Tsukiji Fish Market and Namiyoke Inari Shrine

4 April 2015

I am always fascinated by local markets, so my visit to Tokyo must include a visit to its famous fish market. Tsukiji Fish Market is located about 15 to 20 minutes’ walk from the APA GInza Kobashi hotel. It was drizzling slightly as we made our way there under a shared umbrella, hungry and looking forward to some sushi breakfast.

We had a map of the market showing us where are the seafood food stalls were located and the inner market where the actual fish auctions and seafood selling takes place. We arrived at the Outer Market first. There were many small stalls and restaurants serving fresh seafood in the outer market. Some had long lines but we were not prepared to queue, so we settled into a random restaurant and ordered our breakfast. Like most restaurants here, it is small and counter-seat only.

One of the many sushi and sashimi restaurant at the Tsukiji Fish Market.

Sushi set at the Tsukiji Fish Market.  

There is a small information centre located within a long building. There were more stalls selling fresh seafood in there, including one that was irresistible.

Grilled scallops!

Grilled scallops with two different toppings. Queue, buy, stand and eat at the counter before moving on.

After touring the Outer Market, we followed our map towards the Inner Market, passing by the Namiyoke Inari Shrine. We would visit this shrine later, on the way back as we were eager to see what is in the Inner Market.

Outside of the Namiyoke Inari Shrine, on way to the Inner Fish Market.

Electric powered fish carts that can easily spin around 360 degrees zooming up and down the alleys. Visitors streaming towards the Inner Market on the right.

Close-up of one of the carts, laden with boxes.

Most of the stalls in the inner market were already closed by this time in the morning.

At the Tsukiji Inner Market.

Crabs for sale at Tsukiji Inner Market.

This wooden carts was used to transport the large tuna.

Shellfish stall in the inner market.

We stood and watched a large tuna being cleaned, cut and sliced into large chunks by a man holding a long sword and helped by his assistant. 

Cutting off the head.

Slicing and getting the fillet.

Onto the table and cutting into large chunks.

After seeing enough of the inner market, we dropped by the Namiyoke Inari Shrine. “Namiyoke” means protection from the waves. Since the Edo period, the worshippers came to the shrine to pray for safe voyage, good luck and averting misfortune. Two prized lion heads (rest being lost in an earthquake) are enshrined here and these were occasionally used in the Tsukiji Shishi Matsuri festival (Lion Festival).

Worshipper ringing bells using the ropes.

One of the treasured lion heads.

Another treasured lion head in the Namiyoke Inari Shrine.

After the morning visit to Tsukiji Market, we went to Ginza. As this was a Saturday, the central Chuo Dori street was closed to automobile traffic and became a large pedestrian zone. The road closure took place from 12:00 to 17:00.

Chuo Dori in Ginza.

Akihabara was our next stop after Ginza. Akihabara is an interesting place with much to see, not to mention a 7-storey building for “naughty” people.

Akihabara - famous for its many electronics shops.

Signboard advertising the maids’ cafe where waitresses dress up and act like maids or anime characters.

We ended the day with dinner at Tokyo Station’s Ramen Street. It features Ramen stores operated by eight renowned names in Tokyo ramen.

Most famous of them all is Rokurinsha Tokyo, and there’s always a line. This restaurant is popular for its tsukemen, or dipping noodles.

We queued almost half an hour for this.

After queuing for almost half an hour, it made sense to go for the best…   "special recommendation" of Tokusei Tsukemen (1,080 yen) which came with the addition of shredded pork.

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Wandering around Shibuya, Harajuku, Omotesando and Chidorigafuchi Park at night

5 April 2015 

One of the top 10 things to do in Tokyo is to go to Shibuya and experience walking across the famous intersection outside the Shibuya Station. When the lights turn red at this busy junction, they all turn red at the same time in every direction. Traffic stops completely and pedestrians surge into the intersection from all sides, including us. We wanted to go get a coffee at the Starbucks overlooking the junction but it was just too packed.

As a dog lover, I was looking forward to seeing the Hachiko statue at the entrance of the Shibuya Station too. The statue was easy to find as there were many signs pointing to it and it was also a popular meeting place in this crowded place.

Hachiko statue outside the Shibuya Station.

