that the staff were friendly. We suggested skipping this instagram place and don’t be mislead.

A fun place to try. Good experience. You catch a fish, then they will cook it the way you want. This place is not cheap, especially the beer, almost double the price than other restaurants. Food quality was just so so. Try one time is good enough.

This review might be a bit bias but bear with me. I’m not a big seafood fan but I thought it’ll be cool to come here for the experience. When my family finished fishing, most dishes served was unsatisfying. Although the flavor is unique, some dishes were wasteful, like the sashimi which half the fish isn’t even fully used. We just wasn’t able to fill our stomachs despite the price tag of ¥20,000+. The service however was top notch! The servers were not coarse and was dressed in traditional clothings. Very nice and even allowed us to use their chargers to charge our phones. Lovely atmosphere-

So... Go into this experience with an open mind but blind eye. You pay for tickets to catch certain fish. The staff celebrate when you catch something. Just don't look at it in the eye or name it. 5 minutes later it comes to your table to eat. All jokes aside, the food was remarkable, and the service was amazing. Our server HIDE made our experience so great and the staff celebrated our honeymoon in style. Would come back, just wouldn't look the fish in the eyes this time! Haha.

Honestly not that good. Much better places to go eat. The fish in the tanks didn't look very healthy and even noticed some dead ones. The food itself wasn't anything special and fairly forgettable. We are 100% positive we were scammed. We specifically asked for a fish within our token limit. We were led to a tank and told we should fish there, we double checked and assured it was the correct tank. Only to be told after catching our fish we had actually caught the most expensive fish on the menu and would have to buy more tokens. So be warned for staff to scam you otherwise though the staff were friendly and attentive. However the atmosphere was fairly annoying and very loud. This place is probably more appreciated by families with younger kids.

First time in the restaurant, the restaurant offer lots of food. All a la carte item, do be careful as I tot I order for myself end up coming in with big portion. Specialty are fishing yr own fish, which can be cook few ways. Worth the try!!! Very interactive Very delicious!

Great experience! Everything was fresh and fun to catch. Staff were super helpful and spoke English aswell as Japanese. The drums are fun and add to the atmosphere! The waiters also took great photos for us !

Make a reservation in advance, they seemed to be booked pretty fully when I went in. This is an interesting restaurant where you have an option to "catch" your own seafood. Catching your own fish is cheaper than just ordering (and honestly the main point of coming here). The only caveat is that you eat what you caught, you cannot release the fish back. The whole gimmick is pretty fun and is a good one off kind of thing to do.

This would be an unpopular opinion, but our entire experience was disappointing. We came here under influence from the instagram hype. The restaurant was not as clean as typical Japanese standard and felt less hygienic. The process was confusing for foreigners. Catching the fishes were challenging. When we finally did, the fish portions were small despite its high prices. Additionally, cooked dishes were huge let down, with tiny portions and poorly prepared. Only pro was that the staff were friendly. We suggested skipping this instagram place and don’t be mislead.

A fun place to try. Good experience. You catch a fish, then they will cook it the way you want. This place is not cheap, especially the beer, almost double the price than other restaurants. Food quality was just so so. Try one time is good enough.

This review might be a bit bias but bear with me. I’m not a big seafood fan but I thought it’ll be cool to come here for the experience. When my family finished fishing, most dishes served was unsatisfying. Although the flavor is unique, some dishes were wasteful, like the sashimi which half the fish isn’t even fully used. We just wasn’t able to fill our stomachs despite the price tag of ¥20,000+. The service however was top notch! The servers were not coarse and was dressed in traditional clothings. Very nice and even allowed us to use their chargers to charge our phones. Lovely atmosphere-

So... Go into this experience with an open mind but blind eye. You pay for tickets to catch certain fish. The staff celebrate when you catch something. Just don't look at it in the eye or name it. 5 minutes later it comes to your table to eat. All jokes aside, the food was remarkable, and the service was amazing. Our server HIDE made our experience so great and the staff celebrated our honeymoon in style. Would come back, just wouldn't look the fish in the eyes this time! Haha.

Honestly not that good. Much better places to go eat. The fish in the tanks didn't look very healthy and even noticed some dead ones. The food itself wasn't anything special and fairly forgettable. We are 100% positive we were scammed. We specifically asked for a fish within our token limit. We were led to a tank and told we should fish there, we double checked and assured it was the correct tank. Only to be told after catching our fish we had actually caught the most expensive fish on the menu and would have to buy more tokens. So be warned for staff to scam you otherwise though the staff were friendly and attentive. However the atmosphere was fairly annoying and very loud. This place is probably more appreciated by families with younger kids.

First time in the restaurant, the restaurant offer lots of food. All a la carte item, do be careful as I tot I order for myself end up coming in with big portion. Specialty are fishing yr own fish, which can be cook few ways. Worth the try!!! Very interactive Very delicious!

Great experience! Everything was fresh and fun to catch. Staff were super helpful and spoke English aswell as Japanese. The drums are fun and add to the atmosphere! The waiters also took great photos for us !

Fun place to catch fish and have it prepared to your request - sashimi, grilled, deep fried, or tempura style. The staff celebrate (drums & chants) for every fish caught. For fish we couldn't catch, we just ordered off the menu like flounder and shrimp. They don't have enough service staff during peak time - tending to fishermen/women/kids and table service. Once you're seated you can order everything on-line. Be patient and have fun.

