The 5 best Japanese restaurants in Antwerp

Junko Kawada is an outstanding sushi chef who prepares individual sushi portions as well as artistic lunch kits that include soup, fresh fish and chopped vegetables. Kawada has adapted to Belgium by incorporating local ingredients such as grey North Sea shrimps and even chocolate.

This is the real thing. A snug ramen shop where the noodles are imported from Sapporo in northern Japan. The interior has the look of a Tokyo snack bar with glowing neon signs and red lamps. The skilled kitchen crew prepare a range of noodle soups cooked the traditional way.

Here is an authentic Japanese restaurant on a quiet square in the university quarter. Founded in 1988, it is a favourite with Japanese executives based in Antwerp. They come because everything is correct, from the hospitable atmosphere to the delicate portions of sushi made with the freshest fish.

This authentic Japanese restaurant was founded in 1978 in a white town house in Het Zuid. The owner is Dutch, but spent two years in Japan learning about the cooking traditions. On his return to the Low Countries, he created a typical Japanese interior with seats around the kitchen and sliding wood screens. Then he found a chef who could prepare the perfect sushi.

It’s easy to miss this little place in the old warehouse district of Het Zuid. It looks more like a snack bar, but the chef knows his stuff. People cram inside and perch where they can to sample delicious portions of sushi and sashimi. But there is no reason to linger.