50 Best Restaurants in Tokyo, Japan

Ramen is the quintessential Japanese fast food: thick Chinese noodles in a bowl of savory broth topped with sliced grilled chashu (pork loin). Each neighborhood in Tokyo has its favorite, and in Ebisu the hands-down favorite is Afuri. Using the picture menu, choose your ramen by inserting coins into a ticket machine, find a seat, and hand over your ticket to the cooks, who prepare your ramen then and there. There's limited seating, and at lunch and dinner, a line of customers extends down the street, but as expected, the ramen is worth it. The signature ramen here is yuzu shio (citron and salt), but there are other options, including a vegan ramen.

Just south of the Shinjuku station, this chain ramen house serves up ramen with hints of citrus in the broth, turning this often heavy dish into something more refreshing. It's located on a basement food level of Shinjuku's Lumine I department store, so you can have the nearby Thai food instead should you peek in and change your mind.

This small, friendly roastery and café in a repurposed warehouse across from Ando Gallery serves excellent espresso, flat whites, and cappuccinos, plus simple snacks like cookies and toasted sandwiches. There are some seats inside, but if the weather is nice get a drink to go and walk a few minutes east to Kiba Park; a lovely green spot to while away an hour.

Ameya is a traditional sweet and snack store on Monzen-machi best known for a riff on the local soba theme. You don’t get soba noodles here, but rather "soba bread." Basically, it’s a steamed bun made with buckwheat (soba) flour, sugar, and rice flour, in which you can have one of four fillings: sweet red bean paste (anko), mustard greens (takana), daikon radish, and the very non-traditional keema curry.

Many long lines in Shibuya are more about trendiness than quality, but Beard Papa makes some genuinely good cream puffs in all kinds of flavors. Pick up a single or a six-pack of freshly made pastries. Located in the underground shopping arcade known as Shibuchika. The location is roughly under the main crossing. Head down some stairs and follow your nose to the vanilla and butter smells.

Yakitori, Vietnamese-style, is on the menu at the bustling restaurant that feels it could have been transported from the streets of Hanoi. The skewers here include chicken thigh on or off the bone, chicken feet, and gizzards, but also vegetables such as okra and sweet treats like banana. The owners also run another no-frills Vietnamese restaurant called Chopsticks, serving excellent pho noodles, on the same block in Koenji’s north side.

Run by Neal's Yard Remedies, this laid-back café has all-natural wooden interiors and natural produce on the menu. If shopping in Harajuku, it's a great place to stop for a healthy Japanese teishoku set, vegetable curry, tofu lemon cake, or other vegan fare.

In business since 1948, Cafe de l'ambre is a legendary haunt for Tokyo's coffee aficionados. The retro decor provides a snapshot of an older Tokyo, while the caffeine fix options include a dozen or so single-origin beans, including some that have been aged for years.

Associated with the funky clothing shop that is just around the corner, this cafe is bright and open, and serves quality coffee, cakes, snacks, and gelato. They also have some Kitsuné-branded goods on hand.

Shopping and entertainment are two attractive points for Odaiba, but the chance for a short escape from Tokyo's madness is another. To enhance that, stop in at Canteen, a café operated by Transit General Office. The terrace seating is a fine choice for enjoying a cup of coffee and an ice-cream cake.

Stop by and watch some specialty donuts being fried before your eyes. The giant cone outside reminds you that you can also get ice cream (soft-serve only), and there's coffee, too. Sit outside and watch the world go by as you get your sugar fix.

This basement-level ice cream store has become a Nakano Broadway institution for its soft-serve ice cream, which comes in flavors that vary from simple vanilla to matcha (green tea), horse chestnut, and ramune (a popular citrus soda flavor). The signature is the eight-layered, 20-cm Tokudai (extra large) soft serve, though small cups and cones are also on the menu.

The classic bowl of ramen is topped with slices of pork, but Darumaya, in the fashion district of Omotesando, has a slightly different take, topping its noodles with grilled vegetables. In the summertime be sure to order the hiyashi soba, a bowl of chilled noodles topped with vegetables and ham in a sesame dressing. Another shop specialty is the tsukemen, where the noodles and broth are served in separate bowls. Dip (don't drop) the ramen into the broth. Despite the focus on veggies, vegetarians should note, the soups and sauces are not meat-free.

No surprise that eggs are the thing at this convenient diner on the first basement floor of Roppongi Hills Mori Tower. Eggs are organic and available every which way, including in egg tarts, eggs benedict, pancakes, and a fried breakfast.

At the northern end of the izakaya-lined Hoppy Street, this hip Scandinavian-style café serves up sweet and savory Norwegian waffles along with coffee made using single-origin beans. In the evenings, there's craft beer and cocktails on the menu too.

Kamasho serves the signature dish of the old Fukagawa area, Fukagawa-meshi: short-neck clams and green onion cooked in a miso broth and poured over a bowl of rice. You can order just a bowl of Fukagawa-meshi or opt for a set with a side serving of pickles and miso soup. If you are really hungry, the largest set also comes with some sushi. There’s beer and sake on the menu if you want something to wash it all down with.

