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On ‎12‎/‎6‎/‎2017 at 10:16 AM, iolaire said:

It was a set meal with multiple courses.  You pick one of three courses and we both went with the most expensive option that included wagyu beef.  Our 

This should have been corrected before I could no longer edit the post as no set menu had three courses, each had way more:

It was as set meal, each version with numerous courses.  You pick on of three set menus, we both went with the most expensive option that included wagyu beef.

 

 

 

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On ‎11‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 9:18 AM, Simul Parikh said:

Trying to do research for Japan trip and I'm getting really overwhelmed. Any good way to break it down and figure out must-eats or a focus? We want 1) amazing sushi 2) amazing ramen/noodle soups 3) weird stuff.

We have 3-4 days in Niseko when we are skiing, and my friend has gone and has places in mind, so I think we are fine there.

Then 1 dinner in Sapporo on the way to Asahikawa. Any great ideas for the one meal here? Seafood/sushi seem to be specialties. 

Then 2 days in Asahikawa.

Then 3 days in Tokyo. That's the main spot. I want to go to a nicer (but not the top dollar, would like it to be $200-250, rather than $300-350) sushi omekase, lunch at Tsukiji, various ramen/noodle shops, the Robot show, and other weird stuff. Is it worthwhile to do a food tour? They work out well in most other Asian countries I've been to, so thinking one day for that. Also, yakitori. And tonkatsu. And maybe a legit izakaya. Any recs? I know a lot of people say that if you walk around in the neighborhood and follow the lines, you'll inevitably get good food, but this is how that makes me feel.  

If someone could make a fairly idiot proof itinerary for 3 days in Tokyo, I would be forever indebted to you and give cancer treatment advice to you for free forever. Eh. I'd probably do that any way. But, still. 

Hope this is not too late. Sushi Ten is a great value with excellent sushi in a lively atmosphere. I have been there twice and much prefer it to Kyube and some other place run by an apprentice of the Sushi Giro chef. You can talk at Sushi Ten while it is almost prohibited at the super high end places. Kadawaki  is always the place my wife and I eat on our last night in Tokyo. It is now 2 stars and as good as ever.      

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So we're thinking about a week-long trip to Japan next year, this time without the kids!  Which, food-wise, opens up tons of options that weren't available during our prior visit.

Of course, high-end sushi is at the top of the list.  I can totally live with not experiencing any of the two or three-starred Ginza places.  Based on the initial research thus far, the impression that I get is that an inability to interact with non-English speaking sushi chefs about the fish/nigiri/etc. being served -- and of course we don't speak Japanese -- will inevitably limit how great the dining experience can be.  Does that sound about right?

P.S.  We actually have no prior experience dining at sushi counters, whether in DC or elsewhere, so it seems like that has to change as well before our trip, otherwise it would likely be a waste of time and money to want the high-end sushi experience in Tokyo.

 

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17 hours ago, silentbob said:

Based on the initial research thus far, the impression that I get is that an inability to interact with non-English speaking sushi chefs about the fish/nigiri/etc. being served -- and of course we don't speak Japanese -- will inevitably limit how great the dining experience can be.  Does that sound about right?

P.S.  We actually have no prior experience dining at sushi counters, whether in DC or elsewhere, so it seems like that has to change as well before our trip, otherwise it would likely be a waste of time and money to want the high-end sushi experience in Tokyo.

There is significant issue for local restaurants and non-English speaking sushi chefs which is that it is difficult with getting an accurate impression how much you are willing to spend. It is important to keep in mind that a lot of places that you will 'find' have already been visited by foreigners and unfortunately sometimes there have been issues with them complaining about the bill. Again a lot of places don't have a menu or written out price list so the bill is when you find out how much things cost and it is easy to go from $100 to $300 per person. 

Once I traveled to a local sushi place in northern Tokyo that was highly rated. Even the review spoke of it's unique status as it was more a local neighborhood place that had grown over the years in stature. I actually walked past the door 2-3 times before finding it. Once inside, the owner and kitchen staff were surprised to see a foreigner and actually thru broken communication asked how I heard about it. As I sat down at the counter, they communicated to me the price of the box lunch which was reasonable for such a high end place. I thought I would be able to order more pieces. That was not the case. This establishment didn't take credit cards so I had traveled there with yen in the amount of $500 US dollars. The lunch was only $40. 

