These superb quality towels has been leading the towel industry for over 120 years in Japan. The softness and ability to absorb water well has put its name in the books around the world and has also appeared in many exhibitions. The towels are produced in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture where they use the natural soft water nearby which is gentle to the yarn of the towel. Each towel goes through a 5 second test where if after 5 seconds, the towel sinks, then it passes.

Where to buy: 2F 203, 5-3-10, Minami-aoyama, minato-ku, Tokyo

〒 107-0062

Tel: ＋81-3-6427-2941

Website: https://www.imabaritowel.jp/en

Hours: Closed every 2nd Tuesday of the month, 11:00am - 7:30pm

Video Credits: Youtube

From couple hundred yen (couple dollars) chopsticks to tens of thousands of yen (couple hundred dollars) chopsticks, Hashicho has a wide variety of chopsticks to choose from. They also range in tiny sizes made for children and large fat sticks for the hands of a sumo wrestler. Aside from chopsticks, they also sell unique chopstick stands, rice bowls and other lacquer ware!

Photo credit: Hashicho website

Where to buy: Nihonbashi-Muromachi 1-5-5 Chuo-Ku Tokyo Coredo-Muromachi 3, 2F

〒103-0022

Tel: 03-3277-6033

Website: https://www.imabaritowel.jp/en

Hours: 10:00am - 9:00pm

Kiya knives has been serving Tokyo for over 200 years establishing in 1792. They have combined tradition with modern technology to make some of the best knives for cooking. They have over hundreds of knives which include knives for cutting meat, fish, vegetables, boning, frozen foods, slicing, carving and a whole lot more. Not only do their ways cover their knife products but their kitchen tools and other modern products as well. Check out their store in Nihonbashi.

Photo credit: Mitsui Shopping Park

Where to buy: Nihonbashi-Muromachi 2-2-1 Chuo-Ku Tokyo Coredo-Muromachi. 1F

〒103-0022

Tel: 03-3241-0110

Website: http://www.kiya-hamono.co.jp/english/index.html

Hours: Open everyday, 10:00am - 8:00pm

A beloved snack in Japan, the fruits sandwich consists of a milky white bread with the ears cut off with whip cream and your choice of fruit (typically strawberries) in between for a sweet-delicious sandwich.

They are sold anywhere in Japan, ranging from cheap convenience store sandwiches to high end, high quality sandwiches costing over 1500 Yen (about 14 USD). We also visit a fruits sandwich shop at Tokyo Station on our Tokyo food tour.

If you have a sudden craving for a fruits sandwich, check out the recipe below by Just One Cookbook.

Video credit to Just One Cookbook

INGREDIENTS

• 12 strawberries

• 2 kiwis

• 1 navel orange

• 4 slices of shokupan (Japanese milky white bread or any kind of bread of your choice if unavailable)

  Whipped Cream

• 1 cup heavy (whipping) cream 240 ml

• 5 tsp sugar (or ten percent of heavy whipping cream)

• 1 tsp rum (optional)

Procedure

• Remove core of straberries

• Cut off both ends and peel kiwi

• Cut off both ends and peel orange

• Cut off segment wall and separate oranges into each segment

• Pat down fruits with paper towel

  Whipped cream

• Prepare a large bowl of iced water and place a medium bowl inside the larger bowl to keep cool. Make sure the bowl is clean and dry. Add the heavy whipping cream and start whisking on low speed.

• Once bubbly, add sugar and rum (if you are using) and start whisking on medium-high speed.

• The cream will be thicker as you whip.

• When you lift the whisk out of the cream and shows peaks, remove the bowl from the ice bath and switch to a hand whisk. Whisk until you achieve the right consistency. Check the consistency of the whipped cream as you whisk. It should be spreadable but not runny because it goes between the sandwich bread.

• Now spread the whipped cream on both sides of the sandwich bread.

• Only on one side of the sandwich bread, align the fruits. I plan to cut the sandwich diagonally. Think carefully about how you want to show your cross section. I recommend taking a picture of the alignment of the fruits and don’t change the orientation of the sandwich.

• Put the whipped cream to fill in any gap between fruits.

• Put the second slices of sandwich bread over the fruits, facing the whipped cream side down.

• Prepare plastic wrap, large enough to wrap the sandwich tightly from all four sides. 

• Mark the cross section over the plastic wrap with a pen.

• Put the sandwiches between plates and refrigerate for at least one hour (up to overnight). In Japan, putting weight on the sandwich is a pretty standard method prior to cutting in half.

• Open the plastic wrap and cut the sandwich in half diagonally with a clean knife. Keep it closed (Don’t open the sandwich to show cross section yet). Clean the knife with a hot wet towel before each cut.

• Cut off all the ears.

• Then serve and enjoy!