Worst Restaurant Ever! They overcharge you and say it is your fault, then are not polite about their mistake. They explain the menu vaguely so you can easily get ripped off. The atmosphere is super loud with useless drumming every 5-6 minutes whenever people get fish. Employees are rude and unprofessional, pretending not to understand English, then rip you off by explaining in awful English or vague Japanese! The food was awful, and they cooked the fish that was dropped on the floor. Good takes forever too. The food is not fresh, and the fries were cold. I bet this is the worst restaurant in all of Shinjuku! Do NOT trust YouTubers and other reviews that overly praise this place. AVOID IT FOR YOUR MONEY AND TIME!

Delicious and the service is really amazing. Price wise is affordable. Ramen and yakisoba are their specialty.

This place was such a fun experience for dinner. We purchased a package which gave us several tickets for fishing. But I think my husband was a little confused. He thought we only had four tickets so we thought we couldn't order enough food since the fish was a certain number of tickets. So we were just going to pay the extra price. But then we found the tickets and we could've fished more. The best most fun part about this restaurant is that it is interactive. As soon as you enter, you see this giant fishing station and people sitting all around it. They took us to a small room and had us remove our shoes before entering. Then they had house slippers for us to use to go fishing. There's two types of fishing, the kind that you just hook the fish and the kind with bait on it. My sister did the hook one and my daughter did the bait one. Each tank has a certain fish so you select the fish you want and then they take you to the right tank. My sister got a flounder and it was pretty easy. The fish are just sitting at the bottom and you just hook it on the fish. You just put it down there and in minutes you catch a fish. My daughter went to the Red Sea bream tank and she had to drop her bait and have the fish eat it. It took a little longer. At the end, both of them got to take a picture with their "catch". We got to select how to have it prepared. We chose sashimi for flounder and fried and the sea bream was shoyu and karaage. The meals we got was a complete set. It came with an appetizer and even salmon hot pot, our fish prepared in two ways for each, and even a dessert at the end. My husband told the wait staff it was my birthday so the staff came to wish me a happy birthday. They all came with a small dessert and all came to sing and take a picture. They even brought a happy birthday sign to pose with.

The food was just okay but the service was top notch. We had a birthday and the whole restaurant sang, blew confetti and brought out a huge birthday sign! It was very cute! I like the fact you can fish for your own food but the fish was just okay

Five stars for the fun experience. This is great for a family dinner outing where the kids can enjoy fishing for their food. Where else can you go to a restaurant and try to catch your food. Yes, I know for the skeptics, it's why will I waste my time, then this is not the place for you. If you are fun and adventurous, this is a great date place. Casual, a bit noisy but the fish you choose to catch gets cooked or sashimi'd for you, it makes it all worthwhile. If you're not so lucky or lose the patience to keep fishing, then go back to your table and snap the menu QR code and order the same fish you wanted however you want it prepared. Service is great in Japan because they leave you alone, but when you need anything, just ring the bell and they are there in a flash. They say this is expensive but when I compare it to USA value, the prices are more than reasonable.

This place is touristy but it is great fun for the family. The kids enjoyed fishing for their shrimp and fish. I do like you can choose how you want the items you catch to be prepared. Each item you fish requires tickets that are purchased. Shrimp is 1 ticket each whole fish is 2-8 depending on what type is offered. The place is very lively and reservations are recommended especially if you want to sit on the boat.

This was our first time at Zauo and it was a really fun experience for the family, especially the kids. They definitely got a kick out of having to fish for their own lunch. Flounders and sea bream were the most abundant fish types, but they also have spiny lobsters, prawns and other shellfish available. You exchange tickets for the type of seafood that you want to fish. Once you catch your fish, you can have it prepared in a myriad of different ways. Some examples are shio yaki (salt grilled), butter yaki, tempura, sashimi and even making a chazuke (tea rice). Also, you don't have to fish and can just order directly from the menu which has a lot of options. It can get pricey, but a very unique experience in Tokyo.

Omg what a rip off. It's fun concept but super overpriced. Forget it if you get the lobster. $120 US for lobster is just crazy. Then they charge more to make some miso soup with it. In total $180 US for a 1.5 pound lobster. I've felt the opposite about every other restaurant in Tokyo

Zauo Shinjuku is a seafood restaurant where you can catch your own fish to be prepared up to 2 different ways or you can just sit and order. I think catching your dinner would be more exciting so that's what I decided on. There are baskets to separate the different types of fish and other seafood. For the Sea Bream you use the longer pole and use bait, extra bait had to be purchased if the fish eat your initial bait. The short poles are for the rest of the fish and crustaceans. I caught or should I say snagged with the 3 prong hook my dinner of choice. Lots of fun, with getting a little splashed. Choose to have it sashimi'd and deep fried. Enjoyed reading the freshly caught fish and had the rest of the fish and bones deep fried extra crispy, like eating fish chips. I think what was extra fun was the parents and kids fishing and watching their expressions, hilarious! Make sure that you make reservations and tell them you want to sit in the boat area. That way you can watch all the action going on. It might seem like a novelty restaurant, but you have to try it once and have a great time. There are some servers that speak some English and will assist you when you catch your fish.

