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Food Sake Tokyo | A chef's guide to the best food in Tokyo. - Food
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Sake Tasting – Food Sake Tokyo
I'm often asked about where to learn about sake in Tokyo. We recently had a great class in Tokyo with Aaron of at @sakestudio.tokyo. We tried seven different sakes over four courses with themes. Small bites are paired with the nihonshu. It was fascinating to explore sake at different temperatures, sake from the same brewery made…
Izakaya Hiro – Food Sake Tokyo
Hiro in Nakameguro is a fun evening with chef Satoshi. Just say omakase (it’s not only for sushi) and leave it up to Satoshi san to create a menu of small plates paired with sake. So much to love here. The relaxed environment, good music, and mix of dishes and sake. Spring represented in fresh…
Kyoto Mingei Museum – Food Sake Tokyo
Fans of mingei, traditional folk art, will want to visit the former house of Kanjiro Kawai in Kyoto. In the back of the home is his kiln for firing his ceramics. The house also includes many lovely mingei pieces on display as well as the rooms of his home. It was lovely to visit on…
Kyoto Lopia Supermarket – Food Sake Tokyo
Part of our travel routines is visiting local supermarkets. It's so much fun. We try and avoid chain supermarkets because they tend to not carry much local products. Furikake But, I do make an exception for Lopia, which is a discount supermarket from the Tokyo area. It has a huge shop in the basement level…
Kyoto Ki – Food Sake Tokyo
Ki 汽 in Kyoto serves Lebanese cuisine in a charming space on Kiyamichi Dōri street near the Kamogawa River. Natural sunlight fills part of the space. The communal table is topped with dried nuts, squash, and a delicate green that divides the table. Outside of the restaurant smoke from the grilled meats fill the air.…
Nishi-Ogikubo Manoma – Food Sake Tokyo
Delighted to discover Manoma in Nishi-Ogikubo for a recent working lunch. The simple menu consists of a variety of curry with rice, drinks, and a few sweets. My favorite was the vegan dal curry, but all were oishii delicious. The caramel pudding was rich in texture. Notably the brightly lit cafe has comfortable seating, both…
Kyoto Kintame – Food Sake Tokyo
Tsukemono Japanese pickles Long ago I lived in Monzennakacho in Tokyo. A short walk from my home was the most charming tsukemono pickle shop from Kyoto called Kintame 近為. Kintame sits just in front of Fukagawa Fudodo temple. I often went to Kintame for the bubucha-zuke lunch. More than a dozen pickles is served with…
Yumiko Kano – Food Sake Tokyo
Elizabeth Andoh sensei took me to vegetarian cooking classes with Yumiko Kano about twenty years ago. Kano sensei is a prolific cookbook author with over 30 cookbooks, in Japanese. I have cooked from many of her cookbooks over the years and have learned so much about the many expressions of vegetables and unique cooking techniques.…
Tsukishima Monjayaki – Food Sake Tokyo
One of my favorite local neighborhoods in Tokyo for local eats is Tsukishima. There is one street lined with restaurants, many of them serving monjayaki, the Tokyo version of the more famous Osaka okonomiyaki. Diners sit at a teppan iron plate/table where food is cooked and you eat directly from the grill using chopsticks or…
Travel + Leisure Asia – Food Sake Tokyo
Excited to have been tapped by Travel + Leisure Asia to pen a piece on eating in Japan. Great working with my editor, Veronica Inveen, to share with readers insider tips, having worked at both the Park Hyatt Tokyo and Takashimaya, and as the author of Food Sake Tokyo on dining out in Nippon. I hope you can…
Tsurutontan – Food Sake Tokyo
Family-friendly Tsurutontan Tsurutontan in Ginza is an udon specialty restaurant on the 10th floor of the Tokyu Plaza Ginza mall. The udon is served in enormous bowls that are dramatic, especially if you pick up the bowl to drink the broth. It's a lovely restaurant for both solo diners and groups. Check out the cool…
Yamaharu – Food Sake Tokyo
Negitoro makizushi. Yamaharu is one of the famous companies specializing in seasonal seafood at Toyosu Market. The company opened its first sushi shop at Toranomon Hills. The sushiya is a tachigui, stand and eat, style. I love these casual type of restaurants or drinking spots. Easy spots for solo diners or for small groups of…
Tsukiji Hitachiya – Food Sake Tokyo
Japanese kitchenware contributes so many ways to cooking at home. One of my favorite shops for kitchen tools and gadgets is @tsukijihitachiya at #TsukijiMarket. I use many of their items at home including the pressed sushi and onigiri wooden molds, oroshigane grater for daikon and ginger, miso koshi to make it easier to add miso to…
