Food culture
Eating by the season: shun, Japan's culinary calendar
What 'shun' means
Shun (旬) is the idea that every ingredient has a peak moment, and that a meal should reflect the time of year. It shapes menus from humble izakaya to formal kaiseki, and it's the most rewarding lens for eating in Japan.
Spring (Mar–May)
The season of new growth: bamboo shoots (takenoko), butterbur, mountain vegetables (sansai), cherry-blossom sweets, and sakura ebi. Sweet, tender and green.
Summer (Jun–Aug)
Cooling foods rule: chilled soba, hamo (pike conger), eel (unagi) for stamina on the hottest days, ayu sweetfish, and kakigori shaved ice.
Autumn (Sep–Nov)
The gourmet season: sanma (pacific saury), matsutake mushrooms, chestnuts, persimmons, new-crop rice (shinmai) and pumpkin. Rich and fragrant.
Winter (Dec–Feb)
Warming and luxurious: crab (kani), fugu (blowfish), yellowtail (buri), oysters, hot pots (sukiyaki, shabu-shabu) and oden.
How to use it
Ask for the shun recommendation, or book a kaiseki and let the season lead. Counter sushi and markets like Toyosu are where seasonality shines brightest.
Places we’ve confirmed
Ginza Kojyu
Seasonal omakase: grilled Ise lobster, ayu, eel, abalone
Chef Toru Okuda's two-Michelin-star counter, carved from a 270-year-old cypress, distills the season into impeccable Ginza kaiseki.
- Anniversary
- Business
Nodaiwa Azabu-Iikura
Unaju — Edomae eel steamed then charcoal-grilled
A Michelin-starred eel house with over 200 years of history, where the fifth-generation master steams and charcoal-grills Edomae unagi to melt-in-the-mouth perfection.
- Pescatarian
- Anniversary
- Business
Sushi Dai
Omakase course of Edomae sushi (chef's choice)
The legendary 5 a.m. counter inside Toyosu Market where visitors queue for hours to watch a master build an omakase of the day's finest catch.
- Pescatarian
- Solo
- Date
Suzukien Asakusa
No.7 Premium Matcha Gelato — the world's richest
This 1848-founded tea house teams up with Shizuoka's Nanaya to serve matcha gelato in seven escalating intensities, climaxing in a near-black No. 7 so concentrated it tastes like eating pure tea leaves.
- Vegetarian
- Solo
- Casual