Best 15 restaurant in Akihabara and Kanda

About the Akihabara/Kanda Neighborhood

Akihabara is a town of fandom and subculture.

Until the late 2010s, Akihabara's iconic SEGA game center served as a beacon for Japanese pop culture fans. The deep roots of fandom and hobbyists keep this town running on an electric hum. Maid and cosplay cafes, as well as animal cafes featuring live critters, offer a dose of the local culture with a cup of coffee. As visitors indulge in their favorite media through shop after shop filled with Anime, games, and electronics, restauranteurs serve up indulgent comfort food to the tune of curry, ramen, and tonkatsu.

The other side of this same coin, Kanda is a bastion of the salaryman lifestyle

Kanda has been a classical office district for decades, and much of its bubble-era and millennial flavor has lasted to this day. Upscale izakaya, sushi venues, and tempura restaurants satisfy the needs of business people for drinking and entertaining clients. Among these are also the incredibly affordable restaurants that serve office loads of workers day after day.

About the Restaurants in this Article

To represent the two faces of this colorful neighborhood, this article highlights a range of middle and fine dining restaurants in the first portion, and noteworthy casual venues in the second half.

Fine Dining Establishments in Akihabara and Kanda

1. Tsumakoizaka Keigo (妻恋坂 けい吾) / Japanese, Soba-Udon, Tempura

Tumakoizaka Keigo, a Michelin-selected restaurant in 2024 and 2025, is notable for its reasonable pricing and excellent, traditional food. Chef Abe, said to be a soba prodigy, left his apprenticeship to open the private omakase venture with his wife. Chef Abe prepares each dish, from delicately arranged seasonal vegetables to raw sesame oil fried tempura, in front of guests; his reserved manner makes way for the warm hospitality of his wife. Tsumakoizaka Keigo also defines itself using hand-milled 100% buckwheat soba. Chef Abe mills, wets, kneads, shapes, and cuts each batch of soba by hand, serving two different types to achieve the highest quality in mouthfeel and flavor.

2. Yaoyu (ヤオユー) / French

Classical modern French cuisine that was awarded One Michelin Star in 2019 and 2020. Yaoyu serves a venerable selection of natural wines in a space that evokes a regular night in Paris. The space offers just the right balance of casual open kitchen and smart design to make its refined cuisine inviting. Proprietors Satoshi and Sachiko Toriumi both carry impressive pedigrees from their time overseas, a valuable experience that informs Yaoyu's courses. Using the best ingredients, Chef Satoshi Toriumi creates dishes with balance between the lightness of modern cuisine and robust French classics. Sommelier-selected wines pair expertly with a variety of creative French dishes.

3. ANIKU produced by Araiya (ANIKU produced by 新井屋) / Yakiniku

At ANIKU produced by Araiya, visitors get a chance to experience the first original concept produced by Chef Hideki Arai outside of the Araiya brand. Some of the signature dishes remain intact at ANIKU, such as the short rib tower, salted onion beef tongue, and highly acclaimed beef liver. Even for diners that are typically not offal eaters, ANIKU serves such a well-thought-out selection of organ meats that anyone can enjoy its "horumon." In addition to a strict selection of wagyu sourced from known producers, ANIKU surprises guests with touches of visual excellence and a smile-inducing health consciousness. After enjoying a king's share of finely marbled beef, diners are encouraged to try a vegetable-juice beverage. The venue's location, a renovated kominka home, adds to its charm.

4. naoto.K / French

After 13 years in the kitchen of Radberry's, Chef Naoto shrugs his mantel to pursue a type of cuisine he can confidently attach his name to. At naoto.K, the chef serves French food behind a traditional Japanese counter, while two more floors of seating create a stunning space to treat VIP clients. With a total of 12 Michelin stars under his belt, Naoto Kishimoto's current goal is to create a destination restaurant for guests and fans from around the world. Despite these accolades and an auspicious career at some of the best restaurants in France and Japan, Chef Naoto still sees room for improvement in his cuisine. His ingredients are sourced from personal acquaintances -- farmers and ranchers who share his vision for creating a paradise of French cuisine.

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5. Kanda Tandake (神田 タンだけ) / Yakiniku

If the Rolling Stones poster wasn't enough, the English translation of this contemporary yakiniku venue in Kanda makes its claim to fame obvious -- "Tongue Only." Tandake introduces visitors to the appeal and flexibility of gyutan. The menu features certain obvious selections, including thickly cut beef tongue, but also experiments with its own interpretations, such as panko-breaded and fried tankatsu. The owner hand-selects sake to pair with courses that manage to stay interesting while using only one piece of the cow. All you can drink and endless order menu options that include curry and grilled vegetables are available.

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6. Yakitori HichouKurata (焼き鳥 飛鳥くら田) / Yakitori

Yakitori Hichou Kurata, which takes its name from the characters for "Flying Bird," offers a diverse menu including the unique texture and subtle flavor of tori-sashi (chicken sashimi), so attention to detail is of the utmost importance. Raised on an independent farm in Miyazaki prefecture, Hichou Kurata feeds its chickens with organic vegetables and provides them with a large, clean roaming area. All this care is put on display in the shop's meat presentation, which shows off the high quality of its chicken before the bird ever makes it onto a grill. Yakitori Hichou Kurata serves traditional yakitori such as thigh, heart, and torikawa, and also creative menu items such as ramen and fried chicken.

