What is the best restaurant in Tokyo?

The best restaurant we ate at in Tokyo was Sushiro, a conveyor belt sushi chain, which we scored 10 out of 10 after eating there about once a week in May 2026. Order the yellowtail, premium tuna, and bonito. CoCo Ichibanya, Osakaya, and Shogun Burger were close behind.

Where can you eat well for cheap in Tokyo?

Tokyo's chain restaurants are some of its best cheap eats. In May 2026 we paid about $7 for two beef bowls at Matsuya, about $13 for two breakfast trays at Yayoiken, about $15 for two curries at CoCo Ichibanya, and about $32 for 26 plates of sushi at Sushiro.

Do you need to speak Japanese to eat at these Tokyo restaurants?

No. Almost every restaurant on our list had an English tablet, kiosk, or menu, including Sushiro, Torikizoku, Ichiran, Tenya, Yayoiken, and Matsuya, so we ordered everything without speaking Japanese.

How do you avoid lines at popular Tokyo restaurants?

Book ahead or go at an off hour. We reserved Sushiro on its app and Torikizoku for opening time, ate Ichiran at 8 a.m. and Osakaya in the morning, and walked straight in every time. The one long wait we had was about an hour at Age.3 in Ginza.

Do Tokyo restaurants take credit cards?

Most of the places on our list took our card in 2026, including Sushiro, CoCo Ichibanya, Shogun Burger, Ichiran, and Age.3. The Tenya kiosk on our first visit took only cash or a transit card like Suica, and we paid cash at Donsuke Bakery.

Which area of Tokyo is best for food?

Shinjuku, where we lived, had most of our favorite restaurants within walking distance, including Sushiro, CoCo Ichibanya, Shogun Burger, Torikizoku, Ichiran, and Osakaya. Nakameguro, with the Starbucks Reserve Roastery and the Meguro River, was our favorite area to visit.

11 Best Restaurants in Tokyo, Ranked by Our Scores

Seven restaurants earned a perfect 10 from us in Tokyo, and almost every one of them was a chain. No tasting menus, no two-month waitlists. Just sushi on a tablet, curry from a yellow sign, and a beef bowl that cost less than a coffee back home. That isn't a compromise: to me, chains are the most Japanese food can get.

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In this guide 8 sections

Cream and I spent May 2026 in a Shinjuku apartment and ate out nearly every day. We filmed most of those meals, scored each place out of 10, and ended up with a clear ranking: 11 restaurants, from the one we'd book again tonight to a beef cutlet we loved but felt rushed through. After the ranking come a cafe and a bakery worth a stop, and the one viral spot we'd skip. Each entry has what to order, what it cost the two of us, where to go, and a link to the full review.

What Are the Best Restaurants in Tokyo? Our Quick Answer

Our number one is Sushiro, the conveyor belt sushi chain where 26 plates for two came to about $32. Right behind it are CoCo Ichibanya for curry, Osakaya for okonomiyaki, and Shogun Burger for a wagyu double cheeseburger. Seven places on this list scored a perfect 10. One meal? Sushiro. A whole week? Start at the top and eat your way down.

#	Restaurant	Area	Order	What we paid (two people)	Our score
1	Sushiro	Shinjuku and all over Tokyo	Yellowtail, premium tuna, and bonito	About $32 for 26 plates	10/10
2	CoCo Ichibanya	Higashi-Shinjuku and all over Japan	Pork cutlet curry, regular spice	About $15	10/10
3	Osakaya	Kabukicho, Shinjuku	The Osakaya Course	3,630 yen each, drinks included	10/10
4	Shogun Burger	Tokyu Kabukicho Tower, Shinjuku	Double cheeseburger combo	About $55	10/10
5	Torikizoku	Kabukicho, Shinjuku	Yakitori, kamameshi rice, mega highballs	About $57	10/10
6	Tendon Tenya	Ueno and all over Tokyo	All-Star Tendon and a large shrimp	About $25	10/10
7	Matsuya	Nakameguro and all over Tokyo	Beef bowl with green onion and egg	About $7	10/10
8	Kura Sushi	All over Tokyo	Bonito, tuna, and the prize game	About $39 for 35 plates	9/10
9	Ichiran	Kabukicho, Shinjuku	Classic tonkotsu ramen	$32.25, with two beers	8/10
10	Yayoiken	All over Tokyo	A breakfast set with natto	About $13	8/10
11	Gyukatsu Motomura	Shinjuku South Exit	A gyukatsu set	About $40	8/10

The 11 best restaurants in Tokyo, from our month living in Shinjuku in May 2026

💡 How to Eat at Tokyo's Best Spots:

Skip the rush hours. Breakfast-time ramen and a morning okonomiyaki course meant no line for us at Ichiran or Osakaya.
Reserve when you can. The Sushiro app saved us every week, and Torikizoku is easy to book for opening time.
Keep Suica on your phone. The Tenya kiosk we used first wouldn't take a credit card, but a transit card worked fine.
Have data from the first hour. You'll use it to book Sushiro and find the nearest branch, and an Airalo eSIM set up before you fly means it works the moment you land.
Expect a quick meal. Tokyo eats fast, and lingering isn't really the custom.

