Kappabashi-dori

For an interesting shopping excursion visit the Kappabashi-dori which is Tokyo’s wholesale district for restaurants. It sells all sorts of interesting things including the amazing plastic food which can be seen in most restaurants called sampuru around Tokyo. There is everything you could ever imagine to need in a restaurant from cookers to spatulas, chefs costume to plates and knives.

If you are interested in Japanese pottery there are quiet a few stores which stock factory made pottery which looks identical to the real hand made object but sells for a much more affordable price some as low asy 100 yen a piece. Denkama which is on the corner of Kappabashi-dori and Asakusa-dori is a great place to buy your pottery.

The area is a great place to pick up that interesting souvenir for your friends back home, how about some chopsticks or even a plastic plate of plastic sushi. How could you resist- the number of choices are almost endless. For those people hunting the city for paper lanterns well Kappabashi-Dori is the place to go but be warned there are so many to choose then range from a few hundred yen up to tens of thousands of yen depending on style and size.

Most of the shops are not open on Sundays so visiting this area is a must during the week. Most stores are open from about 9 am to 5pm.

There are quite a few places to have a stop and experience some great food and drink. The area has plenty of cafe’s, restaurants, pubs and coffee shops. One hotel well worth a visit for its views from some of its facilities is the Asakusa View Hotel which is just off Kappabashi-Dori on Kokusai Dori towards the Sensoji Temple.

The best station to catch to get to Kappabashi-dori is the Tawaramachi Station on the Ginza line although Asakusa station is not much further. The area is also walking distance from Ueno station although there is nothing much to see along the way.