Shido Brings Japanese Dining Back to Makati Shangri-La Manila
For many Manila diners, Japanese food at Makati Shangri-La has long been associated with Inagiku. Even years after its closure, the restaurant remains one of those names that inevitably surfaces whenever conversations turn to the city’s great Japanese dining rooms.
Finally this July, occupying the former Inagiku space is the awaited Shido, which marks Makati Shangri-La’s renewed commitment to Japanese cuisine through a concept that feels contemporary without abandoning the fundamentals. Shido does not attempt to recreate Inagiku, nor should it, but for those who have missed having a serious Japanese restaurant inside the hotel, its arrival offers something that has been absent for far too long.
The restaurant’s name, derived from the Japanese word shidō (始動), means “starting in motion,” a fitting description for a dining room designed to evolve through seasonal menus, guest chef collaborations, and changing culinary experiences rather than remaining fixed in time.
At its helm is Executive Japanese Chef Daisuke Nishimura, whose career has taken him through kitchens in Hong Kong, Bali, and Thailand before arriving in Manila. That international experience informs the menu without overwhelming it. The cooking remains recognizably Japanese, grounded in technique and ingredient quality rather than novelty.
The restaurant is divided into several distinct experiences: a sushi counter, teppanyaki, a Japanese bar, a spacious main dining room, and the robatayaki grill.
It is here that Shido makes its clearest statement. Robatayaki, the centuries-old method of grilling over charcoal, has always rewarded restraint more than complexity. Fish, seafood, meats, and vegetables emerge lightly kissed by smoke emanating from charcoal flown in from Japan, allowing the quality of the ingredients to remain the focus.
The sushi is precise and confidently executed, while the teppanyaki offers the familiar theatre expected from the format without becoming overly performative. Throughout the menu, there is a welcome sense of balance. Shido is less interested in reinvention than in consistency, a philosophy that suits both the cuisine and the hotel.
One detail that may particularly interest long-time patrons of Makati Shangri-La is the possibility of a Sunday Japanese buffet. While nothing has been finalized, the hotel is exploring the idea. Should it move forward, it would undoubtedly resonate with diners who remember Inagiku’s celebrated buffet lunches, which became something of a weekend institution for many Manila families.
That sense of continuity ultimately becomes Shido’s greatest strength. It acknowledges the history of the space without relying on nostalgia as its only appeal. Instead, it offers something more enduring: a well-executed Japanese restaurant that feels equally suited to a business lunch, an unhurried dinner, or a celebratory meal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Shido is Makati Shangri-La’s new Japanese restaurant, offering sushi, robatayaki, teppanyaki, a Japanese bar, and all-day dining under the direction of Executive Japanese Chef Daisuke Nishimura.
The robatayaki is the restaurant’s standout experience. Cooked over traditional charcoal, the grilled seafood, meats, and vegetables showcase Japanese cooking at its most restrained and ingredient-driven.
Not yet. Makati Shangri-La is exploring the possibility of introducing a Sunday Japanese buffet similar to the one long associated with Inagiku, but no plans have been finalized.
Shido is located on Level 2 of the Makati Shangri-La, Manila, at the corner of Ayala Avenue and Makati Avenue, Makati City, and is open daily for lunch from 11:30am to 2:30pm and dinner fromm 6pm to 10:30pm. Reserve a table here. Contact: (63 2) 8813 8888