The 11 Best Restaurants in Tokyo, Ranked

1. Sushiro // Our Favorite Meal in Japan

Four Sushiro plates of nigiri, including salmon and two kinds of tuna, on red-and-white checkered plates in Tokyo — 📍Sushiro, Shinjuku

The pink-lit express lane that sends orders straight to your seat at Sushiro in Tokyo — 📍Sushiro, Shinjuku

⭐ Watch our Sushiro taste test

Sushiro is a kaiten-zushi (conveyor belt sushi) chain, and by its own count it has led Japan's conveyor sushi chains in annual sales for 14 years straight.¹ It was also our weekly sushi night. Japan ruined sushi at home for us, so we save it for trips here, and nearly every time we wanted it in Tokyo, this is where we went.

An English tablet takes your order, and each round rides an express lane right to your seat. The yellowtail is the plate that hooked us. Our Sushiro review has every round, including the odd ones.

Our first meal at Sushiro in Tokyo, the place that tops this list: the English tablet, the tea, and every plate we ordered.

Order: yellowtail, premium tuna, and bonito. What we paid: 26 plates for about $32 on our first visit. Go: book a slot on the Sushiro app; our regular branch was Sushiro Shinjuku Yasukuni-dori, near Shinjuku-sanchome Station.

2. CoCo Ichibanya // The Easiest Great Meal in Japan

A crispy pork cutlet on a plate of thick brown Japanese curry and rice at CoCo Ichibanya — 📍CoCo Ichibanya Higashi-Shinjuku Ekimae

The yellow Curry House CoCo Ichibanya sign against a blue sky in Shinjuku — 📍CoCo Ichibanya Higashi-Shinjuku Ekimae

⭐ Watch our CoCo Ichibanya taste test

CoCo Ichibanya was our introduction to Japanese curry, and what a first impression. The sauce is thick, glossy, and brown, it sits beside the rice instead of on it, and the pork cutlet on top stays crunchy to the last bite. Our branch was a short walk from the apartment, so it became a regular stop.

Ordering is a build-your-own game from an English menu book full of photos: pick the sauce, the rice, the spice level, and the toppings. Regular spice is gentle and even. The full CoCo Ichibanya review covers both cutlets.

Order: pork cutlet curry, regular spice. What we paid: about $15 for two. Go: any time; ours was the Higashi-Shinjuku Ekimae branch, open until 1:30 a.m.

3. Osakaya // The Most Fun Morning in Tokyo

An okonomiyaki and a spread of monjayaki cooking side by side on the table griddle at Osakaya — 📍Osakaya, Kabukicho, Shinjuku

The empty dining room at Osakaya in the morning, with griddles built into each table — 📍Osakaya, Kabukicho, Shinjuku

⭐ Watch our morning at Osakaya

We stumbled on Osakaya while walking through Kabukicho. It never closes,² so we came back early one morning and had the basement nearly to ourselves. Each table has a teppan (iron griddle) built in, and the staff did all the cooking, which our Osakaya story explains with some relief.

The course covers okonomiyaki (a thick, savory Japanese pancake), monjayaki (Tokyo's runny version, eaten straight off the griddle), pork yakisoba, with two hours of all-you-can-drink included. The okonomiyaki is one of our three favorite meals from all of Japan. The monjayaki was the dish I liked most that morning.

Order: the Osakaya Course, and a yuzu orange sour. What we paid: 3,630 yen each, drinks included. Go: in the morning, to the basement shop at 1-17-12 Kabukicho.

4. Shogun Burger // Our Favorite Burger Anywhere

Two Shogun Burger wagyu cheeseburgers with fries side by side on a table, with sauces and a beer behind — 📍Shogun Burger, Tokyu Kabukicho Tower, Shinjuku

⭐ Watch our Shogun Burger taste test

Putting wagyu in a burger sounds like overkill until you taste this one. Shogun Burger comes from a yakiniku (Japanese barbecue) restaurant,³ and its double cheeseburger took first place at the inaugural Japan Burger Championship in 2022.⁴ Charred edges, juicy beef, and sharp cheddar: no burger we've eaten anywhere beats it, and the Shogun Burger review explains why.

