Tempura Tsunahachi Sohonten

Came here twice! A year before and now. Standard hasn’t dropped. The batter was airy and fluffy which you won’t get sick so easily. Seafood and vegetables use were very fresh. Very satisfying meal.
All the frying is done right in front of you, «LIVE»! Very entertaining. It is good to seat at the counter as you can tell the chef if you want to add stuff as and when.
However, their tempura set is a bit on the high side if you ordered the one that has more ingredients.
Definitely worth the try. If not would not have gone back again.
PS: they provide English menu.

The best tempura place in the world. I’ve lived in Japan more than 20years but I couldn’t find better place than here.
It’s crowded so better to make a reservation beforehand. Usually come here lunch. Most of Japanese place has cheaper pricing in lunch than dinner time.
You better to sit counter seat. It’s very important so that you can ask what is fresh and good in the season to the chef and you can watch cooking, eat just after it is cooked. There is seasonal menu so it’s better to ask. It’s so traditional and taste great. So crispy and veggie is sweat. I like Oba tempura which is Japanese basil the best. Please try it

My family has been taking me here for years now. Every time I make a trip to Japan, we always make time to stop by Tsunahachi Sohonten in Shinuku. The tempura here is one of the bests.
No matter what time you come, there is always a line. You have to wait outside since the restaurant is really small. But it is so worth the wait.
It’s right by the train station, so you can easily make your way here!
I enjoy getting their set menu which comes with various kinds of proteins, veggies, and a side of white rice and miso soup. I got the second option which came down to 2700 yen, which was a great deal for the amount of food that I got. The meal came with shrimp, white kiss fish (omg my favorite thing to get at tempura), eggplant, zucchini, eel, and a bunch of little shrimps compiled together (yeah, I know I didn’t describe it very well or make it sound that tasty for that matter but it’s good). With all of that plus the rice and soup, I was extremely full/​satisfied.
So for those who are tempura noobz, this is how I suggest you eat it: with the salt. Especially with the white kiss, you get this savory and not overly salty bite with your tempura. Just don’t go overboard with the seasoning. The white kiss here is extremely flaky but still so soft on the inside. The batter here though is absolute perfection. Everything here is made to order and you can definitely taste the difference. Nothing comes out super oily and the batter has the perfect bite. You really can’t find anything like it. If you sit at the counter, you get to watch the chefs make everything in house.
They also take credit cards here!

This is the best tempura place in Tokyo to go to. Authentic simplistic and delicious. There are several options to choose from — choose the one with the fish and vegetables.
It is a very traditional setting, with the chef and the hostess, who speak only japanese. Just mind your manners, be quiet, respectful of the way to do things, and polite.
This is a great traditional Japanese meal for vegetarians specifically… as you can enjoy the lightly fried vegetables and be full on that and the rice.

The food is a solid 5-​star. Why such a low rating then? Well…
We sat at the bar by the kitchen, overlooking the tempura frying in action. It was dazzling to see such skills, until I spot a little critter on the far wall where they store some of the food and earthenware. Yep, I found a cockroach. In my books, if you can see one in light, there are many, many more hiding. This is a very old store in an old building, but it doesn’t mean hygiene should be sacrificed, right?
On top of that, service was really slow, possibly because I’m a foreigner, despite the fact that I speak conversational Japanese. But I guess it is usually the case in Japan anyway.
They have a few set meals. Some with more items, some with less, but all with seafood and vegetables. Between tempura dishes you also get miso soup, white rice, and some pickled vegetables. The tempura was overall very delicious, with a crispy airy light batter, and fresh ingredients. I think the white fish was my favourite, following by the veggies like lotus root and mushrooms.
For dessert, there is tempura battered ice cream, which is always delicious.
So, you can imagine my disappointment when I saw the critter towards the end of my meal. Ah well, I guess I can’t have all the nice things :/

Excellent place for tempura. A good variety for all taste buds including vegetarian folks. It is more fun to find a seat in the bar area and watch the chefs in action, it will leave you smelly clothes though.

