Ima

The restaurant's name, Ima, translates from Japanese as "now" — and it's not just a nice tagline but a working concept running through everything, from how dishes are plated to the bar's philosophy. Located a few steps from Zaryadye Park on Varvarka, the restaurant is intimate in spirit and painstaking in execution. Chef Takumi Wada has devoted more than three decades to Japanese gastronomy, and it shows in every detail: in the work with dashi broth, in the aging of fish and meat, in the roughly 60°C temperature control, which becomes not a technical trick but part of the kitchen's ritual.

Our restaurant guide's team finds Ima a rare case where the venue's philosophy doesn't diverge from what happens on the plate.

The restaurant's ingredient base is built on targeted imports: tuna, wasabi, seaweed and rice come from Japan, while the rest of the ingredients are sourced from trusted Russian producers. The menu spans nigiri sushi, tataki, gyoza, udon, and dishes from the kushiyaki section. Among the notable items: unaju rice with eel, hamachi cheeks with pickled hajikami ginger shoots, and kinki nitsuke. A separate section is devoted to teppan, worked by Igor Kim in a specially set-aside area for five guests — a format that brings dinner closer to a private culinary performance.

The bar list is built with the same consistency as the kitchen. More than 37 kinds of sake, eight signature cocktails by Daniil Manusyants, around 250 wine labels with an emphasis on whites and sparkling — and hand-carved ice, a detail most guests won't notice but which speaks to the attention paid to craft. Drinks served with both hands isn't theater — it's part of the venue's overall rhythm.

The interior was designed by Evgenia Uzhegova's team. The space features motifs of Japanese shutters and tansu furniture, handmade vases, stone, fresh flowers and flame on the columns. A golden carp, a symbol of the moment placed at the ideological center of the decor, completes the image of a place that deliberately slows the pace and invites guests to focus on what's happening here and now.