What a fun experience, and the food exceeded my expectations considering Zauo is more of a novelty/themed restaurant. I loved being able to fish for my own food, but with 100x easiness and a guarantee that I'd actually get one. I mean, I literally saw the direction the sea bream was swimming in and plunked my bait right in its path. Talk about instant gratification. If fishing were actually that easy we'd all be able to do it. The waiters celebrate successful catches by hitting a drum and announcing it to everyone in the restaurant. We asked for our two sea breams to be cooked three ways: braised in soy sauce, sashimi-ed, and sauteed with butter. The fish braised in soy sauce was our favorite of the three, and it was cooked with really tender radish and tofu that absorbed the flavor of the braising liquid. The sashimi was quite good. The table had three different soy sauces to use, ranging from light to dark, and each one added great flavor to the fish. The sauteed one was disappointing and had so many onions and veggies that buried the fish rather than letting it shine. It was also very greasy. If you order sashimi, definitely go for the add-on where the cook uses the remainder of the fish's body to make miso soup. This was one of my favorite things. The soup was so flavorful, comforting, and full of fish pieces. Dessert was also great. I got my go-to almond pudding, and it was just as tasty as I was hoping it'd be.

Definitely an experience you can't get anywhere! A little pricey for what you get, 100% tourist trap but it's fun and has a great atmosphere! We caught a sea bream and a flounder. We got the sea bream sashimi style and flounder deep fried. The food came out good but for the price you can probably get better food.

Relive your past as a primal hunter. Make your ancestors proud as you capture your own food for survival. Conquer the beasts of the ocean! All within the safe confines of a modern restaurant with a fake wooden ship. Yes, I've fallen for this tourist trap. But come on, catching your own fish and then having it cooked to your liking? That just sounds like a ton of fun. Various types of live fish and shellfish swim around in pond tanks and you hook them in with bits of dried shrimp. And yes, it was tons of fun. Dinner tastes better when you have to work for it. Each type of fish/shellfish costs a different amount. You've got the cheaper small fish, shrimp, and conch all the way to the more expensive larger fish and spiny lobsters. They've also got special catches that cost a fair bit more. With any type of budget, you'll be able to come in, eat well, and have a good time. It's fairly easy to catch a fish, though the tiny horse mackerel takes a bit of skill. After you make a catch, a drum sounds off and a staff member comes over and takes a picture of you and your wiggly dinner. Then it's whisked away for preparation. Here's where your foodie side kicks in. Stewed, grilled, deep fried, sashimi, the possibilities are vast and you only have so much stomach room (and money). We went straight up fishing and tried all 3 of their standard options in multiple ways: horse mackerel, sea bream, and flounder. All fresh, of course. So fresh in fact that the carved up fish was still twitching when served sashimi style. Heads up for the squeamish. Tataki style (raw with minced green onions and ginger) was my favourite for the mackerel, and both breaded and deep fried were great options for the larger, meatier fish. Don't forget, you can pay a little extra to deep fry your leftover bones. Really enjoyed doing this with the mackerel which turned into crispy little bone chips. You can never go wrong with fresh fish and even though it wasn't the most unique food, it was one of our more unique eating experiences. Make sure you make your reservations as this place seems popular with visitors and locals alike. Everyone seems to enjoy the victorious feeling of fake fishing on a fake ship and feeling like you're at the top of the food chain. (84/100) - 2018

If you want to feel like you are five years old again, this is your place! When I initially found this restaurant, I loved the concept and I did not expect the majority of the clientele to be children. That being said, if you're five years old at-heart (like myself), this is definitely something you should try! The décor of the restaurant makes you feel as if you're in a fishing boat (seating area) and the actual fish is swimming "overboard". The fish itself is divided by smaller size, shellfish, and luxury fish. It will take you much longer to catch anything in the "regular" area, as the fish is fairly spread out. While the luxury fish section is PACKED, but you do end up paying more for the fish. Surprise, surprise, we decided to fish in the luxury side because we were starving and the fish was caught in about five seconds (not exaggerating). We caught the White Trevally (Y5,000), got to take out videos/pictures and off the fish went. Once you catch the fish, the staff take it away to work their magic. You can decide how you'd like your fish to be cooked. We chose the fish to be half sashimi & half deep fried. When the sashimi arrived, the head of the fish was left on the plate to show that it was indeed the fish you caught. That being said, the head was still twitching in certain areas (not for the faint of heart). The sashimi was delicious! They also have house-made soy sauce which pairs perfectly with the fish. What was a little disappointing, was the fact that the fish did not come with rice and we had to pay extra. So if you're looking for a spot to fill up, this might not be the place, unless you're willing to pay for more than one fish. Regarding the reviews that complain about the price, they're not entirely wrong. You are paying a lot for fish that would otherwise be sold cheaper elsewhere. But you have to remember that this restaurant is all about the experience and the freshness of the fish. Where else can you catch your own fish and have someone professionally sashimi it for you? Exactly! Overall, a solid four! This is a one of a kind experience that I highly recommend trying.

I had known about Zauo way in advance of our Japan trip, so I made reservations to ensure we got to go and try it. Sadly, the idea of it was better than our experience of it. Even though there weren't any parties in the main area (the boat), we were seated further inside. There was still a bit of a language barrier (understandable) but they were able to convey most of what we needed to do (also there were some English instructions as well). Catching fish was harder than expected without any bait. My sister did catch a horse mackerel, which she asked to be grilled. It ended up being tasty but had a lot more fish bones than we're used to. I ended up catching a sea bream after we asked for bait, and as I had seen other reviewers suggest (on Youtube and on Yelp), I asked for half of it to be prepared as sashimi and half grilled. I don't know if sea bream is meant to be tough, but it was tough/chewy and not that great, as either sashimi or grilled. On top of that... er. Freshness is what they're known for but the fish that came out was skewered with the pieces of sashimi... and it was still twitching. If you're squeamish about that... maybe skip the sashimi. Also we were offered some salmon sashimi in a small bowl in the beginning (we didn't ask for it) and thought it was complimentary... we ended up charged for it. Our waitress was not that great at English, so we just let it go. (To be honest, the best part of that meal). Overall, 3/5. Cool to try one time but I probably wouldn't do it again.

