Ultimate Guide: What To Eat In Saigon Japan Town
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Wonder what to eat in Saigon Japan Town? This is an ultimate guide to help you through the best restaurants and dishes there.
Every time I visit Ho Chi Minh City, I choose to live on Japanese Street. The street is not only famous for its nightlife, red lanterns, affordable accommodation with a big gym and spacious rooms, and a great variety of delicious Japanese food at very cheap prices. Not to mention, it has very good proximity to most of HCMC’s main attractions.
While I find the web’s coverage of the restaurant guide limited, that’s why I am going to recommend the top 5 options for this area based on my recent visit.
🛏️ The Best Place To Stay In Saigon Japan Town? ✅ Book Your Stay !
INDO Serviced Apartment
Indo serviced apartment is located at the center of Saigon Japan Town. It is a best-valued service apartment with a two-floor gym, spacious rooms, in-room kitchens, and other facilities. The price is as low as ~ 20 USD per day. It is always sold out during peak season.
What Is Saigon Japan Town?
Saigon Japan Town (aka Japanese street) is a charming neighborhood in District 1, in the middle of Le Thanh Ton and Thai Van Lung streets. Spanning less than 2 kilometers, it’s easily accessible from major attractions like the Opera House and Ben Thanh Market, making it a convenient stop for tourists and locals alike.
The area’s clean streets, Japanese-inspired signage, and lively atmosphere create an immersive experience reminiscent of Tokyo or Kyoto. It used to be the home to over 300 Japanese residents, but now it has evolved to be a busy tourist spot.
Top Five What To Eat In Japanese Street
In these areas, you can find almost every Japanese dish that you would have in Japan, but at a Vietnamese price. Surprisingly, the food quality is very outstanding, I felt as if I were living in Japan.
The Izakayas
Izakayas are usually very pricy. However, in the Japanese street of HCMC, you will find a lot of Izakayas at very affordable prices. For example, a regular bowl of sashimi tuna is only around 5 USD with good quality. For the Japanese alone, the area provides a greater option, even compared to the high-quality local buffet Cuu Van Long, which I mentioned in another article.
Amongst all the Izakayas I had in Japan town. Mutsumian Yuugatei, located at 15/7 Lê Thánh Tôn, Quận 1, stands out for its authentic offerings, particularly its charcoal-grilled eel. Other than the signature eel rice, it also has several great dishes at a good price, including deep-fried pork plum shiso roll (110k VND), anchovy tofu(80k VND), oyster sashimi (75k VND per), and horse mackerel sashimi (135k VND). This is the Izakaya that I would visit several times on a single visit to HCMC.
Tonkatsu At Fujiro
Hidden in the alley of a Japanese street, the tonkatsu at Fujiro is a very popular option locally. Each night at the busy alley of the street, you will find a queue starting to show up at the restaurant around 7 pm. The restaurant is renowned for its perfectly crispy yet tender tonkatsu, served with miso soup and shredded cabbage. Its affordable set menus, priced between 120,000–180,000 VND ($5–$7.50), and hearty portions make it a go-to spot in the Ho Chi Minh City Japanese street.
I had its signature tonkatsu set for lunch several times during my previous visits to HCMC, and it never failed me. Fujiro is located in the middle of the area (8A/5B1 Thái Văn Lung, Quận 1). You can also take a look at their official Instagram here.
Yakiniku & Yakitori
Yakiniku (grilled meat) and yakitori (skewers)are also very common in the area at a cheap price. For example, in most of the Japanese skewer restaurants in the area, it only costs ~ 6 USD for a set of 10 skewers. It is way cheaper than most of the other places in the world.
Alternatively, there are several all-you-can-eat yakiniku shops in the area, where you can have a great buffet of grilled meat for less than 20 USD.
Ramen & Gyoza
Ramen and gyoza are staples of Japanese cuisine, and Saigon Japan Town excels in both. You can find several good ramen and gyoza shops in the area. I had several of them during my visits, like Daichi ramen, Danbo ramen, and Hutabo ramen. Most of them of good, but I can’t find any one as distinctive as Mutsumian Yuugatei in the izakaya category or Fujiro in the tonkatsu category.
Gyudon In Sukiya
Gyudon, a bowl of rice topped with simmered beef and onions, is a quick and satisfying meal. Sukiya, a well-known Japanese chain located at 10AB Thái Văn Lung, Ben Nghe Ward, Quận 1, offers affordable gyudon starting at 45k VND (less than 2 USD). It is also one of the very few restaurants in the area that open 24 hours. It is the best place I’ve been for breakfast after a workout in the morning.
Bonus: Dessert at Uncle Tetsu
Uncle Tetsu is a renowned Japanese brand specializing in soft and fluffy Japanese cheesecakes. Founded by Tetsushi Mizokami in Fukuoka, Japan, the brand emphasizes fresh, handmade desserts prepared in an open-concept kitchen, allowing customers to witness the baking process.
It is another popular Japanese dessert shop in the area. At the time of my last visit, it had several flavours of cheesecakes, including original, chocolate, Earl Grey, and matcha.
A piece of cake is around 50k VND (~ 2 USD), and a whole cake is for 129k VND (~5 USD). The cheesecakes are tasty and cheap. I even bought one as a souvenir during my last visit.
The Best Valued Japanese Food In The World
I still recall years ago when I first visited Hanoi, all I could imagine was having Vietnamese food, street food, or French Fine dining. Only after I visited Ho Chi Minh City, the best destination in Vietnam, it has a lot of outstanding Japanese food. Along with the best place to stay located in the same area and all the great attractions around. I would say this is the best place to have Japanese food at an affordable price in the world.
