Nobody in Tokyo blinks at someone eating alone; the city is built for it. Ramen shops are counters, sushi can be eaten standing up, and a bowl of tendon is a meal for one by design.
If you’re travelling solo, or just want to slip away from the group for a meal, these are the places on my list that suit one person best.
How it works
- Ticket machines: At many ramen shops and one-bowl places, you order at a machine by the door. Buy the ticket, hand it to the cook when you sit. Plenty of machines are still cash only, so carry coins and ¥1,000 notes.
- Queues: The good places have lines. On your own, the single empty stool at the counter is often yours, so you move faster.
- Pace: If there’s a line behind you, don’t linger. Eat, then go.
- Booking: For counter restaurants, set the party size to one on the booking platform. Nights with nothing for two sometimes have a seat for one.
Ramen and tsukemen
- Fūunji · Shinjuku: Fish-and-chicken broth tsukemen; expect a line.
- Tsujita · Ginza, Shibuya, Yaesu: Rich tsukemen.
- Ginza Kagari · Ginza, Roppongi: Creamy chicken (tori paitan) ramen.
- Ginza Hachigou · Ginza: Clear ramen.
- Nagi (Golden Gai) · Shinjuku: Dried sardine (niboshi) ramen.
- Chūkamenten Kiraku · Shibuya: Old school.
Standing and quick sushi
- Sushicho Bekkan · Tsukiji: Standing sushi.
- Uogashi Standing Sushi Bar · Shimbashi: Standing sushi.
- Uogashi Nihonichi Yurakucho · Ginza: Standing sushi.
- Maguro-to-Shari · Shibuya: Tuna-focused bowls and sushi.
One bowl: tendon, katsu, curry, kaisendon
- Kaneko Hannosuke · Nihonbashi: Tendon.
- Rare Tendon Mitsuyoshi · Ginza: Tendon.
- Tonkatsu Hajime · Nihonbashi: Tonkatsu.
- Zuicho · Shibuya: Katsudon.
- Kitchen Nankai · Komaba, Koenji, Shimokitazawa, Jimbocho: Katsu curry.
- Tsujihan · Nihonbashi, Kagurazaka, Ark Hills: Kaisendon.
- Udon Shin · Shinjuku: Udon.
A feast at the counter
A proper evening alone works too, and tempura counters are the best place for it: Tempura Kondo in Ginza, Tempura Motoyoshi in Ebisu. Heading to a sushi omakase? Read my guide to omakase first.
Late: a drink at the counter
Most cocktail bars are counters, and being able to talk to the bartender is the solo diner’s advantage. Gen Yamamoto in Azabu-Juban builds its cocktail menu around Japanese ingredients; Bar Centifolia is in the same neighbourhood; there’s High Five and Bar Kage in Ginza, and the tiny bars of Golden Gai in Shinjuku. Every bar on my list is in where to drink in Tokyo. Moving on to an izakaya? My izakaya guide will help.
Every address is mapped, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, in my Tokyo guide.
