Menu
IMA is a Japanese cuisine chamber restaurant in the heart of Moscow, near Zaryadye Park. The name translates from Japanese as "now" — not just a point in time, but a state of full engagement in the moment. We create an experience where taste becomes an anchor that holds reality here and today. In Japanese culture, "now" is the purity of perception, and we suggest living it through food. The kitchen is built on fundamental principles: respect for seasonality, perfect dashi broth, precise knife work and impeccable temperature control. Each ingredient is served at its peak (shun), each texture is calibrated to the second. The menu includes sashimi, nigiri, robata and teppana grilled dishes, wagyu, tempura and noodles.
The bar at the IMA is an equal stage for the philosophy of presence. Here, the master masters the art of Japanese bar culture: hand-cutting ice, serving with both hands, pauses between sips. The list includes more than 35 varieties of sake, a collection of traditional teas (sencha, gyokuro, matcha), signature cocktails and about 250 wines with an emphasis on elegant white and champagne. In the interior, stone speaks of eternity, flowers — of transience. There is a void (ma) between them, where a meeting with oneself is born. The space is inspired by Japanese shutters, tansu furniture, and boro crafts. IMA is a place where time flows differently. Because all we have is now.
IMA Chef Takumi Wada-san has devoted more than thirty years to Japanese gastronomy. For him, taste does not exist outside of time: it is born at the moment when the product reaches its peak (shun), when the dashi broth is infused just as much as needed, when the fish meets the rice at the ideal temperature. Wada-san doesn't just work with ingredients—he works with the moment, capturing it through texture, balance, and purity.
His approach is based on the fundamental principles of traditional cuisine: respect for seasonality, delicate knife work, uncompromising control of every degree. He doesn't add too much, because he knows that perfection is not in complexity, but in precision. That is why every dish here becomes not just a meal, but a stopped moment that the guest lives in the here and now.
Food and drinks at IMA are not just a set of positions, but a continuation of the philosophy of presence. Each category offers its own way to live "now": through purity of taste, temperature, texture, or serving ritual. There are no random details here, just what works at the moment.
Teppan-yaki is the Japanese art of cooking food on a steel stove right in front of you. No hidden kitchens or cold plates: you see every stage, control the process, and get a dish from the heat, just taken off the heat. It's a live meal where trust in the chef becomes a part of the evening, and magic happens just a few centimeters from your plate.
Our chef Igor Lee learned to work on teppan from craftsmen from Japan and devoted more than 20 years to this art. His movements have been honed over the years, and his understanding of the product is laid down by the school itself — the one where the cook not only cooks, but conducts a dialogue with the guest through steel and flame.
Before starting, Igor will discuss the menu with you: he will take into account tastes, allergies and the desired degree of roasting so that everyone is satisfied.
The dishes will be served with pauses, like chapters in a book. The chef will comment on each ingredient and suggest the perfect drink for the moment.
The main advantage of teppan is that you decide when your dish is ready. And the instant serving preserves the texture, temperature, and that vibrant taste worth returning for.