Zauo is a really cool concept and this establishment is super clean, English friendly, and fun. However, I didn't catch any fish and I certainly did try. I heard much ceremonial clapping celebrating the others who caught fish, but it wasn't as easy as I've experienced at another Zauo which is off the beaten path in Tsunashima. The positives of this place include an extensive menu (to include English with plenty of pictures), location (can't beat Shinjuku), and the food was super good. They will cook your fish in two ways if you wish, so if I had caught a fish, I could have requested fried and sashimi. But you may also order a menu fish (for a higher price than if you had snagged with the hook) and they will do the same. Lots of menu items to choose from and a very nice social gathering spot. If only the fish were hungry last night, I could have given 5 stars.

Catch your own fish (there are different types available) some require the use of bait and a pole. You can have the fish prepared 2-3 different ways. It's a great concept if your looking for something different and fun for dinner. To keep it fun, when you catch a fish they will do a "celebration" of announcing your catch and beating a drum. **A recommendation to us was sashimi and boiled with soy sauce and salt. Happy catching and eating!!

Fishing and then eating your own fish? Never had that before! So today my friend brought the group of us to this special restaurant for this special "fish" meal. Inside the room, there are three big fish ponds, in which one could go fishing. Once catching a fish, the waitress will celebrate with you by hitting the drum. Even though I could not understand what they were talking about (so sad), it was kind of cool. Next came my favorite part - eating the fish. Grilled, fried, or sashimi-ed? You choose it. The restaurant will charge based on the size of the fish. Aside from the fish dishes, we also shared the fried chicken and mapo tofu appetizers, both were delicious! Definitely something quite interesting and one would not want to miss out.

Service: 5 Food: 3 A fair rating for the restaurant overall would be a 3.5, but because of service, i'm rating it a 4. Make sure you have a reservation before coming (especially weekends), as walk-in's are not always possible. Note that if you are making a reservation online you'll need to select from a prix-fixe menu ($40+) per person that includes fishing "tickets" that you use to redeem for whatever fish you catch. Note the menu is considerably more expensive than if you were to order the same items in store, without the prix-fixe add-on's (a few pieces of sashimi, edamame, aka nothing really worth the premium). Regardless the place is about the experience and you definitely get that here. The staff is patient, kind and a few of them speak fluent english. The food is nothing to write home about, it is average at best. I'm glad to have experienced it once for the novelty but definitely not something you need to repeat.

SO COOL. My waiter spoke fluent English and I was kind of caught off guard because I was used to pointing at my menu and throwing up fingers for how many of each items I would like to order on this trip. My waiter was extremely helpful and walked me through the entire process. Getting to fish for your own dinner was awesome. Make sure to find one of the waiters around the pool to buy some bait, you can honestly catch the fish without bait to elongate your experience because they bite so easily. Lobsters are crazy easy to catch as well and require zero to no effort. When you order catch the fish you give it to a nearby waiter, tell them your table, and tell them how you want it prepared. You can have it prepared half half or all the same. Your options are sashimi, fried, grilled, or steamed. I would've given this place 5 stars if the waiter near the water didn't lose my fish and had me wait for 20 minutes. My personal waiter was extremely apologetic and offered to catch me a few fish but obviously I said no because I wanted to catch it myself because cmon why not! The whole experience was great and everything tasted delicious. Make sure to get the combo that comes with RESERVATIONS ARE RECOMMENDED. TABLES MAY BE OPEN BUT THEY ARE RESERVED.

Atmosphere: 5 You can't beat having a boat and a makeshift "lake" in the restaurant! The setting is really awesome. I felt like being inside and outside at the same time. I love that we can fish for our own fish, however at first, it was a bit unnerving with the fish thrashing about. I liked that the restaurant was quite casual so you can fish and then go back to your table to eat at leisure. The fishing poles are around the restaurant so you can just take one and fish. Be careful to look around you though - other guests may be flinging their rods around and those hooks are sharp! When you finally catch one, you put it in the net and hand it to the waiter. They beat the drum to celebrate the catch and then you tell them how you want it to be cooked. You can also ask what they recommend for the type of fish you caught. Portions: 5 You get as much as your fish provides so there's no surprise there. In fact, what's great is that you can even eat the bones of the fish so it doesn't feel like you're wasting any part of the fish you caught. The fish can be fried, and OMG they are so crunchy like chips! Addicting. You can also use the bones to put into miso soup, and it is equally amazing because it provides the soup with a very seafood-y flavor. Flavors: 5 Of the options in which to prepare the fish, I don't think you'll find anything that doesn't taste good. However, I would recommend varying up the preparation method. We chose two fried options and felt it was a bit too much (probably because we chose those for our 2 biggest fishes too). The fish is fresh and very tasty. Overall, I'd do there again. The next time, I would wear something that I wouldn't mind getting splashed by fish in, and something that wouldn't easily get hooked by the fishing pole. Overall a fun experience especially if you have family in town! Make sure you have reservations!

