Inua restaurant, designed by OEO Studio, opens in Tokyo

Muted furniture at Inua restaurant, Tokyo, Japan

(Image credit: TBC)

Rising star, chef Thomas Frebel – who worked as Rene Redzepi’s right hand man at Copenhagen’s Noma restaurant for nearly a decade – has now gone solo, setting up shop in Tokyo’s Iidabashi neighbourhood with Inua restaurant.

Spending two years foraging Japanese land and sea – from the tropical southern islands of Okinawa to the northernmost mountain forests of Hokkaido – the result is probably Tokyo’s most imaginative culinary adventure with a medley of exquisitely plated Nordic-influenced dishes concocted from local ingredients like kihada berries from Nagano and scarlet pitanga fruits from Okinawa.

Matching the food, Copenhagen-based OEO Studio, has lined the interiors with a mix of smooth timber by Dinesen, dyed concrete, bricks from local manufacturer Kunishiro and wall coverings from Kyoto textile maker Hosoo. This has been dressed with a medley of furnishings – from chairs by Finn Juhl to bar stools by OEO Studio for Danish brand Brdr. Krüger – while overhead, Nuage pedant lamps by French artist Céline Wright put the pretty plates under the spotlight.

Timber and dyed concrete interiors at Inua restaurant, Tokyo, Japan

Private dining room at Inua restaurant, Tokyo, Japan

Furniture at Inua restaurant, Tokyo, Japan

ADDRESS

2-13-12 Fujimi
Chiyoda-ku

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Danielle Demetriou is a British writer and editor who moved from London to Japan in 2007. She writes about design, architecture and culture (for newspapers, magazines and books) and lives in an old machiya townhouse in Kyoto.

Instagram - @danielleinjapan