If you’re looking for a foodie adventure in Japan, you can’t go wrong with Japanese street food! It’s easy to stumble upon rows of street vendors selling sweet and savory ready-to-eat dishes. Some foods you’ll recognize, and some you will have to venture out and try for the first time. Either way, it’s an appetizing and affordable way to experience Japanese cuisine. Use this list as your guide to Japanese street food, so you can plan your snacks accordingly!

Takoyaki

Takoyaki are fried balls of batter, similar to a hushpuppy, filled with little pieces of octopus, tempura, green onions, and pickled ginger. They’re golden in color and served piping hot, so eat them carefully to avoid burning your tongue. Takoyaki are a standard item in the street food scene in Japan, so you shouldn’t have trouble finding them. Part of the fun is watching the vendors skillfully flipping them with chopsticks at lightning speed!

Crepes

The Japanese love this French dessert. They’ve adapted it and made it an extremely popular street food in Japan, especially in the Harajuku neighborhood in Tokyo. The crepes are cone-shaped with fillings that vary from sweet to savory. You’ll be overwhelmed by vast menus with an astounding number of options (which you’ll see in the window display). But when you’re combining fruit, chocolate, and whipped cream, you really can’t go wrong!

Shioyaki

This was probably one of the most distinct Japanese street foods that I saw on my trip… and the most intimidating. I’m ashamed to say, I wasn’t adventurous enough to try it. It’s a whole baked fish served on a stick and seasoned with salt. I was told it mostly just tastes like salt… lots and lots of salt. But I saw another girl order one and go to town on it, so there definitely are people who would find this right up their alley!

Dango

Now THIS was right up my alley. I fell in love with these rice dumplings on a stick and ordered them every chance I got. They’re made from rice flour similar to mochi and cooked until firm. You normally see vendors on the street selling three or four dumplings per skewer and covered in a sweet soy sauce that was absolutely delicious. During cherry blossom season, you’ll also see hanami dango, which are pink, white, and green to represent the flowers.

Okonomiyaki

This savory Japanese pancake is extremely popular. The ingredients can vary greatly, so you could easily order this item multiple times without ever having the same meal twice, just depending on where you buy it! The batter is commonly prepared with eggs, meat or seafood, vegetables and cheese, then poured onto a griddle to cook on both sides. Often, you’ll see it topped with a Worcestershire-style sauce, mayonnaise, bonito flakes, seaweed flakes, and picked ginger.

Yakitori

If you aren’t very adventurous with food, yakitori is your safest Japanese street food to try. It consists of small pieces of meat skewered on a stick and grilled over a charcoal fire. Most of the time you’ll see chicken yakitori, but you may also see vendors selling pork or beef. It’s a very popular item, served either with sauce or without. Keep in mind, there are hardly any public trash cans in Japan, so ordering food on a stick means holding onto that stick until you can properly dispose of it.

Taiyaki

This is another one of my favorites! These fish-shaped cakes are really similar to waffles, but they’re filled with red bean paste, custard, or chocolate. It’s fun to watch them being made, because you can see the batter in each half of the mold bubbling as they bake (just like pancakes). The vendor then adds the filling and puts the two halves of the fish together to give you the final product. They’re served warm, and the gooey filling is oh so delicious!

Yakisoba

Yakisoba is another safe, but very tasty option! These wheat noodles, which are a lot like ramen noodles, are stir-fried with pork and veggies, then seasoned with a special sweet and tangy sauce. Vendors cook huge heaps of these noodles on the griddle, serving them up with the usual toppings like mayo, fish flakes, and pickled ginger. Occasionally you’ll see noodles topped with a fried egg, or even noodles served lengthwise in a hot dog bun (yakisoba pan).

Ikayaki

Warning: If you’re not a fan of seafood, you should probably sit this one out. For all of you adventurous seafood lovers out there, this grilled squid on a stick is exactly what it looks like… Whether you want to try it or not is totally up to you! Usually the street food version is served sans tentacles with the top of the squid sliced horizontally. However, sometimes the tentacles are still attached. It’s covered in a sweet soy sauce and grilled over charcoal. Bon appétit!

Yaki Tomorokoshi

This one looks pretty basic, and it’s true, there’s not much to it. Vendors take corn on the cob, season it with miso, soy sauce, and butter, then grill it on a stick. It’s simple but fantastically flavorful. Plus, you get the benefit of eating a relatively healthy option after stuffing yourself with every kind of Japanese street food under the sun. So really, you’re being healthy with this one. That’s all you need to tell yourself!

You’ll see all of this and so much more as you eat your way through the streets of Japan. So, follow your nose and embrace this colorful world of on-the-go snacking! Got any favorites you didn’t see listed here? Share in the comments below!

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Kate Sherga, Travelocity Copywriter

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