"Karaage Teishoku" (fried chicken set meal), loved by women, children, and even middle-aged men, is a favorite in Tokyo! Here are the top 5 restaurants!

Well, there probably aren't many Japanese people who don't like this. It's fried chicken. This time, I'll introduce "Suegen," "Yakitori Miyagawa," "Bakubaku Tamachi/Mita Store, a specialty shop for tonjiru and fried chicken," "Ichiban Karaage," and "Nishiogi Mogame Shokudo."

Even though we refer to it simply as "karaage" (Japanese fried chicken), there are many variations.

For example, even if we limit ourselves to seasoning,

・A classic ginger soy sauce base

Garlic soy sauce flavor

Salty

Then, the frying technique and the quality of the chicken meat come into play. Usually, they are double-fried to achieve a crispy finish.

Alright, let's get started with energy today!

The authentically delicious "Suegen"
I guess this is the best in Tokyo.

I previously introduced this restaurant as having an outstanding oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl) (kama teishoku). It is also known as the restaurant where Yukio Mishima had his last supper the night before he attempted ritual suicide by disembowelment.

The image of the man next to me, who had loosened his tie and was slurping down fried chicken while I was eating oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl), has been stuck in my mind ever since.

No, it wasn't that I was interested in the way that old man ate, but rather that the golden-brown fried chicken looked incredibly delicious.

The reason I decided to go on a tour of restaurants serving fried chicken set meals this time is because of the video of the fried chicken from "Suegen".

So, this restaurant is a melting pot of office workers from the neighborhood during lunchtime. About 70% of the customers come for the oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl), but it's mostly older men and young people who order the fried chicken set meal.

The entire set arrived, served on a tray.

First, I drank the chicken soup. As expected from a chicken specialty shop, it was simply delicious. The ingredients were a little nameko mushroom and green onion.

Now, onto the main event: the fried chicken. It's a beautiful golden color. I took a bite. Amazing! The coating is crispy and incredibly fragrant, and there's absolutely no oiliness. The balance of soy sauce and ginger in the marinade is exquisite. And what's truly surprising is the juicy tenderness and sweetness of the chicken itself.

In short, I thought this was the best fried chicken in the world.

I glanced at the next table and saw two middle-aged men come in, both eating oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl), but they were also sharing a single order of fried chicken (5 pieces). Pretty clever, huh? A perfect combination, wouldn't you say?

As proof of that, after finishing my meal, I involuntarily let out a deep sigh and said, "Ahhh, I'm so satisfied." I thought I'd like to do the same next time. And now I'm really curious about the "Tatsuta-age Set Meal."

No, no, "Yakitori Miyagawa" too
It's hard to say which restaurant is better.

I said that "Suegen" is the best in Tokyo, but this is also one of Tokyo's representative famous restaurants.

At lunchtime, customers who want to be among the first to enter form a line before the restaurant even opens. Founded in 24, it appears to be the main branch of "Yakitori Miyagawa," which has several locations in Tokyo.

Each table already has a bowl of ponzu sauce for dipping placed on it. Occasionally, you'll see customers ordering the "yakitori donburi" (grilled chicken rice bowl), but most people order the "karaage teishoku" (fried chicken set meal), as expected.

Since it was my first time, I observed how the middle-aged woman who seemed to be a regular customer and sat next to me, who had entered earlier, did things.

First, I drank the chicken soup, then I made space on the plate with the fried chicken and put some salt there. Next, I dipped the green onions next to the fried chicken into the ponzu sauce. I started by dipping the famous white fried chicken in salt and gobbling it down. I also put salt on the bone-in pieces and ate them heartily with my hands. Finally, I moved on to the ponzu sauce and ate them with the green onions.

I tried doing the same.

The fried chicken, coated in a white powder, consists of three pieces of thigh and breast meat combined, and two chicken wings. It stays crispy for a long time, and the meat is very tender. The seasoning is lightly salted, allowing the flavor of the meat to shine through. It's a very refined dish. It's delicious on its own, but you can enjoy it even more by adding various condiments.

First I added salt, then I mixed in some sansho pepper powder that was in front of me. Hmm, this is definitely better. Next I tried it with soy sauce, which was also good. Finally I added ponzu sauce, which had a strong, slightly tangy flavor, and it was great to eat it with the green onions.