While spending some time in Tokyo, you’ll have to try out some tempura, and this place is most likely one of the best you could find.
You can choose between several menu depending on how hungry you are. Yet I recommend you to take the one that offers you to taste the most (fish + vegetables), you won’t regret it!
They are also well known for their eel tempura… first time for me I ate this fish, it was nothing else than delicious!
The great part of having dinner there is also the service: very kind and nice, and overall very traditional. The staff will set up your table and explain (with the help of a printed scheme, with English explanations written on it of course) how to eat your meal in order to enjoy it the most.
Don’t hesitate also to spice up your dinner by accompanying it with some cold or hot sake. It is a must!
Regarding the check, it’s true it might seem ma little bit more expensive than other places but the restaurant reputation, experience you’ll have and food quality are definitely worth it!

Tempura tempura tempura. The lighter kind, not the heavy kind.
Traditional feel and a mix of counter seating and tables. Go for a counter if you can to assure immediate service from chef to plate!
I went over the top and ordered the Omakase set menu. ¥8000 for twelve courses, chef’s seasonal preferences.
An informative — almost condescending — laminated guide to the seasonings, plates and condiments was provided. It helped me overcome the usual confusion and embarrassment that accompanies eating in Japan and all the associated rituals.
The set started with two fat wriggling prawns being presented to me by the chef before cleaning and frying. Crispy, tasty, yum.
In smooth succession, the courses arrived. The chef kept an eye on me and timed the arrival of courses nicely, until the end when it felt like four dishes arrived all at once.
The courses I saw included fresh shrimp, crab leg, eggplant, okra, whole sardine, Uni seaweed roll, fish seaweed roll, miso soup, clam and mushroom tempura on the shell (wow!), steamed rice and final dish, crispy shrimp cake.
The diners next to me mentioned an off-​menu dish, tempura ice cream. How could I resist!
I left feeling full, and satisfied. Not cheap, but I was happy with the value for money.

Having had one of the best tempura meals I had in Osaka, I made a point that another tempura meal in Japan is a must. Between 新宿つな八天婦羅 and the one opposite of this joint 船穚屋, I decided on つな八.
Though it didn’t disappoint, the one in Osaka still surpassed つな八.
I decided on the Sazanami 3400 yen lunch set. The difference between this set and the next most expensive one is just two seafood Vs one seafood but the cost difference was about 1200 yen so I opted for the 3400 yen set instead. It’s roughly $ 32USD.
Considered it as a lunch set, it was indeed quite expensive but it’s still worth the price since you will get some really fresh ingredients and they all made to order. I had a second bowl of rice at no upcharge.

Came here for dinner as it was recommended from the guidebook and saw the positive reviews online. We ordered the prawn, eggplant and scallops. The scallops were made perfectly and it was a culinary experience. However the service was bad, the restaurant is dirty. We sat closer towards the kitchen and there was foul stench coming from it. The setting does not live up to the food. You think for these prices they can higher better staff and invest in making the place more hygienic.
We paid close to $ 50 for 6 pieces of tempura.
Left the stinky dirty restaurant feeling like I was robbed.

Batter is so light and airy! I don’t feel like napping for 5hrs after no kanak attack here lol. It is a little bit on the expensive end for ppl on a budget but I think it’s worth a try if you are visiting. We spent about 3900 yen for two during lunch. It was very intriguing to watch their experienced chefs in perfectly dressed uniform Cooking. Gosh I don’t even dress that neat or nice for work. You can just tell they take pride in their work. Anyway, it’s a solid 3&½ stars! Food portion wish is on the smaller end for western portions but I think it was fine for me.

Found this place randomly while walking around this beautiful shinjiku neighborhood, Unilocaled it, and discovered it to be the best decision ever made. Yes, there are tons of restaurants that offer tempura and pretty darn good. But, something about the simplicity and taste of this place has me hooked! I love the simple menu combos and the light batter. Price is around 10 USD max. But, really you can share and try a wider array of varieties. Unilocaling in Japan has been quite easy and efficient. Great find. Love it!

I miss this tempura restaurant sooooo much! I used to go there for busy and cheaper lunch. I enjoyed watching chefs cooking in front of me.
Taste: Simple, fresh, delicious, …
Price: $ 10– ¥1000–
Customer service: fantastic!
Location: close to Shinjuku station. Walking distance. In a busy shopping area. Actually many tempura restaurants around here. But this one is the best;)

I visited during lunch. Service was good and the food delicious. The batter was light and nothing came out greasy. This let the seafood and veg shine as the batter wasn’t overpowering.
I had shrimp, various clams, abalone, and vegetables. I like how they deep fry the clams with shell and all. The batter around the shell gets some of that ocean goodness and taste wonderful.
Definitely RTE when I return to Tokyo.

