If you like Sanrio characters, don’t miss this store when visiting Tokyo Character Street! In addition to classic characters like Hello Kitty, Kuromi, and Cinnamoroll, you can also find harder-to-come-by merchandise featuring My Melody, Pompompurin, and Pochacco. They have everything from plush toys and stationery to household goods. During special occasions like Christmas and Valentine’s Day, they may also release limited-edition items with cute, collectible designs that are worth considering.
Sanrio Tokyo Character Street Store | Review by Linda Liao
Other Reviews by Linda Liao
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Onigiri Bongo
This onigiri (rice ball) specialty shop is set up with counter seats, much like a sushi restaurant. Each onigiri is made to order, so you get freshly-made onigiri with crisp nori and warm rice. Their large onigiri, which are packed with plenty of fillings, are very popular.
I saw this place featured on a TV food show and visited on a weekday afternoon. This rice ball shop is small, but there's always a line outside, and it's even longer on weekends. The secret to the delicious rice balls is the owner's insistence on using premium rice from Niigata, which gives them a pleasantly chewy, plump texture. There are more than 50 fillings that you can mix and match however you like, so the possibilities are endless!
Since I had plans that evening, I didn't want to eat too much, so I ordered one rice ball to satisfy my craving, along with a steaming bowl of miso soup. It was very filling and generously stuffed.
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gashacoco Ikebukuro
Just about a 2-minute walk from Ikebukuro Station, “gashacoco Ikebukuro” is a specialty shop dedicated to capsule toys. With a sales floor of about 150 tsubo (about 495 m²), it boasts around 1,500 capsule toy vending machines. The lineup spans a wide range of genres, including anime characters, Heisei retro, and food motifs.
While walking around, I came across the capsule toy shop gashacoco and was drawn inside before I knew it. After carefully considering my options, I tried the Moomin tabletop mini alarm clock series. The quality is quite good, and it costs only JPY 500, making it a nice decoration for the office. I also accidentally got a Snoopy umbrella charm. Although it really is a useless little trinket, it's still very comforting. Don't forget that you can also redeem a beautiful pair of chopsticks here!
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Shirakawa Joshin Main Store
Shirakawa Joshin Main Store, located near Nagoya Castle, is a long-established restaurant famous for its hitsumabushi-a renowned Nagoya specialty featuring grilled eel, cut into small pieces and served atop rice.
I specifically added Shirakawa Joshin Main Store to my itinerary just to try the eel rice I’d been looking forward to for so long! Watching the chef repeatedly brush on the secret sauce passed down through generations and grill the eel until the skin was slightly charred, crisp, and fragrant while the meat inside stayed delicate and tender made me hungry just looking at it~
Once it’s served, don’t forget to try the classic “three ways”: first, enjoy the original flavors of the eel and white rice; second, add toppings like nori, green onions, and wasabi to experience different layers of flavor; finally, pour in the dashi broth to turn it into a light, easy-to-eat ochazuke. Each of the three ways has its own flavor. The meal was very satisfying and became one of the most memorable meals of the trip.
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