Gourmet curry pan – fried bread stuffed with curry – is the unlikely specialty at this backstreet Kagurazaka shop. A staple item at Japanese bakeries, here curry pan is brought to a new level, serving as a delivery vehicle for distinctive original curries. The pastry’s outer layer has a soft…
Cafe Tales serves only coffee made from Colombian beans, and it’s a great place to explore the differences in flavors among that country’s coffee-growing regions. You can usually find four or five different drip coffees to choose from, either hot or iced, as well as espresso drinks and pastries. They…
Ageha isn’t super-fancy, but they turn out reliable, good-quality kushiage skewers at reasonable prices. There are four prix-fixe menus at both lunch and dinner, with somewhat more premium ingredients as the price level rises. Most full meals comprise eight or ten skewers of vegetables, seafood and meats, plus soup, rice,…
Located in a building with two concert halls and a Conrad Hotel, this is one of the more luxuriously appointed coffee shops in town. The spacious seating area is furnished with comfortable sofas, well-cushioned armchairs and solid wooden tables, with two-story floor-to-ceiling windows looking out onto the street life of…
Tomato ramen is the unusual specialty here, and a bowl of it incorporates juice and pulp from five and a half tomatoes as well as pork, onions, greens and other ingredients. Tomako’s soup is richer and more meaty than other tomato-based ramen bowls we’ve had, and the thin, firm noodles…
Paikaiji Curry’s deep-fried hamburg-steak cutlet (“burg katsu”) is juicy and meaty, with a thick, crunchy coating, and it’s by far the highlight of the curry menu here. Other choices are lamb-pork keema, stewed pork, wagyu beef tendon stewed in red wine, and wagyu hashed beef. Combo curries are available if…
One look at the dozens of colorful jars lining the counter at Spice Curry Maruse will convince you that they take the “spice” part of their name seriously. Occupying the ground floor of a quaint old wooden house, the shop is a relaxed, laid-back setting in which to enjoy their…
Located on a quiet backstreet in the middle of Shimo-Kitazawa’s bohemian shopping zone, Look Up is a relaxing spot for a mid-day coffee break. They serve both drip coffee and espresso drinks, with an emphasis on Latin American single-origin beans. There are a couple of tables on the terrace out…
With its tablet-menu ordering system and counter seating, this lively French brasserie is a cheerfully casual spot to drop in for a glass of wine or a full meal – a refreshing contrast to stuffy formal French restaurants. They serve a good range of bistro fare – well prepared and…
Yakitori skewers made from premium heirloom-breed chicken are served alongside creative side dishes at this very casual izakaya. You can choose from around 14 wines by the glass, 15 kinds of sake, and a similar range of fruit-based Japanese gin “sours”, all at budget-friendly prices. Seating is on high stools…
Iiie Craft Beer: Shinsaibashi Iiie Craft Beer Shinsaibashi: Beer bar Past the front counter with its 20 taps, beyond the huge refrigerators stocked with 300 different canned beers, the main dining area here is quite stylishly appointed and surprisingly spacious. There’s also a minimalist standing-bar zone in…
If you don’t have the time to hit up one of Costco’s suburban locations, reseller Stockmart is the next best thing. With a small fraction of the space of an actual Costco warehouse, they stock some of the chain’s “greatest hits” – selected cheeses, meats, wines, ready-to-eat prepared foods, baked…
The specialty of the house at this long-running (established 2004) shop is a tasty wagyu and pork keema curry, where the meat is simmered in coconut milk and spices and combined with an aromatic homemade vegetable bouillon. The whole preparation process takes more than twenty hours, and the result is…
Beer Brain Harajuku: Jingumae 2-chome Beer Brain Harajuku Jingumae 2-chome: Beer bar There’s plenty of outdoor seating in the attractive, greenery-filled courtyard area in front of Beer Brain, and just a bit of standing room inside the tiny bar itself. The shop’s five taps dispense beers from…
The exciting, innovative spice curries at Rajkumar push the boundaries of the cuisine. The chef isn’t afraid to experiment with dishes inspired by European cooking, like the eye-opening Mediterranean-style seafood tomato curry on the evening menu. Loaded with generous portions of plump shrimp, octopus and clams, it’s flavored with white…
Classic hearty Uzbeki dishes are the draw at this hidden jewel in Nihonbashi. Along with a few Turkish and Russian staples, and even some Georgian wine! You walk through a dark corridor in an office building on a back street and come out into an exotic Central Asian room, a…
If you’re tired of flabby, unexciting bacon on your burgers, Lil Woody’s will put you back on the right track. The cult-favorite Seattle-based shop serves an awe-inspiring lineup of grass-fed beef burgers, and the crispy, dry-aged bacon they use is honestly some of the best we’ve had in Tokyo. Other…
Koukyu Hanten: Suidobashi Koukyu Hanten Suidobashi: Chinese Taiwanese dim sum, spicy ramen bowls and rice dishes are served with craft beers at this kiosk inside Tokyo Dome City’s popular food court. Five taps dispense a rotating selection of freshly brewed beers from Tokyo’s Rio Brewery along with…
