Here is the RecipeTin Family insiders guide to theTop 10 BEST foods in Tokyo, Japan!
This is a personal list put together by the RecipeTin Family, after much agonising and bickering!
Top 10 Foods to Eat in Tokyo!
The problem with food in Tokyo is that theres so darn much of it and its all SO GOOD!
In fact, it ishard to find bad foodin Tokyo.
You might come across the occasionalits okornot to my taste.But actual badly made food?
Were yet to find any!
With so much food, so many choices, and so little time, what should you eat?
And where should you eat it?
Welcome to the RecipeTin Eats Top 10 Foods to Eat in Tokyo!
Tokyo the food capital of the world!
For many, food is one of the top reasons to visit Japan.
If youve found our site, it probably in factisthe top reason youre going to Japan!
Here, the very best of nearly anything can be found whether Japanese or foreign.
Tokyo is also where our family is fromand the city we know best when it comes to eating!
So here it is: RecipeTin EatsTop Ten Foods to Eat in Tokyoand where to try them!
For us, high end dining is not our bread-and-butter (so to speak!)
when we eat out in Japan.
We wholeheartedly recommend trying at least one Michelin or fine dining experience while youre visiting.
Sushi
The food that is most associated with Japan is in no short supply in Tokyo.
Put simply: There is sushi in the rest of the world and then there is sushi in Japan.
We love this sushi restaurant because its a rare find that ticks all our boxes.
Great service and efficiency?
Excellent variety with some special offerings beyond the usual?
Good prices and value for money?
No wonder long queues form outside each day.
Originally from Fukuoka, Ichiran have expanded nationwide to 60+ stores over the years.
In Tokyo alone there are over a dozen branches.
The broth is deeply flavoursome and rich yet at the same time somehow amazingly delicate.
This is the ramen of your piggy noodle soup dreams.
Ichiran have a unique seating arrangement where diners at the counter sit separated from one another by dividers.
It gives the diner a sensation of being in perhaps a confessional, a voting booth or an exam.
If you have room for only one ramen in Tokyo, make it this one.
Address: 7 Chome-1-1 Ueno, Taito-ku, Tokyo.
Curry is one great example.
We joined the line atJoto Curryrecently on a hunch to see what the fuss was all about.
One mouthful and we instantly understood why Joto Curry is such a local hit.
The only thing we didnt like?
It comes with enough rice to feed a sumo, so wear stretchy pants.
Appreciation of offal is also a part of Japanese food culture.
Going out for yakitori in the evening is a social gathering as much as a meal.
For us this is our favourite way to enjoy this iconic Japanese food.
Where to eat yakitori:Yakitori restaurants inside Omoideyokocho (Memory Lane), Shinjuku.
Youll smell the smoke from barbecuing meat before you even arrive, wafting from the little shops within.
Many are tiny, seating maybe just 8 or so people.
Address: 1 Chome-2 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, TokyoWebsite
5.
Both these types of restaurants offer a variety of cuts, grades and sometimes provenances of beef to try.
Its true that wagyu beef is very expensive.
However you dont have to go overboard with spending.
With meat as rich as this, a little goes a long way.
Where to eat wagyu beef:Mansei, Akihabara
Niku noManseiis serious about beef.
The higher floors serve yakiniku, sukiyaki, shabu-shabu, and teppanyaki on the top floor where we went.
Here we had what is hands down the best beef we have probably ever eaten.
The very besttonkatsuhas an amazingly crispy but not oily crust.
Every ingredient for the tonkatsu at Maisen is carefully prepared from scratch.
Maisens remains hands-down the best we tonkatsu we have ever tried.
The Aoyama branch is the original, with a few other locations around the city including two in Shibuya.
Dont miss: Kurobuta tonkatsu loin set
Address: 4 Chome-8-5 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.
Soba
Hand made soba is a thing of beauty.
Soba can be eaten hot or cold.
While plain soba is perfectly reasonable, accompaniments are usually offered alongside the soba.
The rich and crunchy tempura is the perfect counterpoint to the chilled noodles dipped in soba sauce.
Otherwise, be prepared to queue.
Tempura
If there is one eating experience in Japan wed recommend splurging on, we think its tempura.
But a meal at a real tempura restaurant is a universe apart.
Various meal formats are available.
They range from simpletendon(tempura on a rice bowl) sets at lunch, to the most elaborateomakaseoption.
If choosing theomakasemenu, the ingredients are selected by the chef.
Each morsel is so finely fried at Tenmatsu they barely leave a trace of oil on the paper.
Prices are very reasonable, with meal options to suit all ranges of budgets.
High quality unagi is always grilled over charcoal.
The eel is painted with a thick, sweet glaze calledtareand served over rice.
This might include deep-fried bones or the liver served in soup.
Unagi is expensive but most restaurants will offer different portion sizes which are priced accordingly.
If you feel like a more standard introduction to unagi, there are simpler sets.
Servings are generous and come with a fair bit of rice, so youre sure to be full.
Yoshoku
Yoshokuliterally means Western food but refers specifically to Japanese-style Western food.
The result is unique dishes that at once familiar yet distinctly Japanese.
Tonkatsu and Japanese curry, covered above, also come under theyoshokuumbrella.
Where to eat yoshoku:Rakeru, Shibuya
Rakeruis ayoshokurestaurant that has been around since the 1960s.
The kitsch interior and waitresses in cutesy maid uniforms is apparently supposed to channel anAlice In Wonderlandtheme.
Roast chicken, roast beef, soup and the like are also available.
Dont miss:Omuricewith hamburger and demi-glace sauce
Address: B1F 1 Chome-12-9 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.
Asakusa/Shinjuku/Shibuya/Harajuku/Tokyo Station/Imperial Palace/Ginza/Ueno/Akihabara
See our Tokyo Guide!
Also, dont miss our overarching, ultimateTokyo Travel Guide!
This a culmination of a lifetime of travelling to Tokyo, condensed into one place!