This place was old school and the sushi chef even at the time 15 years ago was in his late 60s so plainly he ran his establishment in that vein. The two men next to me having lunch clearly were regulars and were eating the most interesting pieces of sushi right off the counter. Also they didn't make any payment when leaving so they must have had a monthly bill arriving in the mail or by some other means. 

I'm not saying this as warning but rather to acknowledge some difficulty that exists when going off the beaten path. Keep in mind, the younger generation of chefs will most likely have someone on staff who can speak rudimentary English if not fluent but it would be helpful to have some learned or written phrases with how much you would like to spend if the restaurant does not take credit cards. 

We're hoping to make a trip to Japan next year and I plan to use Tablelog as it looks a great resource. 

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I didn't write up my trip from February but there are some thing it would have been nice to know. It is the most incredible place to eat that I've ever been to, beats Thailand and the parts of China that I've been to (well, except Chengdu). 

- Sushi - the very best of the best in Japan (Michelin 1 star or higher) essentially don't exist in US. We had a lot of sushi. The average sushi tends to be better than the best of ours, and there are very few restaurants that make poor sushi. Also, many of our restaurants just randomly have sushi on the menu (despite not being Japanese, or hell, Asian) and do a crap job. That's not common at all here. The 2 star restaurants will absolutely blow your mind and ruin sushi for you forever. It's not that hard - really - you don't need "practice" here. It's not the same anyway. They aim to please. Just have an open mind about what you will be served. I've been to a few 'top' places back in DC since I've been back, and I'd rather just have a fried baloney sandwich. 

- If you walk in to a sushi place (which is really hard for the top ones), it may be confusing. But, if you make a reservation, they make it pretty clear about the prices on the email. You may have to be a large deposit (like 50% or more of total price)

- Communication can be hard, but use google translate. We met a great couple and became besties, and they knew zero English and we knew zero Japanese. Technology, amirite?

- Back to food. Like the sushi situation, most restaurants are good - at any price point. And if they look busy and have Japanese people in there, it's probably good. Use your app to translate the menu and pick some stuff that sounds good, that sounds innovative, that sounds weird and go to town. 

- High end dining is NYC prices. Everything else is Cleveland prices. I'm serious! Unless it's starred or known to be 'fancy', you eat SO WELL for so cheap. Noodle shops, izakayas, standing bars, grill places, yakitori, everything. Walk around in the bigger cities and follow the crowds.

- Drinking is cheeeeeeeap. Beer is cheap. Liquor is cheap. Wine is more expensive and not great. Drink the light beer. Drink Japanese whiskey drinks.

- Did I mention drinking is cheap? Sometimes you can just pay $20 a get all you can drink for 2 hours during your meal. Why not? You're on vacation.

- Sashimi apps at non sushi restaurants can be amazing - i.e. - you can get it at a grill or izakaya and for $9 you get the equivalent of what I pay $30 for at what's considered an average sushi place here. 

- They do 'other' food really well. I.e. neapolitan pizza, french food. I had a really hard time doing this, b/c the variety of Japanese foods is so vast that I never had a craving.

- If you're in a non tourist area or a small town, and you come across a cute and busy place, you may be ignored for a long time. I.e. - no napkin, no water, no one taking your order while the person next to you is getting served. It happens. Lady wanted to walk out of a few places, but we just remained patient and with a little help from other guests, we eventually got served (one person literally gave us their appetizer b/c they felt so sorry for us, haha). Annoying, but a cultural quirk I don't have figured out. I did not get the sense it was racism. 

- For the love of god, do not take taxis in Tokyo. $30 for 3 miles! $250 from Narita to center city! The public transport is incredible, easy to use, and in English pretty much. Some station attendants can help you. Some can't. All are friendly. Metro stops at 12am. Be prepared to pay a hefty charge in a taxi after that. Uber wasn't that great, about same price as taxis. 

- Have your luggage transported by the airport to wherever you're going so you don't have to carry on the train. Inexpensive.

- Their food is even tastier because of MSG. They view Aji Moto as holy. Since I got back I realized why our Asian food here is so terribly bland. When I make it at home, throw on a little MSG it starts tasting a lot better. Don't be afraid of it. Embrace it.

- They don't eat spicy food. Fellow Indians and spice heads - deal with it. Enjoy the quality of ingredients and perfect grilling and incredible presentation.

