February Cafe フェブラリーカフェ

February Cafe is a local cafe that’s hidden in the side streets in a less touristy area near Tawaramachi Station. It’s only 9 minute walk from Sensoji Temple so it’s great to swing by for breakfast before touring around.

February Cafe is known for their lattes and their cheese toast is to die for! The melted cheese was super gooey but not too heavy. It was perfect combination for breakfast! It’s also one of the best lattes we’ve had. My friend lived at a hostel nearby and he went every morning during his stay. There’s always big coffee franchise across Japan but we were looking for these local hidden gems and it was amazing!

Address \\ 1-7-8 Kaminarimon Taito Tokyo
Phone Number \\ 03-6802-7171 (Cannot make reservations)
Hours \\   Monday – Sunday: 8:10am – 6:30pm (Last order)
Average Price \\   Lunch: ￥999
Payment Method \\   Cash Only
Rating \\ 3.58/5
Website \\   February Cafe  (Japanese Only)

Shinbusakiya 真武咲弥 渋谷店

Shinbusakiya is a small ramen chain with only a few locations in Tokyo, Hokkaido and Nagano. They’re known for their spicy miso ramen but they also have non spicy option.
I can really take spicy but I can still feel a bit of heat from the broth. I’ve been looking for spicy ramen so my local Japanese friend brought us here after a long night of partying in Shibuya. It really hits the spot!

If you’re staying or partying in Shibuya and you’re craving for a bowl of ramen late at night, this is the spot to hit up!

Address \\ 2-10-3 Dogenzaka Shibuya Tokyo
Phone Number \\   03-6416-3778 (Cannot make reservations)
Hours \\   Monday – Thursday: 11am – 5am
Friday & Saturday: 11am – 7am
Sunday: 11am – 2am
Average Price \\   ￥999 ～￥1,000
Payment Method \\   Cash Only
Rating \\   3.56/5
Website \\  Shinbusakiya  (Japanese only)

Ichiran Ramen Shibuya 一蘭 渋谷店

Ichiran is a popular ramen chain in Japan so we had to check it out. If Ichiran is on your must eat list, I highly recommend to go here in the beginning of your trip. Once you’ve had a taste of the local small ramen shops, you won’t enjoy Ichiran.

We’ve been to a few local ramen shops first so when we got to Ichiran, I was disappointed. I think it’s popular because of it’s convenience and customizing your own bowl of ramen. Overall, it was okay. Nothing special. But if you insist on going, go here for your first meal in Japan.

Address \\  1-22-7 Jinnan Shibuya Tokyo
Phone Number \\   03-3463-3667 (Cannot make reservations)
Hours \\   24/7
Average Price \\   ￥999
Payment Method \\   Cash Only
Rating \\ 3.10/5
Website \\  Ichiran Ramen

Gogyo 西麻布 五行

Gogyo Ramen is known for their burnt miso ramen and it’s surprisingly good. The whole bowl of broth is pitch black! If you’re sitting close to the kitchen, you’ll see the chefs blowing up flames to the ceiling to make this delicious burnt broth. The broth is rich and the slight burnt taste just kicks it up a notch. Gogyo is a little off the beaten path but it’s totally worth the trip. I thought they only had a shop in Kyoto but once I found out they had one in Tokyo, I immediately added this to my itinerary and they didn’t disappoint!

Address \\  1-4-36 Nishiazabu Minato Tokyo
Phone Number \\   03-5775-5566 (Cannot make reservations)
Hours \\   Monday – Saturday: 11am – 3:30pm (Last order)
                                                         5pm – 2:30am (Last order)
Sunday & Holiday:   11am – 3:30pm (Last order)
                                                         5pm – 11:30pm (Last order)
Average Price \\   ￥1,000 ～￥1,999
Payment Method \\   Cash Only
Rating \\   3.56/5
Website \\   Gogyo Ramen 

Sushi Dai 寿司大

Sushi Dai is an omakase style sushi restaurant so we had the choice between ￥3,000 or ￥4,000 set. Since we lined up so long for this place, we decided to get the ￥4,000 set to make it worth it! At the end of the course, you can choose your last piece of sushi to finish the meal. The sushi is amazing and the rice is cooked perfectly! I can see why there’s such a long line ups for this place. Great quality and very reasonably priced for omakase set.

The only downfall? Maybe I was really tired from lack of sleep and having such a big meal so early, I couldn’t enjoy this meal to the full extent. I would’ve really enjoyed it if it was during regular lunch hours and I’d always come back. I guess it’s one of those things worth doing at least once in your life, but I’d probably won’t do it again.

**Quick Tip** The line only gets longer! Sushi Dai opens at 5am so it’s best to go at 3am and wait 2 hours to get in on the first round. Or if you’re like me, get there by 4:30am and wait 3 hours. Our friends got there at 8am and waiting 4.5 hours before they got in. So if you want to go, go early!

Address \\   5-2-1 Tsukiji Chuo Tokyo
Phone Number \\   03-3547-6797 (Cannot make reservations)
Hours \\   Monday, Tuesday, Thursday – Saturday: 5am – 2pm
Average Price \\   ￥3,000 ～￥3,999
Payment Method  \\   Cash Only
Rating \\   3.95/5
Website \\   Sushi Dai (Japanese only) Tsukiji Market Hours (Japanese only)