{Inter} Cultural Japan

Omotesando is the name of the tree-lined avenue leading up to the Meiji Shrine in Tokyo. It is the most fashionable part of Tokyo and also features the highest number of shops by famous fashion designers; adjacent Harajuku is the fountain of youth culture. Omotesando is a place often crowded with photographers trying to capture the latest “street fashion.” My list of favorite places is, however, very unfashionable - it reflects the fact that I used to live near Omotesando and therefore visited supermarkets rather than boutiques!

Here is a personal guide to ten highlights:

• 1. Aoyama Book Center (ABC). One of my favorite haunts, with a great and original selection of books on art, architecture, photography and design. It was a shock when the chain (which also has shops in Roppongi and elsewhere) went under in 2004, but it now has been completely rehabilitated under the wings of distributor Yohan. The main store is on the B2 floor of the Aoyama Cosmos building behind the United Nations University. It also has a large section of foreign books and magazines.
• 2. Maisen. Japanese-style pork cutlets (tonkatsu) with shredded cabbage. The Maisen variety is my favorite because it is crunchy and very tender and on top of that, the meals are served in an old converted bathhouse with high ceiling and the original signs on the walls.
• 3. Andersen. Danish bakery selling fresh bread (baked on the premises), pastries and sandwiches. Also houses a restaurant and a sandwhich bar. My favorites are the baguette sandwiches, the Danish pastries, and the crispy croissants.
• 4. Natural House. Fully stocked convenience store selling organic vegetables, health foods and supplements, as wll as “natural” cosmetics. It does not come cheap, but the quality is high and the bento (lunch boxes) with nutricious brown rice are oishii as well! (Also see this Metropolis article about organic foods in Tokyo).

[Statues in the garden of Taro Okamoto Museum]

• 5. Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum. Feel the energy of this popular contemporary artist in the house and studio where Taro Okamoto lived and worked until his death in 1996. There is small gallery, but more impressive is the studio where a work is still standing on the easel, unfinished. The living room is full with the quirky furniture Taro Okamoto designed. Don’t miss the funny sculptures in the small garden.
• 6. Kikokuniya International Store. Another supermarket, this one selling gourmet foods. There is a good wine selection. The shop is now housed in a temporary building as the original store has been torn down for renovation. In fact I prefer the Tokyu Store and Daimaru Peacock, two “ordinary” Japanese supermarkets sitting opposite each other on Route 246 from Omotesando in the direction of Gaienmae. They are much more fun with their noodles, Japanese seasonings, bento and sake than all the Kinokuniya’s in the world! Also good places for not too expensive osechi ryori, the New Year’s Day dish.
• 7. Oriental Bazaar (no website). You cannot miss the “oriental” front of red and green with a Buddha statue outside when on your way to the Meiji Shrine via Omotesando. This is not only the best souvenir shop in Tokyo, selling yukata, woodblock prints, fans, pottery and Japanese dolls for reasonable prices, there is also a large selection of antique furniture in the basement. Closed on Thursdays.
• 8. Yokumoku. Confectionery shop and tearoom in a distinct, blue-tiled building; there is also an inner court. The original product consists of butter cigars in various tastes, as chocolates and cafe-au-lait.

[Omotesando Hills]

• 9. Omotesando Hills. I hesitate to add this over-hyped facility of tycoon Minoru Mori to my list. There is no shop here where I will ever want to buy something, and as the restaurants are also overpriced (what about coffee for 1,000 yen?), there is no reason for me to go back here. But I do like the design by Ando, especially the broad, central staircase and slope spiralling around it, although not everybody agrees (see this Metropolis article by Mark Devlin!).
• 10. I should not forget to add the other great architecture that in recent years has gone up in Omotesando. Of course, we already had the Spiral Building by Maki Fumihiko, but now have been added such new extravangazas as Herzog & de Meuron’s Prada Building (a new landmark!), Jun Aoki’s Louis Vuitton store and Tod’s store by Toyo Ito.

[Prada]

• Nezu Museum. Unfortunately closed for renovation until the autumn of 2009 (and therefore added as an extra only), this is one the greatest collections of traditional Asian art in Japan, including such national treasures as the Iris Screen by Korin. Also has a great garden, an oasis of peace in the big city.

What are your suggestions?