- Fish markets - in a lot of coastal cities - do it! Go there! Eat random stuff! Eat the sea urchin! Eat sushi at 9am. OH MY GOD, for $20 will blow your mind. Get the sweet shrimp that's raw. It now makes me cry to eat the terrible shrimp at our sushi restaurants here. Tsukiji is great but so are the other smaller ones. 

- Get all the noodles - udon, ramen, soba, whatever. Especially if hand made. Especially if the grain is from local farms. If it's more expensive than you'd think it would be ($15 for noodles), it's probably the world class stuff. If it's $8-10, it's probably ONLY better than anything else you've ever had. 

- I don't love tempura. We went to some places that focus on it. It's aight. I don't get it. 

- In the ski/mountain towns, Japanese comfort food was incredible. Cutlets. Noodle soup. Tonkatsu. All kinds of stuff. And super cheap both in resort and in town. 

- Go to the Robot Restaurant. Just do it. Don't eat there. Eat later or before. It's great stuff. It's what Japanese people think American people think Japanese people like. Super Meta. Great songs. I know it's tacky. But for real, it's worth it. 

- Go to the Park Hyatt in Tokyo and get a drink at the top. Before the cover charge though (I think before 7 on weekends and 8 on weekdays), b/c that's like $25. You can eat there if you want, but it's just a high end steak house. Just get a drink and enjoy one of the greatest views in the modern world. And maybe see famous people! Pretty sure we saw Action Bronson, Crown Prince Of Lowbrow Foodieism. 

- A word on standing bars/izakayas. These were our favorite to eat at. SOOOO good. Especially if a skilled yakitorian was managing the grill. But it's so smoky :( I wish it was grill smoke. It's just straight tobacco smoke. For a polite people, they are incredibly rude about this. They will smoke next to you as you eat and drink. We sucked it up a few times, but our eyes burned and it was annoying. Try to get there earlier before all the smoking starts... fried fishies, sashimi, yakitori, other random stuff that you just point at and give it a try. It's pretty much all good. Chicken AORTA! For real, it's good. 

- The weird foods ... for example, natto. I mean, you gotta try it. It's a taste you WILL NEVER HAVE outside of Japan. Throw it in some rice and mix it up. Raw egg in rice at the breakfast buffet that all the locals seem to be eating? Do it! Funky fermented stuff? Just try a bite and spit it out if you don't like it. It's so interesting.

- The coffee is third wave and really good. Costs about the same as our larger cities, sometimes you'll get a bargain.

- Vending machine food is for convenience and novelty, not quality. Sure, get something in a pinch, but do not have anything from them instead of a real restaurant. 

- I'm really hesitant to make specific restaurant recommendations. The number/density of restaurants is far greater than anywhere I've visited. From small towns to Tokyo, there are restaurants galore. People can pick a few Michelin/fancy places, but other than that, I'd resist trying to plan ahead. Enough times we were headed somewhere, and something would catch our eye, and we'd decide we'd rather try there.

- Shopping malls ... I wouldn't say they are as good as Bangkok. But, if you want to just go to see, it's pretty interesting. 

I hope you love your trip. We cannot contain ourselves about how much we want to go again, but it's going to be a busy year unfortunately, so it could be a while. 

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Everything Simul said!!! If you can bring a wi-fi device and use google maps and google translate (you can download for offline use if you don't, but not as comprehensive) do!!  It does make it a lot easier, and taking those stress points out means a lot more time for fun things- google maps also had the train schedules for all the lines and was amazing.  Really, it makes traveling so much easier.  

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Definitely get a local wifi modem or if possible a SIM card. Using a local SIM card in India with my iPhone made it very easy on many fronts such as coordinating with private drivers, Uber and Ola when there was a traffic jam on the road which can add hours to trips. 

The Japanese don't really eat spicy food in the Indian sense even though there are plenty of standing curry fast food places. During one trip I cooked Indian food at Japanese friend's house for a small gathering. I purposely made it as mild as possible while still retaining some flavor and still some of the guests broke out in a sweat! They finished the seafood dish though. 😊

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On 5/1/2018 at 3:37 PM, silentbob said:

So we're thinking about a week-long trip to Japan next year, this time without the kids!  Which, food-wise, opens up tons of options that weren't available during our prior visit.