Because the base is salty, you can enjoy a variety of flavor variations. The fried chicken here is truly a masterpiece. Plus, you can get refills of soup and rice, and the pickled vegetables in front of you are all-you-can-eat. I can see why this place is so popular. Just like at "Suegen," there were a lot of female customers.

Specialty shop for pork miso soup and fried chicken
Bakubaku Tamachi/Mita Store isCustomer First No.1

It's in a slightly inconvenient location. It's about an 8-minute walk from both Tamachi Station and Mita Station. However, customers kept coming in one after another, and even when I arrived at 2 PM, there were two people waiting in line. Incredible.

And rightly so. After all, it's a set meal of pork miso soup and fried chicken, ma'am. There couldn't be a more perfect combination. I shed tears of joy just hearing the name of the restaurant (lol).

This restaurant is just so clever. Because the menu options are divided into a large bowl of tonjiru (pork miso soup) and a rice set meal, a small bowl of tonjiru and a fried chicken set meal, and a large bowl of tonjiru and a fried chicken set meal. What's more, you can choose the number of fried chicken pieces from one to four.

This is what you call putting the customer first.

What's even more surprising when you sit down is that there are five different condiments in front of you to change up the flavor: homemade chili oil, mackerel and sardine fish powder, spicy shichimi spice, numbing Sichuan peppercorns, and a whole bottle of mayonnaise! Isn't that amazing?

As usual, I went for the maximum amount: a large bowl of tonjiru (pork miso soup) with four pieces of fried chicken (lol).

Here it is.

First up is tonjiru (pork and vegetable soup). It's packed with ingredients like daikon radish, burdock root, carrots, konjac, tofu, and green onions, and the broth has a rich flavor with hints of fish powder, which is quite nice. Apparently, they use their own original blend of "Sano Miso," which they are very particular about.

The fried chicken itself is perfectly round and golden brown. The shape is great. I thought there's no way this could be bad, and when I took a bite, the garlic, ginger, and soy sauce flavor was definitely there. The frying method is also excellent, so this is really tasty.

So, I immediately tried changing the flavor. I avoided chili oil and fish powder. Then, I tried just shichimi (seven-spice blend), then shichimi with mayonnaise on top. The latter was far tastier. Next, I tried just sansho (Japanese pepper), then sansho with mayonnaise on top, but the latter was still better.

However, the absolute best combination, which the restaurant also recommends, is shichimi (Japanese seven-spice blend), sansho (Japanese pepper), and mayonnaise. You should definitely try it.

However, looking around, only three of us, including myself, were putting mayonnaise on our food. Hmm? Maybe there aren't that many mayonnaise lovers out there?

However, one guy slathered his food with mayonnaise and kept shouting "Delicious! Delicious!" to the woman with him as she took a bite, and I found him quite endearing because he reminded me of myself (lol).

They seem confident in their rice, using Aizu-Bange Koshihikari rice, which they claim is "just as good as, if not better than, Uonuma rice." While the rice grains themselves were indeed beautiful, the cooking method was unfortunately not good. Perhaps there was a little too much water, resulting in a sticky texture. It's a shame, because if they changed their cooking method, it would be absolutely perfect.

But it's a really great shop where you can feel their genuine care for their customers.

"Ichiban Karaage" is a strange shop.
The taste is guaranteed.

It's located near Sunshine 60 in Ikebukuro. It's close to Higashi-Ikebukuro Station on the Yurakucho Line, but it's quite a distance to walk from Ikebukuro Station.

It's a strange shop. First of all, the entrance is shielded from light with a blackout curtain, and inside, about half of one wall is covered with cloth. What, is it a UV allergy? As a result, the shop is dimly lit only by incandescent light bulbs.

Only six seats facing the wall are in operation. Is this a haunted restaurant or something? (laughs) I felt a little intimidated. Once I sat down and looked around, I noticed that it wasn't very clean, probably because it was dimly lit (wry smile).

On the blackboard on the other wall, there are boasts written in white chalk about how Bananaman's Himura came, how it was featured on the "Degawa Kazushige Holan" show (I have no idea who those guys are), and how JO1's Kawashiri and Sato came. They're quite the fanboys, aren't they? (laughs)

In short, it's famous as one of Tokyo's leading fried chicken restaurants, and it frequently appears on television.