We ate here around five times, and by our final week it was the default dinner. Don't skip the Hai-Sai hot sauce on the table.

Order: the double cheeseburger combo, which adds fries and a drink. What we paid: about $55 for two, with a beer and a sour. Go: pass the small original shop and its line, and head to the street-level branch in Tokyu Kabukicho Tower, which was never busy.

5. Torikizoku // The Best Night Out for the Money

Three black plates of yakitori, including chicken thigh with leek and beef skewers, at Torikizoku — 📍Torikizoku, Kabukicho, Shinjuku

The yellow and red Torikizoku sign on the 6th floor of a building in Kabukicho — 📍Torikizoku, Kabukicho, Shinjuku

⭐ Watch our Torikizoku yakitori feast

Torikizoku grills yakitori, chicken on skewers, and every food and drink item on its menu is 390 yen.⁵ One price means no math, so we just tapped the English tablet for round after round, washed down with two enormous mega highballs.

The skewers came out juicy every single time. It's also rare in Tokyo for a place to let you settle in for a long meal, which is a big part of why we returned more than once. More in our Torikizoku review.

Order: the chicken kamameshi rice first (it takes about 30 minutes), then the cheese meatball, sauced thigh with leek, and sauced heart skewers. What we paid: about $57 for two, with plenty of drinks. Go: book a table for opening time; we went to the branch on Kabukicho's Central Road.

6. Tendon Tenya // Tempura at Fast-Food Prices

A Tenya tendon bowl piled with shrimp and vegetable tempura over rice — 📍Tendon Tenya, Tokyo

People walking past a Tendon Tenya restaurant on a Tokyo street — 📍Tendon Tenya, Tokyo

⭐ Watch our Tendon Tenya taste test

A tendon is a rice bowl crowned with tempura and a sweet soy glaze, and Tenya's arrives hot and crackling at a fast-food price. We spotted our first one in Ueno and planned a meal around it. It turned out to be our first kiosk chain in Japan, and the Tenya review has the whole story of that first order.

After that, we ate at a few different Tenya branches across the month.

Order: the All-Star Tendon, plus a large shrimp on the side. What we paid: about $25, covering two tendon bowls, two tempura add-ons, and two draft beers. Go: with a Suica card or cash in case the kiosk doesn't take cards.

7. Matsuya // Gyudon for Pocket Change

Chopsticks lifting beef, egg, and green onion out of a Matsuya gyudon bowl — 📍Matsuya, Nakameguro

The orange Matsuya sign over a restaurant front in Tokyo — 📍Matsuya, Nakameguro

⭐ Watch us order gyudon at Matsuya

Our first gyudon, the Japanese beef bowl, came from a mall in Kuala Lumpur, so Tokyo was our chance at the real thing. A Matsuya with photos in the window caught our eye on a walk through Nakameguro, and we stopped in on the way back.

The beef tasted fresh and full of flavor, miso soup came with it, and the English ticket kiosk did all the talking for us. It became a regular lunch. Our Matsuya review walks through the kiosk.

Order: gyudon topped with green onion and egg. What we paid: about $7 for the two of us. Go: to whichever Matsuya is closest; once you know the orange sign, you'll see them everywhere.

8. Kura Sushi // Conveyor Belt Sushi With a Prize Game

Four plates of nigiri on Kura Sushi's blue-rimmed plates — 📍Kura Sushi, Tokyo

The black and white KURA sign at the entrance of a Kura Sushi in Tokyo — 📍Kura Sushi, Tokyo

Kura Sushi was our head-to-head test against Sushiro, booked just a few days later. Empty plates go into a slot by your seat, and every fifth plate triggers Bikkura-pon, a little prize game on the tablet.⁶ Yes, we won: a keychain.

Good sushi, but a noisier room, and the fish and rice were a step behind Sushiro's. Hence the 9.

Order: bonito, tuna, and enough plates to play the game. What we paid: about $39 for 35 plates. Go: book ahead and play the game at least once. Torn between the two? Our Sushiro vs Kura Sushi head-to-head goes category by category.

