Food Emporiums
Welcome to food heaven.
With limited time and budget, the best place for visitors to experience the world heritage known as washoku, or Japanese cuisine, is the basement food emporiums located in most major department stores.
The basement food emporium is traditionally divided into four sections: Japanese confectionaries, Western confectionaries, prepared foods and bento, and fresh foods and bread. There are usually liquor corners as well.
A large department store will have 20-30 food stalls in each section. The best emporiums have a balance of Japanese, Chinese, Asian, Western, and fusion. The very best will also have two or three different bakeries, each offering slightly different menus.
Simply put, it's food heaven. And there's no language barrier: just point to what you want and tell them how many.
The portions are priced reasonably. A typical serving of prepared food ranges from ¥500 to ¥1,500. The Japanese confectionaries are usually ¥300 to ¥800 per piece. Just want one? No problem.
It's rare for emporiums to have eat-in seating areas. You'll need to exit the emporium and the department store to enjoy your meal.
Isetan Shinjuku
99.45
- Google Maps
- Website
- JR Shinjuku Station, Yamanote Line, East Exit (4-minute walk)
This is the mecca of food emporiums.
Every corner of the emporium is alive with making and cooking. Many of the stalls make their items right on the spot and dish them out hot and savory. There are a freshness and excitement that you don't find in other emporiums.
And that's just one of Isetan's singular wonders. Another is the sheer diversity of food. No other emporium offers the same range of prepared foods. The pan-Asian (Thai, Chinese and fusion) range is especially good. And a few of the shops have specialties available at only Isetan Shinjuku.
The bakeries are excellent and complementary. The spirits shop has a very extensive range, but is pricey. There is no substantial English support for choosing Japanese spirits.
+Food quality and range
+Maneuverable
+Location
-Crowded on weekends
=A great opportunity for food lovers to experience washoku and its fusions.
Mitsukoshi Nihombashi
97.50
- Google Maps
- Website
- Tokyo Metro Mitsukoshimae Station, Ginza Line, Hanzomon Line, Store Exit (0-minute walk)
Mitsukoshi Department Store lives up to its venerable reputation in the basement of its Nihombashi store, near Tokyo Station.
Its greatest achievement is the range of delicacies from every area of Japan. While Isetan Shinjuku has a pan-Asian feel, Mitsukoshi Nihombashi is steadfastly Japanese in both its food range and the curvaceous, meandering floor plan.
+Great range of Japanese delicacies
+Good, not great, bakeries
-A short walk from Tokyo Station
-Little else of interest in the neighborhood
=If you're in the Tokyo Station areas, this is a perfect stop to taste Japanese delicacies and pick up some special gifts.
Takashimaya Shinjuku
- Google Maps
- Website
- JR Shinjuku Station, New South Exit (1-minute walk)
Takashimaya Shinjuku is a relatively new department store. The high ceilings and modern design combine for a bright, open, welcoming atmosphere.
The food range is typical of emporiums, but the selection is a little on the higher end. This is a great place to shop if you're NOT especially budget conscious and want something special for a gift.
+Convenient location (next to Shinjuku Station)
+Spacious and easy to maneuver
-Little live cooking
-Higher prices
=We would shop here for food-related gifts. It's a wider floor space, easier to stroll through and take some time looking around, and the selections are extensive and nicely presented. Unlike some of the smaller department stores (Keio, etc.) they are used to foreign customers and that makes it easier to shop there.
Mitsukoshi Ginza
- Google Maps
- Website
- Tokyo Metro Ginza Station, Ginza Line (Exit A8)
Ginza has traditionally been the epicenter of Tokyo department stores, and Mitsukoshi the crown jewel. The luster of Ginza has waned some, but both Ginza and Mitsukoshi are still worth a visit.
Mitsukoshi Ginza reeks sophistication, from the regal decor to the chicly attired staff and tony merchandise.
The basement food emporium is, however, approachable and reasonable.
Split into two floors, B2 and B3, the B2 emporium has a wide selection of prepared foods and Japanese confectionaries. It's more spacious and navigable than the smaller Ginza department store emporiums, and the prices aren't any different.
