Narita Food: Grilled Eel, Yokan and the Temple Approach Street

Anyone with a layover or a night near Narita Airport often wonders what to eat in Narita City. The answer is that you do not need to go all the way to Tokyo, because Narita has Omotesando, a street lined with restaurants and sweet shops leading up to Naritasan temple. The main foods are grilled eel, traditional sweets and everyday local restaurants that are usually better value than those inside the airport.

Signature foods

Grilled eel, or unagi, is the dish most associated with Narita. Most restaurants grill it over charcoal and serve it over rice in a lacquered box called unajyu, and some grill it in view of the street. The next group is yokan, a dense sweet red-bean jelly, and rice crackers grilled at the shopfront. Peanuts are a well-known crop of Chiba Prefecture as a whole, so processed peanut snacks are common souvenirs.

Where to eat

Start on Omotesando, which slopes down from JR Narita and Keisei Narita stations toward the temple gate; the walk from the stations is roughly 10 to 15 minutes. Most restaurants cluster along the first half of the street. For somewhere less touristy, try the side streets near the stations, where local diners go. If you are staying inside the airport you can eat in the terminals, but choices are fewer and priced at airport levels.

Dishes and types of place to try

• Unajyu restaurants with tatami or low tables, good for lunch after visiting the temple.
• Teishoku set-meal shops serving rice, soup and sides together, good for those who do not want eel.
• Simple soba and udon shops, usually cheaper and good for quick meals.
• Street-side snack shops selling grilled senbei and treats you can eat while walking.

Cafes and sweets

Omotesando has small cafes and sweet shops serving tea, Japanese desserts and ice cream, good for a rest after walking the slope up and down. In summer, cold sweets and shaved ice sell well, while winter brings hot drinks and warm red-bean treats. Choices change by season and shop, so do not rely on shop names from old reviews.

Shopping and souvenirs

Core souvenirs are yokan, senbei, peanut sweets and temple-related goods such as amulets and wrapping cloths, available at the temple and on Omotesando. For drugstore items and cosmetics, there are shops near Narita stations. Large malls and proper outlets are not Narita's strength; for a full shopping trip you generally go into Tokyo or elsewhere in Chiba.

Econômico

An unajyu meal usually costs more than an ordinary lunch, while soba, udon and set-meal shops are cheaper. Actual prices vary by shop and time, so look at the menu outside before you go in. A good way to save is to have eel as one special meal and eat ordinary places for the rest.

Halal and vegetarian

Certified halal restaurants in Narita are fairly limited. If you need halal, ask about ingredients and broth directly, or bring a backup from the airport. Vegetarian is similar, because many Japanese broths use dried fish; ask before ordering and enquire about dishes without meat or fish.

A neat way to organise the day is to reach Omotesando before the lunchtime crowd, have eel as the main meal, walk up to the temple and the park behind it, then come back down to buy sweets. On weekends and during major temple events, popular shops can have long queues. If your flight is close, leave enough time to get back to the airport, and do not buy too many fresh sweets if you are about to board a plane.

Many small restaurants still have menus mainly in Japanese, so a camera translation app and live maps for opening hours are useful. An eSIM installed before the flight lets you use these apps from the moment you arrive.

Veja os planos de eSIM para o Japão

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