Sunamachi Ginza: Tokyo's Street-Food Shotengai Walk

Most Tokyo food walks happen in places with a famous temple at the end. Sunamachi Ginza has no temple and no train station, and that's exactly why it's good: a 670-meter shopping street in east Tokyo where locals buy dinner, one croquette and one skewer at a time. Bring cash and an empty stomach.

Why this street

Getting there

There's no station on the doorstep, which keeps the crowds local. You have two easy options:

• Bus: take Toei Bus route 都07 (To-07) from Nishi-Ojima Station (Toei Shinjuku Line) or Toyocho Station (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line) and get off at Kitasuna 2-chome (北砂二丁目). The street is right there. Tap your IC card when you board.
• Walk: about 20 minutes from Nishi-Ojima Station. Fine on a nice day, and you'll be hungry when you arrive.

The route: graze from west to east

Walk the length of the street once without buying anything. Look at what's fresh, see where the locals queue, then turn around and eat your way back. These three shops are good anchors.

Between those, follow your nose: yakitori grills, croquette and tonkatsu counters, tempura shops and Chinese pork-bun stalls are all along the street. Buy one of each thing, not a box.

When to go

• Afternoon is the sweet spot: the delis are fully stocked and the street is at its liveliest.
• The 10th of every month is the street's big bargain day, "baka-ne ichi" (crazy-price market). It's busier and more fun.
• Coming up: the street has announced a Halloween event for Oct 31 and Nov 1 on its official channels. Check them for times.
• Each shop has its own day off, so if you have your heart set on one place, check before you go.

Make it a half day

The To-07 bus also runs toward Monzen-nakacho, so you can easily pair the street with an older side of east Tokyo. Tomioka Hachimangu shrine in Monzen-nakacho and the big lawns of Kiba Park are both good places to walk off the croquettes before the trip home. If you come on the 10th, go early: the bargain-day crowds are part of the fun, but the best deli trays go fast.

Street manners

• Cash only. Bring coins and ¥1,000 notes. Big notes slow everyone down.
• Eat by the shop. The street is narrow and full of shopping bikes. Stand to one side near where you bought it, and take your rubbish with you or ask the shop.
• Ask before photos of people or inside shops. Food on the counter is usually fine.

On a shopping street like this, the shop owner is cooking for the neighbourhood, not for you, and that's the point. Say hello, buy one thing, say thank you. Come back twice and they'll remember you. That's shitamachi hospitality.

— John Nanjo

Keep reading

• Asakusa Backstreet Food Walk: Melon Pan to Okonomiyaki
• A Shitamachi Walk Locals Love: Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi
• More like this: Local Experiences

Sources: GO TOKYO – Sunamachi Ginza Shopping District, Koto City – Sunamachi Ginza, Sunamachi Ginza Shopping Street (official)

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