Location: Tokyo
Top Restaurants in Tokyo
Tokyo Food Guide: 10 Must-Eat Restaurants & Street Food Stalls in Tokyo
Tradition collides with pop culture in Tokyo, where you can reverently wander ancient temples before rocking out at a karaoke bar. Wake up before the sun to catch the lively fish auction at the Tsukiji Market, then refresh with a walk beneath the cherry blossom trees that line the Sumida River. Spend some time in the beautiful East Gardens of the Imperial Palace, then brush up on your Japanese history at the Edo-Tokyo Museum. Don’t forget to eat as much sushi, udon noodles, and wagashi (Japanese sweets) as your belly can handle.
Things to do in Tokyo
1. Yamazaki
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 314 reviews
Reviewed By alanthegreat - Singapore, Singapore
This is my 2nd visit since 2011. The chef changed, the restaurant did not, so did the quality of sushi too. Now their menu has more variety, with pictures and captioned in English. Price is also more transparent and competitive. I'm surprised that the queue here isn't longer than the other 2 sushi bars along the same row, when the ratings on google and Tripadvisor showed this is actually higher rated.
A bit about this sushi bar, the chef prepares the sushi on the spot and asked for preference of wasabi or sweet sauce to be added on the sushi. The fish served is very fresh, and the fish sizes are quite adequate, not those which are thinly sliced. The chef would introduce each sushi and the type of fish it is when he is serving it. Ala carte menu is available if you do not want to try unfamiliar sushi from the set meals or Omakase meals.
Highly recommended sushi bar and I won't bet myself against coming here a third time when I visit Tokyo again.
2. Sushiryori Inose
Overall Ratings
5 based on 201 reviews
Reviewed By SinedVincennes - Fontenay-sous-Bois, France
Just a perfect typical sushi bar with very limited capacity
Products are super fresh , the sushi chef is the owner and his wife is serving, perfect match. , local customers and foreigner due to TA, they do not speak English but are trying ! Be careful cash only no credit card , price is high but Ok as the quality is high too. A must try place if you are in the area
3. Kikko
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 170 reviews
Reviewed By Kamen_777 - Sofia, Bulgaria
Surprise, surprise!
In one of the most crowded, most touristy places of Tokyo, there is this totally un-touristic, down-to-earth, traditional restaurant that is actually more of a performance hall :-)
Their location is a small Japanese wooden house. Very old school, very charming and very authentic!
Their bento lunch is equally authentic, high-quality and very thoughtfully selected. It showed the beauty, variety and rich culture of Japanese home cooking.
The only downside to this - you need to order ahead in time. You have no chance getting seated as a walk in from the street!
So take your time to reserve in advance!
The whole experience comes to its climax when the owner starts playing the banjo. I knew he would do that and I expected a nice tourist performance.
Instead, we experienced a real musician with 40 years of experience with his instrument, giving us a very real performance on a very professional level!
In a way, I’d even say that this is a very professional music hall, matched by equally good food :-)
And last but not least: the owner/musician is just as pleasant and nice person as almost everyone else noted. So is his whole team!
So neither the banjo performance, nor the equally excellent food are to be missed!
4. Tapas Molecular Bar
Overall Ratings
5 based on 468 reviews
Reviewed By Globetrekker2303 - Singapore, Singapore
Me and my wife have had the honour and privilege of dining in many of Tokyo's finest restaurants including those with three Michelin stars. The quality of food, the level of service, the presentation of the meal has been exceptional at many of these places and yet our experience at Tapas Molecular Bar was indeed our most memorable so far and which will remain with us for a long time.
And that is primarily because of the one on one interaction with the chef which made the entire dining experience unique.
The Tapas Molecular Bar has only 8 counter seats and each of the guests can get to interact with the chef Kento Ushikogo who is more than happy to share how he conceived every dish, the various ingredients used, the techniques deployed in cooking them all with a dash of humour!!
It is as if the whole kitchen has come to the fore and the guests are allowed to partake in the whole process from the preparations to the plate.
As can be seen from the pictures, each dish is unique and bears his signature - from the chestnut with Foie gras to the often pictured cigar to the dessert cooked in liquid nitrogen which leaves you fuming like a dragon bellowing fire.
After dinner he said they change their menu every three to four months. We for sure are returning for more!!
5. Hakushu
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 558 reviews
Reviewed By Graeme D - Edinburgh, United Kingdom
I'll admit - I booked this place just because it was number 1 in Tokyo at the time, and it very much did not disappoint. Incredible beef, cooked to perfection right in front of you. An experience not to be forgotten.
Reservation is recommended - I emailed our hotel in advance to ask them to book us a table and they did so no bother.
