Experts on Antenna Shops: "Tottori-Okayama Shinbashikan" Edition - The best of both prefectures

In the second half of the article, we will select "recommended items to buy" within a budget of 3,000 yen, and tell you about the appeal of each food item along with a taste test report. By the end of the article, you will not only be more knowledgeable about antenna shops, but you will also have a deeper love for the local area.

Why are the two prefectures jointly managing the facility?

This time we visited "Tottori Okayama Shinbashikan," which opened in 2014. It is a rare antenna shop jointly operated by the two prefectures. The collaboration began when Okayama Prefecture was looking for a place to open an antenna shop in Tokyo, and the renovation of "Food Kingdom Tottori Plaza," which had been operating in Shinbashi until then, coincided.

Another reason is that the climates of Tottori in the Sanin region and Okayama in the Seto Inland Sea are different, so there is no overlap in the seasonal fruit or specialty seafood. As the two prefectures are adjacent to each other from north to south, they often cooperate in tourism and disaster prevention, and it can be seen that the two prefectures, which have a deep friendship, help and complement each other.

The concept of the shop is "Momotenashi" (hospitality), which is a play on the word "omotenashi" (hospitality) and the fruit that represents both prefectures, Okayama's "momo" (peach) and Tottori's "nashi" (pear). In addition to these fruits, a wide variety of food and crafts are lined up in the shop.

The location is about a one-minute walk from the Ginza exit of JR Shinbashi Station. The building is directly connected to Exit 3 of the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, making it very convenient to access. The store is on two floors, with the first floor being a shop and the second floor being a restaurant and a corner for tourism, immigration, and work. Let's start by introducing the shop.

Both are rich in fruits and milk, and offer a wide variety of sweets.

More than half of the items are food, and as you'd expect from "Momotenashi", there are plenty of fruit-based sweets. The most popular sweet is Okayama's "Hiruzen Chocolat", a chocolate bar made with dried fruit from the Seto Inland Sea, and while supplies last, it will be gone when it runs out. Sales for the next season will begin around November 2021.

Another popular sweet that rivals "Hiruzen Chocolat" is the "Premium Fruit Collagen Jelly" series. This also has an impressive stylish design and is displayed on its own shelf.

Traditional sweets are mainly Japanese sweets using sweet bean paste. For example, Tottori has "Inaba no Shirousagi" (White Rabbit of Inaba), and Okayama has "Ote Manju", one of the three major manju in Japan. In Tottori, "yakikanibei" (grilled crab crackers) made with Matsuba crab caught in the Sea of Japan are also a standard souvenir, and these sweets are consistently selling well.

Aside from fruit, the two prefectures are also famous for their dairy products. Tottori's representative brand is White Rose Milk, which is popular throughout the region, while Okayama's is Jersey milk from a farm in Hiruzen. Dairy products from both prefectures are on display at the museum.

In one corner of the store, they sell soft serve ice cream made with these milks. Tottori's White Rose Milk is made from the typical Holstein cow's milk, and is characterized by a refreshing and elegant taste. Okayama's milk has a rich flavor unique to Jersey cow's milk. The writer tried the latter, and enjoyed the rich, granular texture of the milk fat on the tongue, making it a full-bodied and delicious treat.

Both prefectures have plenty of alcohol and snacks

Both prefectures are also notable for their sake. Not only is the water of high quality, but Tottori is the only place that produces the legendary sake rice "Gouriki," and sake made with this variety is very popular. Okayama, on the other hand, is also the birthplace of the sake-making rice variety "Omachi," which is also known as the legendary sake rice because it is difficult to cultivate, and is such a sake-producing region that more than 90% of the "Omachi" rice grown in Japan is produced in Okayama.

Both prefectures carry just under 100 brands of sake, and when it comes to sake produced in the prefecture, they have one of the best lineups in Tokyo. As for alcohol, there is of course a wide selection of fruit liqueurs and sours made with local fruits, and famous craft beers include "Daisen G Beer" in Tottori and "Doppo Beer" in Okayama.

Let's also introduce some other foods. Tottori is the number one producer of shallots in Japan, and this store has a wide variety of unique pickled rakkyo, starting with the classic sweet and sour type, as well as wine and honey lemon flavors.

Tottori also has its own unique fish paste culture, with "Tofu Chikuwa" being a specialty. This is a chikuwa made by mixing 30 parts fish paste and 70 parts tofu, and is chewy and rich in protein. There are over 15 types of fish paste, 8 of which are "Tofu Chikuwa", so there is plenty of fun to choose from.

"Mamakari" is a famous seafood of Okayama. It is a local dish of Okayama made with a small fish called "Sappa" of the herring family, and the museum sells a variety of "Mamakari", including grilled and dried types, pickled types, ajillo types, and sweet and soy-based types. The most popular type is the refrigerated pickled type that can be used as sashimi or sushi toppings. The name comes from the fact that it is so delicious that you go back to borrow mama (rice). Please give it a try.

The area also boasts distinctive fashion and everyday items.

The back of the store is an area for crafts, and the highlight of that corner is denim from Okayama. Okayama denim is famous for being made in Kojima, but the manufacturer the store is pushing the most is Uchida Sewing, based in Tsuyama. This is a brand that is only available locally or at events, and is not sold in apparel shops. The only store in Tokyo where you can touch the products directly is the Tottori Okayama Shinbashikan. Other brands of denim on display include Betty Smith, Denim Closet, and Edge of Line.

Okayama, where the textile and sewing industries are thriving, is also a major producer of tatami edging, boasting over 80% of the domestic market share. Tatami edging is a piece of cloth attached to the corners of tatami mats to reinforce them and enhance their decorativeness. The store has a dedicated corner for tatami edging, and in fact, it is these tatami edgings that are their best-selling item. This is because they come in a wide variety of colors and are reasonably priced. Customers who do handicrafts apparently buy them as material for handmade accessories.

