A cinematic Japanese izakaya near Porta Nuova, where Tokyo alleyway atmosphere meets a very Milanese sense of spectacle.
Intro
Milan has no shortage of Japanese restaurants, but Roppongi Izakaya is doing something genuinely different. Opened by the Mao restaurant group and run by two Japanese chefs — Saito and Taiko — this spot near the Garibaldi district isn’t chasing the sushi-and-miso-soup formula. The concept is an izakaya: the convivial Japanese equivalent of a neighbourhood pub, where the food and the company matter equally, and you order in rounds rather than courses.
The name is a direct nod to Tokyo’s famously hectic Roppongi district, with its dense concentration of late-night izakayas. It’s a deliberate frame for what the restaurant wants to be — not a fine-dining destination, not a quick-service ramen joint, but something looser, livelier, and more interesting than either.
The Vibe
Walking in for the first time is a proper moment. The interior is an obsessively detailed recreation of a Tokyo back alley — think metro signage, stacked beer crates repurposed as furniture, paper lanterns, faded stickers on every surface, and the ambient sounds of a Japanese street playing softly in the background. The lighting is warm and dim, which creates good atmosphere but does make the menu genuinely hard to read. Ask the staff — they’re attentive enough to walk you through it without any attitude.
Seating is intentionally compact: low wooden stools, small shared tables, upturned crates that double as chairs. It’s a setup that works brilliantly with a group of four, and is fine for two, but solo diners or couples who need their personal space might find the elbow-to-elbow arrangement a bit much. Worth noting: some tables face the wall in classic izakaya style — if you want a traditional table, request one when booking!
The Food
The menu includes a bit of everything of familiar Japanese comfort dishes and, yes, it’s dense. The kitchen covers a genuine cross-section of Japanese home cooking and street food: okonomiyaki (the savoury Osaka-style pancake, here made with pancetta and house kimchi), tonkatsu (clean, properly fried pork cutlet), takoyaki, gyoza, tempura, and a handful of more substantial plates like sukiyaki and gyudon. Udon noodles feature too, as does the tonkatsu shoyu ramen for those who want something warming and brothy. The ankake omuraisu — an omelette cooked volcano-style and finished with dashi broth — is one of those sleeper dishes that surprises everyone who orders it.
Standouts worth ordering on any visit include the katsusando (a soft-bread tonkatsu sandwich that earns its €13 price), the wagyu kamameshi — wagyu beef cooked at pressure in an iron pot with vegetables and rice — and the sake tartare, which has developed a loyal following for good reason. Desserts are taken seriously: the ichigo daifuku mochi and the matcha tiramisu are both genuinely good finishes rather than afterthoughts. Budget roughly €45–50 per person for a full evening with drinks.
The Verdict
Roppongi Izakaya is best approached as a Japanese midnight diner restaurant. The kitchen is consistent, the flavor range is wider than most Japanese restaurant in the city. It is not cheap relative to the portion sizes of individual dishes — izakaya eating rewards sharing, and a table that orders only one dish each will leave feeling underwhelmed and overcharged.
A couple of honest caveats: the menu’s artistic layout can be genuinely confusing without guidance, and some of the premium items feel priced for tourists rather than regulars. None of that is a dealbreaker, but it’s worth knowing going in. Come for the atmosphere, stay for the tonkatsu and a cold Sapporo — or two.
Roppongi Izakaya 六本木居酒屋
📍 Address: Via Amerigo Vespucci 5, Milano
🌐 Website: roppongimilano.com | instagram: @roppongimilano
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