A lot of people think Japanese food is difficult, a lot of work. But you don't have to buy the knife I have. You don't have to train as long as I have. You can do my cooking in your kitchen. - Masaharu Morimoto
I spent 10 absolutely fantastic days in Japan and here is my list of my top experiences.
I spent 10 absolutely fantastic days in Japan and here is my list of my top experiences.
Eating in Tokyo and Kyoto
Pricey to Mid-range
Tokyo
Tapas Molecular Bar, Mandarin Oriental, Chuo
This Michelin star meal was one of the best food experiences I have ever had. There are only 8 seats and 2 chefs cook live for 2 hours and 14 courses. There's a lot of science and magic with liquid nitrogen, blowtorches and sous-vide techniques - and the chef is talking you through everything. Be prepared to drop JPY 50,000 for 2 people though and another JPY 24,000 for the wine pairings. That said, there are over 232 other Michelin star restaurants you could choose from should you find yourself in Tokyo. I picked this one because it felt a lot more intimate and I'm a sucker for molecular gastronomy. The other one that I really wanted to try was Den.
Pricey to Mid-range
Tokyo
Tapas Molecular Bar, Mandarin Oriental, Chuo
This Michelin star meal was one of the best food experiences I have ever had. There are only 8 seats and 2 chefs cook live for 2 hours and 14 courses. There's a lot of science and magic with liquid nitrogen, blowtorches and sous-vide techniques - and the chef is talking you through everything. Be prepared to drop JPY 50,000 for 2 people though and another JPY 24,000 for the wine pairings. That said, there are over 232 other Michelin star restaurants you could choose from should you find yourself in Tokyo. I picked this one because it felt a lot more intimate and I'm a sucker for molecular gastronomy. The other one that I really wanted to try was Den.
Kyoto
Okonomiyaki & Kyoto Cuisine Oagari, Gion
I really enjoyed this place. Another very small 20-30 seater restaurant, you can sit at the bar and watch the chef with his blowtorch and hot grill. They only offer 2 omakases (chef tasting menu) - they are both fantastic. One of them features an Okonomiyaki which is a Japanese style pancake, the other has a flame grilled pork belly. Both ended with a super smooth, creamy nougat ice cream.
Okonomiyaki & Kyoto Cuisine Oagari, Gion
I really enjoyed this place. Another very small 20-30 seater restaurant, you can sit at the bar and watch the chef with his blowtorch and hot grill. They only offer 2 omakases (chef tasting menu) - they are both fantastic. One of them features an Okonomiyaki which is a Japanese style pancake, the other has a flame grilled pork belly. Both ended with a super smooth, creamy nougat ice cream.
Pound Steakhouse, Gion
They literally have a huge menu with only different choices of steak cuts including Kobe beef options and they serve it up just steak, no sides. Just a quarter pound of melt-in-your-mouth wagyu beef.
Tokyo and Kyoto
Kaiseiki
This is a traditional Japanese multi-course meal prepared with select seasonal ingredients.
We had this at our Ryokan hotel in Hakone (more on ryokans and Hakone below). Fair warning: it's a lot of cold, gooey, unidentifiable food. You may think you like baked salmon but would you like it cold and caked in a layer of yam? This one is really for adventurous eaters - I was extremely kicked trying things (even if I didn't like everything) and the sashimi was the freshest i have ever eaten. If you do book a kaiseiki at a Ryokan don't book breakfast. Eating a cup of what I'm guessing was raw, gooey octopus for breakfast definitely threw me off.
Kaiseiki
This is a traditional Japanese multi-course meal prepared with select seasonal ingredients.
We had this at our Ryokan hotel in Hakone (more on ryokans and Hakone below). Fair warning: it's a lot of cold, gooey, unidentifiable food. You may think you like baked salmon but would you like it cold and caked in a layer of yam? This one is really for adventurous eaters - I was extremely kicked trying things (even if I didn't like everything) and the sashimi was the freshest i have ever eaten. If you do book a kaiseiki at a Ryokan don't book breakfast. Eating a cup of what I'm guessing was raw, gooey octopus for breakfast definitely threw me off.
Other traditional things to try: You will definitely end up drinking sake and whiskey in Japan (most people do) but also try the plum wine. It's called umeshu and it's more of a liqueur than a wine. Goes great with soda or on the rocks.
