Shanghai.

Kinnjyou Inaka (锦城乡) is J Hotel's Japanese restaurant on the 104th floor of Shanghai Tower, 484 metres above the city. Kaiseki and teppanyaki menus are delivered from an open kitchen and circular sushi bar, framed by views of the entire Shanghai skyline.

Kobachi occupies the 56th floor of Jin Mao Tower at Grand Hyatt Shanghai, offering a refined open-kitchen experience of sushi, sashimi, and yakitori using freshly imported ingredients. Panoramic views of Pudong and the Huangpu River frame every meal.

Iron Chef Jun Kurogi's first restaurant outside Japan serves unabashedly luxurious kaiseki at the Bellagio Shanghai — Tokyo's hardest reservation, now within reach at Shanghai's North Bund.

The first and only outpost of Yoshihiro Narisawa's legendary Tokyo restaurant brings his sustainable Satoyama philosophy to Shanghai's striking 1000 Trees complex.

The Shanghai satellite of Osaka's legendary Numata tempura house delivers a precise and elegant omakase experience at the Bund Finance Centre, backed by Michelin recognition.

Seki-Tei (関亭) is the Japanese fine-dining restaurant at The St. Regis Shanghai Jingan, offering meticulously sourced sushi, sashimi, hibachi teppanyaki, and omakase sets in four private dining rooms.

YONE is a contemporary Japanese restaurant perched on the 27th floor of The Shanghai EDITION, blending chef Fumio Yonezawa's refined Japanese cuisine with Shingo Gokan's signature cocktails. The result is one of Shanghai's most cinematic fine-dining experiences, with sweeping views over the Bund and Lujiazui.

Anthologia is Shanghai's most theatrical kaiseki experience: a 46-seat fan-shaped dining room designed so no guest can see another table, hosting a single 8-course dinner nightly at 19:00 where a 4K screen brings the origin stories of each ingredient — Wagyu cows, winter vegetables, live lobsters — to life behind the food. The team behind Sushi Oyama, Kappo Yu, and Ochobo brings JETRO-verified Japanese culinary pedigree to the production.

At the Jing An Shangri-La, head chef Kamata Hideki brings more than 30 years of experience to bear on authentic kaiseki — a sweeping restaurant encompassing a sake bar, sushi counter, and two private VIP rooms.

Within the Okura Garden Hotel, Yamazato has upheld classic Japanese kaiseki at the highest level for decades — with a sushi counter and private dining rooms in leafy Xuhui.

Inside the iconic Bund 18, Ginza Onodera brings together three Japanese culinary traditions — sushi, tempura, and teppanyaki — in a singular fine-dining experience directly on the Huangpu.

Hulu Sushi is an intimate 12-seat omakase restaurant on Xingfu Road, tucked inside Pirata, where chef-owner Liu-San — a seven-year veteran of Sushi Oyama — delivers a lively, flavor-driven omakase. Expect creative touches like torched toro crowned with uni, layered ebi-scallop-sea urchin combinations, and a menu that changes nightly.

Love Sushi is the flagship omakase counter of Sun-San's restaurant group, positioned on the top floor of Plaza 66 in Jing'an. Under 20-year Japanese cuisine veteran chef Ma Jianjian, the menu delivers first-choice geoduck, sea urchin, abalone, and king crab across lunch and dinner kaiseki-sushi sets reaching ¥1,280 per person.

Ochiyo is a high-caliber omakase restaurant in Changning led by chef Sun-San, whose Oyama-school pedigree and meticulous sourcing of seasonal Japanese produce have made it a benchmark for serious sushi enthusiasts in Shanghai. Every meal is different, reflecting what Sun-San has imported or sourced that week.

The Dome unites an intimate eight-seat omakase under Chef Terada-san with terraces, a lounge, and sweeping Pudong skyline views on the fifth floor of the Bund — Shanghai's most exciting new Bund address since 2025.

Sasano Sushi House is one of Minhang's most enduring Japanese dining institutions, offering tatami private rooms, shoes-off traditional entry, and impeccably fresh sashimi and sushi in an atmosphere that transports Japanese expat guests back home. With four locations across Shanghai, the brand has maintained consistent quality and service over many years.

Sushi Aoki is Shanghai's hidden omakase secret: six counter seats, Chef Aoki-san personally at the pass, and ingredients flown in from Japan daily — in the Ginza Sushi Ichi tradition.

Sushi by YISEA is the dedicated sushi counter at the Pudong Shangri-La's Grand Tower ground floor, featuring an open bar where guests can watch skilled sushi artisans at work using the finest seasonal Japanese and Chinese ingredients. It sits within the broader YISEA Japanese dining destination spread across floors one and two.

