Okinawa Paradise: A laid-back taste of Ryukyu culture
The earthly delights are numerous and varied in Kabukicho, Shinjuku's notorious, though now mostly scrubbed-up, red-light district. The pleasures offered at Okinawa Paradise, though, are strictly wholesome. As the name proclaims, the focus at this laid-back, old-school izakaya tavern is on the food and drink ...
Mimosa Ginza: New offshoot from a Shanghainese favorite
Farewell to Ginza's iconic (albeit dated) Sony Building. Once extolled by gourmets for housing the Tokyo outpost of Maxim's de Paris — at a time when few French restaurants or chefs had any interest in Japan — now all that's left is a hip ...
Toritama: Beak-to-tail yakitori washed down with top sake
There are only two fail-safe ways to get through a Tokyo heatwave summer. One is to head for the hills, or anywhere else the nights are cool. The other is to self-medicate. Sake does the trick perfectly, especially when matched with good yakitori. That ...
Mensho San Francisco: Ramen given the West Coast treatment
It's no secret: Ramen is big in America, and getting bigger fast. It also seems to be undergoing some unusual mutations in its new, no-holds-barred environment. No one understands this better than the self-styled "hyper ramen creator," Tomoharu Shono. He's the man behind some of ...
Gold'n Bub: Quality pub grub to match the beer
When Tokyo craves beach time, as often as not it is Shonan that's the destination of choice. This stretch of coastline facing out onto Sagami Bay in Kanagawa Prefecture offers sand, surf and no shortage of sun in midsummer. It also boasts breezes off the ...
Monk: Diminutive ristorante punches well above its weight
It's a long hike to Tsujido Station from the Shonan shoreline. Thankfully, there are some excellent places to revive yourself among the bars and eateries that cluster on the beach side of the railway tracks. Monk is one of the newest and best. It's also ...
Inua: Japan on the plate, Noma on the palate
To call Inua the most hotly awaited restaurant this year would be inaccurate. But that's only because its opening, at the very end of June, came a mere matter of weeks after it was first announced. There was little time for the excitement to ...
Sel Sal Sale: Ristorante quality with trattoria values
Sel Sal Sale is not one of those modest restaurants that keeps itself safely hidden out of sight behind an anonymous frontage. Quite the opposite: The wood-framed window onto the street invites you to slow down, pause and peer inside. Stroll past at dinnertime — ...
Ayu Ramen: Hole in the wall noodles topped with sweetfish
The noren half-curtain across the entrance, the compact seven-seat counter, the steam wafting up from the simmering vats — this is the DNA for thousands of hole-in-the-wall noodle joints across Japan. But Ayu Ramen stands out in one crucial respect. Every bowl here comes ...
Bricolage Bread & Co.: Sourdough bread and tartines on the terrace
It’s the smell that greets you first as you walk through the door at Bricolage Bread & Co.; the warm aroma of baking intermingled with the heady whiff of good coffee. It could hardly feel more alluring — that is, until you see the ...
Nori-Temaki: A bold attempt to steal the onigiri crown
Think of the nori-temaki (nori roll) as a cousin of the humble onigiri rice "ball" — but served in a cylindrical shape, rather than the flattened pyramids of soft white grain found at every convenience store. Expect to hear much more about this elongated ...
Juban Ukyo: Alfresco dining to match the environs
It's that short but magical time of year when restaurants throw open their doors, tables proliferate along sidewalks and diners take advantage of the balmy evenings. Quick, now, before the muggy midsummer conditions set in for real: This is prime alfresco season and it's ...
