I’ll admit I was nervous about how I was going to write about Aragawa. The Tokyo-based restaurant opened its doors in Mayfair recently to a headline-grabbing moniker of ‘London’s most expensive steak’. And indeed it is exactly that, eye-bulging-ly, unbelievably expensive, with prices upwards of £500 for a single piece of beef. The kind of prices that only the one per cent of the one per cent can, not only afford, but justify. Going in I was fully prepared for some sort of Succession-esque evening of obnoxious stealth wealth, where bulbous men in custom suits ravenously masticate on great big hunks of meat while planning world domination. The ick expectations were high.
Instead, I found Kotaro Ogawa, the incredibly sweet and warm-hearted founder of Aragawa London, and immediately felt at ease.
The backstory
It’s been a long time coming for Ogawa, who moved from his native Tokyo to London with the doomed plans of opening the restaurant in 2020. Ogawa not only relocated his young family, but also Head Chef Fumiya Kase (previously of one Michelin-starred L’orgueil), and Kazuo Imayosh, known as the restaurant’s ‘steak master,’ who previously worked at the original Aragawa for over 40 years. In fact, much of the Tokyo restaurant – which first opened in 1967 and has long been known as the most expensive steak house in the world – has been brought to London, from the purpose-built kiln to the hand-blown Riedel glasses and the slightly perplexing Japanese toilets in the bathroom. Even the samurai sword-like knives on the table are by Japanese artisan knifemakers Ryusen, who have been hand-making knives for over 70 years.
Set within an unassuming townhouse on Clarges St, the space has been designed by Dale Atkinson from Rosendale Design and is spread across two floors. At the entrance level is a vast wine collection – over 1,000 bottles – and a private dining room that seats 12. On the lower level, walls are adorned with hand-painted red panels, seating is on red velvet benches and boots. An open kitchen sits in the corner where you can watch the steak master at work. Elegant Japanese lanterns hang between the two floors. There’s clearly been no expense spared in every little detail and yet the overall look is understated, and the atmosphere is unexpectedly welcoming.
