The 21 best Japanese restaurants in Lisbon

Two years after leaving Praia no Parque, Lucas Azevedo returned with a restaurant that defies labels. At Ryoshi, there is practically no sushi – and you can forget salmon, too. The only sushi-related item on the menu is nigiri made with the fish of the day. However, it’s the katsu sando, whose main ingredient is usually revealed only after it’s eaten, that has been making waves. Highlights also include dishes such as eel served with white rice and egg yolk, lettuce hearts with pirikara sauce, and squid with togarashi. Among other options that invite repeat visits, there’s a fried bread filled with pork curry and fried chicken wings, also stuffed.

AO Paraíso inhabits the building that used to house Lisbon’s Erotic Museum, and you’ll still find erotic paintings by Diogo Muñoz (which are inspired by Made in Heaven, the series of photographs and sculptures by Jeff Koons featuring porn actress Cicciolina) hanging on the walls – but everything else has changed. AO Paraíso is a bar focussing on signature cocktails and, unexpectedly, a sushi bar with only eight seats. The space is small and quiet – here, it’s all about Japanese chef Kousuke Saito and his craft. The straightforward menu is displayed on the wall. There are two options: the larger menu with 17 courses (€88) and the shorter one with 12 (€68). The ingredients are local, the technique is traditional, and the style is edomae. Our critic Alfredo Lacerda assures it is well worth it.

From a Japanese restaurant to an Iberian tapas bar, and back to a Japanese restaurant: at Praia no Parque, Lucas Azevedo’s tenure was so impactful that when the concept shifted after his departure, it always felt like something was missing. The restaurant pivoted to tapas and a simplified menu, but the departure of Paulo Alves from Kabuki – a Michelin-starred restaurant not far from here – created an opportunity for change at Parque Eduardo VII, leading to the return of a sushi bar. The sushi bar operates only at lunchtime, Monday to Friday. While it doesn't recreate the ritualistic dining experience Lucas Azevedo once demanded, it remains focused on the quality of its ingredients. Paulo Alves, now free to express his creativity, seems content. He’s joined by Gonçalo Cabral, a long-time collaborator. At first glance, the menu is simple, with a strong emphasis on the omakase menu, where diners entrust their meal to the chef. A vegetarian menu is also available.

In Marvila, a new Japanese restaurant has opened, led by chef Rui Rosário. It features a small counter and a few tables. SUGOI! aims to pay tribute to Japanese cuisine – and, to the surprise of some and the delight of others, sushi is not on the menu (at least for now). Among the raw fish dishes, there’s mackerel with ponzu and horseradish; a sarrajão (Atlantic bonito) ‘onion stew’; and cuttlefish with wakame and yuzu kosho. Then there’s the ramen: the shoyu, with a shintan chicken broth, shoyu tare, yo tsong, Sichuan pepper, pork chashu, and ajitama; the buta curry mazemen, with noodles, Japanese pork curry, katsuobushi, egg yolk, spring onion, and shallot oil; and the spicy miso veggie, featuring a creamy vegetable and oat broth, miso tare, ma-yu, inari, ajitama, and sesame.

It’s impossible to talk about Japanese cuisine in Portugal without mentioning Paulo Morais, a pioneer of oriental cooking. The Michelin star awarded to Kanazawa arrived at the end of 2022, long after the chef had stopped expecting it. In Algés, at the small restaurant originally opened by Japanese chef Tomoaki Kanazawa – who, upon returning to Japan in 2017, chose Paulo Morais as his successor – he honours Japanese tradition as if it were his own. With only eight seats at the counter, the chef embraces kaiseki cuisine, which is rooted in seasonality and product quality. The restaurant offers four tasting menus, meticulously crafted as a complete ritual: three without drinks for €60, €90, and €100, and one for €150 with everything included. On Fridays and Saturdays, the restaurant transforms into a Japanese tea room, offering a special afternoon tea experience.

It started with a seven-seat counter in Alcântara, and although the location has changed, the new space isn’t much bigger, as the idea was never to grow in size but rather to improve conditions. Now in Lapa, Omakase Ri has just ten seats. The experience remains intimate and true to the story it set out to tell from the beginning: serving a 15-course omakase menu (€90), which can vary daily depending on what is available at the market. The focus is on curing the fish, which is always done with a light touch.

Almost 20 years after opening in Amoreiras and a decade after arriving at Oeiras Parque, SushiCafé has gained a third location, this time at the Alvalade Shopping Centre. The big difference is that, despite the concept being exactly the same, this restaurant has direct street access and an outdoor terrace. However, it’s worth noting that this isn’t a replacement for SushiCafé Avenida, which closed at the end of 2023. As for the menu, it’s identical to the other SushiCafé locations, featuring popular dishes that have been successful elsewhere. Highlights include the salmon tartare (€9.50), crispy prawn rolls (€9.50), and gyoza (€6.75) among the starters. For mains, the bestsellers are the sushi and sashimi combo (€29.50), with 21 pieces of assorted sashimi, nigiri, gunkan, and maki, and the ‘salmon party’ combo (€24), featuring 21 pieces of salmon, alongside the ever-popular tempuras.

Back in 2019, António Carvalhão and João Azevedo Ferreira opened Ajitama on Avenida Duque de Loulé, following the instant success of their supper club, which had nearly 2,000 people on the waiting list. Nearly four years later, still unable to meet demand – and with Lisbon in the midst of a ramen craze – they opened a second restaurant, focusing on more complex broths and even returning to making their noodles in-house, just as they did when Ajitama was still something of a secret. The reason for all this adoration remains the same as it always was: the exceptional ramen, which feels like a warm hug.

Midori set the standard for Japanese cuisine in Lisbon and has held a Michelin star since 2018. In 2023, the restaurant welcomed a new resident chef, Tiago Santos, while Pedro Almeida remains as a consulting chef but is now based in Portland, USA. The new chef creates delicate dishes and the restaurant offers two tasting menus: Kiri (€154 for seven courses) and Yama (€186 for nine courses).