The Best Local Restaurants in Tokyo

Just the best Yakiniku in Tokyo…Of course, Nakahara-san became world-famous for inventing the wagyu Sando… but first and foremost, he’s a master butcher and his cooking is enriched by this rare skill among chef. He’s the best for selecting the best beef, the best cuts and grilling the meat with an unmatched precision. Perfection.

Top Level Contemporary KaisekiOgino-san has worked at some of the most notable kaiseki restaurants in Kyoto and Tokyo and opened his own in 2019 in the Akasaka district of Tokyo. An intimate, counter-only spot that’s become very hard to book. Cooking is top notch, all done right in front of you in the open kitchen. His grilled eel and hassun (seasonal delicacies) are both standouts. The service is warm and friendly.

An intimate soba restaurant in the back streets of Tokyo's Asakusa neighbourhood. You're here, as is the case at most soba joints, to take aim at the house-made noodles with Ozawa offering theirs in three different thicknesses (the parpadelle-like futo-uchi soba, as pictured here, is the thickest of the noodles). An excellent pit-stop for those shopping for ceramics or kitchen goods in nearby Kappabashi.

The old style coffe places - kissaten- are the best in Tokyo. This one is a proper treasure. The menu consist of many beans that been stored for ages and they have funny things as coffee and egg, and coffejelly. A lot of hard looking regulators.

One more kissaten. This is a rather well known location specialize in fluff japanese chiffon cakes. Lovely environment, old ladies smoking or regulars.

A sushi institution run by of the great masters Kanesaka-san is one the great masters of Edomae style sushi.Everything is perfect: the flavor and texture of the rice, the fresness of the seafood, the delicate balance of the seasonings… and even fhe freshly gratef wasabi.All what you can expect from a top Tokyo Sushi Restaurant.Nb: no photos allowed in the restaurant

Kyobashi Iseihiro is a lovely local shop that started in Taisho 10 (1913) with over 100 years specializing in yakitori. There are about eight tight seats that overlook the tiny kitchen. The chef manages not only grilling the skewers but also the heat by moving around the charcoal. After 1:00 p.m. there is a mini donburi lunch special of three skewers, rice, chicken broth, and pickles. Before that there is a four-skewer donburi or a five-skewer donburi. The tsukune, ground chicken with chopped cartilage, is my favorite in the city.

20 years of masterful cooking, with excellent serviceA widely-respected chef across Tokyo and beyond, Ishikawa has launched the careers of many others who have gone on to successful careers of their own. Stepping off the cobbled streets of Kagurazaka into the alcove, past the garden, and into the serene restaurant feels like you're entering another world. Service is top notch. Cooking is traditional, but not rigidly so. Reservations are hard, counter seats even more so.

Edo-style tempura by master chef SaotomeTucked away in a quiet part of eastern Tokyo, Mikawa Zezanko upholds the tradition of Edo-style tempura in a calm and artful space. From your place at the nine-seat wooden counter, you'll see master chef Saotome carefully prepares each piece. Seafood and vegetables are cooked to crispy, golden perfection, served fresh from the bubbling copper pot to your plate.

I'm a Japanese living in Italy so when I go back to Japan one of the first things I want to do is to eat sushi. Being in front of Jiro-san's counter is one of the moments that excites me the most. His daily life, his obsession, professionalism and humility. Every bite there makes me feel more than a thousand years of history and evolution in my mouth. So every time I come back that is one of my must go places.

Incredible sushi in a very unique blend of edomae and modern. Becoming one of the hardest to book sushi-ya in Japan. The sushi master blends the teachings of his masters in a very unique blend of edomae and modern.

Don’t go to a three star or tabelog top 10 - all you need is Sushi Yuu in Roppongi. Mindblowing experience over three hours of sake, sashimi, crab and uni rolls, fried ayu fish, ankimo, grilled tako or octopus. Amazing experience from start to finish.

Seven-seater sushiya in Nishiazabu, a favorite of many, with extensive seasonal omakase course which includes not only nigiri but a lot of grilled dishes (even for some of the sushi chef uses grilled ingredients like anago, ebi, etc.). There are some foreign apprentices (for instance from Sweden) so any dish might be explained.

Tamahide has been serving up oyakodon, chicken and eggs, since 1760. Oyako is literally mother and child. Don is short for donburi. The Japanese pilgrimage here so expect a queue.

Tonki has existed since the 30s and they still serve really hard deep fried tonkatsu in two versions. One with more and one with less fat - go for the one with more fat as most of their customers do. The fat version is still a little less juicy than other favorite tonkatsu versions in Tokyo but great environment makes up for it.

Tsukiji Toritoh, opened in 1907, is famous for oyakodon, mother-and-child donburi, of eggs and chicken cooked with a sweet soy sauce broth over rice. I prefer the karaage fried chicken or the torimeshi of soboro ground chicken, teriyaki chicken, and simmered bonjiri the fatty area near the tail of the chicken. There are a few small side dishes including sunagimo garlic, sliced gizzard with simmered onions and garlic. There are six counter seats overlooking the stove where special pans made exclusively for cooking the oyakodon are cooked and a few tables in the back of the shop. The main retail shop for Toritoh is around the corner and has smaller bites available like yakitori and if you're lucky, fried chicken skin.

A very small kaiseki restaurant run by two brothers. The elder is one of the last disciples of the late Nishi San of Kyo Aji. He worked mainly at Owan / Agemono / Takiawase station.

One of my go-tos for succulent grilled chicken.Toriyoshi founder Inomata has been credited with starting the upscale yakitori boom in Tokyo and beyond. The Nakameguro branch is one of my go-tos for succulent grilled chicken, in part because it's walk-in only, so you don't have to book in advance. Behind the wooden counter, a team of skilled chefs grill Date-dori chicken from Fukushima Prefecture over smouldering binchotan charcoal. They use every piece of the bird, but get there early if you want to order the chochin unfertilized eggs.