Shikoku
This tiny, lovingly run place serves tasty set meals at lunchtime, then morphs into a jazz and wine bar serving top-quality otsumami (snacks) in the…
Must-see restaurants in Japan
Nagano Region
This extremely cute little cafe is up at the top of town where the locals boil eggs in the onsen water. Set-menu lunches (¥780) and light meals are the go…
Downtown Kyoto
This popular restaurant is a good place to try unagi (eel). You can choose to either sit downstairs with a nice view of the waterfall, or upstairs on the…
Kanazawa
Kanazawa institution Janome-sushi Honten has been known for sashimi and Kaga cuisine since 1931. Dinner omakase (chef's choice) menus start at ¥3000.
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Out serves only one dish – tagliolini al tartufo (egg noodles with truffles) – take it or leave it (we'll take it). The noodles are made from scratch in…
Tokyo
This is a classic Japanese-style steak house, where the meat is cooked at the counter on a teppan (iron hotplate), diced, then paired with rice, miso soup…
Sapporo
This famous alleyway in the Susukino entertainment district is crammed with ramen shops, including branches of several venerable Hokkaidō shops. It's been…
Harajuku & Aoyama
Commune is a food and event space, with a daily farmers market plus vendors selling fresh bread, curry, cold-pressed juice and herbal teas to eat and…
Asakusa & Sumida River
Chef Hosokawa Takashi grinds buckwheat fresh daily for the soba he kneads and cuts by hand. Get them in hot broth (kake-soba) or at room temperature on a…
Harajuku & Aoyama
Gyōza (dumplings) are the only thing on the menu here, but you won’t hear any complaints from the regulars who queue up to get their fix. Have them sui …
Tokyo
Those who subscribe to the Muji lifestyle will be delighted to know that the 'no name brand' experience goes beyond neutral-toned notebooks and linens…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Proving that Tokyo is only expensive for those who don't know better, this all-night joint serves up bamboo steamers of delicious noodles for just ¥320…
Ginza & Tsukiji
Come sample the delicious tamago-yaki (Japanese rolled-egg omelette) sold at this venerable purveyor conveniently on a stick. They come in a variety of…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Tokyo's best French bakery (it apparently imports the flour from the motherland) serves up sandwiches and pastries to take away or you can eat them in the…
Fukuoka
A humble-chic shokudō (everyday restaurant) run by some clever gourmets. The emphasis on fresh local ingredients means that the menu changes frequently;…
Harajuku & Aoyama
The weekend farmer's market, held in the plaza in front of the United Nations University on Aoyama-dōri, is Tokyo's best. Dozens of farmers come from…
Niseko
Niseko's most famous noodle shop is also famously hard to find, though its secluded location (accessed via a wooden boardwalk) is a big part of the appeal…
Tokyo
Given the wholesome, organic meals, heavy on vegetables and delicately seasoned with no additives, you'd assume Monk's Food was named for a humble priest…
Izu Peninsula
Fish brought in to neighbouring Futo port supply the pearlescent sashimi platters at this former fishing lodge dating back to the 17th century. 'Bora'…
Ueno & Yanesen
In business since 1925, Shinsuke has honed the concept of an ideal izakaya (Japanese pub-eatery) to perfection: long cedar counter, 'master' in happi …
Kansai
This antique-strewn century-old house is a wonderful place to sample Matsusaka's famous wagyū (Japanese beef). Lunch sets of sukiyaki (thin slices of beef…
Harajuku & Aoyama
Maisen is famous both for its tonkatsu (breaded, deep-fried pork cutlets) and its setting (an old public bathhouse). There are different grades of pork on…
Hokkaidō
OK, the food here isn't dramatically different from what a Japanese diner would serve, but you can get a donburi (rice bowl) topped with Hokkaidō venison…
Kōbe
This is a great place to try Kōbe beef prepared in a variety of styles, including teppanyaki or shabu-shabu (thinly sliced beef cooked with vegetables in…
Kii Peninsula
The speciality here is ochazuke, a bowl of rice and toppings over which hot tea is poured. Everyone's here for the popular katsuo ochazuke (¥1450), topped…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Come early for pastries, sandwiches and coffee (made with beans courtesy of either Fuglen or Little Nap, naturally); the croissants are famously good, but…
Kansai
In a hut overlooking the ocean, ama (professional, mostly female, shellfish divers) grill seafood lunches – including items from their morning haul – and…
Kagoshima
If your favourite way to enjoy kurobuta (Kagoshima-style black pork) is deep-fried, this institution does it in prodigiously crunchy crust, as tonkatsu …
Tokyo
A key ingredient of the stock dashi is flakes of katsuobushi (dried bonito), which the Nihombashi-based Ninben has been making and selling since 1699. The…
Kagoshima
Owner Reina-san doesn't speak much English but is a bundle of energy, reflected in her cosy, spirited, home-style izakaya on a Tenmonkan side street…
Roppongi, Akasaka & Around
Sougo is one of the few restaurants in Tokyo that prepares shōjin-ryōri (Japanese Buddhist vegetarian cuisine – what the monks eat). Not everything on the…
Kagoshima
Come here to try Kagoshima black pork at an affordable price. It's served several ways: shabu-shabu dipped in delectable broth with minced green onion;…
Roppongi, Akasaka & Around
Tokyo restaurants with camel, ostrich and kangaroo (that most non-African of marsupials) on the menu can be counted on one hand. Safari's speciality dish,…
Tokyo
Pokémon fans will find it hard to pass on this chance to sample Pikachu-themed food and drink, made with classic kyara-ben (character bentō) techniques …
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
It's easy to see why everyone loves this izakaya (Japanese pub-eatery): the young chefs put on a dramatic show in the open kitchen and the creative takes…
Downtown Kyoto
Decked out in replica swords and armour, this restaurant might not strike you as a place dedicated to world peace, yet the young owner here is passionate…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
Maru is a meal made easy: at lunch the restaurant does good grilled fish teishoku (set meals), among other things; in the evenings, courses with sashimi,…
Odaiba & Tokyo Bay
One of Tsukiji's most famous sushi restaurants has made the move to the new Toyosu Market. The course meal includes seven pieces of nigiri (hand-pressed)…
Fukuoka
Nobunaga is raucous and rowdy, and that's just the chefs. Choose from the menu or sit at the counter to point and order. Besides yakitori and other…
Harajuku & Aoyama
Maru has hit upon a sweet spot with its casual reinterpretation of kaiseki (Japanese haute cuisine). With the seven-course meal (which changes monthly)…
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