Go Beyond
Sushi
Western food in Japan’s
capital is some of the
world’s best
By Stan ParishIn 2007, Ivan Orkin, a self-described “Jewish guy from Long Island,”
became the first American to serve ramen in Tokyo—ramen that earned
him instant acclaim and endless lines. Today, Orkin is chef-owner of the
equally mobbed Ivan Ramen and Ivan Ramen Slurp Shop in New York.
His Instagram account (@ramenjunkie) acts as a kind of restaurant guide
to New York and Tokyo, which he visits often. “I get asked for recommen-
dations all the time,” Orkin says, “and I’m always pushing people to go
beyond sushi and yakitori and tempura. The Neapolitan pizza in Tokyo is
as good or better than anything you’ll find in Naples. Same goes for French
pastry.” The Japanese are known as expert copyists, but don’t expect an
exact facsimile of Western food. “When you eat foreign cuisine in Japan,”
Orkin says, “it’s always filtered through the sensibility of the Japanese.”BURGER
DOUBLE BURGER
AT HENRY’S BURGERChef Kentaro Nakahara
offers just two items here:
a burger (single, double, or
triple patty) and fries. The
100 percent Wagyu patty
is roughly chopped rather
than finely ground, formed
into a ball, and cooked
Smashburger style on a
flattop. The accoutrements
are carefully chosen to
showcase the beef: a whis-
per of a bun that almost
disappears between your
fingers; a single disk of ripe
tomato; crisp lettuce; and a
slice of cheddar that melts
into the meat. The Thou-
sand Island–like sauce has
just enough tang to under-
score the meat’s richness
without masking the flavor.
This is the hamburger
distilled to its fundamental
pleasure points. You can,
should, and probably will
have more than one.PIZZA
MARINARA PIE AT PIZZA
STUDIO TAMAKITsubasa Tamaki has
never set foot in Italy. The
chef honed his craft at
Tokyo pizzerias Savoy and
Strada—both of which
have been called the city’s
best. In February 2017, Ta-
maki struck out on his own,
and earned a Michelin star.
The smoked mozzarella on
his signature Tamaki pie is
a revelation, but no order
is complete without a mar-
inara pizza, because any
cheese is ultimately a dis-
traction from the towering
achievement of his crust.
It’s lightly blistered and
blackened at the edges—
in contrast to the chewy,
supple center which, unlike
the Neapolitan version,
never goes soft. Toppings
are distributed to offer
the perfect ratios in every
bite. Is this the world’s
best pizza? You’ll be
hard-pressed to say no. SEAN GALLAGHER/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC (SKYLINE), TAKASHI YASUMURA (DISH)DOWNTIME
TOKYO