Shinbashi Shimizu is a seven‑seat counter that will not let its book run months ahead. Its chef came out of the Tsuruhachi line of Edomae sushi, and the cooks who trained under him now run counters in Ginza, in Suitengumae and in Gion in Kyoto, with a second generation in Osaka, Yokohama and Sendai. This guide lays out who they are and which of their counters you can realistically get into.
Shinbashi Shimizu
Kunihiro Shimizu trained under chef Ishimaru at Shinbashi Tsuruhachi, the counter Ishimaru opened in 1982 as an offshoot of Tsuruhachi in Jinbocho. Tsuruhachi itself goes back to a chef who trained at Miyako Sushi Honten in Yanagibashi, which is a different restaurant from Bentenyama Miyako Sushi in Asakusa. Shimizu opened Sushidokoro Shimizu in 1999 and later moved, taking the name Shinbashi Shimizu.
What sets the house apart is how it books. It keeps only a one‑week book on purpose, so that nobody waits months for a seat, and the result is a short, crowded scramble every morning:
- Seven counter seats, for parties of one to three.
- By phone in Japanese (03‑3591‑5763) from 08:00 Japan time, exactly seven days before your date. The line is often busy for 30 minutes or more, seats go within 10 to 30 minutes, and the house takes no calls during service.
- TableCheck and OMAKASE open the same one‑week window, and TableCheck sometimes shows a seat that has come free.
- Three seatings, at 12:00, 17:00 and 19:15. Closed Wednesdays.
- The person who books must attend, and ID may be checked. Guests who do not speak Japanese need a Japanese‑speaking companion.
The house does not accept bookings made on someone else’s behalf. We can request it in the name of the guest who attends; if the house declines a booking arranged on a guest’s behalf, we will tell you and nothing is charged. You can also book it yourself in your own name; the current details are on the Shinbashi Shimizu release page.
The family tree
Each line gives the counter, its area, and the training and opening dates we have on record.
- Shinbashi Shimizu (Shinbashi) — Kunihiro Shimizu, trained under chef Ishimaru at Shinbashi Tsuruhachi; opened Sushidokoro Shimizu in 1999, later moved and became Shinbashi Shimizu
- Sushi Matsumoto (Gion, Kyoto) — chef Matsumoto, from Shinbashi Shimizu; opened in Gion in 2005 or 2006 (sources differ)
- Sushi Hoshiyama (Kitahama, Osaka) — chef Hoshiyama, 7 years at Sushisei in Tsukiji, then 5 years at Sushi Matsumoto; independent in Kitashinchi in 2012, moved to Kitahama in 2022
- Sushi Miyashita (Kannai, Yokohama) — Hiroyuki Miyashita, from Nagano, trained at Sushi Matsumoto (five years by one account, eight by another); opened 1 April 2024 on the former site of Tokiwa‑zushi
- Sushi Take (Ginza 7-chome) — chef Miyoshi (née Takeuchi), 8 years at Shinbashi Shimizu, where she started with odd jobs before asking to be taken on as an apprentice; independent 4 June 2014
- Sushi Toku (Sendai) — Tokutaro Iwanuma, about 11 and a half years in all at Sushi Taichi and Sushi Take in Ginza; opened June 2022 with his younger brother Shotaro
- Sushi Kobayashi (Ginza 8-chome) — chef Kobayashi, Shinbashi Shimizu’s second chef, who also worked at Sushi Taichi; opened 6 December 2022
- Takagaki no Sushi (Suitengumae) — Nobuhide Takagaki, a short spell at Sushi Mizutani, then 4 years at Shinbashi Shimizu, with time at Sushi Shin in Nishi‑Azabu as well; opened 15 September 2018
- Sushi Matsumoto (Gion, Kyoto) — chef Matsumoto, from Shinbashi Shimizu; opened in Gion in 2005 or 2006 (sources differ)
Two points that are easy to get wrong. Sushi Hoshiyama and Sushi Miyashita trained at Sushi Matsumoto in Kyoto, and Sushi Toku at Sushi Take, so all three are a generation removed from Shinbashi Shimizu rather than its direct apprentices. And Sushi Kobayashi here is the Ginza 8-chome counter near Shinbashi, not the Sushi Kobayashi in Hiroo from the Sushi Saito line.
Counters that are easier to book
These are the counters in the tree where a seat realistically comes up. Each is its own restaurant with its own chef.
Sushi Take
- The chef: chef Miyoshi (née Takeuchi), eight years at Shinbashi Shimizu. Independent in Ginza in June 2014.
- Price: Tabelog reviewers put dinner at about ¥30,000–39,999 and lunch at about ¥20,000–29,999.
