Tempura is one of the most popular dishes among overseas visitors to Japan. At the highly acclaimed Tempura Makino on the third floor of Alpa you can eat tempura that is prepared before your very eyes. This is a Toridoll Holdings Tempura shop managed by the highly popular udon chain Marugame Seimen.

Mr. Ono, the store manager, said, “We prepare each piece one at a time in front of the customer when we get an order, but customers from abroad are really intrigued by the process." Overseas visitors seem quite interested in watching how the tempura is prepared.

To better enable customers to observe how the tempura is prepared, seating is arranged so the customers face the chefs. It is designed in such a way so that the customers can enjoy the whole process including the sounds as the pieces of tempura are put into the hot cooking oil.

“The sound of the tempura cooking seems to increase the appetite. Using the freshest and most delicious ingredients we do our best to enable customers to experience the sight, sound, smell, taste, and texture of the tempura," Mr. Ono added.

Every effort is made in this well-appointed restaurant to keep prices as low as possible. This is made clear by the very reasonable prices of the most popular menu items which are the Makino Teishoku [set lunch]. The mouthwatering set is a veritable feast, and consists of prawn, squid, two other types of fish, three types of vegetable, miso soup, and rice all for only 990 yen (excluding tax). They have a few other sets too, such as the Ebiten Teishoku consisting of three prawns and three vegetables for 890 yen (excluding tax); and the Tempura Teishoku consisting of five different items for only 790 yen (excluding tax).

Personally I really recommend the Oanago Teishoku [large conger eel set lunch]. This dish consists of a large piece of conger that barely fits on the plate, prawn, and fish, for the very reasonable price of 1,190 yen (excluding tax).

During their lunchtime (11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.) on weekdays, a special lunch set consisting of 5 tempura dishes, rice, miso soup and dessert is also available for only 880 yen (excluding tax). If you are thinking of having lunch in Sunshine City, Tempura Makino is perfect – you can see just how fresh they are when they’re made right in front of you!

Ramen is a very popular lunchtime dish, but in these health-conscious days, many people are cutting back on eating it because of the fat and sugar content in it. The problem is, though, ramen is just so darn delicious! It’s especially good when the weather gets a bit cold and chilly.

If you love ramen and find yourself in a quandary about whether you should eat it or not for the above reasons, then by all means go to the Taiyo no Tomato Men NEXT ramen shop on the 3rd floor of Alpa. Based on the concept of "delicious and healthy", this is an unusual ramen in that it has a bright red tomato-based soup made with soy milk as are the noodles and has the equivalent of three servings of lycopene.

Photos of this bright red tomato soup that have been posted on Instagram have further drawn attention to it making it a topic of conversation among the health-conscious and those looking for a new taste experience.

The most popular item on the menu is the Taiyo Cheese Ramen, 830 yen (excluding tax), that has a soup made with sun-ripened tomatoes, low-fat chicken meat, onions, cabbage, garlic, ginger, and leeks all stewed together with soup stock made from chicken bones. The noodles in this bowl of emulsified soup are then topped with cheddar, mozzarella, and Pecorino Romano cheeses.

The cheese topping gives it a deeper, richer flavor making it a seriously delicious dish (and OK, it has cheese, but that’s a great source of protein!). And if there is soup left over after all the noodles have been eaten, for an extra 160 yen (excluding tax) you can add rice to make a risotto.

The menu has English written under the Japanese text and the menu items are numbered making it easy to order, regardless of Japanese language ability. This is a good ramen for those who want to eat ramen but don't want something so oily.

There are many restaurants in Sunshine City, but the one that draws the most attention is the Chanabe Cafe Kagurazaka Saryo located on the first floor of Alpa.

This is a sister store of the Kagurazaka Saryo, a Japanese-style cafe tucked away in the back streets of Tokyo's Kagurazaka area. The cozy, wood interior of this stylish cafe is the perfect space for relaxing after a Japanese meal or for an afternoon tea time.

At Kagurazaka Saryo there is a wide selection of Japanese confections to go with your coffee such as Ocha Kaoru Saryo no Wa Parfeit, 900 yen (including tax); Nama Koji to Shiratama no Cream Anmitsu, 860 yen (including tax); and Kyo Matcha no Chocolate Fondue, 1,020 yen (including tax).

This shop also offers the new dining style known as hitori nabe (literally “hot pot for one”). This is an ideal treat either for an afternoon tea after lunch or as lunch in itself and one that is sure to be memorable.

Two popular menu items I recommend are the Chicken and Grilled Rice Cake Yuba Chanabe (rice 909 yen, udon 970 yen, tax included in both) and the Chicken Meat Ball and Salt-marinated Rice Malt Collagen Chanabe (rice 909 yen, udon 970 yen, tax included in each), the soup of each is made from chicken bones and dried bonito flakes stock to which grated yuzu peel has been added to give it a slightly citric aroma and to bring out its flavor. One dish that is particularly popular with foreign visitors is the Salmon and Broccoli Tomato Cheese Chanabe.

This restaurant also has a variety of seasonal traditional sweets, especially those made with matcha. Each of these conveys the unique flavors of each season.

There are about 90 dining establishments in Alpa, Alta, the Sky Restaurant in Sunshine 60, and the whole of Sunshine City. These offer a wide selection of representative Japanese cuisine types such as sushi, tempura, soba, udon, and dishes popular in Japanese-style pubs, such as yakitori and gyoza.

Other types of cuisine, such as Chinese, Korean, and Italian are also present offering their own specialties. Of course there are also fast-food shops as well, so there is something for every palate at Sunshine City.

This popular spot is visited by about 30 million people annually, so be forewarned that it becomes especially crowded during holidays and during the lunch hour. This can also be true sometimes during weekdays, too. That is because office workers in the area are especially drawn to these establishments during the lunch hour because of their reasonable prices.

But if you wait until the rush during the noon lunch hour is over, you can enjoy a more leisurely time, perhaps an afternoon tea, in these establishments where your only dilemma will be in deciding which gourmet spot to visit. At Sunshine City with its 90 eating establishments you are certain to find a gourmet style to delight you. Pick the one that best suits your budget and appetite.
 
Written by: Shunichi Minami, Dali Corporation