Kappabashi

Kappabashi

A wholesale-restaurant supply district might not sound like a promising shopping destination, but Kappabashi, about a 10-minute walk west of the temples and pagodas of Asakusa, is worth a look. Ceramics, cutlery, cookware, folding lanterns, and even kimonos can all be found here, along with the kitschy plastic food models that appear in restaurant windows throughout Japan. The best strategy is to stroll up and down the 1-km (½-mi) length of Kappabashi-dogu-machi-dori and visit any shop that looks interesting. Most stores here emphasize function over charm, but some manage to stand out for their stylish spaces as well. Most Kappabashi shops are open until 5:30; some close on Sunday. To get here, take the Ginza subway line to Tawara-machi Station.

Kappabashi Soshoku. Come here for aka-chochin (folding red-paper lanterns) like the ones that hang in front of inexpensive bars and restaurants. 3-1-1 Matsugaya, Taito-ku. 03/3844-1973. Mon.-Sat. 9:30-5:30. Subway: Ginza subway line, Tawara-machi Station (Exit 3)

Kawahara Shoten. The brightly colored bulk packages of rice crackers, shrimp-flavored chips, and other Japanese snacks sold here make offbeat gifts. 3-9-2 Nishi-Asakusa, Taito-ku. 03/3842-0841. Mon.-Sat. 9-5:30. Subway: Ginza subway line, Tawara-machi Station (Exit 3)

Maizuru. This perennial tourist favorite manufactures the plastic food that's displayed outside almost every Tokyo restaurant. Ersatz sushi, noodles, and even beer cost just a few hundred yen. You can buy tiny plastic key holders and earrings, or splurge on a whole Pacific lobster, perfect in coloration and detail down to the tiniest spines on its legs. 1-5-17 Nishi-Asakusa, Taito-ku. 03/3843-1686. Daily 9-6. Subway: Ginza subway line, Tawara-machi Station (Exit 3)

Noren-no-Nishimura. This Kappabashi shop specializes in noren—the curtains that shops and restaurants hang to announce they're open. The curtains are typically cotton, linen, or silk, most often dyed-to-order for individual shops. Nishimura also sells premade noren of an entertaining variety—from white-on-blue landscapes to geisha and sumo wrestlers in polychromatic splendor—for home decorating. They make wonderful wall hangings and dividers. 1-10-10 Matsugaya, Taito-ku. 03/3841-6220. Mon.-Sat. 10-6. Subway: Ginza subway line, Tawara-machi Station (Exit 3)

Soi Furniture. The selection of lacquerware, ceramics, and antiques sold at this Kappabashi shop is modest, but Soi displays the items in a primitivist setting of stone walls and and wooden floor planks, with up-tempo jazz in the background. 3-17-3 Matsugaya, Taito-ku. 03/3843-9555. Daily 10-7. Subway: Ginza subway line, Tawara-machi Station (Exit 3)