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It’s 5:15 p.m. midweek, and an orderly queue is forming outside a glass-fronted shop on a street corner in Nihonbashi, central Tokyo. A white noren curtain, the ubiquitous symbol of restaurants in Japan, flutters above its entrance as a clipboard-wielding young woman works her way along the growing line, noting the number of guests in each party. “Hitori desu,” I tell her. “Just one.” She notes it down and the queue shuffles forward towards a cabinet of food replicas that reveal, in mouthwatering faux detail, the speciality of Hanayama Udon restaurant: wide, wheat flour noodles called oni-himokawa.
Fifteen minutes later, the first of us file in excitedly as the queue continues to grow. It’s a scene replicated across Tokyo every lunchtime and evening as locals go in search of low-cost, high-quality favorites such as udon, ramen, gyoza, yakisoba, and yakitori: dishes collectively known as B-kyū gurume, or B-grade gourmet, a term coined in the 1980s by Tokyo food writer Ryuji Tazawa. These dishes occupy a special place in the hearts and stomachs of the Japanese. Served in one-off restaurants and specialist small chains, B-kyū gurume is associated with regional cuisine but also some yōshoku—foods of Western origin—that Japan has long since made its own. For Tokyoites such meals evoke nostalgia for what they ate in their hometowns or childhoods, and the best attract long lines.
This is why, the next morning, I find myself standing in another line, this time outside the Tsukemen Kinryu noodle shop in Kanda. The queue grows. “The people behind us will be feeling anxious,” smiles my companion, Brian MacDuckston. “The unwritten rule of ramen shops—especially those with a line—is that you go in, you order, you eat, and you leave. Tourists tend to slow up the proceedings.”
MacDuckston should know. A long-term Tokyo resident, he is a ramen expert and guide to the city’s casual-dining scene. We have been introduced to each other by the team at the five-star Palace Hotel Tokyo, which has launched an Insider’s B-kyū Gurume tour for its guests. While the hotel’s six fine dining restaurants showcase top-end cuisine (two of them have Michelin stars), its tour reveals the enticing flipside. “People know about three-star sushi chefs, but then Tokyo has all these great, approachable places that focus on quality ingredients and do just one thing—much of that is B-kyū gurume,” explains MacDuckston.
At 11 a.m., Tsukemen Kinryu’s shutters go up and soon we are at the seven-seat bar inhaling the aroma of broth and watching two chefs scoop up soft and chewy wheat flour noodles. “A whole bowl of their ramen and I’m done,” warns MacDuckston. Since we have a day of eating ahead, instead of the tsukemen—a kind of dipping ramen popular in Tokyo—we opt for the lighter wonton soup, which at under $7 USD is a steal. A steaming bowl of fish dashi arrives, loaded with plump prawn and pork wontons. “They custom-make their own skins that don’t split when they stuff them full,” explains MacDuckston. We wolf the delicious parcels, down the broth, and are out in 20 satiating minutes.
We then head west to Tomigaya, a residential neighborhood near Shibuya and its scramble crossing. The streets have an appealing go-slow vibe with single-product shops and cafés breaking up a proliferation of hair salons. A huddle of people signals that we have found our next stop: Camelback, a micro coffee shop created by a latte artist and sushi chef. Everyone has come for the coffee and two-bite egg sando: a slice of Kyoto-style sweet rolled omelette (more usually seen atop nigiri sushi) wrapped in brioche. “Cheap coffee and an egg sando from the konbini has become a staple on social media, so it makes sense that the elevated version—barista lattes and sushi-grade egg on artisanal bread—would find a place in fashionable Tomigaya,” says MacDuckston. Call it contemporary B-kyū.
Two stops further along the metro line we alight in Shimokitazawa, walking right into the annual curry festival, where we have a katsu curry at Pannya Cafe Curry, a tiny, homespun spot. A huge portion of pork cutlet in squid-ink breadcrumbs and a flavoursome sauce laced with soy and dashi is just over $10 USD. Unlike the 19th-century curry introduced by the British on which it is based, the Japanese kind is made from a roux, with milder spices and deep umami flavors.