Of course, high-end sushi is at the top of the list.  I can totally live with not experiencing any of the two or three-starred Ginza places.  Based on the initial research thus far, the impression that I get is that an inability to interact with non-English speaking sushi chefs about the fish/nigiri/etc. being served -- and of course we don't speak Japanese -- will inevitably limit how great the dining experience can be.  Does that sound about right?

P.S.  We actually have no prior experience dining at sushi counters, whether in DC or elsewhere, so it seems like that has to change as well before our trip, otherwise it would likely be a waste of time and money to want the high-end sushi experience in Tokyo.

We traveled in 2016 with a pair of 16 year-olds.  A few thoughts about sushi in Tokyo:  

If you go to the Tsukiji fish market area, be prepared for a European experience with hawkers trying to lure you into their stalls for sushi.  It's okay, but you may get the crappy cuts that seem to be reserved for foreigners.  Still a must-do and there are plenty of good items, just make sure you eat where you want to eat and not at one of the nondescript interior stalls.

In Ginza, we found what was supposed to be the ONE rotating sushi bar in all of Ginza, Numazuko Sushi Bar. (https://www.numazuko-bar.com/) It's on the 4th or 5th floor of a building on one of the main drags and we had two outstanding meals there.  We were the only non-Japanese but there was English on the menu and there are plenty of apps to help you with fish names anyhow.   Everything was fresh and with the rotating bar, there is no chance that you are going to get served the apprentice's cuts.  One night the server was a little slow to ask us about alcohol and the 2 adults rolled out stuffed, without booze, for $30.  

We stayed at a Ryokan in Kyoto on one splurge night and they set us up with an insanely good kaiseki restaurant; the kids had shabu shabu with local Ome beef (think Kobe but in the Kyoto locale, it is supposed to be even more marbled than Kobe) while we grazed our way through course after course of little gems consisting of Ome beef or impeccably fresh fish, often with interesting accompaniments.  The advice we'd gotten was to wait for Kyoto or Osaka to go all out on a meal; the value is better there. 

If I was going to Japan without the younger one we took with us, definitely Ryokan experience that was more romantic than what we did.  A higher end sushi than we did and at least a couple more fine dining experiences.  

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We just got back from our annual trip to Tokyo. If you are something of a omakase neophyte but want to try without going somewhere that is intimidating, unfriendly to foreigners or prohibitively expensive my strong recommendation would be lunch at Sushi Iwa Ginza. $80 per person, approachable and will make attempts at English. 

 

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I've been mulling over how to write a summary of our recent trip to Japan this spring.

Even though it was not our intention, we were lucky enough to visit in April near the height of the Cherry Blossom peak. It was quite beautiful to see and go on picnic experiences with local friends in different neighborhood parks. It was my first trip there visiting with my wife and our son. Traveling with a 5 year old boy was quite the adventure but overall it went well and he enjoyed all the places we visited but of course Legoland Tokyo the most. 

Since my last trip was almost 15 year ago, I was struck by overall how many more tourists there were everywhere. During the late 90s and early 2000s, the Yen was much stronger and perhaps that did limit the amount of foreigners visiting Japan. Additionally, it was quite challenging navigating outside the main tourist areas if you didn't speak or read Japanese at a functional level. Now that is not an issue as signs are bilingual and with smart phones there is almost no need to prepare to go anywhere until you are going out of data range. Talking with several friends, the Japanese themselves are struggling to find a balance between amount of foreigners visiting and the financial rewards. Amazingly, we saw large number of private tour groups in remote locations which even for Japanese are not common to visit!

I would say overall Tokyo is one of the main food capitals of the world. However, as the highs have gotten much higher, the median has gotten slightly more mediocre. Simple quality things can still be found but requires more searching. The overall decline in fish quality worldwide probably is playing a significant role for example in Sushi restaurants even in Japan. Again it's still possible to be 'blown away' but now its higher up the price ladder whereas 15 years ago, quality was found at lower price points. Additionally, some of the refinement seems a bit lost as there is a generational switch, (several places I had visited before had closed shop, apparently unable to make that transition). 

There are things which are a good monetary value such as lodging. Outside of the major cities, 4 or 5 star hotels can be found for a couple of hundred US dollars a night. A lot of high end Japanese goods that would be used for gifts, etc...have come down in price. 

I didn't include any reviews of particular restaurants because overall going to the place down the street where you are staying will most likely give you a great experience. 

