125 Best Restaurants in Tokyo, Japan

At this restaurant specializing okonomiyaki (a savory pancake made with egg, meat, and vegetables), you choose the ingredients and cook them on the teppan (grill) yourself. Flipping the pancake can be challenging—potentially messy but still fun—and, fortunately, you're not expected to wash the dishes. Unlike at most Okonomiyaki joints, you can experiment with your own recipe or opt for one of the house specials such as sakurayaki (with pork, squid, and onions).

This narrow, brick-lined café serves aromatic coffee sourced from all over the world. The best seats are in front of the lab, where coffee bubbles in a siphon. They also serve creamy hot chocolate, coffee jelly, and milkshakes.

If you're feeling adventurous, check out this izakaya's seafood-focused dishes, which pair nicely a cup of sake and which do not disappoint. The daily menu is often hand-written, though, so unless you read Japanese, be nice to the wait staff, and trust them to help you make a selection. On weekends, reservations are a good idea.

On Kappabashi-dori, just north of the Kama-Asa knife store, this café has a very hipster feel thanks to its stark concrete walls and occasional in-store art exhibitions. The menu includes specialty coffees as well as organic matcha and ginger lemonade.

Chef Daniel Calvert has been awarded two Michelin stars for the creative French cuisine served at this elegant restaurant on the seventh floor of the Four Seasons Hotel at Marunouchi. The 12-course dinner changes with the seasons, but leans heavily into Japanese produce and could include Akkeshi sea oyster with koshihikari rice and wild sorrel or shamo chicken from Bizen poached in yellow wine. While some tables offer kitchen views, there's also a chef's table where you can watch Calvert and his team at work—a rare opportunity to study some of Tokyo's most talented chefs.

Inside Shibuya's underground Shibuchika shopping area is this huge array of stalls selling all kinds of foods. In addition to enjoying a snack or buying a bento to enjoy on a picnic, you can shop for gifts galore.

This elegant French restaurant on the 37th floor of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel has wonderful views of the Tokyo skyline as well an open kitchen, where you can see the masterful chefs at work. Inspired by Japanese kaiseki, the menu changes with the seasons. There is also a fine wine list here that includes biodynamic and organic selections.

East Tokyo has some serious artisanal coffee credentials, owing to the cafés of the Kiyosumi and Kiba neighborhoods, and now—thanks to this Aussie-run roastery—the Ryogoku neighborhood as well. You'll find this spot in a battered old warehouse, a few minutes northeast of the Sumida Hokusai Museum.

What's a soup curry? You'll find out here when you choose your curry (a wide variety with vegetables); your soup base (tomato, shrimp, or the base that's used to make many soupy Japanese dishes); your spice level (from 0 to 7); your toppings (perhaps avocados, an egg, or fried mushrooms); and, finally, the amount of rice you'd like. 

This microbrewery in Daikanyama produces a core lineup of six ales and lagers, as well as seasonal and limited releases, such as an 8% Belgian “gran cru,” Jazzberry made with raspberries and wine yeast, or a 6.5% hop-heavy IPA. But Spring Valley isn't just a place to drink—the menu also lists a good range of burgers, pizzas, and grilled meats, all with beer-pairing suggestions. If you're a fan of this place, note that it has a sister location in Kyoto.

If you need a break from shopping for electronics and games, stopping to enjoy a spicy kebab sandwich from Star Kebab should do the trick. This and other outlets in the area offer beef, lamb, or chicken strips, as well as lettuce and tomatoes, in pita pockets.

Here you need a dose of luck—there are only seven counter seats and reservations book up fast (ask your hotel concierge to make one for you)—and a full wallet, as high-end sushi comes at a pretty price. The interior is unpretentious, putting the focus squarely on the gorgeous presentations for each course, but what really makes a meal here subline is the extreme quality of the cuts of fish and garnishes featuring such rare ingredients as zha cai (pickled stem of the mustard plant).

It can be hard to find a vegan restaurant in Tokyo, but T's thick and tasty, meat-free ramen is a great option. Choose your soup base, from sesame to citrus flavors, and get a side of the vegetable dumplings—not to be missed. The restaurant is behind the barriers of Tokyo Station, so you'll need to be in transit to try. 

In a converted waterfront warehouse, T.Y. Harbor brews five of its own year-round beers and seasonal specials in a tank that reaches all the way to the 46-foot-high ceiling. The restaurant, which is known for its grilled meat and fish, has a California-meets-Asian approach, with such dishes as wheat ale steamed clams, Thai-style gai yang chicken sate, or Indian spice-marinated lamb chops. Although the tables on the bayside deck art the best, regardless of where you're seated, you'll appreciate the relaxed, modern vibe. Reservations are a good idea on weekends.

Although some might find the glitzy decor at this restaurant to be over the top, the service is cordial and professional; the food, which is centered on Tokyo's version of international cuisine, is superb; and the wine list has more than 200 bottles, ranging from affordable house wines to real rarities. There might be a DJ during your dinner, and if you feel like some live music and a drink after, check out the Tableaux Lounge in the same building.

