Best Sushi in Tokyo: From ¥100 Conveyor Belts to Omakase Counters

Sushi in Tokyo comes at three price levels. A standing bar costs a few thousand yen. A morning at Toyosu Market costs a little more, plus a queue. A reservation-only counter costs tens of thousands. Some of the famous names no longer take bookings from the public at all, so check before you plan around them. For the markets themselves, see our Tsukiji and Toyosu market guide.

Standing bars

Uogashi Nihon-ichi. A standing sushi chain: you order a piece or two at a time at the counter. The original shop is in front of Shimbashi Station, and there are branches in Shibuya (Dogenzaka), Shinjuku (west exit), Shinagawa, Akihabara and elsewhere. No booking.

Conveyor-belt (kaiten) sushi is cheaper still and fine for a quick lunch.

Mid-price: good sushi without a big bill

Sushi no Midori. A Tokyo chain known for generous, good-quality sushi at reasonable prices, and for queues. The sit-down shops are the original in Umegaoka (Setagaya), Ginza (8-chome, under the expressway) and Shibuya (Mark City East, 4th floor, open 11:00–21:00 without a break). You can book a table online through TableCheck from each shop's page, which also shows the current wait.

Nemuro Hanamaru, KITTE Marunouchi. A conveyor-belt shop from Hokkaido on the 5th floor of the JP Tower, next to Tokyo Station, open 11:00–22:00 (last order 21:30). It takes no reservations. When it is full, take a ticket from the machine and scan its QR code to follow the queue on your phone; if you are not back within 15 minutes of being called, you lose your place.

Toyosu Market, from 6am

The sushi shops that made Tsukiji's inner market famous moved to Toyosu in 2018.

Sushi Dai. The one with the longest queue. 6:00–14:00 or until sold out, closed Sundays, holidays and market holidays (mostly Wednesdays). Expect to wait. 6-5-1 Toyosu, Koto-ku, Building 6, 3F · 03-6633-0042

Daiwa Sushi. Also at Toyosu, in the fruit and vegetable building, 6:00–13:00. Closed Sundays, holidays and market holidays.

Tsukiji Outer Market still has plenty of sushi and seafood-bowl shops, without the Toyosu queues.

Counters (book ahead)

Sukiyabashi Jiro, Roppongi Hills. Run by Takashi Ono, the founder's younger son; it has held two Michelin stars. The original Ginza shop no longer takes public reservations and left the Michelin Guide in 2020.

Sushi Sawada (Ginza). A small counter that has held two Michelin stars for years. Expect to spend up to about ¥60,000.

Sushi Masuda (Omotesando). Masaru Masuda trained at Sukiyabashi Jiro for nine years before opening his own counter, two minutes from Omotesando Station. Dinner is around ¥40,000.

Sushi Saito held three Michelin stars for ten years, then became members-only, which took it out of the guide in 2020. Unless a member takes you, you can't book it.

How to eat at a sushi counter

• Hands or chopsticks are both fine for nigiri.
• Dip the fish, not the rice, lightly in soy sauce, and eat each piece in one bite.
• At a counter, the chef has usually added wasabi already; don't stir more into your soy sauce.
• Ginger is for clearing your palate between pieces, not a topping.
• Skip strong perfume, and ask before photographing the chef or other diners.

What it costs

FAQ

Is Sushi Dai still at Tsukiji? No. It moved to Toyosu Market in 2018.

Can I book Sukiyabashi Jiro or Sushi Saito? Not the original Jiro, and not Saito. Jiro's Roppongi Hills shop takes reservations.

Where can I eat good sushi without booking? A standing bar like Uogashi Nihon-ichi, or Toyosu early in the morning if you don't mind a queue.

For other Tokyo food, see best ramen in Tokyo and best tempura in Tokyo.