 

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On 6/13/2019 at 1:32 PM, lion said:

I didn't include any reviews of particular restaurants because overall going to the place down the street where you are staying will most likely give you a great experience. 

I very much agree with this.  In fact, I've been meaning to write up a bit about Japan after my recent trips, but I inevitably stop when I realize the overwhelming task at hand.  I could spend a century in Tokyo and still feel like I haven't experienced all there is to offer.  But I shall tilt at windmills and try, I suppose.

Tokyo

  • Tempura Kondo in Ginza is worth the Michelin star.
  • T's Tan Tan is a vegan ramen shop inside the ticketed part of the Tokyo train station, near the entrance to the Keiyo line. It's gone downhill a bit, but it's still worthwhile, particularly for vegetarians who need a ramen fix.
  • Soranoiro in Ramen Alley in the Tokyo train station has a vegetarian ramen option too, which is pretty good, but they make the mistake of thinking "vegetarian" needs to be "healthy". 
  • Udon Shin is my favorite Udon place in Tokyo (but is that saying anything?  I've tried what, like .0005 percent of them?).  It's in Shinjuku.
  • Pizza Savoy (of Ugly Delicious fame) is so simple, so precise, so, so good.  
  • To continue the Netflix theme--nearby Savoy is the Masuya salt store, which was featured on Salt Fat Acid Heat but wasn't named.  I found this by--of all things--walking past it.  I wanted to find moshio, so I stopped in and it dawned on me that this is where Samin Nosrat filmed that part of the show.
  • Yes, the food at the Pokemon Cafe is terrible, but don't judge me--it's totally worth it!  Here's a pro-tip:  you are not allowed to hug the Pikachu or Evee mascots that sometimes greet the diners.  The rules are not explained in English, but let's just say you quickly figure out the rules by trial and error.

In Kyoto, Shoraian tofu restaurant is really incredible.  Beautiful location in the park on the river.

In Koyasan, Souji-in buddhist temple is both a great place to spend the night and have a multi-course vegetarian dinner.

Finally, Menme outside Himeji castle has such good udon--the noodles are made right in front of you.  Like so many restaurants in Japan, it excels at doing simple things perfectly.  

 

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On 6/17/2019 at 12:57 PM, washingtony said:

I very much agree with this.  In fact, I've been meaning to write up a bit about Japan after my recent trips, but I inevitably stop when I realize the overwhelming task at hand.  I could spend a century in Tokyo and still feel like I haven't experienced all there is to offer.  But I shall tilt at windmills and try, I suppose.

Tokyo

  • Tempura Kondo in Ginza is worth the Michelin star.
  • T's Tan Tan is a vegan ramen shop inside the ticketed part of the Tokyo train station, near the entrance to the Keiyo line. It's gone downhill a bit, but it's still worthwhile, particularly for vegetarians who need a ramen fix.
  • Soranoiro in Ramen Alley in the Tokyo train station has a vegetarian ramen option too, which is pretty good, but they make the mistake of thinking "vegetarian" needs to be "healthy". 
  • Udon Shin is my favorite Udon place in Tokyo (but is that saying anything?  I've tried what, like .0005 percent of them?).  It's in Shinjuku.
  • Pizza Savoy (of Ugly Delicious fame) is so simple, so precise, so, so good.  
  • To continue the Netflix theme--nearby Savoy is the Masuya salt store, which was featured on Salt Fat Acid Heat but wasn't named.  I found this by--of all things--walking past it.  I wanted to find moshio, so I stopped in and it dawned on me that this is where Samin Nosrat filmed that part of the show.
  • Yes, the food at the Pokemon Cafe is terrible, but don't judge me--it's totally worth it!  Here's a pro-tip:  you are not allowed to hug the Pikachu or Evee mascots that sometimes greet the diners.  The rules are not explained in English, but let's just say you quickly figure out the rules by trial and error.

In Kyoto, Shoraian tofu restaurant is really incredible.  Beautiful location in the park on the river.

In Koyasan, Souji-in buddhist temple is both a great place to spend the night and have a multi-course vegetarian dinner.

Finally, Menme outside Himeji castle has such good udon--the noodles are made right in front of you.  Like so many restaurants in Japan, it excels at doing simple things perfectly.  

 

I just found out I'll be traveling to Tokyo next Friday for business, and I'll be there for about 4 days. This will be my first time there, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll be staying at the ANA Intercontinental, which is in/near the Roppongi area. Do you have any places you'd recommend that are in that area? 