Really good experience here. Was not too difficult to find and although there was a long queue, it didn’t take a long time for us to get seated as well. Prices slightly pricey but food was really good. Would definitely go again!

This is the restaurant I had the worst service in Japan, the waiters and waitresses are not friendly at all when I only asked for an English menu.
The food is so average. I think you can get the same taste easily at other Japanese restaurant in anywhere else. Food is also over priced. I wouldn’t recommend it to any of my friends.

Get here early before the line starts! I dragged my husband from our hotel room and made him walk in the rain so we could be one of the first in the door when they opened at 11am. This place really hit the spot with light flavorful tempura and perfectly seasoned rice. We sat at the counter and watched the chef butcher the eel and clean the shrimp. The price was right and the service friendly.

There’s honestly nothing much to order here. The price for a set of tempura assortment can go up to 40USD but the taste is ‘so-​so’ (average)! Am not too sure what’s the rave about hmmm. The White fish tempura is nice though. The pink radish appetiser is probably one of the more interesting dish, other than that, nothing much! Wouldn’t recommend coming here as it’s quite ‘normal’!!

My husband and I had a solid lunch here at around 1:30pm. We waited a few minutes but then were seated in the tabled area (not at the counter).
The tempura was light and not greasy at all. The Zen special (2300Y) was maybe a little expensive but a good opportunity to try lots of different pieces (two little prawns, one large shrimp, one fish, one vegetable, and one eel; rice, miso soup, and pickled veggies).
I didn’t find the service particularly wonderful, but it was ok. We definitely got the scripted explanation of the specials, and our waitress was pretty absent after bringing the food and check.
They have an English menu and diagram about how to eat the tempura.

After hearing the rave reviews, we stopped at Tempura Tsunahachi. Now this completely different from Daikokuya in Asakusa, which was more the greasy tempura that you get topped on rice. Tempura Tsunahachi is light and airy and lightly fried.
We shared a tempura set. It literally only includes the listed items. So our set came with two little prawns, one large shrimp, one fish, one vegetable, and one eel. This is it. So note that this is very little food. Each set comes with rice, miso soup (with clams!), and preserved veggies. Since we shared a set, the rice, soup, and veggies are also for one.
Now don’t get me wrong. Tempura Tsunahachi is probably premier light tempura. But for the cost and the very little food — it’s not worth it. Maybe it would be worth it if you’re a huge fan of tempura? There’s nothing innovative that you should fear missing out on. It literally tastes like what you imagine. It’s definitely not the best tempura I’ve had, but certainly the most expensive.
PS. They do have a how-​to graphic in English and Japanese to help you navigate the dipping sauces.

Being a fan of tempura, I had to try a tempura shop in Tokyo. Tempura Tsunahachi is one of the better known and longstanding tempura spots in Tokyo. I, of course, had to go to their original location in Shinjuku which is a suburb/​sub-​city of Tokyo.
The tempura here was exceptional. If you can imagine, these are chefs whose well trained craft is cooking tempura. Pretty cool. The batter on the tempura was light, crunchy, non oily and perfectly complimented what it coated. I tried the shrimp tempura and several vegetables. Each was very flavorful and perfectly fried and cooked.
What was interesting was they give you several types and flavors of salt. Little did I know that this is a very traditional and important Japanese compliment to tempura. Nowhere in the States has any Japanese restaurant to which I have been offered such. The different flavors and types of salt really make a difference.
My meal here was exceptional. Nothing in the States that I have had compared.

We came here during lunch and there was a short wait. There was a longer wait for the counter but we opted for the table. There is an english menu and they do accept credit cards. My husband and I decided to split a standard set. There was one option for a lunch special set but did not include eel.
The miso soup was interesting because it included tiny clams. The set we got had two pieces of prawn, two pieces of fish, vegetable and eel. The tempura (batter and dipping sauce) was not unique.
We did not find the meal to be anything special and were disappointed given its mediocrity and high price.