Kurashiki in Okayama is said to be the birthplace of masking tape, and there are several kinds of masking tape available here, including designs featuring local colors, including Tottori. Like the tatami borders, it is popular for its vivid colors and reasonable price.

Tottori crafts include a wide variety of pottery such as Ushinoto ware and Inkyuzan ware. These are lined up at the back of the store alongside Okayama pottery, Bizen ware.

There is also a travel consultation desk on the second floor.

Next, we head to the second floor. The restaurant is called "Bistro Cafe Momotenashiya" and is popular for its local delicacies from both Tottori and Okayama, as well as sweets made with fruit. You can also compare the delicious foods from both prefectures by ordering takeout.

There is also a tourist information corner on the second floor, which will provide you with information based on your plans, from familiar tourist spots such as the Tottori Sand Dunes, Mt. Daisen, Okayama Korakuen, and Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter, to hidden gems, hot springs, accommodation, and local gourmet food.

There is also a consultation corner for employment and relocation, jointly operated by the Tottori Prefectural Hello Work and the Okayama Employment and Relocation Support Center. Here, they provide information on the local area, employment support systems, and help with job referrals to local companies.

A selection of recommended items that can be purchased for a total of 3,000 yen!

The items to be selected for a total of 3,000 yen or less are mainly food items and come from a variety of genres. We have picked 7 items.

First, let me introduce some of Tottori's bests. First up is the aforementioned "Tofu Chikuwa." Among them, I chose the "Tofu Chikuwa" from Karoya Shoten, which is said to be particularly famous. "Tofu Chikuwa" comes in two varieties, "steamed" and "grilled," with the former being the more popular. I tried the steamed version.

For first-timers, it's recommended to enjoy it as is. On top of that, it's also delicious to add spring onions and ginger, season with soy sauce, or add wasabi like regular tofu. When you eat it, it's plump and chewy, unlike regular chikuwa. The seasoning is gentle and the sweetness is modest. Instead, you can taste the umami of seafood and tofu, and I think it would go well with delicate alcohol, such as dry sake.

Next up is a coffee drink made with Tottori's famous White Rose milk. Its unique feature is that it uses a generous amount of raw milk (70%), but does not use caramel or flavorings, instead making the most of the natural texture of the milk and coffee. When I tried it, it certainly had a rich milky flavor, but it wasn't too sweet and had a clean, refined taste. I thought it would be great to drink it after a bath.

The remaining five products are from Okayama. Continuing with the milk from Tottori, we will start with a drinkable yogurt made from Jersey milk from Hiruzen. This product's distinctive feature is its natural flavor, fermented only with rich milk and lactic acid bacteria. The texture is not too thick, but the flavor is deep and lingering. The sweetness and sourness are mild, allowing you to experience the natural richness of yogurt.

Next up is the highly popular "Hiruzen Chocolat" with its exquisite combination of strawberry, matcha and walnut flavor. When you open it, you'll see a vibrant chocolate bar just like in the packaging, along with a rich chocolate aroma. This is sure to make a great gift.

The bitterness of matcha is combined with chocolate for a mild, slightly sweet taste. It melts in your mouth silky smooth, with the concentrated sweet and sour taste of dried strawberries and the fragrant walnuts adding a nice accent. It's a luxurious treat that allows you to fully enjoy the layers of each ingredient, so it's a masterpiece you'll want to savor slowly with some tea or coffee.

The king of fruits in Okayama is, of course, the white peach. Every year from early July to late August, white peaches are lined up at antenna shops, with the high-end brand "Shimizu Hakuto" being particularly representative. Different varieties of fresh white peaches are harvested every two weeks, and "Shimizu Hakuto" are only available in stores for about two weeks in the summer. This time, we've picked out bottled peaches in syrup that can be enjoyed all year round. When you try it, you'll find it's truly elegant, with a delicate texture, elegant fragrance, and refreshing taste. It's a refined fruit compote that isn't too sweet or sour.

Okayama is famous for its noodle dishes such as "Hiruzen Yakisoba," but the soul food of the prefecture's residents is the "Crude Spaghetti-style Noodles" made by Okayama Instant Noodles Co., Ltd. It contains thick noodles similar to the "soft noodles" commonly found in school lunches, a powdered sauce called "tomato roux," and is cooked in a frying pan without boiling.

The texture is harder than soft noodles, but just the right amount of chewy. The taste of "Tomato Lou" is milder, with less sweetness and sourness than ketchup. The exquisite balance of flavor, neither too strong nor too thin, is likely what supports its enduring popularity. It remains delicious even after time has passed, and is loved by Okinawan residents as a bento staple. It can be stored at room temperature, can be used in a variety of ways, is voluminous, and is reasonably priced, making it a dish with many good points.

Finally, we will introduce masking tape that originated in Kurashiki, Okayama. Among the several designs available, we selected a tape with an illustration of Momotaro.

The vivid graphics with pink as the main color and the cute characters from the Momotaro legend are impressive. It is also recommended as a gift for women and children.

Manager Miyata Tomohiko answered our questions during the interview. He said, "The greatest attraction of our store is that you can enjoy two different flavors in one place. Just by looking at the products, you should be able to understand the characteristics and appeal of each one. During the season, we have the best fruits of the season on display, so we would like people from the area, as well as fruit lovers, to come and visit."

As an antenna shop for the two prefectures, there are a wide variety of brochures. In the tourist corner on the second floor, they are happy to help with travel plans that span both prefectures. Why not start by doing some preliminary research at the store and have some fun?

Tottori Okayama Shinbashi Hall

Text and photos: Hideaki Nakayama