Having started as a street stall in Ogikubo in the late 1940s, Harukiya is now a ramen restaurant that often has patrons lining up down the street. The noodles here come in a soy- and dried sardine-based stock and are served with a topping of chashu (roast pork) with the noodles being handmade every morning.

If you needed proof that Koenji caters to all sorts of tastes, the cute Moomin-like drawings on the walls of this popular café, not to mention the lattes with cute cartoon faces drawn in the foam, show that Koenji has a soft side too. If you are hungry, try the pizzas or desserts, which include a pumpkin Mont Blanc.

Often, a meal of sushi is a costly indulgence. The rock-bottom alternative is a kaiten-zushi, where it is literally served assembly line–style: chefs inside the circular counter place a constant supply of dishes on the revolving belt with plates color-coded for price; just choose whatever takes your fancy as the sushi parades by. A cheerful, bustling example of this genre is the Heiroku-zushi chain's branch opposite Omotesando Hills; it's all about the fresh fish here (and clearly not the design). When you're done, the server counts up your plates and calculates your bill. The cheapest prices are reserved for staples like tuna and squid, and you'll pay a bit more for delicacies like high-grade toro cuts of tuna and sea urchin.

After strolling through the flower gardens of Hibiya Park on a hot day, stop off for a cold pint of beer here; Hibiya Saroh is proud of the varieties on tap. There is no indoor seating, but with its view of Hibiya Park, you wouldn't want to be inside.

At Ueno Station is a branch of an amusing ramen chain. Ichiran serves tonkotsu (pork broth) noodles. Rather than sitting at a table and ordering off the menu, you'll choose and pay for your meal and your seat at a machine. You then use the order sheet at your table (it has English on it) and choose how you'd like it served. You'll hand that and your order tickets through a window. Like magic—presto!—the curtain rises and made-to-order steaming bowls appear.

Open from 11 am to 11 pm, this ever-busy ramen joint, now an international chain with almost 30 locations in Tokyo alone, is an ideal quick stop on or after a night out. The classic ramen is the Shiromaru, which features a creamy pork-based stock, thin yet slightly firm noodles, and a topping of chashu pork slices. Other options include the Akamaru, which has a little red miso mixed in the soup, and side dishes such as gyoza dumplings.

Located in a 120-year-old former merchant house on Ichibangai shopping street, this eatery is good for a quick snack on the go or a sit down lunch. It's known for its skewers of soy-basted dango (rice dumplings) and decadent parfaits, but also serves bowls of more filling somen noodles and udon noodles.

Here’s proof that an intimate sushi experience doesn’t have to be overly formal. Nor does it have to be expensive. Grab a seat at the counter of this laidback joint in the lively Harmonica Yokocho and enjoy an affordable sushi set prepared in front of you. There are pictures on the menu to help with ordering, but the eight-piece omakase set and 12-piece set of the day are both good options. If you only wanted a super quick bite while bar hopping, there's a three-piece set too. You could pair it with sake or something from the small wine list.

For a quick lunch, you can grab reasonably priced set meals just a few minutes north of the station. Imagine a combination of Japanese and Western ingredients in a kind of modern home-cooking. The restaurant's location on the 8th floor makes it a bit hard to find but gives you an amazing view over a busy Shinjuku thoroughfare. There's a picture menu before the elevator, so you can decide before you even go in.

The culinary specialty of the Narita area is freshwater eel (unagi), and there are plenty of places to try it along Naritasan Omotesando. Close to Naritasan, Kawatoyo has been in business for more than 100 years, serving a classic called unajo, chargrilled eel slathered in a savory soy-based sauce and served over rice. Tradition says the dish is good at fighting fatigue. Because nothing is wasted, you can also order eel liver soup and deep-fried eel bones.

Standing on the border of Ueno and Yanaka, just a short walk to the west from the National Museum, this historic café is a popular stop for lunch or a light snack. A century old, the café has been stylishly renovated and serves homemade sandwiches, curries, cakes, and kaki gori, a traditional treat of flavored shaved ice. The first floor has a bar and dark wood tables, while the second is an airy Japanese style tatami room with low tables. Although Kayaba is usually not too crowded in the morning, expect to line up if you arrive at lunchtime.

After strolling over the broad Yumeno Ohashi Bridge, it might be time for a break. Attached to Musashino University's Ariake Campus is a cheap, bright, and fun cafe with good weekly specials and a wide variety of dishes including pasta and rice bowls. You'll find students either working behind the counter or studying at the tables. 

Maid cafés won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you do want to try one out, this main branch of Japan’s biggest maid café chain is as reputable a place as any. All manner of people come to be served by young women in French maid outfits who affect extreme levels of kawaii (cute) and occasionally break into song and dance. As for the fare, the menu includes colorful parfaits, simple pastas, and omuraisu (rice omelet), plus the option of taking paid photos with the maids. The long drink menu features coffee, juices, and cocktails. Be aware that there’s an admission fee of ¥770.