Budget
Tokyo
Coco Curry, Shinjuku
One of my favourite budget meals was at the Curry House CoCo Ichibanya, a Japanese curry chain. This meal was surprisingly welcome halfway through our trip. The katsu curry I had was familiar and spicy and the pork katsu cutlet was crispy and delicious. You can customise the meat, the add-ons and the spice levels. (you choose from levels 1 to 10 - I chose 7 and they weren't fooling around with the spiciness).
Kyoto
Sushi no Musashi, Kyoto Station
We had our first meal in Kyoto at this tiny sushi-on-a-conveyor belt place at Kyoto station. After a 20 minute wait (totally worth it) we got started on plates and plates of sushi I had never seen before. Roasted duck sushi with onions and mayo, crab salad maki, blowfish and some suprising sweet ones (egg and a fried bean curd). 12 plates in, the tipping point for me was a slimy orange shellfish which was too adventurous (even for me).
Tokyo and Kyoto
7-eleven, Family Mart, Lawson
When I travel I get hungry pretty much every few hours and we didn't always have the time to do a sit down meal or find a good place. For a tasty, quick, cheap way to get a bite pop into a 7-eleven or Family Mart or Lawson and get a sandwich (we loved the roast beef with horseradish sauce), a salad or a bao bun (the pork buns are my favourite) or if you are feeling adventurous there's sushi and rice balls. They could even heat up noodles or pasta for you if you have a place to sit and eat.
More things to eat
Pancakes, crepes and honey toast in Tokyo
Thas a craze in Tokyo for huge, light, unimaginably fluffy pancakes. We tried ours at Happy Pancakes, Ginza. They are ridiculously light. There are a bunch of places in Harajuku as well (that's the teen, manga neighborhood) which look even more fluffy. Here's a helpful link: http://iamafoodblog.com/tokyo-food-guide-where-to-eat-fluffy-japanese-pancakes-in-tokyo/
Another very Instagram-worthy dessert is the honey toast in Shibuya, which is a massive fruit and cream filled sweet toasted loaf of bread. Harajuku also has loads of crepes shops, they do crepes rolled into a cone with fillings. I personally found these had way too much cream to enjoy.
What to see and do
Tokyo
My Tokyo experience was mostly shop, walk around, eat, drink, sleep, repeat. There are so many neighborhoods from glitzy shopping streets in Ginza to cobblestoned backalleys in Shinjuku you could spend entire days just wandering.
My must-do places to check out are:
1. Itoya, Ginza
Tokyo has everything from cheap, crazy, everything shopping at Don Quihote (literally everything - we bought pancake makers, hair accessories and Kit-Kats) to high end shopping at Omotesando Hills. Shop as much or as little as you like but definately check out Itoya, Tokyo's 12 story stationary shop. Think an entire floor for greeting cards, one for papers, one for diaries, one for craft supplies, it goes on.
2. Robot Restaurant, Shinjuku
This show with robots and psychelic dancers and bright lights is crazy and loud and will have you smiling from ear to ear and shaking your head at the same time. While you are in the area have a drink at Golden Gai - there are around 200 small bars stuffed into a few cobblestoned lanes (when I say small I mean really small - 5 or 6 people could sit comfortably). Or you could do a whiskey tasting at Zoetrope - a small bar with the owner serving up Japanese whiskey you won't find anywhere else and playing movies on a big screen.
Kyoto
There's a lot of shines and temples in Kyoto, all of them are gorgeous. Here are the ones I thought were unmissable:
1. Fushiimi Inari Shrine
The famous Vermillion tori gates - this is quite a walk so wear comfortable shoes. You could grab lunch at one of the many soupy noodle places there. We found the hole-in-the-wall Men Ko No Ren which served up a steaming hot bowl of ramen and tsukeman, a ramen variation in which cold noodles are slurped up after being dipped in a separate bowl of broth.
2. Arashiyama
You can do this on the same day as Fushiimi Inari but it will be tiring if you try to do everything. Arashiyama is probably my favourite part of Kyoto. Make sure you go early enough (the sun set by 5:30 when we were there so we couldn't do everything) and check out the little old-world town, the Togensu bridge (there's a great view from there in autumn), the railway station with the kimono forest (you could do this one after sunset as well) and of course the Bamboo Forest which is one of the most popular sight in Kyoto. When you are in the forest definitely go to to the neighbouring Okochi Sanso Garden - it's more walking and an additional admission fee but it is unbelievably gorgeous. Nearby is theTenryuji Temple which I think is skippable but don't miss the adjoining lake and gardens - this is really one of the best places to see Kyoto in all its beauty. For other temples and castles, I personally thought Kyoto Palace, the old Imperial Place was skippable. Nijo castle, the seat of the old Shogun, was great if you are interested in history. Kyoto is currently undergoing a massive renovation of all its sites so a few places are closed off.