I've been to many places around the world, but Tokyo is just a tad overwhelming! 

Thanks!

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16 hours ago, reedm said:

I just found out I'll be traveling to Tokyo next Friday for business, and I'll be there for about 4 days. This will be my first time there, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll be staying at the ANA Intercontinental, which is in/near the Roppongi area. Do you have any places you'd recommend that are in that area? 

I've been to many places around the world, but Tokyo is just a tad overwhelming! 

Thanks!

I don't know the area super well, but over near the Roppongi station is this really cool beer bar (if that's your thing) called Ant 'n Bee.  It's kind of divey, but really unpretentious and friendly.  

There's a restaurant called Jomon Roppongi that some friends have strongly recommended to me, but sadly I wasn't able to get in because it was really crowded when I stopped by.  But it could be worth checking it out to see if the hype is worth it.

You'll also be well situated to get to Ginza, Shibuya, etc, so hopefully work won't be too much of a drag and you'll have some free time to explore!

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3 hours ago, washingtony said:

I don't know the area super well, but over near the Roppongi station is this really cool beer bar (if that's your thing) called Ant 'n Bee.  It's kind of divey, but really unpretentious and friendly.  

There's a restaurant called Jomon Roppongi that some friends have strongly recommended to me, but sadly I wasn't able to get in because it was really crowded when I stopped by.  But it could be worth checking it out to see if the hype is worth it.

You'll also be well situated to get to Ginza, Shibuya, etc, so hopefully work won't be too much of a drag and you'll have some free time to explore!

Thank you for the suggestions!

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20 hours ago, reedm said:

I just found out I'll be traveling to Tokyo next Friday for business, and I'll be there for about 4 days. This will be my first time there, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll be staying at the ANA Intercontinental, which is in/near the Roppongi area. Do you have any places you'd recommend that are in that area? 

I've been to many places around the world, but Tokyo is just a tad overwhelming! 

Thanks!

Depending upon when you arrive, it's still worthwhile to visit the old Tsukiji Fish Market especially early morning like 7-8am. 

Since this is a business trip, your Japanese colleagues may be interested in going out after work. Izakaya Alleys with 30-40 small pubs, bars and speciality restaurants are a great experience.

Tabelog is a great resource for deciding on high end restaurants. However local places that don't take credit cards will usually have a higher quality experience. 

With the short nature of the work trip, just walking around Roppongi or taking a cab to Ginza 6 area will be visually rewarding experience.

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Checking in from Tokyo. Here are a couple of pictures I took while on walking food tour in Asakusa. 

The four pieces of Nigiri from the stand up sushi bar Hinatomaru were as good or better than any sushi I've ever had. (Not sure why the photos appear 90 degrees off) FEB47EB4-1CC5-4E94-837A-4CE71240F295.jpeg.64735f44874844ed2b195823424f46c1.jpeg443F159D-B4AD-4D28-89BC-858E55F24120.jpeg.6fbbde35d651480c661b70f73f2529fc.jpeg1A0841A8-7517-47EE-B366-2EB874C7F13E.jpeg.9f1699b043dcfcd9e5c8489d5e5bce3e.jpeg

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Anyone been to Japan recently with tips on places to eat? We are traveling in the early Spring to Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo. Finding restaurants is overwhelming me a bit as I hear you should go to a local place but don't know them or get reservations, but I don't know where and every place recommended on line seems to instead have these huge lines. My family is primarily looking for good eats, doesn't need to be the absolute best or Michelin-starred or the hottest instragram site and we will not be waiting hours in line. Would love some suggestions for good quality food likely near the usual tourist neighborhoods. We are looking to explore most types of Japanese food - sushi, kushikari, katsu, ramen/udon, etc. Thanks.

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On 2/12/2024 at 12:22 PM, KeithA said:

Anyone been to Japan recently with tips on places to eat? We are traveling in the early Spring to Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo. Finding restaurants is overwhelming me a bit as I hear you should go to a local place but don't know them or get reservations, but I don't know where and every place recommended on line seems to instead have these huge lines. My family is primarily looking for good eats, doesn't need to be the absolute best or Michelin-starred or the hottest instragram site and we will not be waiting hours in line. Would love some suggestions for good quality food likely near the usual tourist neighborhoods. We are looking to explore most types of Japanese food - sushi, kushikari, katsu, ramen/udon, etc. Thanks.

