Find your bowl
Shoyu, shio, miso or tonkotsu? Separate seasoning from stock, then follow the ordering flow.
Choose your ramen →JAPAN · FOOD EXPLORER
What will you eat next?
Food wishes and travel memories. Let two visitor surveys inspire your next meal.
Explore the rankings ↓Which perspective interests you?
2023 · Returning visitors’ food wishes · multiple answers
Want to eat next time
Question: What would you like to eat if you visit Japan again?
Percentage of respondents selecting each food for a future visit. Multiple selections were allowed, so percentages do not total 100%.
Participants and methodology
Web survey, March 20–27, 2023: 1,200 people from the US, UK, France, China and South Korea who had stayed in Japan within the previous ten years. This question: 1,172 respondents. These are revisit wishes, not expectations before a first trip.
- 01
Sushi
58.7% - 02
Steak / yakiniku
39.8% - 03
Tempura
37.5% - 04
Hot pot dishes
37.2% - 05
Ramen
36.4% - 06
Sukiyaki
33.0% - 07
Sashimi
32.0% - 08
Udon / soba
31.1% - 09
Eel / eel over rice
30.5% - 10
Grilled fish
28.1% - 11
Tonkatsu
27.4% - 12
Curry rice
26.9% - 13
Karaage
26.6% - 14
Yakitori
26.5% - 15
Rice bowl dishes
26.1% - 16
Miso soup
25.0% - 17
Sweets / snacks
24.9% - 18
Takoyaki / okonomiyaki
23.2% - 19
Sake / shochu
20.1% - 20
Onigiri
19.9%
Other responses: other 0.9%; none in particular 0.3%. Hot pot includes shabu-shabu and mizutaki, among others; sweets/snacks includes confectionery and Japanese sweets.
2025 · Trip responses · one free-text answer, categorized and weighted
Most satisfying on the trip
Question: The food or drink that was most satisfying
Share naming the category as their most satisfying food or drink of the trip. This is not the satisfaction rate among people who ate that food.
Participants and methodology
General visitors of all nationalities/regions and all visit purposes, including non-leisure trips. Interviews at departure lounges in 17 airports/seaports. The overall annual A1 survey had 30,005 valid responses; the chart does not state this question’s respondent count.
- 01
Meat dishes
32.5% - 02
Ramen
19.7% - 03
Sushi
13.7% - 04
Fish dishes
9.7% - 05
Other Japanese dishes
5.5% - 06
Other dishes
5.4% - 07
Soba / udon
4.4% - 08
Wheat-flour dishes
3.3% - 09
Confectionery
2.3% - 10
Other food / beverages
1.7% - 11
Alcohol
0.8% - 12
Foreign cuisines
0.6% - 13
Fruit
0.4%
2025 annual report, published March 2026. Original source categories are retained. “Meat dishes” is not split into individual rankings for yakiniku or sukiyaki.
Original food categories are retained; English names are editorial translations. Linked guides help you choose specific dishes and do not cover every dish within a category.
FROM CURIOSITY TO YOUR FIRST ORDER
Turn curiosity into your first order
Grill, simmer or swish?
Compare yakiniku, sukiyaki and shabu-shabu by flavour, cooking style and how to order.
Choose yakiniku, sukiyaki or shabu-shabu →Flavours to meet along the way
These regional guides are separate from the rankings. Let your destination inspire your next meal.