It's a strange place, so women are hesitant to go in, and the customers are all guys. And the customers usually order either the most popular "Extreme Chicken Thigh Karaage Set Meal," which has a strong garlic soy sauce flavor, or the "Number One Karaage Set Meal," which lets you eat both soy sauce-marinated thigh and salt-marinated breast. I'm going for the latter for now.

As expected, the sound of frying food constantly sizzling could be heard from the kitchen. After waiting for about 15 minutes, it arrived. It was piping hot. I was really happy to be able to eat both thigh and breast meat.

First up is the "salted chicken breast." The batter is soft, and the meat is lean but incredibly moist. The cooking is excellent. It's delicious on its own, but it's even better with the wasabi soy sauce recommended by the restaurant. As a mayonnaise lover, adding mayo on top makes it absolutely perfect.

Of course, I'll add mayonnaise for 30 yen (lol).

The "soy sauce marinated chicken thigh" is slightly brown, and the batter is crispy and crunchy. It's fried until it's fragrant. The meat is firm and juicy. Adding wasabi soy sauce gives it a refreshing taste. I still prefer the thigh meat.

Intrigued, I revisited the restaurant a few days later to try the "Premium Chicken Thigh Karaage Set Meal."

As expected, their frying technique is exceptional. It has a garlic flavor, but as a garlic lover, I thought it could have used even more garlic. They don't offer wasabi soy sauce here, only mayonnaise. Indeed, the flavor is so strong that you don't need any more soy sauce.

It's served in fairly large chunks, four pieces in total, almost spherical in shape, about the size of a golf ball. It's thoroughly cooked through, yet retains its juices, making it incredibly tender and delicious. It's definitely a very satisfying meal.

I should also add that the free extra-large portion of white rice is incredibly delicious.

There are a total of 10 different set meals. There's one with just soy sauce-marinated chicken thigh, one with just salt-marinated chicken breast, a "Chicken Nanban Set Meal," a "Ramen and Fried Chicken Set," and even a "Fried Chicken Hitsumabushi Set," so you'll definitely want to come back and try them all.

You can also experience a happy aura.
You should go to "Nishi-Ogikubo Mogame Shokudo"

Every time I come here, I'm overwhelmed by the shop's determination to satisfy its customers. The shop itself has a happy aura about it. If you haven't been yet, I urge you to visit at least once.

The barley tea, served in a large glass, is refilled repeatedly, and best of all, every dish comes with four small side dishes that change daily. On this particular day, the side dishes were potato salad, pickled Chinese cabbage, mozuku seaweed, and simmered fried tofu. Even in all of Tokyo, I've never come across a place like this.

Moreover, in these times, you can get refills of white rice up to two times (and it's really delicious!), and the miso soup is packed with ingredients like napa cabbage, shimeji mushrooms, and wakame seaweed (though the broth is a little weak), showing that they care about your health and aren't stingy at all. Well, it's a little touching.

It's a great store.

Now, for the main event, the "Fried Chicken Set Meal," which consists of five large pieces of fried chicken served with plenty of fresh, shredded cabbage. The fried chicken has the classic ginger-soy sauce flavor, crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. It's cooked thoroughly using residual heat and then rested, so you won't burn yourself with the juices. Delicious!

Usually, you get some stingy pickles as a side dish, so you start to get a little tired of it by the third serving, but with four different small side dishes in between, you never get bored of the taste. I'll say it again, this is a great restaurant.

They have a wide variety of menu items. The staff are incredibly friendly, a world away from the cold service at a certain famous diner near Komaba-Todaimae. I can't understand why anyone would praise this diner (laughs).

After all, it's a magnificent sight to see all the customers looking so happy, their faces beaming with satisfaction. I'm truly envious of the residents of Nishi-Ogikubo.

Author profile

Bassey is a foodie who has been eating around for over 40 years. In addition to Japan, he regularly goes to Hong Kong to eat Chinese food at his own expense, and also travels to Taiwan, Singapore, Bangkok, and Seoul for delicious food. During his time as the editor-in-chief of a travel magazine, he visited many Michelin-rated restaurants around the world, especially in Europe, and later on in the World's Best 50 restaurants. We want everyone who loves food to try ``Crab Miso Bean Paste Noodles'' from ``Tenkorou'' (Hong Kong). Actually, I like the Chinese food at this restaurant the best in the world. Another example of the best Western food is "El Seger de Can Roca" from Girona, Spain, which was ranked number one on the World's Best 50 list. Ah, I want to go there again.