METAL MESHI (Update: 8/31)

Heavy Metal Dining Experience Only in Koenji
[updated August 2025]

If you’re hungry in Tokyo and you like any kind of heavy metal, head to Metal Meshi in Koenji! Why? Owner Yasunario has created an extensive menu of all kinds of food, and each item is based on a metal band or song. He’s a friendly guy—not a “scary metalhead”—who can speak a bit of English and prides himself on creating the ultimate “metal kitchen”. There are takes on Japanese food, Chinese, other Asian cuisine, as well as western classics—fish, noodles, stir fries, rice dishes, curry, pasta, desserts, and so much more! Best of all, it’s all delicious, and it’s all very metal!

“Meshi” is a Japanese word that means “rice” or a meal. So if you go for a meal at Metal Meshi in Koenji, the rock music hub of Tokyo, you will be getting more than just great food with dishes based on a theme of heavy metal bands and their songs, you also get a full metal experience: a metal meal soundtrack that bounces around randomly from heavy metal greats from the 70’s to the present, metal atmosphere via a “Last Supper” metal mural with the greats (see if you can identify them all), as well as a friendly metal welcome from owner and Metal Meshi mastermind, Yasunario-san. He started Metal Meshi in 2015 after putting out a popular recipe book of the same name. He loves all metal from Japanese bands like Anthem to Baby Metal to the British influential extreme metal legends Carcass, all of which you could hear while you enjoy meals such as the voluminous Metallica “Master of Nuggets” (1980 yen), his most popular dish—as such, please note Master of Nuggets is only available by reservation only. Other recommended dishes include the Black Sabbath “Saba-su Bloody Saba-su” (“saba” mackeral with “su” vinegar and hot chili sauce, 1580 yen), the Ningen Isu “Jigoku no Karaage” (spicy Japanese fried chicken, 1350 yen), the Children of Bodom “Hatecrew Deathroll Chicken Over Rice” (A New York “food truck” style take on chicken over rice, 1350 yen), or the Iron Maiden “2 Minutes to Midnight Noodles” which are vegetarian, at 666 yen! How metal!

If you are a fan of heavy metal visiting Tokyo, you should absolutely make a point to stop by Yasunario’s Metal Meshi in Koenji, open for dinner all nights except Thursday, and lunch on weekends. Even if you aren’t a metalhead you will still be most welcome, and surely enjoy the extremely varied menu that includes new takes on Japanese, Chinese, and Western favorites. You can also enjoy Metal meshi as simply a bar without ordering a meal, so come have a drink and enjoy the tunes. You can use it to get started on a metal bar-hopping journey, as there are 4 specialty metal-themed bars in Koenji alone!

ACCESS

Writer: Greg
Photographers: Diego, Mark