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GAVIAL Jimbocho Main Branch
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GAVIAL: European-style Curry in Jimbocho since 1982
Jimbocho is a famous battleground for curry in Tokyo, with streets packed with diverse curry shops; some visit for Japanese-style, others for European-style. In this area, GAVIAL is a long-standing establishment that has been operating since nineteen eighty-two and has been selected multiple times as one of the Tabelog Curry Top Hundred shops in Tokyo. It does not chase aggressive spiciness, but instead uses a sauce base accumulated over many years to create a European-style curry that is sweet at first, spicy later, and rich without being cloying.
The shop’s sauce has been continuously replenished since its founding and is seasoned with twenty-eight types of spices. Onions are cooked into a paste over a long period, then slow-fried for several hours with fragrant vegetables and butter, before finally being mixed with the base sauce accumulated over the years. The resulting curry sauce typically offers a gentle fruity sweetness in the first bite, followed by the gradual unfolding of spice layers, with the heat rising gently between the tongue and throat. It is “naturally sweet with a lingering spicy finish,” neither as directly sharp as instant curry nor as overly cloying as some other European-style shops. Wagyu beef or domestic pork are slow-cooked until tender, while seafood is grilled to infuse its own juices, allowing the flavors of shrimp, clams, or scallops to permeate the sauce. Chicken is grilled until the skin is crispy before being integrated with the sauce.
Orders are almost always accompanied by steamed potatoes (served with butter). This is a traditional combination for Jimbocho European-style curry; the potatoes themselves have a natural sweetness, and when crushed and mixed with the thick sauce, the texture becomes even richer. Some diners place the whole potato into the curry, while others cut it into pieces to dip in the sauce. You can choose whether to add cheese to the rice, which melts and blends with the sauce for a richer taste. The beef curry is a classic choice, with large, tender chunks of meat; the seafood curry or mixed curry features large shrimp, scallops, and clams with a substantial portion size; the cheese curry has an extra layer of melted cheese, perfect for those who enjoy a rich mouthfeel. Spice levels can usually be chosen as sweet, medium-hot, or hot; most people recommend medium-hot, as the balance between sweetness and spiciness is most apparent.
The restaurant is located on the second floor in a quiet environment, offering sofa seating and a counter, with an atmosphere suitable for slowly enjoying a meal. Soft music plays in the background, making one unconsciously slow down after the first bite. The Tabelog rating is approximately three point seven four, with over three thousand six hundred reviews. Its strengths lie in the layers of the sauce, the potato pairing, and the tenderness of the ingredients. It does not win through extreme sweetness or spiciness, but rather through the long-standing tradition of replenishing the sauce and a stable preparation method that leaves people wanting to come back again.
Among the curry shops in Jimbocho, GAVIAL represents the rhythm of European-style curry: ‘sweet first, spicy later, and a lingering aftertaste.’ Sitting down, watching the sauce slowly poured over the rice, with a steaming potato and a small piece of butter on the side—this is the most direct image of this old shop. It needs no further explanation; that plate of sauce, continued since nineteen eighty-two, is enough to make one understand why it stands firm amidst fierce competition.
GAVIAL Video Introduction
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Excuse me
Menu, please!
Order, please
This one, please
Thank you for the meal
Water, please
How do I eat this?
A small plate, please
May I take a photo?
Excuse me, please change the grill net.
Check, please
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How much is it?
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I will pay in cash
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Prices below include tax; meals, drinks, and availability are subject to the daily in-store menu. Curries are served with buttered potatoes.
A Set
Aセット
B Set
Bセット
Vegetable & Shrimp Curry
野菜＆エビ
Weekday lunch is limited to 60 servings. Set A is vegetable curry + chicken curry, Set B is vegetable curry + clam curry; vegetable + shrimp curry is served only on Thursdays.
Child
お子様
Mild Curry
甘口（カレー）
Medium Spicy
中辛
Hot Curry
辛口（カレー）
Spice levels are available in four stages: Child, Mild, Medium Hot, and Hot. Medium Hot is roughly equivalent to the spice level of a standard home-cooked curry; cheese is added to the buttered rice, but you may also choose to have it without.
