Munich, the capital of Bavaria, is the place to be for good japanese cuisine and real Sushi very thin, we agree with experienced sushi lovers and Japanese chefs. And not because there is so much good competition - but unfortunately a lot of bad.
In our article Sushi in Munich we give a small overview of how we perceive the current status of sushi in Munich and which restaurants we have in addition to our own Restaurant Sansaro can recommend in good conscience.
This article is about the Restaurant Mitani in Rablstrasse, one of the very few "Japanese" restaurants in Munich that are actually run by Japanese people.
Mitani, a Japanese run restaurant
In the 1990s, Rablstraße 45 was once home to the first Tokami Restaurant in Munich, which at that time served high-quality Japanese cuisine and sushi.
Since about 2004, Japanese karateka Yoko Mitani has taken over the premises and runs the Mitani Restaurant there.
Sushi & hot cuisine at Mitani
For many years, Mitani made a name for itself by offering a sensationally cheap lunch: 8 Euro for Nigirizushi(very tasty!) Karaage or other dishes with salad, miso soup, dessert - a sensational deal. And a thousand times better than the sushi in the countless non-Japanese assembly line eateries that flooded Munich at the time. In the evening, there was then a clear price and quality difference upwards at Mitani.
In the meantime, Mitani is only open in the evenings from Tuesday to Saturday and is apparently a self-runner even on slow days: "Haidhausen is a neighborhood for connoisseurs!" explains a young Munich Japan expert, with whom we visited and tasted the Mitani again in 2022.
Unfortunately, the service is sometimes a little short-tempered: Mitani has also suffered from the corona crisis, and some service staff have returned to Japan. During the crisis, the safety-oriented Japanese (and that's most Japanese people!) like to go home to familiar surroundings. But thanks to the charm of the Japanese, the small service shortcomings are not so unpleasantly noticeable.
The menu offers the typical range of Japanese restaurants outside Japan: from simple Japanese appetizers, hot main dishes (also Shabu Shabu & Sukiyaki!), Sushi & Sashimi.
Top recommendation at Mitani, past & present: Karaage
But what has always excited us the most at Mitani, in the past and now, is the Tori Karaage - and it tastes better here than in many other restaurants.
Tori Karaage are deep-fried chicken fillets with a spicy crust and are typically served with lemon, sauce and mayonnaise for dipping. Quite typical for the end of the day in Japan, by the way, with a whisky highball.
After we have been through 2022 once again Sushi, Sashimi and various appetizers, we recommend the following:
Visit Mitani for a typical Japanese after-work drink with friends, colleagues or like-minded people, order a delicious beer (Mitani has something different to offer than just the "TV beers"), a portion of karaage and perhaps other appetizers to snack on. Or even several portions of tori karaage 😉
We'll try the sukiyaki next time...
Opening hours of the Mitani
Tuesday to Saturday open from 18h.
Attention, the kitchen at Mitani takes the last order at 9pm!
We recommend making a reservation by telephone, as Mitani is quickly full during the limited opening hours with only one chef for sushi and one cook for hot dishes. The best time to call Mitani for reservations is between 4.30 pm and 6 pm on opening days, unfortunately there is no online reservation service.
Vacations and closed days are sometimes not entered on Google, so be careful with spontaneous visits! Unfortunately, the Mitani also no longer does a TakeOut.
Conclusion: Japanese all-round restaurant for Haidhausen residents
Japanese all-round restaurant with a lively flair, a selection of sushi, sashimi and, above all, delicious hot dishes. For us, the best karaage in Munich (so far) & a delicious beer to go with it, which you don't find everywhere. Sushi and sashimi have been of variable quality in recent years.
Ideal for people who live nearby, as parking is extremely difficult and there are no other proper Japanese restaurants in the area.
Contact: Restaurant Mitani | Rablstraße 45, 81669 Munich | Tel. 089 4489526 | none own website
✓ Reservation recommendation! (Available by phone from 16.30h to 18h)
✗ The restaurant Mitani currently has no online reservation!
✗ No Take-Away!
✗ No terrace/outdoor seating
Alternatives to Restaurant Mitani in Munich
If Mitani is closed, too far away or fully booked, we can recommend the following restaurants, which are also run by Japanese chefs:
Kaito - Gabelsbergerstrasse (also good for Sake!)
J-Bar - small izakaya with top chefs (don't just try sushi!)
Haguruma - Baader Street (a breath of fresh air in the menu at the end of 2023)
Kitcho - near Maximiliansstrasse
JapaTapa Toshibar - near Münchner Freiheit
And of course our own Restaurant sansaro in the Amalienpassage. You can always find seasonally inspired menus there - you can see an excerpt of the current one here:
Incidentally, there was also a karaage in 2023 - but it had a different focus: as a small starter, with fine black feather chicken Label Rouge made and marinated in Shio-Kōji. Still, the karaage at Mitani remains a recommendation for a quaint, tasty snack.
As a general rule, it's always a good idea to make reservations in advance at any real Japanese restaurant, as Japanese cuisine (done right) requires a lot of preparation!
Update:
In July 2023, the owner of the popular Japanese grocery store MIKADO visited the Mitani and has - as far as we can tell - about the same impressions as we have.
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