Objectives Dietary patterns are studied to determine the relationship between diet and health. However, little is known about whether various dietary patterns fulfill adequate nutrient intake. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the association between major dietary patterns and nutritional intakes in middle-aged and elderly men. Furthermore, we examined the associations between dietary patterns and micronutrients status by using the reference values from the Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese 2010 (DRIs-J 2010).Methods A total of 229 middle-aged and elderly men (age range, 40-79 years) participated in this study. The dietary patterns were determined using principal component analysis of 52 food and beverage items via a validated brief diet history questionnaire. Overall, micronutrient intake status was quantified using a dietary reference intakes score (DRIs-score) for 21 micronutrients (based on the DRIs-J 2010). The association of the nutrient intake and the DRIs-score with each factor score was evaluated using Spearman's correlation coefficient.Results Three dietary patterns were identified: "side dish", "evening drink", and "snack". The "side dish" pattern was characterized by a high intake of vegetables, fruits, seaweeds, mushrooms, and potatoes, and low intake of rice. Spearman's correlation showed that the "side dish" pattern correlated with each of the 21 micronutrients, and positively correlated with the DRIs-score (ρ=0.782, P<0.001).Conclusions The "side dish" pattern was positively related with the DRIs-score, calculated from the DRIs-J 2010. The result suggested the "side dish" pattern may provide a favorable nutrient balance in middle-aged and elderly men.