I guess you cant get any sushi fresher than this, right? I love how they built a boat and a moat in the restaurant. The concept of fishing for your food is pretty cool. This restaurant is located inside the hotel and I highly recommend everyone to make a reservation. I am not sure if this restaurant gets packed regularly, but when we came, every table was full. Anyway, when we walked in, we were greeted by the waiters and they seated us on the boat immediately. They speak little English, but enough to carry on a full conversation about ordering and recommendation. We started off with plum white and soda and beer. You have a few options: fish for your own food (which cost less than ordering straight from the menu) or order what they have on the menu. If you fish for your own food, it will cost $1 for the bait and once you catch your fish, you have a choice of eating it sashimi style or fried. You can even do both. The first 10 minutes of trying to catch a fish was all fun and games. But after the 15 minute mark, we we got so bored and wanted to just order from the menu. A lot of the fish got hooked but wiggled out in time, which means they ate all the baits...which means they are full. After almost giving up, we finally caught the fish and we did half and half: sashimi and fried. We also ordered a plate of mix sushi. The mix sushi platter was not fresh and did not satisfy our Japan sushi cravings at all. The fish was so smooshy and bland. The sashimi that was fished out tasted better. It was sweet but at the same time I felt guilty eating it. The fried part was much better and it tasted delicious. It was seasoned a bit, which made the fish tasted even better. This is a once in a lifetime visit for me. It's more for tourists to come to "work for your food" experience. It's expensive for something that can frustrate a lot of people if they dont catch anything and for the food quality. Good customer service though.

The two stars are for the fish catching experience, which was very fun and separate them from other sushi restaurants that i have been to. The other 3 stars that i took away was because of the food. I asked my fish to half be grilled and half made into sushi. I am not sure why the sea bream sushi is so chewy, but feels like i am chewing on a piece of gum that taste like fish. The grilled fish was somewhat better for not being so chewy, but the smell was..... I consider myself as a person that can take the fish/seafood smell pretty well, but it smelled like a fish that has died for days. Overall, I recommend this place for being able to catch your own fish, but for the food, not so much.

Zaou Shinjuku is located in the Washington Hotel Main Shinjuku. This place is hands down so much fun. It's an interactive experience where you have the option to actually catch your own meal! Everything from Sea Bream, Flounder, Tako, Lobster, Shellfish and more. HOW IT WORKS: Check out the cheat sheet I took a photo of. You can either have them catch the fish for you but pay more (why do it like that?) Or you can pay the 100 yen for bait and catch your own which is still cheaper. Once you've caught your fish or other sea creature you are given the option of how it's prepared. If you don't have your menu with you, not to worry, they have a step-by-step guide on the back wall outside of the kitchen where you can tell a server what you want. Make sure you know what table number you are so you can tell them as well. The experience sounds like a gimmick with horrible food but you know what? The food is actually pretty good. I mean it doesn't get any fresher either right? We ordered a few things since we caught 2 Tai's and a Flounder. We had our flounder split into deep fried flounder and in Zosui. One of the sea bream's we caught was sashimi'd and the other was simmered in shoyu. We also ordered a platter of sashimi on top of that. Take a look at my photo's and you'll see what I'm talking about. The food was bomb with the simmered shoyu style bream being everyone's favorite. Reservations are recommended here because it does get the hotel crowd as well as others from outside the hotel wanting to try the experience. If you're an English speaker, not to worry, you can find Zaou Shinjuku on Open Table. Go do it, take the family or a date. You'll have fun.

It's a really good place if you have reservations, since we did not we sat behind the boat, which sort of ruined the mood/fun. There were several tables/rooms empty all of which we tried to request for, but apparently were booked. When we left they were still empty. Fishing/hooking was relatively easy yet fun (plus it's cheaper than ordering it off the menu). And be careful because you may get a little wet.. and have your shrimp flying all over the floor. I really love the concept of being able to choose how I want the fish to be cooked so I had it sautéed in butter, which was yummy and also had it sashimi style. For the shrimp I got deep fried which was good but nothing impressive. The also charge base on the way its cooked and therefore making the meal very expensive and leaves you hungry, the portions seem very small as well.

Located in the Washington Hotel, I actually really enjoyed eating at this restaurant. It was fun to catch my own sea bream and it tasted good. I don't eat raw fish even though this is definitely the kind of place I wish I did, so I ordered my fish half grilled and half tempura and it was good. Some of the shrimp in the tank were dead, so be careful not to scoop up dead ones. Fishing for actual fish is definitely better than fishing for the shrimp.

Zauo is more of a novelty than anything else. Make reservations of possible or go early. Located at the a Washington Hotel on the 1st floor in Shinjuku. Here's the deal, you catch your own fish and you can have it prepared for you in different ways like sashimi or cooked, or both. It is cheaper if you catch your own. While it was fun trying to lure the fish, we found it pretty time consuming so we just hooked a flounder in a tank. Had it prepared sashimi and cooked in soy sauce. We also ordered two rice sets which came with rice, miso soup, and chawanmushi (egg custard). The fish came out quickly and of course it was one of the freshest sashimi I've ever had. The soy cooked flounder was tasty but it seemed to be a bit overcooked as the meat was chewy here and there. It was a decent meal but a bit pricy for what you get, hence novelty. It was definitely a fun place to check out but I wouldn't go back should I find myself vacationing in Shinjuku. English menus available but the staff speak very limited English. PS: some of the fish in the pond had seen better days. Be careful which one you hook!

