カレー
Thick, mild and comforting: the curry Japan eats more than sushi, plus Sapporo's soup curry.
Japanese curry is thick, mildly sweet and served over rice with a pork cutlet or fried shrimp on top; it is eaten more often than almost any other dish in the country. The cult scene is spice curry in Osaka and Tokyo's Shimokitazawa, where small shops build complex, aromatic plates with multiple curries on one dish. Sapporo has its own invention, soup curry: a thin, spiced broth with large roasted vegetables and chicken on the bone.
Osaka invented spice curry, the aromatic multi-curry plate that has taken over Japan, and the scene is centered on Shinsaibashi, Horie and Tanimachi. Most shops are lunch-only, cash-only, and sell out; the top-rated ones have lines of office workers by 11:45..
Shinsaibashi · Horie · Tanimachi · Umeda
Soup curry is Sapporo's own invention: a thin, aromatic, spiced broth with a chicken leg and big pieces of roasted Hokkaido vegetables. The cult shops are around Sapporo Station, Odori and Susukino, and most let you choose spice level from 1 to 40..
Sapporo Station · Odori · Susukino
Cheap eats in Yokohama, picked by Tabelog rating: iekei ramen, Chinatown beef brisket rice, tonkatsu, curry and ¥200 yakitori, mostly under ¥3,000.
Soup curry in Sapporo, ranked by Tabelog: seven top-rated bowls from a ¥900 chicken curry to lamb and crab, with spice tips, queues and how to pay.
Finding food in Sapporo is easier with Tabelog ratings, budgets, hours and payment in English on a map. Four real examples inside.
Pick a topping (katsu is the classic) and a spice level; many shops go from 1 to 10 and 3 is already hot for most visitors. Soup curry shops have you choose a protein, a spice level and the amount of rice. Pay at the counter at casual places.
Curry shops are one of the easiest categories: menus are short and most have photos; spice levels are numbered.
Curry shops at 3.5 and above are in the national top tier, often with lines. 3.3 is a reliably excellent plate; chains sit near 3.0.
Pick a topping (katsu is the classic) and a spice level; many shops go from 1 to 10 and 3 is already hot for most visitors. Soup curry shops have you choose a protein, a spice level and the amount of rice. Pay at the counter at casual places.
Lunch: ¥800 to ¥1,500. Dinner: ¥1,000 to ¥2,000.
Curry shops at 3.5 and above are in the national top tier, often with lines. 3.3 is a reliably excellent plate; chains sit near 3.0.
Walk-in only.
Osaka, Sapporo each have a dedicated page. Osaka: Osaka invented spice curry, the aromatic multi-curry plate that has taken over Japan, and the scene is centered on Shinsaibashi, Horie and Tanimachi.
Open TabeDog, pick japanese curry, and see Tabelog's top-rated shops around you with hours, prices and payment methods in English.
Find japanese curry on the map
