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As I have said before, this list is in no particular order, but Japanese food has got to be high on anyone’s list of reasons why Japan is so great.
Tokyo and the Kansai region including Kyoto, Osaka and Nara have ensured that Japan has got the most Michelin rated restaurants in the world and the most top-rated three star restaurants than any other country. It is truly the culinary capital in terms of ‘posh nosh’, but there is a huge range of very delicious, good quality food all over Japan.
If there is one thing the Japanese take seriously, it is their food. Everyone knows about sushi and sashimi as a Japanese dish, but many people (from the UK anyway) are often surprised how sushi can melt in your mouth, taste so good and not cost very much at all (many conveyor belt sushi shops sell a plate of sushi from approx 80 pence). Many cities across the country will have areas that are covered in a huge range of eateries providing reasonably low cost, good quality food such as Okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes), Ramen noodles, Rice bowls and more. Tokyo’s Yurakucho district is full of salrayman favourites such as Yakitori shops (grilled chicken on skewers) and Osaka’s Dotonburi district is renowned for its Takoyaki (octopus dumplings) stands and Okonomiyaki shops. Traditional Japanese pubs known as Izakaya are found all over the country in most towns and serve a great range of food covering a range of Japanese delights and western snacks.
If you don’t want to eat out, you wouldn’t go too far wrong by heading to the convenience store and buying a Bento box consisting of noodles, meat, vegetables and more, costing approximately £3. Convenience stores are the way to go if you are travelling on a budget, but there are also very reasonably priced chain restaurants selling combination set meals for approximately £4. The food looks and taste good and the price is nice too. In Japan, even the plastic display food looks delicious!
There are so many food choices in Japan. A meal in a ryokan guest house is a must and I suggest you try and taste the local speciality (meibutsu) of a city or region, whether it be a particular type of fish, fruit, vegetable or style of cooking. You will definitely not go hungry in Japan and even if you go there with the mindset that you are not really keen on Japanese food, I recommend that you give it a go and you will probably like it. After all, if you don’t like Japanese food, you could try the western food in Japan as it is probably better than the western food in the west.
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Food is a very good reason as to why Japan is so great.