This place is a very fun and entertaining concept. Would I come back again? Probably not. But it's a unique experience that is great if you're looking for touristy types of places to eat at in Japan. We visited their Shinjuku location which is inside Washington Hotel. It was about a 5 minute walk from Shinjuku station. We booked our reservations on Open Table - reservations highly recommnended. Also, I wished we inquired to sit in the boat area because you're around all the fun and get to sit at regular tables. Instead, we had a small private room with tatami seating -which was nice and quieter but the guys really had a hard time sitting on the floor. Haha. It's cheaper to "fish" for your food, so definitely try to catch the fish you want. We caught 2 flounders. Once you catch your fish you tell the server how you want the fish prepared. The neat thing is that they can prepare half of the fish one way, and the other half another way. We took advantage of this and had the 2 flounder prepared 4 ways--shoyu, deep fried, sashimi and grilled (with butter). The fish was tasty and we enjoyed our meal--nothing amazing but it was good.

Americans and euro, please be aware that they will not take foreign people. We went and ask to get seats for 7, they said no seats. Then went to ask to split, the man said there's no more seats. We continue to see people come in and out. Don't waste your time. This will be on YouTube to express this type of customer service. Be aware no fishing til 5pm.

OK, I would probably recommend friends and colleagues come here just for the unique experience of "catching" your own fish with a simple fishing line and nasty little anchovy(?!) bait! Detracting two stars because my boyfriend and I were greeted at the restaurant at opening hour (5pm dinnertime) on a Monday night when it was almost completely empty, and when I requested that we be seated in the "nice dining area" on top of the "ship" area where there was much better ambient lighting for my foodie photo taking, the young host guy frowned at me and said NO, NOT POSSIBLE... then he led us to this dark sunken corner of the restaurant.... what the heck!!! Please be gracious and nice to your customers. THe entire time we ate, and after we were finished, I saw that the restaurant never filled up and especially not up on the "ship" area, so why wasn't my request to be seated in a different seat entertained at all? As well, I had indicated on the reservation that we were celebrating a birthday, and this was not acknowledged at all either verbally or at the end of the dinner with a plated dessert or anything! Very poor planning and service on the part of the restaurant. When I was actually fishing, the service was good - some poor guy had to follow me around and catch the fish that I "caught" with a net because the fish are actually too heavy for the most part for your fishing line to completely reel it up :) I caught a nice size sea bream... expensive.. like $30 to catch your own fish and have it half-half prepared..... half sashimi, half grilled in butter. My boyfriend could not for the life of him catch a swimming fish LOL, so he had to kinda hook an unwilling flounder that was sitting around in his crate with a baitless tri-hook... LOL.... that was entertaining for me to watch him fail indeed. The food itself--- BEAUTIFULLY presented; you can ask for the fish you catch to be prepared two different ways each..... our flounder was amazing flash fried b/c you can eat the crunchy bones, but the shoyu preparation was too salty and not as good. Our sea bream was great sashimi style (they bring the fish's head out on the plate with your sashimi, omg! And its eyeballs and mouth were still moving......) but not as good grilled in butter. So I would recommend that you either get a flat fish and get it flash fried, or get your other fish sashimi style all the way. Our table server was dressed in a Doraemon hat (cuz it was the night before Halloween) and was very gracious as well. Only bad service part was the beginning, with the rigidity of the host's inability to entertain my seating area request.

This is some Bucket List stuff right here: Tsuribune Jaya Zaou is a restaurant located on the first floor of the Washington Hotel in Nishi-Shinjuku. This is where you FISH FOR YOUR OWN DINNER. (http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/tsuribune-jaya-zaou-%E6%9D%B1%E4%BA%AC?select=2xQP-YOvyqs9-PGrd3SG_w#2xQP-YOvyqs9-PGrd3SG_w) This sort of stuff would never fly in the U.S. (thanks, Health Department), but it's free game in Tokyo and we were totally up for it. There's a huge boat in the middle of the place that's surrounded by a moat with live fish in it. After you're seated, and have ordered drinks, you wander over to the fishing poles, pierce a bay shrimp onto the hook, and fish for whatever you want. Whatever you catch, you eat, so aim carefully (some of those fish ain't cheap)! I loved watching children and adults alike working together to catch their meal. After you've caught something, you inform the waitstaff who sing a little prayer song (of thanks) and prepare it however you like: sashimi, broiled, deep-fried. Whichever you pick, it's amazing. By the time we caught our second fish and finagled a lobster, the first fish (we opted for sashimi: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/tsuribune-jaya-zaou-%E6%9D%B1%E4%BA%AC?select=2xQP-YOvyqs9-PGrd3SG_w#uUJabCg_1iP2WGAqUsO1SA) was ready and waiting at our table. We ordered the lobster be broiled with garlic (http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/tsuribune-jaya-zaou-%E6%9D%B1%E4%BA%AC?select=2xQP-YOvyqs9-PGrd3SG_w#6f5xUEZpk3ysIOv18D5AlA). We gobbled it all down, smiled, patted our bellies, and left truly happy.

