15 best breakfast and brunch spots in Tokyo

Early birds rejoice! This American-style café and diner in Hiroo is a proper breakfast and brunch hangout. Open from 7.30 every morning (except Mondays) and serving fresh pancakes, eggs, bacon and more, Jade5 is a welcome reminder that breakfast in Tokyo isn’t all grilled fish and pickled veggies. Even better, the breakfast staples here are on offer all day, so you can sleep in and still wake up to french toast. Brunch from 7.30am

Tsumugi is part of the information centre for Tsukiji Hongwanji Temple. The spacious, modern café is decked out in warm wood and soft lighting, centred around a large communal table that seats 12. The best part is, all tables afford a full view of the temple through the floor-to-ceiling glass walls. The impressive signature breakfast here is the 18 Hinmoku No Asagohan.

For ¥1,800, the 18-dish set meal comprises a bowl of rice porridge, a bowl of miso soup and 16 little plates of various seasonal dishes, such as duck with sansho pepper, konnyaku shiroae (yam mixed with tofu and sesame), tamagoyaki (Japanese-style omelette), tofu with yuzu and white bean paste, and matcha jelly. Breakfast 8am-11am

In an elegant, spacious setting down a hidden alleyway in the heart of Shibuya, Rubia serves its unique modern Mexican breakfast and brunch menu from 8am-3pm daily. The breakfast set meals are a good deal for the calibre of food and location – a salad, soup and three tacos of your choice for ¥1,980. 

The soup is seasonal and is served with bright dots of herb and chilli-infused oils; the tacos are modern, Japanese twists on Mexican classics.

Aside from tacos, you can opt for Flautas Ahogadas – filling of pork or chicken wrapped in tortillas and served in an aromatic mole sauce, or go for a more traditional brekkie with a hardy continental breakfast, or granola with yoghurt and fresh fruit. Breakfast and brunch 8am-3pm

This bakery café is run by Kate Jaksich, who previously managed San Francisco’s famed Tartine Bakery and Jerry Jaksich, who worked at farm-to-table restaurant Chez Panisse in California. You can browse through Parklet’s freshly baked goods at the front of the store, while the back room displays a series of artworks by local Japanese artist Yoko Takahashi and other creators from the West Coast.

The stars of the menu are Parklet’s own sourdough bread and sustainably made coffee. If you have time, we recommend sitting down at the café. For something sweet, the housemade ricotta cheese and yuzu curd toast or vanilla cashew nut butter toast with honey and a sprinkle of sea salt goes well with a cup of Overview coffee. Early risers can try out Parklet's sweet and savoury porridges as well as granola bowls served until 11am. Breakfast and brunch from 8.30am

This restaurant inside Hotel Musse Ginza Meitetsu is only open until 3pm, but it just serves delicious breakfast food every day. Even better, it’s a breakfast buffet, meaning you can pick and choose what you like to create your ideal breakfast platter. 

Go for a traditional Tokyo breakfast with some chawanmushi (savoury egg custard), koji-marinated salmon, and boiled oysters with aonori seaweed and miso soup. Or try the decadent eggs with truffle salt, the pumpkin gratin with grilled sausages, or a seasonal fish chowder. Breakfast buffet 7.30am-3pm

This Gaienmae hideout is located next to the Watari Museum of Contemporary Art, and serves all-day 'international breakfast', i.e. traditional morning grub from countries all over the world. The featured national breakfast plate changes every two months, with the regular menu consisting of English breakfast and a hearty muesli option. The drink menu features coffee and tea, a wide selection of world beer, and a variety of soft drinks. Brunch from 7.30am

This lush, plant-filled restaurant at The Tokyo Edition, Toranomon may have just perfected the ideal Tokyo brunch. The seasonal menu (¥8,300) is hearty and generous, offering nine dishes that are made for sharing: from the fresh, bright starters of salads and beef carpaccio to savoury mains of fish and wagyu, ending with sweet, indulgent green tea mousse and beetroot sorbet. 