9. Ichiran // Ramen in Your Own Booth

A bowl of Ichiran tonkotsu ramen with red chili sauce and green onion in a wooden booth — 📍Ichiran Shinjuku Kabukicho

An Ichiran solo booth with ramen, a beer, a boiled egg, and extra pork, behind a bamboo blind — 📍Ichiran Shinjuku Kabukicho

⭐ Watch us eat Ichiran for breakfast

Ichiran is the ramen everyone recommends and plenty of people call a tourist trap. Our visit was to the Shinjuku Kabukicho branch, which runs around the clock,⁷ and we timed it for breakfast to dodge the famous line, a trick our Ichiran review covers in detail. At 8 a.m. there was no queue at all, though the room was already full.

A kiosk takes your order, a paper sheet lets you set the noodles and toppings, and then you slurp in your own booth between two dividers. The tonkotsu (pork bone) broth is rich and creamy, and the solo-booth setup is something only Ichiran really does.

Order: the classic tonkotsu ramen and a draft beer. What we paid: $32.25 for two sets and two beers. Go: at an off hour to skip the famous line.

10. Yayoiken // The Japanese Breakfast We Wish We'd Found Sooner

A Yayoiken breakfast tray with grilled salmon, a big bowl of rice, miso soup, tofu, and pickles — 📍Yayoiken, Tokyo

A cook in gloves and a mask putting breakfast trays together in the Yayoiken kitchen — 📍Yayoiken, Tokyo

I'd wanted a proper Japanese breakfast all month, and Yayoiken does one cheaply from early morning. The tray holds grilled fish, rice, miso soup, natto (sticky fermented soybeans), and a few small sides. Sets start at 440 yen,⁸ and the rice refills cost nothing.

Starting the day on natto and fish left us feeling great, satisfied and never heavy, and we went several times once we'd found it. If anything, we found it too late in the trip. Our Japanese breakfast guide shows the whole tray.

Order: a breakfast set with natto. What we paid: about $13 for two trays. Go: in the morning; breakfast runs until 11 a.m. at the 24-hour branches, and you order at an English kiosk.

11. Gyukatsu Motomura // Sear Your Own Beef Cutlet

A gyukatsu beef cutlet on a black plate with shredded cabbage and wasabi at Gyukatsu Motomura — 📍Gyukatsu Motomura Shinjuku Minamiguchi

The Gyukatsu Motomura sign over the stairs down to the Shinjuku South Exit branch — 📍Gyukatsu Motomura Shinjuku Minamiguchi

Gyukatsu is a beef cutlet, breaded and fried so the crust is crisp while the middle stays rare. At Motomura, a tiny hot stone at your seat lets you cook each slice the way you like it. Barley rice and a spread of small sides come with the set.

We loved the food. The clock was another story: booked tables get 45 minutes, and staff started drifting over at about the half-hour mark. Feeling hurried out of our seats is what kept it at an 8.

Order: a gyukatsu set (we had one 195g and one 260g) and a beer. What we paid: about $40 for two. Go: to whichever Shinjuku branch is closest; we ate at Shinjuku Minamiguchi, in a basement by the South Exit. How to sear each slice, and what came with the set, is in our Gyukatsu Motomura review.

Worth a Stop, but Not a Restaurant

Two more places scored an 8 from us, but one is a cafe and the other a bakery, so they sit outside the ranking. Both are worth working into a day.

Starbucks Reserve Roastery // Go for the Building and the Cocktails

An espresso martini and a coffee cocktail on a wooden tray at the Arriviamo bar — 📍Starbucks Reserve Roastery Tokyo, Nakameguro

The wood-clad Starbucks Reserve Roastery Tokyo building on a tree-lined street by the Meguro River — 📍Starbucks Reserve Roastery Tokyo, Nakameguro

⭐ Watch our visit to the Roastery

A Starbucks seems like a strange thing to cross Tokyo for, but the Roastery beside the Meguro River is a destination of its own.⁹ We rode the train to Nakameguro, arrived when it opened, and climbed from the first-floor cold brew bar to the third-floor cocktail bar.

The architecture and the cocktails are the highlights, and the barrel-aged cold brew surprised us. The pastries were forgettable, so it lands at an 8. The Roastery review has the floor-by-floor tour.

Order: the classic barrel-aged cold brew, then a cocktail at the Arriviamo bar. What we paid: about $61 for two cold brews, two pastries, and two cocktails. Go: at opening; it was quiet with no line.

Donsuke Bakery // Our Neighborhood Bakery

A yakisoba pan, a soft roll stuffed with fried noodles and red pickled ginger, held in a hand — 📍Donsuke Bakery, Shinjuku

The glass door and small sign of Donsuke Bakery in Shinjuku 7-chome — 📍Donsuke Bakery, Shinjuku

⭐ Watch our Donsuke bakery taste test

All I wanted from a Tokyo bakery was a melon pan, the sweet bun with a crackly cookie top. Donsuke was close to our apartment and had a line of locals out front, always a good sign. After a short wait, the melon pan was gone.

