A friend of mine recently asked where to get sushi in Tokyo. My answer was ‘How much are you willing to spend?’
Eating sushi in Tokyo (and Japan in general) can be as inexpensive or expensive as you want it to be. There are variety of reasons that affect pricing, but in general, most of the time you won’t be disappointed no matter how much you’re paying. As a foreigner, once I tasted sushi in Japan, my desire to eat sushi in USA, where I currently live in, are pretty much gone. Don’t get me wrong, there are places to get really good sushi in USA, where the fish are flown directly from fish market in Japan, but it usually costs an arm and a leg.
Below I want to share a few sushi places that I’ve visited in Tokyo over the years. Here’s the list if you just want to see the locations on Google Maps Sushi in Tokyo
Inexpensive / Affordable
It’s a conveyor belt sushi, which means you don’t need to worry about ordering in Japanese, and can just pick the sushi you want when it shows up in front of you. With a few exceptions, all sushi plate are priced at 138 yen. You can eat as few or as much as you want
This is actually a chain and they have many places around the city. The one linked above is the one I went to earlier this year. I asked my coworker that’s based in Japan to take me to get sushi, and here’s the place he recommended. I ordered the tuna plate and it was delicious. When we went, the place was packed. I spent around 3000 yen for my meal, which is pretty decent for the quality of the fish.
Uogashi Nihon-Ichi (Standing Sushi Bar)
This was a unique experience for me, as it was a standing only room. The sushi was delicious and the price was quite affordable. They also have several branches around the city. I honestly don’t remember how much I spent here, but I do remember it wasn’t that expensive.
Higher end
If you’re looking for something towards the higher end, then this would be it. I remember spending around 12000 yen I think. It was an omakase experience (“I’ll leave it up to you” / chef’s special). The chef asked if I had any fish allergies (no… well, not that I know of) and they asked if I want less/more rice. This is one thing I found interesting, apparently they ask that because some customers prefer less rice on their sushi. I actually asked for less since I want to taste the sushi more, and also that means I can eat more throughout the day 
The fish was fresh and delicious, and you can tell they really pay attention to how they prepare it. I was definitely loving every single sushi that I put in my mouth (was going to say bite, but you don’t really bite sushi)
I can probably consider this my favorite sushi place in Tokyo. I’ve been to this place many times, starting when they were still location in Tsukiji market, until now after they moved to the new fish market in Toyosu. You need to come really early in the morning if you want to get yourself a spot. And by early, I mean as early as 6am in the morning, as they close at 1pm. The line is steadily long throughout the day, but if you come before they open, most likely you’ll get a spot (at least that’s my experience). This is perfect when I was still jetlagged and kept waking up early in the morning.
This is another omakase style, and when I went there it was around 6000 yen per sitting. I think they increased the price recently, but I haven’t been there this year (couldn’t wake up…) when I was visiting Tokyo. For the sushi itself they were delicious, and served one by one by the sushi chef.
VERY high end
Sukiyabashi Jiro Roppongi Hills Restaurant
The last one, but definitely not least, is the most expensive sushi I’ve ever paid in my life. Another omakase experience, I paid 27000 yen for the session. Some of you may have seen the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi on Netflix. When we went in 2014, our group tried to make reservation at the main restaurant in Ginza, but we weren’t able to. But then we managed to get a reservation at the son’s branch in Roppongi Hills, after asking my friend’s Japanese coworker to call the restaurant directly.
The result was definitely the most delicious sushi I’ve ever tasted in my life. Did I regret it for paying that much? Not a single bit. Will I come back again? Yes absolutely. but it’s mostly because it’s been almost 10 years since the last time I went there. This is definitely not something I want to go on regular basis. If you REALLY love sushi, you may want to consider going here. Some people thought it’s overrated, and I can definitely understand their argument. At the end of the day, you can do your own research and decide whether this will be worth for you
That turns out to be longer than I was planning to write. Hopefully you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Curious to hear what you think after reading this post.
If you have been to Tokyo, or if you live in Tokyo/Japan, I would love to hear your suggestion on your favorite sushi restaurant!
The writing is so good and the photo of the presentation of the fish has been placed so well .nice post 
