The first reaction is usually annoyance. Like, why? Why can’t I just book that restaurant? Why can’t I just click the date and select the time and turn up for a meal in the same way I do in literally every other country in the world?

There can be a feeling that there’s something sinister afoot in Japan, as if you’re being discriminated against somehow. It doesn’t seem fair. But as with so many aspects of Japanese society, things just work differently here – and isn’t that the reason we’ve all come to love it?

So here’s the deal: some restaurant bookings in Japan are very difficult to come by. Some, frankly, are impossible. You just cannot get in to eat at, say, Sushi Saito, or Sukiyabashi Jiro, two legendary sushi restaurants. No amount of wily internet stalking will score you a seat; no wad of cash is large enough to secure a reservation. 

The system of booking is just different in Japan, particularly for restaurants that may only have eight to 10 seats, and only do two or maybe even one service per day. For restaurateurs in these places, it’s important to look after regular customers, who will always have first dibs on reservations (though even they can be limited to monthly or quarterly visits).

Related story: The 8 things you should never do in Japan if you want to be a respectful tourist 

For others trying to secure a spot, it’s crucial to have a personal relationship with the chef, or to be introduced by another chef or restaurateur who has a reliable reputation. 

There’s an old-fashioned culture in Japan of wanting to ensure that whoever is booking at your restaurant will be able to pay the bill at the end, hence the need to trust these people beforehand; however, these days this system is more about knowing how customers will behave when they dine with you, because with such a limited number of seats, and everyone sitting together, it’s essential that everyone understands the etiquette and adds to the atmosphere, rather than detracts from it.

For all of these reasons, many popular, high-end Japanese restaurants don’t open their bookings to the public via a website in the way they would anywhere else in the world. Instead, customers need to call to request a booking, which obviously relies on relationships, and also a command of the Japanese language. Which you probably don’t have. So what’s the solution? Here are some tips for securing a restaurant:

Stay at a hotel that has connections

The first is to stay at a reputable, high-end hotel in Japan, and have your concierge call to make your bookings. If there are spaces available, this will generally get you over the line at plenty of very good restaurants. However, this can be something of a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants approach, because you probably won’t be able to organise this until close to your stay, when a lot of those restaurants could already be booked out.

Go through a third party 

Another work-around is to use a specialist website that facilitates bookings at high-end Japanese restaurants. The likes of TableAll, Pocket Concierge and Omakase.in all have relationships with restaurateurs across major cities in Japan, and provide internet bookings for foreign tourists – though they all charge a reasonable fee, on top of a very high restaurant bill, for this service.

Opt for a lunch seating instead of dinner

Further to this, to really heighten your chances of a successful booking, you should try eating lunch. Lunch services at high-end restaurants in Japan tend to be far less popular that dinner, and are priced accordingly. This means you will be able to eat cheaper, and also have a much better chance of securing a reservation if you do your high-end dining in the middle of the day.

Go casual

Finally, there’s one more option: eat ramen. Or at least, eat at casual restaurants that work on a first-come, first-served basis. Japan is absolutely filled with these places, serving myriad styles of cuisine. The most notable though is ramen, is an incredibly complex dish often made with high-end ingredients and created by absolute superstars – though none of the restaurants require bookings, and you’ll eat for less than $20 a head. There’s no way you can be annoyed by that. 

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