Much of the selection is predictable and standard (unlike the sister store in Nihombashi), but first-time shoppers won't know the difference and can enjoy a very broad range of washoku Japanese food.
+Navigable
+Chic window shopping on other floors
+Better-than-average bakeries
-Split between two floors
-Limited live cooking
=If Ginza is on your tour map, make a stop at Mitsukoshi and window shop a bit before picking up a tasty lunch at the B2 lunch area.
Seibu Ikebukuro
- Google Maps
- Website
- JR Ikebukuro Station, Yamanote Line (0-minute walk)
A very traditional basement food emporium with its long, narrow aisles and smaller stalls featuring a selection of a few main items.
Connected to JR Ikebukuro Station, the store gets especially busy around commute times at night, as people shop on their way home. You'll find it a real challenge to shop between 6pm and 9pm — but that might also be part of the fun.
+Connected to JR Ikebukuro
+Traditional design of small, narrow stalls
-Packed during commute hours
-Traditional selection (nothing surprising)
=A good stop if you're on your way through Ikebukuro. This is your best emporium in the neighborhood.
Tobu Ikebukuro
- Google Maps
- Website
- JR Ikebukuro Station, Yamanote Line, Store Exit (0-minute walk)
Tobu Ikebukuro excels at sweets. The B1 sweets area is equally divided between western and Japanese confectionaries, with 10-15 stalls in each area. Many of the fresh Japanese offerings are in the ¥500-¥600 range, perfect for sampling.
+Broad sweets area
+Connected to Ikebukuro Station
-Split between two floors
-Crowded and narrow
=If you're in Ikebukuro, Seibu is the better choice for hot and prepared foods, and Tobu is the choice for sweets.
Tokyu Shibuya
- Google Maps
- Website
- JR Shibuya Station, Hachiko Exit (1-minute walk)
Tokyu Shibuya's food emporium is the best of a handful of emporiums in the neighborhood and conveniently located right below the train station.
It's a fairly typical confab of fresh and prepared foods. There's no specialty that sets it apart from others and no need to make a special trip.
+All foods covered
+Connected to Shibuya Station
-Few specialties
=If you're staying in the Shibuya area or around the station during meal time, it's a nice place for a meal.
Matsuya Ginza
- Google Maps
- Website
- Tokyo Metro Ginza Station, Ginza Line, A8 Exit (4-minute walk)
Matsuya is an old-style department store in the middle of Ginza. The exterior decor and merchandise sections have been upgraded, but the basement food emporium has an old-time feel. It's long, narrow and split into the traditional sections. There's nothing remarkable about its selection. Compared to the newer, upscale basement emporiums, it's a little narrow and the atmosphere a bit claustrophobic. But it's a nice stop if you want to roll back the clock and experience the traditional emporium.
+Location
+Standard selection with a few good specialty shops (pay by weight)
-Narrow, claustrophobic
=A quick stop here during a Ginza tour.
Takashimaya Nihombashi
- Google Maps
- Website
- Tokyo Metro Nihonbashi Station, Tozai Line and Asakusa Line, outside Exit B4
You'd expect more considering this is one of Tokyo's most venerable department stores.
It's a plebeian assortment of bento lunch foods, fresh foods and packaged gifts. There's nothing special in any of its corners. Even the bakeries, where we like to see some surprises and specialties from store to store, have a predictable selection.
+Maneuverable
+Connected to Nihonbashi subway station
-Predictable
=If you're in the Nihonbashi area and food emporiums are on your visit list, go straight to Mitsukoshi Nihombashi. There's no comparison.
Ginza Six
- Google Maps
- Website
- Tokyo Metro Ginza Station, Ginza Line, A2 Exit (3-minute walk)
This is the newest department store in Ginza, opened in April 2017 to replace Matsuzakaya.
The basement food emporium has some unique shops in a very spacious area, notably a few very good bakeries and a nice wine shop with glass wine offerings.
But this isn't an improvement over the traditional emporium.
In fact, what you gain in maneuverability with the slick interior and wider aisles is more than lost in the bustling excitement and vitality you find in the traditional emporium.
In a phrase, it's a little too little.
+Bakeries and wine
+Maneuverable
-A little boring
-Smaller selection of shops