Shifuku Shokudo – Food Sake Tokyo
The fabulous fried chicken set lunch at Kichijōji Shifuku Shokudō. Shokudō are restaurants that offer set meals, often with a few side dishes, rice and miso soup. This fantastic meal included so many vegetables, my kind of comfort meal. Salad, dried daikon pickled with a red daikon with its leaves, daikon simmered until tender, carrots,…
Yamagataya Noriten – Food Sake Tokyo
Yamagataya Noriten’s lunch set serves nori seven ways. A fabulous way to experience the many expressions of the sea vegetable including in soup, a salad dressing, and wrapped around #onigiri.🍙 The rice balls are made and served with two different crispy nori. Fascinating to see the differences. The first from Ariake Sea in Kyūshū has…
Tourindou – Food Sake Tokyo
Tourindou is a charming wagashi, Japanese confectionary, shop and cafe on the quiet backstreets of Ueno. It's a lovely spot to recharge after visiting the museums of Ueno, like the current Hello Kitty exhibition at the Tokyo National Museum (through Feb. 24, 2025). Founded in 1926 Tourindou sells traditional sweets including candied vegetables and fruit:…
Le Pristine – Food Sake Tokyo
Hokkaido scallops Dining well in Tokyo is easy. If anything it can be intimidating trying to plan the perfect itinerary for the best meals while in Japan. One tip is not to limit yourself to Japanese cuisine meals only. Japan offers amazing seasonal ingredients and I love tasting meals made by non-Japanese chefs working with…
Cafe Sadiiq – Food Sake Tokyo
Delighted to have an American breakfast spot on the JR Chuo line at Cafe Sadiiq. Pancakes, egg, bacon, and a carrot rape salad with tuna. 1,500 yen ($10) for the pancakes, with a latte on weekdays for 400 yen ($2.50). It is just a five minute walk south of Mitaka Station, and on the way…
Kabe no Ana – Food Sake Tokyo
Wafū pasta, Japanese-Italian pasta, is becoming popular in the U.S. Kabe no Ana is said to be the first restaurant in Japan to serve this spaghetti made with Japanese ingredients like mentaiko, spicy pollack roe as a topping. Kabe no Ana started in 1953 in Shibuya (see the last photo). There are branches in Tokyo…
Bridge Coffee – Food Sake Tokyo
Bridge Coffee on the first floor of the historic Eagle Building is a destination cafe. One you go out of your way to visit because it's not on the Tokyo tourist map, even for locals. However, very much worth the trip. It sits on a busy corner of Nihonbashi Bakurochō. Spacious seating and natural light…
Goodies – Food Sake Tokyo
Lately I have been craving a diner breakfast. Delighted to have a lumberjack pancakes plate with eggs and bacon that brought me back to being in the US. I added whipped cream, because why not?🥰 I went soon after they opened at 8 a.m. and it was busy with both tourists and locals. The buttermilk…
Hello Kitty – Food Sake Tokyo
Hello Kitty is celebrating 50 years and there is an exhibit at the Tokyo National Museum. Basically it is an Instagram friendly show with a collection of Hello Kitty items produced over the years. If you love Kitty chan, then check it out. Be sure to go early, especially if you want to purchase items…
Ain Soph. – Food Sake Tokyo
Fabulous vegan restaurant, Ain Soph., is in the heart of #Ginza. The bento (¥3,500 or $22) includes a salad, walnut miso dip for crudités, sesame tofu, spinach curry, tofu and potato omelet (no eggs), brown rice, and the best soy meat karaage I have ever had. The soy meat is juicy and is marinated in…
Kabuki at Meijiza – Food Sake Tokyo
Meijiza Meijiza is a theater near Nihonbashi Hamachō Station that has a rich history dating back to 1873. It is Tokyo's oldest theater and celebrated 150 years in 2023. This month the kabuki show features the amazing Nakamura brothers, Kankuro and Shichinosuke. My dear friend who reignited my interest in kabuki affectionately calls the elder…
Rainy Day in Tokyo – Food Sake Tokyo
Raining in Tokyo? Convenience stores will sell both umbrellas and light rain gear, think cheap plastic jackets that will keep your hands free. Stores like Tokyu Hands and Loft sell folding umbrellas that can be made into a small package for keeping in your bag. The quality of these are very good. Some ideas for…
Sougo – Food Sake Tokyo
One of my favorite rice dishes in Tokyo is served at Sougo in Roppongi. It is burdock root that is julienned and fried as tempura and then stirred into rice with shio kombu, salted kelp. The shōjin ryōri restaurant serves a modern take on the Buddhist vegetarian temple cuisine. Chef Daisuke Nomura opened his restaurant…
Bistro Rojiura – Food Sake Tokyo
