Thread 21509547

I'm going to Tokyo and will eat sushi. But where do you recommend? I already have Kura Sushi and various AYCE places at home. I'm also not a connoisseur, and I'd prefer to focus spending more money on the various other places I see on Japaneats

>>21509547 (OP)
>I'm also not a connoisseur, and I'd prefer to focus spending more money on the various other places I see on Japaneats
The one with the cutest girls. There will be about five places to pick from in any building so look at the girls and pick one of those.

In Tokyo, you can enjoy high-quality sushi in takeout packages by wandering through the food aisles of department stores.
It's also nice to enjoy it in the privacy of your hotel room.

>>21509547 (OP)
coco ichibanya

>>21509547 (OP)
My advice on finding great restaurants in Japan is to browse the Tabelog Award List, which is fortunately available in the English language. Not only that but get used to booking reservations for popular restaurants in Japan unless you want to compete for any possible walk-in seats, with the hungry Japanese who have gotten used to patiently line up for any event, since their childhood years.

The Tabelog Award is a unique annual restaurant award based on the ratings by ordinary consumers, not by experts (Tabelog also has an archive of past award recipients dating all the way back to the year 2017). For Tabelog Award 2025, the award for Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Category Award will be selected restaurants receiving extremely high ratings in 2024 as the top of approximately 850,000 restaurants nationwide with the votes of the Tabelog Users (as of November 2024). In the year 2025, there were 35 Gold Award Restaurants, 151 Silver Award Restaurants, 467 Bronze Award Restaurants, 10 Best New Entry Restaurants, 8 Best Regional Restaurants, and 13 Chefs' Gold Restaurants.

Best New Entry Restaurants: Among restaurants nominated for the first time since the 2016 awards, the top 10 establishments that received the most votes from users

Best Regional Restaurants: Among restaurants located outside metropolitan areas, the top establishment selected per block based on user votes that showcase the region's unique character and culture through it's dishes.

Chefs' Gold Restaurants: Establishments that chefs nominated for The Tabelog Award would become passionate fans of, wherever the location may be.

https://award.tabelog.com/en

https://tabelog.com/en/

https://magazine.tabelog.com/

https://twitter.com/tabelog

Tabelog Awards 2025 Ceremony: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLy17JEXsBY

We sneaked into The Tabelog Award 2025 and everything was amazing, from the backstage lunches to the award ceremony and social gathering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm8aHCAhRJ8

>>21509676
Teriyaki's Best Restaurant Selection is an alternative to the Tabelog Award. For their 2025 Best Restaurant Selection, 93 nominated restaurants were selected under the theme of "food travel". 1 restaurant was awarded Gold while 13 restaurants were awarded Silver in this year's selection. Teriyaki's Best Restaurant Selection website also has an archive of past award recipients dating all the way back to the year 2022.

>Looking back on this year's selection of the best restaurants, the first keyword that emerged was "food travel." The style of traveling far away for food is gaining more attention, and the trend of experiencing cuisine directly connected to nature at auberge in rural areas or deep in the mountains is accelerating.

>On the other hand, it should not be overlooked that about half of the selected restaurants are in the Tokyo area. A large number of diverse restaurants have been born, including sophisticated new restaurants unique to urban areas, and evolved artisanal and ethnic restaurants, which are also highly acclaimed. Another major feature of this year is the slight decrease in the number of sushi selections, and the rise of tempura, modern Thai cuisine, and medicinal Chinese cuisine. In addition, there has been an increase in quality-oriented restaurants that go beyond the boundaries of "B-class gourmet" such as tonkatsu and horumon, resulting in a sense of a tectonic shift in the entire genre. This year's feature is that the food scene is booming, with people embarking on "food travel" to various regions, viewing the difficulty of reservations and inconvenience of access as a "special experience," and the new trend in urban areas, centered around Tokyo, coexisting together.

https://teriyaki.me/

https://x.com/teriyaki_tweet

https://teriyaki.me/best_restaurant/index.html

>>21509678
There is a severe lack of English language bloggers of Japanese gourmet restaurants but I find The Tokyo Gourmet to be a decent reviewer that is concise and straightforward with his food reviews.

https://thetokyogourmet.blogspot.com/


Michelin Guide Tokyo 2024 Review: https://thetokyogourmet.blogspot.com/2023/12/michelin-guide-tokyo-2024.html

The Tabelog Award 2024 Review: https://thetokyogourmet.blogspot.com/2024/01/the-tabelog-award-2024.html


Michelin Guide Tokyo 2025 Review: https://thetokyogourmet.blogspot.com/2024/10/michelin-guide-tokyo-2025.html

The Tabelog Award 2025 Review:: https://thetokyogourmet.blogspot.com/2025/02/the-tabelog-award-2025-results.html

>>21509679
https://www.ramenguidejapan.com/

2024 Top 100 Tokyo Ramen Restaurants According to Tabelog: https://www.ramenguidejapan.com/reviews/2020/12/17/2020-top-100-ramen-restaurants-according-to-tabelog-hmhay-k4xda-y245f-cpbkn

2023 Top 100 Tokyo Ramen Restaurants According to Tabelog: https://www.ramenguidejapan.com/reviews/2020/12/17/2020-top-100-ramen-restaurants-according-to-tabelog-hmhay-k4xda-y245f

don't read all that shit, just go to cocoichi

just try supermarket or department stores sushi its pretty cheap and already vastly superior to anything at home

>>21509547 (OP)
Sushi is overrated when it comes to Japanese food, they have so many great dishes people hardly know about.

