Japan is one of the top destinations in the world, especially when it comes to gastronomy. The abundance of delicious traditional and regional cuisine, emphasis on seasonal ingredients, and the myriad of Michelin star restaurants in Japan make it a haven for foodie travellers. However, there are a number of obstacles that foreign visitors face when making restaurant reservations in Japan.
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How to Make Restaurant Reservations in Japan | Guide to Restaurant Reservations in Japan
Based on data from Hotpepper and Tabelog, currently, only 4.4% of restaurants in Japan can be reserved online – and most of these require making reservations in Japanese. For other restaurants, it’s usually possible to reserve a table over the phone, however here too language can be a barrier as many restaurants are unable to accommodate English-speaking customers. The situation only becomes more complicated if you follow a strict diet such as vegan, halal, or gluten-free.
Fortunately, there is a new service available that solves this problem, giving foreign travellers access to more Japanese restaurants!
ByFood’s restaurant reservation service enables you to easily navigate a directory of over 1400 restaurants in Japan so far, including nearly 600 Michelin-starred restaurants, to choose the perfect place for you. You can filter results by location, type of cuisine, and price range; plus a variety of dietary restrictions including vegan, vegetarian, halal, kosher, and gluten-free.
Once you’ve chosen a restaurant, just fill out an online form to reserve a table. Often, this is completely free of charge, making Japanese restaurant reservations far more accessible than ever before.
Here’s everything you need to know about how to make restaurant reservations in Japan.
Free Reservations on ByFood | Guide to Restaurant Reservations in Japan
Making a free reservation using byFood’s service couldn’t be easier. There are hundreds of restaurants to choose from, catering to all budgets, tastes, and diets. So whether you want Kyoto dinner reservations, a Tokyo sushi reservation, or to try one of the many Michelin star restaurants in Japan, you’ll easily be able to find the ideal spot to suit your needs.
The directory encompasses everything from casual izakaya pubs to traditional teahouses, as well as eateries specializing in street foods such as okonomiyaki, all the way up to elegant haute cuisine like kaiseki ryori.
After picking a restaurant, fill in your reservation details in English and the system will automatically call the restaurant to place your reservation in Japanese – with no charge to either you or the restaurant.
After the restaurant responds, you’ll receive an email in English either confirming or declining the reservation. Once your reservation is accepted, you can just turn up at the restaurant at the reserved time and enjoy your meal. It doesn’t get more convenient than that!
High-End Reservations | Guide to Restaurant Reservations in Japan
In addition to the free reservations, there are two other kinds of reservations available through byFood: paid reservations for restaurants where reservations are recommended, and high-end reservations for those restaurants that are particularly exclusive and difficult to make a reservation at.
In both of these cases, a byFood representative will contact the restaurant for you directly in order to secure a reservation, and you will be charged a fee if the reservation is successfully made. For paid reservations, the payment will be made when you submit your reservation request, while for high-end reservations the payment will be requested once the restaurant has confirmed your reservation.
How to Make Restaurant Reservations in Japan | Guide to Restaurant Reservations in Japan
Whether you’re hoping to make upmarket Tokyo restaurant reservations or claim a spot at a casual gastropub, here’s a simple guide to how the byFood system works.
1. Choose a restaurant
Browse the selection of restaurants available on the restaurant listing page, using the filters for location, price range, type of cuisine, and dietary requirements. There are also buttons to select Michelin star restaurants, nearby restaurants, and restaurants with free reservations enabled.
2. Enter your reservation details
Input the date and time you would like to make the reservation for, as well as the number of guests in your party. For free reservations, you then press the “Free Reservation” button. If you are making a paid reservation the button will say “Reserve Now,” and for high-end reservations, it will read “Contact for Availability.”
3. Check out
You will then be taken to a checkout page, where you confirm your personal information and agree to the terms and conditions before submitting your reservation request. For paid reservations, you will also submit your payment information at this time.
4. Receive an email confirmation
Once your reservation has been accepted by the restaurant, you will receive an email notification in English with the details. If you requested a high-end reservation, you will receive a payment link in this confirmation email.
5. Enjoy dining at the restaurant
With your reservation confirmed, all you need to do is arrive at your chosen restaurant at the time you’ve booked. Then sit back, relax, and enjoy some of Japan’s delicious cuisine!
With byFood’s new system, figuring out how to make restaurant reservations in Japan has never been easier. You’re now just a few clicks away from sampling some of the best gastronomic delights that the country has to offer. So take advantage of this opportunity and start exploring the many wonderful restaurants in Japan!
We hope you find this post about making restaurant reservations in Japan useful when travelling to Japan. Have you been to Japan? If not, check out our post on tips to make your first trip to Japan amazing. Do let us know your thoughts through our comments section and do not forget to subscribe to our blog for more interesting travel stories and articles.
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How cool, I had never heard of byFood’s reservation service before. But you are right, their reservation service couldn’t be easier! Of course I love anything for free so that is extra intriguing to help with language barriers. This is perfect for the basic restaurants. But often when Darcee & I travel, we want to explore or try one really fancy & high end restaurant. So I dont even mind the paid service. It would be no different than tipping the concierge out my hotel anyways so this is perfect. Can’t wait to try this when I tick off “Eating Sushi in Japan” off the Bucket List Project!
This is a precise step by step guide to do a reservation. Very helpful. Japan is on my bucket list for a long time. Hopefully, next year!
Now that you mention it, I realized that we never had to wait at any restaurants in Japan. We were typically seated immediately and that may be a reason why dining reservations are typically not available in Japan. We did not go to super high-end or super popular restaurants, however. Maybe there is a bigger need for reservations at those restaurants. But I think it is real good that there is finally a reservation system in place in English as it was often difficult to communicate with the Japanese personnel since we did not speak Japanese and they often spoke no English.
Oooh this is really cool!
I LOVE eating in Japan, although I have to admit, we have never really tried to visit the Michelin star-type places. I don’t mind phoning them in Japanese to book…but this system means my husband could help me plan (for once!) if we’re heading to posher places.
I have a few friends who really want to visit Japan next year (once they have been vaccinated.) I’ll let them know about your post.
I am planning to at the very least visit Japan in 2021 or 2022, so this is a huge help! I love that they have a lot of Michelin options too as I’m always in the mood to splurge on a fancy and unique meal. I’m pinning this and will come back to it when borders reopen and it’s safe to go back to Asia 🙂
This is a handy guide for those visiting Japan. Kudos to u for writing on this; very helpful.
This information is a huge help for those who are planning to visit Japan. This step by step guide is really worth appreciating.
I haven’t been to Japan so this is such a helpful post. I didn’t know that this beautiful country has 600 plus Michelin-starred restaurants. Definitely looking this service up.
Ahan !! something new for me.
Definitely a great guide to book a hassle free table at the restuarant in Japan.
This is indeed very helpful for everyone who visits Japan. Thanks for the detailed explanation.
Traveling to Japan without knowing Japanese can get tricky. Thanks for all these tips. Can’t wait to travel
Restaurant reservations is best for arrangement of guests make in advance to confirm a table for their party at a specified time. Great thoughts.