A luxurious buffet befitting this sophisticated part of town.

If you’re looking for a reliable hotel chain in Japan, Dormy Inn is one of the country’s most reputable, with hot springs and breakfasts that champion local specialties, making them great value for money.

As the chain is known for championing local dishes and representing the regions in which they’re located, we were curious to find out what the Premium branch in Tokyo’s upscale Ginza district had to offer.

▼ So our reporter Maro booked an overnight stay there.

The branch goes by the official name “Shippo no Yu Dormy Inn Premium Ginza“, with “Shippo no Yu” (“Shippo Natural Hot Spring”) referring to the public bath on the first basement floor, which is filled with onsen water brought in daily from a natural hot spring in Sosa City, Chiba Prefecture.

▼ Having only opened in February 2023, this hotel, located a short five-minute walk from Higashi Ginza Station, is beautiful inside and out.

Maro booked a night in a single room, and was pleased to find the Japanese-style interiors extended from the hallways and into the rooms.

The Japanese vibe is even greater on the 12th floor — the top floor — where you’ll find rooms with traditional tatami mat flooring. The traditional feel can be felt throughout the building, and the floor for the public baths is particularly bright and relaxing.

The room and the baths were top-notch, and Maro also enjoyed the free ice cream bar and manga corner, located on the same floor as the hot springs.

▼ Another perk is the late-night soba for guests, a service offered at all Dormy Inns…

▼ …and the complimentary pudding in her refrigerator.

What Maro was most keen to try, though, was the buffet breakfast, and she got a chance to do that in the morning before checkout.

▼ Restaurant Hatago, open from 6:30 a.m.-9:30 a.m. (last orders 9:00 a.m.), serves a Japanese and Western buffet.

The breakfast buffet costs 2,300 yen (US$15.40) per person, which is a bit pricey, but this is Ginza, one of the most ritzy neighbourhoods in Tokyo so these rates aren’t surprising. What you get for your yen is definitely worth it, though, as the space has a luxury, Ginza-like vibe to it, and a live kitchen with a chef on hand to make omelettes to order.

Taking a look at the all-you-can-eat offerings proved this was no ordinary buffet, with luxury dishes like scallop and grapefruit carpaccio available.

Other options included Beetroot Potato Salad and Prosciutto and Mozzarella Cheese, which aren’t things you’d normally see at a hotel breakfast buffet.

The ultimate dish, however, was the Lobster Soup. When Maro initially headed over to it, she thought it was something ordinary like corn soup, so she was shocked to find it was lobster.

It’s not just the Western food that’s amazing — as this is hotel popular with inbound tourists, there’s also a full lineup of Japanese dishes, such as natto, onsen tamago, grilled yellowtail, and hiyayakko (chilled tofu with toppings).

Choosing everything that caught her fancy, Maro ended up with a variety of Japanese and Western dishes for her breakfast, with the star item being the golden box of food at the top right of her tray.

This is the Seafood Tamatebako, the local specialty at this Dormy Inn, which contains four dishes of luxury seafood in honour of the fact that the famous Tsukiji Outer Market, a famous wholesale fish market, is located nearby.

The contents vary depending on the season, but when Maro visited, she was treated to Salmon Roe Pickled in Soy Sauce, Crab, Oedo Seafood, and Squid Somen.

The Oedo Seafood contained pieces of tuna, sea bream, and yellowfin tuna, with the mullet providing a nice salty taste to the fresh flavours and it was so good there was no need to add any condiments like soy sauce. The crab and the salmon roe marinated in soy sauce tasted like dishes you’d get at a quality restaurant, and the squid with yuzu citrus was light and refreshing. The quality of the seafood was incredibly high, and worth the cost of the entire buffet.

The other dishes were just as delicious, with Maro having high praise for the freshly made fluffy omelette, which she combined with a side of broccoli and bacon.

Maro’s buffet was a colourful array of Western and Japanese food that looked absolutely delicious…but as she cast her eye over everything, she realised she’d made a rookie mistake.

▼ Why did she choose to eat bread alongside the Seafood Tamatebako?

Even someone with inquisitive tastes like Maro couldn’t quite make peace with the combination of bread and sushi-style seafood. It was a chaotic combination, so she redeemed herself by returning to the bar for a bowl of rice and then she re-heated her croissant with the fancy and expensive Bermuda toaster, so she could enjoy these two disparate dishes separately.

Once she returned to her table, she combined the remaining dishes from her tamatebako into one bowl and ate them with her rice, essentially creating a luxury seafood bowl.

It didn’t take her long to eat her morning feast, and she finished with the hot croissant and a cup of coffee, like she would at a classy Ginza cafe.

Dormy Inns truly are a great place to stay, and the Premium branches might be a step up in terms of luxury and price, but they’re still incredibly good value compared to other chains. You get a lot for your yen, so next time you’re looking to treat yourself to a stay with a fancy bath and breakfast, they’re definitely worth looking into!

Hotel information
Shippo no Yu Dormy Inn Premium Ginza / 七宝の湯 ドーミーインPremium銀座
Address: Tokyo-to, Chuo-ku, Ginza 6-16-8
東京都中央区銀座6－16－8
Website

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