>>21509547 (OP)
Personally, OP, I'd be looking for other experiences that are harder to do than generic sushi, at home. You should be looking for the actual local seafood items like in season items to Japan. A quick search tells you to order unagi, summer eel, tiger prawns and flying squid is right now.
Name your regional dish and find the best of those choices around town. Good luck!.

>>21509547 (OP)
Just go to price chopper they have a great sushi bar.

Try Japanese fried chicken. World's best. Skip the desserts. Japs don't do dessert well. I love Japan.

>>21509690
>>21509668
I actually have that too. It's ok imo.
>>21509664
>>21509698
Probably disappointing but ok
>>21509811
I'll be sort of near places like Age 3 and a Family Mart so i can try that chicken and pancake thing

It's fish and rice. Come on man, it's not going to be amazing. Don't get your hopes up.

Not OP but I want sushi like this, where go?

>>21511506
>I'll be sort of near places like Age 3 and a Family Mart so i can try that chicken and pancake thing
Try Gyudon.

Jiro Sushi if you can afford it. Yes, I'm serious.

I haven't tried it myself but I know someone who has, and I can safely say it will forever change your view not just on sushi, but on cooking in general.

If it's out of your price range, I would actually go the complete opposite direction: convenience store sushi. Unlike other countries they prepare it fresh every day using high grade fish. A 10 piece sushi bento will cost you about 400 yen + 10% zeikomi, and if this is your first time in Japan it will literally be the best sushi you've ever had,

Enjoy.

>>21511875
>Jiro Sushi if you can afford it. Yes, I'm serious.
>I haven't tried it myself but I know someone who has, and I can safely say it will forever change your view not just on sushi, but on cooking in general.

Sounds like bullshit if I've ever heard it

>>21511890
It's not.

Also, on a side note, please don't ever visit Japan. The culture places a lot of importance on respect, and clearly that is a concept you struggle to understand.

>>21509547 (OP)
>land it Tokyo
>google maps “sushi”
>find most reasonable looking one

Keep in mind jap reviewers are absolutely brutal, and 3.5 stars is “good”, but only if it’s only japs doing reviews.

Also foreigners will affect the reviews for this shit too, so if somethings like 4.4/5 it means there’s a ton of foreigners going there. Check the reviews in detail to se what’s up.

The reason I say this instead of naming specific restaurants is because there’s so damn many and Tokyo is such a big place that it doesn’t matter, there’s probably a good sushi spot nearby you no matter where you are.

>>21509547 (OP)
Here OP https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XDy8QFhJAw Eat Tuna cut from this expert.

>>21511895
I say it's bullshit because you haven't tried it.

>>21509547 (OP)
I went to Sushizanmai. One of the best.
https://g.co/kgs/ASy2Z63

>>21509547 (OP)
Look for well rated non-chain places in your price range. They're all over town and you'll almost certainly have a good experience.
Use tabelog for reviews.

One place I can recommend is kitsune sushi in Yanaka.

>>21511875
>convenience store sushi.
Is this "good" compared to midwest conveyor belt sushi or is it actually good compared to west coast/hawaii sushi?

>>21512240
>midwest conveyor belt sushi
Conveyor belt sushi is often good though. Have you even been to one?

>>21512354
Lol

Tsujiki market
really
it's touristy but the sushi and sashimi are as fresh as can be
basic places and cheaper than most places
best tuna sashimi I ever had
huge tuna lying there and the guy sliced bits right there, we all just stood around and ate good

>>21509604
>girls
will they let me sample their fish before I decide?

>>21509676
>>21509678
>>21509679
>>21509681
Not OP but thanks for sharing this info, I’ve been thinking of going to Japan soon and this is helpful

>>21512821
Tsukiji closed in 2018 and moved to Toyosu

>>21509664
what's really fun is when they discount the prices for prepared food in the evening and obasans start showing you a fraction of their true bargain hunting power levels
>>21513386
wholesale/auction closed in 2018 but there's still restaurants and retail there

>>21512821
>>21513458
>>21513386

>Tsujiki market
This one sounds perfect. For comparison, I won't be far from convenience neither because they're everywhere

>>21513458
>but there's still restaurants and retail there
yeah and it's a tourist trap with quality no different than any other place in Tokyo

>>21513577
I do like traps. Sounds like I should just stop there and eat sushi elsewhere