Sushi Matsuno offers a strictly limited omakase on Xinle Road in Xuhui, personal and crafted to the highest standard — a small, atmospheric counter in the finest Japanese tradition.

Omakase master Takeo Oyama returns to Shanghai: Sushi Oyama at the Xintiandi Galleria unites traditional edomae technique with the chef's characteristically electric counter presence.

Sushi Ren (鮨蓮) is the sushi-focused outlet of the Ren Group, a Japanese multi-concept brand running several specialist restaurants across Shanghai. The Yuyuan Road location offers a sushi counter, private tatami rooms, and an extensive izakaya menu alongside premium nigiri.

Uni Shushi is a 12-seat omakase counter in PAC Mall, Jing'an, conceived by Ochiyo's celebrated chef Sun-San and helmed by his disciple Wang Yang. Offering the Oyama-school kaiseki-sushi experience at a more accessible ¥498–¥698 price point, it has quickly become one of Jing'an's most compelling omakase options.

Michelin-recommended teppanyaki at the Okura Garden Hotel Shanghai, 33rd floor — Japanese culinary artistry performed live with a panoramic view across the city.

The world's first Michelin-starred yakiniku restaurant (2016): Kanpai Classic on the Bund captivates with top-grade Australian wagyu grilled tableside over charcoal, and holds Michelin Selected status in 2026.

Japanese chef Seiichiro Miyata offers an extraordinary pigeon yakitori omakase with over 25 courses in Shanghai — a counter experience in a class of its own.

Ri He is a premium sukiyaki specialist in Arch Walk Gubei, following strict Kansai tradition with A5 wagyu and a tableside-cooking server. The menu — available only in Chinese and Japanese — centres on meticulously sourced cuts of marbled beef.

Aburi-En (炙苑) has been Pudong's go-to yakiniku destination since opening in 2021 inside Kerry Center. Australian wagyu is grilled over binchō-tan charcoal in a Japanese tasting menu format, with the flagship ¥1,688 set covering six premium cuts, sashimi, and wagyu rice.

Burase (鱼医生, Dr. Fish) is a late-night Japanese seafood izakaya on Gubei's Xianxia Road strip, open from 17:30 until 3:00am. The kitchen specialises in toushimozukuri sashimi — fish briefly blanched then plunged into ice water for a unique warm-cold texture — and live-flame eel rice cooked tableside.

An authentic Japanese izakaya from owners Iwata and Oji in Shanghai's Gubei neighbourhood — refined dishes, a hand-picked sake selection, and late-night service until 2 a.m.

Motoya is a Japanese sukiyaki specialist in Minhang that has been serving Kanto-style hot-pot dining since 2012. The sukiyaki set for two (¥588) includes four grades of Australian wagyu — A3 through A6 — with vegetables, egg fried rice or udon, and dessert, earning its reputation as Shanghai's best value quality sukiyaki.

Takumi (匠) has been introducing Shanghai to authentic robatayaki since 2011, using binchō-tan charcoal and a traditional wooden paddle to serve grilled seafood and meats at its IFC Mall and Kerry Centre locations. The name means 'Masterpiece' — a standard the kitchen consistently meets.

Torikaze brings the yakitori philosophy of the legendary Torishiki to Shanghai: Shaoxing-raised cockerels grilled over glowing binchotan charcoal, served in an elegant omakase setting.

Modern Japanese izakaya by Kobe chef Jun Nishio and co-founder Sam Norris — relaxed comfort food with a Japanese soul in the heart of Shanghai.

Akatsuki is a seafood-focused izakaya on Xingyi Road that operates with the casual authenticity of a Tokyo neighborhood drinking den: menus in Japanese and Chinese only, walls lined with scrawled dedications and fish fins, and a clientele of Japanese businessmen settling in with Suntory highballs. Seafood including chu-toro, sea urchin, and peony shrimp arrives by air from Japan.

Daji (大吉) is a chicken-centric yakitori house tucked into the basement of Jin Hongqiao International Center in Gubei, slammed with Japanese patrons from the moment it opens each day. Every cut is handled with connoisseur-level charcoal grilling technique, and the skewer variety — from thigh to meatball to wasabi breast — rivals the best dedicated yakitori bars in the city.

Ginpei is a well-established Japanese izakaya on Xianxia Road offering daily air-flown sashimi from Japan, multiple private rooms fitted with traditional digging kotatsu, and a sake and shochu list that regularly draws Japanese businesspeople. At ¥¥ pricing it represents one of the best value authentic Japanese dining options in the Gubei corridor.

