Where to eat in Nara

Where to eat in Nara

1. Eat

   Hiraso

   平宗

   A nice sampling of local foods such as kakinohazushi and chagayu (tea gruel, which tastes better than it sounds) are included in dinner sets miyoshino and heijou. An English picture menu available.

   Tue-Sun 10:00-20:00·Around ¥2500

2. Eat

   Maguro Koya

   まぐろ小屋

   A tiny hole-in-the-wall place that specializes in tuna. Tekka-don (rice bowl with raw slices of tuna and thinly sliced nori), tuna karaage (breaded deep fried pieces of tuna), tataki (seared on the outside, raw on the inside slices of tuna), and many other methods of preparations. For most meals you can choose a maguro (tuna), honmaguro toro (Japanese fatty tuna), or chuutoro (fatty tuna) version of the dish. The proprietor is an ojiisan (elderly gentleman) who seems to really like what he's doing, is friendly and welcoming.

3. Eat

   Okaru

   おかる

   A restaurant specialized in okonomiyaki (お好み焼き), a pan-fried cabbage cake with selection of meat. Okonomiyaki is definitely shortlisted on Kansai people's most beloved dishes. A choice of western or traditional Japanese tables are available. English menu available.

   Thu-Tue 11:00-21:00, open on Wed if it's a holiday·¥530-1500

4. Eat

   Sanshū-tei

   三秀亭

   It's worth a visit more for the attractive old house and garden than the menu, which consists of two very traditional dishes: mugi tororo (plain rice with ground yam, ¥1200), and unagi tororo (the same with grilled eel, ¥2500).

   Wed-Mon 11:30-15:30

5. Eat

   Senjuan Yoshimune

   千壽庵吉宗

   On your way back from Todaiji, stop for a snack in the traditional tatami-matted tea room of this lovely little Japanese confectionery shop famous for two things. One is very traditional: warabimochi (わらび餅), a gooey jelly painstakingly prepared the old way from bracken (fern) roots and served with a dusting of sweet soybean powder (kinako). The other is more modern: piles of kakigori (かき氷) shaved ice the size of a baby's head, laden with fresh seasonal fruits, much lighter and more refreshing than the usual sickly sweet industrial syrup variety.

   Daily 10AM-6PM·Warabimochi set ¥680, shaved ice from ¥1000

6. Eat

   Totogin

   ととぎん

   A conveyor-belt sushi restaurant that won't break your wallet. Sushi is handmade and prepared fresh; just watch out as the different plates correspond to different prices so read the menu (both sides) carefully before chowing down.

   Closed · opens 11 am·starting at ¥126 per sushi plate

7. Eat

   Yatagarasu

   やたがらす

   Fresh poultry from local farms cooked and served in many different ways (eg. grilled, fried, even raw) with a variety of either local or other regional sake available.

   Daily 17:00-00:00·Around ¥2500 depending on your appetite

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Nara (CC BY-SA 4.0).