Your first trip to Tokyo, made simple

Noodles in rich broth, from light shoyu to creamy tonkotsu. Tokyo has countless styles to try.

Where to eat

Ramen shops and chains all over the city

Vinegared rice topped with fresh fish, from casual conveyor-belt shops to chef's-choice counters.

Where to eat

Conveyor-belt sushi chains and sushi counters; Tsukiji Outer Market

Bite-sized meat you grill yourself at the table, from solo counters to premium wagyu.

Where to eat

Yakiniku chains and specialty restaurants

Rice balls wrapped in nori, filled with salmon, tuna-mayo, pickled plum (umeboshi) and more. Japan's favorite grab-and-go food.

Where to eat

Convenience stores and onigiri specialty shops

Seafood and vegetables in a light, crisp batter, eaten with dipping sauce or a little salt.

Where to eat

Tempura restaurants and tendon (tempura rice bowl) shops

Buckwheat noodles, served cold with a dipping sauce or hot in broth.

Where to eat

Soba restaurants and standing soba counters near stations

Thick, chewy wheat noodles, hot or cold, with toppings like tempura or sweet fried tofu (kitsune).

Where to eat

Udon restaurants and self-service udon chains

A breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet served with shredded cabbage, rice, miso soup and a thick, sweet-savory sauce.

Where to eat

Tonkatsu restaurants

Grilled chicken skewers seasoned with salt (shio) or a sweet soy glaze (tare).

Where to eat

Izakaya and yakitori alleys such as Omoide Yokocho

Tokyo's own runny cousin of okonomiyaki, cooked on a griddle and eaten straight from it with small spatulas.

Where to eat

Monja Street in Tsukishima

A savory pancake with cabbage and your choice of fillings, topped with sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes.

Where to eat

Okonomiyaki restaurants, often with a griddle at your table

Japanese curry is thick, mild and a little sweet, often topped with a pork cutlet (katsu curry).

Where to eat

Curry shops, family restaurants and cafeterias. Jimbocho is famous for curry.

Ingredients like daikon radish, eggs and fish cakes simmered in a light dashi broth.

Where to eat

Convenience stores in the cooler months, and oden restaurants

Thin slices of beef cooked at the table: simmered in a sweet soy broth and dipped in raw egg for sukiyaki, or swished in a light broth for shabu-shabu.

Where to eat

Sukiyaki and shabu-shabu restaurants

Traditional sweets like dango, taiyaki and daifuku, many made with sweet red bean paste.

Where to eat

Traditional sweet shops, department store food halls, and Nakamise-dori in Asakusa

Boxed meals: everyday bento from convenience stores, and ekiben, regional boxed lunches sold at big stations for the train ride.

Where to eat

Big stations like Tokyo Station; convenience stores for everyday bento

The classic Tokyo bowl

Broth

Clear chicken and/or pork stock seasoned with soy sauce

Noodles

Medium-thin, often curly

Toppings

Chashu pork, menma (bamboo shoots), naruto fish cake, nori, green onion

Light and clear

Broth

Clear stock seasoned with salt, often chicken or seafood-based

Noodles

Thin, straight or gently wavy

Toppings

Chicken chashu, green onion, sometimes a sliver of yuzu

Rich and warming, born in Sapporo

Broth

Miso blended into pork or chicken stock, often under a layer of lard that keeps it hot

Noodles

Thick, wavy, yellow noodles

Toppings

Stir-fried bean sprouts and cabbage, ground pork; corn and butter are classic add-ons

Creamy pork bone, with firmness to order

Broth

Pork bones boiled hard until the soup turns milky white

Noodles

Very thin and straight

Toppings

Thin chashu, kikurage mushroom, green onion; pickled red ginger and sesame on the table

Yokohama-born pork and soy, made your way

Broth

Tonkotsu-shoyu: pork bone stock with soy sauce and chicken oil

Noodles

Thick, chewy, straight

Toppings

Spinach, three sheets of nori, chashu

Huge portions, garlic and a mountain of vegetables

Broth

Very rich pork and soy broth with lots of back fat

Noodles

Extra thick, stiff and wheaty

Toppings

A pile of bean sprouts and cabbage, thick chunks of pork

Dipping noodles with a thick sauce

Broth

A concentrated dipping sauce, often pork and seafood (gyokai tonkotsu)

Noodles

Thick noodles, rinsed cold and served on a separate plate

Toppings

Chashu, menma, egg and nori, usually in the dipping bowl

Dried-sardine flavor, a Tokyo favorite

Broth

Stock made from niboshi (dried baby sardines), from gently fragrant to intensely bitter-savory

Noodles

Often thin and straight, or flat and wide

Toppings

Chashu, green onion, chopped raw onion

Chains like Yakiniku Like give every seat its own small grill. Built for eating alone; no reservation needed.

Chains like Gyukaku, with tablet ordering and all-you-can-eat plans. Good for groups and families.

Specialty restaurants serving top-grade wagyu, often as tasting courses. Book ahead.