When I had dinner with Andy Hayler, I asked him which three cities he’d most like to live in other than London: One of his answers was Kyoto. Go to his website, filter by “Japan” and whichever city you’re interested in, and then you’ll get a sortable list. Outside of Japan, you’re not going to find a better starting point.

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As usual, Rocks provides outstanding advice. I've not been to Osaka or Kyoto, but I've been to Tokyo a handful of times. The other contributors to this thread provided great information as well. 

While it is an incredible city for food (among other things), the choices can be overwhelming, as the population is around 13 million people, and there are more than 125,000 restaurants. 

How old are your kids? That will certainly influence your choices. 

I thoroughly enjoyed a couple of food tours from Ninja food tours. ("Asakusa food hunt" and "Wagyu and Sake pairing"). 

During my most recently trip, I had an amazing dinner at Sushi Yuu in Roppongi. Reservations are essential, and the chef/owner is a great guy.

Random thoughts:

It may seem like I'm stating the obvious, but if you want to experience authentic Wagyu, Japan is the place to do it. Same goes for sushi restaurants. 

If your hotel has a concierge, use them for recommendations and reservations. Many Tokyo restaurants will not accept reservations from non-natives unless they are pre-paid, reservations can be hard to come by.

Even though the indoor Tsukiji fish market has moved, I highly recommend a tour of the outdoor Tsukiji fish market.

Tonkatsu restaurants are plentiful, and the Japanese pork is uniquely delicious. 

Don't miss the food selections at 7-11s or Family Marts.

Don't to see/hear English spoken or written. (Google translate will help to some extent.)

The USD/JPY exchange rate is incredibly favorable to Americans at the moment, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding affordable places to eat. 

 

 

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You picked the right time to visit.

A Japanese friend of mine just came back from a visit in December. Even though, you are not looking for them, she said with the value of Yen, Michelin star restaurants were available ~$125 per person.

Cultural speaking, there is drive to improve one's craft or art. Therefore, wherever you go, it's easier to find a certain baseline level that is quite good. Unless you're looking for a one of kind speciality cuisine. We really enjoyed just going to the attractions and walking around and finding little places to try. 

My suggestion is just to search when you hungry within that geographic boundary. Again, tabelog, is the easiest way to see what's available. It has google translation tied into the site and reservations so fairly easy to do on the fly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I would skip the fish market in Tokyo. The new Tsukiji Fish Market is not like the old one and from what I've seen you'll be separated from the 'action'. There are many other things to do in Tokyo that are special.

My suggestion would be to think of unique things that you might want to purchase prior to your visit. Outside of the main tourist places, my wife remembers the little unique places we bought handmade Japanese items, some things we use regularly in the kitchen even now. There are a ton of fun things to do like going to a store which sells plastic foods.

Kyoto's covered downtown market would be more exciting to visit which is basically one long alleyway which is only walkable. Side streets are rich with small shops to see items. 

For example, we went to a speciality shop in Kyoto for handmade wooden hair comb for my wife. This wasn't a tourist place and the prices were significantly higher than ones you would pick up basically at any place. The quality was incredible. We made a special trip to Kungyokudo for incenses. 

Finally, I would just use Andy Hayler's restaurant guide as a starting point. Reviewing the listings, all of the restaurants were visited prior to the pandemic (2019) and a lot has changed. In five years a lot has changed. 

 

 

 

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We were there last September. I'd echo the posts above that good food is everywhere, and tabelog and Google are good resources. Lunch is great value for higher-end restaurants. Here are some of the places we enjoyed that weren't too hard to get into, in case you are nearby:

Shoraian, Arashiyama, Kyoto - tofu-based omakase, beautiful riverside location, not the broadest range of flavors but good value and quality. We reserved this through AmEx concierge, it seemed popular but not overly so, so your hotel might be able to help you once you get there.

Sanga OnoKyoto - breakfast restaurant in our hotel at Kyoto. Lots of variety.

Bakuro Ichidai Ginza, Tokyo - excellent sukiyaki and hida beef (alternative to wagyu/kobe).

Hitsumabushi BinchoTokyo - chain of Nagoya-style eel rice restaurants, which lets you try the eel in 3 different ways.

Bento boxes that you buy at the train station are a fun way to enjoy a Shinkansen ride too!

 

 

 

 

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