Thank you for viewing. I visited "Tempura Motokichi - Tekiba," a recipient of the 2023 Tendon Hyakumeiten award. Congratulations on winning the award. The restaurant is located a 4-minute walk from Gaienmae Station on a side street off Gaien Nishi-dori, in the basement of a building called "Central No6B-A." The interior is dimly lit, with a L-shaped counter seating for 7 people on the day of my visit. The tempura batter is of normal thickness and is served with salt or tempura dipping sauce and grated daikon radish. The course starts with sashimi and then the tempura is served. The "Asparagus" was particularly impressive, crispy and juicy, a delicious dish. The "Young Corn from Aichi Prefecture" had a crunchy texture and was also delicious. The highlight of the meal was the square-shaped corn, a seasonal specialty with a wonderful sweetness. The menu I had that day included sashimi, shrimp, asparagus, squid, young corn, tilefish, cucumber, new onion, red snapper, potato and cheese, cherry salmon, conger eel, lotus root, conger eel and ginger, sweet potato, tempura rice bowl, pickles, miso soup, and a dessert of Miyazaki mango and passion fruit jelly. The service provided by Chef Tekiba was fantastic, making the dining experience very pleasant. I look forward to visiting again in a different season. Thank you for the delicious meal.

I took a taxi from Shibuya and arrived at the restaurant! It's located on the basement floor of a building, a bit hidden, but the interior is nice. The staff are friendly and they make delicious tempura. The wasabi served as an appetizer is really good! The squid, sweetfish, and conger eel were also delicious. The sweetfish was so good that I ended up splurging on the tempura rice bowl for dessert.

I love Tempura Motokichi restaurant. They serve delicious tempura dishes such as shrimp, prawn, fava beans, okoze, snap peas, blowfish milt, taranome, cherry salmon, nemagari mushroom, silk pods, white shrimp, tempura, new onions, baby corn, red snapper, lotus root, sea urchin, clams, sweet potatoes. The tempura bowl was delicious!

I've always wanted to visit this tempura restaurant. They offer amazing ingredients like spider crab legs, seasonal mountain vegetables like koshiabura and fiddlehead ferns. Each piece is coated in a crispy batter and fried to perfection. The temperature of the oil and frying time are crucial in creating such delicious tempura. I heard they will soon be closing in Aoyama and relocating to Kanazawa, so I want to visit one more time before they move.

This is a revisit. I had visited 【Genkichi】 before the pandemic, so it's been a while. Personally, I used to dislike mountain vegetables, so I avoided going to tempura restaurants in the spring. However, in recent years, I have come to appreciate the deliciousness of mountain vegetables. I tried a mountain vegetable called aburana for the first time, and it was delicious. For the final dish, the kakiage don and tencha don come in 7 different sizes, so I recommend the largest size for those who want a hearty meal. However, please be aware that the largest size is as big as a mortar, so be careful! By the way, I usually go for the size 4, which is in the middle!

I was invited to visit the renowned tempura restaurant "Tempura Motokichi Tokiba" by a regular customer who made a private reservation for me. I was immediately captivated by the performance using liquid nitrogen (to remove moisture from the flour) and was truly impressed by the excellence of the menu offered in the course. The vegetables were incredibly delicious! I was amazed by how tasty wild vegetables like butterbur sprouts and Japanese angelica tree shoots could be in tempura. The frying technique was perfect, resulting in a crispy texture. The alcohol selection was also outstanding. After having beer, I tried some sake which was top-notch. The atmosphere created by the head chef was delightful, and I truly enjoyed a wonderful time there. I would love to visit this fantastic restaurant again if I have the chance.

