Being such a big and cosmopolitan city, Mexico City houses hundreds of restaurants with different types of cuisine. For some reason Mexicans just love Japanese food and we have a big number of restaurants with different varieties of food. Even though we have many options and most are really good, it’s extremely important to know what to order in each. This is why I decided to write this post to recommend specific dishes for each.
El Japonez- This restaurant opened its doors a few years back and it now has several locations around the city. It’s a nice casual place and it’s not expensive at all. I would recommend going to the Santa Fe location because the design is just outstanding. The restaurant has won architectural prizes around the world. The restaurant is extremely popular between locals and it’s important to know what to get, the best thing is to share dishes that way you can taste a bit of everything. You should start of with the tempura edamames, the broccoli skewers and the ribeye with asparagus tacos as appetizers. For the main course the camarones roca, the sushi coralito, the mango tango sushi and the bowls with chicken or tuna are the most recommended. To finish of the tapioca or the green tea ice cream are great options for desert accompanied by a hot green tea.
Tori Tori- This is one of the trendy places in Mexico now, many Japanese people living in Mexico eat here although it’s expensive. There are 4 different locations in Polanco and Condesa but the best one because of the architecture is the one in Temistocles. If you are there on a sunny day get a table in the terrace it’s worth it! Although its an expensive restaurant the quality of the fish is just outstanding. The best thing to get in this restaurant is the tuna bowl that comes with rice, seaweed, masago, avocado and spicy mayo. Its just absolutely delicious and the most popular dish, the hamachi sashimi is also to die for. For desert you should get the green tea or mango mochis, this is a rice paste ball with ice cream in the center.
Nagaoka- This was recommended to me by a Japanese man that has been living in Mexico for 20 years. When I met him I asked, whats the best Japanese restaurant in Mexico and he answered Nagaoka. I was surprised as I had never heard of this before. He told me the place is very popular between Japanese people and its not expensive at all which makes it even better. They have two locations in the south part of the city one near Coyoacán and the other next to the World Trade Center. I had been wanting to go for a long time and finally made it a few weeks ago. The place is not fancy at all but its completely packed which most times means its good. For starters I would recommend the sashimis and the beef carpaccio, it has a special sauce that has a delicious flavor. The udons which are noodles are fantastic as main course. The menu here is quite big so you can try different dishes and share them, every single dish I tried out was good.
Nick San- This restaurant started in Los Cabos, Mexico a few years ago and has expanded to the city. It has three very convenient locations scattered across the city and if you go here rest assured you will have a good meal. It’s not the trendiest place around but its good and convenient for a lot of people. I go very often to the one that’s near my house when I am craving some good sushi. The best thing to order here is any type of fish prepared with the “spicy sauce”. For starters I would recommend sashimi serranito which comes with a delicious sauce and some serrano chile and the tomatitos with tuna. For main course the spicy crab salad, the teriyaki chicken or the japengo roll are musts. The tres leches cake for desert is amazing!
Hope you enjoy these restaurants and feel free to recommend other great Japanese restaurants!
