Japan Food, Drink & Restaurant Guide, Tailor-made Japan Tour Packages

Japanese Food & Drinks

Japanese food is one of the most popular cuisines in the world and for good reason. It offers an abundance of gastronomical delights with a boundless variety of regional and seasonal dishes. No wonder it conquered the hearts and taste buds of foodies all over the world.

Based on "rules of five", traditional Japanese cooking, or washoku, emphasizes variety and balance. This is achieved through the use of five colors (black, white, red, yellow, and green), five cooking techniques (raw food, grilling, steaming, boiling, and frying), and five flavors (sweet, spicy, salty, sour, and bitter). These principles can be found even in a single meal of one soup and three sides paired with rice (一汁三菜 ichiju-ju, san-sai).

In many countries, Japanese food typically meant sushi, sukiyaki and tempura, but now Japanese gourmet foods are making a name for themselves all around the world! No matter your tastes, you'll love eating your way through Japan.

Below are some of the most popular food and drinks:

Crab Cuisine

When you travel to Japan in winter comes, you can't miss crab, or kani in Japanese, found in many dishes. Boiled, fried, with rice, in soup, each part of this crustacean is eaten in a particular way.

Kobe Beef

Kobe Beef is a prized Japanese delicacy and probably the most widely-known regional specialty food in Japan. One of the best ways to enjoy Kobe Beef is at a teppanyaki restaurant, where a chef grills the meat on an iron plate in front of his guests.

Standard Kaiseki Ryori

Kaiseki ryori is traditional Japanese multi-course haute cuisine. It evolved into an elaborate dining style popular among aristocratic circles from simple meals served at the tea ceremony. Today, it is served in specialized restaurants or can be enjoyed by staying at a ryokan (Japanese style inn).

Sushi

Sushi is an exquisite pairing of fresh seafood with sumeshi, or cooked rice seasoned with rice vinegar. Depending upon the season, various kinds of seafood can be used in sushi. Since freshness is crucial in making sushi, chefs usually go to the fish market every day to purchase seafood.

Grilled Eel over Rice

Grilled Eel over Rice,a typical Japanese cuisine that consists of steamed rice topped with grilled eel fillets that are glazed with a sweetened soy-based sauce (called tare) and caramelized, preferably over charcoal fire.

Tonkatsu

Tonkatsu is a Japanese-style pork cutlet, where a thick slice of pork is coated with batter and "panko" (bread crumbs) which is later deep-fried. It is usually served with shredded cabbage, rice, and miso soup.

Chanko nabe

Chanko nabe is the staple food of sumo wrestlers. It is a hot pot dish that comes in many varieties and contains vegetables, seafood and meat. There are several restaurants in the Ryogoku area that feature chanko nabe on their menus. Many of the restaurants are managed by retired wrestlers.

Soba Noodle

Soba noodles are part of Japan’s washoku (traditional) cuisine and have been eaten in their current incarnation (as noodles) since the Edo era from 1603 to 1868, and made of buckwheat flour, roughly as thick as spaghetti, and prepared in various hot and cold dishes.

Tempura

Tempura is a Japanese dish usually consisting of seafood or vegetables that have been battered and deep fried. The dish was influenced by fritter-cooking techniques introduced by Portuguese residing in Nagasaki in the 16th century, and the name "tempura" relates to that origin.

Sukiyaki

Sukiyaki is a Japanese dish of fatty beef, vegetables, tofu, and noodles simmered in a sweet sauce. It's a fun way to mix things up.

Ramen

Ramen (ラーメン) is a noodle soup dish that was originally imported from China and has become one of the most popular dishes in Japan in recent decades. Ramen are inexpensive and widely available, two factors that also make them an ideal option for budget travelers.

Yakiniku (Japanese BBQ)

Yakiniku, or Japanese BBQ is one of the most popular food in Japan, which you can't miss while in Japan! It commonly refers to a Japanese style of cooking bite-size meat and vegetables on gridirons or griddles over a flame of wood charcoals carbonized by dry distillation or a gas/electric grill.

Sashimi

Sashimi is thinly sliced, raw food. It is one of the most famous dishes in the Japanese cuisine. Seafood is most commonly eaten as sashimi, but other types of meats (such as beef, horse and deer) and foods (such as yuba tofu skin and konnyaku) can also be served as sashimi.

Okonomiyaki

Popular street food from Osaka, Japan, Okonomiyaki is a savory version of Japanese pancake, made with flour, eggs, shredded cabbage, and your choice of protein, and topped with a variety of condiments.

Matcha

Match is finely ground powder of green tea leaves, which plays a major role in traditional Japanese tea ceremony.

Yakitori

Marinade in a savory sweet sauce, these chicken and scallion skewers (Negima) are hard to resist! You’d love this simple yakitori recipe. It’s great for grilling outdoor or under the broiler!

Sake

Sake is a very popular alcoholic beverage in Japan that made from fermented rice and low in alcohol degree.

Japanese Whisky

Japanese whisky is a kind of whisky that crafted in the Scottish style. It is smooth, that you won’t find harsh flavours in it, but more savouring blends.

Restaurant

Restaurants in Japan range from mobile food stands to centuries old ryotei, atmospheric drinking places, seasonally erected terraces over rivers, cheap chain shops and unique theme restaurants about ninja and robots. Many restaurants are specialized in a single type of dish, while others offer a variety of dishes.

For those have special diet may have difficulty to dine in a normal restaurant, we provide the guides of some vegetarian restaurants in major travel cities for your choice.

Guide of Tokyo Guide of Kyoto Guide of Osaka Guide of Sapporo