Kaiseki or skewers, soba or eels, sushi or ramen... The connoisseurs know it: there is not one, but several Japanese cuisines. Whatever your mood of the day, here is our selection of the best Japanese restaurants in Paris.
Sushi
L'Abysse at Pavillon Ledoyen
A sushi master, products of a remarkable quality (ikejime fish from the Atlantic), the creative touch of Yannick Alléno... Everything is gathered to spend a great moment. Twelve seats at the counter, to be in the heart of the action.
Sushi B
A pocket table with a zen and uncluttered setting. As an excellent craftsman, the chef works only with quality and fresh products, with surgical precision. His sushi and maki are memorable, with flavors that flow in the mouth without ever overdoing the soy or wasabi: a sense of moderation personified.
Jin
Jin is first and foremost the know-how of a man, Takuya Watanabe, a chef originally from Niseko, who first worked successfully in Japan... before succumbing to the charms of the French capital. Sushis and sashimis of high flight, ingredients of first order, the whole relayed by a discreet and effective service. No wine but superb sakés.
Kaiseki
Aida
You can either sit at the counter (nine seats) to have a front row seat to the teppanyaki, or in the small private room with its tatami. With a unique tasting menu, you will discover a fine and sharp cuisine, weaving beautiful links between Japan and France; sashimi, lobster from Brittany, chateaubriand or sweetbreads are accompanied by good wines from Burgundy, selected with passion by the chef.
Pasta
Kisin - Kunitoraya
What do our taste buds do when they cross paths with a Tokyo-based chef in Paris? They quiver with delight. Here, udon has the taste of the real thing, to be tasted in a small, uncluttered room decorated in the spirit of Japanese shops. A natural cuisine, without additives, healthy and tasty, with a very good quality-price ratio.
Soba shelter
You probably know sobas, these Japanese buckwheat noodles... This restaurant (the second address of the partners who founded Abri) has made it its specialty and offers it, so to speak, in all sauces: cold or hot, with broth and sliced duck for example. In the evening, the score takes a tangent, in the manner of an izakaya: place for small, well-crafted portions - sashimi, tempura, fish dishes - that will delight connoisseurs, and all others.
Kodawari ramen
The atmosphere is so lively and the restaurant so narrow that you would think you were in an alley in old Tokyo. The ramen, made on the spot and served in delicious Landes poultry broth, attracts gourmets from all over the world. Speciality of the place: the Kurogowa ramen, made with secret sauce and Basque farm pork chashu. Avoid peak hours!
Eels
Nodaiwa
Eel is the specialty of this restaurant. Filleted, grilled and steamed, it is dipped in a bath of soy sauce, sake and sugar (to which the chef's secret is added...), before being grilled again and covered with sauce. It is served on rice, in a bowl or a lacquered box. The vast majority of the clientele is Japanese, which says everything about the quality of the dishes.
Skewers - charcoal cooking
Bon Kushikatsu
This small Japanese restaurant cultivates a very particular culinary specialty, coming from the city of Osaka: kushikatsu, mini skewers breaded and fried at the minute. The succession of mouthfuls reveals finesse and flavors, and nicely represents the country of the Rising Sun. Likewise the décor, chic and typically Japanese.
Enyaa
Disconcerting and exciting! The setting is as pure as possible - white stone vaults and pillars, waxed concrete floor, square tables in light wood - and the cuisine, Japanese, highlights the best French products: for example, these beautiful eels from the Loire. The wine list is also very attractive, with exclusively champagnes and sakes of very good quality: a conscious choice that will delight wine lovers.
The Rigmarole
Chef Robert Compagnon and pastry chef Jessica Yang have combined their talents to create this atypical restaurant, already very popular in Paris. They recreate here the atmosphere and flavors of Japanese yakitori and robatayaki restaurants (sea bass tartar, skate wing, remarkable brochette of farm poultry cooked on the grill in front of our eyes) as well as Italian or French gastronomy (spaghetti with bottarga, a pure delight!). Reserve several weeks in advance.
