As a disciple of the late Joel Robuchon, the world’s most Michelin-starred chef, Chef Yosuke Suga has worked hard to earn and maintain his Michelin star for over 10 years. But he turned his back on his critics when he started his own restaurant, Sugarabo, in 2015.
“I’ve seen a lot of behind-the-scenes work at Michelin,” Suga said. “As a result, I gradually lost interest in it, both in a good and bad way…More than that, I realized that I didn’t want to be evaluated by others, and I didn’t want to do work that required validation from guidebooks.”
“We cook for our customers, we don’t cook for our critics,” he added.
However, we would be happy if we could get a table. Ten years after opening, Sugarabo is no longer accessible to most people.
Inside an invitation-only restaurant in Tokyo
The restaurant’s table policy is a diluted version of the old custom of some of Japan’s most admired and inherently secretive establishments: “Ichigen-san owari,” or “no first-time customers without an introduction.” These restaurants are mostly patrons, and while guests may be allowed, there is no guarantee that those guests will be able to come back.
Sugarabo requires invitations or recommendations from existing patrons. There is no online reservation system, no fixed opening hours, only a private phone number known only to a select few who frequent the 20 bars and dining tables.
A decade later, the guest list may have grown, but the restaurant is just as upscale. “We’re not trying to be bossy,” Suga insisted. Instead, the guest experience is what matters.
“We are very keen to welcome people who understand what we do and are familiar with our tastes,” he explained. For example, guests from Taiwan or California may be accustomed to different levels of seasoning. “If you allow completely random guests, you won’t be able to accommodate each person’s expectations in the same way.”
Sugarabo wants to know more than just the taste buds, he also wants to know what his customers bring to the table. “We try to understand their background as much as possible, whether it’s a doctor, lawyer, financial person, journalist, etc. because that can influence the type of conversations I have with them,” Suga said.
The goal is to create a two-way relationship with your guests. “In the restaurant business, if no one comes to eat, it’s over. If you can build a relationship of trust, it’s sustainable.”
Sugarabo’s special door policy and omakase (chef’s choice) menu is a nice reversal of Western dining culture, which is all about treating customers with respect and hospitality.
Handing over control to the chef has given Suga free reign to showcase the best ingredients the country has to offer, while also being involved in the cooking himself.
“My background is fundamentally rooted in French cuisine,” he said. Before opening a restaurant in Nagoya, his grandfather was a head chef on a cruise ship that sailed across the Pacific between Kobe in Kansai Prefecture and California. Suga’s father then took over the restaurant and specialized the menu in French cuisine (Suga’s older brother now runs the restaurant). “I decided to study French cuisine, which led me to France and trained under Mr. Robuchon.”
Sugalabo doesn’t shy away from staples of French haute cuisine like lobster, foie gras and wine, but the chef knew they couldn’t be the restaurant’s entire identity.
“While I am deeply grateful for everything France has given me, the fact is that I currently live in Japan. So my focus is to incorporate local Japanese products and use French influences as a complement to that.”
One of the ways he loves his country is through his seasonal menu. “Japan has an abundance of ingredients, so we work in what is called a ‘microseason,'” he explained.
Mr. Suga uses peaches as an example. Each variety is only at peak ripeness for one week, so during the six to eight weeks the peaches are on the menu, Sugarabo uses six to eight varieties. “True luxury is being able to enjoy something that is only available for a limited time in its best form,” the chef believes.
The restaurant is closed for three days each month, and staff travel across the country to meet and network with suppliers. “We believe that if producers know who will be using their products, they will send us the best products,” Suga said. “There’s a certain kind of love there.”
Even Suga Lab’s signature dish, prosciutto with curry rice (a spin on the Japanese tradition of eating it at the end of a meal), embodies Suga’s ethos of growing grain in its own rice fields.
The chef’s philosophy has attracted many fans, including those from luxury brands. In 2020, he opened his first Louis Vuitton restaurant, Sugarabo V, in Osaka (with reservations by invitation or referral), and opened Le Café V, a more casual walk-in-only concept, at Louis Vuitton stores in Osaka and Tokyo.
The cafe, like his original restaurant, offers dishes such as cold corn potage and peach coupe dessert. Even for the wealthy, this may be the closest thing to a full Sugar Lab experience.
Sgarabo, and Japan more broadly, is not alone when it comes to restrictive door policies. Since the 1970s, Rao’s in New York has not accepted reservations, instead bequeathing “table rights” to selected patrons. Also founded in the 70s, London’s Le Beaujolais Club is a members-only restaurant (by invitation only) that bills itself as the city’s oldest French wine bar.
Alongside these establishments are a number of private restaurants catering to the wealthy and social elite. But the idea of paying tens of thousands of dollars to be allowed into the dining room seems reckless compared to Sugarabo’s process.
Despite its upscale feel, this standard meal doesn’t cost a fortune, with the menu costing around $500 (wine pairing and service charge extra).
Suga insists that he is not doing anything big. But guests can’t help but get their egos boosted. Before they even take a bite, they know they’ve been led to the elite.
