Restaurants - The Rough Guide to Tokyo - page 142

There's no need to panic about prices. Practically everywhere, including Michelin-
starred restaurants, offers bargain set-meal specials for lunch, and there's a plethora of
fast-food options, including stand-up noodle bars and conveyor-belt sushi restaurants,
many clustered around and inside train stations. If you'd rather eat well and party at
the same time, then izakaya (bars that serve food) are the way to go; a few with
especially good food are reviewed here, others in the “Drinking and nightlife” chapter.
You'll rarely be stuck for somewhere to dine, but if so, the restaurant floors of
department stores or shopping malls are a dependable fallback option. They harbour
a wide choice of cuisines under one roof, often with plastic food displays in the
windows and lots of daily specials. There are also a great number of local chain
restaurants (see box, p.148), where prices are at a minimum, and English-language
menus are guaranteed; the quality of food at these places is often surprisingly good.
ESSENTIALS
INFORMATION
Listings For up-to-date information on Tokyo's restaurant
scene, check out the free weekly magazine Metropolis
( W metropolis.co.jp). Alternatively, there are good online
sources, including Bento.com ( W bento.com), Gourmet
Navigator ( W gnavi.co.jp/en), Eatpia ( W eatpia.com) and
the rather more homespun Tokyo Belly ( W tokyobelly.com).

14

Set meals All restaurants offer set menus ( teishoku ),
usually at around ¥1000 for a couple of courses plus a drink,
and only rarely topping ¥3000 per person. At both lunch
and dinner you may also come across what is described as
a “course menu” ( kōsu menyū ), which is in fact a set menu
of several courses and more expensive than the teishoku .
With traditional Japanese cuisine you'll usually get all your
courses at the same time, but at more formal places rice
and soup are always served at the end of the meal.
Reservations are advisable for many places, especially
on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. At some popular
venues you may have to queue at lunch- and dinnertime,
even if a reservation system is in place.

PRACTICALITIES
Breakfast The traditional Japanese breakfast features
miso soup, fish, pickles and rice, washed down with
green tea, though many Japanese now prefer a quick
kōhii and tōsuto (coffee and toast), served at most cafés
on the “morning service” menu (from ¥500 up). If you
really want to jump into local culture, eat a tray of nattō :
part-fermented soya beans served with soy sauce and
mustard - it'll certainly wake you up. Many ryokan and top
hotels offer a choice between a Western- or Japanese-style
breakfast, often included in the rates (see p.135).
Meal times Hardly any locals linger over lunch (usually
taken from noon to 2pm) but that's no reason why
you should follow suit. Dinner can be eaten as early as
6pm (with many places taking last orders around 9pm),
although Tokyo is not short of options for late-night dining.
Opening times are given throughout this chapter, though
note that last orders tend to fall either 30min or an hour
before the stipulated closing time; this goes for lunch
too. These timings are just like the Shinkansen - arrive
a minute late, and you've missed it.

ETIQUETTE
Reading the menu These days more places are providing
menus translated into English, and it's always worth asking
for one ( Eigo no menyū ga arimasu ka? ) if it's not auto-
matically presented. To assist with ordering, consult our
Food and drink glossary (see p.266).
Table manners Before you start eating you'll usually be
handed an oshibori , a damp, folded hand towel, usually
steamed hot, to clean your hands. When the food arrives,
wish your companions bon appétit by saying itadakimasu .
Don't stick chopsticks ( hashi ) upright in your rice - an
allusion to death (relatives traditionally pass pieces of
bone from the cremation pot to the funeral urn with long
chopsticks). Never cross your chopsticks when you put
them on the table, and don't point at things with them.

TOKYO'S BEST PLACES TO EAT
Best budget chain Yoshinoya (see p.148)
Best kaiseki-ryori Waentei-Kikkō (see p.150)
Best monjayaki Monkichi (see p.151)
Best okonomiyaki Chibō (see p.154) or
Sakuratei (see p.156)
Best rāmen Rāmen Nagi (see p.156) or
Mutekiya (see p.158)
Best soba Kurosawa (see p.152)

Best sushi Sushi Bun (see p.151) or Maguro
Bito (see p.150)
Best tempura Hachimaki (see p.149) or
Suzuya (see p.157)
Best tonkatsu Tonki (see p.155)
Best tofu Sasa-no-yuki (see p.149) or
Ume-no-hana (see p.148)
Best yakitori Omoide Yokochō (see p.122)