Burrata French toast Bistro Rojiura is a hip bistro and wine bar that is open for breakfast/brunch. The French toast with house-cured bacon is served with a scoop of creamy burrata cheese. Brilliant. Coffee is from the esteemed Switch Coffee. Rojiura means back alley. It is on the back streets of Shibuya near the Tokyu Hands…
Parklet Chicken Sando – Food Sake Tokyo
Parklet Bakery in Nihonbashi is one of my go-to spots when craving baked goods, notably their cheese scone. Finally made it to their sister shop at the Meiji Park Market in the shadows of the Japan National Stadium built to host the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. The buttermilk fried chicken is served over a hearty…
Pizzeria Il Tamburello – Food Sake Tokyo
Seeking comfort in pizza at Ningyocho Pizzeria Il Tamburello. The Napoli pizza special was salsiccia e friarielli. The friarelli green is farmed by an Italian at Tenuta Campi Flegrei in Fukuoka. The punch of bitterness from the friarelli with the meaty black pork sausage is a classic combination in Napoli I was told. Delicious and…
Shichiken – Food Sake Tokyo
Shichiken has been brewing sake using the famous water of Hakushu in the Southern Alps of Yamanashi prefecture. Shichiken is just down the street from Koma delicatessen (see previous post). It's a big brewery with a sake tasting room, retail shop, and a cafe serving drinks and desserts using amazake and koji. Check out the…
Koma – Food Sake Tokyo
Koma From Kofu, Yamanashi, I jumped on the Chūō line train west towards Kobuchizawa. My friends have made the garden at a new delicatessen called Koma. My girlfriend said that I should come and check out this new restaurant. She knew that it was very special, and that I would like it. Chef Ayako Ono,…
Kofu – Food Sake Tokyo
Yamanashi Kofu in Yamanashi is only 90 minutes west of Tokyo on the Azusa express train on the Chūō line. The city is walkable and there are buses to areas for hiking, waterfalls, shrines and temples. For me I usually stay in the city as there is enough to see. Yamanashi is famous for fruit…
Kōfu Okutō – Food Sake Tokyo
Okutō Honten near Kōfu Station serves up many local dishes of Yamanashi prefecture. Tori motsu ni, simmered chicken giblets was created here in 1913. Liver, gizzard, and other offal is simmered in a sweet soy sauce. The dish has since become a regional dish that is served at many restaurants. Basashi, horse sashimi. It's like…
Sawataya – Food Sake Tokyo
One of my favorite overnight trips from Tokyo is to Kofu in Yamanashi, west of Tokyo. Yamanashi is famous for Fuji san (Mount Fuji), wine, big blue skies, mountains, fruits like grapes and muskmelons, and great local dishes like hoto noodles, basashi horse sashimi, and simmered chicken offal. Kofu city is easy to navigate and…
Rokumei – Food Sake Tokyo
What I love about Tokyo is that it’s so big that one is constantly discovering new spots. Rokumei opened only in July in a part of Tokyo Station I never go through. It is a famous Nara coffee shop and this is their first Tokyo branch. Big selection of coffee and espresso drinks. I ordered…
Mugi to Tamago – Food Sake Tokyo
Love these wafu pasta cafes. Quick meals. All the spaghetti dishes are tempting. Mugi to Tomato noodles are made with Hokkaido flour and the noodles are fresh, not dried. This salad and pasta is a bargain ¥1480 ($10). At Tokyo Station in the Yaesu Kita Shokudo area before entering the station gates. Near Daimaru department…
The Railway Museum – Food Sake Tokyo
The Railway Museum is a fabulous museum with many old trains that visitors can go into and see the history of rail transportation in Japan. We could enter a lottery for different experiences and got in on the working the counter at a station. It was a fun experience. The museum is huge. There is…
Kitakata Shokudo – Food Sake Tokyo
Kitakata Shokudo in Kanda Jimbocho serves up Fukushima style ramen. The noodles are on the thicker side and are hand massaged to be a bit wavy. The flour for the noodles is Hokkaido Yume Chikara which is high gluten. The soy sauce ramen is made with niboshi dried sardines. Niku soba with five types of…
Lemon Pie – Food Sake Tokyo
Japan is filled with shops that specialize in a dish. Lemon Pie Yoko near Tawaramachi Station (close to Kappabashi and Asakusa) serves up a fantastic lemon pie with a bouffant meringue. There are other pies, but this is their signature dish. This retro building is also awesome. I carried it for an hour until I…
Marunouchi Moheji – Food Sake Tokyo
Yakisoba at Moheji Finally managed to get a seat at Moheji monjayaki shop near Tokyo Station at the Shin Marunouchi Building, called Shinmaru Biru for short. Big fan of their shops at Tsukishima, the ground zero area of monjayaki. Monjayaki is a local dish to Tokyo cooked on an iron plate and eaten with a…