Visited "Tempura Motokichi Tokiba" in front of Gaienmae. It is a traditional tempura restaurant. It seems that Motokichi-san has relocated to Ebisu, so this new restaurant is run by his apprentice. Our seating today was arranged by a foodie friend, so I am looking forward to it. Stepping through the white noren curtain, we enter the restaurant. The large counter and soft lighting create an elegant atmosphere. The friendly head chef greets us. Here is a list of the dishes we enjoyed: - Tuna: flavorful tuna - Shrimp heads: crispy and delicious - White shrimp: 2 pieces for dipping in salt and tempura sauce - Asparagus: sweet and fresh - Fava beans: strong bean flavor - Blowfish milt: creamy and rich - Japanese spikenard: bitter and unique - Red spring onion: tender and tasty - Unicornfish liver: melts in your mouth - Gilt-head bream: crispy white fish - Uni and shiso tempura: sweet and delicious - Conger eel: fluffy and light - Sweet potato: sweet and fluffy - Tempura bowl: choice of tempura and rice, a classic dish - Mandarin orange and white chocolate: a unique dessert with tempura bits sprinkled on top Overall, the tempura was light and delicious. This restaurant offers high-quality traditional tempura. The head chef was very friendly and welcoming, truly a great person. His hospitality and efforts to ensure the customers have a great experience were outstanding. The payment was made with a credit card. It was a delightful meal. I will definitely come back. Thank you for the wonderful meal.

A few minutes' walk from Gaienmae Station, the interior of the restaurant has about 9 counter seats and a cozy atmosphere. Everything was truly delicious. It is said that many foreigners also visit this place. They prepare sweet potatoes at the beginning, which is a nice touch before the fried dishes come out at the end. They offer a wide variety of dishes, so you can eat until you're full. You can choose the amount of ochazuke or tempura for the final course, making it suitable for big eaters. Although the prices are high, it's a perfect place for special occasions or when guiding foreign guests.

I love Mr. Toki's work. My personal favorite ingredient this time is the full and thick asparagus from the southern hemisphere, with a hint of sweetness at the base like corn. The elegant aroma of shiitake mushrooms spreads in the mouth to a moderate degree. The size of the kamasu, similar to the size of a kumquat, is pleasing, with tender flesh and just the right amount of fat.

The appetizer consisted of two types of silver ginkgo shrimp sashimi, with the second one having a thicker coating. The main course included sweetfish with asparagus, okra, sea bream, and salmon roe miso pickles, abalone liver sauce, sardines, and octopus Florentine. The soup was made with natural dancing mushrooms and matsutake mushrooms. The final dish was a tempura meal with various options for rice and tempura sizes. The dessert was fig and chrysanthemum, and Kyoho grape tempura. For drinks, there was one beer and seven types of sake.

I made a reservation and visited "Tempura Tekiba," a restaurant opened by a head chef who trained at Tempura Motokichi after its relocation. The reason I wanted to visit this place was to try the tempura made with fresh corn, which is only available during the summer. Unfortunately, the scheduled date had to be postponed to the following month because the head chef tested positive for COVID-19. Thankfully, he recovered just in time for the fresh corn season, so it all worked out in the end. The restaurant is located in the basement of a building and has a small space with only counter seats. There were two other groups of customers, who seemed to be wealthy locals, creating a slightly awkward atmosphere for us. However, the friendly owner made us feel comfortable throughout the meal. The lunch course costs 12,000 yen including tax and is only available by reservation due to the limited capacity of 7 people. On the day of our visit, the restaurant was fully booked. We ordered drinks and waited for the course to begin. The course included: - Plum wine soda - Appetizer: Uzubahagi (a delicious sashimi dish) - Fried shrimp legs - Ginkgo nuts - First prawn (rare and delicious) - Second prawn - Asparagus from Tochigi Prefecture - Sand borer fish caught by the head chef - Okra - Beltfish - Okra flowers - Fried white eggplant and rockfish - Octopus (skipped by the reviewer) - Squid (surprisingly tender) - Mashed edamame - Salted mullet roe - Mullet - Lotus root - Squid (additional order) Overall, the tempura dishes were expertly prepared and delicious, with unique ingredients and flavors. The reviewer particularly enjoyed the fresh corn tempura and the tender squid, which was a rare and delightful experience.

