Ginza Shimada

The Verdict

Ginza Shimada is one of the most consistently recognised izakayas in Japan, ranked #20 on the Opinionated About Dining Casual Japan list in 2024 and holding a position in the top 50 every year since 2023. For a special occasion dinner in Ginza that doesn't require you to commit to a multi-hour kaiseki or a ¥¥¥¥ omakase, this is the most credible izakaya option in the neighbourhood. Booking is relatively easy by Tokyo standards, which makes it a strong default when the higher-profile tasting-menu restaurants are full.

What to Know Before You Book

Ginza Shimada operates Monday through Saturday, opening at 4 pm and running until 10:30 pm. It is closed on Sundays. The late opening window is one of the venue's practical advantages: if you are coming from a long day of work or travel, or if you want to follow an earlier dinner at a nearby venue with izakaya-style drinks and small plates, the 10:30 pm last call gives you real flexibility. Very few Ginza restaurants at this quality tier stay open this late without requiring a reservation made weeks in advance. Chef Hiroshi Shimada runs the kitchen, and the format is the kind of casual, counter-driven izakaya that rewards unhurried evenings rather than quick turnovers.

Booking difficulty is rated easy. For most Tokyo restaurants with OAD recognition at this level, that is unusual — it means you can realistically plan a visit within a week or two of arrival rather than scheduling months out. If you are visiting Tokyo and want to include a top-ranked izakaya without the anxiety of a sold-out reservation window, Shimada is the clearest path. That said, Saturday evenings fill faster than weeknights, so if your schedule is flexible, a Tuesday through Thursday visit gives you the most room to plan.

The Experience

The address is in Ginza 8-chome, in the Kosaka Building on the first floor — a low-key entry point for a neighbourhood more associated with high-gloss retail and formal dining. The izakaya format here means the evening is built around small plates, sake, and the kind of pacing you control rather than one the kitchen dictates. For a date night or a business dinner where you want a more relaxed register than kaiseki allows, this format works well. The Google rating sits at 4.3 across 295 reviews, which is a meaningful signal for a venue with no English-language website presence to skew tourist traffic.

Price range data is not available in Pearl's current records, but the OAD Casual Japan ranking positions Ginza Shimada firmly in the mid-to-upper casual tier rather than budget izakaya territory. Expect to spend more than a neighbourhood standing bar but considerably less than the ¥¥¥¥ tasting-menu venues that dominate Ginza's dining reputation. For a special occasion where cost is a factor, this is one of the few Ginza options where the award pedigree doesn't come with a corresponding splurge price tag. If you are looking for context on the broader Tokyo dining scene, see our full Tokyo restaurants guide.

Pearl Picks Nearby

If you are building an itinerary around izakaya dining in Tokyo, Daikanyama Issai Kassai and Ginza Nominokoji Yamagishi are worth considering for different sessions. For ramen in the city, Hakata Issou and Hakata Hotaru are strong options. Kan Coffee Fujifuji works well for a pre-dinner stop. If you are extending your Japan trip, consider HAJIME in Osaka, Gion Sasaki in Kyoto, akordu in Nara, Goh in Fukuoka, 1000 in Yokohama, or 6 in Okinawa. For izakaya comparisons outside Tokyo, Benikurage in Osaka and Berangkat in Kyoto are the closest equivalents in quality and format. For hotels, bars, and more in the city, see our Tokyo hotels guide, our Tokyo bars guide, our Tokyo wineries guide, and our Tokyo experiences guide.