I waited a bit until I posted this so I could better gather my thoughts on my experience. The concept in itself is cool and its a lot of fun for kids to catch their dinner persay. From what I hear each Zauo is different. This Zauo if you catch it you buy it whether its the $20 fish or the $200, so make sure you know which is the $200 one! Others go by time limit, weight, or preset price. I want to point out the rest of our service and stay in Japan the customer service was FLAWLESS, the best on Earth -- but not here. Overall our service was not good and perhaps it was because we had a large party of 4 medium sized tables. One of my tablemates son's caught a fish and about 2 minutes later his "catch" was brought to table killed, cooked, prepared, and cleaned. We knew from that short amount of time that was no way his, nor how it was ordered and they kind of walked off not taking it back. As the course of the night rolled on, several people in our parties got either the wrong order or didn't get their food at all. When we would point out this was not the fish we caught or the wrong order, one of the male waiters kind of copped an attitude or ignored us. At one point seemed like an assistant manager, tried to convince our party to just take what they brought out and "I'll only charge you half." I'm not one for turning down a deal but seeing so many of my party go without or having to settle with what's brought wasn't cool. The kids had fun but service wise I would not return. For those who want to try it for the experience I wouldn't go with a large party, certainly not with a party of more than....4.

It's a really fun experience coming here because you get to fish for your own food. You do not have to fish for your food. You can order straight off the menu if you like. For children the fishing is a fabulous experience. The pricing of the fishing experience was a little bit confusing but luckily we had Japanese speaking friends with us that helped us along the way. When you catch your own fish you can let the server know how you would like it prepared. They can sashimi it, fry it, grill it, and some they can cook in a butter sauce as well. It can be pretty pricey and honestly we left hungry but we really went there for the experience and it was well worth it. If you go make reservations in advance and request a seat on the boat. You do not wanna be tucked away in a private room where you can't see all the action.

It's pretty fun place! Ok so the idea is to catch your own fish and have the chef to cook it for you - depend on the type of fish, you can choose to do sashimi, fried, grilled or boiled, for the whole fish or half and half. They also hit the drum for you when you catch one! Reasonable priced (about 5000 yen per person with like 5 fish, a few shrimps and 2 drinks per person) so why not hanging out and have fun with your friends! Also English menu available!

Totally fun and great experience! Staff was very friendly and helpful. We were trying for about 15 mins to catch the sea beam (?) without any success, one of the servers recommended a sweet spot. Then still without success he gave us some "special bait"; needless to say within the next minute we caught one!!! Lots of fun. Beware of splashing, obviously when you or others around you catch...so don't wear anything you don't want to get wet! Food was yummy and fresh.

This place gets an A plus for the experience. You get to fish for your dinner! They have a number of fish and shellfish you can catch for dinner. You can have your fish cooked a number of different ways. The premade sushi however was forgettable but the fresh cooked seafood was awesome! Dinner for my wife and i was about 90 dollars so just be aware of the cost. If you want an unforgettable experience make a stop here.

Did not accept a group of foreigners with a child but accepted Japanese groups of 6-8. Broke into a group of 3/4 and was still refused service, but Japanese people were still accepted. WOULD NOT RECCOMMEND

First time in Shinjuku. Wanted to stop here. Beware. Very shady. Wouldn't even accommodate for two. Just not something I would look for when there is a hype for it. Very disappointed. Wouldn't give it even a star.

Great time. Reservations a must. Restaurant located in Shinjuku Washington Hotel across street from Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office buildings. Wish some of previous reviews mentioned that. Would have shaved a few minutes of confusion off the trip. But back to the review. Fun, fun, fun. Paid fixed price of 4000 yen per adult (kids free!!!). Each person got two cards with pre-fixed meal. Pre-fixed meal alone was very nice. If you caught a fish, you paid for the catch with cards. Average price of fish is 5 to 7 cards. If you need extra cards, it will cost 700 yen. They serve up your catch as you wish. Deep fried, sashimi style, etc. No extra charge for preparing your catch for consumption. We paid 20,000 yen for four adults plus two caught fish. All in all, spectacular time and would recommend if you have the money to burn.

This restaurant is definitely awesome. Must visit when you go to Tokyo. It's a unique experience to be able to fish your own fish and they will prepare it for you with different options. Friendly atmosphere, good food and reasonable price. If you dont fish the food off their menu is delicious also

Catch your own fish and have it cooked 2-3 different ways! I recommend sashimi and deep fried Sea Bream

This place is great, if you catch a fish. I went here strictly for the experience of catching my own fish and having it prepared. Let me tell you, it is not easy. We took close to 30 minutes just to catch a single Sea Bream. I was less excited, and more relieved that I actually caught one. It would have been a major disappointment if we had just simply ordered a fish. The prices are high, and even higher if you don't catch your fish. But, the Sea Bream, which we had prepared both fried and sashimi style was absolutely fresh and delicious. I highly recommend this place.

Fishing is more like smacking a sad fish and it commits suicide. The tempura was awful and the cost of the food is high. Seems like a bar setting rather than a restaurant. Decor and boat seating was cool. It's a one and done kind of place.

