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Kitchen Town
With about 160,000 restaurants in the Tokyo area (according to the people behind the latest Michelin Guidebook), the restaurant industry here is big business. And, to support all those restaurants and eateries, there are a huge number of suppliers providing everything from tableware, and furnishings to kitchen utensils and cooking equipment. What’s more, most of these suppliers are located close together on a single street, near the center of the city. If you are interested in cooking or are curious about the world of Japanese cuisine, then Kappabashi is a wonderful place to poke around, and to be amazed at the quantities and incredible selection of every conceivable restaurant-related product.
Start at one end of Kappabashi street and just go end to end, then double back. Besides an incredible array of kitchen stuff, there is so much merchandise that is produced for the Japanese market. The area does really offer a chance to learn about Japanese food culture. There are stores selling fine hand-crafted knives of all shapes and sizes, simple wooden miso soup bowls, very elaborate lacquerware, beautiful ceramic plates and bowls and chopsticks of all types. The stores here offer many things you don’t see everyday, like incredibly real-looking plastic food—fruits, vegetables, plates of spaghetti with a fork suspended in the air, noodles, hamburgers, steaks, and just about any food you can think of, including a roast turkey. They are pretty neat, but surprisingly expensive. Decorations, such as the red lanterns that you often see hanging outside izakayas, are also available.
While kitchen supplies might not seem like a thrilling subject to investigate, it’s hard not to be a little intrigued once you happen upon some of the more exotic products for sale. If you are already interested in cooking, then you will most likely be quite charmed and surprised by what awaits at Kappabashi.
The closest stations are Tawaramachi or Inaricho, both on the Ginza subway line, close to Ueno station. Stores in Kappabashi don’t stay open late, and many are not open on Sundays so the time to go is before 4pm on a weekday.