5 reasons you’ll have a good time at the restaurants in Tokyo’s two Sequence hotels

Tucked away on the fifth floor of the Sequence hotel overlooking Shibuya’s trendy Miyashita Park is Twelve On The Park, a distinctly New York-inspired restaurant serving Italian–American fare. Ample dark wood and a soothing colour scheme featuring shades of cream and blue lend this airy space a sense of elegance. Large windows allow the restaurant to bathe in natural light during the day and offer a twinkling street vista after dark.

The menu focuses on pasta, steak and grilled seafood – nothing out of the ordinary at first sight, but a closer look reveals a dedication to local produce and craftsmanship. To name but a few examples, Twelve On The Park’s mozzarella comes courtesy of Hibiya’s Good Cheese Good Pizza, whose cheese is made from milk fresh from a farm in the western Tokyo suburb of Kiyose, while the Tokyo Cowboy butcher shop in Yoga provides the restaurant with top-quality wagyu. Completing the spread of made-in-Tokyo flavours is a lengthy selection of craft gin from Toranomon Distillery, which can be sampled in full at the bar.

The other Sequence restaurant in Tokyo sits pretty by the Kanda River, only seconds away from the west exit of Suidobashi Station. Fittingly for its location in the inner city district best known for the Tokyo Dome, the matter-of-factly named Kanpai Terrace draws in sports fans with a safe-bets-only burger menu and a big screen that dominates the eatery’s titular open-air seating area.

Football is the sport of choice here, despite its proximity to Japanese baseball’s command centre, and you can watch matches from the J.League and assorted European leagues alfresco throughout the warm season. On any of summer’s many balmy evenings, it’s worth staying on the terrace long past the final whistle, sipping a cold beer or glass of wine while enjoying the river breeze.

There’s an undeniable contrast between Tokyo’s overall culinary excellence and its sometimes underwhelming breakfast and brunch scene. But the delicious morning meals are there, if you know where to look – starting with the Sequence restaurants. Both Twelve On The Park and Kanpai Terrace serve sumptuous breakfast to hotel guests and non-guests alike from 7am daily.

In Shibuya, ¥2,970 gets you unlimited trips to the salad buffet, free-refill drinks and a choice of hearty, mouth-wateringly colourful main dish – highlights among the seven options are a veggie burger packed with seasonal greens, eggs benedict with soft ricotta pancakes, and a butter chicken curry that comes with ample grilled vegetables. The kids’ plate, an assortment of favourites like a fluffy pancake, sausages and creamy scrambled eggs, is also sure to satisfy. 

Nutritious sandwiches, meanwhile, are the name of the breakfast game in Suidobashi. Kanpai Terrace’s ¥1,500 morning deal contains one of these as well as soup, yoghurt and unlimited drinks, including Sequence’s exclusive blend of coffee provided by noted Kyoto roasters Ogawa Coffee.

Congestion at Suidobashi Station after the end of a match or gig at Tokyo Dome often veers towards the unbearable. The smart move is to wait out the crowds over a drink or nibble nearby, and Kanpai Terrace makes the ideal refuge for this purpose.

You can watch fellow concert-goers or sports fans cram into the station across the road while enjoying a sweet evening treat: parfaits combining tea and seasonal fruit (matcha and strawberries, for example) are a recent addition to the restaurant’s all-day menu. Changed up every two months, these indulgent desserts are as pretty as they are delicious and go surprisingly well with a cocktail or some wine.

Finding an accommodating place for a family meal in Shibuya can be tricky if you aren’t familiar with the area. Twelve On The Park rides to the rescue of anyone with a little one in tow: most seats have ample room for prams, and there’s also a round table with high back sofas that offer a measure of privacy for guests dining together with a baby. Children’s meals can be customised on request, too.

If your kids like trains, the best seats in the house can be found on one side of the bar area, where a picture window looks out on the railway tracks next to Miyashita Park. Book this table for the chance to enjoy your meal in (relative) peace while your offspring keep busy spotting the Yamanote and Saikyo line trains rolling by. (Note that table requests are accepted only for lunchtime reservations.)

For more details on the Sequence restaurants, see the websites for Twelve On The Park and Kanpai Terrace.

Tip for travellers to Kyoto: Sequence also runs the Kyoto Gojo hotel, whose restaurant The Taste offers a similar experience to Tokyo’s Sequence restaurants in the ancient capital.