Tokyo, the city I fell in love with

Tokyo was amazing. Tokyo is amazing I have to say. There are a lot of to do lists, and enough to be found on the internet but below a couple of the restaurant and shops I would definitely recommend. We arrived on a Thursday night and left again on a Monday afternoon, giving us 3 entire days and a little bit to scramble on Monday morning. 3 days in Tokyo was probably enough – we could’ve easily spent more days there but definitely want to travel around when you’re for longer in Japan.

I loved everything here. If you follow me on Instagram you can’t have missed my enthusiasm for the country, the amazing food, the people and their utter politeness, the fresh air, and the amazing shopping you can do there. It seems that all the guys are well dressed there, an the girls are just amazingly cute. The Izakayas have a chill laid back atmosphere and the patrons just make you want to never leave again. God. Can I go back already?

Food

1. Afuri ramen. Definitely a must go, take their Yuzu broth and replace the normal ramen with the thick noodles. Those were so good. There are a couple Afuri Ramen spots throughout the city. I went twice to the one in Shibuya
2. Yamacho Soba Noodles (or Yamacho Sushi on Google maps) – Tempura soba noodles were really good, I had the dipping noodles with duck which were also very tasty. This one is located in Ebisu
3. Sushi no midori – long ques, but good sushi and relatively cheap. Located in Shibuya
4. 真武咲弥 渋谷店 . This place was recommended to us by a local when we asked for good ramen, this place had the best miso ramen around Shibuya according to him. And he was right.
5. Ichiran Ramen – so this place pops up in every blog, travel log or lonely planet. It was good ramen, but not mindblowing. I liked Afuri ramen way better, more exciting. At Ichiran the broth is thicker and stronger, and you have to order everything separately. Still good, but I would opt for Afuri if I had to choose.
6. Shake shack – I actually didn’t go there cause Edgar refused. But if you’re preparing for the trip, I would definitely include Shake Shack. We don’t have it in Europe nor in China so I’d think it’d be worth the try.
7. Fish market – we didn’t get up at 2 AM in order to queu for the fish auction. But we did go there at 7 AM and had our sushi for breakfast. The fish was really good and fresh, I finally understand what really fresh sushi is now. And it’s amazing. Also there is a guy who sells FRESH FRES FRESH Moji balls with Yuzu filling which were amazing. My mouth instantaneously starts to water again when thinking of it. Definitely buy the Moji balls at the fish market, and don’t forget to eat them. They’re best when they’re fresh.

I was so distracted and mind over Ramen, Sushi and Moji’s that I entirely forgot (or deprioritized) to taste the Tonkatsu (kind of a Schnitzel), the Japanese Curries (not sicy) and Okonomiyaki’s (the omelets.. Perhaps my biggest miss). So learn from my mistakes and try to taste those too.

Shopping

Mind that as a foreigner you can shop here tax-free if you buy for at least $50 in one store. That made shopping so much fun. Especially Uniqlo and Muji were little paradises.

Also Vintage is amazing there. If you go vintage shopping in Amsterdam you often see H&M and Zara pieces not worthy to be worn again. But the vintage shops in Tokyo have hidden gems with amazing clothes.

1. Supreme – there are 3 doors. One in Shibuya, one in Harajuku and a pop up in Dover Street Market in Ginza. The one in Harajuku is the biggest I think.
2. Bape – Shibuya
3. Evisu – Ebisu
4. Dover Street Market – Ginza
5. Muji – everywhere
6. Uniqlo – everywhere, but their flagship is next to Dover Street Market in Ginza. Edgar and I spent 3 hours in that store.
7. Kamezo – vintage store with a lot of nice brand (from Acne to Burberry to Chanel to even a couple of Celine bags).  On Google maps it’s called Orbital
8. Rinkan – vintage for our hypebeasts and baes, you can shop second hand Supreme here. The one time we passed there was a line queuing up to the Supreme store, which is a block away (!!)
9. Wego vintage – the first vintage shop we bumped into and had amazing stuff. Bought a really nice denim jacket with embroidered roses. They’ve got the original and retro stuff.
10. Loft for Stationery – It’s next to Muji in Shibuja, in the cellar. It’s a stationary paradise there, you can find everything that is related to pens, paper, agendas and anything stationary-nice. Don’t go there on Sundays cause it’s PACKED. We went back on a Monday and I bought some nice pens and folders (the true Asian in me is acting up here)