We had the special tempura set and came away absolutely stuffed and with big smiles on our faces. Prawn, fish, multiple veggies, eel, plus the stand out item: a big clam with ginger. Never had tempura clam and it was out of this world good.
While you can find better tempura at the super tiny shops for double the price, this place has outstanding food and is quite reasonable and convenient. And as I said, the clam will knock your socks off.

Konichiwa Tokyo Unilocalers!
Thanks for all the great Unilocal reviews that brought me here.
I had dinner here tonight.
No cameras allowed… but I did snap a few photos with my iphone to post on Unilocal.
I set the set menu… with an extra side of rice.
Dinner here set me back around $ 25 just for the set menu… so it’s on the pricey side but worth it.
I was lucky and got sat right away at the bar.
They don’t like things on the dinner table and asked me to put my belongings under the table.
Service is very attentive.
I felt bad for the shrimp in the tank who couldn’t get back on his feet from his side… the chef seen I was distracted and put the air bubbles on him which got him back on his feet… poor shrimp.
If you’re in the area… and love tempura come here!
They give you a «how to eat tempura» directions too…
I’m a fan!
— Miss Unilocal 2015

On my last trip to Tokyo I came here twice, and had to come back again on my most recent trip. This place is that good!
Not only is this place popular with the tourists, but the locals too! In saying this, if you go during peak lunch and dinner there will most definitely be lines, and it can be so bad as it wraps around the street corner! Don’t let this sway you though, this place MUST be dined at! They open til late so come back later if you must!
English menus are available. And there is a nifty page on how to properly eat tempura. That was supremely helpful to me the first time I was there.
Get one of the sets, the bigger the better, this stuff is worth every bite. I can’t even begin to describe to you how well cooked each tempura is and how fluffy and crunchy and unique it is.
Can’t fault this place. Brilliant!

This was definitely one of my food highlight from the trip to Tokyo. They totally changed the way I thought of tempura. Unlike the greasy type I always get in the States, their tempuras were just outright amazing.
To top it off, the price was so affordable considering it located in one of the most expensive city in the world.
To see the chef at work was such an experience itself. The food was served pipping hot right in front of you. I wish I could permanently live in Tokyo to eat all the wonderful food.

In Shinjuku, there are two historical establishments that sell tempura and they happened to be located opposite each other. Tsunahachi may not have the long and illustrious history than Funabashiya Honten but it is highly popular among the locals since 1923. Visit:
for full story and pics
For dinner, selection is limited to 5 set course and about a page of 15 – 20 ala carte items. The cheapest Tempura Zen set costs ￥2100. It comes with rice, miso soup and Two prawns, fish and vegetables.
That is of course not all, there is also Anago and a fist-​sized ball of kakiage, a type of fish cake that contains two plump and juicy shrimps shown in the picture below.
For the Special Tempura Zen course (￥2700), everything is the same except that there is an additional giant scallop (even the shell is being fried), squid and green chilli pepper.
The usual salt dips come in three flavors-​plain, wasabi and sesame. A little goes a long way to enhance the taste.
But for a more refreshing zing, I prefer dipping the tempura into the ponzu sauce with grated radish as it helps to cut the grease and the radish has a chilling effect which could soothe the heatiness of all the deep fried items.
If you are lost or new to tempura, there is always a fool proof guide available in both Japanese and English at each table. The only item from the ala carte menu was the tempura egg yolk. Yes, it sounds peculiar yet new to us. The big surprise comes when one takes a bite and the yolk flows out. This is definitely more nerve-​wrecking than handling the poached eggs of egg benedict… Visit:
for full story and pics

Tsunahachi is known as one of the best places to go for tempura in Shinjuku. When we went on a Sunday morning, our jetlagged asses opened the place at 11am. When we left the restaurant, there was a line out the door. So be prepared for a wait.
Everything at Tsunahachi is prepared very well, from the rice to the tiny clams in the bottom of the miso soup. I’ve eaten countless bowls of miso soup, but this one stands out as an easy favorite, as it was so flavorful.
But when you come here, it’s obviously for the tempura, which is so impeccably light. Nab a counter seat for the best experience.