Hitokushi (一串入魂, 'soul into every skewer') is a laid-back jazz-inflected yakitori bar on Pudong's Jinyan Road, surrounded by the neighborhood's Japanese school and expat community. Each skewer is crafted with deliberate care, from mentaiko-stuffed pork belly to charred chicken tail and earthy shiitake.

Ikkou (一幸) is a multi-location Japanese-run izakaya operating across Changning, Gubei, and Pudong, popular with Shanghai's Japanese expat community for its broad, authentic menu: sushi rolls, sukiyaki, unagi rice, yakitori, grilled seafood, and tatami private dining rooms.

Inadatadashi is a consistently popular, affordable Japanese izakaya on the Gubei dining strip at New Century Plaza, known for generous Western-style Japanese set meals and honest home cooking. It draws a loyal following from the surrounding Japanese expatriate community.

Merase is a discreet Japanese izakaya on Xianxia Road that sets itself apart through daily air-freight of live fish and shellfish from Japan, maintained in in-house tanks and prepared by experienced Japanese-speaking chefs. The clean, welcoming interior has earned it a devoted following among Japanese expatriates as a taste of home in Shanghai.

Named after its Japanese owner Nagao Kanji, No. 9 is an intimate izakaya on Anlong Road bringing Kagawa Prefecture flavors to Shanghai's Gubei expat hub. Sea bream rice and wood-grilled chicken are the house specialties.

Sanchome (三町目) is a Japanese-run sushi bar and izakaya on tree-lined Julu Road, consistently favoured by Japanese expats and businessmen. A la carte nigiri starts from ¥12, with a broad izakaya menu of sashimi, yakitori, and sukiyaki rounding out the evening.

SAOYA is a warmly welcoming Japanese izakaya on Xianxia Road, brought to Shanghai by the Japanese owner Mr. Saoyama after establishing five successful restaurants in Kagoshima. The menu centers on Kyushu regional specialties including hakata beef intestine hotpot, with an atmosphere shaped by Mr. Saoyama's famous convivial personality.

Toramaru (虎丸) enforces a remove-shoes-upon-entry policy and outfits every table with coal-powered flat-top grills — grill plates are swapped regularly to ensure each cut gets the freshest possible sear. Multiple Gubei food guides consistently recommend it as one of the neighbourhood's most authentic Japanese BBQ destinations.

Japan's cult budget yakitori chain Torikizoku made its Shanghai debut in February 2025 — authentic yakitori skewers at a flat price of 18 RMB per item.

Wanhuo (万火, 'Ten Thousand Fires') is a long-running Gubei izakaya where the Osaka-born owner personally tends the charcoal grill every evening, producing marinated skewers, miso steak, grilled onigiri with homemade pickles, and charred chicken alongside a curated sake and highball menu.

Ikkou (一幸) is one of Gubei's most beloved casual Japanese izakayas, tucked into a residential lane on Ronghua West Road. With a compact counter facing the sushi station and private tatami rooms in the back, the broad menu spans fresh sashimi, enormous sushi rolls, eel rice, yakitori, and sukiyaki — all at accessible ¥¥ prices.

Ieyasu (家康) is a Japan-origin tsukemen and ramen franchise from Ikebukuro, offering nine dipping-sauce options built on a nine-hour pork bone, chicken, and fish triple-stock broth. The Mengzi Road branch doubles as a full izakaya with skewers, sushi, and sashimi.

Ieyasu — Shanghai's most popular tsukemen specialist from the Tokyo Ikebukuro franchise — offers 9 dipping sauces and a full izakaya menu on Xingyi Road.

Authentic Hakata tonkotsu ramen from the global ramen pioneer out of Fukuoka — in the heart of Xuhui since 2012.

Kingichi (無双東京, 'Peerless Tokyo') is a minimalist single-counter ramen shop near People's Square, celebrated by Nomfluence and City News Service for one of Shanghai's cleanest, most luscious tonkotsu broths. The five-ramen menu is focused, precise, and bolstered by an excellent Iberico pork tonkatsu.

Kyu-Hai (玖杯) is a Japanese-chef-run ramen and izakaya on Nanchang Road, steps from IAPM. Chef Hajime Fujita prepares his chicken broth fresh every day, producing one of the cleanest and most satisfying chicken ramen bowls in Shanghai.

Mitsuyoshi is Shanghai's tonkotsu institution: founded by a Japanese chef from two Tokyo Bib Gourmand ramen shops, serving hand-crafted bowls at the counter every day.