Tempura Motokichi's skills and spirit have been inherited by Tempura Tokiba, which has been awarded "The Tabelog Award" for 6 consecutive years. The original Tempura Motokichi has been relocated, and the new establishment, Tempura Tokiba, started operating in February 2022. Reservations are now fully reservation-based, accepting reservations up to one month in advance for one person or more. The restaurant operates dinner service only, with two sessions per day. Accessible by a 5-minute walk from Exit 1a of Gaienmae Station, located on the basement floor of "Central Aoyama NO6." The interior features an L-shaped counter with 8 seats. The course menu consists of an omakase course starting at one time. The head chef, Tokiba, who trained under Motokichi for 10 years, now leads the kitchen. The tempura is light and crispy, allowing for a delicious dining experience until the end. In between courses, there are dishes incorporating tempura, with creative combinations that are both interesting and enjoyable. The meal can be customized to adjust the rice portion for the final dish. Tokiba's tempura, like Motokichi's, is incredibly delicious and enjoyable until the end. The warm hospitality combined with the unique textures of the ingredients make for a fantastic dining experience. Thank you very much for the meal. The omakase course ranges from ¥21,500. The menu includes various tempura items, appetizers, a main course, and dessert, all meticulously prepared and presented.

Tempura restaurant Motoyoshi has relocated to Ebisu, and the original shop is now run by their apprentice Mr. Matoba as Tempura Motoyoshi Matoba. I visited on a Friday night. The interior has a counter with 7 seats, and I was seated at the far end with an acrylic divider separating me from the next seat. For my first drink, I had my usual Imo Shochu with Goto Soda from Goto Nada Sake Brewery in Nagasaki Prefecture. The sashimi before the tempura was flounder and red sea bream. The cold sake options were from Abekan in Shiomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, starting at 500 yen for a half cup. The tempura included green beans, two shrimp legs, and the first course of prawn with salt. The second course was shrimp with salt, paired with a sweet cold sake from Shiroyama City, Ishikawa Prefecture. The third dish was asparagus from Yamagata, served with salt. The fourth course was a juicy and crispy scale-fried sea bream with salt or tempura sauce. Next was young corn with salt, followed by shako from Miyagi Prefecture served as is. The cold sake was from Kato Sake Brewery in Sado City, Niigata Prefecture. The appetizer trio included oil-marinated round herring, shrimp miso, and boiled clam, as well as fresh green onions from Fujisawa and young ayu fish from Lake Biwa. The cold sake was from Shirafuji Sake Brewery in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture. The palate cleanser included gizzard shad and seaweed from Akita, new potatoes with homemade ketchup, and cabbage and snap peas from Fujisawa. The soup course featured rockfish, grated Kamo eggplant, and koshiabura turnip from Chiba. The cold sake was from Miyoshino Brewery in Yoshino Town, Nara Prefecture. The special dish was natural clams and lotus root from Motoyoshi-san, topped with sea urchin and half a conger eel. The palate cleanser included pickled ginger and sweet potato, a specialty of Motoyoshi-san. For the main course, I chose the tempura rice bowl with tea, with options for tempura and rice. The portion sizes ranged from a single bite to 7 different types of rice bowls. I chose the tea with the 4th size rice bowl. The tea options were hojicha or green tea, and I chose hojicha. The tea was served with tempura rice bowl topped with freshly fried mixed tempura and pickled vegetables. The dessert was a jelly made from Hinata Natsu and Amanatsu oranges. The meal concluded with green tea.

