The best Tempura in Tokyo

Editorial picks

Selected from published food guides and local reporting. How the list works

1. 1

   Number 1.Tempura Kondo

   Ginza Ginza, Yurakucho and Shimbashi

   Open

   Noon to 3.30pm and 5pm to 10pm, shut Sundays

   Where

   9F Sakaguchi Building, 5-5-13 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0061

   Two stars for eighteen years running, and Kondo made vegetables the point of a tempura counter. The thick sweet potato wedge is the order. Book weeks ahead; sittings start together.

   What to orderThick-cut sweet potato tempura

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tempura Kondo.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Kondo.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tempura Kondo

2. 2

   Number 2.Daikokuya Tempura Honten

   Asakusa Asakusa and Ueno

   Open

   11am to 8pm, every day

   Where

   1-38-10 Asakusa, Taito-ku (台東区浅草1-38-10)

   Frying in sesame oil since 1887, and the tendon comes out almost black with sauce. Ask for the four prawn bowl. It never takes a day off, but the midday wait is long.

   What to orderFour prawn tendon

   0 votes

   Worth it, Daikokuya Tempura Honten.00 votes. Not worth it, Daikokuya Tempura Honten.00 votes.

   Want to try, Daikokuya Tempura Honten

3. 3

   Number 3.Mikawa Zezankyo

   Monzen-nakacho Ginza, Yurakucho and Shimbashi

   Open

   Sittings at noon, 5pm and 7pm, shut Wednesdays

   Where

   1-3-1 Fukuzumi, Koto City, Tokyo 135-0032

   Saotome Tetsuya has fried for sixty years and works fast in dark sesame oil. The anago, split and laid over rice, is the plate. Sittings are fixed and Wednesdays are shut.

   What to orderThe anago, split and laid over rice

   0 votes

   Worth it, Mikawa Zezankyo.00 votes. Not worth it, Mikawa Zezankyo.00 votes.

   Want to try, Mikawa Zezankyo

4. Tempura Fukamachi

   Kyobashi Ginza, Yurakucho and Shimbashi

   Open

   Lunch Tue to Fri, dinner 5pm or 7.30pm, shut Mondays

   Where

   1F A-M Kyobashi Building, 2-5-2 Kyobashi, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0031

   One star, and easier to book than the Ginza names. The plate to have is the sea urchin wrapped in shiso and fried. Dinner runs in two sittings and Mondays are shut.

   What to orderSea urchin wrapped in shiso and fried

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tempura Fukamachi.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Fukamachi.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tempura Fukamachi

5. Tempura Motoyoshi

   Ebisu-nishi Nakameguro, Ebisu and Meguro

   Open

   Two dinner sittings, 5.30pm and 8.30pm, shut Sundays

   Where

   3F, 2-8-11 Ebisu-nishi, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0021

   Michelin moved Motoyoshi to two stars in the 2025 Tokyo guide, and it fries lighter than the old Edomae houses. Take the seasonal course. Dinner only, two sittings from half five, and Sundays are shut.

   What to orderThe seasonal omakase course

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tempura Motoyoshi.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Motoyoshi.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tempura Motoyoshi

6. Tempura Sansada

   Asakusa Asakusa and Ueno

   Open

   11am to 8.30pm, later Fridays and Saturdays

   Where

   1-2-2 Asakusa, Taito-ku, beside the Kaminarimon (台東区浅草1-2-2)

   Beside the Kaminarimon since 1837, which makes it one of the city's oldest tempura houses. Have the tendon. It shuts the odd Thursday without much notice, so check before crossing town.

   What to orderTendon

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tempura Sansada.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Sansada.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tempura Sansada

7. Tenmo

   Nihonbashi Tokyo Station, Nihonbashi and Kanda

   Open

   Noon to 2pm, 5pm to 8pm, Sat lunch only, shut Sun

   Where

   4-1-3 Nihonbashi-Honcho, Chuo City, Tokyo 103-0023

   Frying since 1885 in nothing but sesame oil, which is why the batter comes out brown. Have the kisu and finish with the kakiage bowl. No dinner on Saturdays, Sundays shut.

   What to orderKisu, then the kakiage bowl to finish

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tenmo.00 votes. Not worth it, Tenmo.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tenmo

8. Tempura Nakasei

   Asakusa Asakusa and Ueno

   Open

   11.30am to 2pm, 5pm to 9pm; Tue and Wed shut

   Where

   1-39-13 Asakusa, Taito-ku (台東区浅草1-39-13)

   A Meiji era house with a garden and tatami rooms off to the side. The raijin age don, a heaped kakiage bowl, is what the place is known for. Tuesday and Wednesday closed.

