Yanaka Ginza's food walk gourmet map. Let's take a stroll through the downtown area, which is full of delicious food such as ready-made food and sweets!

*Prices include tax.
*Business hours and menu items may be subject to change.
*Please refrain from eating while walking, and please be mindful of etiquette, such as taking your trash with you when you leave.
*Please let the store staff know when taking photos.

Yanaka Ginza Food Walking Map

A wide variety of salty dishes, from traditional side dishes to more advanced delis

The Yanaka Ginza area, where new and old gourmets come together, has a wide variety of genres, from long-established classics to new and evolved new faces. First, we will introduce salty restaurants that are great for both meals and snacks!

[Fried food] "Niku no Sato" is famous for its juicy minced meat made with Japanese beef.

Located in a corner of the shopping arcade, the famous butcher shop "Niku no Sato" sells prepared foods named after the area. These dishes are called "Yanaka Menchi" (220 yen) and "Yanaka Croquette" (110 yen). There are also a variety of other fried foods on the menu, and these are made in a far-infrared fryer, so the oil is light.

The appeal of both the minced cutlet and the croquette is that they use some Japanese beef in them. When you try the Yanaka Minced Meat, the batter is crispy and the inside is packed with meat. The meat is chewy and juicy, and the mild seasoning lets you directly experience the deliciousness of the meat.

According to the staff, the ingredients are a balanced mix of Japanese Black beef, domestic beef and pork. They use lard for the oil, which brings out the sweetness, and also blend in shirashimeyu oil, which is suitable for deep frying, to keep the ramen from becoming heavy. This makes sense when you try it. It certainly isn't oily, and is just the right lightness to make it great for eating on the go.

This famous fried food once ranked 5th out of 100 items in the "Tokyo Delicious Food Awards," and even now, on busy days, they sell over 500 of them. If you're full, why not buy some as a souvenir?

Sato Meat

[Grilled squid] Yakiya: A unique menu with a variety of textures

Yanaka Ikayaki Yakiya is a specialty flour-based shop located just down the street from one of the famous shopping streets, Yuyake Dandan. It was opened in 2009 by a shop owner who fell in love with Osaka's famous grilled squid. After learning his own recipes and developing menu items through trial and error, it is now a thriving shop where it is not uncommon to see long queues of customers looking for the unique taste.

The most popular specialty is the original masterpiece "Cheese Squid Crackers" (430 yen), which is grilled squid sandwiched between squid crackers. You can enjoy a variety of textures at once, from crispy to fluffy, soft and chewy, and it is both delicious and filling.

The base batter contains a variety of stocks such as bonito, flying fish, dried sardines, Hidaka kelp, and tororo kelp, and the binding agent is mountain yam instead of egg to make it fluffy. There are also many varieties of squid without rice crackers, with the second and third most popular being "Grilled squid with mayonnaise and egg" (380 yen) and "Grilled squid with green onion" (450 yen).

There is also an eat-in space, and beer sets (sets with grilled squid over 380 yen) are discounted, so it's also recommended for a short break.

Yanaka Squid Yakiya

[Rice crackers] The perfect souvenir: Yanaka rice crackers "Yanaka rice crackers"

The next shop we'll introduce is Yanaka Senbei, a long-established shop located on the way from the west exit of Nippori Station to Yanaka Ginza Shopping Arcade. Founded in 1913 (Taisho 2), it is currently run by a fourth-generation couple.

There is a grill in one corner of the store, and depending on the time, you can see them being grilled there. On the day I visited, the timing was good, as they were grilling "shrimp" (90 yen) rice crackers. There is a wide variety, and the standard is the basic "katamaru" (90 yen). The aroma of soy sauce and the flavor of rice combine to create a calming taste.

Other flavors include sesame, red pepper, sugar, granulated sugar, and matcha, all priced at 90 yen per sheet; hard-roasted, which is thicker and richer than hard-round, and nori, all priced at 130 yen per sheet; and peanut, all priced at 150 yen per sheet. There are also bags of stick-shaped okaki, packs of soft senbei, and gift boxes. They have a one-month expiration date, so they make great souvenirs.

Yanaka rice crackers

[Deli] For meals or snacks. Colorful, innovative canelés from "Papan"

A non-sweet, prepared canelé. Yanaka Ginza Canelé Papan is a shop that specializes in deli canelés. This canelé specialty store of Wine Shokudo Papan, which operates bistros in Yushima, Hatchobori, and other locations, will open in September 2022 (pre-opening in July). It is located at the top of the stairs of Yuyake Dandan.

The base ingredients are carefully selected from "Sakawa no Jinyuru" milk from Kochi, "Dolce" wheat from Hokkaido, and "Tamura no Tamago" eggs from Tokushima. The dough makes use of the unique richness and sweetness of the ingredients to create a fluffy and chewy steamed bread-like texture deli canelé, as well as the familiar crispy and chewy traditional canelé.

There are six seasonal varieties of deli cannelés. They are characterized by their vibrant colors that are reminiscent of the ingredients they are made with. For example, the green "Pistache" (280 yen) is a combination of pistachio flavor, sour cranberry flavor, and rich cheese flavor. The orange "Saussis" (280 yen) is a delicious treat that combines juicy sausage with the flavors of potatoes and onions.