Tempura Motoyoshi: Due to the head chef Motoyoshi preparing for a new store, this store is now being run by his apprentice, also named Motoyoshi. The location remains the same, but one noticeable difference is the absence of seasonal flowers hanging from the ceiling, which used to be quite entertaining. The apprentice Motoyoshi mentioned that the money saved from this was used to improve the quality of the tempura. Interesting enough, the apprentice Motoyoshi himself is a drinker, so they offer tempura and snacks that go well with alcohol. They also have a selection of quality drinks. One highlight of the day was the tempura of butterbur sprouts, served as buds to enjoy the bitterness. Of course, this pairs well with Japanese sake. Towards the end of the meal, you can choose the size of the conger eel tempura, and even the size of the mixed tempura for the finale. The set course ensures that everyone leaves full and satisfied. Despite carrying the name of Tempura Motoyoshi, the tempura course reflects the apprentice Motoyoshi's own style. Especially recommended for those who enjoy alcohol, I personally found it more appealing than the master's store. For those who may be hesitant to visit without the head chef, it seems like Motoyoshi's store is still in preparation, so it's worth giving it a try. Thank you for the meal. COVID-19 safety rating: 3

Visited "Tempura Motokichi" in front of Gaienmae in August 2020. This restaurant is run by Motokichi Kazuhito in Gaienmae, and only changes its name to "Tempura Motokichi" when Taiki Matoba is frying during Saturday lunchtime. Last time, it was during cherry blossom season, so the setting was filled with blooming double cherry blossoms. This time, with the sound of bell crickets in the atmosphere, we enjoyed tempura inside the restaurant. The menu this time includes thick bonito from Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, which provides a chewy texture and is complemented by refreshing grated radish mixed with green onions. The starter was shrimp legs cooked on an iron plate. The first shrimp was seasoned with salt, bringing out a sweetness with each bite, and the batter was light. The second shrimp had more batter and was enjoyed with tempura dipping sauce. Asparagus from Tochigi Prefecture, almost at the end of the season, was first tasted without any seasoning, releasing a green scent and overflowing juice from the cut surface. When salt was added, the sweetness emerged. The asparagus stalk was even sweeter and more flavorful when tasted as is. White rockfish caught by Matoba himself in Tokyo Bay and aged for 4 days was light in taste, delicious on its own, and the aroma trapped in the mushroom batter spread in the mouth. Conger eel with conger eel roe pickled in salt on top was delicious with a perfect balance of saltiness and umami. Fushimi red pepper from Kyoto Prefecture was deseeded, fried, and had a refreshing green scent. Chicken fish with a unique palate cleanser made with tempura crumbs was rare but delightful. Fresh lotus root was crunchy with a refreshing sweetness, and the one cooked with the patented machine "Kitakaze" had a settled flavor with enhanced sweetness. The gizzard shad from Kanagawa Prefecture was known for dried fish but was actually a traditional Edo fish with a moist texture and delicious taste. Corn from Hokkaido, Gold Rush variety, was a summer specialty with a patent. The corn was boiled or steamed, cut into four layers, and deep-fried. The sweetness was amazing and delicious. The conger eel had a unique style with ginger vinegar pickles on top, offering a crispy batter texture and a melty feel in the belly part and a fluffy texture in the tail part. Kohakuimo, a rare and precious yam, was meticulously prepared from its raw state, offering a silky smooth texture and delicious taste. The meal ended with tempura rice bowl, and I chose the tempura bowl with the largest bowl size and less rice. The tempura was simple with only shrimp cut into chunks. Yuzu was added to the bowl, giving a subtle fragrance. The tempura had a crispy batter and juicy shrimp, making it enjoyable to eat. For dessert, milk pudding with musk melon sauce was served. The sweetness of the milk pudding and musk melon sauce blended perfectly. Overall, I was able to enjoy the changing flavors due to temperature variations and the aroma of the ingredients. Last time I visited in spring, where I could appreciate the scents of mountain vegetables and new onions more than in summer.