Katsu curry is one of those B-kyū gurume classics that has caught the imagination of diners outside Japan—alongside ramen, udon, gyoza ,and okonomiyaki, a savory vegetable pancake from Osaka and Hiroshima. Tokyo’s version, monjayaki, has yet to travel; ditto Spaghetti Napolitan, aka Japanese Ketchup Spaghetti, which was, the story goes, created in post-war Yokohama for American servicemen. I try it later at Hashiya Spaghetti, a father-and-son shop in Hatagaya, where it costs only $7.30 USD. It’s sweet and sour with sausage, peppers, and umami-rich ketchup, and genuinely tasty. It reflects the quality B-kyū food found in Tokyo’s neighborhoods at prices that barely dent the budget.
“The beauty of B-kyū is just how accessible it is,” says Palace Hotel Tokyo’s executive sous chef, Akira Ota, as we sit down that evening for a steak sandwich in the Palace Lounge. “A B-kyū dish may originate in a certain town or region, but wherever it is offered, you can try it and enjoy it. I think of it as hometown comfort food because its accessibility and affordability make it part of my daily life.”
Ota tells us that our meal—Nick’s Special Filet Steak Sandwich—was named in honor of a guest who came here every week for more than 20 years for the dish. “For Nick-san this sandwich is like an old friend; whenever he thinks of it he is reminded of happy times in our hotel,” he says. “It’s wonderfully representative of the approachability of B-kyū gurume—it is the kind of food that lingers in our memories.”
How to enjoy Tokyo's B-kyū
Certain Tokyo neighborhoods are known for their signature B-kyū gurume dishes. There’s Tsukishima for monjayaki (Tokyo-style savoury pancakes) or Shimokitazawa for curry houses such as Pannya Cafe Curry. Hatagaya suburb has Hashiya Spaghetti restaurant, great gyoza places (including hipster spot Fil, which also offers coffee) and Torian for karaage, or fried chicken.
To book a table, Tokyoites use the website Tabelog to seek out the city’s best dining. Its Hyakumeiten section shows the Top 100 restaurants in various food categories (including plenty of B-kyū gurume favorites), and it works well with Google Translate.
Dishes to look for
Ramen
With more than 5,000 ramen shops in Tokyo, noodles are never far away. Tsukemen Kinryu in Kanda is one of eight highly rated shops owned by the Koike group, each with its own ramen style. And there are recommendations on Brian MacDuckston’s website for bowls of ramen costing less than $7.
Udon
Udon shops are dotted all over Tokyo, with pit stops where bowls are cheap (under $3.50 USD) often found near major stations. Oni-himokawa udon originated in Gunma, north of Tokyo, and at Hanayama Udon it’s served hot or cold with soy, sesame and sake dipping sauces from about $7 USD.
Monjayaki
Tokyo’s signature B-kyū gurume is monjayaki: a runnier version of okonomiyaki. There are 100 specialist restaurants around “Monja Street” in Tsukishima that serve it. Staff help diners cook vegetables, batter and toppings such as mentaiko (salted pollack roe) on a teppan grill at their table. Prices start from about $7 USD.
Kushiyaki
Grilled skewers are ubiquitous in izakayas and on street yatai stalls. For quality yakitori (the chicken variety), there’s Ningyocho Torihada in Ningyocho or Torigin in Ginza, where a meal comes in at about $20 USD.
Coffee and sando combo
Tiny artisan coffee joints such as Camelback are popular purveyors of the uniquely Japanese sando. Popular coffee destinations include the Nakameguro and Jimbocho districts.
Steak sandwich
Nick’s Special Filet Steak Sandwich, served at Palace Hotel Tokyo, is the ultimate comfort food. It’s made with premium Japanese beef cooked in red wine and fond de veau, and served in pillowy shokupan – but at $46 USD, it’s B-kyū more in vibe than price.
Read our full lists of the best hotels in Tokyo, and the best restaurants in Tokyo.
Where to stay
Palace Hotel Tokyo offers an Insider’s B-kyū Gurume tour with Brian MacDuckston as an optional extra for all guests, including those booked on its two-night The Best of Japan: The Art of Gastronomy stay. The package includes accommodation, breakfast and a prix-fixe kaiseki lunch or dinner at Wadakura restaurant, with a matcha tasting. From $2,720 USD per person, private tours from $306 USD. See here for more on the Palace Hotel.