3. Kyoto Samurai Experience
I cannot recommend this enough.
It was such an authentic, immersive experience and one of the highlights of Kyoto for me. You sit in an actual Samurai house and learn about its history and architecture, and learn how to use an actual Katana from an amazingly zen and passionate instructor who speaks perfect Japanese, Chinese and English. Its INR 7700 per person on Tripadvisor - book a couple of days in advance, it's totally worth the money and not gimmicky or a tourist-trap at all. (On the other hand, we went for a cultural show at Gion Corner which showcased a tea ceremony, flower arrangement, puppeteering and Geisha dance which was 90 mins of pure torture a lot of which sounded like banshees dying - skip that one.)
Day trips from Tokyo and Kyoto
There are a bunch of places you could go for the day or 1 night. We went to Hakone which is a MUST DO. Hakone is a mountain town best known for its hot springs and views of Mount Fuji. We got very lucky to get a clear day and an amazing view of Mount Fuji. The way to do Hakone is to follow a 'loop' with a train, bus, cablecar and boat to see Mount Fuji from different points. One tip: on the way up avoid the bus and take the train, the roads are too steep and winding. On the way up is an open air art gallery which currently hosts a massive Picasso collection - do not miss this for the world. At a higher stop you can get a view of an active volcanic zone - it's steaming and loud and you can smell the sulphur. We ate rich chocolate ice cream and eggs cooked in volcanic springs (which taste like regular boiled eggs but are black) and alternated between views of Mount Fuji and the volcanic crater.
Ryokan experience
Ryokans are Japanese style inns found throughout the country, especially in hot spring resorts. More than just a place to sleep, ryokan are an opportunity to experience the traditional Japanese lifestyle and hospitality, incorporating elements such as tatami floors, futon beds, Japanese style baths and local cuisine, making them popular with both Japanese and foreign tourists alike. (Got lazy and copy-pasted that from Japan-guide.com)
We stayed at a Ryokan hotel in Hakone (Yoshiiki Ryokan). On the plus side it had a stunning garden, great hospitality, and a really magical open air onsen (pools with hot water springs which are just brilliant in the cold and after sunset because you can see the steam rising) On the negative side the hotel experience made it feel a bit less than authentic - there are more traditional Ryokans you could stay at even in Kyoto. The futon on the floor to sleep on and their pillow with beans may have felt authentic but it was not comfortable - I couldn't sleep all night but that might just be me. I think it's worth doing just for a night as an experience.
My other tips to get around Japan:
Google translate and Google lens
Helps you identify Japanese text and some can do a reverse image search on buildings and monuments. It didn't work everywhere, everytime but it's good to have and gets you a laugh once in while
SIM card
I bought a Docomo sim card from the airport
Here's something I didn't read anywhere - you legally can't buy a SIM that allows calling so we bought one with unlimited data. The speed was awful. I'm sure there's a better way to do this we just couldn't figure it out.
Tokyo
My Tokyo experience was mostly shop, walk around, eat, drink, sleep, repeat. There are so many neighborhoods from glitzy shopping streets in Ginza to cobblestoned backalleys in Shinjuku you could spend entire days just wandering.
My must-do places to check out are:
1. Itoya, Ginza
Tokyo has everything from cheap, crazy, everything shopping at Don Quihote (literally everything - we bought pancake makers, hair accessories and Kit-Kats) to high end shopping at Omotesando Hills. Shop as much or as little as you like but definately check out Itoya, Tokyo's 12 story stationary shop. Think an entire floor for greeting cards, one for papers, one for diaries, one for craft supplies, it goes on.
2. Robot Restaurant, Shinjuku
This show with robots and psychelic dancers and bright lights is crazy and loud and will have you smiling from ear to ear and shaking your head at the same time. While you are in the area have a drink at Golden Gai - there are around 200 small bars stuffed into a few cobblestoned lanes (when I say small I mean really small - 5 or 6 people could sit comfortably). Or you could do a whiskey tasting at Zoetrope - a small bar with the owner serving up Japanese whiskey you won't find anywhere else and playing movies on a big screen.
