7 best restaurants at Jingumae Comichi in Harajuku

At Shoronpou Mania, run by Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant Gyoza Mania, you can sample four different types of xiaolongbao – there’s beef, crab and miso, truffle, and original. Through a glass wall, you can see the production process of stretching the dough, filling the wrappers and eventually steaming the soup dumplings in baskets. Pair your xiaolongbao with side dishes like steamed chicken in chili sauce, or homemade zongzi (rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves), and wash it all down with Shaoxing wine or an oolong highball.

At this branch of the popular sushi chain from Hokkaido, you can sample fresh seafood all the way from the Sea of ​​Okhotsk. Chefs craft the nigiri and maki before your eyes, using seasonal ingredients and delicacies from Hokkaido’s port city Nemuro, such as hanasaki crab. The sushi uses rice from Japan’s northernmost main island, too, which is milled on site every day.

Noodle Stand Tokyo is not only popular for its vegan ramen using soy meat and vegetables, but also for its beef stew mazesoba, with meat simmered in a broth made from a mix of red wine and soy sauce. The eatery avoids using any chemical seasonings, so you can look forward to a more natural bowl of piping hot ramen. There are also snacks and side dishes, like chashu with egg and beef stew, both of which go well with a drink.

French restaurant Sincere Blue serves up dishes by chef-owner Shinsuke Ishii made using sustainably sourced seafood. You can look forward to seafood carpaccio, cuttlefish and whipped cauliflower cream, savoury sea bass taiyaki – a clever nod to Japan’s love of the fish-shaped cakes – and other creative dishes.

Run by the team behind Michelin-starred French restaurant L'orgueil in Minami-Aoyama, La Colère specialises in tarte flambée, a pizza-style dish from the French Alsace region. The rectangular, thinly rolled dough is topped with sour cream, onions and bacon. If you’re looking for something even more filling, then opt for Baeckeoffe, a traditional winter dish of the region. Sliced potatoes, meat and vegetables are slow-cooked in a casserole sealed with bread dough.

This is the first Tokyo outpost of Beer Cellar Sapporo, a bottle shop and tap room where you can sample local craft beer along with a slew of bottles from Sapporo’s sister city, Portland, Oregon. We love the Crux Pilz from the Oregon-based Crux Fermentation Project, but it’s hard to go past the hard ciders here. There are detailed tasting notes for each beer, so you’ll have no trouble finding a brew that suits your palate.

Usagiya is run by the second generation owner of the long-established tea speciality store Yoshikawa-en in Asahikawa, Hokkaido. Grab a cuppa to go, or opt for the shop’s tea subscription service. For just ¥1,500 per month, you can refill your pre-purchased Usagiya bottle (¥1,500) as many times as you want. There are 15 different blends, including the store’s original Usagicha, non-caffeinated teas, a matcha latte float, matcha tonic and more.