Zauo is one of those restaurants where one would visit for the overall dining experience more than the food itself. My friends and I were seated in a private Tatami room because none of the tables near the 'fishing pond' were available. The service was a little slow since the room was somewhat isolated, but it was nice that English menus were available and some of the staff were able to speak some English. You can choose to just order your fish(es), but you can fish your own dinner for cheaper. We all decided to try some fishing since that's what we came here for. We were being careful not to aim for a flounder (the most expensive fish) because you have to eat and pay what you catch! A friend of mine ended up catching a flounder by accident... Another friend bought some bait (little shrimps) to try and catch a red snapper, but that didn't work so well. Instead, we all tried to catch a bunch of mackerels, and it took some of us forever to catch just one! After some time, it actually became quite frustrating... The kitchen staff cooks each fish as you catch them, so my friend's flounder was cooked way before we caught our fishes and it was just sitting at the table in our tatami room (because he didn't want to eat alone). I highly suggest making a reservation for a table near the 'fishing pond' so you can eat and fish at the same time. Out of all the different ways of cooking the fishes, mackerel sashimi was not bad, but I liked deep-fried the best, especially the flounder. Although pricey, the flounder seemed to be worth it because some of the mackerels were small...and they were all the same price. All in all, it was a fun dining experience, but visiting Zauo that one time is enough for me. I don't think the experience and the food was worth the money I paid for my meal.

REEL & CATCH! Let's go fishing! This is a restaurant where you can catch and eat your food! It's so FUN, after awhile it starts to become a competition! It also keeps the kids busy! FOOD Bait, reel, catch and prepare. Do not fret pet, the prepare part they do. Sashimi, fry, or broil. SASHIMI PLEASE! Be prepared to pay a hefty price if you catch an expensive fish, so look at the fish guide or ask the staff to make sure. But, if you don't feel like fishing they do have the usual izakaya items like chicken, noodles, rice, and prepared sushi. ENVIRONMENT I love the large boat in the middle of the restaurant! So I was so ecstatic when we got to sit there! You can literally fish from your table! They also have large private rooms located on both sides of the boat and you can fish from some of those rooms also. Located in the Shinjuku Washington Hotel. Take the train and get off the Shinjuku Station South Exit. Open for lunch and dinner. SERVICE Great service! They gave us an English speaking waiter so that helped a lot. Very attentive and quick. We came at 5:00pm, so there was no wait. Be prepared I heard it can be a awhile. CONCLUSION Definitely a FUN restaurant to try or just check out when you are in the Shinjuku area of Tokyo. My family had a great time here! The food flavors are pretty basic which is why I gave it 4 stars, but the experience is sooo worth trying it!

Denied service. Walked here for nothing. Host was rude when we asked if we could wait for a table (there were many tables available)

This is a really cool concept and is a ton of fun. We were seated in the main area which mimics a wooden ship. Caught our own fish, got to have them prepared in different ways. We had a Sea Bream prepared sashimi and breaded cutlet, and a Top Shell prepared sashimi style. The food came out pretty quickly after we made the order, as did any extra dishes we asked for. Two things you should be aware of: Last call is about an hour before they close. I believe they told us 10pm was the cutoff for ordering when we went. Second, we hadn't experienced this before but do note that smoking is usually allowed in Japanese restaurants and the table behind us consisted of four chain smokers!

It's been more than 2 weeks since I've been staying in Tokyo and I must say this is the worst meal/experience I've had ever since I got here. My boyfriend and I were excited to try Zauo for the first time, we got there at 8:40pm on a Thursday night and after asking for a table for 2, the cashier (I think he was the owner) told us to wait, then showed us a notice of their hours, the last order is a 10pm, closing time 11pm. So that was fine, we still have a good 2 hours to eat. We got a table that was against the walls so I asked the waitress for the empty table next to the water so that I can fish while I eat, she said those were all taken. Throughout the rest of the night, that supposely "taken" table was empty the whole time. I let that one go, since I understand maybe they're reserving it for bigger parties. Now comes the fun part, fishing! Got our rod and bait, some of the fishes looked dead because they weren't moving even after accidently hooking them. The geoduck that I caught was dead too. It was about a foot long, asked for it grilled and when it got to our table, there were only ~8 small pieces of it stacked on top of its shell, costed 2,800yen. Ordered the rest of our food by 9:30, I specifically asked for a flounder done half sashimi and half fried, but the waitress put in one whole flounder sashimi and one whole fried costing us 4104yen per fish =8108yen. Ok, I'll let that one go again because there was a language barrier. When the sashimi came, it wasn't even flounder, they gave us seabream. What?? I pointed to the flounder picture when I placed the order! Wrong order again??!! Then the waitress had it changed for us. Had to ask for water twice from 2 waiters until one of them brought over ONE glass of water, when both of our glasses were empty. Half way through our meal, 10:30pm on the dot the waiter comes over and ask us to pay for the bill first, umm... I find that kinda rude, I'm not done eating and I still have 30mins till you close. On top of their bad customer service, all the cooked/hot food that we ordered came out cold, not hot or warm, but cold, like it was sitting there for a good half hr before they served it to us. Fish wasn't fresh because it was probably the dead fishes from the tank, the seafood rice bowl I got didn't taste good at all. Our bill came out to 16,212yen for 2 people. Overall their food wasn't good, overpriced, and had bad customer service, the worst restaurant I have dined in Tokyo. I wouldn't recommended anyone to come.

I had such a fun experience here with my traveling partners. We went for lunch around 12:30 and got a seat on the boat. We grabbed 2 rods and some shrimp through we didn't need them. After 5 or 6 nibbles my brother in law caught a flounder and we had it half sashimi half grilled. The fish was delicious, some of the best I've had. For a couple extra dollars we get little sets of soup and rice. We got some fried octopus on the side which was very good, we got 2 other sides which I can't remember but I know we liked it and finished them. The bill was around $60 for 3 and we left stuffed. It was one of the best meals I had while in Japan and I would most certainly come back on my next trip.