Photo credit: Just One Cookbook

Recipe and procedure credits to Just One Cookbook

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Gold leaf has been a popular decoration for lacquerware since the 16th century but lately, it has been popular in cosmetic products as the gold leaf is said to be good for the skin. About 99 percent of all gold leaf products are made in Kanazawa Prefecture of Japan. One of the most popular brands is Touch Of Gold by Hakuza. Applying these products to the skin is said to raise the surface skin temperature which helps circulate blood and contributes to elasticity of the skin, thus reducing wrinkles and blemishes.

Photo credit: Hakuza website

Where to buy: Nihonbashi-Muromachi 2-2-1 Chuo-Ku Tokyo Coredo-Muromachi. 1F

〒103-0022

Tel: 03-3273-8941

Website: https://www.hakuza.co.jp/shop/nihonbashi/

Hours: Open everyday, 10:00am - 8:00pm

Dashi is an essential component of Japanese cooking that you will find in every single household in Japan. It is a broth made from three main ingredients: Katsuo (bonito), konbu (Japanese kelp), and shiitake. Dashi usually serves as the base for miso soup, soup noodles, Japanese omelettes and many other Japanese dishes. It forms a base for all Japanese cooking! If you are looking to up your Japanese cooking skills, then a bag of dashi from Yagicho is a must buy in Tokyo. They have been around the Nihonbashi area since 1737 and has been family owned since. They sell a variety of dashi, which some are great tasting on their own and others for cooking. They’re friendly English speaking staff can also help with your purchases of dashi or other Japanese cooking products as well. Dashi is usually sold in packs similar to tea bags where you can boil the bag of dashi in water to get your base.

Photo credit: Yagicho website

Where to buy: 1-7-2 Nihonbashi Muromachi Chuo-ku, Tokyo

Tel: 03-3241-1211

Website: https://yagicho-honten.tokyo/?ls=en

Hours: Open everyday (except Jan 1st/2nd), 10:00am - 6:00pm

This traditional box wood comb shop started out in modern day Bunkyo, Tokyo in 1717 and moved to it’s current spot in Asakusa in the early 1900s. Yonoya has passed down their comb making traditions throughout all these generations and have kept the same exact way of making it since they opened up 300 years ago. Originally made only for professional hairdressers to style women and mens hair, they now sell combs to regular people and is said to help improve your scalp and hair health. Get your own, traditionally wooden comb here.

Photo credit: Yonoya website

Where to buy: 〒111-0032 1-37-10 Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo

Tel: 03-3844-1755

Website: http://en.yonoya.com/

Hours: Closed every Wednesday (occasional Thursday), 10:30am-6:00pm

Tokyo Banana has been voted the #1 souvenir to buy these past two years. This creme filled banana cake is one of Tokyo’s specialty. They were also the first company that sold souvenir cakes to put the word Tokyo in their name which contributed to it’s widely successful fame. These are great gifts from Tokyo or just snacks to bring back home! They have shops all over Tokyo including the airport and Tokyo Station.

Photo credit: Tokyo Banana website

Where to buy: Tokyo Station, 〒100-6701 Tokyo, Chiyoda City, Marunouchi, 1 Chome−9−1 Daimaru Tokyo Station, B1.

Haneda Airport/ Narita Airport

Tel: 03-3212-8011 (Tokyo Station)

Website: https://www.tokyobanana.jp/language/en/

Hours: CURRENTLY N/A

Sakai Kokodo has been reproducing some of Japan’s most famous woodblock prints for over a century now. They sit on the Nakamise shopping street that leads up to the famous Sensoji temple in Asakusa and sell some of the finest reproductions. Here you’ll find famous works like Hokusai’s Great Wave and Mt. Fuji prints in all different sizes. They even sell prints as postcards which could be the perfect souvenir to take back from Japan.

Photo credit: Sakai Kokodo website

Where to buy: Sakai Kokodo, 1-20-1 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo

Tel: +81 3-3841-0850

Website: https://www.ukiyoegallery.net/html/english/shop.html

Hours: Mon- Sun, 9:00am - 6:00pm

If you ever want to bring the onsen (hot springs) experience back home, then getting a pack of onsen bath salts from Japan is a must buy. While there many different types in Japan, asking a staff member at a drug store, Don Quijote or Tokyu Hands for “nyu-yoku-zai” can help you with your selection on great bath salts. The Tabi no Yada bath salts is a popular bath salt that mimics hot springs from Japan. Depending on the kind you get, it is said to aid in healing skin, recovery and relieve stress.

Photo credit: Tabi No Yado website

Where to buy: Any drugstores, Don Quijote Stores or Tokyu Hands Stores in Japan

Tel: NA

Website:

Don Qujote: https://www.donki.com/en/

Tokyu Hands: https://www.tokyu-hands.co.jp/en/

Hours: NA