First, let’s figure out how to get there. The Gourmet Road is located outside the JR Tokyo Station ticket gate, so first look for the Yaesu Central Entrance ticket gate that goes to both the Shinkansen and conventional lines. As soon as you exit the ticket gates go down to the first basement and there you will see the First Avenue Tokyo Station. You’ll see Gourmet Road opposite Tokyo Ramen Street.

If you have luggage with you, it’s probably more convenient if you leave it in one of the many coin lockers available in First Avenue Tokyo Station. You can check the availability of lockers in real time using the following app.

In addition, you can use free Wi-Fi in the underground passage on the 1st floor of Tokyo Station (up to 30 minutes at a time, up to 5 times a day. Setting is required only for the first time). There are also bank ATMs on this underground floor and baby rest areas where you can change diapers, perfect for families and for travelers who have just arrived in Japan.

There are a total of 9 shops on Gourmet Road. To give you an idea of their regional flavors, we’ll start with a brief introduction of each, but at the end we’ll give you a special recommendation of the top three!

Of course, one of Japan’s most popular dishes is the classic, sushi. Hakodate Standing Sushi Bar Kantaro is a popular conveyor-belt sushi spot that primarily operates in Hokkaido. This is its first shop to open in Tokyo and is a standing sushi bar where you can drop by for a quick bite or two.

The shop obtains their neta [sushi topping] from different parts of the country, but especially from Hakodate in Hokkaido which is rich in marine products. Considering the attention paid to the neta used, the prices are quite reasonable starting at just 80 yen (excluding tax) for one serving. The neta is large while the shari [sushi rice] is small, so you can truly enjoy the fish, and there is such a wide variety!

Mori specializes in charcoal-grilled beef tongue. Carefully selected beef tongue is sliced thick without using the tip of the tongue and carefully grilled over charcoal one at a time. This gives it a plump, tender texture. Are you ready to get adventurous?

In addition to the standard Gyutan Teishoku [beef tongue set meal] (2,000 yen excluding tax) Gyutan Stew (1,700 yen, excluding tax) made with tender beef tongue and Gyutan Curry (1,100 yen excluding tax) are also popular. In addition, there are plenty of snacks using beef tongue such as Special Premium Beef Tongue and Oroshi Ponzu [grated white radish with citrus-flavored vinegar soy sauce] (1,380 yen, excluding tax) and Boiled Tongue (1,850 yen, excluding tax). These dishes go really well with sake.

The name Kiyoken is known to almost all Japanese. It is especially famous for its siu mai which is a famous Yokohama product because the company was founded there. If you’ve never had siu mai before, you’re in for a treat! These meat-filled, steamed dumplings are highly sought after.

Yokohama Kiyoken (Siu mai BAR) is unlike other Kiyoken outlets because of its bar style. Here you can sample different types of Kiyoken siu mai while enjoying an alcoholic beverage. Shown in the photo is the 6 Assorted Siu mai (810 yen tax included). This dish, consisting of 6 different types of siu mai, enables you to compare them and it is only available at this shop.
The lunchtime menu offers such hearty dishes as the Siumai Tabekurabe Zen [Siu mai Comparison Set] (1,000 yen including tax) and Siu mai Curry (1,000 yen including tax). For sake lovers, I recommend the dim sum and snacks, too.

The well-established Kanefuku is a shop famous throughout Japan for its mentaiko which is pickled walleye pollack roe. Fukutake is a dining establishment operated by Kanefuku.

The famous Mentai Motsu Nabe (2,000 yen per person including tax) that uses lots of walleyed pollack roe is so delicious it’s almost addictive! Here, too, you can enjoy authentic Kyushu dishes and seafood freshly caught and delivered from Nagasaki that day.

There is always a line of customers waiting to enjoy the dishes of this shop that is based in Kagoshima Prefecture. It uses Berkshire pork produced in Kagoshima Prefecture, for which it is famous, that has been carefully aged to bring out its full flavor and sweetness.

Berkshire pork is covered in fresh bread crumbs and then fried in a special blend of cooking oils until it is crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside, giving it a luxurious flavor. The lunch menu has slightly smaller portions of pork cutlets than the standard set menu. For example, if you want to eat lightly, you can choose the Kurokatsu Tei Lunch (1,290 yen, excluding tax), or if you have a good appetite, the Kurokatsu Tei Set Meal (1,890 yen, excluding tax).

When you want to eat fish and rice in delicious Japanese dishes, then we recommend you visit Shokoku Himonoto. It offers dried and fermented fish dishes prepared in the same way as has been done for hundreds of years.

Shown in the photo is Saba no Haiboshi [mackerel prepared by wrapping it in cellophane and covering it in ashes] (850 yen including tax). Also available are the high-grade Nodoguro [rosy seabass] (3,000 yen including tax) and Kinmetai [sea bream] (3,000 yen including tax).

For lunch on weekdays, a set meal of dried fish (950 yen, including tax) such as mackerel, Atka mackerel, and horse mackerel, is reasonably priced. What's more, the breakfast menu (600 yen including tax) is also available from 7:00 a.m.to 9:00 a.m. every day, which is particularly nice.

When you go to the Gourmet Highway you may have trouble deciding what to eat because there are so many types of dishes offered. If you are visiting there for the first time and are unsure of what to eat, then here are three shops for your consideration.

Shiroebi in the name of the shop refers to the small, plump velvet shrimp caught off the coast of Toyama. This rare shrimp is highly valued. This Shiroebi Tei shop is the only one of its kind outside of Toyama Prefecture! Its menu is replete featuring lots of the rare velvet shrimp.

