Our Shibuya native shares the start of his list of places to fill up your stomach without emptying your wallet.

Walking around Tokyo’s Shibuya neighborhood, you might find yourself wishing you had a little extra cash in your pocket. Though it’s not the fanciest or most exclusive part of the city, Shibuya has some of Tokyo’s coolest shopping venues, including the Nintendo Tokyo specialty store, a Pokémon Center, and young women’s fashion epicenter 109/”Ichimarukyu.”

What we’re saying is that when you’re in Shibuya, you might want to expand your shopping budget by tightening your dining budget, but that’s not as easy to do as it used to be. Our Japanese-language reporter Seiji Nakazawa, who lives in Shibuya, has seen restaurant prices in the area creeping higher and higher, including for some of his previous go-to inexpensive meals. Beef bowl chain Matsuya’s shkmeruli hot pot now costs 1,100 yen (US$7.10), 170 yen more than it did a year ago, and even a McDonald’s Big Mac lunch set is now 650 yen.

Thankfully, though, there are still cheap, and tasty, eats to be found in Shibuya, so today Seiji is sharing his top four recommendations for places to eat in Shibuya that’ll fill up your stomach without emptying your wallet or crushing your spirit.

1. Saizeriya (Shibuya Tokyu Hands-mae branch)

The Saizeriya chain of casual Italian restaurants has long been a savior to budget-conscious diners in Japan, and this branch is no exception. Located a little beyond the Tokyu Hands department store on the outer edge of Shibuya’s central commercial area, the interior is spacious and makes for a nice oasis when you need a break from the hustle and bustle of the Center-gai shopping street.

▼ Walking route from Shibuya Station to Saizeriya

Seiji’s top recommendation is the Milano-style doria baked pasta and cheese dish, which at only 300 yen is an incredible bargain, and there are also set meals or doria or pasta with soup and salad for 500 yen.

Restaurant information
Saizeriya (Shibuya Tokyu Hands-mae branch) / サイゼリヤ（渋谷東急ハンズ前店）
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Udagawa-cho 39-2, Village 802F
東京都渋谷区宇田川町39-2ﾋﾞﾚｯｼﾞ802F
Open 10 a.m.-5 a.m.
Website

2. Marugame Seimen (Shibuya Dogenzaka branch)

Udon chain Marugame Seimen just announced in December that they were raising their prices, but they’re still a wise choice if you’re looking to get a bowl of tasty noodles at a great price. You can put together a nice little meal with a small-size kake udon (udon noodles in hot broth) and a piece of sweet potato tempura for 470 yen.

▼ Walking route from Shibuya Station to Marugame Seimen

Compared to Saizeriya, Marugame is more centrally located, so this place tends to get crowded at lunchtime, so you might want to do your shopping while everyone else is eating and time your noodle run a little earlier or later.

Restaurant information
Marugame Seimen (Shibuya Dogenzaka branch) / 丸亀製麺（渋谷道玄坂店）
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Dogenzaka 2-9-9, Umehara Building 1st floor
東京都渋谷区道玄坂2-9-9梅原ビル1F
Open 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m.
Website

3. Shibuya Hachiko Soba

Coming to our non-chain entry on the list, a lot of people aren’t even aware that Shibuya Hachiko Soba exists. That’s because this unique soba noodle joint is located inside the Shibuya Ward Office, essentially the Shibuya district’s city hall.

▼ Walking route from Shibuya Station to Shibuya Hachiko Soba

With a cafeteria-like casualness, prices here are very affordable, but the restaurant doesn’t skimp on quality or taste, with the juwari soba seiro, the chilled all-buckwheat flour noodles with dipping broth pictured above, costing a mere 390 yen. Really, the only drawbacks are that Shibuya Hachiko Soba, by nature of being inside a government building, is only open for lunch during the week, and not at all on weekends and holidays.

Restaurant information
Shibuya Hachiko Soba / 渋谷ハチ公そば
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Udagawa-cho 1-1
東京都渋谷区宇田川町1-1
Open 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Closed Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays

4. Ikea Shibuya

Seiji’s final recommendation isn’t a restaurant in the strictest sense of the word, but you can get food there, so it counts in his book/stomach. Ikea Shibuya’s city-center location means it’s not as big as most other branches of the Swedish homeware giant, and so you won’t find a large-scale cafeteria like you would out in the suburbs. But what you will find is a food corner with hot dogs for just 100 yen, and plant-based veggie dogs for even less, 80 yen.

▼ Walking route from Shibuya Station to Ikea Shibuya

Though Seiji isn’t a vegan himself, and he thinks the veggie dog tastes different from a hot dog made with actual meat, he doesn’t think it tastes bad at all, especially after slathering it in ketchup and mustard from the self-serve condiment station.

Restaurant information
Ikea Shibuya / イケア渋谷
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Udagawa-cho 24-1
東京都渋谷区宇田川町２４−１
Open 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
Website

It’s only been about a year since Seiji moved to Shibuya from elsewhere in Tokyo, so he’s still expanding his knowledge of affordable eateries in the area and plans to keep adding to his list, but for now, these’ll easily keep him from going hungry or broke.

Insert images: SoraNews24, Saizeriya, Marugame Seimen
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[ Read in Japanese ]