Minced, Grilled, Fried: The Five Best Meat-Centric Restaurants Across Japan
There’s no need arguing about it: meat is incredibly delicious. Whether you prefer juicy pork, healthy chicken, or savory beef, Japan has a lot of amazing restaurants to offer that focus on all sorts of meat delights. We’ve skimmed the country for the very best meat offers that aren’t just amazingly delicious but also very affordable – welcome to meat heaven!
1. Fried Rice All-You-Can-Eat: The Minced Meat Tofu Lunch that Won’t Leave Anyone Hungry!
Our first restaurant recommendation is called PaoPao and can be found in the gourmet city of Osaka. The restaurant is famous for its authentic and delicious Chinese cuisine. Their specialty dish is Mapo Tofu, Sichuan-style tofu with minced meat, which comes with a customization option: hungry gourmets can choose the spiciness of their dish in three different grades, depending entirely on one’s individual preference. The silky tofu melts pleasantly on the tongue and the minced meat is seasoned and fried just right!
During lunch, PaoPao even has an all-you-can-eat offer for the entire side dish menu, including dishes such as chow mein, fried rice, and soup, as well as desserts such as annindofu, Chinese almond jelly. This amazing offer is particularly delightful for big eaters – no holding back required!
PaoPao
1-14 Shijocho, Higashiosaka-shi, Osaka-fu 579-8053
2. The Finest Kobe Beef: Taste a Slice of Beef Paradise
RUMP CAP is a beef bar from Tokyo that has gained an excellent reputation for its delicious beef dishes. Now, the restaurants has expanded and just opened its first store in Kansai, directly in the capital of Japanese beef: Kobe.
Just as expected, the main attraction on RUMP CAP’s menu is the highest grade Kobe beef, a menu dish that is limited to the Kobe location. The photos of the juicy, pink beef slices alone make your mouth water, don’t they? Of course, an appropriate wine selection is available along with the luxurious beef, making your gourmet experience a perfect one! This is definitely the right place for enjoying a bit of beef luxury.
RUMP CAP Sannomiya
1-20-13 Kitanagasadori, Chuo-ku, Kobe-shi, Hyogo-ken 650-0012
3. The Best Parts: Barbecuing Spareribs, Offal, and Tongue
For our next spot, we stay in Hyogo Prefecture. Yakiniku, Korean-style barbecue, is incredibly popular all around Japan but unlike meat bars or upscale restaurants which focus on rump and sirloin steaks, all kind of different meat specialties can be enjoyed at yakiniku places. Particularly popular are kalbi, Korean-style marinated spareribs, different offal, as well as the classic beef tongue.
At Shogun, the meat is particularly juicy and served in generous chunks, wonderfully marinated to bring out the taste of the different delicacies just perfectly. When it comes to enjoying authentic yakiniku, this definitely is our warmest recommendation.
Shogun
2-144 Sutokuin, Amagasaki-shi, Hyogo-ken 660-0071
4. A Very Secret Tip: Shinjuku’s Hottest Meat Offer
Focusing on authentic Italian cuisine, Trattoria Quinto walk away from the busy Shinjuku Station and offers a very reasonably priced meat oasis to hungry tourists and Tokyoites. The restaurant’s highlight is the “meat set” that changes on a daily basis, featuring chicken, pork, or beef – we were lucky enough to enjoy an amazing grilled pork shoulder on the day we visited! Not only the taste was incredible, so was the size: 250g of juicy pork shoulder roast, served along an all-you-can-eat bread offer – and all of this for a mere 1,000 yen. What a deal!
Trattoria Quinto
https://gurunavi.com/en/e584804/rst/
5. The King of Lunch Deals: Pork, Fish, and Ham in Nagoya
Last but not least, we head over to the city of Nagoya. The incredibly rich menu of Ogi-tei doesn’t only offer a colorful variety but the vast majority of dishes can be enjoyed for less than 1,000 yen. Some of our favorites are the pork picatta, fried fresh fish, and ham – every single dish only costs 650 yen! This kind of deal is so amazing, it’s almost hard to believe. Apart from the regular dishes on the menu, the restaurant also offers a lunch bento that shouldn’t be dismissed. Whether you come for lunch, dinner, or just hop by for an afternoon snack after sightseeing and shopping, this restaurant is always a great choice!
Ogi-tei
3-21-14 Shirakane, Showa-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi-ken
