RFK Rankings · Amsterdam
Best Counter-Only Restaurants in Amsterdam 2026
Counters and omakase bars · Amsterdam · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published June 20, 2026 · Updated June 20, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
Yamazato earned a Michelin star in 2002 as the first traditional kaiseki room outside Japan, and you eat it at the counter, which is the idea behind this list: in Amsterdam the best counter seats are sushi, kaiseki, teppanyaki and robata rooms where the cooking happens inches away. From two starred rooms inside the Hotel Okura to omakase counters from 59 euros and the city's original ramen bar, these are the seats that face the chefs. Here is who each suits, what it costs, and how to book it. Six, ranked on the counter, the cooking and value.
1.Yamazato
The first starred kaiseki outside Japan, eaten at the counter. Book it for sushi and the seasons up close.
Yamazato sits inside the Hotel Okura on Ferdinand Bolstraat, and it was the first traditional kaiseki restaurant outside Japan to win a Michelin star, held since 2002. Head chef Masanori Tomikawa works the seasonal menu, and the sushi counter is where you watch sashimi and nigiri made in front of you. The kaiseki changes through the year, so the line-up tracks the season.
This is the booking for a diner who wants the counter format at the highest level in the city. Plan on around 100 euros and up, ask for counter rather than table seating when you book, and reserve about a week ahead.
Book a counter seat; ask for the seasonal kaiseki.
2.Sazanka
Europe's only starred teppanyaki, cooked on the counter griddle. Go for lobster and wagyu at the iron.
Sazanka, on the ground floor of the Hotel Okura, is billed as Europe's only Michelin-starred teppanyaki restaurant, with a star held since 2014 under chef de cuisine Kazuki Onodera. You sit at the counter griddle while the chef sears lobster, wagyu and vegetables in front of you, the classic teppanyaki format where the cooking is the show. It sits at the top fine-dining tier, so plan on 100 euros and up.
This is the booking for a diner who wants the drama of the iron rather than a quiet table. Reserve the counter ahead, and come hungry for the full set menu rather than a la carte.
Reserve the griddle counter; take the full set menu.
3.Ikkoku Omakase and Sake Bar
A robata counter with a 97-euro omakase. Go for A5 wagyu and bluefin cooked at arm's length.
Ikkoku runs an intimate omakase and robata counter on Ceintuurbaan in De Pijp, where chef Mitsuhiro Narita cooks over fire inches from the guests. The 97-euro omakase moves through A5 wagyu and bluefin nigiri, with the robata grill adding a smoky edge the sushi-only rooms do not have. The room is listed in the Gault and Millau guide for the Netherlands.
This is the booking for a diner who wants a counter with fire as well as a knife. There is no detail page for it on our guide yet, but the seat is worth the trip, so reserve ahead, since the counter is small and timed.
Book the counter; take the wagyu and bluefin omakase.
4.Ken Sushi
Twenty bites for 65 euros at a tight sushi bar. The value omakase of the city.
Ken Sushi began in 2019 and settled into its Geldersekade counter in 2023, run by chef-owner Ken Srisangkhan with his brother on the sous station. The omakase is 20 bites for 65 euros, with a 70-euro experience option and luxe upgrades, all prepaid, served piece by piece across an eighteen-seat bar. It is the most affordable serious omakase on this list.
This is the booking for a diner who wants a proper sushi counter without the hotel-tier bill. There is no detail page for it on our guide yet, so reserve online for an evening seat from Wednesday to Sunday.
Book online; take the 20-bite omakase.
5.Omakase Amsterdam
A 14-course nigiri counter for 59 euros. The entry point to omakase in the city.
Omakase Amsterdam runs a small counter on Ferdinand Bolstraat in De Pijp, where the team prepares a 14-course nigiri menu in front of guests over about two hours. At 59 euros it is the gentlest omakase price here, which makes it the easiest first counter for a diner new to the format. Seatings run Wednesday to Saturday.
This is the booking for a curious diner who wants the counter experience without committing to a three-figure bill. There is no detail page for it on our guide yet, and no award to point to, but the price and the format make it a fair introduction. Reserve ahead, since seats are limited.
Reserve a seating; take the 14-course menu.
6.Fou Fow Ramen
The original ramen bar, counter-forward and cheap. Go when you want the counter without the omakase bill.
Fou Fow Ramen opened in 2011 as the first ramen shop in Amsterdam, founded by Fow Pyng Hu, and it remains a counter-forward ramen bar on Elandsgracht. You eat the tonkotsu or a shoyu bowl at the bar for 11 to 13 euros, a different kind of counter from the omakase rooms but a counter all the same. There are no reservations, so you sign the list at the door.
This is the booking, or rather the walk-in, for a diner who wants the counter format at an everyday price. Come at opening or off-peak to skip the queue, and order the tonkotsu with a marinated egg.
Sign the list; eat the tonkotsu at the bar.
Not for a counter night
Skip if you want a counter: Taiko
Taiko is chef Schilo van Coevorden's acclaimed pan-Asian room in the Conservatorium Hotel, and the food is excellent, but it is a formal table-service dining room with no chef's counter or sushi bar. A diner set on counter seating will not find it here.
Book Taiko for a seated dinner, and choose Yamazato, Sazanka or one of the omakase counters above when you want to eat facing the chefs.
How to book an Amsterdam counter
Decide on the price tier first. The two Hotel Okura rooms, Yamazato and Sazanka, sit at the top, while Ikkoku, Ken Sushi and Omakase Amsterdam run the omakase counters from 59 to 97 euros. Fou Fow is the everyday counter for a fraction of either. Most omakase seats are prepaid and timed, so book days ahead.
Ask specifically for counter seating where a room has both, as Yamazato does, and arrive on time, since omakase seatings run to a fixed start. Three of these counters do not yet have a detail page on our guide, so reserve through each restaurant directly rather than looking for a city-page link.
Frequently asked
Which Amsterdam restaurant has the best omakase counter?
Yamazato in the Hotel Okura is the benchmark, the first traditional kaiseki room outside Japan to win a Michelin star, held since 2002. You sit at the counter while chef Masanori Tomikawa works the seasonal menu in front of you. Plan on 100 euros and up, and book a week ahead.
How much does omakase cost in Amsterdam?
There is a wide range. Omakase Amsterdam runs a 14-course counter for 59 euros and Ken Sushi a 20-bite menu from 65, while Ikkoku charges 97 for its wagyu and bluefin counter. The two Hotel Okura rooms, Yamazato and Sazanka, sit at the top tier, where you should plan on 100 euros and up.
What is a counter-only restaurant?
It is a room where the seating is a counter or bar rather than tables, so you eat facing the chefs. In Amsterdam that means sushi and kaiseki at Yamazato, a teppanyaki griddle at Sazanka, robata and omakase at Ikkoku, and a ramen bar at Fou Fow. The format puts the cooking inches away.
Do counter restaurants in Amsterdam take walk-ins?
Mostly no. The omakase counters at Yamazato, Sazanka, Ken Sushi, Ikkoku and Omakase Amsterdam are prepaid or pre-booked, often days ahead, because each seating is timed. Fou Fow Ramen is the exception, a true walk-in ramen bar where you sign the list at the door and wait for a stool.
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Browse the full Amsterdam dining guide, compare the best counter-only restaurants worldwide, see the Amsterdam walk-ins ranking, or open the full RFK rankings index.
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