Get a reservation for Thanksgiving at Midtown
While you can!
The alternative could be another year of expat Thanksgiving disasters.
You know the scene. Someone's cramped apartment, the microwave whirring in circular bewilderment. Carol (not her real name) proudly unveiling "mashed potatoes" she made by heating up potato salad from Lawson.
Canadian Bob desperately grabbing yakimo from a street cart and topping it with crumbled Pocky for "sweet potato casserole." And poor Nigel from Someplace-Upon-Sea, simmering a package of nikujaga until it disintegrated, then announcing it "proper gravy."
We've all been there.
This Year Get The Real Thing!
This year, skip the conbini workarounds and questionable substitutions. Midtown BBQ is laying out a proper Thanksgiving feast – the kind that makes your tastebuds remember home without having to slave over a single-burner conro or wash a mountain of dishes.
The welcome drink comes first – craft beer, wine, cocktail, your call.
Then comes an autumn salad with seasonal fruit, nuts, and house-made dressing that actually tastes like fall. The main event: roast turkey with that smokehouse magic only Midtown delivers, real mashed potatoes with actual butter, stuffing that doesn't come from a box, cranberry sauce that walks the perfect line between tart and sweet. All of it swimming in proper gravy.
The finale? Fresh pumpkin pie with real whipped cream.
No Pocky crust this year.
Living abroad means we aren't always with family for the holidays. It's hard to get in the spirit without the smells and tastes that make Thanksgiving what it is – a holiday about sharing, not just giving and receiving.
But in late November, the usual brisket smoke at Midtown will give way to sage and turkey. Outside, the Nayabashi Bridge lights scatter across the Hori River like autumn leaves.
Inside, warm light bounces off exposed brick and wood while families do the "what are you thankful for" thing, solo diners nurse their third beer, and at least one table of Japanese colleagues discover what cranberry sauce is supposed to taste like.
Robb Shannon brought the Canadian smoke magic to Nagoya, but it's Nila, the manager, who brings the fire. Every night he and his staff make sure everyone from the homesick American to the curious local feels like they belong at this table.
Meanwhile, across town, the Colonel's minions are pimping buckets of Christmas chicken to people freezing in lines. In a Santa suit.
But you? You're here, where they've been doing the real cooking.
The Details
Midtwon BBQ
Thanksgiving Dinner 2025
Dates: Nov. 27 (Thu) to Nov. 29 (Sat)
Times: 17:00 / 18:00 / 19:00 / 20:00
Price: ¥6,000 per person (tax included)
Whole turkey takeout available
¥20,000 (advance reservation essential)
Note: Reservations strongly advised
(like ASAP)
Reservations: Book HERE!
Midtown BBQ Nagoya
5-24-3 Nakamura-ku
Nagoya
Website
Tel: (052) 898-5080
Access
By Subway:
Higashiyama Line (H08)
Exit 1, walk west
Sakura-dori Line (S02)
Exit 1, walk west
Nagoya Station - 8 min walk
JR Lines:
Sakura-dori Exit, walk west on Meieki-dori
By Car:
From Nagoya Expressway: Meiekiminami exit, head north on Meieki-dori
Parking
Coin parking available (Times Meieki 5-chome, 2 min walk)
Note: Parking is not complimentary – nearby coin lots only, no validation
MAP
#NagoyaEats #ThanksgivingJapan #MidtownBBQ #NagoyaFoodie #ExpatLife #名古屋グル
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