A refined Japanese maison in Milan where yakitori, wagyu and Zen design meet around an open kitchen.
Intro
Milan’s Japanese dining scene has spent years oscillating between fast-casual conveyor belts and white-tablecloth omakase temples, leaving a gaping hole in the middle: somewhere genuinely convivial, technically rigorous, and built around the primal pleasure of live fire. Yajiri Maison, open since spring 2026 on Via Carlo Goldoni, fills that gap with confidence.
Behind the project is Gianni Perrone, a restaurateur who built one of Italy’s first izakayas in Lecce back in 2015 and has been quietly refining the concept ever since. This Milan outpost is the evolution — more curated, higher-spec ingredients, the same izakaya soul.
The name itself is a statement of intent: yajiri (矢尻) means arrowhead in Japanese, and the kitchen here is arrow-straight in its focus. Everything orbits around a single philosophy — fire as the primary ingredient. Real charcoal, open flame, and even straw (warayaki) are not decorative choices but daily tools, and you feel it the moment you walk through the door.
The Vibe
The layout makes an immediate impression. The kitchen isn’t tucked away behind a wall — it’s the centrepiece, a big open theatrical space with a live robata grill at its heart, real coal burning under every order, tables arranged all around it like an audience watching a performance. The smoke is controlled, the energy is warm, and there’s something genuinely hypnotic about watching meat and various skewers rotate over glowing binchotan.
Before dinner service properly opens, the space shifts into aperitivo mode — the compact sake bar (nine seats, a serious selection curated with sommelier Nobuki Ashimoto, starting from €5 a glass) draws in early arrivals for pre-dinner pours that set the mood perfectly.
One caveat worth flagging: if you’re seated at the long bar counter wrapping the kitchen, conversation carries. You’ll hear the couple next to you debating whether to order another round of wagyu, and they’ll hear your opinions too. For some, that’s part of the izakaya charm; for others, it’s a dealbreaker. Book a table if you want privacy.
The Food
The menu is structured like a night out in Tokyo — small plates to open, skewers and robata mains to anchor, noodles to close. Starters do their job well: braised aubergine, slow-cooked octopus in dashi and mirin, a smoked potato salad that punches above its price point (start from €8). Then the robata section takes over, and this is where the kitchen earns its reputation. The black cod cooked warayaki-style — finished in burning straw — arrives with cauliflower cream and genuine complexity; the duck prepared the same way is equally precise.
The undisputed headline act, though, is the wagyu A5 at €40, arriving from the grill with that specific quality that proper marbling and real coal heat produce together — juicy, deeply fatty, nothing flabby about it. This isn’t a gimmick grade-sticker on mediocre beef; the fat distribution is visible before it hits the coals, and the result on the plate confirms it. An omakase section is reportedly in the works, handled directly by the Japanese chef, but for now the à la carte is plenty to work with. Maze udon (€14) and soba with duck (€18) round out the menu for those who want to close on something comforting.
The Verdict
Yajiri Maison is the izakaya Milan needed but didn’t quite have — technically serious, ingredient-led, atmospheric without being theatrical for its own sake. It’s not the cheapest dinner in the neighbourhood, but it’s priced proportionally to what arrives on the plate. The aperitivo entry point makes it accessible even if you’re not committing to a full meal, and the sake list gives you genuine reasons to linger. Come early, grab a spot at the sake bar, watch the coals glow, and let the kitchen do its thing.
The one thing to sort before booking: decide whether counter energy excites you or stresses you out. This is not a restaurant for hushed conversations — it’s designed for sharing, communal noise, and the specific pleasure of eating well with the kitchen in plain sight. If that sounds like your kind of evening, it very much is.
Yajiri maison by Yumi
📍 Address: Via Carlo Goldoni 36, Milano
🌐 website: www.yajirimaison.com | Instagram: @yajirimaison
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