There are many stories of dogs who were so loyal to their owners that they stand guard over their graves or stand waiting for the owners to return. This sculpture honours such a dog named Hachiko. According to the famous story, the dog waited for his master every day in front of Shibuya Station, and continued to do so for years even after his master had passed away. I find the sculpture not as detailed and nice as the one I saw at Edinburgh Scotland, named Greyfriars Bobby. But the story of the dog’s loyalty to its owner is quite similar and just as inspiring.

Shibuya is place for shoppers and with the light rain coming down, it made sense to go indoors into some of the malls. Plenty to choose from and wander around. These included Shibuya 109 (mainly women clothes) and Shibuya 109 Mens just for men.

After the rain stopped, we walked around Center Gai. There are plenty of restaurants at Center Gai and we had a craving for something soupy. So we had ramen and gyoza for lunch.

Ramen for about 700 Yen. Look at the mouth-watering soup stock! 

The ramen tasted better than the famous one at Tokyo Station but that’s because I liked the soup better.

There’s a large, 8-storey Tokyo Hands store in this area and worth a visit. Tokyu Hands has everything from do-it-yourself, interior, hobby, crafts, outdoors, travel goods, stationery and more. 

As we headed northwards from Shibuya, we soon found ourselves in Harajuku. On most Sunday, Harajuku would be teeming with teens engaging in cosplay. But not today it seems. Maybe because of the rain in the morning, we did not see many cosplay teens. However, Takeshita Dori (Takeshita Street) was packed.

Entrance to Takeshita Street.

Packed, narrow Takeshita Street on a Sunday.

The 400 meter long street is lined by shops, boutiques, cafes and fast food outlets targeting Tokyo's teenagers. We went into Daiso Harajuku, a 100 Yen Shop to take a look and bought some stuff.

A must try is the crepes with ice cream that seems to be a speciality here as there were quite a few stalls selling these, with queues on all of these stalls.

Crepes with ice cream and fruits that seems to be a speciality here. Many favours to choose from.

View of the packed Takeshita Street from outside a cosplay costume shop.

From the end of Takeshita Street, we walked into Omotesando Hills. Omotesando is a broad, tree lined avenue that reminds me on Champs-Elysees in Paris. By that time, our legs were feeling the kilo-meters walked today and shopping was no longer fun anymore.

My research for a place to eat before our trip suggested that one of the best restaurants serving Tonkatsu in Tokyo is the Maisen restaurant located at 4 Chome-8-5 Jingumae, Shibuya, Tokyo 150-0001, Japan. It is a few hundred meters off the main Omotesando avenue, on a small street, but easy to find using google map.

We came relatively early (5.30 PM) for dinner hence there was not too much of a queue. After a short wait (queue) on a row of seats, we were led into a large room with tall ceilings. This is a former World War II public bathhouse!

We wanted to order their specially reared and locally sourced pork dish but were told it was sold out. Apparently there were only limited numbers for sale each day and most were sold out by lunch. So we went for the normal kurobuta pork cutlet set instead. And some Asahi beer to go with the meat.

One of the best restaurant serving Tonkatsu in Tokyo is the Maisen restaurant.

I am not a fan of Tonkatsu but this meal was excellent, and maybe a bit pricey. Recharged after dinner, we strolled along Omotesando Hills at night and took some pictures.

Omotesando at night.

One of my favourite shots that night from my smartphone camera.

As it was still early in the night and with legs recharged after dinner, we decided to head to Chidorigafuchi Park again to see the cherry blossoms. A short subway ride from the Omotesando Station to the Kudanshita Station later, we were once again at the Chidorigafuchi Park. This time, much of the blossoms had fallen over the last few days and the blooms were not as impressive as the first visit.

Less people at the park outside Yasukuni Shrine

Half of the petals had fallen. Remaining flowers still nice but not as impressive.

Nevertheless, the nights scenes were still beautiful and I kicked myself again for not bringing my Nikon DSLR for this trip.

These were night shots taken using my Samsung Galaxy Note4.

Still a good romantic night out for locals and tourists.

Fallen petals on the moat surrounding the Imperial Palace.

Large tangerines with cherry blossoms at the back

Nice view on the way back to the Kudanshita Station.

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Eating the famous Matsuzaka Beef at Steakhouse Satou

6 April 2015

After savouring the famous Kobe beef at a restaurant in Tokyo’s Ginza area, we planned to make a trip to a suburb in Tokyo where there is a famous steakhouse serving the equally good, if not better, Matsuzaka beef. Matsuzaka Beef comes from the Matsuzaka region, and is consider the top brand of beef in Japan, alongside Kobe beef.

