Arigato Japan Food Tours
Arigato Japan Food Tours offers 37 different group tours between Hiroshima, Kyoto, Mount Fuji, Osaka, and Tokyo. They even offer customized private tours. Their walking tours focus on one to two neighborhoods and are lead my fluent English (and sometimes Spanish) speaking guides. While their tours focus on offering guests the opportunity to sample a handful of local dishes, they are also lessons in Japanese history, language, and etiquette. What started as a one-woman operation back in 2016, has since grown into a team of more than 70, spread across five of Japan’s most touristed cities.
If you join a food tour at the beginning of your visit, it will help you plan the rest of your trip
When you arrive in a new city, you have certain expectations. There’s what you read about on TripAdvisor and see on YouTube, versus the reality. Joining a food tour at the beginning of your trip can be like putting your foot in the onsen baths, before deciding whether or not you want to submerge your entire body. With Arigato Japan, you’ll get to traverse specific neighborhoods by foot, explore some of their famous train stations, learn a bit of history, and, most importantly, sample different Japanese cuisine.
At the end of your tour, you can decide whether or not you enjoyed the Osaka version of okonomiyaki enough to try the Hiroshima version as well. You may feel like you had the best piece of sushi in your life and want to return to the same place for lunch the following day. In my case, okonomiyaki was not for me, but I became enamored with Kobe beef after my first mouth-watering bite. I was able to cross one of my list and make a mental note to try more of the other.
I Prefer to Sample Different Items and Want to Know What I’m Eating
If you’ve traveled around Asia or any place where you can’t read the language, you’ve likely looked at the local food with a mix of curiosity, excitement, and trepidation. Just what kind of meat is this? How spicy is that red sauce? Personally, I want to know the answer before I try. Paradoxically, I love street food, which tends to be poorly labeled compared to what you’ll find in a restaurant.
When you join an Arigato Japan food tour, you can be confident that they won’t fill you up on one item. You’ll get to sample a handful of different Japanese staples from sweet to savory. Their guides speak nearly perfect English and will explain everything before any member of the group touches a single sushi roll or piece of takoyaki. You won’t have to find out later that those Japanese characters that you couldn’t decipher spelled raw horse meat or whale sashimi. When you make your online reservation, you can mention any dietary restrictions you have.
Arigato Japan will take your dietary restrictions into consideration
When you make your reservation, you can mention any dietary restrictions you have. With that said, these tours are not ideal for vegans or even vegetarians. Although you won’t be eating anything that you couldn’t find an Americanized version of somewhere in California, don’t expect a kosher meal or halal meat. Personally, I prefer to avoid pork products, extremely spicy food, and alcoholic drinks. The only issue I came across was when we were served ramen with pork broth. I skipped that serving and still felt full at the end of that evening’s tour. Otherwise, the sushi chefs were happy to omit wasabi from my nigiri rolls. One of the two tours I joined offered alcoholic drinks, and I was able to get a non-alcoholic mojito.
It’s easy to get lost in Asian cities
With the exception of train stations and some street signs, you can’t count on signs being in English when you are in most Asian cities. In China, Google Maps does not work, and some of the most exciting parts of Tokyo can be labyrinth-like. This is another reason to start your trip with a food tour. The Arigato Japan guides will take you down dark alleyways and help you discover some of Tokyo’s hidden gems that you’d have a difficult time finding without a guide. Knowing that you won’t get lost can help take some of the stress out of being in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language.
I joined their Shinjuku Golden Gai and Japanese Street Food tours. One starts at the world’s busiest train station, while the other begins at the world’s busiest intersection. With that said, Arigato Japan will email you with specific instructions for how to get to your meet point. I had no difficulty with this as exits are numbered in most Tokyo metro stations.