Everything is served alongside an unobstructed, jaw-dropping view of Tokyo Tower, as the rest of the cityscape stretches across the Tokyo Bay into the horizon. It doesn’t get any better than this. Okay, maybe it still can, if you go for a free-flow of champagne (from ¥7,600, depending on the type of bubbly). Brunch is available from 12noon to 4pm on weekends and holidays and we recommend that you don’t make any other plans – you’ll want to spend the full four hours here. Brunch 12noon-4pm

The perfect hangout before or after a day out in Yoyogi Park, Path serves breakfast and brunch – including their famous, super-fluffy dutch pancake  – from 8am to 2pm. Get there early to secure a seat and wait around 30 minutes for this oven-baked deliciousness, topped with uncured ham, burrata and copious amounts of maple syrup. And we do mean early: its popularity means that there may be a small queue before the 8am opening. Brunch 8am-2pm

First opened in New York, the Tokyo outpost of this stylish establishment is tucked into the spacious ground floor of Hibiya Midtown. The menu brings together American and French elements: there are waffles with crisp bacon and lashings of maple syrup, croissants with butter and jam, scrambled eggs with herbs and chevre – and the selection of croque sandwiches is unmissable. On the lighter side, you’ll find large salads including nicoise and roast chicken. The decor is old-school bistro elegance with a modern touch, with a leafy terrace for outdoor seating. Brunch from 11am

This charming little Sangenjaya neighborhood restaurant opens from 9am, allowing plenty of time to make the most of the creative morning menu. Owner and chef Go Kametani worked in France before opening Bistro Rigole in 2014, and his multicultural influence plays out in a Japanese spin on rustic French food. 

There’s a light and deeply flavourful clam and vegetable chowder, the unmissable Roll Dog – juicy brisket rolled up in a freshly made flatbread – and a selection of seasonal paellas. There are around 20 breakfast options, ranging from ¥650 to ¥1,500, and best of all, the dishes are ideal for sharing, meaning you can taste more of the menu. Brunch 9am-11am

Go for the Original Benedict if you're a egg purist, or switch it up with the AM Eggcellent Benedict (aka the Half & Half) which comes with avocado, raw tuna and quinoa rice instead of an English muffin. If your sweet tooth is an early riser too, head straight for the pancakes served with peanut cream, whipped butter, jam or maple syrup, or even the ones topped with coconut sauce, macadamia nuts and roasted coconut flakes. At Eggcellent you're in for an all-round delicious breakfast eggsperience (sorry, we couldn't resist). Brunch from 8am

It’s not often you find a restaurant in Tokyo which churns out dependable southern American-style fried chicken, waffles and other cajun favourites. This is where the cosy and friendly Soul Food House comes in. Serving lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch, this restaurant is the perfect place to get your chicken and waffle fix along with Creole-inspired sandwiches, mac and cheese, salads and more. Order the ultimate chicken and waffles, which comes supersized with bacon and fried egg, all drizzled in maple syrup. Brunch from 11am

Who said you had to wait until the weekend to have brunch? At this Roppongi restaurant – one of the many outposts of the Mercer Café empire – you can have your champagne and French toast every day of the week if you like.

The daily brunch sets – served from 11am on weekdays and from 10am on the weekend – include dishes like sirloin steak and egg or salmon tartar, avocado and poached egg, each accompanied by a couple of slices of plump, melt-in-the-mouth brioche French toast. Sets start at ¥1,400 but drinks have to be ordered separately, so expect to pay at least ¥3,000 per person if you're getting champagne and coffee. Brunch from 11am, from 10am weekends

Toasties are the house specialty of Deeney’s, a Scottish café in Shibuya that started out as a market stall in London. Naturally, there’s a toastie featuring haggis called The Macbeth. The award-winning combination brings haggis together with cheddar cheese, caramelised onions, mustard and rocket – with vegetarian and vegan takes also available. Aside from toasties, there's a range of more breakfast-friendly options like smoked salmon toast and Scottish oatmeal. Brunch from 9am

Ivy Place opens daily at 7am on weekends, when early risers can have a breakfast of pancakes, scrambled eggs and free-flowing coffee on the patio facing Tsutaya Books. If you prefer a morning lie-in instead, stop by later in the day when the larger restaurant area opens up, serving an eclectic menu of international fusion food including flatbread pizzas, seafood linguine, grilled swordfish and domestic filet steak. The two outdoor terraces are the best place to sit when the weather's good – and be sure to try some of the in-house TY Harbor microbrew beer. If you're there for the pancakes, make sure you place an order before 5pm. Brunch 8am-10.45am, 7am-10.45am weekends