Feasting on a Budget

Feasting on a Budget

There are many wonderful restaurants in Tokyo that provide excellent meals and thoughtful service, without straining the budget. To find them, don't be afraid to venture outside your hotel lobby or try a spot without an English menu; use the point-and-order method. Many restaurants also post menus out front that clearly state the full prices (some do add a 10% tax, and possibly a service charge, so ask in advance).

The following are options that don't cost a fortune and aren't of the international fast-food-chain variety:

The Bento. This traditional Japanese box lunch is available for takeout everywhere, is extremely portable, and is usually comparatively inexpensive. It has rice, pickles, grilled fish or meat, and vegetables, in an almost limitless variety of combinations to suit the season.

Kushi-age. Kushi-age consists of skewered bits of meat, seafood, and vegetables battered, dipped in bread crumbs, and deep-fried. There are many small restaurants serving only kushi-age at a counter, and many of the robatayaki serve it as a side dish. It's also a popular drinking snack.

Oden. With oden, an inexpensive winter favorite that goes well with beer or sake, various meats and vegetables are slowly simmered in vats. Oden may be ordered piece by piece (ippin) from the assortment you see steaming behind the counter or moriawase, in which case the cook will serve up an assortment.

Okonomiyaki. Somewhat misleadingly called the Japanese pancake, okonomiyaki is actually a mixture of vegetables, meat, and seafood in an egg-and-flour batter grilled at your table, much better with beer than with butter. It's most popular for lunch or as an after-movie snack.

Robatayaki. Perhaps the most expensive of the inexpensive options is the faithful neighborhood robatayaki (grill). It's easy to order because the selection of food to be grilled is lined up behind glass at the counter. Fish, meat, vegetables, tofu—take your pick. Some popular choices are yaki-zakana (grilled fish), particularly karei-shio-yaki (salted and grilled flounder), and asari saka-mushi (clams simmered in sake). Try the grilled Japanese shiitake mushrooms, ao-to (green peppers), and the hiyayakko (chilled tofu sprinkled with bonito flakes, diced green onions, and soy sauce). Yakitori can be ordered in most robatayaki shops, though many inexpensive drinking places specialize in this popular barbecued chicken dish.

Soba and Udon. Soba and udon dishes are lifesaving treats for stomachs (and wallets) unaccustomed to exotic flavors (and prices). Small shops serving soba (thin, brown buckwheat noodles) and udon (thick, white-wheat noodles) in a variety of combinations can be found in every neighborhood in the country. Both can be ordered plain (ask for o-soba or o-udon), in a lightly seasoned broth flavored with bonito and soy sauce (dashi), or in combination with things like tempura shrimp (tempura soba or udon) or chicken (tori-namban soba or udon). For a refreshing change in summer, try zaru soba, cold noodles to be dipped in a tangy soy sauce. Nabeyaki-udon is a hearty winter dish of udon noodles, assorted vegetables, and egg served in the pot in which it was cooked.