6. Ise Sueyoshi
Overall Ratings
5 based on 279 reviews
Ise Sueyoshi is a private Japanese restaurant in Tokyo. Placed between Roppongi and Hiroo. We serving traditional "Kaiseki"style Japanese cuisine with English guide. The owner trained in "Kikunoi" restaurant. After trained,spend a year in Tronto,Canada and trained around the world. Returning to Japan with a desire to 'disseminate Japanese cuisine as a part of this country's culture', he headed back to his native Mie to form connections with farmers and other producers. Blessed with the ample fruits of both the Mountains and the sea, the prefecture has long been known as a treasure trove of foodstuffs. He finally opened his own place in 2015, focusing on ingredients from the ancient city of Ise.<br><br>Kappo Ise Sueyoshi in the heart of Tokyo is ideal for enjoying the four seasons of Japan.<br><br><br>Message from Merchant<br>*RESERVATION ONLY (via Website) <br>· Please refrain from using high school children. <br>· Credit card required for reservation. <br>※ Credit available (VISA, MASTER, JCB, AMEX, Diners)
Reviewed By Saint-Exupery_I - Madrid, Spain
We chose this place for a very special reservation. And it was perfect ! Small and secret restaurant with tasting menu. Every dish was explained perfectly, superb ingredients and presentation and perfect tastes. We took the sake option with the menu and we could discover the amazing and complex world of sake.
The service was perfect, the owner and his wife were very kind and nice. They had a nice and lovely detail for ending our celebration.
They are number one just because they deserved !
Summing up: feel like being at home tasting a superb and real Japanese food !
7. Nabezo, Shinjuku East Entrance
Overall Ratings
5 based on 415 reviews
Reviewed By Robbie C - Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom
We picked Nabezo for dinner on the first night of our two week trip to Japan (28th Jan) for my partner's birthday.
This place is great - the staff have excellent English skills (very useful for two just-arrived Gaijin!) and took a lot of time to explain how things worked, including taking us over to the buffet bar area to explain what *every single food item and mysterious-looking sauce* was.
We picked a few different drinks and the bottomless pork / beef shabu shabu, and it arrived really quickly along with everything else we'd ordered. The staff were extremely attentive at all times and it felt like it took seconds for new drinks to arrive.
Saying "shabu shabu" with the staff member every time you swished the meat through the broiling water with your chopsticks was novel for about ten seconds (ignore me, I'm just miserable), but the food itself was of good quality at a very reasonable price when you consider this is #1 in the area.
The (signed with my partner's name) dessert was brought out to us by a few staff who all sang Happy Birthday.
A lovely time was had for the couple of hours we were there, and I'd definitely recommend this to anyone else in the area. Good food, excellent service at a really reasonable price.
8. Glutenfree Cafe Littlebird
Overall Ratings
5 based on 230 reviews
Reviewed By JanetDP - Ontario, Canada
I had no idea that this place was gluten free until I looked up more information about it online. The Japanese know how to do gluten free it seems --- I have no gluten problems but the food I ate did not taste that fake-yucky way 99.9999% of gluten-free foods back in North America --- they need to come to Canada and teach them how to do it!
The desserts were amazing and the fried chicken so crunchy I almost broke a tooth ... in a good way.
WONDERFUL staff as I was lost and alone in Shibuya and just happened to wander in.
9. Han no Daidokoro Kadochika
Overall Ratings
5 based on 630 reviews
Reviewed By azad-musafir - Karachi, Pakistan
Having visited the Bettei branch the day before, we wanted to make sure we tried Kadochika as well. Our concierge had mistakenly booked us at Bettei but Hiro at reception was most obliging and made a special effort to get us seated despite the long line. Our experience just went up from there.
The place has a mist welcoming vibe and cheerful atmosphere despite the basement location. Every seat was full with diners really enjoying themselves and staff at the top of their game with "hai!" exchanged liberally between all present.
We ordered an assortment of beef after careful consideration of the menu. We needn't have bothered thinking about it so much; every cut was exceptional. Done medium rare on the table grill, the meet simply dissolved. Since butter in the mouth is now a cliche this meat was more like olive oil; no need to chew. The taste was remarkable especially since the only seasoning was salt and a pinch of black pepper. We could not get enough ordering a second round right away. Since we were sat next to the counter, the chef offered some complimentary cuts for us to try. But we were already converted.
The accompaniments were fresh and flavourful and complimented the meat perfectly.
Not much more to say but just go if you want to experience the best beef ever in one of the most welcoming and gracious places in Tokyo.
10. Han no Daidokoro
Overall Ratings
5 based on 179 reviews
Reviewed By Sorlen123 .
My first meal in Japan after traveling 10,000 miles. Worth it. Could not have been any happier.. you got to visit.