The stylish interior also features an eat-in space, making it a great place to enjoy pairings with wine.

Yanaka Ginza Canelé Papan

Don't miss the sweet shops, perfect for a short break or as souvenirs.

There is also a wide selection of sweets, which are indispensable when eating on a stroll. We have picked out some desserts and shops that are perfect for a snack break during your stroll, including some that are unique to Yanaka Ginza.

[Donuts] Shippoya, a Western-style confectionery shop with motifs of popular characters from Yanaka Ginza

Yanaka Ginza is known as an area with a lot of cats. The shopping street is dotted with signs and objects related to cats, and Yanaka Shippoya, which opened in 2010, is a specialty store that sells stick-shaped baked doughnuts with a cat tail motif.

The shop is particular about the ingredients used. They use "Ayahikari" flour from Mie, sugar beet sugar from Hokkaido, and cane sugar from Amami, giving the donuts a gentle and simple taste. They have a wide variety of donuts, with prices starting from 120 yen. The lineup includes 11 standard varieties, plus seasonal limited editions.

From those, we chose the most popular and second most popular, "Tora" (150 yen) and "Chibo" (160 yen). The former is accented with white chocolate chips in a cocoa dough. The latter is irresistible with the aroma of sesame and the subtle richness and saltiness of cream cheese. Both have a moist and fluffy texture with a moderate sweetness, and since they are not fried, they are not heavy.

It's apparently delicious warmed in the toaster or chilled in the refrigerator, so why not try it at home?

Yanaka Shippo

[Taiwanese cuisine] "Kogetsuan" where you can enjoy local food and tea

Taiwanese Tea Cafe Kogetsun Yanaka Ginza Branch is an exotic shop that opened in the shopping district in September 2022. The store imports and sells tea leaves directly from Taiwan, so the ingredients and brewing methods are authentic. The food and sweets also taste authentic, and you can enjoy a variety of local menus.

I ordered "Handmade Douhua" (800 yen / regular 180g). It is a sweet treat that has been popular in Taiwan and China for a long time, made of smooth tofu made from soy milk and topped with sweet syrup. You can choose from brown sugar-based or ginger syrup, and you can choose three toppings from 11 types. This time, I ordered the popular tapioca, potato balls, and red beans.

The taste is a perfect blend of fluffy, silky tofu and the mellow sweetness of the syrup, with the chewy and crumbly toppings adding an extra touch. Also, on the second floor of the store, there is a sister store called "Taiwan Tea Art Museum Kogetsun" that sells miscellaneous goods imported directly from Taiwan, so don't miss it.

Taiwanese Tea Cafe Kogetsun Yanaka Ginza Branch

[Ice cream] "Guru Guru Gelato" - a rich and refined flavor delivered from a farm in Hokkaido

Guru Gelato, run by an owner from Kushiro, Hokkaido, Japan's largest milk producing region, offers fresh, delicious gelato delivered frozen from a local farm. Following its first store in front of Nishi-Nippori Station, the Yanaka Ginza store opened in 2021.

The price of gelato is 450 yen for a single serving and 600 yen for a double serving (pistachio is an additional 50 yen). There are about 20 flavors in total, with 6 flavors being sold at the store, including seasonal limited editions. Most of the ingredients are from Hokkaido. The most popular is "Milk," which is a blissful taste with the rich, refined sweetness of Hokkaido milk and its airy texture.

In addition, the seasonal "Melon" with its rich fruit flavor and the fragrant and rich "Sesame" were also delicious. The shop also recommends the organic coffee and organic chai made by the barista. At the back of the first floor is the "Itoame General Store", which has a selection of works by domestic and international artists, and the second floor is an eat-in space, so please take your time.

Guruguru Gelato Yanaka Ginza store

Enjoy a blissful drink after a refreshing stroll or stroll

Grab a quick drink to refresh yourself during your stroll, or have a quick toast on your way home. Finally, we will introduce some standing bars that will make your relaxing time even more special.

[Standing bar] Echigoya Sake Shop: Enjoy the best draft beer at a conscientious, long-established bar that allows you to bring your own beer

Founded in 1904 (Meiji 37), Echigoya Sake Shop is a long-established liquor store in the shopping arcade that also operates a standing bar where you can enjoy alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks at bargain prices.

One of the attractions is that you can bring your own snacks. For example, you can pair "Yanaka Menchi" from Nikuno Sato with draft beer (from 400 yen), or rice crackers from Yanaka Senbei with sake (from 500 yen), creating the perfect drink combination.

We recommend unpasteurized sake, which locks in the flavor. The fresh aroma and flavor of sake freshly pressed at the brewery is something you can only get at a liquor store, and it's great to be able to enjoy 200ml bottles (more than one full cup) at a bargain price. Don't miss out on the seasonal limited editions, such as hiyaoroshi in the fall, and new sake and nigori sake in the winter. However, drinking too much is a no-no.

Echigoya Liquor Store

The unique restaurants introduced above are all located in the well-known "Yanesen" area, which has a nostalgic atmosphere that will soothe you. We hope you will use this list of restaurants to help you have a meaningful trip to Nezu and Sendagi.

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