Authentic Fukuoka yatai style brought straight from Japan: Chef Tsukasa Higashi serves traditional ramen from a permanent street stall on Wuxing Road, evenings only.

Butanchu (豚人) is a Kyoto-inspired ramen cult favourite in Putuo, producing some of Shanghai's most intensely porky Hakata-style tonkotsu broth. Queues regularly spill out of its tiny dining room, drawn by a bowl that multiple guides have called the best ramen in the city.

Kushi Ramen (纪州) is an unassuming yakitori and ramen den in Gubei's basement dining strip, serving what multiple guides call one of Shanghai's finest tonkotsu broths: soul-warmingly creamy pork bone, silky noodles, and properly rendered chashu from ¥47.

Qizheng (柒鉦) is a compact Jing'an ramen counter run by a former hotel chef using a recipe from his family's 30-year-old noodle shop in Niigata, Japan. The narrow corridor-style bar is considered one of the most atmospheric authentic ramen shops in the district, praised by City News Service and Papermedia for its eggy alkaline ribbons and ultra-rich yet not-overfilling tonkotsu broth.

Ramen Shichiton (七豚, 'Seven Pigs') is a no-frills tonkotsu ramen specialist in Huangpu with two tiny locations one block apart, renowned for giant portions of Jiro-style and Yokohama-style pork bone ramen with extra-thick egg noodles and free noodle refills.

Azabuya (麻布屋, 'Azabu House') is a Japanese-founded casual dining brand named after Tokyo's upscale Azabu neighborhood, with seven locations across China. The Pudong Kerry Town branch serves Japanese rice bowls, noodles, and the brand's celebrated matcha-forward desserts in a clean, contemporary space.

Bistrofiore Meiina is a beloved Japanese-Italian bistro on Pudong's Jinyan Road expat strip, serving an affordable menu of yoshoku-style fusion dishes—sukiyaki pasta, mentaiko-slathered grilled bread, and shiso butter clam pasta—that reflect the comfort food culture of Japan's Italian-influenced cuisine tradition.

Manzhong is Shanghai's most dedicated unagi restaurant, serving a single item: a ¥130 set of Japanese-style grilled eel rice (unadon) using freshly sourced eel and a proprietary house tare, limited to 80 portions per day since 2016. The counter seats about ten people and sells out quickly.

Monbei (纹兵卫) is a JETRO Taste of Japan–recognized Japanese soba brand operating nine restaurants in China, primarily in Shanghai. Every batch of soba noodles begins with the kitchen hand-grinding buckwheat grain, a practice that sets Monbei apart from almost all competitors in the city.

Ootoya (大戸屋) is a beloved Japanese home-cooking chain established in 1958, with hundreds of restaurants across Japan and Asia. The Hongqiao Nanfengcheng branch offers authentic Japanese teishoku set meals—grilled fish, tonkatsu, simmered chicken, and soba—with every dish cooked to order rather than pre-prepared.

Saboten from Shinjuku, Tokyo (since 1966) — Japan's leading tonkatsu chain serves crispy pork cutlets with unlimited cabbage at the Jing'an Kerry Center.

Shanghai Yamazaki — the bakery flagship of Japan's largest bakery group, Yamazaki Baking — has offered fresh Japanese bread and cafe fare at the Jiuguang Gallery since 2004.

Shizuoka Katsu (静冈胜政) is a tonkatsu specialist in the basement of Gubei's Arch Walk Mall, named after Shizuoka Prefecture's celebrated pork heritage. Thick-cut kurobuta toro loin sets arrive freshly fried with rice, salad, and miso soup.

Sobamichi is one of Shanghai's finest soba specialists, run by Japanese owners who have imported buckwheat directly from Hokkaido since opening in 2015. Both thin-cut and thick country-style noodles are served with a choice of seven house-made dipping sauces ranging from classic tsuyu to duck broth, walnut, and black curry.

In Ginza since 1927: Japan's oldest tonkatsu specialty restaurant serves crispy Kurobuta pork cutlets at Shanghai's IFC Mall.

The world-famous Japanese curry chain CoCo Ichibanya offers fully customisable curry rice dishes prepared to Japanese tradition at Raffles City.

Ebinoya (爱蝦乃家) is the Shanghai outpost of a popular Japanese tempura chain, serving freshly fried prawn, fish, eel, egg, and vegetable tempura sets from just ¥50. Three locations across Gubei, 1000 Trees, and Xintiandi replicate the counter-service format of the Japan originals.

Japan's gyudon legend Yoshinoya has been serving its classic beef-and-onion rice bowl from a tradition spanning more than 125 years on Nanjing East Road since 2002.