Tips for Tokyo food

Shopping is a bit tricky cos it depends on what you are looking for. I normally just go to Shinjuku or Shibuya or Harajuku...

List of food as follows in a few major areas:



Ebisu

1. Kushinobo - serves deep fried skewers (like yakitori but with a light batter and deep fried - the amazing thing about Kushinobo is that each and every single skewers is different.) I think per head in the evening (they only serve two types of dinners - one is 'viking', the other one is a 10 skewers set with rice at the end. I think the viking is around 5000Yen to 6000 Yen per head)It is at the Ebisu JR station, upstair of Atre building, on the 6th floor - web site:

http://www.bento.com/rev/0447.html



2. Chibo - serves Okonomiyaki, very good value plus the branch at ebisu, if you could get a window seat, has very good view of the city cos its at the top two floors of Garden Place (which means this is right next to you guys). Their website:

http://www.bento.com/rev/2304.html



3. Kurobutaya - this restaurant only serves 'black pork', which prob is the best type out of all pork - their pork shyabu shyabu is quite popular, but also have a few side dishes. Their website:

http://www.bento.com/rev/2230.html



4. Kimukatsu - this serves Tonkatsu (fried pork chop) - pretty inexpensive as well, but their Tonkatsu are one of the best in town - its not a cut of pork chop but very thin slices of pork chop put together and with abit of stuffing in the middle. This is on the same street (just almost next to each other with Kurobutaya. Their website:

http://shop.kimukatsu.com/ebisu/index.html



Shibuya

1. Midori Sushi : this is a must-go whenever my parents/ whoever that comes from HK craves for sushi/ sashimi. But the problem is there is ALWAYS ALWAYS a very veyr long line, so normally you will probably have to wait for at least 30 minutes for a table depending on your luck (that applies to lunches and dinners in the weekdays as well!) If you go at odd times like 3:30 pm perhaps there will be less people im'

not too sure... never tried that. The restaurant is located on the 4th floor of Mark City, which is the same building as the Shibuya Excel Tokyu Hotel. Their website:

http://www.sushinomidori.co.jp/shibuya.html



2. Toriyoshi: this is a yakitori restaurant, with very good chicken wings! not very expensive either i'd say.

http://www.bento.com/rev/1739.html



3. Gonpachi: this is a very popular restaurant for tourists because this is one of the branches of the restaurant which they shot kill bill 2's bambook fight scene. The food is ok but the atmosphere is always very happening here so worth going i guess. The good thing about the restaurant is also that is has pretty much every type of japanese food (except for sushi which I think serves in a different section of the restaurant etc). This it the Shibuya branch link:

http://www.bento.com/rev/2016.html



4. Tajimaya - this is a new restaurant i found with the friend over the weekend with a friend on the Franc Franc store building (next to Loft department store/ close to a store called Tokyu Hands) , super cheap shyabu shyabu or sukiyaki beef/pork courses, i'd say its not too bad and its super good value since they serve a 90 min 'all you can eat' course which comes with i think 250g of beef (a good plate)

plus all you can eat veges/udon/ tofu (not that many choice and its one of those which you walk to the self-serve bar sort of) but its pretty cheap for what it offers. Their website:

http://www.hotpepper.jp/A_20100/strJ000723344.html



Roppongi

There are many restaurants in this area as well - depending on what you feel like eating. The two biggest complex is Roppongi Hills and Tokyo Midtown.

In Roppongi Hills, there are many japanese restuarants which most of them are of very high quality. Here is a link of my search of restuarants which you can make a booking and also serves japanese food, located within Roppongi Hills - feel free to click to look at these restaurants:

http://www.roppongihills.com/jp/shops_restaurants/restaurants/shop/search_restaurant.php.



Alternatively, there is also a Kushinobo (i.e., one of the restaurants i mentioned in Ebisu) here inside Roppongi Hills, but there is no booking for the restaurant so you wil have to try your luck. I have also heard good things about the Ramen place and also the revolving sushi on the basement of Roppongi Hills. I dont really know their

names but it shouldn't be that difficult to find.



There are generally less choices in Tokyo Midtown on restaurants (most of them are not japanese restaurants), so i'd recommend you guys to go to Roppongi Hills for dinner, then perhaps after dinner walk over to Midtown.

Another chain Izakaya (this is what people call ' drinking place' in japanese, but in fact the food in these places can be quite good at times, which normally comes in smaller sized dishes and people normally order more plates sort of) I like is Hibiki. Their link here:

http://www.bento.com/rev/2605.html.

I haven't been to the one in Roppongi myself, but I'd think if its a chain i guess it shouldn't be that bad either.



Harajuku/ Omotesando area

There are alot of cafes etc around this area but less proper japanese food restaurants. Some of the good eats are here:



1. Toriyoshi (they also have a branch in Harajuku, in addition to the one i identified in Shibuya). Website as follows:

http://www.bento.com/rev/0643.html



2. Tonkatsu Maisen: this is a Tonkatsu restuarant as well. Traditional but very famous. I think someitmes you might have to line up. Website as follows:

http://www.bento.com/rev/0490.html



3. Jangara Ramen: this is almost my favourite ramen chain. It is also Koizumi (the previous famous prime minister of japan's favourite ramen restaurant). Website:

http://www.kyusyujangara.co.jp/shops/harajuku.htm



4. Teyantei - one of my frequent visits - an Izakaya with a variety of different things. good atmosphere i'd say. Website:

http://www.teyandei.com/img_map/map_okeya_omotesando.jpg