Where to Dine - Tokyo - page 150

Omotesando Hills, 3rd floor, 4-12-10 Jingumae. & 03/5785-0606. Reservations required. Main dishes
¥900-¥2,100; set dinners ¥5,800; set lunches ¥1,400-¥3,800. AE, DC, MC, V. Mon-Sat 11am-11pm; Sun
11am-10pm (last order). Station: Station: Meiji-Jingumae or Omotesando (4 min). On Omotesando Dori.

150

INEXPENSIVE
In addition to the choices below, consider La Boheme, with locations at 7-11-4 Minami
Aoyama ( & 03/3499-3377 ), 6-2-2 Minami Aoyama ( & 03/6418-4242 ), 3-6-25
Kita-Aoyama ( & 03/5766-1666 ), and on Omotesando Dori at 5-8-5 Jingumae
( & 03/5467-5666 ); all serve pizza and pasta and are open daily from 11:30am to
3:30am or later (p. 134). Monsoon, serving Asian dishes from several countries, is at
7-3-1 Minami Aoyama ( & 03/3400-7200 ) and is open daily from 11am to 3:30am
(p. 135). Shakey's, on Omotesando Dori near Oriental Bazaar at 6-1-10 Jingumae
( & 03/3409-2404; p. 146), offers an all-you-can eat pizza buffet daily from 11am to
4pm (p. 146). Kohmen, 6-2-8 Jingumae ( & 03/5468-6344 ), is a ramen restaurant
open daily from 11am to 4am (p. 164).
Fonda de la Madrugada MEXICAN Serving what is probably Tokyo's most
authentic Mexican food, this dark basement restaurant has a cavernous main dining
room, several small and cozy offshoots, and a strolling mariachi band, making it seem
like you're dining in a Mexican villa. Shrimp marinated in tequila, chicken mole, and
soft-tortilla tacos served with chicken, fish, beef, or pork are just some of the items on
the trilingual (Japanese/Spanish/English-language) menu, along with the requisite Mexi-
can beers, tequila shots and shooters, margaritas, rum and vodka cocktails, and wine
from Mexico, Chile, and Argentina.
2-33-12 Jingumae. & 03/5410-6288. Reservations required. Main dishes ¥1,050-¥3,045. AE, DC, MC, V.
Sun-Thurs 5:30pm-2am; Fri-Sat 5pm-5am. Station: Meiji-Jingumae (10 min.). From the Meiji Dori/
Omotesando intersection, walk north on Meiji Dori (toward Shinjuku); it will be on your right after the
pedestrian overpass.

6

l Harajuku Gyoza Lou GYOZA If you like gyoza (pork dumplings), you owe
yourself a meal here. Unlike most greasy spoons that specialize in fast-food Chinese (and
tend to be on the dingy side), this restaurant in the heart of Harajuku is hip yet unpreten-
tious and draws a young crowd with its straightforward menu posted on the wall (an
English-language menu is also available). Only four types of gyoza are offered: steamed
(sui-gyoza) or fried (yaki-gyoza), and with or without garlic (ninniku). A few side dishes,
such as cucumber, boiled cabbage with vinegar, sprouts with a spicy meat sauce, and rice,
are available, as are beer and sake. A U-shaped counter encloses the open kitchen, which
diners can watch as they chow down on the very good gyoza.
6-2-4 Jingumae. & 03/3406-4743. Gyoza ¥290 for a plate of 6. No credit cards. Mon-Sat 11:30am-
4:30am; Sun and holidays 11:30am-10:30pm (last order). Station: Meiji-Jingumae (3 min.) or Harajuku (5
min.). From the Meiji/Omotesando Dori intersection, walk on Omotesando Dori toward Aoyama and take
the 3rd right (just before Kiddy Land); it's at the end of this alley, on the right.
m Heirokuzushi SUSHI Bright (a bit too bright), clean, and modern, this is one
of those fast-food sushi bars where plates of food are conducted along a conveyor belt on
the counter. Customers help themselves to whatever strikes their fancy. To figure your
bill, the cashier counts the number of plates you took from the conveyor belt: Green
plates cost ¥136, blue ones ¥168, red ones ¥231, gold ones ¥398, and brown ones ¥504.
You can order takeout; you might want to eat in nearby Yoyogi Park.
5-8-5 Jingumae. & 03/3498-3968. Plates of sushi ¥136-¥504. No credit cards. Daily 11am-9pm. Sta-
tion: Meiji-Jingumae (2 min.) or Omotesando (5 min.). On Omotesando Dori close to the Oriental Bazaar.