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7. à table (アターブル) / French

・Michelin (2024 - 2025): Selected Restaurant

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2021, 2023)

Chef Yoichi Nakaaki has set a high bar for himself, committing to serve made-in-house French food that would move the hearts of the French people themselves. A winner in the Asia Pate en croute championships and official organization representative, Chef Nakaaki has earned respect in the region for his skillful pie and filling techniques. à table has also been selected for the Michelin Guide twice and won domestic top 100 restaurant rankings as both a bistro and French restaurant. Chef Nakaaki's commitment to a from-scratch approach shows his respect for the pastoral culture of France. He creates baguettes, charcuterie, and more to capture his vision of the perfect French meal.

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8. Ishibashi (いし橋) / Sukiyaki

・Michelin (2010 - 2023): One Star

・Michelin (2024 - 2025): Selected Restaurant

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2024)

Ishibashi started its life as a butcher in the Meiji era. Today, its name is synonymous with sukiyaki, one of Japan's national celebratory dishes. After earning a Michelin Star for 13 years in a row, Ishibashi became a Michelin selection and Japan Restaurant Award Best 100 in 2024. It is currently operated by the fifth-generation owner and offers a traditional dining environment with only tatami seating. The whole meal is prepared by a single hostess using an iron pot salvaged from the original restaurant. At the end of the meal, guests can enjoy rustic rice and egg porridge.

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Notable Casual Venues

9. Mendokoro Honda Akihabara (麺処 ほん田) / Ramen

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2020 - 2023)

Mendokoro Honda has been named one of Tokyo's best bowls of ramen four times. Thin noodles grace bowls of complex ramen, topped with pork and chicken charsiu from a variety of cuts, adding both visual and textural variety. The dipping noodles are even more incredible, featuring thick, made-in-house noodles from a blend of three Hokkaido flours. After striking out on his own at the age of 21, Chef Honda has made waves throughout the city.

10. Tokyo Style Noodle Hotate Biyori (Tokyo Style Noodle ほたて日和) / Ramen

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2023)

This noodle shop was awarded among Tokyo's 100 best ramen stores in just a year, quickly earning a reputation for weekday lines that wrap around the block. Its addictive dipping noodles come with chicken and pork charsiu, wontons, and a rich scallop-flavored broth. Guests are encouraged to gradually change the flavor as they eat, pairing the noodles with raw scallops, wasabi, truffle oil, and so on to create the perfect bowl.

11. Caligari (カリガリ) / Curry

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2022 - 2024)

Guests can enjoy the thick roux of Japanese curry and the silky smoothness of coconut curry or spicy Indian varieties all in a single bowl. The wide variety of curry options compliments an even longer list of potential toppings to make Caligari an iconic venue. Thanks to its signature Akiba Mori, the shop has gained enough popularity to pursue franchising ventures and sell boxed curry, all on top of being named among the top 100 curry restaurants in Tokyo and winning the Kanda Curry Grand Prix twice.

12. Aoshima Shokudo (青島食堂) / Ramen

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2019 - 2023)

A ramen that has become so iconic in its home of Niigata that a sister branch was created here, in Tokyo. This ramen, called Nagaoka style ramen, has a clear soy sauce-based broth with a kick of pungent ginger. Thin, yellow Chinese-style noodles fill the bowl. Aoshima Shokudo only offers one kind of ramen, but guests are welcome to add toppings and change portion sizes to fit their liking. The Tokyo branch has been awarded Top 100 ramen in Tokyo from 2019 to 2023.

13. Marugo (丸五) / Tonkatsu

・Michelin (2015 - 2024): Bib Gourmand

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2017 - 2022, 2024)

Marugo has proved its staying power with nearly a decade of Michelin Bib Gourmand status plus a 2016 star and six years as one of the best 100 Tonkatsu restaurants according to Japan's largest domestic review site. The simple menu offers two pork selections and a chicken cutlet, doing justice to Chef Takeuchi Takayoshi’s years of experience. It's not uncommon to see a line outside this popular venue, but the low-temperature fried pork, endless cabbage, and satisfying rice and miso soup are worth the wait.

14. Spice Palette (スパイスパレット) / Curry

・Japan Restaurant Award, Best 100 (2023 - 2024)

A 2023 and 2024 winner for Best 100 in the Japan Restaurant Awards, Spice Palette is a powerhouse in Kanda's lively curry scene. Strikingly yellow rice stands out like a cartoon desert island in a sea of chicken curry. Crowning this island is a mound of meaty, spicy keema, that invites diners to balance textures and flavors on a single spoon. A competitor in the Kanda Curry Grand Prix, the spiced pickles add another layer of creativity to this artistic curry.

15. Karashibi Miso Ramen Kikanbo (カラシビ味噌らー麺 鬼金棒) / Ramen

Intensity is the overarching theme of Kikanbo, where a pork and chicken ramen broth is infused with numbing sanshou pepper and hot red togarashi. Infusing the sensation of mala with a definitively Japanese twist, thanks to the classic flavor of miso and bean sprouts, makes this bowl stand out. The anise-scented braised pork belly offers a fatty respite from this firey but addictive ramen. From leaping flames to heart-pounding drum beats, a meal at Kikanbo ignites the tongue and the senses.

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