We took home a yakisoba pan (fried noodles in a soft roll) and a black sesame bun instead, then returned another day for the melon pan. Here are the six Japanese bakery breads we tried, and how to buy them with a tray and tongs.

Order: melon pan if it's not sold out, plus one savory bread. What we paid: 821 yen for our first three breads, in cash. Go: to Shinjuku 7-chome, near Higashi-Shinjuku Station.

The One We'd Skip: Age.3 Ginza

An Age.3 crème brûlée fried sandwich with a caramelized top, held over a sunny sidewalk — 📍Age.3, Ginza

The white Age.3 sign hanging over the open kitchen in Ginza — 📍Age.3, Ginza

⭐ Watch us try the Age.3 fried sandwiches

Age.3 makes deep-fried sandwiches so overstuffed the filling bulges out of the top, and they're all over social media. We normally avoid lines, but we made an exception, showed up in Ginza before opening, and still stood for roughly an hour in the sun.

The egg salad sandwich is outstanding, and the crème brûlée one is a sweet little treat. Neither is worth an hour of a Tokyo trip, though, so it gets a 7 and stays off the ranking. Our Age.3 review breaks down all four.

Order: the egg salad, then the crème brûlée custard. What we paid: roughly $20 for four sandwiches. Go: only when you're in Ginza anyway and the queue is short.

Bonus: McDonald's in Japan

A Samurai Mac burger with bacon and lettuce in a red-patterned wrapper at McDonald's in Japan — 📍McDonald's, Shinjuku

We left it off the ranking, but McDonald's in Japan got a 10 from us too. Trying the local McDonald's is a tradition of ours in every country, and Japan's menu was packed with things we'd never seen. Our three picks: the Samurai Mac, the Chicken Tatsuta, and the Ebi Filet-O, a shrimp burger. Here's what we'd order at McDonald's in Japan, from breakfast to lunch, and what it costs.

The Best Cheap Eats in Tokyo

Plenty of the best restaurants in Tokyo are also the cheapest. For the best budget food in Tokyo, start with Matsuya (about $7 for two beef bowls) and a Yayoiken breakfast (about $13 for two). Two CoCo Ichibanya curries ran about $15, and our 26-plate Sushiro feast about $32. Sushi that good for that price would be unthinkable in New York.

They're also the best restaurants in Tokyo for tourists. Nearly every one has English on a tablet, kiosk, or menu, so you can point, pay, and eat without a word of Japanese. If a meal-ticket machine looks scary, how to order food in Japan shows the buttons to press.

Where to Eat in Tokyo by Neighborhood

Planning your days by area? Here's where we found each one. Most are in Shinjuku, where we lived, and the chains have branches across the city.

Area	Restaurants	Good to know
Kabukicho, Shinjuku	Osakaya, Shogun Burger (Tokyu Kabukicho Tower), Torikizoku, Ichiran	Osakaya and Ichiran are open 24 hours
Around Shinjuku Station	Sushiro (Yasukuni-dori, near Shinjuku-sanchome), Gyukatsu Motomura (South Exit)	Book Sushiro on its app
East Shinjuku	CoCo Ichibanya (Higashi-Shinjuku Ekimae), Donsuke Bakery (Shinjuku 7-chome)	Quieter, residential streets
Nakameguro	Starbucks Reserve Roastery, Matsuya	Walk along the Meguro River between them
Ueno	Tendon Tenya	Where we first found it
All over Tokyo	Kura Sushi, Yayoiken, and more branches of Tenya and Matsuya	Search the name in Google Maps for the closest one
Ginza	Age.3	Go early and bring sunscreen for the line

Where we ate the best restaurants in Tokyo, plus our extra stops

To eat your way down this list on foot, base yourself in Shinjuku. We rented a monthly apartment in Wakamatsu-cho, a quiet residential corner of the ward; for a shorter stay, compare hotels in Shinjuku and across Tokyo.

Where Should You Eat First in Tokyo?

Start with Sushiro. If you have one more meal, make it a CoCo Ichibanya curry or the morning course at Osakaya, and save a dinner for Shogun Burger or Torikizoku. To me, chain restaurants are the most Japanese food can get, and that's why so many made this list.

Next Steps for Your Tokyo Trip

The must-eat foods in Tokyo: the dishes behind this list
Where to stay in Tokyo: the areas closest to these restaurants