Ranking
An editorial ranking of restaurants, cafés and bars: grades from A+ to F, price range, and the Tabelog score where one exists.
Places ranked: 2,446
Kyoto · Fine Dining
A celebrated Kyoto kaiseki restaurant where the experience is built around dashi, prepared live at the counter from house-aged bonito. Located in Nakagyo, it's a destination for its clear soups and generous multi-course finale.
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Aichi Prefecture · Fine Dining
A modern French restaurant in Nagoya's Tsutsui district, Reminiscence serves a multi-course tasting menu conceived as a story. It's a destination for diners seeking a thoughtful, ingredient-driven experience built around local Aichi produce.
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Kanagawa · Fine Dining
In a traditional house in Kamakura, Kitajima serves a seafood-focused kaiseki menu praised for its exceptional fish from Sagami Bay. The experience is famous for its unique finale: a choice of five different rice or noodle dishes to end the meal.
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Aichi Prefecture · Fine Dining
In Nagoya's Higashisakura district, Shin Zen Bi is a highly sought-after counter restaurant offering a singular tasting menu. It's celebrated for its fusion of Sichuan techniques with premium Japanese ingredients, resulting in legendary soups and…
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Kanagawa · Fine Dining
A destination for unagi connoisseurs in Odawara, serving exceptionally large fillets of rare 'blue eel'. The unique system requires phoning ahead to reserve your eel, not a seat, but the famously fluffy, melt-in-your-mouth texture is considered…
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Tokyo · Fine Dining
A world-renowned yakitori counter near Meguro Station, where chef Yoshiteru Ikegawa serves a unique "stop" omakase. It's famous for his signature near-fire grilling technique that creates exceptionally juicy skewers.
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Tokyo · Fine Dining
An 11-seat counter in a quiet corner of Shibuya, where a master chef presents a yakitori omakase focused on rare breeds of chicken. Go for the precise fire control and signature dishes like smoked white liver.
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Fukuoka · Fine Dining
A celebrated 10-seat sushi counter in a quiet Kasuga neighbourhood, serving a theatrical omakase focused on the finest seafood from northern Kyushu. A destination for connoisseurs seeking masterful technique and regional flavours.
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Kanagawa · Casual Dining
A destination for yakiniku connoisseurs in Shinjo, Kawasaki, revered for its colossal cuts of harami and sagari steak and impeccably prepared horumon, all grilled over binchotan charcoal.
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Tokyo · Fine Dining
A quietly exacting three-Michelin-star kaiseki restaurant in Kagurazaka. Chef Hideki Ishikawa offers a masterclass in seasonality and technique, with a warm hospitality that makes this a destination for a truly special meal.
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Osaka · Fine Dining
In Osaka's Nishitenma district, Gessen serves a highly sought-after Chinese tasting menu. It's a destination for its theatrical, ingredient-forward reinterpretations of classic dishes, but be prepared for a notoriously difficult booking process.
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Osaka · Fine Dining
An exclusive eight-seat tempura counter in Osaka's Sonezakishinchi district. Numata is a destination for its theatrical omakase, where feather-light batter and precise cooking showcase exceptional seasonal ingredients.
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Tokyo · Fine Dining
A high-end sushi bar in Minamiaoyama famed for its theatrical service and distinctly vinegared rice. Chef Ryujiro Nakamura starts every meal with a signature piece of salt-grilled chutoro, setting a bold tone.
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Tokyo · Fine Dining
A direct inheritor of the legendary Kyoaji school, Mitaka serves an obsessively seasonal Japanese tasting menu in Nishishinbashi. It's sought after for its powerful dashi and two famous final rice courses.
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Fukuoka · Fine Dining
An intimate nine-seat counter in Fukuoka's Hakata district, serving a singular omakase of creative Japanese-French fusion. It's a destination for its theatrical service and highly original dishes, like the signature 'black bun'.
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Hyōgo · Fine Dining
A destination for kushi-age in Ashiya, Hyogo, where an omakase of over 20 skewers showcases an incredibly light, non-greasy frying technique. The relaxed counter service makes it a benchmark for the genre.
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Kanagawa · Diner
At this exclusive four-seat counter in Yokohama's Yamashitacho district, a single chef uses a unique low-temperature frying method to create exceptionally juicy, pink tonkatsu. It's a destination for connoisseurs seeking a new benchmark in the art.
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Kyoto · Fine Dining
A theatrical, ingredient-focused omakase in Kyoto's Kamigyo ward. Known for its lavish use of seasonal produce and a famously extensive choice of finishing dishes, it offers a lively, generous alternative to traditional kaiseki.
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Kyoto · Fine Dining
An exclusive five-seat sushi counter in Kyoto's Shimogyo ward, Kiu (きう) offers a unique omakase that blends bold Western ingredients with precise Japanese technique. It is a destination for a highly creative, private dining experience, accessible…
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