Tempura Suehiro — Affordable “New Style” Tempura

Serious Eats at Tempura Suehiro

Quality, tradition and innovation intersect with fair prices at Tempura Suehiro in downtown Hiroshima. Tempura Suehiro is a mid-price level tempura shop in Hiroshima City that serves tempura at a quality above their price-point. Located a reasonable walk from Peace Boulevard and Hondori, Suehiro’s chef, Atsushi Kuroguchi, and his team freshly prepare hot and crispy tempura right behind the bar. And his “new style” of serving tempura is intentionally designed to facilitate a relaxing evening with friends and drinks. 

The Tempura Menu

Tempura Suehiro does not skimp on the portions. This is half a green pepper. And despite being deep-fried and hot, it retains its characteristic green pepper crunch. (Joy Photo / Michael Farrell)

À la carte Tempura Focus

The menu is built around à la carte tempura, supporting side dishes and alcoholic drinks. Choices range from standard fare like lotus root and conger eel, to the really obscure like mentaiko (a spicy fish egg patty) and Camembert cheese. To keep meals affordable, individual tempura pieces start at ¥220. That is about equal to $1.40 or €1.20 as of late December, 2025.

Dependable Set Meals

However, Suehiro also has set meals that provide structure for people who don’t know what to get and a discount over ordering pieces one at a time. The Suehiro set meal (¥1,350 with tax) comes with seven pieces of tempura: shrimp, squid, mackerel, chicken, eggplant, Japanese pumpkin, and maitake mushrooms. On the side they offer a bowl of steamed rice (free refills included), miso soup, a soy-based dipping sauce with oroshi (grated daikon radish), as well as shiokara (fermented raw squid) and takana. Takana is a kind of spicy pickled mustard leaves that is strongly associated with Fukuoka Prefecture. 

Fresh Ingredients & Historical Craft

Tempura is a style of cooking that puts fresh ingredients in the spotlight. Suehiro’s suppliers carefully select the best local vegetables, Japanese beef, and seafood from the Seto Inland Sea. There is both a standard and a seasonal menu to choose from with ingredients ranging from traditional, like shrimp, to innovative, like Camembert cheese.

Tempura Suehiro brings tempura to your seat one by one as they come out of the frier. If you’re a slow eater, they’ll come out faster than you can eat them! (Joy Photo / Michael Farrell)

Edo-mae Style Tempura

The ingredients are prepared behind the counter in view of the diners. Each piece is cooked using the Edo-mae style,

which originated in Tokyo during the Edo Period. Edo-mae style uses sesame oil and a heavier egg batter that is crunchier, more aromatic and more golden than other styles. In contrast, Kansai style typically uses a neutral oil and a lighter batter, producing a milder, more delicate exterior.

Whatever the style, the moisture in the food vaporizes and puffs up the batter while the oil crisps it up. The result is a crispy exterior accent to the substance underneath. 

“New Style” Tempura

Suehiro specializes in what they call “new style” tempura. The style refers not to how the tempura is made but how it is served. Traditional tempura restaurants follow a ritual of individual pieces determined by the chef. However, while Suehiro also serves their tempura fresh out of the fryer one piece at a time, they do it according to your preferences, not the chef’s. This difference, though small, creates a casual atmosphere suited to long evenings with friends and drinks that is more like a yakitori restaurant than a traditional tempura restaurant. 

How to Get There

Tempura Suehiro’s warm lighting against organic wood and mossy tones creates a relaxing atmosphere. (Joy Photo / Michael Farrell)

Tempura Suehiro is centrally located in Hiroshima City, making it very accessible from multiple directions and modes of transport. It is a four-minute walk north from Namiki-dori-iriguchi bus stop on Peace Boulevard, a major east-west thoroughfare lined with small parks, trees and peace memorials. If you are enjoying Hondori, the covered shopping street, before your meal, walk south five intersections from Yoshinoya. You’ll find Suehiro on your right. The walk from Hondori is about five minutes.

Other Places to Try

Hiroshima is one of Japan’s underrated food cities. If you want to try a more traditional tempura experience without breaking the bank while also supporting local farmers, try Tempura Shokudo Tamaru in Oshiba, a community north of Yokogawa Station. Or if you haven’t tried Hiroshima’s signature dish yet, visit one of the 15 shops at Ekimae Hiroba, a retro, okonomiyaki “theme park.” 

Additional reporting by Kevin Peng

Video by Ume__gourmet