This shop uses food tickets sold in a vending machine outside the shop, so select a menu item and purchase a ticket for it before you enter. The display window shows what the various dishes look like to give you an idea of them before you order. There are also explanations in English.

Menus are also available in English and Chinese for visitors from overseas. Depending on the day, English-speaking staff are also present, so feel free to ask questions.

We really recommend the Shiroebi Sashimi-don [raw velvet shrimp on a bowl of noodles] (2,190 yen including tax) which comes with soup and a small velvet shrimp tempura! The shrimp have been carefully peeled and have a slight cherry color and the bowl contains about 90 of them.

Other popular menu items are Shiroebi Tendon [velvet shrimp tempura bowl] (1,940 yen including tax) and the Toyama Special Tendon (1,790 yen including tax) that consists of velvet shrimp, yellowtail, and firefly squid tempura. Since October 2019 Sujime Salmon-don [Vinegared salmon rice bowl] (1,190 yen including tax) has been added to the menu. This is slices of meat from the middle of the back of the salmon that have been marinated in vinegar.

The chefs here pay particular attention to how the ingredients are prepared so as to bring out their full and delicate flavors for a refined dining experience. The tempura is cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside! The flavor is so elegant that it is hard to believe it can easily be found near the station.

Hiroshima Denko Sekka, the famous okonomiyaki [savory pancake with various fillings and toppings] shop, was mentioned in the “Michelin Guide Hiroshima 2013 Special Edition”. This is its first shop in Tokyo.

This shop uses food tickets sold in a vending machine outside the shop.

The shop also has a menu in English next to the vending machine. Basically you order a type of okonomiyaki and then select toppings you would like to go on it. It is OK for people new to okonomiyaki to just order it without any toppings.

There are both counter and table seating in the restaurant, but sitting at the counter gives you a good view of how the kitchen staff makes it! If this is your first time, I’d recommend sitting at the counter so you can enjoy watching how it is made before your very eyes.

Depending on the day, English-speaking staff are also present, so feel free to ask them anything while they are making the okonomiyaki.

Shown in the photo is the Denko Sekka okonomiyaki from which the store gets its name (1,270 yen including tax). The aroma of the sauce on top will whet your appetite. And you can’t beat a nice cold beer to go with the okonomiyaki (590 yen including tax)! We were told by the staff that quite a few customers order highballs (490 yen including tax).

When eating okonomiyaki, use the teko [small metal spatula] to cut up the okonomiyaki.

Cutting into the okonomiyaki you will be able to see the layers of cabbage, pork, noodles, batter and leek, rather similar to the layers in a crepe.

At first glance, you may think that it is a very heavy meal, but when you bite into it you realize that it is not at all the case. In fact, it actually is light and flavorful. The secret to that lies in the shredded cabbage. The large heap of thinly shredded cabbage gives it a domed shape, but inside it is quite fluffy! It also contains green shiso leaf which gives it a refreshing taste. This light dish is also popular with women.

Other dishes include the Hito ni Yasashiku [gentle towards people] (1,590 yen including tax) which contains oysters which are often found on menus, Yume [dream] (1,480 yen including tax) that is topped with a fried egg, and Tappuri Cheese [lots of cheese] (1,380 yen including tax) which needs no explanation. There is always a line outside the shop, but it is relatively less crowded right after the shop opens and between the hours of 4 and 5 in the evening, so I recommend aiming for one of those times.

Lastly, there is a famous Sanuki udon shop offering that famous product of Kagawa Prefecture which has led to it being called the “Udon Prefecture”. “Kagawa Sanuki Mengyo” is the first store in Tokyo of Kagawa-ya, a shop famous for Sanuki udon and established in 1926 that has been in business continuously since then and now run by the third-generation owner. The weather and temperature can affect how well the dough is made, so the udon is made using only the traditional teuchi [handmade] method.

When asked what his motivation is, the store manager replied, "I like making udon, repeatedly kneading the dough, and pouring my heart into making it." Spoken like a true craftsman! Sanuki udon is traditional udon guaranteed to please.

The sample menu items outside the shop are explained in English in addition to Japanese. In this shop you pay after you eat, so the first thing is to enter and place your order.

This is a photo of the popular Ten Oroshi Bukkake (1,100 yen including tax). Bukkake is the style of eating just boiled udon after dipping the noodles in a small amount of tsuyu [the sauce in which they are to be dipped]. Here the tsuyu is made with dried young sardine bouillon which gives it an elegant taste.

Shrimp tempura, grated radish, ginger, leek, white sesame and sudachi, a sharp citrus fruit, are placed on top of the udon.

Take the sudachi and squeeze its juice over the noodles and then lightly stir them. I asked the manager what drink goes well with udon and he recommended beer. He said to first take a good swig of beer as that will make the noodles gone down even better.

Other popular menu items are Tenzaru Udon (1,250 yen including tax), Toriten Udon (1,080 yen including tax), and Mandegan Bukkake (1,580 yen including tax). There is usually English-speaking staff in the shop, so foreign visitors are welcome and the staff is happy to explain the condiments and how to eat the udon.

Nippon Gourmet Road has so many shops that are the first branches in Tokyo of regional favorites. These are shops that you can leisurely stop by and enjoy authentic regional dishes when you are in the station. Whether you are traveling somewhere or just visiting Tokyo Station, please be sure to stop by here.