Japan

Oh Japan, you are one delicious country!

It is virtually impossible to discuss all of the great dishes that can be found throughout Japan. From national staples to regional specialties, you could eat your way around this country for years and still likely not be able to try every single dish that exists.

Japanese cuisine really is that varied.

But, as we always love to highlight some of our favorite dishes, we thought we’d take a stab at highlighting 10 or so of our favorite Japanese foods you should not miss when traveling in the country.

When possible, we’re going to give some recommendations on individual restaurants where we had some of the best meals during our many trips to Japan as well (in Tokyo, Osaka, or beyond). That said, given Japan’s robust food culture, you can find many of these cuisine types in most cities such that the answer for “where can you find this dish” is, well, everywhere! Recommended spots are only noted as they were a particular highlight for us that we’d go back to without hesitation.

We’re also going to end this one talking about some regional specialties that are a bit harder to find, so don’t miss that as an extra bonus!

• Note: Japan’s food culture is so intense that one of the best ways to get an introduction to a city’s food scene is to take a tour. We do a food tour most every time we visit and they help us find some great gems. Click here to check out some options!

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On a recent trip to Tokyo, we were lucky enough to be staying rather close to Toyosu on the eastern side of the city, which meant two things- we were next to the Toyosu Fish Market (and won the lottery to get into the viewing platform!) and also quite close to teamLab Planets.

As I had heard many rave reviews of this one from friends, it was high on my list to check out and it didn’t take long for me to understand- this is one of the coolest attractions in Tokyo.

So, what’s teamLab Planets like and how can you get tickets? Let’s jump into it!

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As far as great cities of the world are concerned, Tokyo is one I’ll always go back to on every single trip to Japan.

It is massive not only in population, but in size, too, and with so many great experiences and restaurants that we could foreseeably never, ever get tired of exploring the city proper.

But this presents a challenge when planning a trip to Japan, as there is one extremely difficult question you need to answer: how many days in Tokyo should I plan for?

While there is no ideal answer here, since everyone’s trip will be different, be it for interests, length of time visiting, budget, and more, we have a few insights to share after several trips to Japan where Tokyo has always been a staple in our itinerary.

You’ll likely want more time than you have, so be sure to plan accordingly.

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Whenever we told a sake brewery worker or bartender that we were heading to Kanazawa on our third trip to Japan, there was a near-unanimous reply- you have to try sake from the Noguchi Naohiko Sake Institute. When we replied that we had already made a reservation to visit, we got a subtle nod of approval as the reputation of this one truly precedes it.

This brewery is famous not only for making acclaimed products, but also because its Toji, Noguchi Naohiko, is often considered the God of Sake Brewing.

Why is that? Well, he’s been making sake since 1949, was critical to the Yamahai style revival, and helped popularize Ginjo sake in Japan to name a few. And if you’re looking at that year and wondering, yes, he is also in his 90s and helps pass on his sake knowledge at his namesake Noguchi Naohiko Sake Institute!

So, given that Angie is obsessed with sake (WSET Level 3 certified), and I love a good sake tour, we made our way out to the institute outside of Kanazawa to check it out and enjoy a tasting!

In this one, we wanted to share a bit more about what the experience was like and offer some booking tips, since reaching this one isn’t the easiest!

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