You can’t miss the popular tourist spots such as Nagoya Castle and Legoland, and the shopping areas such as Sakae and Nagoya Station, but if you’re in Nagoya, I highly recommend you try the local gourmet “Nagoya Meshi(Food)”!
Known for its wide variety of dishes, from eye-catching menu to the exciting flavors, Nagoya meshi(food) add nice experience on your sightseeing in Aichi.
I’ show a list of dishes “you’ll regret if you don’t eat”!
Here are some of Nagoya’s best local gourmet dishes.
Seeing is believing, so let’s try it first!
Contents
1: Hitsumabushi
The fragrant smell is mouth watering! Extravagant Nagoya rice!
The first thing that comes to mind when you hear “Nagoya meshi” is Hitsumabushi.
It’s a luxurious dish of beautifully chopped and baked eel, spread all over a rice table, but what’s worth mentioning is the way to eat.
Eat it as it is, with condiments, or with ochazuke (rice with tea), and you can enjoy it three times for one meal.
The Representativeof Nagoya meshi! Atsuta Houraiken Honten
Atsuta Houraiken is a long-established restaurant where people are always waiting in line.
Their signature dish, Hitsumabushi, is a masterpiece with traditionally mild sauce and fragrantly grilled eel.
Access: 7 minutes on foot from Denmacho subway station
Price: 3,990 yen (including tax) for Hitsuzumabushi
2: Miso Nikomi Udon
It’s so hot that the dish makes your glasses fog up!
“Miso Nikomi Udon” is also the Must-try gourmet of Nagoya cuisine.
There are many theories, but it is said to have its roots in the Warring States period.
The noodles are simmered slowly in an earthenware pot, and then dipped in the sweet and spicy, thick miso soup that people in Nagoya like.
It’s a hearty bowl of noodles and the “Derauma” flavor will give you power.
Derauma means “super yummuy” in dialect of Nagoya
Yamamoto-ya Honten Eska Store, a specialty restaurant for Miso Nikomi Udon
Yamamoto-ya Honten has made original taste of “Miso Nikomi Udon” and made famous in Japan.
Their elaborate seasoning with a unique blend of local red and white miso and sugar, is popular.
Their specialty, “Miso Nikomi Udon with Nagoya Cochin(Nagoya Chicken)” is a must-try!
Access: 2 minutes walk from JR Nagoya Station
Price: 1,353 yen (including tax) for udon noodles in miso, 2,343 yen (including tax) for udon noodles in miso with Nagoya Cochin
3: Taiwanese Ramen
Exciting food that was born and raised in Nagoya
We are in “Nagoya”, but do we need to eat Taiwanese Food?
Yes, “Taiwanese Ramen“, born in Nagoya and popular for its stimulating taste, is the Nagoya food.
The noodles are topped with a heaping pile of minced meat, chives, and hot peppers, and the ramen has become a Nagoya specialty.
Many people are addicted to the spiciness of this ramen.
Addictive spiciness! Original Taiwanese Ramen “Misen” JR Nagoya Station
The “Taiwanese Ramen” that you have to sweat on your forehead as you fight against the spiciness originated at Misen.
The chicken broth with lots of chili peppers and garlic and the taste of minced meat combine to create a dish that will make you feel like you are in for a real treat.
Spicy, but I want to eat it!
It’s such an exciting experience.
Access: 2 minutes walk from JR Nagoya Station
Price: Taiwanese ramen 750 yen (excluding tax)
4: Morning
Power up in the morning with our hearty “morning” service!
“Morning” is a Nagoya-style service that offers bread and eggs for the price of one drink!
You can start enjoying the delicacies at a great price in the morning.
The set menus vary from store to store.
It could be Nagoya’s famous “Ogura Toast”, Japanese food or pasta.
It’s for people who want to have a full morning.
Ogura implies red bean paste.
And, “Ogura Toast” is a toast that sandwich red bean paste.
Speaking of mornings in Nagoya, “Liyon”!
You don’t have to get up early for “Morning” at Lyon!
They are offering “morning” services until 6:00 pm.
What a surprise!
It’s quite generous of them to offer such a reasonable service all day long.
I recommend the “Ogura-an Press Sand”
You can enjoy a sandwich with plenty of red bean paste.
Access: 5 minutes walk from JR Nagoya Station.
Price: coffee 430 yen, tea 440 yen
5: Fried Chicken Wings
It’s the most popular menu at Izakaya in Nagoya! Go ahead and enjoy drinking!
Spicy taste and crunchy texture.
Nagoya’s “fried chicken wings” are seasoned with a secret sauce and spices, and then deep-fried twice, making them so juicy!
Your hands may get a little dirty, but you’ll eat it up one after another until you forget about it.
It’s a great way to get your drink on, and this is what Nagoya people do.
