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Tokyo: Restaurants

Tokyo has a reputation as one of the world’s most expensive cities for eating, but it certainly doesn’t need to be. Alongside some explosively expensive restaurants are other places with prices that are reasonable even by American standards. Don’t worry if you can’t make sense of the menu. Many restaurants have amazingly lifelike plastic models of their dishes in the front window, making it easy to point and eat. Good places for restaurant browsing include Roppongi Hills, Tokyo Midtown and the Shibuya district, with dozens of options from food courts to celebrity-chef-helmed hotspots. For a quick grab ’n’ go, department store food floors, and even convenience stores, offer inexpensive and wholesomely prepared and packaged foods.

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Department store food floors
Snack and ogle as you weave through the depachika (food stalls in the basement levels of most department stores). You’ll...
international | department store

Din Tai Fung
Expect line-out-the-door crowds of serious foodies at the Tokyo branch of perhaps the world’s most famous dumpling...
chinese | editor pick

Maisen
Even if you know sushi, sukiyaki, soba, udon and ramen, you might not know tonkatsu (breaded and fried pork cutlet). It’s a...
japanese

Tenkaippin
Ramen (Chinese-style noodles in broth) is an obsession among the Japanese – particularly businesspeople and party...
open late | japanese

Elio Locanda
High-end southern Italian cuisine near the Imperial Palace, in a setting of rustic elegance. Pastas are handmade, and seasonal...
italian

Joël Robuchon
Leave the kids at the hotel and dress in your finest for dinner at this palace boasting the full three Michelin stars....
smart splurge | french

Shunbou
Inside the Grand Hyatt Tokyo (at Roppongi Hills), Shunbou serves high-flying izakaya (Japanese pub-style) cooking: Kyoto-style...
smart splurge | trendy | japanese

Takamura
Kaiseki is considered the pinnacle of Japanese cuisine: course after tiny course of exquisitely prepared, seasonal dishes...
smart splurge | japanese | small plates | reservations required | editor pick

Gonpachi
Dining in this cavernous restaurant is a rite of passage for expats to Tokyo. Expect a wide-ranging menu with an emphasis on...
japanese

Las Chicas
The name of this trendy café which is hidden down a side street in the fashionable Harajuku/Jingumae area, is Spanish,...
international | great value

Midori-zushi
Shibuya branch of a beloved suburban sushi bar, offering the same quality and reasonable prices. Sitting at the counter makes...
great value | sushi

Yuian
You’ll be as dazzled by the views (from the 52nd floor of a Shinjuku skyscraper) as you are by the culinary artistry at this...
great value | view | japanese | editor pick