- How to book: by phone in Japanese only; up to three guests per booking. The house does not publish a release day. Eight counter seats. Lunch 11:30–14:00 (last order 12:30), dinner 17:00–22:30 (last order 21:00); closed Wednesdays, and Mondays that fall on holidays. See the Sushi Take release page.
- Through us: yes. It sits outside our collection, so the fee is ¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it.
Takagaki no Sushi
- The chef: Nobuhide Takagaki, four years at Shinbashi Shimizu after a short spell at Sushi Mizutani, with time at Sushi Shin in Nishi‑Azabu as well. Opened by Suitengumae in September 2018.
- Price: omakase ¥33,000, tax included. Cancellation is charged in full from seven days before.
- How to book: online on TableCheck, Ikyu or Tabelog, or by phone in Japanese. The house does not publish a release day. Six counter seats in an old wooden house. Dinner 18:00–22:30, Monday to Saturday; Tabelog lists lunch on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, but Ikyu says lunch is suspended. Closed Sundays, and Mondays that fall on holidays. All guests must be 20 or older. See the Takagaki no Sushi release page.
- Through us: yes, at ¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it.
Sushi Hoshiyama
- The chef: chef Hoshiyama, seven years at Sushisei in Tsukiji and five at Sushi Matsumoto in Kyoto. Independent in Kitashinchi in 2012; in Kitahama since 2022. One MICHELIN Star (MICHELIN Guide Japan 2026).
- Price: nigiri or omakase course, ¥30,000–40,000. Cancellation costs 50% from midnight the day before and 100% on the day.
- How to book: request booking on Ikyu, by phone in Japanese, or on the house’s own reservation page. The house does not publish a release day. Eight counter seats; from 17:30, last entry 20:30; closed Tuesdays. See the Sushi Hoshiyama release page.
- Through us: yes, at ¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it.
Sushi Miyashita
- The chef: Hiroyuki Miyashita, from Nagano, who trained at Sushi Matsumoto in Kyoto. Opened a minute from Kannai Station in Yokohama on 1 April 2024.
- Price: dinner from ¥23,000, lunch from ¥10,000, both plus tax. Cancellation costs 50% the day before and 100% on the day.
- How to book: for guests in Japan, Ikyu, Tabelog or the phone in Japanese; guests from overseas are directed to the house’s official route for overseas guests, My Concierge Japan. The house does not publish a release day. Eight counter seats plus a private room. Dinner 18:00–22:00, Monday to Saturday; lunch 12:00–14:00 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays; closed Sundays and some other days. See the Sushi Miyashita release page.
- Through us: yes. The house’s own route for overseas guests is the direct route; we can also request it for you (¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it).
Sushi Kobayashi
- The chef: chef Kobayashi, formerly Shinbashi Shimizu’s second chef, who also worked at Sushi Taichi. Opened near Shinbashi in December 2022.
- Price: omakase ¥24,200, nigiri course ¥18,700, tax included.
- How to book: online on TableCheck, with a card; only same‑day seats go by phone. The house does not publish a release day. Six seats. Lunch 12:00–14:00, dinner 17:30–22:00; irregular closures. Photos of the food only, and no video. See the Sushi Kobayashi release page.
- Through us: yes, at ¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it. We do not book from your account; our desk phones the house and asks.
Other counters in the family
The rest of the tree.
- Sushi Matsumoto — eleven seats in Gion; lunch 12:00 and dinner 18:00, dinner only on Wednesdays; closed Tuesdays. Japanese speakers phone or book on Tabelog, and Ikyu also lists plans; guests from overseas are directed to the house’s official route for overseas guests, My Concierge Japan. There is no release day, and a few weeks ahead is usually enough. Cancellation is charged in full from three days before, and children are not admitted. The house’s own route for overseas guests is the direct route; we can also request it for you (¥12,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it).
- Sushi Toku — eight seats in Sendai; dinner omakase about ¥22,000–30,000. Bookings are on TableCheck, where regulars report the next month opening on the 1st at 09:00 Japan time; only same‑day seats, parties of five or more and bookings with children aged 12 and under go by phone. Lunch 12:00 on Wednesdays, Thursdays and weekends, dinner 18:00 nightly; closed Mondays. Regular bookings are online; we do not book from your account, but our desk can phone the house and ask, and if no seat can be secured, nothing is charged.
Where we fit
We request Shinbashi Shimizu itself only in the name of the guest who attends. Where a counter in this tree can be requested, we have said so above: send the restaurant and your dates on the request form, and we will tell you plainly what is achievable. If you would rather leave the family tree behind, the counters in our collection are requested at ¥6,000 per seat, charged only if we secure the table and you approve it.
SHOKU NOREN research, checked October 2026.
