Kappabashi Kitchen Town

What is Kappabashi?

Kappabashi Dougu Street is where Tokyo’s restaurants buy their equipment: knives, pots, tableware, lanterns, signs and the famous plastic food samples. It runs for several blocks between Ueno and Asakusa and is open to everyone, not just the trade.

Which shop should you visit?

If you only go into one, make it Iidaya (飯田屋). I went to Kappabashi to look at tableware, but this cookware shop is the one I’d send a friend to: it stocks hundreds of kinds of kitchen tools, from everyday basics to very specialized gadgets. If you like cooking, you can easily spend an hour there. I came away with a ginger grater and a frying pan.

Iidaya is open 11:00–18:00 every day, closing for about a week over New Year. It is at 2-21-6 Nishi-Asakusa, about 5 minutes from Tsukuba Express Asakusa Station (exit A2) or 7–8 minutes from Tawaramachi Station on the Ginza Line.

What else can you buy?

• Kitchen knives — whole walls of them, with staff who can help you choose.
• Tableware — bowls, plates and chopsticks at trade prices.
• Food samples — the plastic ramen and sushi you see in restaurant windows; some shops sell small ones as souvenirs.

When should you go?

Monday to Saturday. Most shops keep roughly 10:00–17:00, and many close on Sundays and holidays. It is a good rainy-day plan, since you’ll be in and out of shops.

Getting there from Asakusa

Walk west from Senso-ji past Hoppy Street; it takes about 10–15 minutes. Full overview: Asakusa travel guide.