This yakitori (grilled chicken) restaurant is an ideal place for a short stop inside Ginza. Skewered chicken breasts, small salads, and sausages are sure to put a smile on the face of even the weariest shopper. There's also beer, whiskey highballs, and sake on the menu.

Expect generous portions of fresh, reasonably priced seafood at this neighborhood restaurant. Sashimi and simmered fish are the staples, but there's also a wonderful tendon bowl with shrimp and eel tempura on rice. À la carte prices are not posted because they vary with the costs that morning in the Toyosu Market. Reservations can only be made for large parties.

Yakitori and other skewers of chargrilled meat and vegetables are the name of the game at this hip, local-favorite izakaya. To make ordering easier, select one of the set menus, which feature multiple skewers and a few side dishes such as tofu. Beverage options include highballs, draft lager, and local nihonshu (sake).

Combining aspects of a traditional sushi counter, a tapas bar, a science lab, and a magic show, this award-winning restaurant breaks new ground. In full view of diners, the team of chefs assemble a small parade of bite-size morsels in surprising texture and flavor combinations. There are only eight seats, and seatings are at 6 pm and 8:30 pm only, so reserve as early as possible.

Here's a restaurant that's run like a formal ryotei (traditional Japanese restaurant focused on luxury) but has the feel of a rough-cut izakaya (Japanese pub). Neither inaccessible nor outrageously expensive, Tatsumiya is pleasantly cluttered with antique chests, braziers, clocks, lanterns, bowls, utensils, and craftwork, some of it for sale. The evening meal is in the kaiseki style, meaning multiple courses are served; tradition demands that the meal include something raw, something boiled, something vinegary, and something grilled. The kaiseki dinner is served only until 8:30, and you must reserve ahead for it. Tatsumiya also serves a light lunch, plus a variety of nabe (one-pot seafood and vegetable stews, prepared at your table) until 10. The pork nabe is the house specialty.

Beyond the rather nondescript entrance are counter seats where you can watch the chef expertly prepare and fry exceptional tempura. Although this is a great place for dinner, the lunch sets are far more reasonably priced yet still give you a proper tempura experience. You can also order additional individual pieces, either à la carte or as recommended by the chef.

This branch of Hong Kong's famous restaurant serves up a variety of authentic and accessible dim sum dishes in a casual atmosphere. Some highlights include the steamed pork spareribs with black bean sauce, deep-fried eggplant with shrimp, and the steamed rice rolls filled with beef, pork, or shrimp. Be sure to try the daikon mochi (pan-fried daikon cake) which manages to be both crispy and creamy all in one bite. Lines can be very long on weekends and right around lunch or dinner, so it is best to arrive before the store opens or in the late afternoon. For a quick snack, the shop also has a dedicated take-out window just for its signature baked BBQ pork buns.

Just about everybody who comes to this well-established, family-owned restaurant orders the standard course of utterly delicious deep-fried pork cutlets, soup, raw-cabbage salad, rice, pickles, and tea. Although there's a line here every night, right up until closing at 10:45 pm, efficient service means that the wait is usually only about 10 minutes.

This casual American chain is world-famous for its barbecued ribs. It also serves kid-size (and much larger) portions of burgers, chicken strips, and fried shrimp. The chain, which started in Miami in the 1970s, is dwindling in the U.S., but it's still going strong overseas. There's another branch in the Hanzomon area.

When you're looking for a break from all the ramen, tempura, and yakitori, this restaurant on the 45th floor of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel serves a fusion of French and Japanese cuisines. The prix-fixe lunches include a three-course business lunch (¥6,500), and there are dinners with four and five courses (¥12,200 and ¥16,500). A plush brunch (¥9,500) is also available weekends and holidays. Best of all, the dining room overlooks a panorama of the Tokyo Sky Tree and Tokyo Tower, which is where the eatery gets its name.

Sitting on the terrace beside the Wadakura Moat, savor a glass of carefully selected wine from the impressive cellar, and choose from a modest selection of fresh, flavorful pasta dishes or one of the set three- to five-course menus. At dinner, the atmosphere turns intimate with candlelight and ultra-attentive service. Reservations are recommended.

This no-frills sushi restaurant with wooden interiors serves up excellent Tokyo-style (Edomae) sushi, the classic nigiri topped with seafood. Á la carte is an option, but it's easier to opt for a set meal, which will be substantially cheaper during lunch than at dinner.

Tucked on a side street, this friendly café takes its name from the little "turret" trucks that carted produce around the old Tsukiji Market. The owner serves a powerful espresso in ceramic sake cups and also creates delightful latte art—all for similar prices to the far less enjoyable Starbucks on the corner.

This compact, counter-only sushi restaurant in Naka Meguro’s backstreets just does omakase, meaning that you'll be served whatever the owner–chef has sourced each day from Tokyo's Toyosu Market. Although the fish (or hair crab or sea urchin by special request) takes center stage, herbs and vegetables are also incorporated into Udatsu’s often-modern takes on sushi. There's even a vegetarian sushi course, though it must be reserved at least two days in advance. Like many sushi restaurants, lunch is a far more affordable experience than dinner. Still if you are planning to splurge somewhere, this is the place to do it.