The steakhouse, called Beef Satou, is located in Kichijoji. From Shinjuku Station, we took the westbound JR Chuo Line train heading towards Takao for about 30 minutes. Kichijoji is the 8th station from Shinjuku. There is a covered shopping area on the North exit of the station and the restaurant is located on the 2nd floor, on top of a butcher shop which seems popular too as there was a queue formed buying takeaway stuff from the shop. There was a separate queue for the restaurant.

We arrived at 12 noon and there was already a queue outside for the restaurant. The line of people included both locals and tourists, including a couple with a small child in front of us. We looked at the menu while queuing and made up our mind easily on what to eat later. Although there were cheaper lunch sets, we told ourselves that we must try the best beef in Japan. 

Menu at Steakhouse Satou in English.

Once we made it past the main door, we found ourselves queuing on the steep and narrow stairway leading up to the restaurant. The stairway is about 3 feet wide and we stood on one side while allowing barely enough space for those who had finished their meal to exit on the other side. When we reached the top of the stairway, we were asked for our orders. We ordered the 200g Sirloin Steak (Chef Recommendations) for 10,000 Yen each. After receiving our orders, the staff went below to fetch our steak.

The staff showed us the Matsuzaka beef that we ordered. The guy in front of us suddenly told the staff he wants to change his order. He changed his order from the lunch set to the Chef Recommendation once he saw the quality of the beef. Irresistible for him too!

The restaurant only has about 12 small tables and we were fortunate to get seats in front of the chef and hence we got to see and take photos of the cooking.

Salad as appetisers while the beef is being cooked.

Seasoning the beef with salt and pepper just before dicing them. 

Grilling on the metal plate (teppanyaki style). Note the queuing customers at the top of narrow stairway and taking photos while waiting for the next available table.

A couple of minutes each side for our medium rare beef.

Covering the beef with the metal cover for a minute or so.

Final product – Medium Rare A5 Grade Matsuzaka Beef steak with fried bean sprouts, mushrooms, sliced carrots and garlic.  So soft and tender that we could eat it with chop sticks and not a fork and knife.

This picture shows the marbling on the diced beef. “Melts in your mouth” tenderness and juiciness.

I must confess that this was even better than the Kobe Beef I had a few days ago in Ginza. If I ever visit Tokyo again, I would try to eat this grade of beef again.

Address:

Steakhouse Satou
1-1-8 Kichijoji-Honcho,
Musashino-shi,
Tokyo.

Lunch: 11:00 am - 03:00 pm; Dinner: 05:00 pm - 09:00 pm. 

Try to arrive before opening time to avoid long queue.

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Inokashira Park in Kichijoji

6 April 2015

Inokashira Park? Kichijoji?

Most visitors to Tokyo would not have heard of the park or Kichikoji.

We came all the way to Kichijoji to eat the famous Matsuzaka Beef in the restaurant called Beef Satou. After lunch we spent some time exploring this little suburb of Tokyo and stumbled upon the Inokashira Park. Great place to be during the Sakura season as this park has loads of beautiful cherry trees by the lake.

The Beef Satou restaurant is located in a covered shopping area by the Kichijoji Station where there are shops catering mostly to locals. However, we spotted a kimono shop with western looking mannequins.

Kimono shop with western looking mannequins

After we got tired of shopping (or rather window shopping), we wandered south of the train station and found ourselves in Inokashira Park where there were cherry trees with sakuras in bloom.  There were quite a lot of folks rowing boats on the lake and admiring the cherry blossoms from the boats. This is the place to be if you are the romantic type. The park also has a mini zoo.

For me, the best thing after an excellent meal was to sit on a park bench, under the slight shade of the cherry trees, enjoy the cool air, sunshine, relax and do some people watching.

Guy with a guitar.

This “swan” seems to be stuck.

Hanami parties at the park.

Fallen petals of the cherry blossoms. In a few more days and all the flowers would have fallen.

I could have sat there and chill till dinner time and then go eat more Matsuzaka Beef but the ‘'tourist” in me told me that I should to go back to Shinjuku as there are still places to see. We decided to head back to Tokyo to see the Meiji Shrine which is located in the Yoyogi Park before the sky gets dark.

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