Robbie Swinnerton has been living, eating and writing about food in Tokyo for over 30 years. His column, Tokyo Food File, has run in The Japan Times since 1998.
For Robbie Swinnerton's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
In the latest edition of the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants rankings, Singapore’s Odette has retained its No.1 position for a second straight year, ahead of The Chairman in Hong Kong and Tokyo’s Den. But the announcement on Tuesday was overshadowed by the escalating coronavirus ...
Little more than two months into 2020, already we have a strong candidate for the best opening of the year. And, at the same time, a probable shoo-in for most memorable restaurant name. After all, who's going to come up with anything better than ...
B is for beer. B is for buzzy basement bars. B is the name you'll find on the door at Brooklyn Brewery's brand new flagship outlet, tucked away like some insiders' secret juke joint at the bottom of the refurbished K5 building. Variety: Brooklyn Brewery ...
It's an excellent sign when the first sight that greets you at a restaurant is a gleaming refrigerator filled with some of the best sake in Japan. When the next thing you see is a room set aside for rolling out and cutting soba ...
All good meals incorporate elements of theater, whether in the table setting, the waiters' movements or the way each dish is unveiled. Dining out in Tokyo often adds an extra dimension: watching the chefs at work on your meal from a kitchen-front seat. At ...
Yuki Onishi is clearly not a chef who is ready or able to rest on his laurels. His flagship ramen restaurant, Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta, is one of the best-known in the city, drawing legions of fans from near and far. He has won ...
In the past, gyōza dumplings were a simple side dish — now, they're the star of the plate. Here are five of The Japan Times' favorite gyōza spots, some old-school, some new and innovative.
Elan is the new restaurant of the young and impressive Ryoma Shida, formerly of the two-Michelin-star restaurant Esquisse. Here, Japanese ingredients meet contemporary French cuisine.
The first meal of the year is always important. When it's the first of the decade, though, it surely takes on even weightier significance. So what's it to be? Fine dining or casual? Traditional or contemporary? Homegrown Japanese, something from overseas or perhaps some ...
Before we leave 2019 behind, there's just time to look back on the past 12 months of dining out in Tokyo. And to wish all The Japan Times' readers good luck, good health and good eating in the year ahead.