   What to orderRaijin age don, the kakiage bowl

   0 votes

   Worth it, Tempura Nakasei.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Nakasei.00 votes.

   Want to try, Tempura Nakasei

9. Kaneko Hannosuke Nihonbashi Honten

   Nihonbashi Muromachi Tokyo Station, Nihonbashi and Kanda

   Open

   11am to 10pm weekdays, 10am to 9pm weekends

   Where

   1-11-15 Nihonbashi-Muromachi, Chuo-ku (中央区日本橋室町1-11-15)

   The queue outside is the Nihonbashi original, not one of the branches. Order the Edomae tendon with its half boiled egg. Come before eleven or expect an hour standing on the pavement.

   What to orderEdomae tendon

   0 votes

   Worth it, Kaneko Hannosuke Nihonbashi Honten.00 votes. Not worth it, Kaneko Hannosuke Nihonbashi Honten.00 votes.

   Want to try, Kaneko Hannosuke Nihonbashi Honten

10. Masaru

    Asakusa Asakusa and Ueno

    Open

    11am until sold out, about 2.30pm; Wed, Sun shut

    Where

    1-32-2 Asakusa, Taito-ku (台東区浅草1-32-2)

    A tiny counter, one man frying, and a queue on the pavement before it opens. Kuruma ebi is the order. It stops when the prawns run out, usually well before half two.

    What to orderKuruma ebi

    0 votes

    Worth it, Masaru.00 votes. Not worth it, Masaru.00 votes.

    Want to try, Masaru

11. Tsunahachi Sohonten Bekkan (temporary annexe)

    Shinjuku Sanchome Shinjuku

    Open

    11am to 10pm at the temporary annexe

    Where

    6F and B1, TRES SHINJUKU, 3-28-4 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku (新宿区新宿3-28-4)

    Open since 1924 and the easiest of the old names to walk into. The kakiage set is the one. The main building is being rebuilt until 2028, so it trades from an annexe nearby.

    What to orderKakiage set

    0 votes

    Worth it, Tsunahachi Sohonten Bekkan (temporary annexe).00 votes. Not worth it, Tsunahachi Sohonten Bekkan (temporary annexe).00 votes.

    Want to try, Tsunahachi Sohonten Bekkan (temporary annexe)

12. Tempura Kurokawa

    Tsukiji Tsukiji, Tsukishima and Toyosu

    Open

    9am to 2pm; evenings booked only; Sundays shut

    Where

    6-21-8 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku (中央区築地6-21-8)

    A market shop that opens at nine, so this is tempura for breakfast. The kakiage tendon is what to ask for. Evenings are by reservation only and Sundays and holidays it does not open.

    What to orderKakiage tendon

    0 votes

    Worth it, Tempura Kurokawa.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Kurokawa.00 votes.

    Want to try, Tempura Kurokawa

13. Tempura Miyagawa

    Minami-Aoyama Shibuya and Harajuku

    Open

    11.30am to 2pm, 5pm to 9pm; Wed and Sun shut

    Where

    1F Palace Aoyama, 6-1-6 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku (港区南青山6-1-6)

    Thin batter closer to the Kansai style, which suits the joten don at lunch. It is a short walk from Omotesando station. Shut Wednesdays, Sundays and holidays, and lunch orders stop at half one.

    What to orderJoten don at lunch

    0 votes

    Worth it, Tempura Miyagawa.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Miyagawa.00 votes.

    Want to try, Tempura Miyagawa

14. Tempura Nakayama

    Ningyocho Tokyo Station, Nihonbashi and Kanda

    Open

    11.15am to 1pm, 5.30pm to 8.30pm; weekends shut

    Where

    1-10-8 Nihonbashi-Ningyocho, Chuo-ku (中央区日本橋人形町1-10-8)

    Lift the lid on the black tendon and the rice has vanished under sauce. Lunch runs under two hours and the queue can pass half an hour, so arrive by eleven. Weekends shut.

    What to orderThe black tendon

    0 votes

    Worth it, Tempura Nakayama.00 votes. Not worth it, Tempura Nakayama.00 votes.

    Want to try, Tempura Nakayama