Would you like to go to an adult cherry blossom viewing? I received such an invitation and arrived at the famous tempura restaurant "Tempura Motokichi" in Gaienmae. The owner, Kazuhito Motokichi, was fascinated by tempura, which was his mother's specialty, and honed his skills in Osaka's kappo restaurants, breaking the fixed idea that tempura is always hot, with innovative ideas of frying seasonal ingredients. At the age of 31, he opened his own restaurant, where he decorates the interior with scenes of cherry blossoms, fresh greenery, and autumn leaves, seeking to enjoy tempura while viewing cherry blossoms this time. However, standing at the frying station this time is not Motokichi, but Daiki Matoba, who is the second in command. Every month on Saturdays during lunchtime, "Tempura Motokichi" changes its name to "Tempura Motokichi Matoba" and operates under that name. The interior of the restaurant, which I was welcomed into at the scheduled time, was decorated as if the double cherry blossoms were in full bloom, surprising me with its beauty. In this wonderful atmosphere, I enjoyed the spring tempura. The menu for this time was as follows: Yuba appetizer. It was sweet and delicious. Shrimp legs are always the starter. Shrimp 1: The coating is a bit thick? Inside, you can feel the firm texture and sweetness of the shrimp. Shrimp 2: The coating is applied more generously, so you are recommended to try it with tempura dipping sauce. The sweetness of the dipping sauce and the sweetness of the shrimp multiply, which I liked. Asparagus from Tochigi Prefecture. When eaten without anything added, you can feel a green freshness, and when salt is added, you can taste the sweetness. The base part of the asparagus is even more fresh and sweet, making it delicious. Gizzard shad from Kanagawa Prefecture. It has been left for a few days, and when eaten without anything added, you can feel the condensed umami. The fluffy texture with heat is attractive. Taros natural. There is no bitterness, and the fragrance drifts lightly in the crispy coating. New onions: When cut in half in front of you, a sweet aroma fills the air. It is then finished by taking away the heat with the secret weapon "Kitakaze." First, try it with salt. The aroma and sweetness are wonderful. And the recommended soy sauce. I see. The aroma of soy sauce also rises lightly, making it truly wonderful. White shrimp from Toyama Prefecture. After frying, raw white shrimp is placed on top of it. A clever tempura that compensates for the lost sweetness by eating it with raw shrimp. Shiitake mushroom: A large and thick shiitake mushroom. When cut with a knife in the crispy coating, the strong aroma comes from inside. A dish you want to bite into, even if you risk getting burned. Scallop from Hokkaido. The overflowing sweetness in the chewy texture is delicious. The gradation of the scallop is also excellent. Rolled scallop with seaweed: By changing the way the scallop is cut, the texture changes, and the addition of seaweed aroma is delicious. When you put it in your mouth, the seaweed aroma rises, followed by the sweetness of the scallop. Lotus root 1: A remnant of the lotus root that can be enjoyed with a crispy and fluffy texture. It is tempting with its sweetness and aroma. Lotus root 2: After removing the heat, enjoy the taste change with the difference in temperature. It is surprising how different it is. The aroma is more prominent, and the sweetness is stable. Conger eel: A thick conger eel with a satisfying texture. Even the aroma of the conger eel is delicious in the fluffy texture like a futon. Kohakuimo: The sweet potato that was fried at the very beginning is the finale. However, this frying method is quite unique, almost eccentric. First, fry it once to coat it, then wrap it in paper and let it sit for a while. I thought it was to let it rest for heat, but then it is fried again in that state, then wrapped in aluminum foil, allowing it to absorb the high-temperature oil.

The food was all tempura dishes that really brought out the flavor of each ingredient, making it a perfect match for drinks. It was a satisfying meal for those who love alcohol. The small restaurant with about 7 counter seats had a calm and luxurious atmosphere, making it very comfortable. The staff, especially the apprentice of Motoyoshi, Mr. Matoba, showcased their skills, providing a taste that alcohol lovers can't resist. Thank you very much. I will definitely visit again.

Thank you for the wonderful food and heartfelt service.

This was my first time trying flying fish tempura. The owner's hospitality was fantastic. The tempura itself was just average.

It was my first time visiting, and the atmosphere of the restaurant was nice. However, I was shocked to find out they didn't have beer. The food was delicious, but they didn't have any specialties!

Amazing! The way they approach food is truly wonderful. It was really delicious.