Tokyo off the Map

Chie Araki, 34-year-old former motorcycle designer, tips us off to the unmarked restaurants and bonsai bars of Tokyo’s underground.

Brief bio, occupation: I used to work as a motorcycle designer, but now I’m a brand consultant for Creative Project, Inc. We do brand development and consulting, strategy development and advertising, product licensing, music and visual content development, art directing, desktop operations, magazine/book editing and development, planning and developing websites and internet media, planning of mobile content, and a few other things.

Length of time in Tokyo: Twelve years.

Eat & Drink

Favorite high-end restaurant:

FAVELA, MR Building, 7th Floor, 3-2-2 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku.
Enjoy a nice view of Tokyo and tasty food at this local favorite for Brazilian dining.

Best bar:

Bonsai-ya, Daikanyama-Takara Building 3, 4th Floor, 2-8-9 Ebisu-Nishi, Shibuya-ku.
The title translates to “Bonsai Bar,” so yes, it’s a combination bar and bonsai shop. Have some drinks, browse and buy bonsai. During the daytime you can take lessons on how to care for bonsai (though you need to make an appointment).

Antique, Sato Estate Building 3, 4th Floor, 2-5 Sarugaku-cho, Shibuya-ku.
If you want a quiet atmosphere and great drinks, Antique is a fantastic, secret spot. There’s no signboard and it’s quite difficult to find. The bar features a long table with six Barcelona Chairs, and there’s a “special room” where you can have secret meetings or small parties if you reserve it.

Read

Best bookstore:

Aoyoma Book Center, Cosmos Aoyama Garden Floor, 5-53-67 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku.

Shop

Best boutique:

I can’t pick one...because I can never remember where I bought my clothing! If you come to Tokyo, you’ll have to tell me your favorite type of clothing, and I can tell you where to go.

Sightsee

Favorite art space/gallery/museum:

Calm & Punk Gallery, 1st Floor Asai Building, 1-15-15 Nishiazabu, Minato-ku.
Calm & Punk is a presentation space as well as a meeting-point for artists and technicians. You can find artists that are hot in Japan at this gallery, which is backed by Gas As Interface Co., Ltd, a company that does product and business development in collaboration with creative artists in Japan and overseas.

Best touristy thing to do:

Yakata-Bune Funasei, 1-16-8 Kita-shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku.
This is a Japanese old-fashioned houseboat that operates year-round. You can eat tempura and enjoy cruising Tokyo Bay with drinks!

Best place to people-watch:

There are different places for different types of people:
SUGAMO (JR Yamate-line Sugamo station) Jizou-street
Watch old people with bounce and vigor. This street is the most fashionable among elderly people.

HARAJUKU (Takeshita Street)
To watch “characteristic fashion style” people—Gothic, Lolita, Punk, Vintage, etc. There aren’t really any cool shops on this street, but it’s great for people-watching while eating something sweet from one of the snack stands.

SHIBUYA (in front of 109 department store)
This is the best place to watch young, typically Shibuya-style people. The girls are tanned with dyed hair, skinny, sexy-style, and their eyes are fringed with black eye-shadow or even felt-tipped pen ink. The boys are tanned with dyed hair, skinny, sexy-style… actually they’re the same as the girls, except for the make-up.

DAIKANYAMA (Toukyu-Toyoko-line Daikanyama Station)
There are a lot of small, cool clothing shops around DAIKANYAMA station.
Here you can watch fashionable people—the style is an eclectic mix of trendy and vintage, cheap-but-cool and high-end brands.

GINZA (GINZA 4-choume crossing/GINZA 4-choume Station, Metro Ginza line)
Ginza has been the traditional high-end place for adult people, but now a lot of new, fashionable department stores for young people have opened here. But it’s different from youth-oriented Shibuya—the Ginza style is more conservative. In Shibuya you can pick up outfits your girlfriend/boyfriend would like; in Ginza you can pick up outfits your girlfriend/boyfriend would like, and your parents would like it too.

Only local does or knows about:

In Tokyo, picking up buzz from local friends is important. Some of the hottest bars and restaurants with the tastiest food (see Antique, above) have no signboard, are hidden from the main street and are not listed in any magazine. But I’ll give you some hints: nowadays, we’re often finding spots in Mishuku, Shinsen, and Ebisu.

The must-see thing in your city:

109 Department Store, 2-29-1 Dougenzaka, Shibuya-ku.
Not necessarily fashionable/cool, but definitely the center of young people’s trends. Not to mention you can find very kawaii things—clothing and more—at the cheapest prices.

Donki, 2-25-8 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku.
This place is great for unique souvenirs. It’s four floors of everything—snacks, fashion accessories, home electronics, toys, alcohol, and more.

Nakano-Broadway Mall, 5-52-15 Nakano, Nakano-ku.
Nowadays, Akihabara’s not really the otaku spot anymore; for the true otaku, Nakano’s way hotter!

Events

Best events in each season?

SPRING:
O-hanami (the viewing of the cherry blossoms) in Spring.

SUMMER:
Japanese Summer festival with fireworks.

FALL:
DesignTide Tokyo & Tokyo Designers Week (Early November)
DesignTide Tokyo and Tokyo Designers Week are trade shows populated by designers across a variety of genres—interior design, graphic design, product design, and architecture. In early November, there are tons of design exhibitions and parties spawned by these events. Attendance will be at least 100, 000 people!

Tips

How would you spend a day off in your city?

Drinking!!!

Best website for local info:

ANewCityGuide

Anything else you want to mention?

Our company is now working on an English/Japanese magazine called SANPO (stroll) which introduces Tokyo’s more interesting hotspots. It will be available in mid-September—look for it in Tokyo’s New Balance and United Arrows stores—and it’s free!