Furaibou Eska, the Originator of Fried Chicken Wings
It all began in 1963.
Nagoya’s specialty, “fried chicken wings”, was born here at “Furaibou“.
Since then, it has become one of Nagoya’s signature flavors, using fresh chicken wings and its secret sauce.
You can enjoy the original fried chicken wings with the sweet and spicy sauce and the unchanging taste of peppers.
Access: 2 minutes walk from JR Nagoya Station.
Price: 5 chicken wings 550 yen (tax included)
6: Ankake Spaghetti
Nagoya’s local chrap gourmet with thick noodles and thick sauce!
The spaghetti (ankake) spaghetti (anpa) is one of the most unique and original dishes in Nagoya.
Ankake Spaghetti is spaghetti dressed with a thick starchy sauce.
Thick, chunky noodles are fried and topped with original ingredients, and then served with a thick ankake sauce.
You’ll be addicted to the exquisite flavor!
YOKOI SUMIYOSHI Honten, Famous for Original Ankake Spaghetti Loved by the Locals
Yokoi offers the original flavor of Ankake Spaghetti.
Their extensive menu and wide variety of toppings are talk about among locals.
The “Mirakan” is one of their most popular dishes, with sausage, ham, onions and green peppers.
You can’t talk about Ankake Spaghetti without eating Yokoi !
Access: 5 minutes walk from Sakae Subway Station
Price: Mirakan 970 yen (tax included)
7: Miso-katsu (pork cutlet)
Calories? Salt? If you eat it without worrying about it, you can feel the happy taste.
“Miso-katsu” is a common menu item at tonkatsu restaurants in Nagoya.
People from Nagoya are often surprised to learn that Tonkatsu restaurants in other parts of Japan don’t have “Miso katsu” on their menu.
The reddish-brown sauce, which is made by boiling soybean paste with sugar and other ingredients, is topped on the cutlet!
The original miso sauce is popular! “Misokatsu” at Futaba
Misonkatsu Futaba has extensive menu of fried foods.
The popular “Miso-Katsu Teishoku(set meal)” is made with carefully prepared pork, crispy fried and put with a rich, original miso sauce.
This famous restaurant has been supporting Nagoya’s flavor for over 40 years.
The restaurant has a relaxed atmosphere.
Access: 1 minute walk from JR Nagoya Station
Price: Miso-Katsu set meal 1.350 yen
8: Fried Shrimp
This is a menu item unique to Aichi, where shrimp catches are high in Japan.
The “Tenmusu” (see below) also uses shrimp.
The crunchy texture of the shrimp has captured the hearts of Nagoya people, and the restaurant has become known throughout the country as a “shrimp lover”.
The specialty is the jumbo shrimp fry at Maruha Shokudo Lasik
Nagoya people, who love big in anything, also highly rate Maruha Shokudo’s famous jumbo shrimp fry.
The Maruha Set Meal features a jumbo shrimp fry.
They purchase fresh seafood from main store in Toyohama, Minamichita, so you can enjoy the taste of the fresh shrimp without leaving Sakae in Nagoya!
Access: 3 minutes walk from Sakae Subway Station
Price: one fried prawn 660 yen (including tax), Maruha set meal 1,490 yen (including tax)
9: Tenmusu
The perfect accompaniment for traveling!
“Tenmusu” in Nagoya has a lovely round shape.
The collaboration of softly bitten rice and tempura such as shrimp is the most common.
In some restaurants, tempura peeks out of the rice.
The size is easy to eat, the flavor is good even when cold, and it’s perfect for take-out.
Original Tenmusu “Senju” at Kintetsu Nagoya Station
What comes to mind is “the taste of mom” for Japanese people.
The “Tenmusu” from the original “Tenmusu Senju“, which is wrapped in aluminum, has a homey taste, with a perfect texture of rice and slightly sweet shrimp tempura that melts and relaxes.
Access: In front of the underground ticket gate at Kintetsu Nagoya Station
Price: Tenmusu (5 pieces) 750 yen (tax included)
10: Kishimen
Delicious both hot and cold! Enjoy the flat noodles!
Kishimen is the pride of Nagoya’s noodle gourmet.
It is characterized by thin and flat noodles.
Its richness and smoothness are addictive.
The soy sauce-based noodle soup that Nagoya people prefer is common, but because the noodles themselves have a simple flavor, there are also western-style and unusual variations on the noodles.
Sumiyoshi at JR Nagoya Station Shinkansen Line
Could it be that people from other parts of the country are more familiar with the area than local Nagoya people?
Sumiyoshi is a standing noodle shop located on each platform of JR Nagoya Station.
Many people say that this is the first place to eat kishimen noodles when they arrive in Nagoya.
The Shinkansen Platform Shop is located on platforms 14 and 15.
Their “Ika(Squid) Tempura Kishimen” is also delicious!