Cheese Topping
チーズ乗せトッピング
Large Serving
大盛り
Beef Curry
ビーフカレー
Pork Curry
ポークカレー
Chicken Curry
チキンカレー
Meat Curry
ミートカレー
Cheese Curry
チーズカレー
Mixed Curry
ミックスカレー
Shrimp Curry
エビカレー
Scallop Curry
ホタテカレー
Clam Curry
アサリカレー
Seafood Curry
シーフードカレー
Vegetable Curry
野菜カレー
Meat Curry: (Beef, Pork, Chicken)
Cheese Curry: (Served with almonds) Almonds can be omitted upon request
Combination Curry: (Chicken, Shrimp, Clam, served with almonds)
Scallop Curry: (Served with almonds) Almonds can be omitted upon request
Seafood Curry: (Scallop, Shrimp, Clam) (Served with walnuts) Walnuts can be omitted upon request
Green Salad
グリーンサラダ
Original Salad
オリジナルサラダ
Boiled Potatoes with Butter
オーダーポテト（バター添え）
Butter Rice
バターライス
Marinated Octopus
タコのマリネ
Smoked Salmon with Capers
スモークサーモンケッパー添え
Scallop Carpaccio
ホタテのカルパッチョ
Sorbet
シャーベット
Espresso
エスプレッソ
Original Coffee
オリジナルコーヒー
Iced Coffee
アイスコーヒー
Cafe au Lait
カフェオーレ
Iced Au Lait
アイスオーレ
Fresh Lemon Juice
生絞りレモンジュース
Lime Squash
ライムスカッシュ
Melon Soda
メロンソーダー
Cream Soda
クリームソーダー
Calpis Soda
カルピスソーダー
Fresh Lemon Squash
生絞りレモンスカッシュ
Yogurt Drink
ヨーグルトドリンク
Milk
ミルク
Drinkable Salad
飲むサラダ
Hot
ホット
Ice
アイス
Hot Tea
ホットティー
Lemon
レモン
Milk
ミルク
Iced Tea
アイスティー
Black tea can be served with lemon or milk. Milk tea can be served hot or iced; availability of all items and alcoholic beverages depends on daily stock.
Whiskey
ウィスキー
Highball
ハイボール
Draft Beer
生ビール
Medium Beer Bottle
ビール中瓶
Non-Alcoholic Beer
ノンアルコールビール
Schmatz Lager Beer
シュマッツラガー
Schmatz Weizen Beer
シュマッツヴァイツェン
Schmatz IPA Beer
シュマッツIPA
Beaujolais Red
ボジョレー赤
Half
ハーフ
Glass
グラス
Frascati White
フラスカティー白
Beaujolais red wine is available by the glass or half-bottle; Frascati white wine is available by the half-bottle.
GAVIAL Jimbocho Store Map
GAVIAL Store Information
- Phone: 03-6273-7148
- Store Name: GAVIAL Jimbocho Main Store
- Address: 東京都千代田区神田神保町1-9 KOALA BLDG.JIMBOCHO 2F
- Business Hours: 11:00–21:00, last order 20:30; service may end early on weekends and holidays if curry sells out.
- Closed: Every Tuesday and during the year-end/New Year holidays; temporary changes are announced monthly on the official website.
- Reservations: Accepted only for weekday dinners after 17:00; not accepted on weekends or Japanese national holidays. Please inquire via phone or the contact form on the official website.
- Transportation: Jimbocho Station exits A5/A6/A7, walking time 1 minute.
- Payment Methods: Cash, credit cards, electronic payments, and QR code payments (Tabelog).
- Seating: 44 seats, non-smoking. No private rooms, no full-venue rentals, and no parking. Children are welcome; strollers are permitted, though you may need to wait for a larger table.
- Budget: Weekday lunch special 1430 yen; standard curry 1760–2310 yen; beverages and additional orders are charged separately.
- Lunch: Weekday lunch hours 11:00–14:30; limited to 60 servings daily. Vegetable + clam or chicken 1430; vegetable + shrimp available only on Thursdays 1430.
GAVIAL Official Website｜Official Menu｜Tabelog Restaurant Information
Tokyo Travel Guide
Japan Travel Guide
