Last updated on January 17th, 2025

I am on one of the longest winning streaks when it comes to high-end restaurants that I think I’ve ever been on, here in Osaka, Japan. Most recently was a very impressive dinner at Fujiya 1935. This place has a lot of buzz surrounding it, and has for a long time. The restaurant was renovated from his father’s restaurant into what it is today back in 2003 when Chef Tetsuya Fujiwara took the reigns. Tetsuya Fujiwara is the fourth generation of restaurant owners in his family. The name references the year that his great grandfather first opened his first restaurant in Osaka. Since 1935, the family has been producing some fantastic food and clearly has the track record to prove it. Over the years, Fujiya 1935 has been awarded honors by several international rating agencies such as Diner’s Club and the Michelin Guide. It currently has 2 Michelin Stars, but previously had 3. The reason for the change is still a mystery.

Fujiya 1935 has a very extensive multi-course menu (in my case, 14 courses) and if you like good food, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. To get things started, diners enter a waiting room with a very interesting design. Several tables had giant ice cubes placed on them. After seated, I was served a welcome tea before being moved to my private dining room. On the way to the dining room, I took a few pictures throughout the restaurant and noticed the beautiful minimal design. I have a fondness for birch trees and was delighted to see them in the corners of the room. The rim lighting around the ceiling made for a nice soft feeling. Pierre likes.

For this evening, I went with the wine pairing which included seven glasses of wine, plus some sweet dessert alcohol near the finish. To start was a glass of brut champagne. A little bubbly got me excited.

It was clear to quickly see from the onset that Chef Tetsuya Fujiwara is truly a master of his craft. Rapidly we were served four courses, back to back, all bursting with rich flavor. The texture of the air bread, the richness of the brown soybean cracker, the crispness and depth of the potato with truffle, all made for an incredibly exciting start!

The early courses were paired perfectly with 2015 Weingut Josef Hogl Wachauer Weingarten Riesling Federspiel, Wachau, Austria. Great choice!

The meal started with a bang and simply continued with a high level of excitement until the finish. Up next was a series of seafood dishes. I loved them all, but what stood out the most was the sea urchin. Over the years, I’ve slowly fallen in love with sea urchin and this by far was the best.

After the seafood we were served some magnificent bread accompanied with a rosemary lard spread, and a soy-based spread, both fantastic. Tasty!

After all the seafood items we had a wasabi pasta intended to clear our palates before moving on to the Kunugiza beef. This was interesting because the chef focused on leaving a little bit less seasoning to allow the diners to enjoy the raw ingredients and make them search for a bit more flavor which was found in the tempura grape and accompanying grape sauce. This was definitely something new for me! Just lovely.

It was time for a short breather from food which included various fruit flavored alcohol that were aged for 10 years in-house. Out of those I tried, my absolute favorite was the fig flavored. This was a nice kick in the pants for the end of the meal, great choice again Fujiya 1935!

All the food was incredible up to this point, but what took the meal from great to magical were the four unique desserts. Each one had its own interesting flavor profile and presentation. Out of them, the mango cheesecake came in number one! This Japanese mango cheesecake was something to kill for! Be careful. The texture and flavor with a slight saltiness were all absolutely mind blowing. Compliments to the chef!

In this case, to answer the question in the title, on this occasion Michelin did do a good job of rating Fujiya 1935, as it’s truly spectacular! I don’t always agree with the Michelin Guide, but I have to hand it to them this time. It’s important to mention that throughout the evening, we had experienced great service as well. The Fujiya 1935 team were always there to clear the previous dishes and bring the following courses as well as offer explanations about what was being served. I must say I loved every part of this meal and experience at Fujiya 1935. Chef Tetsuya Fujiwara is a true legend.

If you want one of the best meals of your life, go to Japan, specifically Osaka, and eat at Fujiya 1935!

Fujiya 1935

Restaurant

2 Chome-4-14 Yariyamachi, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 540-0027, Japan

Phone: +81 6-6941-2483