Access: Shinkansen platform in JR Nagoya Station
Price: Kishimen and soba noodles 350 yen (including tax), Ika-ten (with egg) Kishimen and soba noodles 570 yen (including tax)
Miya Kishimen Takesaburo, Since Taisho Era
For those who enjoy the traditional taste, there is the Soy Sauce, and for those who prefer an elegant taste, there is the Osumashi Sauce.
At “Takesaburo“, about a 3 minute walk from Sakae Subway Station, the “Eraberu(Choice) Lunch” lunch set, which includes a choice of kishimen and a mini-don (rice bowl), is also popular.
Access: 3 minutes walk from Sakae Subway Station
Price: Miya Kishimen 750 yen (excluding tax), cold Miya Kishimen 800 yen (excluding tax), choice of lunch 1,250 yen (excluding tax)
11: Nagoya Curry Udon
Mildly spicy “Nagoya Curry Udon” is the perfect match to udon noodles.
“Miso Nikomi Udon” is not the only way to eat Udon in Nagoya, but Curry Udon is also one of the most popular way to eat.
It’s not as spicy as it looks because of the original spice blend and Japanese dashi.
It’s rich in flavor and you can enjoy several bowls of it.
Be careful not to splash the broth when you slurp it up.
“Curry Udon Shachihonoya”, a Famous Nagoya Curry Udon Restaurant
When one thinks of a famous Nagoya curry udon restaurant, the name “Shachihonoya” comes to mind.
Their “Curry Udon” is a masterpiece of thick, well-bounced udon noodles and deep, flavorful soup with multiple spices.
The soup is so good that you’ll drink every last drop of it.
Access: 2 minutes walk from Kurokawa Station on the subway
Price: curry udon 700 yen
12: Teppan Spaghetti
Even the iron plate that carries the old-fashioned ketchup flavor is nostalgic to Japanese!
Teppan Spaghetti is another famous Nagoya specialty.
Place slightly thicker noodles and ingredients on a hot iron plate, pour in a beaten egg!
The appearance is vivid and appetizing.
Udon, Kishimen and spaghetti…
Nagoya people love noodles.
Cafe Yuki, Nostalgic Coffee Shop From Showa Era
Cafe Yuki was renovated and relocated in 2018.
It’s a pure cafe with a stylish, modern and retro Showa-era feel.
Their specialty, “Italian Spaghetti” is the so-called “Teppan Spaghetti”.
You can enjoy the nostalgic taste of red sausage and peppers until the very end.
Access: 2 minutes walk from Kurumamichi Subway Station
Price: 650 yen for Italian spaghetti
13: Doteyaki, Dote-ni (miso oden)
The slow-cooked and soaked in thick sauce taste is perfect for the izakaya menu!
Miso Oden “Dotei (Doteni)” is stewed beef tenderloin and motsu with miso and mirin.
“Miso” is also used here, and it is the key to Nagoya’s cuisine.
This rich, sweet and spicy flavor goes well with sake!
This is the must-try menu at Nagoya Izakaya.
A great restaurant in downtown! “Dote-no Shinagawa”
Dote-no Shinagawa is located where full of atmosphere of downtown.
Dote-yaki, in which fresh motu (pork belly) is stewed in a sauce made of hatcho miso, which has been used continuously since the establishment of the restaurant, is the quintessential taste of Nagoya people.
A seven-minute walk from Meitetsu Hotta Station.
Seats are available, but it’s better to eat at the counter and stand in front of the restaurant to eat Nagoyan style.
Access: About 7 minutes walk from Meitetsu Hotta Station
Price: 100 yen per dotelet
14: Ogura Toast
Ogura Toast is often served in the morning in Nagoya!
A thick toast with plenty of butter and margarine, and a thick layer of red bean paste on top.
The synergistic effect of the sweetness of the butter and the crispy toast makes the deliciousness stand out.
Ogura Toast, also popular on the morning menu, is a taste that gives you vitality.
Ogura Toast that Goes Well with Coffee! “Nagagutsu to Neko(Boots and Cats)”
Nagagutsu to Neko located in Sakae is the place where you can enjoy a great cup of coffee and a relaxing time.
This is the place where you can find the coffee of your choice.
The Ogura Toast is a high quality toast made with blended red bean paste, salt and roasted sesame seeds.
It’s a taste that goes well with coffee.
Access: 3 minutes walk from Sakae Subway Station
Price: 550 yen for Ogura toast (including tax)
Have you decided food to eat in Nagoya?
Strong, memorable flavors, hearty portions and a bold appearance.
Nagoya has many such specialties, and after eating them, you may feel like you’ve been boosted.
Incidentally, if you order coffee at a coffee shop in Nagoya, you’ll often receive a small package of side dishes or cookies as a complimentary gift, which is also a Nagoya-style hospitality.