Arigato Japan food tours are not just about food
Like the most memorable food tours I’ve joined, from Sydney to New York City, Arigato Japan tours and not just about food. While there’s food at every key stop, there’s a seemingly endless history lesson between every bite. While I always want to know what I’m eating, I also prefer to know the history behind it. For example, I learned the most about sushi. Many Americans, myself included, see going out for sushi as a special occasion. While I’ve eaten it just about every week for the past 15 years, it’s generally from an upscale grocery store like Whole Foods or Wegmans. But during the Edo-era, it was considered to be a cheaper street food. And in Japan, being a sushi chef is a lifelong vocation, which is taken so seriously that it takes years of training before you are even allowed to touch the fish.
Want to keep the conversation going? Let’s connect via my social links below.
Like this post and want to share? Planning a trip to Tokyo? Pin it!
This post was sponsored by Arigato Japan Food Tours. You can check out their different Tokyo tours here. Some are available in Spanish. They also offer tours of Hiroshima, Kyoto, Mount Fuji, and Osaka. Read what people are saying on TripAdvisor.
All pictures were shot with a Panasonic Lumix ZS100 4K Point and Shoot Camera, with the exception of any Instagram pics.
Have you been to Tokyo? If so, what did you eat? Where?
My husband and I are heading back to Tokyo in a few weeks and will look into Arigato Japan as a food tour option. We never thought about taking a food tour before as we love eating sushi and ramen. This would be a good opportunity to go to some hidden gems and off-the-beaten path restaurants.
Hi Jackie. How was your trip? Thanks to Arigato, I had the chance to try some things I would not have otherwise tried.
I agree a food tour is the best way to try the food when visiting a new city. I prefer to dry a bunch of differerent dishes at once so that I know what I like before ordering a big portion.Will keep Arigato Japan in mind next time I visit Tokyo.
Hi Matilda. They started doing virtual tours during COVID.
This would be my kind of food tour. I do love sushi and other foods from Japan.
We didn’t try it, but one of the locations had whale sashimi.
I adore Japanese food! Although food is generally a ‘no-go’ for me, Japanese food is probably the one type of dish I can’t resist.
Yes, I eat sushi every other day when I’m home.
What an interesting post! I’ve never been to Japan, so I’m impressed with every little detail. I find it scary that Google maps doesn’t work there. I honestly feel lost only by thinking about it. It’s nice to count on a reliable food tour. Unfortunately, I’m vegetarian, so I don’t know if it would be worth it. Thanks for sharing!
Thailand will be better if you are vegetarian. And easier on your wallet.
I’ve never done a food tour before but what a great idea! Thanks so much for sharing this with all of us!
Hi Krysten. You are welcome.
I think I prefer food tours in Asia simply because I just really prefer Asian cuisine, haha!
Thanks Chris. Have you ever explored Markham?
Iliked this post. t reminded me of a food tour I took in San Francisco. I’ve never been to Japan, but would love to. Great detail. Asian cuisine is one of my favorite,
Hi Myrah. I just finished my first every Oakland-only Bay Area trip.
I absolutely love (some) Asian cuisine. I would really enjoy an Asian food tour as well! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Nicole. Which are your favorites?
I’m right with you Brian. I did a food tour in Shanghai when I was there on a layover. It was awesome! So much good food, and amazing areas to explore as well.
Thanks Kevin. I’ve done a couple in your city as well.
Japan had THE BEST food! I got to try so much during the two weeks I was there. What did you think of Golden Gai?
Hi Dani. My hotels usually had good breakfast buffets as well.
I think the same thing about starting a trip with a food tour. You get a lay of the land and some history from a guide before being set free in a place.
Then you get suggestions from the guide that you could try later on.
I have never done a food tour but what a great idea to do it at the beginning of your trip. I’m going to have to try one. And all that food looks amazing!
Hi Marcea. Glad you like the pictures.
We adore Japan and have been three times, spending around 10 weeks there in total. We’ve mostly dived in happily with the food, and had very few poor experiences, but I like the sound of the cultural aspects to the Arigato food tours, especially as they offer private tours.
Wow, I’ve been three times as well but my trips were much shorter than yours.
I’ve been trying to find the name/ EXACT address of the sushi restaurant you have pictured as the heading of your article. my husband and i went there last year and it was amazing. we are going back and want to go again but since we just walked in randomly i don’t know the name or address. all i know is that its in shibuya please help!