Kyoto
There's a lot of shines and temples in Kyoto, all of them are gorgeous. Here are the ones I thought were unmissable:
1. Fushiimi Inari Shrine
The famous Vermillion tori gates - this is quite a walk so wear comfortable shoes. You could grab lunch at one of the many soupy noodle places there. We found the hole-in-the-wall Men Ko No Ren which served up a steaming hot bowl of ramen and tsukeman, a ramen variation in which cold noodles are slurped up after being dipped in a separate bowl of broth.
2. Arashiyama
You can do this on the same day as Fushiimi Inari but it will be tiring if you try to do everything. Arashiyama is probably my favourite part of Kyoto. Make sure you go early enough (the sun set by 5:30 when we were there so we couldn't do everything) and check out the little old-world town, the Togensu bridge (there's a great view from there in autumn), the railway station with the kimono forest (you could do this one after sunset as well) and of course the Bamboo Forest which is one of the most popular sight in Kyoto. When you are in the forest definitely go to to the neighbouring Okochi Sanso Garden - it's more walking and an additional admission fee but it is unbelievably gorgeous. Nearby is theTenryuji Temple which I think is skippable but don't miss the adjoining lake and gardens - this is really one of the best places to see Kyoto in all its beauty. For other temples and castles, I personally thought Kyoto Palace, the old Imperial Place was skippable. Nijo castle, the seat of the old Shogun, was great if you are interested in history. Kyoto is currently undergoing a massive renovation of all its sites so a few places are closed off.
3. Kyoto Samurai Experience
I cannot recommend this enough.
It was such an authentic, immersive experience and one of the highlights of Kyoto for me. You sit in an actual Samurai house and learn about its history and architecture, and learn how to use an actual Katana from an amazingly zen and passionate instructor who speaks perfect Japanese, Chinese and English. Its INR 7700 per person on Tripadvisor - book a couple of days in advance, it's totally worth the money and not gimmicky or a tourist-trap at all. (On the other hand, we went for a cultural show at Gion Corner which showcased a tea ceremony, flower arrangement, puppeteering and Geisha dance which was 90 mins of pure torture a lot of which sounded like banshees dying - skip that one.)
Day trips from Tokyo and Kyoto
There are a bunch of places you could go for the day or 1 night. We went to Hakone which is a MUST DO. Hakone is a mountain town best known for its hot springs and views of Mount Fuji. We got very lucky to get a clear day and an amazing view of Mount Fuji. The way to do Hakone is to follow a 'loop' with a train, bus, cablecar and boat to see Mount Fuji from different points. One tip: on the way up avoid the bus and take the train, the roads are too steep and winding. On the way up is an open air art gallery which currently hosts a massive Picasso collection - do not miss this for the world. At a higher stop you can get a view of an active volcanic zone - it's steaming and loud and you can smell the sulphur. We ate rich chocolate ice cream and eggs cooked in volcanic springs (which taste like regular boiled eggs but are black) and alternated between views of Mount Fuji and the volcanic crater.
Ryokan experience
Ryokans are Japanese style inns found throughout the country, especially in hot spring resorts. More than just a place to sleep, ryokan are an opportunity to experience the traditional Japanese lifestyle and hospitality, incorporating elements such as tatami floors, futon beds, Japanese style baths and local cuisine, making them popular with both Japanese and foreign tourists alike. (Got lazy and copy-pasted that from Japan-guide.com)
We stayed at a Ryokan hotel in Hakone (Yoshiiki Ryokan). On the plus side it had a stunning garden, great hospitality, and a really magical open air onsen (pools with hot water springs which are just brilliant in the cold and after sunset because you can see the steam rising) On the negative side the hotel experience made it feel a bit less than authentic - there are more traditional Ryokans you could stay at even in Kyoto. The futon on the floor to sleep on and their pillow with beans may have felt authentic but it was not comfortable - I couldn't sleep all night but that might just be me. I think it's worth doing just for a night as an experience.
My other tips to get around Japan:
Google translate and Google lens
Helps you identify Japanese text and some can do a reverse image search on buildings and monuments. It didn't work everywhere, everytime but it's good to have and gets you a laugh once in while
SIM card
I bought a Docomo sim card from the airport
Here's something I didn't read anywhere - you legally can't buy a SIM that allows calling so we bought one with unlimited data. The speed was awful. I'm sure there's a better way to do this we just couldn't figure it out.
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